HOT OFF THE PRESS!  Here’s your link to the January issue of our Writers’ Newsflash: January Newsflash.

We love to share our information with writers, and we’re happy to pass some of our INSIDER’S SECRETS along to you. This FREE e-mail newsletter may help improve your writing and your acceptance rate! Feel free to print this e-mail to use as a reference. Pass the link to this issue along to your writer friends. It’s packed with great information this month. DEADLINE-DATED lists of anthologies, theme issues, and contests are included at no charge!

Click on the titles below (or the link to this month’s Newsflash) to read these important articles and other news for writers. We think this is our biggest and best issue to date!

* * The president of Writer’s Relief (Ronnie L. Smith) sends her CHORAL HOLIDAY GREETING. Listen to an upbeat message of peace.

* * Do you have to tell the truth about 2008? Perhaps not if you follow the guidelines in WRITING THE PERFECT HOLIDAY NEWSLETTER.

* * ODDS ’N’ ENDS PART III. Think you know all there is to know? Think again.

* * Everyone should WRITE A MEMOIR!

* * WANT US TO CREATE YOUR COVER LETTERS? We know writers hate to create cover/query letters, so we have created a new A La Carte PLUS service just for you.

* * DO YOU HAVE AN ARTICLE FOR OUR NEWSFLASH?

* * Want to giggle over grammar? Check out HOW TO WRITE GOOD.

* * We’ll cover the basic subgenres of this interesting world in A THRILLING GENRE.

* * Read our NEWEST E-book, entitled UNTANGLING WEB SUBMISSIONS: ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO PUBLISHING YOUR WRITING ONLINE. http://www.writersrelief.com/onlinesubs.html

* * LOTS OF HELP for CHILDREN’S BOOK AUTHORS—100 CONTACTS and Everything You Need To Know To Submit Your Children’s Book. http://www.writersrelief.com/children.html

* * Are you a writer who does or a writer who doesn’t? WHY HAVE YOUR OWN WEB SITE?

* * We’re giving away a FREE REPORT that outlines industry-standard Manuscript FORMAT Guidelines when you order our E-book entitled REJOICE IN REJECTION. http://www.writersrelief.com/rejection.html

* * You may be suffering from too much “butt-in-chair” time, but you can get your words moving by PUTTING VERVE IN YOUR VERBS.

* * Create a new holiday with THIS MONTH’S WRITING PROMPT.

* * You won’t find a better list anywhere (AND IT’S FREE!) of upcoming ANTHOLOGIES, SPECIAL-THEMED JOURNALS, CONTESTS, and EVENTS.

↓Scroll Down to Read These Exciting and Useful Articles!!↓

Some of you may know that the president of Writer’s Relief (Ronnie L. Smith) has been a choral singer for most of her life. She’s sung with various choruses over the years, including The New York Women’s Chorus and The NJ Symphony Orchestra Chorus. She currently sings with Cantigas, a women’s chorus in Hoboken, New Jersey, directed by Joan Isaacs Litman. We have included a link to a wonderful (and upbeat) holiday song, entitled “Zol Zain Sholem,” arranged by Joshua Jacobson. The wish “Let There Be Peace” is sung in Yiddish. The lyrics for this arrangement of a Hasidic melody include words associated with Chanukah, such as “dreydl” (spinning top) and “latkes” (potato pancakes). Listen for the beautiful clarinet solo played by Richard Goldsmith. Ronnie and the staff of Writer’s Relief wish you a joyous and peace-filled holiday season. Click on this link to hear “Zol Zain Sholem (Let There Be Peace).”

Click below to have a listen!

This year some people will leave holiday messages on their blogs. Others will create a holiday newsletter in the form of a YouTube video. But there will always be traditional diehards who insist on getting in touch with family and friends the old-fashioned way: a holiday newsletter filled with fun, interesting information about you and your family. How can you do this without making people gag or fall asleep? It’s very simple, really. You need to jazz it up, give folks something they can really sink their teeth into, and leave out all that boring (but true) stuff.

Length. Make your letter long—really long—as in several pages. And single-spaced so that Great-Grandma needs a magnifying glass to read it. You might want to make copies of your child’s artwork, reproduce your pets’ paw prints, or just draw pictures on napkins and include those. Scan in photos of your backyard, your new car, the bruise on your shin. Your relatives will get a kick out of the large and unwieldy packet of information you send, and it will be well worth the postage.

