New Year, Old You
Resolutions & Celebrations
A month of 2024 has passed, 1/12 of the year gone. Much of that time I was under par, catching a killer cold as 2023 ended, which delayed most projects like this one. Many people this winter have suffered similarly, if not worse, from circulating viruses—cold, COVID, RSV. Three years of mask wearing has lowered our immunity. We can all hope for better health going forward.
With all the talk about new year’s resolutions, first making them, and then failing to keep them, some of the best commentators spoke of not just looking forward, but also looking backward. James Kambos says, “It is a time to connect with my past before making my way through another year . . . . I see the seasons of my life, seasons of both happiness and sadness.”
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HAVE A PLAN, HOLD IT LIGHTLY
Another spoke of considering failure as an option. Early in January, newscasters were already warning that only about 2% of people kept their resolutions.
In recent commentary by Harvey Mackay entitled “Everyone fails to meet their goals sometimes, and that’s OK,” he writes,
Failure teaches you not to fear failure, because if you can survive to fight again, you haven’t failed. You have only heightened your appreciation of success.
Indeed, another commentator advises to give yourself a compliment, saying “well done for trying.”
It’s important to set realistic goals, recognizing that change is incremental and new habits take time to become part of a routine, whether we are talking about eating behaviors or writing habits.
I wish you good health and writing for 2024, recalling the words of May Sarton: “Hold on, trust your talent, and work hard.”
Ellen
P.S. Be sure to check out my new in-person class, Intensive Writing Workshop (starts 3/11), where I build on material I developed for my Advanced Writing Workshop, proven techniques and best practices to bring your writing to a new level. Registration is now open. Class size is limited, registration deadline is 2/16, so sign up early. (For those out of the Albany, NY, area, I will soon be offering individual online workshops teaching these skills.)
P.S.S. Check out the Punctuation Point below on the use of ellipses and dashes in writing.
SHOUT OUT to WritingEssentials Community Member KATE L, who recently won first place in a short story contest. Her work will be published this spring in the Seven Hills Literary Review. Yeah, Kate!
Have some accomplishment for us to shout out? Email me.
Cont. Ed. & other opportunities (Events are virtual or in-person & open at the newsletter date. Most require registration.)
Thurs, 2/1: Folger Book Club: Homecoming by Yaa Gyasi, 6:30 PM ET. Free
Thurs, 2/1: Orange County (FL) Library System (OCLS): Query Letter Don'ts, 7:00 PM. Free
Thurs, 2/1: Mid-Continent Public Library (MO): Combining Stories with Story Weaving, 7:30 PM ET. Free
Sat, 2/3: OCLS: Using Gamification to Help Your Writing Life, 11:00 AM ET. Free
Thurs, 2/8: National Association of Memoir Writers (NAMW) Virtual Book Club: Paris Blue: A Memoir of First Love by Julie Scolnik, 7 PM ET. Free
Sat, 2/10: Sisters in Crime – Grand Canyon Chapter: How to Make Murder Funny – Adding Humor to Your Story with Jennifer Chow. 12:30 PM ET. Free
Mon, 2/12: Ellen’s WritingEssentials: Timed Writing Sprints, 7:00 PM EDT. Free
Tues, 2/13: Sisters in Crime (national): So You Want to Go Indie, 8:00 PM ET. Free for members
Thurs, 2/15: The Ohio State University, University Libraries: The Vanishing of Carolyn Wells: Investigations into a Forgotten Mystery Author with Rebecca Rego Barry. 2:00 PM
Fri, 2/16: Jane Friedman’s Business Sermon: “3 Keys to Pitching” with literary agent Lucinda Halpern. 1:00 PM Free
Sat, 2/17: OCLS: Owning It: Memoir and Memory, 11:00 AM ET. Free
Sat, 2/17: Sisters in Crime – Upper Hudson Chapter: “The Foundations of Plot” with Elena Hartwell Taylor. (Zoom only, requires registration.) 11:15 AM ET. Free
Tues, 2/20: (OCLS): Your Self-Publishing Timeline, 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Sat, 2/24: Sisters in Crime (national): SinC Into Great Writing: Top Five Tips for Writing Mysteries, 12:00 PM ET. Free for SinC members, Fee: $30 for Non-members with a Guest account.
P.S.: SPECIAL EVENT – COMING IN MARCH:
Fri - Sat, 3/7 – 8: Sisters in Crime – Upper Hudson Chapter: Murderous March Virtual Conference, workshops, pitching sessions, author panels, and guest of honor, Naomi Hirahara.
Register soon to take advantage of the special opportunities. Registration closes 2/29/24 at 11:59 PM.
PUNCTUATION POINT
The Ellipsis (…) or Dash (—)?
When we revise our writing, we often find our weaknesses or predilections for words or punctuation marks—something I’m facing in the reviews of my adult mystery manuscript. For me, after not-so-great typing skills, it is the dash. I use them a lot in my prose, whether formal or texting, recognizing there are valid uses and sometimes there are lazy decisions. I’m reprinting a part of a blog I posted a couple years ago on the use of dashes and ellipses in fiction, often misused by new writers.
In fiction, an ellipsis (…) is used to show hesitation or trailing off:
A dash (—), also called em dash, is used to show
an interruption in speech or a sudden break in thought or sentence structure, or can also be used for amplifying or explaining or setting off information within a sentence (and can be used in place of semicolons, colons, and even commas).
