One book leads to another...

Wednesday, February 1, 2017

IWSG - Writing for Impact



All writers are waiting for replies. Thats what Ive learned. Maybe all human beings are
Niall Williams, History of the Rain

Happy February all! And best wishes for International Expect Success Month’. Now is as good a time as any for me to concentrate on National Time Management Month ;- and I expect I will -  just as soon as I take part in this first Wednesday of the month, when IWSG members convene through blogging, Facebook and Twitter to talk about whatever is on our writing minds and agendas. See what we’re all talking about here.

The optional question of the month “How has writing affected your reading?” is interesting to me since I spoke of nearly the same thing last year at this time. It’s amazing how magnified the view is, only one year later. Oh, I still read for the joy of it, even as I watch for grammatical errors (grin). When I realized I was also watching (or waiting) for impact, it occurred to me that it wasn’t just for my enjoyment, but how I hope to be enjoyed. Through brooding skies and silent tears, and nails bitten down to the quick, we must have our sun-buttered mornings to ward off the devil’s stick – with impact.

Do you remember the first book you just had to own? (For me it was “Miss Lollipop’s Lion”) Do you remember where you read it first? Chances are it was at your school or local Library, where nearly all great titles are shared at almost no charge. Small wonder there are ‘Starving Writers’, right? But consider this, according to statistics shown in a recent study by Codex Group, only a third of books consumed actually generate revenue for authors and publishers alike, whereas reader word-of-mouth increases awareness (and sales) – for free! Will yours be the next book everyone talks about?



We dont need a list of rights and wrongs, tables of dos and donts: we need books, time, and silence. Thou shalt not is soon forgotten, but Once upon a time lasts forever. Philip Pullman

24 comments:

  1. Hi, diedre!

    I am happy to see a piece from you here today, dear friend!

    When I read I too watch for grammatical errors and I find plenty of them in publications where they don't belong and are not intended. However I appreciate errors when they are intentional and used for impact.

    I appreciated that quote by Pullman. It reminded me of the famous protest song, the top 3 charting 1971 rock classic "Signs" which was originally released the year before as the B side of a poor selling single - an error that was corrected with a reissue:

    Sign, sign, everywhere a sign
    Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind
    Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?

    However, once in a great while you might be lucky enough to come upon a sign that says "Welcome! Come on in and enjoy yourself." That was the attitude I encountered the first time I visited the Shady Dell in 1965. It was probably the first time in my life that I met adults (the Ettlines) who didn't feel the need to micromanage kids, to scold and correct them every couple of seconds, tell them to keep quiet and command them not to have too much fun, as if doing so would stunt their growth and curve their spines. The Ettlines attitude was "follow our general common sense guidelines, but feel free to be a kid and have fun." It was a vast difference.

    I hope all is well in your world, dear friend diedre, and I hope to connect with you again soon!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Shady!
      I can't help but detect a wistfulness in your 'voice' each time you speak of the Shady Dell. What a wonderful hangout to have as a kid!
      I always liked the 'Signs' song too. We'd all sing along as if the words were written for us. If memory serves, the song was popular at the same time as "One Tin Soldier" from the Billy Jack movie. That was a good one (song) as well.
      See you at the next in your Shady Train series!

      Delete
  2. I think the first book I just had to own was The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. I was so in love with Anne and felt a kinship to her. I wanted her book so bad, and my mom got it for me. I read it every night in bed before going to sleep. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I actually read the book twice before I owned it! Seeing it on my bookshelf at the end of each day was like a perpetual sleepover with all my special friends - including Anne!

      Delete
  3. The first book I HAD to own? Probably the 'Hardy Boys Detective Handbook'. Ha!

    But the book that really turned me into a reader when I was a kid was called 'THE YELLOW Y' published in 1926 by an author named Robert Schulkers. I read that book over and over and over...

    ~ D-FensDogG
    Check out my new blog @
    (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Hardy Boys and Seckatary Hawkins makes sense, Reno - all being detective extraordinaires ;-)I'm curious as to how you came across The Yellow Y. It, as well as others in the series, is a collector's item today and sells for hundreds of dollars. Did you know that Harper Lee even mentions two of them in 'To Kill a Mockingbird'?

      Delete
    2. dIEDRE ~
      My maternal grandma was from Covington, KY., and my grandpa was from Cincinnati, where my Ma was born. The author Robert Schulkers was born in Covington and died in Cincinnati. So he was obviously a local hero.

      When my Ma was in elementary school, some boy classmate of hers gave her his copies of 'The Yellow Y', 'The Chinese Coin', and 'Knights Of The Square Table'. She loved them and passed them on to me when I was old enough to read.

      I read all three, but it was 'The Yellow Y' that really captivated me and that was the first book I ever read more than once. (Probably about 4 times when I was a kid, and once as an adult.)