Decorate it. Use lots of clip art and borders. If it’s hard to choose from all the holiday clips, use them all. People love to look at pictures of trees and little Santa Clauses, and no, it won’t detract from your message. (Did you really think people would read it anyway?)

Keep it generic. If you personalize your letter, some relatives or friends may get jealous. You don’t want Uncle George to know that Uncle Felix dropped by last month, or a Hatfield/McCoy conflict is sure to develop. Be sure not to mention any other family members’ names throughout the letter or include news from outside your own household. Remember: impersonal equals safe. (If you’re not fond of a certain family member, you can also address their letter to <insert name here> but conveniently forget to insert a name. Very impersonal. Very insulting.)

Brag. This is your once-a-year permit to lay it all out there and say, I did great this year, and you should be jealous! Even if your year was less than stellar, you can still use creative license to make Aunt Tilly sigh and compare you to her own deadbeat son. Here are some ways to beef up your holiday bragfest.

If you got a 25-cent raise at Joe’s Drugstore, say, “This year I was pleased to be promoted in the pharmaceutical industry.”

A social worker visited your house last month: “We were blessed by a visit from an important government official last month

Little Suzie was arrested for shoplifting: “Our hardworking daughter even received a full police escort downtown!”

One more note: Write your letter as if you were a high school English teacher, and try to use as many big words as possible, even if you have to make some of them up. Your vocabulary will intimidate your relatives and make you feel good about yourself.

“This year it was good to be a Jones. As neighbors tried to emulate our personality traits and lifestyle, we formulated a plan to elevate our standards to an even higher level by utilizing our superior gene pool and intellectual motivation to create a nearly impossible plateau of greatness.”

People are gonna love it.

Since and because. These are two little conjunctions that cause problems for some folks and represent yet another gray area in terms of accepted usage. Merriam-Webster lists because as a synonym for since and vice versa, but there are subtle differences.

Since is used in a temporal sense.

Since the weather changed, my allergies have improved. 

An easy way to test if since is appropriate is to substitute “from the time when.”

Since she was a toddler, music has been an important part of Cheryl’s life.

We have visited nearly every hobby shop in San Francisco since we moved to California.

When talking about cause and effect, use because. This leaves very little room for confusion, as the word itself spells out its purpose.               

Because of the new medication, my allergies have improved.

Also correct: Since I discovered this new medication, my allergies have improved.

Because we were missing so many ingredients, we had to find a new recipe.

Unfortunately, this does not clear things up completely.

According to more than one dictionary, since can also be used to mean because:

Since he emphasized how important it was, I ran right out and mailed it.

(I mailed something because it was important.)

Some folks insist that this is incorrect; and while it does lend itself to confusion (because would have made it more clear that this is a cause-and-effect situation), it is not necessarily incorrect. Some style guides insist on sticking to since for time-related usage, which helpfully removes any doubt. In most areas of creative writing, though, people have been happily using this construction for years and are unlikely to stop just because they’re told it’s wrong.

The author of this article is Keith Connes. He is at the 60-year point (give or take) in his burgeoning career as a professional writer. He started in radio, then became a TV-commercial writer for several major New York agencies. This enabled him to buy an airplane and morph into aviation writing. He’s now crafting more general articles, humor pieces, and short fiction and thinks he’ll stay put with those until he reaches the age of 100, which should be any day now.

Write a memoir. It doesn’t matter whether you are a beginning writer or a seasoned pro—or even if you don’t consider yourself to be a writer at all. Write a memoir to present the gift of your inner self to your family, friends, and perhaps a wider audience. You might publish only a few dozen copies for a very limited distribution, but then again, a really compelling story could become the propellant that launches your writing career.

A basic writer’s axiom advises you to “write what you know,” and what could be more familiar to you than an episode in your own life? And here’s what makes it so special: A memoir can give your loved ones a greater insight into who you are and how you got to be who you are—your thoughts, your feelings, your adventures through life, and the things you learned along the way. And you don’t have to wait until your sunset years; you can write a memoir at any age. You can do it now.

