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Two for the price of one from Paul Beckman

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It’s Not That Hard Now form a line. Now you know the line’s rules. Now move to the right line. Now you are all in a line on the right. Now move to the correct line. Now Tim, move over to the left line. Now all friends of Tim’s line up behind Tim. Now Al, are you really a friend of Tim? Now Al, move over to the other line where your friends are. Now Betty Jean, what are you doing? Now we don’t need another line Betty Jean, Now Tim, why does everyone want to be in your line? Now Betty Jean, why do you insist on having your own line. Now does anyone want to be in Betty Jean’s line. Now Betty Jean turns around and looks behind to see no one else in her line. Now Tim, where are you going. Now Betty Jean see what you started. Now Tim, why did you move. Now Tim, you might like her, but you should ask her out on your own time. Now Tim, why are you holding Betty Jean’s hand? Now Betty Jean, why are you making that face and saying oohh? Now Harry, what is it? Now
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WRITE-BYTES #38

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  WRITE-BYTES #38 (ENJOY!) The whole byte for this week appears below for your convenience. To see all prior BYTES published, go to www.lindasgunther.com June 2, 2023 SELF-PUBLISHING YOUR BOOK Some years ago, I had the pleasure of teaching a one-day workshop at a local college. The course was titled: Self-Publishing Your Book. Over 40 people showed up in the classroom where we had an energizing, interactive and hopefully content-rich experience. It was during the “hey day” for self-publishing. Amazon had a wing of business called CreateSpace, an amazing resource for authors ready to take the leap into getting their book self-published and “up” on Amazon. The consultants and tech people at CreateSpace were stellar in terms of their professionalism and quality of service. They guided me through the journey which was a bit tricky. There were lots of moving parts involved and always a support phone number to call. Did it cost $$$? Sure, but about $1,000 or thereabouts. Not cata
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WRITE-BYTES

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by Linda S. Gunther  To read this week’s edition, please go to www.lindasgunther.com  OR see this blog post in its entirety below! (for your convenience) May 26, 2023 PLANTING CLUES IN THE MYSTERY OR SUSPENSE NOVEL Learn from the wise and thrive. That’s my writer’s motto. On the other hand ,  go where your own creative energy takes you . I try to blend these two approaches. I savor the golden nuggets I get from the experts on the craft of writing. But I also use my gut and trust and honor my unique writer’s “voice.” I was fortunate to attend an excellent  Sisters in Crime  webinar with Catriona McPherson who writes mysteries set in the 1930’s as well as contemporary psychological thrillers. Everything I got from her session was valuable for me as a suspense novelist. In this blog post, I’ll dig into  PLANTING CLUES , the focus of Catriona’s presentation. Catriona began her talk with the three questions inherent in every mystery: How dunnit? Why dunnit? and When dunnit?  She, then
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Graduate Class and Zoom Class

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The one-hour commute to the city for the Graduate class at the university was a long one because of semis, potholes, and even deer who fed on the state-planted wildflowers to save on mowing costs, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as receiving a text from the faculty member fifteen minutes before class and forty-five minutes into my commute that the class was canceled.   Zoom Class During the pandemic, I turned on my pc and clicked on the Zoom shortcut for my university class. I was shocked and tried not to laugh at my professor. She had a bag of Doritos propped against her pillow and laid there on top of her paisley comforter in a long night gown. She fidgeted with the sound and camera, but clearly couldn’t operate it, or we wouldn’t have seen such a comedic view. Apparently, her university department hadn’t trained her for the online class conversion.   Two stories from Niles Reddick 
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WRITE-BYTES

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CHRONOLOGY and THE WRITER You can either go to my website to read or I’ve included the whole byte for your convenience, just below. ✍🏼✍🏼✍🏼 www.lindasgunther.com —————————————- WRITE-BYTES May 19, 2023 - #36 - Chronology and the Writer Once upon a time, there was a writer who messed with chronology. Her chapters were out of sequence and did not follow a timeline. She went back and forth between decades in her story. Did she have readers? And even if she had readers, could they follow along when she flip-flopped events out of order, using a nonlinear structure? Writing coaches warn developing writers not to screw with chronology. In other words, to write the story sequentially from the beginning to the middle, and then to the end. Follow the timeline of how events and situations unfold, as they do in real life. “Jumping back and forth in a story is like opening a can of worms,” I’ve heard a coach say. “It gets out of hand real fast, and readers may be left confused and perhaps e
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Laughing Aloud

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“Shhh,” he said. “Here it is, but when he finds out?” “Snnuugh Rubububububua,” “They both laughed; he handed her the clothespin, his eyes sunken in but his face smiling. “I hear him from everywhere: I’m sure this will do it,” he said. Then giggled. “Quietly and with finesse, she stood, his snoring like an orchestra’s brass section of out-of-tune.” Clothespin in her hand: her brother directing from Mother's hospital bed in the living room. Auntie said, “Make him laugh as much as you can daily—illness struck him. We laughed the same as always. Remembering how mom did it.  Lily Finch
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One Rule to Rule them All

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There is only one rule for #worthingflash . All stories should be 1000 words or fewer. Derek McMillan
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