The Sensual Moments Newsletter - 10/11

The Sensual Moments newsletter

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

OPENING LETTER
OUR PAST WINNERS
A SLIP OF THE TONGUE
MEET-OUR-MEMBERS SPOTLIGHT
LINKS AND ACTIVITIES
SEND US YOUR COMMENTS

OPENING LETTER

Hello everyone,

I am SinfulAngel39 . Welcome to the first edition of "The Sensual Moments Newsletter - 10/11" . I would like to start out by introducing the members of our staff:

 the founder of the group "Sensual Infusion"  and the "Sensual Moments, Vol. 9"  contest: theoldwolf (sadly absent at the moment due to personal problems),
 the erotica lady and occasional judge who is responsible for the revamped contest page (doesn't it look great everyone?) who makes sure the contest runs smoothly: Jéssica ,
 the erotica lady and more-than-occasional judge who is responsible for creating this great newsletter, promoting our group and contest (she is doing a great job, right everyone?): MD Maurice ,
 and last, but not least, myself, SinfulAngel39 , creator of and host of our raffle as well as judge in the "Sensual Moments, Vol. 9"  contest. I have taken over the reins as leader until Wolf can resume his post.

This has been a busy time for the group with the re-launch of our contest "Sensual Moments, Vol. 9"  in September and the inaugural running of our "Adventures in the Sensual Raffle". For those of you that helped and supported the raffle, Sasha the Sensual Seductress would love to offer her sincere thanks to all of you. The raffle was a success. After the prizes were awarded, we earned a grand total of 188,650 GPs for the group and contest. Plans are in the works for another raffle during the Christmas season. If anyone has an idea or would like to donate a prize, feel free to contact SinfulAngel39 .

Now onto the contest. Thank you for all the wonderful entries so far. I think I speak for all the judges when I say that all the stories and poems were great and we enjoyed reading them. Please keep up the good work. Also, I would like to thank the wonderful judges on behalf of the staff as well as various members of WDC for their generous donations. Please take a moment to visit the ports of these amazing writers and read their outstanding creations.

OUR WINNERS - OCTOBER

Please check out all our talented winners from our October Rounds!

Round 1 - Mother Goose mayhem

The Lucky Blacksmith  (XGC) A raunchy tale based on a Mother Goose Character - Robert Barnes, the Blacksmith. #1817040 by Prof Moriarty

Round 2 - aphrodisiacs

French Lilac  (GC) Petra is "Milked" for the aphrodiasic French Lilac #1818626 by percy goodfellow

Round 3 - drama (picture-based prompt)
1st Place went to

Homecoming  (XGC) Joe comes home to find several surprises for his homecoming- Sensual Moments- first place #1820758 by Amay

2nd Place went to

Cake Comfort  (GC) Nora brings Will a cake to make him feel better. #1819409 by A.D. Writes

Round 4 - in costume

Hallie's Costume Gala  (XGC) A Halloween Gala, costumes, a great band, and one promised dance #1822306 by Amay

Trick and treat  (GC) Last assignment for the intro class and contest entry #1822554 by Tom is now retired

Special End of Month Round -Overall Winners

Homecoming  (XGC) Joe comes home to find several surprises for his homecoming- Sensual Moments- first place #1820758 by Amay

1st Place

The Lucky Blacksmith  (XGC) A raunchy tale based on a Mother Goose Character - Robert Barnes, the Blacksmith. #1817040 by Prof Moriarty

2nd Place

The weekly October rounds brought us a lot of talent and variety. Please take a moment to check out our winner's contributions (and maybe give them a review as well) if you haven't already...

A SLIP OF THE TONGUE - JÉSSICA'S EDITING CORNER 

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Heya everyone,

some of you might know me already from reviews you received, and some of you must have wondered how I know all that stuff about grammar and spelling and how I spot all those tiny, nearly-invisible mistakes. To be honest, I don't know how I do it, but I do indeed find mistakes in nearly everything I read, printed books included. I haven't yet read one where there were no mistakes whatsoever (university publications excluded - somehow they must have a proof reader that's really good at what he's doing ).

