THINGS THAT MAKE ME GO MMMRUH!
July 12, 2007 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as Things That Make Me Go Mmmruh
by Geralyn Ruane
Taking Back the Magic
The water in my Sam’s Club backyard pool looks green, feels suspiciously silky and comes up only a little higher than my waist. Not exactly Bel Aire luxury, but so what? In this blistering sauna of summer in the Valley, I flop around my pool with the abandon of a breaching whale. I let the chlorinated water buoy me, engulf me, and go up my nose! Mmmruh!
I HAVE SUMMER BACK!
Fourteen years ago, I lost it. I graduated, got a job, and became an official grown-up. No more breaks from school. JuneJulyAugust became nothing more than a block of ordinary days during which I had to crank the AC in my car. Like Jackie Paper, I let my beloved magic slip away through neglect.
But one good dunking in my improperly pH-balanced pool opened the flood-gates to all the mmmruh! I’ve been missing:
The smells of freshly cut grass, sunblock, and hot dogs getting crispy on a neighbor’s grill – mmmruh!
The sounds of fireworks, laughing, whistles and splashing – mmmruh!
The taste of an ice cream cone, a lover’s sweat-salty skin, or a combination of both – mmmruh!
The carefree feelings of reading in a shady hammock, eating supper outside, or wearing nothing but a bathing suit all day – mmmruh!
Now that I’m awake, I can bite into the succulence of summer almost anywhere. The flavor rolls across my tongue, sweet and fresh, and so, so familiar.
The sight of a young woman taking her little girl to the Community Pool, reminding me of how Mom used to pack the four of us kids into the car and drive forever, just so we could spend the day swimming at the State Park – mmmruh!
Geralyn Ruane’s had a crush on MacGyver since the middle school, and these days she channels all that fantasy energy by by writing romance, chick lit and women’s fiction. Last year her short story “Jane Austen Meets the New York Giants†was published in the New York Times Bestselling anthology The Right Words at the Right Time: Volume 2.
Writer’s Word
July 11, 2007 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as Writer's WordKeeping Your Hands on the Keyboard
Are you ever typing so quickly that you are afraid to let your hands leave the keyboard? Do you have times when new ideas are coming and you don’t want to stop to pick up your mouse to format?
You have choices. We talked about creating templates in last month’s column. This month I want to share with you the keyboard shortcuts that are available to you in Microsoft Word…some of them even work all over Microsoft Office.
Hit the CTRL key at the same time that you hit the letters on the keyboard to do these shortcuts (ex: Ctrl + A).
* The letters with this symbol next to it work throughout Microsoft Office.
Other Word Shortcuts.
President’s Message
July 7, 2007 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as President's MessageMEETING MEMBERS AT NATIONAL CONFERENCE
by OCC Co-President Sandy Novy-Chvostal
Opportunity–Creativity–Community. OCC embodies them all.
Opportunity, in all areas of your writing life, is something all OCC Boards work hard to provide. Creativity comes from within. Community, however, can only be achieved by reaching out and connecting with your fellow members.
The perfect opportunity to do so with both new and old, local and long-distance members, is at National Conference. Once again OCC will be hosting a Hospitality Suite and once again Michelle Thorne — past RWA Bookseller of the year, past OCC president and longtime member — will be serving as our Conference Coordinator and Suite Hostess.
Our scheduled Suite Events include the Book Buyers Best Awards, celebrated with a Chocolate and Champagne Party on Wednesday night. We will also be hosting the first annual Presidents’ Tea on Thursday, and a “Salon†following the RITA/ Golden Heart Awards Ceremony. (For dates and times, please see page 4).
If you are a published member and will be signing at the literary event, please contact Michelle at agreatreadoccrwa@aol.com to be included in any plans concerning that activity.
This year, Michelle is also planning to capture as many OCC members as possible in “Postcard Podcasts†to be used up on our website throughout the year. So check in with Michelle at the Suite to participate in that project.
And most of all, don’t hesitate to use the Suite to sit down and relax, to put your feet up in between lectures and take the time to chat with your fellow writers. Writing is basically a solitary profession, but even so, you don’t always need to go it alone.
