William Faulkner:
“In writing, you must kill all your darlings.”
technology
The Bookshop Feeling
Showing, Not Telling, Pt. 2
Richard Price:
“You don’t write about the horrors of war. No. You write about a kid’s burning sock lying on the ground.”
Turning the Page
After our post a couple weeks ago, I’ve been in the mood to read and discuss my latest reads without having to leave my bed to reach out to a book club. I wouldn’t want to be restricted on time (that I don’t have) to read a book and meet a group at a scheduled time which I may or may not miss. I would just love to sit back with my computer, write a post somewhere, and leave it alone overnight to accumulate some feedback.
Well guess what? There’s a place you can actually do that. There’s a Facebook group called Page Turners by Buzzfeed! It’s a great social place to go online and talk to fellow readers about the books you want to discuss. I know it’ll encourage me to pick up a new book and start a discussion or contribute to one.
Here’s what Page Turners had to say about themselves:
“Page Turners is a community/challenge to help people read more and read new kinds of books! [The Facebook group] is where can share what books [people are] reading for each month’s theme, discuss books with fellow readers, and even pictures of where, what, and how we’re turning pages.”
Does this make you want to pick up a book from your #TBR pile? It certainly makes me feel so!
A Bittersweet Feeling
A Definition A Day
The Bedtime Book Club
The only free time I get to transport myself to another world within the pages of a book is in bed. Reading the right bedtime book is sometimes hard to do. I enjoy lighthearted reads before bed, but some people enjoy a good thriller to fuel their nightmarish dreams. Some prefer to read an action-packed chapter to tire themselves out. Everyone deserves a bedtime read – and now we have a way to get that book in our hands before resting our eyes at night.
As of 2018, HarperCollins UK has teamed up with the Heart radio station and Dreams, a bed retailer, to begin what will be known as the Bedtime Book Club. With the radio station broadcasting to listeners, the hosts will discuss a variety of HarperCollins novels, different themes, and genres to encourage reading. But just because the station is only broadcasting in the UK, doesn’t mean you can’t find your own nighttime reads.
If having a Bedtime Book Club isn’t reason enough to read before bed, maybe I should tell you why it can be important to get your nose in a book while under the sheets. It’s simple – if you want better sleep, read. You read me right. Sleep better. It’ll help reduce stress by distracting your brain from the life stresses that can get the best of you. I’m guilty of blaring my TV to help me fall asleep but it’s actually a good idea to read rather than watch. It’ll reassure your brain that you are at peace. And if you’re also like me, scrolling through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram (whatever social media platform you choose), reading can help you concentrate better. In the long run, reading before bed can improve two other things: your empathy and your creativity. In a good way!
Reading is a powerful tool, so why not start your own Bedtime Book Club and start curling up with a good book to help rest your eyes and your brain.
Words, Words, Words
From Orwell to You
George Orwell:
“When I sit down to write a book, I do not say to myself, ‘I am going to produce a work of art.’ I write it because there is some lie that I want to expose, some fact to which I want to draw attention.”
Back to the Basics: The Period
As writers continue to write, editors continue to edit, publishers continue to publish, and readers continue to read…we all know that one person in this circle of publishing life who puts their finger to the page, looks up and says, “There’s supposed to be a period here.”
Oh, the punctuation that puts all other punctuation symbols to shame. The period, the dot, the endless black abyss which, ironically, ends it all.
Have you ever had that writers’ block moment where you seem to forget all your basic elementary school punctuation lessons and what purpose they serve you? It’s always a little embarrassing to see that one Amazon reviewer point out the silliest of grammar mistakes. There are so many different grammar rules, exceptions, and do’s/don’ts that well…who can keep track, right? Some grammar mistakes are so small (literally) that it’s hard for the author themselves to notice, especially when they are more focused on the actual story. Today, we are going to break down that dreaded black dot for you:
- Multiple Punctuation: For one, I am GUILTY when it comes to accidentally putting more than one punctuation at the end of a sentence. Most of the time, it’s without even thinking. Plenty of people get mixed up in this business, but let me clear it up for you: if you’re ending a sentence with a book name or company name (that includes another punctuation like a question mark or exclamation point in the title), the period isn’t needed anymore! The same thing happens with a sentence ending in an abbreviation. Begone black abyss!
- Direct and Indirect Questions: Direct questions end with a question mark. Indirect questions end in a period. What a way to end an implied question – leave your reader hanging and wondering about the question you put before them, without even asking!
- Proper Placement…: This part is broken up into two: proper placement with parentheses and quotation marks. The period becomes confusing when it comes to proper placement with symbols that set parts of the sentence apart from the rest.
- Parentheses: If the parentheses are being used within a sentence, to embrace a bigger part of the picture, the period will follow the (closing) (On the contrary, if whatever content is being held within the parentheses can stand alone, then the period is used before the closing parenthesis.)
- Quotation Marks: Ending your sentence in quoted material? The period stays within the quotation marks and not outside of them. The same thing goes if the quote ends in another punctuation. Nothing more, nothing less. Don’t use the period – it’s being dismissed!
- Abbreviations: Since I briefly mentioned ending a sentence with an abbreviation, let’s talk about the abbreviation alone. Some have periods, some don’t. Why is that? I don’t know the answer to that necessarily, but I do know when to use a period within the abbreviations and when not to. The only time you should use a period with an abbreviation is if the letters involved are lowercase or mixed-case. But pay attention to the content of the abbreviation. Ask yourself if it’s scientific or technical. If it is, you won’t need the period. Uppercase abbreviations, like an academic degree following an individual’s name, may include a period.
Even after going over the basics of the period, thinking about where it goes and when to use it still makes me put a hand to my forehead, shake my head, and say, “Oh, the English language. How complex can you be?”