What I can tell you though about my ability to explain grammar so well (at least I hope I do) is that I studied English at Uni and because I studied it as a foreign language we focused more on grammar and spelling than perhaps English students in English-speaking countries would do. So, here I am talking to you about grammar. Now, don't moan like my pupils (students for you Americans out there) do. Grammar is fun once it's understood. And I aim at making myself understood.So, if you don;t get it, feel free to ask me.

Today I won't go into the nitty-gritty of grammar and spelling because that would certainly put you off, but I will briefly expose a few points that you can easily check if you have the right tools.

Every writer (you included!) should have the following:

a dictionary (the old-fashioned paper version or the up-to-date online one),
a thesaurus (there too it can be paper or online),
a grammar (paper if you know what you're looking for or online if you don't know the technical terms),
and finally a good friend who's not afraid to tell you what is wrong with your writing.

The dictionary.

Because no one is fool-proof and knows everything all the time a dictionary is a must. Not only does it help you check the spelling of those words that you're not sure of (remember all those words which are of foreign origin but that you use frequently in English?), but it also tells you the meaning of the word (usually with an example) so you can check whether it actually means what you think it means. The advantage of an online dictionary is that if you are not too sure of the spelling of a word you can type it in and the dictionary will give you several choices as to what you might have intened to look up. Up to you to choose then and find out the meaning and/ or spelling of that word. One that I find really useful because it combines dictionary and thesaurus is Dictionary.com (http://dictionary.reference.com/).

The thesaurus.

It helps you find that one word that describes your character perfectly. Without it your writing might be (I'm not saying that it has to be) flat and ordinary, something you should not aim at when you seek to be published. The advantage of an online thesaurus is that it's not hefty but I personally prefer the feel of a book and its pages between my fingers. Up to you to find what suits you and your needs best.

The grammar.

There again choices and preferences may vary. I know that when I know what I'm looking for I prefer the paper version because there's an index and I get straight to the point whereas sometimes with the online version I might have to sift through pages and pages of things not related to my search. If you want a paper version, go to a good book shop first and have a look at the presentation and the cross-referencing. Read through a section and think "Do I actually understand what they're explaining (maybe apart from the technical terms which will come to you after a while)? If not, don't buy it. It won't help you. Read through the same grammar point in different books and choose the one that makes you understand the thing they're talking about. It might sound quite silly, but I remember the time when my lecturers at Uni told us to buy this grammar or that one because they swore by it and I wouldn't use it because it wasn't what I personally needed (no clear presentation, no good cross-referencing, no exhaustive index etc.).

I did an extensive research on the Internet on grammar sites that explained everything in user-friendly terms and yet that were clear in what they was explaining. One that is quite generalised and aimed at the larger public is About.com. In the English as a Second Language section are the most useful tips and I added the link. (http://esl.about.com/od/englishgrammar/English_Grammar_Help_Rules_Worksheets_Gam...) You can choose something that you believe you have a weakness on or that someone told you you needed to work on a little more and practice afterwards with quizzes. The only inconvenient I found in this site is that not everything is clear to someone who knows what they're talking about and sometimes things may confuse you because of the way they are explained there. I had to do some more research to understand what the author actually meant.

There is another site I stumbled upon recently and so far it's the best I have found - and it's free. Guide to Grammar and Writing is unique in the sense that it not only offers grammar but also quizzes so that you can check whether you actually understood the grammar point. I found the grammar points very detailed and yet very clear. It's understandable to everyone I believe and you can always click on grammatical terms that you don't understand and it will send you to the appropriate page. (http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/index.htm)

The friend.

Sadly, you can't buy him. You can make one however right here on WDC or out there in the real world. It doesn't have to be your best mate but if it is then that's perfectly fine. Just make sure that you best friend really takes the time to read your piece and give you feedback on it. Feedback should be honest, so if there's a bit that's really awkward then your friend should tell you so frankly. If they don't then they don't help you. One of the good things about our group "Sensual Infusion"  is that we're all friendly and yet give honest advice to the best of our ability. If you would like your piece reviewed and maybe even edited (though not professionally!) then please feel free to ask us, and I'm sure we can help you out.

