Debbie Ridpath Ohi's Blog, page 162
February 3, 2010
Recommended: Darcy Pattison's Fiction Notes
One of my favourite sources of retweet material is Darcy Pattison's blog, Fiction Notes. If she was on Twitter (as far as I can tell, she's not), I'm sure she'd be one of the most retweeted writers ever.
Hm, and I notice she has a book on revision: NOVEL METAMORPHOSIS: UNCOMMON WAYS TO REVISE. Anyway, do visit her site for excellent tips on the craft of writing:
February 2, 2010
How Shannon Delany's cell phone novel ended up as a St. Martin's Press book
After posting short stories to Textnovel.com, Shannon Delany (previously writing as Saoirse Redgrave) ended up with a St. Martin's Press book contract for 13 To Life, a new YA paranormal werewolf novel. Shannon kindly agreed to answer a few questions about her experience:
What got you interested in cellphone novels?
I was a naysayer to Textnovel.com until they changed their contract to make things fairer for authors and then I decided to test the system by posting two stories.
How did you find...
How Shannon Reinbold's cell phone novel ended up as a St. Martin's Press book
After posting short stories to Textnovel.com, Shannon Delany (previously writing as Saoirse Redgrave) ended up with a St. Martin's Press book contract for 13 To Life, a new YA paranormal werewolf novel. Shannon kindly agreed to answer a few questions about her experience:
What got you interested in cellphone novels?
I was a naysayer to Textnovel.com until they changed their contract to make things fairer for authors and then I decided to test the system by posting two stories.
How did you find...
iPhone app for writers: Write Chain
Writers with iPhone should check out Write Chain, an app which provides motivation by storing word counts for each writing session and tracks the total words written across all sessions.
The "chain" part of the whole strategy is to try to write for as many days in the row as possible. If you miss a day, you break the chain…unless you change the settings to allow yourself some leeway.
Cost of the app: FREE, at least right now. Check out the rest of the How Now Not To Write site for helpful...
February 1, 2010
Weekly Wordcount Challenge (250, 500, 1000 wds/day) Check-In
Do you need a wordcount challenge with some leeway?
Check out the challenges below:
250 wds/day | 500 wds/day | 1000 wds/day
So how did you all do with your daily wordcount challenges since the last check-in?
January 29, 2010
iPad: No "ragged text" or hyphenation option in iBooks e-reader?
From Fox News: Clayton Morris and fellow reporters use the Apple iPad, examining the e-book functionality.
Rumor has it that the iBooks e-reader currently does not let readers choose an "unjustified text" format. I hate reading justified text but am assuming that future version of iBooks will fix this. From a post by John Gruber:
iBooks uses full-justified layout for books, with no apparent option to switch to ragged right. It doesn't do hyphenation, so you wind up with very unsightly...
January 28, 2010
Why I'm excited about the Apple iPad
I was excited about the idea of an Apple tablet long before the hype began. I remained excited despite the build-up hype. And yes, I'm STILL excited now that the announcement's been made and people are scrambling over each other to dissect, critique and mock.
I'm not a tech guru, so can't defend the iPad against some of the criticisms about what the iPad should have had.
I also don't claim to be an e-reader device expert, so won't attempt to do a detailed comparison of the iPad with other...
January 27, 2010
New Apple iPad starts at $499 | iPad info roundup
For those who missed the liveblogging from the Apple announcement, here are some good summaries:
AppleInsider's overview of iPad specs and info about AT&T's no-contract iPad data plans, which run $15/mo. 250MB, $30 unlimited.
Apple iPad Just Tried To Assassinate Laptops:
It's the 'internet device' vision of a decade ago all over again, except now Apple can offer what is arguably the best user experience for internet and media consumption combined with a very reasonable (for a brand new gadget...
Where to get live coverage of the Apple tablet announcement today
(Before embedding, see my cartoon licensing info.)
As some of you may already know, I have been obsessed (yes, I said OBSESSED) with the possibility of an Apple tablet for ages. I even launched a separate Twitter account (@tabletgal) just for posting any info I found.
I can't believe the announcement's going to be made TODAY. Finally. But now there's the morning to get through…eek. I think my brain's going...
Where to get live coverage of the Apple announcement today
(Before embedding, see my cartoon licensing info.)
As some of you may already know, I have been obsessed (yes, I said OBSESSED) with the possibility of an Apple tablet for ages. I even launched a separate Twitter account (@tabletgal) just for posting any info I found.
I can't believe the announcement's going to be made TODAY. Finally. But now there's the morning to get through…eek. I think my brain's going...
