Mar 31
March Real Words Round-Up
Posted by kathrynv at 10:01 am in Blog info

It’s always good to take time throughout your life to review the past. This is particularly true for people who do creative work for a living. It helps you find the thread of your work. It helps you define themes in your art. And it just gives you perspective on where you’ve come from so that you can better see where you want to go.

This is done in many ways for writers. I keep a regular journal. It times of life that are emotionally confusing or times when I need to go back to the basics of who I am, I can mine those journals for insight. Photo scrapbooks can be mined in similar ways. In blogging, the best thing to do is to regularly look at your favorite posts and favorite themes.

So, in honor of that, I want to share my review of the best things on this Real Words blog in the month of March …

By far my favorite post (and the favorite of readers, apparently, since it’s been the most visited) was 10,000 Resources for Writers and Bloggers.

However, my favorite theme isn’t writing tips and resources but rather the posts that I have penned on green writing. I think it’s really important to work towards being eco-kind in our writing so I enjoyed providing information on 10 Eco-Harmful Habits of Writers and Adding Green Links to your Website. Green Writing is going to be a once-weekly Real Words column on Tuesdays from here on out.

Although it wasn’t my favorite post, the most commented-on post in March was my piece posing the idea that Typos Don’t Really Matter. I imagine that’s a controversial thing for a writer to say! And I stress that I always proofread my work since I know it matters to most people but that my point was I don’t mind typos at all as a reader of other people’s work.

Question of the Day: What was your favorite Real Words post from March?

[Tags] writing, round-up, links, freelance, typos, resources, posts [/Tags]

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Mar 31
Inspired! – Great Screen Name
Posted by kathrynv at 6:59 am in creativity, inspiration

I’m always a little bit inspired by someone who has come up with a great screen name for himself or herself. We so often see online names that lack imagination (many of the ones I use are probably guilty of this) either because we need to use our given / professional name for work purposes or because we’re just in the habit of using the same old screen name that we’ve always used. As a result, it always catches my eye when someone has a great screen name that makes you look twice.

I’m also a big fan of any sort of play on words. I think words should be played with! So my interest was particularly captured when I was stumbling (through the social bookmarking site StumbleUpon) and I came across a profile with the name:

I Break for Trees

It’s a different kind of name. And it’s a great play on words (because of the spelling of break and the phrase ‘brake for animals’ it conjures up). I think we should all break for trees a little more in our lives. If we did, perhaps we’d be more inspired to come up with unique screen names and otherwise infuse creativity into the little things in our lives!

Question of the Day: What’s the best online name you’ve come across on the web?

[Tags] inspired, creativity, screen name, break for trees [/Tags]

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Mar 30
What a Writer is Reading on the Web, 3/30/08
Posted by kathrynv at 1:38 pm in link love

Here are some of the posts and news articles that I find interesting today:

And here are some links to my favorite things that I authored this week:

2 comments
Mar 30
Freelance Writing Jobs, Sunday 3/30/08
Posted by kathrynv at 7:50 am in link love

Want to get a jump start on the week to come by applying for new freelance writing or blogging work today? Following you’ll find the list of job links posted around today’s web. 

Blog Jobs:

Ongoing writing jobs:

One-shot writing jobs:

Seeking submissions:

Editing jobs:

Misc:

[Tags] freelance, writing, jobs, gigs, resources, employment, links, freelance writing jobs [/Tags]

1 comment
Mar 29
Freelance Writing Jobs, Saturday 3/29/08
Posted by kathrynv at 8:58 am in freelance jobs

If you’re on the hunt for freelance jobs that are available right now, you’ll want to check out the following opportunities:

Blog Jobs:

Ongoing writing jobs:

One-shot writing jobs:

Seeking submissions:

Editing jobs:

Misc:

[Tags] freelance, writing, jobs, gigs, resources, employment, links, freelance writing jobs [/Tags]

1 comment
Mar 28
Blog Writing Carnival
Posted by kathrynv at 9:47 am in Blog info, writing

Check out this week’s Just Write blog carnival. I know about it, of course, because one of my posts is featured there. However, I recommend it for the other great links that you’ll find there about writing. From dealing with artist rejection to coping with writer’s block to poetry about poems, there are some great little gems to be found there.

I’m also on the lookout for new blog carnivals for writers. I always enjoy reading about writing and think these are a great way to find writing articles I wouldn’t find anywhere else. So, if you know of any good ones, drop me a line!

1 comment
Mar 28
Inspired! – Typos
Posted by kathrynv at 6:00 am in inspiration, writing

I wrote a post earlier in the week describing the fact that I don’t think typos are that big of a deal. As a writer, I definitely make sure to proofread my work so that others don’t see typos because I think it’s the professional thing to do. But if it were up to me, people would be a lot less judgmental about the occasional typo because I really don’t think they matter much in the big scheme of a written piece.

