 For Authors: November 12, 2008 Issue [#2704] |
  For Authors
This week: Edited by: Cubby  
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Hello, everyone! Welcome to this edition of the For Authors newsletter.  This week's topic is focused on why you needn't use your age as an excuse not to write, but first off, I'd like to share a few quotes with you. Enjoy!
Quotes:
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I have enjoyed greatly the second blooming that comes when you finish the life of the emotions and of personal relations; and suddenly find - at the age of fifty, say - that a whole new life has opened before you, filled with things you can think about, study, or read about...It is as if a fresh sap of ideas and thoughts was rising in you.
~ Agatha Christie
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" It is not the years in your life, but the life in your years that
counts."
~ Adlai Stevenson
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"How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives."
~ Annie Dillard
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@ ~ Late Bloomer? Baby Boomer? It's Never Too Late to Write ~@
Definitions [cited from Dictionary.com]
 age - [noun]
1. the length of time during which a being or thing has existed
write - [verb]
1. to express or communicate in writing; give a written account of.
Do you ever find yourself using your age as an excuse not to write that book you always dreamed about writing? Do you feel there just aren't enough years left in your lifetime to accomplish your dream? Think about it... You have lived in this world longer than many younger writers who are already published. That fact right there should tell you there is no reason why you can't be published, too. You are actually more qualified in many areas than the younger writers because you have more years under your belt. Use this to your advantage. Don't sit there and and make excuses!
Please read the list below.  I discovered this information in The Pocket Muse: Endless Inspiration by Monica Wood.
P.D. James published her first book at age 42.Cover Her Face
Rachel Carson published her first book at age 54. Silent Spring
Annie Proulx published her first book at age 58. Postcards
Penelope Fitzgerald published her first book at age 61. The Golden Child
Frank McCourt published his first book at age 66. Angela's Ashes
Peter Pouncey published his first book at age 67. Rules for Old Men Waiting
Harriet Doerr published her first book at age 73. Stones for Ibarra
Helen Hooven Santmyer published her first book at age 88. ...and Ladies of the Club
I find that list very inspirational!
Use your experience and knowledge. Your insecurities might be holding you back even though you have so much to offer from a time that our kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids have only acknowledged from conversations, history books or movies. What you might want to think about is finding a way to bring readers in to what you know first-hand.
Did you spend time in Viet Nam? The Korean War? Were you raised in the Hippie era? Do you remember when color TVs first came out? The topics are endless!  Something that seems like not a big deal to you, might be fascinating to others. Consider writing a memoir, if you'd like to share your life story, or just a major portion of it.
And truthfully, you don't need to write about a topic that concentrates wholey on your experiences, but you can use those times by weaving them into a story. Doesn't that sound challenging? 
Yes? No? Well, let me tell you that you still qualify to be a writer. Go for it. It's never too late, unless you convince yourself that it is. 
A few interesting books to inspire you:
 Seniorwriting: A Brief Guide for Seniors Who Want to Write by Marlys Marshall Styne
The Heart and Craft of Lifestory Writing: How to Transform Memories Into Meaningful Stories by Sharon M. Lippincott
The Writer Within You: A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing and Publishing in Your Retirement Years by Charles Jacobs
Old Friend from Far Away: The Practice of Writing Memoir by Natalie Goldberg
One Year to a Writing Life: Twelve Lessons to Deepen Every Writer's Art and Craft by Susan M. Tiberghien
Writing Begins with the Breath: Embodying Your Authentic Voice by Laraine Herring
For additional online information, browse the following links:
Never too Late!
http://seniorwriter.blogspot.com/2008/06/book-fair-blues-from-iwpa-tent.html
Write Your Life!
http://www.seniormemoirs.blogspot.com/
Baby Boomers: So You Want to Write
http://www.smallbusinessboomers.com/baby-boomers-so-you-want-to-write/
Businesses for Boomers: 7 Writing Businesses You Can Start
http://www.smallbusinessboomers.com/businesses-for-boomers-7-writing-businesses-...
Work from Home Baby Boomers - Writing Ezine Articles
http://www.workfromhomebabyboomers.com/Writing-ezine-articles.html
Now... Make a list of events that happened when you were younger. How could you incorporate at least one of them into an article or story?
Happy November and...
Keep on Writing!
Cubby ") |
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~FEEDBACK~
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Just Jamie 
My favorite villain would be Lord Voldemort of Harry Potter fame. His reasoning for becoming a villain, the path that he was placed on to make him what he was to that very day, was such an intricate, well developed story line in itself, it really brings the character to life and truly shows you that the choices you make can seriously be the ones that turn you down certain paths.
~ Great response! Thank you for shaing your favorite villain.
SHEA
. . .
Way to go Cubby!
Great Newsletter, your wonderful helpful insights are a guiding light for Authors in the midst of developing improvement in our craft.
Stay kind! Stay cool! Stay well!
Kindest,
Shea
~ I'm so glad you found my newsletter helpful! That's my goal! Thank you.
silverfeathers 
Great newsletter on villains! I'll definitely be checking out those items and the links you highlighted!
