A Morsel from Open Water

The "whatevers" were getting to me. I was seeing the child who adored me slowly turn into a teenager. I couldn't stop the process, but how could I keep my sanity? I began wearing my i-pod everywhere, retreating to the back-yard porch swing to read to the dog when my son came home from school, and then slowly shrugging my shoulders when he asked me what time dinner would be ready.

Some days he'd bounce on the old trampoline a few times before heading in the house to find his cellphone or blast Metallica, but most days he looked at me as if I'd lost my mind. Who reads to a dog?
Read the rest of this tale in Open Water
Reading to the Dog
by Texasrangersfan

TaleBait's Get Hooked Write Away Contest!

Hook your readers in the first few lines, or starve for attention. Your hook, or opener, sets up the tale and pulls your readers in. TaleBait’s Get Hooked Write Away Contest challenges you to write a hook, 100 word maximum, that will get readers reading and writers writing. Sharpen your craft and increase your creativity.

Winners receive a critique of 30 pages by a literary agent or a publisher/editor! You may submit pages of your manuscript for professional review. Skipper will critique the winning hooks.

We’re looking for entries tasty enough to launch a tale on Hooks & Storylines. Your hook should engage readers as well as signal a direction for writers to add to your opener. You may set up a character, mood, setting, time—whatever sparkles enough to make us bite.

Winners receive a whopping cash reward

 (if you calculate it on a per-word basis)!

1^st place – $25, first choice of critique, and byline on a new story in Hooks & Storylines

2^nd place –$15, second choice of critique, and byline on a new story in Hooks & Storylines

3^rd place – $10, critique, and byline on a new story in Hooks & Storylines

No Entry Fee

Skipper doesn’t like too many rules, but we need few:

Word count 100 max

Hooks must be your original writing

Multiple submissions accepted

Submit hook on www.TaleBait.com by selecting “cast a line” on the landing page, or use the “contact us” page. Only submissions received through the website will be considered. Enter your name and a valid email address.

In the message box—Identify the category for your hook: Sci Fi & Fantasy, Romance, Mom’s Escape, Mystery & Suspense, Regional Flavor, or Skipper’s Choice (anything that strikes Skipper’s fancy). Enter your hook.

Winners will receive instructions for submitting 30 pages of their choice for critique.

Deadline December 20, 2010. Winners announced January 2011.

If you have questions, contact: TaleBaitHookContest@gmail.com

The Judges

Denise Little, Literary Agent, Ethan Ellenberg Agency

“Denise Little worked for Barnes & Noble/B. Dalton Bookseller as a bookstore manager and as their national book buyer for science fiction, fantasy, and romance.  She launched the company’s genre magazine, Heart to Heart, and wrote it for its first two years of existence. She then joined Kensington Publishing, where she had her own imprint, Denise Little Presents. After that, she became a book packager, working as executive editor at Tekno Books for Dr. Martin H. Greenberg. She’s now an agent with the Ethan Ellenberg Agency in New York.” http://deniselittle.wordpress.com/

Ethan Ellenberg Agency. “Storytelling is a great calling and we are here to provide professional representation for storytellers, of both fiction and nonfiction…. We only take clients we truly believe in. We take our work very seriously and perform our duties to the highest standards. No matter what you've heard, this business is open to new talent. We are open to new talent.” http://www.ethanellenberg.com

John Tait, Editor, American Literary Review

John Tait's stories have appeared in journals such as TriQuarterly, Prairie Schooner, Crazyhorse, The Sun, and Michigan Quarterly Review and have been reprinted in New Stories from the Southwest and The Mysterious Life of the Heart. His work has won four national awards including the Tobias Wolff Award for Fiction and the H.E. Francis Award for Fiction. He is an Associate Professor of fiction writing at the University of North Texas and editor of American Literary Review.

 American Literary Review is a national literary journal that has been published biannually since 1990. ALR is committed to publishing excellent poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction by writers at all stages in their careers.  ALR also offers an annual three genre contest with $3000 in prizes. http://www.engl.unt.edu/alr

Skipper, Captain of TaleBait.com 

Prior to joining the Center for Teaching Excellence of Southern Methodist University, Skipper taught in SMU’s Writing Program for more than eight years. She also taught tech writing and rhetoric at the University of North Texas and the University of Texas at Dallas, where she earned both her undergraduate and graduate degrees. She is an experienced marketing communications and public affairs professional who has published nonfiction articles on diverse topics. Her current work in progress is a middle-grade fiction. The impetus for her website for writers, TaleBait.com, was to put more pleasure and creativity into her writing. 

Plotters & Pantsters

In a recent discussion on Linked In, I posed the question: Are you a plotter or a pantster?

Here’s the post: Do you map out your plotlines in advance, or write by the seat of your pants—and why? I'm curious because I've observed mixed success in installments on my website, TaleBait. I'm thinking about setting up a collaborative storyline with guidance for the plot to see if it will improve the quality of the posts. Personally, I'm a hybrid. I need a clear direction in mind, but lots of room for discovery as I write.

The responses revealed that virtually everyone is a hybrid. Good stories need creativity and structure. After a bit of research, I found several plot theories and plot maps and selected one to test with the story, Allie’s Choice.

Please join us in spawning creativity while experimenting with a plot plan. I hope this activity proves to be a fun skill-builder for all of us.