HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I did a search on google today of Book Authoring Tools and came across this site:

http://www.bookcatcher.com/book-writing-software.php

I haven't checked out the prices of the various SW yet, but there are links at the bottom for some sister sites for Freelance Writing and for writing a proposal. Also there's a free e-book on the right side of the page which may be of interest.

Bill

December meeting

Congratulations to Jomana on her 2nd place finish in the writers contest. Anytime you can put yourself out with countless numbers of other individuals and come in either WIN, PLACE, or SHOW, that is something to be really proud of.



Since our last meeting in December was held the week of Christmas, we had a smaller than usual turn-out, but we still had a very good discussion. Following is a short re-cap:

• Critiqued Joanie's query letter.


• Rich gave us info on obtaining copyrights through the Library of Congress.


• The Writers Journey by Christopher Vogler is another good source for budding writers.

Fred informed us that Jason would no longer be with the group as he has moved to Utah to pursue his future. We wish him the best. With the internet, we can still keep in touch. He will be missed.

We also discussed the cancellation of meetings in inclement weather. If the Ohio County Schools are closed for a snow day on the date we are having our meeting at the Highlands, our meeting will be cancelled also. Our individual safety should always be at the forefront of what we do.

It was also brought up about having each blog sent directly to your e-mail account. To do this, when you're writing a new blog, go to the Settings tab on the top, and then go to the e-mail tab. We have six people signed up for this now. We can have a maximum of 10 people. If you find that you're already on the e-mail list, do not add yourself again. One drawback of this is that you never go to the actual blog to see the information posted on the side of the blog. We discussed URL's such as Penn writers and WV Writers. Those sites are posted on the side of the blog.

Our next meeting is on January 18, 2010, 7:00 pm at Books-A-Million, at the Highlands.

Finally, for those of you not at the last meeting, ask Rich about his new job. It sounds really fascinating.

Bill

First Chapter Contest

Hi everyone!

I originally wasn't going to post this, but Fred twisted my arm :o)

Back in October, I entered the November First Chapter Contest on ReviewFuse.com, and I found out a week ago that I actually won second place. If anyone wants to check it out, here's the link to their blog:

http://www.reviewfuse.com/blog

Of course, there are some errors (I'm not sure if these were mine when I submitted, or if they occurred during the publishing process), but it bugs me when I see them!

Anyway, this site runs a lot of different contests, so give it a shot...you have to actually participate in the critiquing portion of their site in order to be considered, but I think you only have to critique three works by other people. In any case, it's kind of cool how the site is set up.

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!

~Jomana

Good info

Here's another web-site I find is helpful.

www.guidetoliteraryagents.com/blog/

Joanie

Short article about when to send query letters

Hello,

I found this interesting and helpful.

www.writerunboxed.com/2007/12/18/should-you-query-during-the-holiday/

Joanie

Vanity vs. Self publishing.

Hi all - Here is more info that may be of interest.- Fred

http://www.sfwa.org/2009/12/blurred-distinctions-vanity-publishing-vs-self-publishing/

You Tube help

From Bill

Here is the YouTube video that Fred had referenced.  When you want to add a video on another site, all you have to do is copy and past the line that says Embed.  There’s an icon on the site for video.  Click on this icon and embed the line from YouTube where it says Embed.  BTW if anyone has anything like this that they would like to put on YouTube, let me know.  I’ve been uploading videos for some time now.   I’ve uploaded some videos of Yodeling Dick Brooks and have found that he’s on sites in Russia, China, and Japan.

I also noticed that, when this video ended, there were other videos along the same lines that we should view.

One big thing I got out of this video was that, if you look at the inside flap of a hard cover book, you’re in essence looking at the query letter.

More Agent Pitch Info

Hi guys

You may find this interesting. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn_BWHsFFmU&feature=channel

Fred