In fact, I think that typos can be really inspiring when I see them in other people’s work. Here are some of the ways that you might think about being inspired the next time that you see a typo in someone’s work:

  • Take time to wonder about why the typo happened. Imagine the author writing that piece of work and why he ended up with a typo. You just might find that this wondering leads to the development of a character in your next story. 
  • Ask yourself what the author really meant. Assess whether the typo makes any difference to that intended meaning. If not, let yourself think about the reasons that we take typos so seriously when they don’t really matter much.
  • Let your mind wander over the different meanings that are created when an amusing typo crops up.
  • Look at the word that’s been misspelled and see how many other words – real and imagined – can be created out of changing around those same letters.
  • Let each typo be a reminder to come back to the piece. Most of us read with half our attention while thinking about (or doing) other things. A typo catches our attention and refocuses us on the page. Let each one be a reminder to really pay attention to what you’re reading.
  • Look at the typo and see if it’s a nonsense word. If it is, spend some time brainstorming what that word could mean if it was a real word. Sound it out. Ask yourself what it feels like. Be inspired by the mistake.

I know that I’m one of very few people – and certainly very few professional writers – who don’t believe that typos are a big deal. But it’s true, I don’t. And I think they can be inspiring if we look for the inspiration in them. Let’s have more fun with our words, especially when they don’t come out the way that we intended.

Question of the Day: Can you imagine that typos are a source of inspiration?

[Tags] typo, edit, freelance, writing, copyediting, inspiration, creativity [/Tags]

4 comments
Mar 27
Hub Pages Love 3/27/08
Posted by kathrynv at 6:58 pm in hubpages

I’ve found that there are a lot of benefits of blogging with HubPages. One of those benefits is that you get the chance to read information about all sorts of different topics that other people are posting on the site.

Here are some of the articles that went up on the site in the last 24 hours and that I happened to quite enjoy:

What do you think of HubPages content?

[Tags] hub pages, blogging, content, articles, writing, reading, links [/Tags]

no comment
Mar 27
A Note on Real Words Blog Comment Responses
Posted by kathrynv at 10:11 am in Blog info

I love blog comments. I love dropping by the blogs of other writers whose work I enjoy and letting them know what I think about the things that they have written. I love it when people take the time to let me know what they think of my own blog posts here on Real Words (and on the other blogs I write for, too, of course). And I really love getting the chance to respond to blog comments that people have left for me because that’s where a real dialogue gets going.

It is through these back-and-forth comment conversations that pieces of work can grow and change. Ideas that were simple posts can turn into full-fledged articles. Some may even turn into books one day. It is this kind of interaction that web writing – and Web 2.0 as a whole – is all about.

As a quick note to my readers, I do try to respond to all comments on this blog as often as possible. The comments are left on this blog by editing the comment on my end. I’ll add an “@ author – NOTE HERE – Kathryn” line to show who it was meant for, what I want to say and that I was the one that added it. If you want to be notified that I’ve left this note on your comments, simply drop me and email to let me know and I’ll make sure to update you when my responses have been added.

Thanks for dropping by; I love the fact that you’re here!

Question of the Day: What are the best approaches you’ve seen to the process of writing and responding to comments on blogs?

[Tags] comments, blog, writing, readers, web 2.0, communication, interaction [/Tags]

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Mar 27
Inspired! – Flower Photo
Posted by kathrynv at 6:03 am in art, inspiration

img_5112.jpg

Inspired is a daily column here on Real Words that reveals all of the different things that inspire me throughout the week. What I’m finding inspirational today is this stunning photograph of the insides of a beautiful flower. It comes from Caught in Time Photography where you can go to check out galleries of other impressive photos.

I find this inspiring as a writer for a few reasons. These reasons include:

  • Quality photography eludes me. My medium is words. I love images but I’m not skilled at capturing them in any form. I’ve definitely never gotten to the point of being skilled at capturing great close-up photos with a camera. Someone else that can do it inspires me as an artist.
  • The attention to detail. As a writer, you can never get too much attention to detail in your life. Breaking everything down to those small little pieces makes it easier to understand. Knowing how to look at details helps you to capture nuances in your own work and to really allow readers to connect with what you’re trying to describe.
  • The light and shadow. Writing boils down to showing off the light and shadows in life. I love seeing that complex notion captured simply in photographs such as this one.

It’s also just a really beautiful picture that I can gaze at to inspire daydreams.

Question of the Day: Why do you think flowers have so often been a source of inspiration to artists of all kinds?

[Tags] photography, art, flower, inspiration, writing [/Tags]

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