Ronda J. Del Boccio's Blog: Writing is pure Bliss, page 35
January 23, 2015
Grammar RULES: Overcoming Comma Confusion
Send to KindleAh, that little pause, but not the pause that refreshes. It’s an annoying little punctuation mark that causes more bickering than most.
I’ve been in writing critique group sessions in which people argued over whether that coma should or should not be there.
Poor use of commas can show your “greenhorn” / newbie status immediately. You don’t want that, even if you’re penning your first article.
In a case like “Let’s eat, Uncle John,” it’s clear. Unless you’re a cannibal, you want the coma! But in many other situations, the waters become murky.
A writer I know said she sent her publisher a whole page of commas and said, “Put them where they go.” She has written a bunch of books (north of fifty, I believe) and perhaps she can get away with that. You and I, however, benefit from knowing the rules! So here they are. 
One thing to note is that if your publisher uses a certain style manual, there may be some slight differences. I believe it’s the AP style book that uses a comma after the second word in a sequence of three. Not all style books recommend this.
As a writer, it can be good to get a good style guide I have Elements of Style Volume 4 by Strunk & White.. You may have one for your industry/niche.
There is a style book for gardening writers, and there are others. Use whatever your publisher or employer says to use.
Follow your BLISS
Ronda Del Boccio
best selling author, speaker & Top Reviewer
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January 22, 2015
Your choices Create Your Future
Send to KindleWhat do you choose? # #thinkingoutloud #choiceReshared post from +Adrienne SmithLife is all about making choices. Always do your best to make the right ones, and always do your best to learn from the wrong ones.
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FREE Pinterest for Authors Class: Turning Pinterest into Blog Traffic
Send to KindleFun, fast, free Pinterest for Authors class.
Pinterest is a great social network for sharing photos. And like any other, it can be confusing!
An author friend asked me how I had set up a link, and I figured, why not do a free class so she and others can benefit? So that’s what is happening.
Why attend this free class?
Find out how to link your pins.
See how to manage boards.
Learn how to get followers
Get traffic to your site from Pinterest
Sell more books with Pinterestj
Join me in a free Pinterest for Authors class
Friday, Jan. 21
3 PM ET
From your computer
Yes, it will be recorded, BUT if you aren’t there, you won’t be able to ask questions and get help!
Join free WriteOnPurpose.com/free & get other cool tools.
If you’re already part of the community, you already received the info.
I’m so excited to see you there!
Follow your BLISS,
Ronda Del Boccio
#1 best selling, award-winning author & speaker
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Social Media Lingo: Abbreviations & Alphabet Soup of Social Media Marketing
Send to KindleThere are so many acronyms! It’s like onscreen alphabet soup. Here’s the decoder ring. Thanks +Peg FitzpatrickReshared post from +Peg FitzpatrickAn EPIC list of Social Media Acronyms & Abbreviations from +Kevan Lee and +Buffer
The Ultimate List of Social Media Acronyms and Abbreviations
A complete glossary of social media acronyms and abbreviations – along with definitions – for social media updates and marketing.
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January 21, 2015
What You Need on Your Author Website
Send to KindleWhat You Need on Your Author Website
Reshared post from +Book Marketing Tools
5 Things You Need On Your Author Website – Cool, you made an author website, but are you missing some key elements? Read this blog post to make sure your website is up to par: http://bookmarketingtools.com/blog/5-things-you-need-on-your-author-website/
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Will you commit to live your purpose?
Send to KindleThe time is now. What do you wait for? Time is the one resource you will never be able to get more of.
Reshared post from +Adrienne Smith
"One day, you will wake up and there won't be any more time to do the things you've always wanted. DO IT NOW." ~ Paulo Coelho
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January 20, 2015
Speaking of Emotion: Vocabulary Expansion for Authors
Send to KindleWhether writing fiction or nonfiction, you will write about attitudes and emotions. It can be easy to get caught in a rut, so here are some ways to write about irony, positive and negative attitudes.
Want more help with writing skills? Claim your free author profit pack and get tools to help you be a better writer at WriteOnPurpose.com/free.
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Book Review and Excerpt of Paranormal Romance Thriller Glory: The Legend of Glory Book 1 by Devin O’Branagan
Send to KindleWelcome back to another Write On Purpose book review. Each week I review a well-written book, highlighting what makes it good from the reader’s perspective and what writing skills and techniques make it an irresistible read.Thus, each review serves both writers and readers.
This week’s excellent read is Glory: The Legend of Blory, Book 1 by #1 best selling author Devin O’Branagan.
I’ve known #1 best selling author Devin O’Branagan since I helped her with the first book launch of GLory. Now, she is talking with a producer about turning the book into a movie or TV program. I hope that comes true, because Glory is an excellent book.
This is a story about a teenager who rises to meet incredible challenges. Her helpers include a fabulous dog, an angel and a vampire. It is the first of a trilogy, and I have read and reviewed them all.
Starting The Story Where The Change Happens
No matter what genre you write, it’s important to start where the change begins. Ruminating over tea doesn’t cut it these days. Glory begins powerfully, with the impending death of Glory’s father.
A pandemic is sweeping the country, and Glory’s blood has the antidote, but not only the “good guys” are after it.. Here is the Glory book trailer video:
Amp up the Story with Internal and External Conflict
Conflict makes a story interesting. After all, if nothing happens, you don’t have a novel. There are two kinds of conflict that make for a good book. Both are important. This trilogy has them both in roughly equal measure.
