authors

The Wow Principles

Aug. 31, 2010 – I had the good fortune recently to meet Dahlynn McKowen (courtesy of author Terri Elders). Dahlynn has published more than 2,000 articles as a freelancer, and she is the primary coauthor for Chicken Soup for the Entrepeneurial Soul. She and her husband, Ken (a photographer, writer and retired California State Park Ranger), run the Publishing Syndicate. If you are a writer, you should sign up right now for their free Wow Principles e-newsletter, which focuses on anthology story publishing opportunities. After you sign up, be sure to read the current issue of the newsletter, which features an interview with yours truly about Dream of Things. -Mike O’Mary

100 Best First Lines

100 Best First Lines From Novels

from American Book Review

My favorite is 25:
“Through the fence, between the curling flower spaces, I could see them hitting.”

I like 12 & 38, too.

What about you?

The Art of Language

June 28, 2010 — Hello friends! Here’s a treat for you: an inside look at the creative process from one of the most creative people I know. Stephen Parrish is author of The Tavernier Stones, a masterfully crafted story of a treasure hunt with memorable characters and fascinating details about cartography and gemology. Stephen also has one of the most entertaining blogs on the Internet at stephenparrish.blogspot.com, and he is sponsoring an online treasure hunt to win a 1 carat diamond!

I grew up among artists who encouraged me to draw and paint; my room always smelled of turpentine and linseed oil and my pants were often streaked with charcoal dust.  Since I write visually—I first see the scenes in my head and attempt to record them faithfully—it was only natural that I come up with an approach to writing that paid tribute to all those canvases I sacrificed.

Update on Submissions – and a Holiday Story Deadline

June 4, 2010 — Hello Friends! I’ve said several times that had I known what I didn’t know about publishing, I never would have started a publishing company. But then I sit down and read the stories that people have submitted to Dream of Things, and I remember why I did it. I recently finished reading the 250+ stories submitted to Dream of Things in January and February. I loved your stories.

Today Arrived Sooner Than I Expected

May 5, 2010 — Hello Friends! No, the headline is not a quote from Moe, Larry or Curly. I’m saying that after only a few months of accepting submissions, we are almost ready to publish the first Dream of Things anthology. Submissions will close for the “Saying Goodbye” anthology on June 30, 2010,