Love to Write

Let’s celebrate books, Orlando! Saturday, April 21st, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., come to A Daylong Celebration of Books and attend panels, writing workshops, book signings, and more. This free event is open to all, and tickets are not required, though you can RSVP on Facebook to see updates and ask questions.

Last Saturday, I attended John Dufresne’s workshop on flash fiction at Rollins College. In addition to confirming, once again, that I stink at writing fiction, I learned some useful tips I can apply to drafting micro-memoir. Dufresne read the introduction to his new book, Flash! Writing the Very Short Story, which defines the craft: It’s short but not shallow; it’s a reduced form used to represent a larger, more complex story; it’s pithy and cogent, brief and pointed, and like the gist of a recollected conversation, it offers the essential truth, if not all the inessential facts.

They write them long because they can't write them short. —Raymond Chandler, author There are as many different ways to write life stories as there are people to write them. To write life stories, people usually think of writing a book, but we have many other options. Alternatives to full-length manuscripts include mini-memoir, micro-memoir, collections, photo memoirs, your life in lists, five-year journaling, poetry, six-word memoirs, and more.   Micro-memoir…

What does it mean to write well? Are there tried and true ways to improve your prose, no matter what type of writing you do? You bet! I’ll delve into the answers to those questions in my two-part workshop, Basics of Writing Well, Saturday, April 28, 2018, on the shores of beautiful Lake Fairview near College Park, Orlando (32804). Exact address provided at registration.

Do you want to raise the dead with me? Join the Pastfinders of South Lake Genealogical Society, where I will deliver my Raising the Dead presentation on Thursday, April 12th, in Clermont, Florida. Guests are welcome to attend this free talk. Meet at 4:30 p.m. at the Cooper Memorial Library in Clermont for a social half…