My personal favorite villain is the Vicomte de Valmont, from Dangerous Liaisons. He's just so wonderfully evil and twisted and yet more human at the end than his co-conspirator. And being portrayed by John Malkovich in the 1988 version of the film is a plus too.
~ Ooooo.... John Malkovich! A great choice to play a villain, lol! He gives me the creeps every time I see him act in something. Thank you for sharing!
Olivia: it's NaNo-Time
38383  
You wrote some very true things about the villain, especially that they're often flat compared to the protagonist.
My theory is that writing the villain triggers our dark side (logical!) and we fear to give in to it out of fear what might come out of it, what this fictional bad guy will reveal about ourselves.
Thank you for choosing "Lesson Four: The Antagonists" for your newsletter. I'm flattered.
This item also fits another of your newsletters well - writing about what one knows - because although these characters are fictional as well as their lives I'm a bit like them because there's much autobiographic stuff in them. I just read it again and it creeped me out.
~ How true that is! And your theory about our dark side, well... I agree with you 100%. How creepy is that? And now I'm wondering as I respond here... How many writers have become criminals? I bet not very many. We, as writers, can play our dark side out in our stories, and perhaps that is extremely theraputic.  Whoa... now I'm scaring myself, lol!
NanoWriMo2018 Into the Earth
solid NL, Cubby!
~ Thankies!
neeneepres297
Ahhh, the concept of villains. I just usually write in my story that the antagonist is the character themselves, because they control their own actions.
Just think of an episode of Twilight Zone, The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street. No one knew what was going on with disappearances, so they blamed it on each other. The "monsters" were the people themselves.
~ Aha! the Twilight Zone! Sometimes I feel a bit of my horror writing stems from those episodes! Was there also one about earwigs (I hate earwigs to this day because of that episode!) And there was another one of this little girl who was gifted a play town, and real people actually lived there (but they were small of course). I was really young when I saw that one... and I never forgot it! What a good show that was! Thank you for sharing a great point!
earlybird
I found this newsletter an informative one. I am trying to make short stories in the future. This is a great tip you are sharing with us.
~ Thank you very much!
Joshiahis
Awesome, awesome newsletter. I love villains and spent the better part of my work day browsing those links you provided. Smirk
My favorite villain? That's got to be Raistlin Majere of the Dragonlance series. He starts off as an antihero, before his fall from grace twists his perceptions. He seeks to become a god by supplanting an evil one, only to learn that his victory destroys everything. In the end, he redeems himself.
~ That sounds like a series I wouldn't mind reading. Thanks for sharing!
spidey 
Great newsletter! Villains are just as important as heroes. You've provided a good deal of useful information here. Thanks!
~ You are very welcome... and thank you!!!
Coolhand
Wow! You're newsletter on villians was packed-full of great information. Interesting stuff!
Coolhand
~ Glad you enjoyed it.
maryelle
I totally agree, I'm having a hard time starting my second story because I haven't decided who or to what extent my villian is a villian.
~ That can be tough. Good luck!
Zeke
This article on villans is great. Of course, one main factor is to make sure your villan is a smoker. Good guys don't smoke. Only kidding.
Zeke.
~ Glad you added that Only kidding, lol! I'm glad you enjoyed the newsletter. And interestingly enough, as you mentioned smoking, I've watched a few older movies lately and noticed how many of the characters smoked then, in comparison to now. Interesting.
Bow-N 
Excellent newsletter! This is one area that I need to remember while creating the "villain." Thank you for the info.
~ Thank you and you are very welcome! My pleasure!
Turkey DrumStik 
Your protagonist needs to come out on top, claim victory in the end.
Does he? If you look at literature and film from around the world, that doesn't always happen. Japanese films and Persian literature are excellent places to start when it comes to finding villians that end up winning. It can be a shock to readers but only if their culture constantly dictates a happy ending every time. Such an idea, as far as I've been able to see, anyway, is mostly American. Happy endings in other cultures' artistic output are somewhat rare.
~ I have not read any Japanese or Persian literature in the past, so was not aware that villains are prone to win. I guess I've learned something new! I find it sad, though, that in other cultures it is rare to find the outcome of literature and films with a happy ending.  Thanks for sharing your knowledge. I do apologize to those members of other cultures who have only read an Americanized version of villains vs. protagonists. I obvioiusly am an Amercian.
bazilbob
Almost all of the 'villains' I thought of as the most enjoyable were actually protagonists...Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment, Dracula in, well, Dracula, and surely Frankenstein and his 'monster' are both villains in their own way. To me, perhaps, the best heroes are really villains, or maybe the villains are really heroes?
Great newsletter; you've certainly got me thinking!
~ Thank you! It's always fun to have something to really think about, isn't it?
dmerrysilver
Hello! I like the quotes on the subject and thanks for the resources too! Great newsletter! 
~ You are very welcome! Thank you!
Coolhand
This is a jammed packed newsletter, full of great information about villians. Great job!
~ Thanks again!
Shen Wasuno
Entire concordance! Villains are usually the pièce de résistance of a given fiction; they, in their actions, make the "hero" move in the right direction.
~ Yes, yes, yes! Thank you for your response!
 Thank you, everyone, for all the wonderful feedback you send in!
As always...
Have a wonderful week!
AND KEEP ON WRITING!!!
Cubby ")
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