      Funny you mentioned that bit about Harper Lee and 'To Kill A Mockingbird', because I had only just learned that interesting fact a day before posting my first comment here. Neat little coincidence.

      ~ D-FensDogG
      Check out my new blog @
      (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...

      Delete
    3. I'd say you have several cool coincidences going on here!

      Delete
  4. Hi Diedre - gosh I can't remember which book I first bought - we had lots of books at home - all genres and I read loads, and school too ... but I've always loved reference books and still have those from my early days in London ... I have bought some Angelique books, or Georgette Heyer ones ... but am totally not sure. Oh yes apart from the reference books - I bought loads of Cookery books! Loved cooking ...

    Cheers Hilary

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cookery books! I don't have to guess whose home must always smell like heaven ;-)

      Delete
  5. My first big book to own and read, I was seven. My mother taught me to read before I started school, so was way ahead. It was "Gone With The Wind" by Margaret Mitchelle.

    First in school, "Charlotte's Webb" by EB White.

    First series hooked on and still read everything they write. Victoria Holt, Star War Novels and Nora Roberts.

    Happy IWSG Day
    Juneta @ Writer's Gambit

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What an impressive beginning you had to the world of reading!
      I loved "Charlotte's Webb"! To this day the smell of hay reminds me of the story.
      I've read some Victoria Holt and many by Nora Roberts. Of course, that was before King and Grisham - oh, and Nicholas Sparks!

      Delete
  6. Before I looked at the business end of writing, I got most of my reading material very cheap and still do to an extent. I buy more books through Amazon.
    At the workshop my developmentally delayed brother attends, they have a thrift shop with a large section of books. There is nothing like pre-selected books. I donate and support them so much that when I come to the counter with ten books, they will say one dollar. Of course the authors get none of these sales anyway. But I do feel a twinge to read the work for free.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ann, I couldn't tell you the number of used books I've read - or donated! But it came as natural to me as breathing. Finish one book, start another ;-) To that end I confess, Thrift shops and Libraries are my favorite haunts and I've met some of the nicest people there. I love Amazon as well, but having your 'book' run low on batteries is a bit frustrating when reading in the woods ;-)

      Delete
  7. Your opening quote reminds me of how I feel with each blog post that goes up. When they get especially controversial I'm disappointed that more people didn't stop by to comment because those are the posts I most wanted the feedback for.

    I still read for enjoyment or to find out more about a subject that interests me. If I notice problems in the writing or editing then there must be a problem with the book itself and those are the books that I might eventually forget to finish or just outright quit.

    First book? I don't really recall since my parents used to buy me a lot of books starting at a young age so I rarely went without having a book waiting to be read. I guess my first obsessions were the Tom Swift, Jr and Hardy Boys series of books. I felt like I had to have the complete collections of both and that's when I got interested in having bookshelves in my bedroom and accumulating a home library.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The quote effected me the same way, Lee. Replies are vital to feeling at least acknowledged and the possibilities are endless, once a conversation begins.
      Growing up, I thought that bookshelves were a staple in every house. I even fashioned a make-shift bookshelf in my 'underground' fort out back, using sparkly rocks as bookends ;-) I had a few Hardy Boys books too, to go along with the Nancy Drew!

      Delete
  8. If a story is really good, I don't even notice the "mechanics" of it because I'm so absorbed in the tale. But if it's not so good I read like a writer and don't enjoy it as much, unfortunately. First book? Hmmm...can't say I remember, but I did check out several Berenstain Bear books from my school library over and over again:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So true, Quanie. It's the same for movies when some guy returns missing the tie he was wearing. It goes right over my head till someone mentions it on a review show!
      I broke down and bought a set of the Berenstain Bears for my daughter because she'd hide them when the library wanted them back ;-)

      Delete
  9. Word of mouth is the most valuable promotion tool and the hardest to generate. Sometimes it's a matter of the right story at the right time. Yeah, it's great to aspire to have an impact on someone in the same way we have been moved by amazing books. Always aim high! First book is hard to remember, but if we're really going back, I really wanted to collect all the Mr Men and Thomas the Tank Engine books!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Whatever it takes, right Nick? And yes, always aim high!
      I'm not familiar with Mr. Men, but I did and still do enjoy Thomas the Tank Engine books with my grandson!

      Delete
  10. Word of mouth definitely works best. Couldn't agree more.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I don't remember a children's book I just had to own (my parents were big book people, so they were happy to buy me books), but I remember desperately wanting The Hobbit after reading it at school in 5th grade. They ended up buying me the full LOTR and The Hobbit set for Christmas.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What a fantastic gift! By the time I turned nine, I had my own shelf in the family library and would most often be found there, in the company of books.

      Delete

Any thoughts? Join the conversation, comments welcome here!