You can be your best friend too. Just taking the time to let the piece rest for a few days and then re-reading it helps you spot all those spelling mistakes as well as awkward phrasing. Read your story out loud because that slows your processing the language down and you spot errors more easily. Or, alternatively, read your piece slowly, really scrutinising every word and thinking "Is this right here? Is the spelling correct? Is this the correct tense for the verb?"

Now I know that in this edition there was nothing concrete that you can take away and apply to your writing, but if you take the time to check your spelling (especially the one of words you're unsure of) and work at understanding how the English language works and therefore apply this knowledge to your writing, I'm confident that you won't make as many mistakes next time you write.

Next time I will go a little more into depth and will introduce you to basic spelling mistakes that native speakers tend to make more often than non native speakers. Until then, happy writing!

Jéssica

   MEET-OUR-MEMBERS SPOTLIGHT   

For our very first "Member Spotlight", I'm pleased to introduce the wonderful Amay to the group. She has been a regular contributor to our contest, claiming top honors over several of our weekly rounds. She was most recently named Best Overall in our Special "End of Month" Contest. I recently asked her to share some of her experiences and she was kind enough to provide the following candid responses.

1. How did you come to be a member of Writing.com and what has been your best experience with the site/community here?

I had no idea what WDC was honestly. I wasn’t looking for a writing site I honestly didn’t think I needed one more thing to do.
A dear friend known as Sum1swriting here on WDC introduced me to the site. We (Sum1 and I) have been writing and sharing with each other for years. He was so excited about all of the things WDC had to offer. So I checked it out, after all it was free and definitely within my budget.
I started simply with things like Writer’s Cramp and Daily Flash. I entered some of the other contests. Sometimes I did well, sometimes I didn’t. I never felt discouraged I always felt like the feedback I received helped me to grow as a writer.
The WDC family has been extremely supportive and encouraging. I’ve written some poetry recently about Alzheimer’s and there are so many people here that are walking or have walked that path with their parents. So many people have sent their encouragement and thoughts to me creating a support system through writing.
WDC has truly been one of the best things that I wasn’t looking for but I really needed.

2. You obviously enjoy writing erotica but what other genres do you enjoy writing?

I’ve always enjoyed writing and sharing my work with a select few. I would write for my co-workers when someone would leave our staff, or death of a family member, etc. I wrote short stories for friends on line that were going through hard times, just to let them know that I cared and was thinking about them.
I love reading erotica too. Sum1swriting has a book that he wrote several years ago that is posted here on WDC. It’s called The Snowman. It is a wonderful story and piqued my interest in erotica.
I’ve made a goal this year to work on writing poetry. I struggle, but my personal cheering section at work thinks it’s pretty good. I’m still not convinced. I have to thank Itchy Water for her A Poem a Day Contest. It keeps me practicing, which must be helping…. I hope.

3. What inspires you as a writer and what has been your biggest challenge?

My dad’s uncle was an oral family historian of sorts. Every time we would visit Uncle Jim tales about how the family ended up in Tennessee, or how my grandpa ate two of Uncle Jim’s seed watermelons right out of the garden in one sitting would fill the dinner conversations. He was a true story teller relaying so much history of our family in a humorous way. He mesmerized me with his quiet easy way of telling a story. Uncle Jim inspired me to learn how to tell stories.
I think the thing that inspires me right now is knowing that I’ll have more time to write when I retire. It is exciting to think of having time to do something that I love to do without feeling rushed.
My biggest challenge, I guess the same as most people stress. I have found when I’m under the most stress from work; I lose the desire to write. My energies go into making sure everything is alright and all of my bases are covered, so by the time I get home and have time to do anything I just want to vegetate.

4. Tell us something interesting about yourself, something our members might be interested to know about a fellow wordsmith?

Something interesting? I’m stumped. I think I’m pretty ordinary.

5. Have you had any publishing success or experiences with publishing that you could share with the group?

I haven’t published anything. I’m open to some lessons if anyone would like to share their secrets.

LINKS AND ACTIVITIES

'Tis the Sexy Season! Check out our Raffle...soon to be reopened for the Holidays.

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SEND US YOUR COMMENTS

We welcome your comments, positive or negative. Feedback helps us improve the contest, raffle, group and this newsletter. Please contact MD Maurice with any and all input!