Let me be clear as to what I mean by “memoir.” Some people may think of the word “memoir” as meaning an autobiography. Well, yes, an autobiography is a very extensive memoir, taking in the entire life of the subject, but a memoir can also be just a small nugget of that person’s existence—a series of reminiscences or even a single recollection. So it’s not that daunting a task.

Even so, would your memoir really be that valuable to others? Well, think of somebody who is important to you—your mother, father, grandparent, friend—and even though you’ve known that person for years or decades, you sense that there are aspects of that person’s life that you don’t know about and wish you did. Not necessarily skeletons in the closet, but—well, wouldn’t it be fun to know that Grandma always wanted to be a trapeze artist but somehow never got around to it?

My best friend since high school was, for most of his adult life, a sales executive whose high-powered drive enabled him to found and manage several insurance companies. I thought I knew him pretty well, but I was astonished when he sent me a book of sensitive and lovely poetry that he had written! I saw an aspect of Frank I had never suspected, and my respect and admiration for him became even greater.

Well, you may not be a secret poet or even a wannabe trapeze artist, but aren’t there some unrevealed parts of you that you wouldn’t mind sharing but you haven’t gotten around to it, or maybe you’re just a little shy about it?

Write it down. Write your memoir. If it seems too daunting, you have a tape recorder—everybody has at least one. Go to a quiet place, turn the recorder on, and speak your thoughts. Don’t worry about grammar or punctuation—just talk. You can fix it later. If it would help get the thoughts flowing, sit down with someone you feel comfortable with and start chatting about a topic for your memoir. Can’t find enough quiet time? Do it in the car. Let others talk into their cell phones. What you’re doing is for posterity!

Regardless of where your memoir begins, it can take on a life of its own—because it is, after all, your own life.

Write your memoir. Do it for the ones you love, for yourself, and maybe for some great-great-grandchildren you will never know. But, through your memoir, they will get to know you.

Our A La Carte PLUS Service:
You have already heard about the affordable alternative to our Full Service—our A La Carte Service. You may be interested to know that we now offer an A La Carte PLUS Service. Writer’s Relief will prepare your COVER/QUERY LETTERS in addition to targeting markets and preparing preaddressed mailing labels.

Clients have been requesting this service:
We are delighted to offer you an additional service that helps to fulfill your personal submission needs. We can now prepare a succinct cover/query letter and provide printed cover letters for each of the markets specially targeted for your work. You’ll save lots of time and avoid errors.

We know what editors and agents want in a cover/query letter:
Editors and agents want you to follow industry standards when composing these letters. We’ve been creating successful cover/query letters for clients since 1994. We’ve happily provided clients with information on how to do this themselves. In spite of your fear, there is no big mystery involved. If you love to create cover letters, great! If not, we can alleviate the stress associated with developing and addressing these letters. You’ll also save hours of worry and preparation. We know, if you’re like most writers, what you want is more time to write.

Here’s how the PLUS part of this service works:

1) We’ll ask you for the information we need to insert into your cover letters. This will include your name and contact information, as well as some biographical information and publication/writing credentials (if you have acquired any).

2) Writer’s Relief will create the template for a universal cover/query letter for you. This will be based on the information you give us in addition to the standards set by our industry.

3) You will review the letter, return it with your feedback, and send any proposed changes or your final okay. (Pricing allows for one back-and-forth or revision before we prepare final letters.)

4) Writer’s Relief will target submissions for your work and prepare an individually addressed cover/query letter for each of your 25+ submissions. (Please note that industry standard now requires letters be addressed to the editors’ full names. Example: Dear Ronnie L. Smith, as opposed to Dear Mr. or Ms. Smith. This is the format that we follow.)

How much will it cost?
If you wish to sign up for our A La Carte PLUS Service and receive printed cover/query letters, the total cost of this service is $200 – $250 (plus $6 for US postage and handling; international rates vary) to target and prepare cover/query letters and labels to 25 markets.

Stop spending your time wondering if your cover/query letter will do its job, and stop worrying whether you’ve typed all of that contact information correctly. Let us help you by providing this additional service that so many of you have asked for—just think how amazing it will be to send out professionally prepared cover letters with your submissions in a matter of days! A list of itemized services and prices may be found at http://www.writersrelief.com/comparison.asp.

