Resources for Writers Are Only a Click Away

When I became a teacher years and years and years ago, I found that teachers were prodigious sharers and supporters.  Anytime I needed help with a lesson plan or advice about how to handle a difficult student, my colleagues were right there with solutions.  At first I went to those colleagues who had taught for many years.  Later I became one of those advice-givers.  So imagine my surprise in discovering that the same sense of support and collegiality occurs in the writing profession.  And the internet has changed the game rules so sharing is so much easier today.

When I first started using the internet back in the late 90’s, it resembled the wild, wild West. Nothing seemed connected and I found literally thousands of pages on disparate subjects. The internet wasn’t a resource that came to mind first when I was trying to find solutions.   After my browsing this morning, I believe the baby has grown up.

I clicked on one of my favorite blogs about writing:  “MysteryWriting Is Murder,” written by Elizabeth S. Craig.  Besides her new blog, Craig mentioned that she was a guest writer on Rachel Abbott’s blog,  "Rachel Abbott Writer." So I dutifully followed the link to Abbott’s blog and was rewarded with a wonderful gift:   “A Free Tool for Writers—the Writer’s Knowledge Base.”

If you are a published author, an aspiring writer, or a reader who wonders, “How did they do that?”—this search engine can help.  Ms. Craig, in partnership with another writer, Mike Fleming, has invented a wonderful search engine that helps writers find advice on thousands of topics.  I put in, “How do I write a better blog?” and 885 possible answers were available using the Writer’s Knowledge Base (A Search Engine for Writers.)

Unfortunately, if I read all 885 articles I won’t have time to blog.  But I bet some of them will help me.

How did this whole project begin?  Elizabeth Craig was looking for a way to bring together some of the best advice to help other authors.  Her search led to Mike Fleming, a writer and software developer, who has created Hiveword. Ms. Craig captures the content from the vast internet and Fleming hosts and organizes the nuts and bolts that allow authors to find the content via a word search on the Writer’sKnowledge Base.  This website also sends out a monthly newsletter with still more help for their fellow writers. 

Sharing and support:  not just for teachers anymore.

Have you found exceptionally helpful solutions to your questions on the internet?  If so, please share!

And So to Begin...

Eight years ago when my brother and I were clearing out our father’s possessions after his death, we came upon a stash of family treasures.  Besides keeping WWII love letters to our mother and various newspaper clippings about his children’s accomplishments, he had also saved a tattered, construction paper-covered book I had hand-written and illustrated when I was eight or nine.  The Mystery of the Golden Slippers—evidently a precious gem had been stolen and hidden in the toe of the titled ballet slippers.  Ouch.

I had forgotten my early, ambitious foray into writing a novel, just as I had failed to remember a neighborhood newspaper I had typed on an old typewriter using carbon paper to duplicate my words.  He had saved those too.  Perhaps he was trying to remind me that pencil lead and ink were in my blood.  He was usually right.

And so I am beginning this blog and I welcome everyone to read and comment on entries.  They will reflect my thoughts on my world, my small town, and my current novel.  The title of my blog comes from this thought:  She teaches, sews, reads, watches grandchildren, and loves movies.  Oh yes—and sometimes she writes.

The world of self-publishing is also a gold mine of topics.  I self-published The Education of a Teacher (Including Dirty Books and Pointed Looks) in 2010 with iUniverse publishing.  It is a collection of creative nonfiction stories from my lengthy high school teaching career.  It sold well and is continuing to sell on major book store websites.  Teachers and future teachers have written their positive reactions about its inspirational nature and its realistic description of the teaching profession.  This book will always be special to me and it has its own website and Facebook page.  Its publication brought back emotions and memories and put me in contact with many people who had left my life and—because of my book—returned.

Over the last five years I have studied the publishing industry.  Since 2009, I have spent most of my year in Illinois and my winters in Arizona where I have often visited two independent bookstores, The Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale and Changing Hands in Tempe.  Each store invites writers to discuss and sign their books, and I’ve listened to many authors, asked questions, and been inspired by their comments.  Changing Hands Bookstore and the South Mountain Community Library also sponsored a writing conference I attended recently that brought some of the best minds in publishing together to discuss their various specialties.   Then a year ago I joined Sisters in Crime (SinC), a web community of mystery writers, readers, agents, and publishers. 

In my new life as a retired teacher I am now shifting my focus to writing fiction, specifically cozy mysteries.

Please come along for the ride and check back for new blogs.  I’m changing the focus of my life from teaching in high school and college to writing fiction.  One of my favorite authors, Henry David Thoreau, decided to change his direction and leave the woods of Walden Pond because, well,  he had other lives to live.          Me too, Henry.