External conflict
External conflict refers to those elements outside the point of view character. these challenges come from outside the person and include the major plot hurdles for the story. in Glory, our hero deals with the nasty bug and with people who are after her because of her uniqueness.
Internal conflict
Internal conflict comes from a character struggling with her emotions and actions. Glory’s struggles include losing her father to the pandemic and the feelings she develops for her vampire and angel guardians.
The internal landscape is what distinguishes one book from another. Many would argue that there are perhaps only 30 or 50 plots around love, revenge, achievement and the like..
It’s how the point of view character(s) handling their challenges, their road of trials, that distinguish a book. The character-against-world themes are similar. How a hero interacts with her world sets a story apart from the rest.
That’s why I say the internal conflict makes a book even more than the more obvious plot elements, such as in this case the pandemic, good and evil beings, and the scientists.
While this is a young adult tale with a 17-year-old hero, it is a good read for adults as well.
A Curvaceous Protagonist
I LOVE books with a strong female character who’s curvy, not twiggy. I’m writing one like that just now myself. Here’s how Glory reacts when she hears a policeman tell a friend they’re looking for a girl about her age but “much heavier”:
I bristled. I wasn’t heavy. I was–as dad had described me–voluptuous : chesty, hippy, and curvaceous, but most certainly not fat.
Yay! Having so often been shamed for my size, I can appreciate a character being proud of her curves. I’m so sick of movies and TV shows glorifying women who could blow away if you sneeze on them.
Wits Win
While there are numerous supernatural elements and beings, both helping and detracting from Glory and her mission to save the world, there is no savior. No rescuer. She must rely on her own wits and strength. This is an element that improves any story, and I like the way O’Branagan handles the balance.
Glory Book Excerpt:
I floated and it felt good. It was warm and bright and I was at peace.
Dominic appeared. “Don’t go,” he said.
I looked down at my body lying in a soggy ditch in a pool of blood. “I don’t have a choice anymore.”
“I’m here now. I can help if you want me to.”
I didn’t want him to. The world and all its misery had lost its allure. I was done.
He knew what I was feeling and I could feel him too. It was shockingly intimate. He yearned for me to want to return; he needed me to be noble.
“I’m not your salvation,” I said.
I felt his disappointment. He wanted to love humanity for his father’s sake, and I was conscious of his regret at not being able to. I felt his remorse for having failed me, his tenderness for me, and how that new emotion surprised him. I wanted to comfort him and take away his pain. He sensed my affection for him and was moved by it. Our empathic connection was exquisite.
I realized that what we shared at that moment was what everybody longed for—the merging of bodies was a poor imitation of the merging of hearts.
Suddenly, I wanted to do whatever it took to relieve his suffering and the suffering of all those who could benefit from my blood. In that moment, I suffered the pain of all creation. I needed to heal it.
My translucent hand reached for him. “Take me home.”
He didn’t ask which home I meant. His heart knew.
I hope you’ll get your copy of the whole trilogy.
About #1 Best Selling Author Devin O’Branagan
Bestselling author Devin O’Branagan writes novels about uncommon heroes. Her genres include young adult urban fantasy, paranormal romance, paranormal thrillers, and romantic comedy. She’s been published by Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Books, German publisher Heyne Verlag, Turkish publisher Dogan Egmont, and indie publisher Cornucopia Creations. Her books are available in print, eBook, and audio book formats.
Connect with Devin
Website www.DevinWrites.com
All Devin’s books on Amazon
Facebook:
Goodreads:
Buy Glory: The Legend of Glory, Book 1
Amazon US
Amazon UK
About Ronda Del Boccio
Ronda Del Boccio is an award-winning and best selling author of both fiction and nonfiction. She tells transformational tales and helps visionary authors turn their dreams and imaginings into published books. See and order Ronda’s books on Amazon.
Join Ronda’s readers for free stories, sneak peeks at her next books and more at WriteOnPUrpose.com/read
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January 19, 2015
Legally Using Online Pictures
Send to KindleJust because you see a photo on a website doesn't mean you are free to use it for any purpose. What's to do? Find out below.
Thanks Peg +Peg Fitzpatrick
#creativecommons #copyrightprotection #copyrightlaw #copyrightinfringement
Reshared post from +Peg Fitzpatrick
12 Most Picture Perfect Ways To Ensure You’re Legally Using Online Photos written by +Sara Hawkins
Hint: you can't use images that you find on the internet without permission. This means images from Google search, movies, television, other people's graphics, etc. Read on.."Using images in our online work is crucial. It’s a visual medium and how better to tell your story or draw in your audience than with a compelling photo? But while some may be flattered you’re using a photo they took or image they created, most are not. Besides all the SEO and search-engine ranking reasons, using someone else’s work without their permission is not only wrong but also may be illegal."
12 Most Picture Perfect Ways To Ensure You’re Legally Using Online Photos
Attorney and social media writer, Sara Hawkins, snaps the 12 Most Picture Perfect Ways To Ensure You’re Legally Using Online Photos.
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Social Media for Authors: 20 Insider Features
Send to KindleYou use social media sites as an author all the time, but I know that it's easy to miss some of the coolest hacks and tips you could use, if only you knew about them. I know I'm learning new things all the time. +Denise Wakeman brings you 20 cool tricks and feature for Facebook, Twitter and more.
#soccialMediaMarketing #bookmarketing #bookmarketingtips
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Reshared post from +Denise Wakeman
Do you know about all these little-known features on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest?
via +HubSpot
20 Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn & Pinterest Features You Didn’t Know Existed (But Totally Should)
Check out this list of 20 little-known things you can do on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.
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Writing is pure Bliss
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