If you would like to sign up for this service, please call us toll-free at (866) 405-3003, and ask to speak with Marissa or Kriste. They are specialists in handling A La Carte clients and cover/query letters.

If you have an interesting article that pertains to an aspect of creative writing, you may be able to see it published in our Newsflash! We’re always looking for articles that make grammar easy and fun, that inspire or motivate creativity, or that clear up frustrating aspects of the writing life.

Here’s what you need to know:

We acquire first-time rights (you can publish your article elsewhere after we post it). 

Articles should be no more than 500 words. 

To get ideas for our tone, style, and interests please read through the articles posted on our blog. 

Before you write your article, make sure that we haven’t already written about your topic. Use the search tools on our blog. 

Previously published work is acceptable, but you must tell us the details of the prior publication. 

Our pay rate is $25 per article.   

E-mail your completed article AND a short bio to Lisa@wrelief.com. No attachments.
 
Our response time is usually very quick—less than a week. We’re looking forward to reading your work!

Want to giggle over grammar? Check out the link below to a Web page posted by the University of North Texas. It’s a tongue-in-cheek guide to grammar/composition rules that will crack you up! Below is a short excerpt.

Don’t use a big word where a diminutive one will suffice.

Don’t use no double negatives. Don't never use no triple negatives.

No sentence fragments.

Corollary: Complete sentences: important.

Stamp out and eliminate redundancy.

Avoid clichés like the plague.

All generalizations are bad.

Click here to see more: http://www.paulhensel.org/teachgram.html.

What is a thriller, aside from the obvious? This genre is known for the intensity of emotion it creates. Apprehension. Exhilaration. Anxiety. The main character (MC) has a goal, a nearly impossible one at times, and a heroic effort and/or sacrifice is required to overcome obstacles and reach that goal. Time is almost always a huge concern, as the MC must accomplish some feat (rescue his girlfriend, find the antidote, stop the terrorists) before disaster strikes. The level of intensity can either build slowly throughout the book or hit the reader from the very beginning, but it must generate a level of tension that keeps the reader turning pages. Most importantly, good thrillers keep up an intense pace, and the reader is swept along for an incredible ride.

If the author has done a good job with accurate research and an intricate plot, the reader will also come away emotionally satisfied with having learned something. Thrillers, by their very definition, create a thrill, but they also provide good information about the legal system, a medical procedure, the inner world of Soviet espionage, military weaponry… Patricia Cornwell writes a series of medical thrillers based on her knowledge of the medical examiner’s world—a world that fascinates her fans, who are sophisticated and want accurate facts, not vague explanations or made-up procedures.

Thrillers are often lumped together with mysteries, but there are key differences between these genres. In mysteries the MC is presented with a puzzle (a murder, for instance) and must look for clues to solve that puzzle. In thrillers the MC faces a nightmare of a situation (impending disaster, serial killers, airborne viruses) and must learn new skills to cope with the circumstances. Most, if not all, of the “clues” are provided in a thriller, and the reader expects twists and turns and surprises rather than answers. Thrillers appeal more to the senses than an intellectual exercise in detective work, considered too “tame” for true thriller aficionados. It’s the emotional connection that counts.

Here are some of the basic subgenres of the thriller world. Keep in mind that there are often overlaps between two or more subgenres.

Medical. Modern medical technology is used to harm rather than heal. Robin Cook is the master of this genre. Forensic thrillers are another popular offshoot.

Legal. Usually, a lawyer or someone associated with the law takes on the legal system, often putting their own lives at risk. John Grisham and David Baldacci are well-known in this category.

Disaster. The town’s dam is going to burst in 24 hours or less. A ship innocently heads to port, carrying a bomb that could wipe out half of California. A meteor hurtles toward Earth. Any natural or manmade disaster that affects a large group of people can become a disaster thriller.

Action-Adventure. Difficult to successfully pull off, thanks to the huge amount of action and plot required, this is nevertheless a hugely popular genre, especially when translated to film. It’s characterized by physical action, bravery, and violence, and you’re likely to encounter high-tech weapons and remote, dangerous locations. Think The Bourne Identity.

