Jacqui Murray's Blog, page 242

What is a 'Hacker'

I mean from a writer's perspective. If you had a character who was a hacker (or a cracker), how would you make him convincing. To be  believable, you have to enter their mindset. Here are some ideas I've gotten from my computer friends, my fellow WordDreams blogger, and The New Hacker's Dictionary:

They want to write their native language well. Though it's a common stereotype that programmers can't write, a surprising number of hackers are very able writers.They read science fiction and go to sci

Our Featured Author: Renee Hand

Renee Hand, author of the Crypto-Capers books

Every once in a while, I'd like to introduce you to another writer. My passion is science, technology; Renee Hand's is an award-winning author who loves to write children's books. Read on:

My love for reading and writing started when I was a child. I always had a passion for it. I remember frequently wearing out the stone steps to the local library. When in a bookstore I would sit in the middle of an aisle perusing a novel that I was eagerly going to p

Despite Spell-check, Check Your Spelling (and Grammar)

Are you in a writer's group like I am, with constant debate over the importance of grammar and spelling prior to going to the editor? Thanks to Brian at Copyblogger, I win that debate. Read on?

Do You Make These 7 Mistakes

When You Write?

by Brian Clark

It's time once again to review those nasty errors that damage our credibility when we write. Not normally a fun task, but absolutely necessary. I promise to keep you amused to diminish the pain (or at least I'll give it a shot).

As with the last t

You Know You're a Writer if…

You read a story like this one and think 'Character traits'. Or 'Plot'–#2 and 4 could be the twists in someone's idyllic teaching experience:

15 Things I Wish I'd Known Before Becoming a Teacher
6,717 Views

12 Comments

Jill Hare | Editor, TheApple.com

Don't you wish you knew the good, the bad and the ugly before you became a teacher? Find out some things to look forward to and things to avoid.

1. Relating to every student takes research.

If you're like me, you are decades older than your students.

Do You Make These Mistakes

You don't know me. I understand that. So why would you trust my message? How do you know I'm a good writer with helpful suggestions? I decided to check with the professionals to see if my internet appearance conveys competence, achievement–you know, that I appear to be the writer I am.

I checked with Jordan McCollum (virtually), a guest blogger on the website of literary agent Nathan Bransford. Here's his feedback:

The Top 7 Things Every Aspiring Author's Website Must Have

By: Jordan McCollum

Natha

What About Journaling? Does it Work?

A few years ago, my school instituted journaling–from math class to art class. Everyone was writing about their feelings, providing feedback on projects, answering teacher-initiated prompts. They delivered unedited, ungraded opinions, encouraged to shoot from the hip, be honest, speak their minds. This was from the model of the LA Freedom Writers when a young teacher inspired her class of at-risk students to learn tolerance, apply themselves, and pursue education by journaling. The result was su

You Might be a Blogger if…

Not sure? I can help you. If you're:

male
25-34
have a college degree
are employed
have a household income close to $75,000
aren't a parent

…it's in you. You may not know it yet, but hold on. You'll b e blogging soon. Here's the statistics according to Technorati:

You might be a blogger if...

How Blogs Make you a Better Writer

That's what the education blogs say–if kids read/write blogs, they get better at writing. Why is that?

You have to be concise in a blog. People don't want a novel. They want something that will help them in, say, a minute (that seems to be the average time people spend on a post)You have to be pithy. People don't want to waste even that sixty seconds. They may get tricked the first time by a snazzy title, but not again. So, you have to put your thoughts together in a cogent and concise arrangemen

technorati: take notice

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Pay Attention–this is Important

Have you met Cheru at Alphainventions? We Americans need to hire him to solve the health care crisis, though I think a few other people have dibs on him first. Here's how he markets his website:

The huge truck got stuck under the bridge, and many men tried to get it out for hours and failed until the creator of alphainventions.com told them let the air out of the tires to set it free.

I spent twenty minutes reading his website just because his wisdom is so refreshing. OK. Go see it yourself. I kno