The countdown has begun. The Donkey’s Song is due to be released on October 18, 2022. Today, we got our third great review, and I thought that I’d share with you what some of the pros have said. “A rhyming Nativity narrative. “The donkey who carried Mary to the Nativity calmly focuses on feelings…
The Writing Life by Annie Dillard – Tips from a Pro
“WHEN YOU WRITE, you lay out a line of words. The line of words is a miner’s pick, a woodcarver’s gouge, a surgeon’s probe. You wield it, and it digs a path you follow. Soon you find yourself deep in new territory. Is it a dead end, or have you located the real subject? You…
Every Aspiring Writer Should Study Ray Bradbury Who Was Much More Than the Father of Sci-Fi
Years ago, I watched the movie Something Wicked This Way Comes, and I was stunned by the brilliance of Ray Bradbury’s writing. Although many people only know Ray Bradbury as the Father of Sci-Fi and the author of The Martian Chronicles or other futuristic or alien-like stories. Bradbury was foremost a writer about people and…
Juxtaposition in Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes
juxtaposition “an act or instance of placing close together or side by side, especially for comparison or contrast. the state of being close together or side by side.” dictionary.com René Magritte was a famous surrealist painter who juxtaposed dissimilar items in the same painting. In his famous painting “The Son of Man,” he juxtaposed an…
What Is Intuition & How Does It Help Us Create?
“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free” – Michelangelo – In the above words, Michelangelo has described how intuition helped him sculpt. Michelangelo was a famous artist during the Italian Renaissance. He was commissioned by Pope Julius II to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel between the…
Guji Guji – A Picture Book by Chih-Yuan Chen
‘ “Guji Guji” is yet another picture book that was no doubt inspired by the tale of the “Ugly Duckling.” which was published by Hans Christian Andersen in 1843. Many years ago, I went to a writing festival, and one of the speakers said that his best books happened when he asked: “What If?” I…
I Talk Like A River by Jordan Scott – Illustrated by Sydney Smith – A Picture Book Memoir
I TALK LIKE A RIVER Written by Jordan Scott Illustrated by Sydney Smith “I wake up each morning with the sounds of words all around me. P for the pine tree outside my bedroom window. C for the crow in its branches, M for the moon fading in the morning sky. I wake up each…
The Difference between Simile and Metaphor – Metaphors in Bette Midler’s The Rose
Last week I began working at the perfect job for me. I am teaching Comp II: Writing about Literature at Northark College. Northark College is a beautiful school in the gorgeous Ozark Mountains. I love the fact that Northark College is within minutes from where the opening of the movie Tuck Everlasting was filmed: Tuck…
How to Use Quotation Marks Correctly
For anyone writing, plagiarism is a serious concern. Very serious. In fact, plagiarism can be a fast track to court. Image Credit: IMDb Daphne du Maurier was a famous British writer who wrote the novel, Rebecca. Image Credit: Amazon Not long after Rebecca was published, a lady claimed that du Maurier had stolen elements of…
Analysis of William Faulkner’s Short Story: A Rose for Emily
Before we talk about the story, “A Rose for Emily,” let’s talk about William Faulkner and his Yoknapatawpha County for a moment: “William Faulkner…(born September 25, 1897, New Albany, Mississippi, U.S.—died July 6, 1962, Byhalia, Mississippi), [was an] American novelist and short-story writer who was awarded the 1949 Nobel Prize for Literature. As the eldest…