Horror. Silence of the Lambs is a good example of this subgenre, emphasizing mental, emotional, and physical trauma for the MC as he/she battles a monster, human or otherwise. This also ties in to Serial Killer thrillers, in which the MC must track down a killer who threatens a group of people. Lots of blood and gore; lots of suspense.

Techno. This usually focuses on military technology of some sort, and this technology is essential to the plot. Tom Clancy’s work comes to mind immediately.
In the rich literary banquet of thrillers, the reader can also choose from police, spy, romantic, historical, supernatural, political, erotic, and conspiracy thrillers—and, more often than not, a combination of one or more of these subcategories. It’s a wildly popular genre overall, thanks to the adrenaline rush, complex plots, and big storylines. Thrillers are exciting. They are dangerous. And they should leave us feeling satisfied that not only did the MC save the world from (insert global threat here), but we learned a little something in the process. And even if we’ll never need to know how to detect a false heart attack during an autopsy, it makes us feel smarter if we do.

We’re so excited to announce the publication of our E-book that will teach you all you need to know about making online submissions. Our staff has been working night and day to get this prepared and into your hands.

You’ll learn our easy-to-use system and have all the tools you need to properly tailor your online submissions to the best available markets. This valuable information can be in your hands within minutes!

This latest E-book includes:

* Detailed plan for submitting your work through the mail or electronically. Do you need an agent for your book? Do you still include your SASE if you’re including your e-mail address? Do you know the proper etiquette when e-mailing your work to agents/publishers?

* Cover/query letter tips to help ensure your chances of a good read by agents and editors. Do you want to know the secrets of preparing a good cover/query letter? Which type of cover letter gets the best results? Do you know how you should address your letter and to whom?

* Online opportunities and submission guidelines.Which online markets are better than others? What are the benefits and risks of submitting online? What are the accepted formats to e-mail your work to agents/publishers? Should you use an attachment?

(SPECIAL Introductory PRICING of $25.99.) Regularly $49.99.

Plus, as an EXTRA BONUS, you’ll also receive your FREE comprehensive and easy-to-read report containing over 150 editors and agents who accept online submissions. Included in these contacts are a number of journals that only publish online. You’ll also receive current Web sites and e-mail addresses in an interactive format. That is, you can click and access them directly from your report once you are connected to the Internet. There isn't an easier way to make submissions.

Click HERE to order Untangling Web Submissions: Essential Guide To Publishing Your Writing Online (In E-book format).

We're so excited to present this information to you. When you download Insider's Secrets: What You MUST Know To Submit Your Children's Book, you'll also get a FREE REPORT that contains contact information for 100+ agents and publishers who specialize in children's books. 

Click here for more information: http://www.writersrelief.com/children.html

Web sites are becoming more and more popular, dividing the writing community into two groups: Writers who have sites and writers who don’t.

For most people, having a Web site will not necessarily make or break a writing career. Web sites alone do not clinch book deals, snag agents, or ensure best seller status. However, the decision of whether to create a Web site bears serious consideration.

Here are a few ways having a Web site can help your writing get noticed.

1. Web sites are beginning to function the same way that business cards work. In essence, your URL (posted on blogs, at the bottom of your e-mails, on your friends’ homepages, and on your social-networking sites) is an invitation to writers, editors, and agents to learn more about you.  
2. When you’re sending query letters to agents, publishers, or even literary magazines, showing off your Web skills indicates that you are forward-thinking, cutting-edge, and willing to do the “leg work” of promoting your own writing. If you sell books, they sell books. Your hard work will cause others to work hard for you. 
3. Having a Web site, especially if it’s popular or has a core body of loyal readers, can demonstrate that your writing has the power to touch readers’ lives by inspiring an emotional reaction. Agents and editors can go on your site and read the flurry of activity as people leave their comments, sign your guest book, and show their support. That enthusiasm can be contagious.
4. A Web site can give potential readers access to projects that you have yet to sell. Although most publishers are starting to consider writing published in any digital format as being “previously published,” you can show off synopses and excerpts from your writing, and, with any luck, your snippets will get a few nibbles or even bites. Just be sure not to post too many offerings at one time; otherwise, your readers might get the feeling that the reason you have so many postings is that you are unable to “place” your work.
5. Your Web site is a great place to keep your bio fresh and up to date. In query and cover letters, you’re often given only a brief paragraph to describe your history, your aspirations, and your intentions. If you write a great mini bio in your cover letter, you could inspire your reader to go to your Web site and learn more about you. Time and again, advertising gurus and business coaches stress the importance of “branding”; a good Web site bio can help you do just that.
6. Your site is an excellent promotional tool for published work. Once your short story is published or your novel is on the shelves, use your site to keep readers interested by hosting contests, offering supplemental materials and free stuff, and developing an online “personality” that makes people want to know more.

