San Francisco hosts one of the biggest writers’ conferences in the U.S. (Photo by Cindy Fazzi, February 2018.)
Unlike Tony Bennett’s famous song, I didn’t leave my heart in San Francisco. I met new friends and found renewed hope while attending the 2018 San Francisco Writers Conference (SFWC). The event offers many benefits. Let me focus on the top eight advantages. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on February 28, 2018
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2018/02/28/top-8-benefits-of-attending-the-san-francisco-writers-conference/
Photo courtesy of Visual Hunt.
The first thing a reader of a novel wants to know is the main character, according to best-selling suspense author Hank Phillippi Ryan. If you’re writing a novel, she said your opening page must have these four important things. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on January 24, 2018
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2018/01/24/best-selling-author-shares-4-things-your-novels-first-page-must-have/
Photo by Hypnotica Studios Infinite on VisualHunt / CC BY
Time sure flies! Since this blog’s launch on Feb. 15, 2014, I’ve published 255 articles on writing, reading, publishing, books, and movies. The five most popular articles focus on effective prologues, signs of a literary snob, and publishers that accept unagented and unsolicited manuscripts. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on December 27, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/12/27/top-5-blog-posts-prologues-literary-snobs-unagented-submissions/
Need a gift idea this holiday season for the writer in your life? The spiffy journals and coffee mugs with literary quotes are nice, but skip them this year. If your writer is anything like me, he or she needs certain things many people don’t think about. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on December 6, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/12/06/the-giving-season-7-gifts-the-writer-in-your-life-actually-needs/
Want to be a writer? Read, read, and read some more. It’s the first requirement for writing well. Don’t take my word for it, take Stephen King’s. He said: “You have to read widely, constantly refining (and redefining) your own work as you do. If you don’t have the time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write.” (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on October 4, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/10/04/5-reasons-why-reading-is-the-key-to-writing-success/
(Photo by Cindy Fazzi, August 2017)
As a lifelong allergy sufferer who needs regular allergy shots, I can’t help but say that attending the recently held Writer’s Digest Annual Conference was a shot in the arm for me—as important (and more fun!) as my immunotherapy. Let me share the top 10 things I learned from the event. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on August 30, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/08/30/10-takeaways-from-the-2017-writers-digest-annual-conference/
Photo via Visualhunt.
Finland is the most literate country in the world, followed by Norway and Iceland, according to an infographic by Global English Editing. The United States is ranked seventh. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on August 23, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/08/23/guess-which-country-is-the-most-literate-hint-its-not-the-u-s/
Marlon Brando as Don Vito Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather” (1972.)
Whether it’s your kid offering a slice of pizza to his sibling or your friend volunteering to babysit, the person might say, “I’m gonna make you an offer you can’t refuse.” Many people know the line though they have never seen Francis Ford Coppola’s 1972 movie, “The Godfather.” The dialogue has taken on a life of its own. There are many movies and novels like that; they are famous for zingers and memorable dialogues. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on August 2, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/08/02/38-lines-from-novels-and-movies-you-wont-soon-forget/
Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth Bennet in BBC’s “Pride and Prejudice” (1995).
William Faulkner’s approach to writing a character explains why some literary characters are so real. “Once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does,” said Faulkner. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on July 12, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/07/12/38-literary-characters-you-wont-forget-for-better-or-for-worse/
Special traits set an artist like Claude Monet apart. (Photo by Cindy Fazzi)
If you’re a writer or artist or scientist and you like working on your own, it could be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, independence is one of 13 traits of highly creative and productive people. On the other hand, employers will say you’re not a team player. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on July 5, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/07/05/why-corporate-america-frowns-on-these-13-traits-of-creative-people/
Cindy Fazzi 