Happy Writing,
Sandy
Sandy Novy-Chvostal (aka Sandra Paul) has a degree in journalism, but prefers to write from the heart. She is married to her high school sweetheart and they have three children, three cats, and one overgrown “puppy.” Her 2006 Silhouette Romance DOMESTICATING LUC is a finalist in this year’s RITA Awards.
CyberTalk
July 4, 2007 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as CyberTalkwith Gina Black
Maybe I should title retitle my monthly column CyberTrek because once again I’m sending you all out into the internet, mice in hand. It’s the easiest way to travel. No standing in line. No exorbitant fares. No nasty airplane food. And lots and lots of good info.
Everybody got their coffee? Good. Let’s go.
First stop: Claire Delacroix’s post on Surviving the Copy/Line Edit
Claire is a member of one of my online groups (and fellow knitter extraordinaire) who blogs often on Very Useful Subjects. This is one of them.
Second stop: Diana Peterfreund’s post (on The Knight Agency blog) about Writing a Series
Diana’s own blog is a daily stop for me. She doesn’t shy away from controversy, so things can get lively–which I like. She also does an excellent job of explaining this business. Check out her posts on Primer Part one and Primer Part Two (Glossary). Excellent information and advice, as always.
Third stop: Agent Jessica Faust blogs about the Bad Agent
The Bookends, LLC blog has been up and running for a bit over a year now and it’s well worth spending some time digging through the archives. Recently, Jessica did a series of Query Critiques (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. wrap-up, and follow-up).
Fourth stop: Ever wonder who reps who?
Querytracker.net purports to have the answer and so far–from what I know–they seem to have it right. There’s also a system of tracking queries built into the site that I haven’t looked in to, but I know some people who have and they like it. Even without that function, when querying an agent you really need to know at least some of who their other clients are.
Just a note, if you stop by someone’s blog and you enjoy the entry, leave a comment. If you really enjoy the entry, buy their book. 😉
That’s it for this month. I hope you enjoyed the ride!
Somehow, Gina manages to work some writing time in around her internet adventures. In addition to posting here, she blogs on The Gina Channel, Romancing the Skein, and Title Wave.
And yes, her computer screen really has burned itself into her glasses.
2 0 Read morePop Culture Report: San Diego Comic Con
June 26, 2007 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as Pop Cultureby Sara Black
For those of you looking for a cool blast of Pop Culture this hot summer there is no better place to overdose than at the San Diego Comic Convention.
Don’t let the name fool you, there will be a lot more than comics filling up the ample space of the San Diego Convention Center. Marvel Comics, Dark Horse, DC Comics and all their friends will be there, but so will the Sci-Fi Channel, cast and producers from Heroes, Nintendo, Laurell K. Hamilton and so many more.
Besides the endless booths of enticing comics, art and toys there are the panels and presentations. Upstairs small rooms show animation all day to exhausted convention goers, larger rooms offer anything from workshops on sculpting to discussions with artists, and in the largest rooms big studios share what they’ve got up their sleeves and put on panels with the stars.
All that is a ton of fun, but my favorite part of the comic convention is the small and independent press area. This is the best place to meet artists and writers (often they are both) and talk about their craft.
I always stop by Lark Pien’s booth for her adorable Long Tail Kitty Comics, and she remembers me every year. Top Shelf usually has several authors there, my favorite is James Kochalka and his meditative American Elf series. Last year he even had comics drawn by his three year old son. Dumbrella is a collective of artists who besides writing comics have an impressive line of T-shirts.
The comic con runs from Thursday, July 26th to Sunday the 29th. Typically Saturday is the busiest day and the wide aisles look like the Los Angeles freeway during rush hour. For this reason I recommend, if possible, you go on Thursday or Friday. Saturday can have some of the best panels and presentations however, and Sunday is the best day to bring kids. Best to come early to find parking somewhere near the convention center.
Sara Black has a degree in Cinema/Television from USC. She watches far too much television, eats way too much sushi and is always writing a romance novel. For someone who religiously stays out of the mainstream, she knows an awful lot about Pop Culture. This is the fourth in a series of posts on the subject.
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