For an example of an up-and-coming novelist’s site that we like (full disclosure, she works for Writer’s Relief!), have a look at www.LisaDaleBooks.com, where you can find things like audio downloads, interviews, videos, and free stuff. 

For more information about how to make your own Web site, please read our post: http://writersreliefblog.com/post/20-Groovy-Website-Resources-for-Writers.aspx

The NUMBER ONE reason that writers don’t succeed (other than not writing well) is a lack of understanding about rejection. To help you overcome the most difficult hurdle for writers, we have written this E-book, entitled Rejoice in Rejection: The Art of Surviving the Submission Process. When you order this E-book, you’ll also receive a FREE REPORT that includes manuscript FORMAT guidelines for poetry, short prose, novels, nonfiction books, and plays. These guidelines will ensure that you are submitting your work using industry-standard formatting. 

Click here for more information: http://www.writersrelief.com/rejection.html.

Those of us who spend much of our time hunching over keyboards or reading books in armchairs aren’t exactly known for being the washboard-abs crowd. But even if we suffer from too much “butt-in-chair” time, we writers can tone and shape our writing for maximum impact by kick-starting our verbs.

The verbs we use in our normal, everyday conversations aren’t always the best verbs to use when we’re writing. When we’re talking we can use our hands, our tone of voice, and our facial expressions to get our point across, and so we can settle for verb choices that are wimpy and flat. For example:

He ran through the crowd.
I didn’t like my moccaccino.

These phrases might come off as emphatic when they’re uttered in conversation. But when text is our medium, the primary way we can emphasize the tone of the words is by making stronger word choices.

He sprinted through the crowd.
I hated my moccaccino.

Sometimes amping up a verb requires restructuring a sentence.

He darted among the pedestrians.
My moccaccino nauseated me.

And other times the verb choice will need to reflect a character’s dialect or personality.

He bullied his way through the crowd.
I'm not feeling my moccaccino.

But, whatever the case, the verb is often the driving force behind the momentum of a sentence, so it’s important to choose wisely.

One other “problem area” to work on when you’re ramping up your verb choices is the dreaded adverb. Overusing adverbs is the equivalent of trying to do crunches by pushing yourself up with your hands—it’s a way of “helping” the main action, but it makes the results less dramatic. Sometimes adverbs are absolutely necessary, but when you can get rid of them, you should. 

Compare:

I went quickly through the crowd.
I zipped through the crowd. 

I didn’t completely appreciate my moccaccino.
I dumped out my moccaccino.

As you can see, the main idea behind each of the above examples—the subtext—changes subtly from one sentence to the next. It’s these subtle shadings and nuances that make the difference between writing that’s muscular and writing that’s flabby.

Unfortunately, there is a danger of getting a little too carried away with colorful verb choices. It’s tempting to overinflate the action for dramatic effect or because the verb in question “sounds cool.” But that can make the action feel forced or artificial. And when the style of language is not consistent, when one verb screams “exceptional” within a whole paragraph of “normal” verbs, the effect is like looking at a body builder who has never exercised anything but his biceps—kind of distracting.

We recommend that writers exercise their verb use in order to increase strength and flexibility but all in moderation. After all, even if we armchair athletes can’t be powerful and vigorous, at least our verbs can be!

Many folks believe that the holidays have become overcommercialized. If you had the ability to add one holiday to the calendar, what holiday would you create? Why would this day be considered important? In what way would people celebrate this holiday? Would you be offended if the holiday became an opportunity for retail stores to hold sales? How would you keep the value of your own holiday? Would there be special foods associated with your special day? Would you take the day off from work to celebrate? Would you want the whole world to celebrate with you, or is this holiday just for you? Share your newly invented holiday with us by posting it here.