Poetry comes to the Orange County Library System for National Poetry Month

In addition to the events all over the state to celebrate National Poetry Month, there are many events taking place in your very own local libraries.

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April is National Poetry Month

During the month of April, scriptwriters all over the world are participating in ScriptFrenzy. They're writing everything from screenplays to radio scripts to graphic novels, with the goal of completing 100 pages in 30 days. But that isn't the only exposure to literature during April. This month is also National Poetry Month.

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ScriptFrenzy is easier with support from Orlando writers

ScriptFrenzy is nearly here, and while thousands of writers have already committed to writing 100 pages of script in 30 days, there are many of you who may still be nervous about this big, scary adventure.  After all, if  you've never written a script before, it can be an intimidating venture.  Fortunately, the ScriptFrenzy website offers a lot of support and information about script-writing to get  you ready for the month.

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Local indie bookstore says goodbye

After nine successful years of contributing to the Orlando community, local independent bookstore UrbanThink! is closing its doors as of March 31, 2010.


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Editing Tips, part three

In part one of Editing Tips, you learned about one process for editing, which uses three passes of a story.  In part two, you learned the benefits of having others read your work.  This week, you'll learn the benefits of reading your story aloud.


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What is ScriptFrenzy?

Back in November, Orlando writers, as well as thousands of writers all over the world, sat down at their computers and took on the adventure of writing 50,000 words in 30 days.  Next month, thousands of writers all over the world will once again get creative and undertake a new challenge: ScriptFrenzy.


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Editing Tips, part two

You know it's important to edit your work, even if self-editing is difficult for you.  After all, you want to make your story (or article or poem) the best it can be.  But sometimes, no matter how many times you go through your writing, you could miss errors or mistakes.  Since you spend so much time working on your stories, you can become too close to them, and that's where the problem arises.


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Editing Tips, part one

March first is the first day of National Novel Editing Month (NaNoEdMo), a month-long adventure in novel editing. Just as NaNoWriMo shows writers they have the time to write a novel by writing 50,000 words in one month, NaNoEdMo shows writers and editors they have the time to edit their work by editing 50 hours in one month.


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Zora! Festival begins

The Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts and Humanities is underway, celebrating the life and work of Zora Neale Hurston, who was from Eatonville.


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Kerouac House writers' workshop

Orlando's very own Kerouac House will be the meeting place for a writer's workshop on January 30, 2010 with Alicia Shandra Holmes, a writer in residence with the Jack Kerouac Writer in Residence Project of Orlando.


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My NaNo: an idea

Okay. So here's my idea for NaNo.

Some of you may know I play World of Warcraft, and in my guild, led by Hubby, I'm in charge of guild fellowship.  It's not a small task, and it has become an integral part of the time I spend on the game.

So I've decided to write a sort of how-to guide for guild fellowship in World of Warcraft as my character in the game.  So it's a sort of non-fiction/fanfic type thing.

National Novel Writing Month: poised at the keyboard

Today marks the first day of sign-ups for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) 2008, which is the 10th anniversary of the event.

Hooray!  Let's celebrate!

For those who haven't done it, let me give you a little insight into the insanity of the annual event.

NaNoWriMo takes place during November every year.  From November 1st (midnight) until November 30th (11:59:59 p.m.), writers from around the world spend every spare moment writing in order to complete a 50,000-word novel in thirty days (a little less than 2,000 words each day).

The event is a celebration of novel-writing, and to prove to writers everywhere that the time to write exists.  If you can make time each November to write 2,000 words a day, you can write your novel.

This will be my fourth year participating.  Last year was the first year I "won."  Even though I didn't win in 2005 and 2006, I came close, and the point of the event was more important than my word count at the end.  I started December with renewed energy for scribbling and got a lot of writing done as a result.

If you're considering NaNo--even a little--please check out the website.  There are great resources for WriMos, a forum to keep in touch with other writers, and even weekly podcasts to keep you going!

The adventure is just around the corner, and there's plenty of time to get ready, so sign up!  (Be patient--the site just went live for this year, so it may be a bit laggy.)