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Posts Tagged ‘Michael Connelly’

Writer’s Mail

Posted in Newsletter, tagged , on March 21, 2012| 1 Comment »

Writer’s Mail
March 20, 2012

“A white blank page…and a swelling rage…”-Mumford and Sons, “White Blank Page”

Second and Forth Recap
Terry Hoffman, The Great Tome
• Jen suggested that there needed to be a better transition from the present section to the flashback section.
• Kristin liked the inner dialogue especially the part where things seem normal
• Rachel doesn’t want to mess things up.
• Carol liked the dialogue. She noted a place that needed more physical gestures when the mother was talking about Doug.

Carol Hornung, Sapphire Lodge
• Holly asked what was the purpose of the scene. Carol replied that the scene brings up suspicion on a few characters.
• Jen felt that the scene was short and could be expanded upon. Carol said another scene afterwards brings everything into more context.
• Holly asked Carol to expand the two small scenes in this segment and expand Rita’s character. The reader needs to understand why Saffi is worried for Rita.

Liam Wilbur, The Payment
• Kateline suggested that Liam show the bad guys removing shards of glass from the window before entering the house.
• Holly suggested that Nick try to hid, but didn’t have time to hide properly.
• Carol asked if one of the bad guys was searching the house, why he didn’t find the other kids. She suggested that Liam explore that idea.
• Terry suggested Nick shows some regret for throwing the brick.
• Jen suggested that Liam provide more description of the place.
• Carol said that the dialogue seems modern. (more…)

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Writer’s Mail

Posted in Newsletter, tagged , , , on August 16, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Tuesdays with Story
WRITER’S MAIL for August 13, 2011

Good Words from Way Back
“A water-clerk need not pass an examination in anything under the sun, but he must have Ability in the abstract and demonstrate it practically.” –Joseph Conrad (1857-1924) in Lord Jim (1899)

Fifth Tuesday: Counting Down to August 26 Deadline
Here’s your writing challenge: “That is so unlike me!” Write a story, poem, or essay in which the central character is so out of character . . . a pro football tackle who knits, a nun who is a blackjack dealer at Ho Chunk, a four-foot-nine guy who is an eating contest champion or the smallest sumo wrestler in the world. You get the idea. Maximum length: 400 words.

Start writing now. When finished – deadline is Friday, August 26 – email your mini-masterpiece to Pat Edwards.

Chris and Joe Lacey will host us at their country estate out by Cambridge, at 49 London Road. MapQuest says it’s a 37-minute drive east from Barnes & Noble Westside. MapQuest it for a map and directions . . . or just plug the Chris and Joe’s address into your GPS.

Start time is our usual 7:00 p.m. Yes, it’s potluck, so bring food to share. Also bring lawn chairs . . . and pointy sticks so you can roast marshmallows over the flames down at the fire pit.

Reading Recap: August 9 Meeting
Summer has taken us all on many different paths, but we converged again Tuesday night at Barnes & Noble West.

First up on the reading schedule was Jennifer Hansen, reading from Chapter 2 of her novel. Carol Hornung thought that Paige wouldn’t see her mother as “Doris,” that she should be referred to as “her mom.” Jack Freiburger felt the story would be well served if more distance was created between Paige and her mother physically, with more details describing the action. Jim Cue wanted a more visual creation of the scene. JenWilcher felt that the voice was too passive. Carol said there was a lot of solid back-story, but it could be spread out more. (more…)

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Writer’s Mail

Posted in Newsletter, tagged , , on April 19, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Writer’s Mail for April 17, 2010
by Jen Wilcher

A cozy cluster of us gathered Tuesday night, ducking the din of the elementary students participating in a Barnes & Noble fundraiser for their school. Good thing we didn’t have any particular steamy or cuss-filled pieces on the table! Though we did have discussions of galoshes and kumquats…

FIFTH TUESDAY! We have a date, we have a place: Tuesday May 31st, from 7-9pm at the Grumpy Troll in Mount Horeb. We are working on a challenge and a guest speaker, a writer from Mount Horeb. The Troll is lending us their upstairs area, and since they are a restaurant, it would probably be best to order munchies and drinks from them. Details arriving soon. The challenge is likely to be an on-the-spot writing exercise. Yes, kumquats and galoshes could be involved… again, details as we uncover them. We will also work out car pools for folks who need travel assistance. Details… you get the picture.

First on the roster, Terry Hoffman read a revamped section of The Tome. Kim Simmons liked it a lot better. But how does Doug connect Rachel’s trip to the library with the book? Jen Wilcher liked the conversation part, and thought the cancer research sections should be expanded; cut back a bit on saving the earth. Carol Hornung thought that maybe the loss of the child could work its way in there. Jack Freiburger pointed out the many triggers a library could have of memories and children. Start with a Save-the-Children ad on yahoo and she’s off. Jack felt there was a lot of extraneous detail about the librarian and the library doors, etc, but Kim wanted more description – she wanted to feel the atmosphere of the library a bit more. (more…)

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