Lisa Ohlen Harris's Blog, page 3

NaNoWriMo (a Nonfiction Cheater's Confession)

No,
I am not writing a novel. Truth be told, all I’m doing is using the challenge
(and word-count software) of NaNoWriMo as motivation to assemble a new
manuscript. I’m not writing from scratch, at least not yet, but I am pulling from
rough drafts, blog posts, and journal entries to see if I can put together something
cohesive. What a cheater’s path to 50,000 words, right? Cutting and pasting

Ethics of the Book Review

Back in January I asked my friend Nancy to consider reviewing The Fifth Season. She declined, and we began a months-long conversation about the ethics of the book review. 

I've read a number of reviews by friends or colleagues who I know have a relationship with the author they're reviewing. That's why I felt free to ask my friend Nancy to review my book.  Is this really unethical? My

Break into Book Review Writing

In
my recent post on How to Pitch a Book Review, I said the first step is to
choose a book and the second step is to choose a publication to write for. Where
to start? Many book review publications assign reviews, which means they
already have a stable of reviewers. The book editor decides who will review
what, then shoots an email to a reviewer asking, “Hey, would you like to review
this

How to Pitch a Book Review

I’ve written only three book reviews and have a fourth one
assigned but not yet written: I'm a beginner. But already I've found that review writing is some of the most enjoyable work I’ve
done, and I even get paid for it!



So
how did I start? I found a book I wanted to review, a publication I wanted to
write reviews for, and I wrote a pitch.



Find a book to review

After
looking through

Portland Writers Workshop: Presenting Your Writing to Publishers and Artist Residencies

Look at this! Artsmith
Director Jill McCabe Johnson, along with book publicist John Sibley Williams, will be presenting a Portland workshop!











 The Art
of the Pitch: Presenting Your Writing to Publishers and Artist Residencies

When: Sunday, November 30, 2014 @ 2-4pm

Where: Daedalus Books

2074 NW
Flanders Street, Portland, OR 97209



COST: $50 at
door/$40 in advance

Portland Writers Workshop! Presenting Your Writing to Publishers and Artist Residencies

Look at this! Artsmith
Director Jill McCabe Johnson, along with book publicist John Sibley Williams, will be presenting a Portland workshop!











 The Art
of the Pitch: Presenting Your Writing to Publishers and Artist Residencies

When: Sunday, November 30, 2014 @ 2-4pm

Where: Daedalus Books

2074 NW
Flanders Street, Portland, OR 97209



COST: $50 at
door/$40 in advance

How to Apply to an Artist Residency

I asked Artsmith’s Executive
Director, Jill McCabe Johnson, what Artsmith looks for in residency applications. Jill doesn’t make the
selections for the Artsmith residency herself, by the way—a rotating panel of
poets, prose writers, and artists make those decisions each year. Jill’s sense
is that the writing sample (or portfolio) is by far the most important element
of the application package

Artsmith Residency: January 4 - 11, 2015

As you re-establish your writing schedule this fall and start sending work out to editors (or to your critique group), make sure you’re also applying for
residencies and fellowships. My home state of Oregon offers cash writing fellowships to poets, writers, and publishers who are Oregon residents, and
many states have similar provision for the arts. Do you know what’s available
in your state?

The Prose Writer Attempts Poetry

A few weeks ago I was part of a William Stafford anniversary reading at Linfield College. Here I am reading some excellent poetry by William Stafford, followed by my own attempt at free verse.

In Memory

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