I will be speaking with the amazing Lucinda Jackson on 9/12 at the September Mount Diablo California Writers Club Zoom Meeting on the subject of Writing for a Cause. Join us and the featured speaker,
Fiction Writer
I will be speaking with the amazing Lucinda Jackson on 9/12 at the September Mount Diablo California Writers Club Zoom Meeting on the subject of Writing for a Cause. Join us and the featured speaker,
A muse (or mood) board is a visual aid designed to create mood, inform plot or inspire descriptive prose. Typically, the advertising industry, interior designers, wedding organizers, or more recently, web designers have used this technique. In writing, a muse board is less formal and structured than a storyboard, but can loosely serve the same function. I recently presented this concept to a group of writers at the Mount Diablo Branch of the California Writers Club and the concept received a great deal of interest.
If you decide to try this writing aid, the first two decisions you will have to make is what format you want and what media you’d like to use. The format can be collage, sequential images that outline plot, character-specific, or abstract and mood driven. There are many options, adding corkboard next to your computer, tri-fold cardboard (think child’s science project), or digital. One advantage of the trifold is that it can be displayed at author readings and book signings. The digital world offers many types of platforms, including Pinterest, Photoshop, Imagespark (shows other mood boards, but this site is possibly closing), Sampleboard and Evernote. Pinterest has an added bonus that your followers can monitor your progress and it can create buzz and it is free.
While digital media is convenient, content is limited to Internet images and digital photos (can photograph other media), while using traditional media gives more options for material and can include:
• Photos
• Post its
• Magazines
• Maps
• Fabrics/textures
• Scented cloth
• Photographs of your own text
• Your introductory story paragraph
• Internet images
• Inspirational quotes
• Isolated words
• Sound bites (like a movie trailer)
Here are ten of the many possible advantages:
1). Correct weaknesses in your writing style.
2). Identify key themes and help set tone or mood.
3). Focus plots and overcome writer’s block.
4). Craft detailed descriptive text.
5). Prevent time-consuming rewrites.
6). Keep text true to your time period or era and timelines straight.
7). Create a cohesive balance in the arc of the story.
8). Helps ensure consistency of descriptions of characters and setting.
9). Assist in foreshadowing.
10). Prevent meandering and assist in finding your beginning and/or ending.
While you might be concerned that creating a muse board will take away from precious writing time, but the truth is that the planning and energy can actually save time. Creating a muse board can exercise your creative brain and take your work to a whole new level. It can also be a fun visual to take to author signings after publication.
Check out my review of Chris Bohjalain’s The Sleepwalker on page 10.
On page 16, you’ll find my dog rescue column on Hondo, a pit bull mix that needs a home, information on dog aromatherapy, greyhound rescue, a study on purebred dog vs mixed bred health and more.
Check out Chasing Bigfoot on page 8, my BookEnds column on page 10 (Just Imagine There Were No Black People by Tamara Shiloh) and sweet deaf June in Rubydooby_doo to the Rescue on page 16. And don’t miss tips for traveling with your dog also in my Ruby dog rescue column.
Check out my review of Jack London’s The Scarlet Plague on page 10 and sweet chihuahua mix Graham on page 6.
It was a prolific month for me.
I have two freelance articles. Things to do during the shut-down, including how to make Toilet Paper and hand sanitizer (page 8) and an article about Earth Day that involves reading to your kids (page 9). There’s my usual book review column (Margaret Atwood’s The Testaments – Handmaid’s Tale sequel) on page 6 and my Ruby_dooby_do to the Rescue dog rescue column (Dolly – the one-eyed cattle dog wonder) on page 10.
Hi Folks,
I have two upcoming book-signing/speaking events in April (Multicultural Children’s Bookstore on 4/18) and a Mount Diablo CWC speaking event on Travel Writing May 9th. I will update the status of these events in the coming weeks.
Currently, the World Health Organization says no. Fido is not at risk, nor is there any evidence that your dog will be a carrier and infect you. For an abundance of caution for those at risk, it might be a good practice to wash your hands after you pet an unfamiliar animal in public in case someone has sneezed on their fur.
Microplastics: Environmental Impacts and Practical Tips to Reduce Your Plastic Footprint
Mount Diablo Audubon Meeting in Walnut Creek
“Birding Information” presenter
The meeting is free to the public.
Camellia Room at The Gardens at Heather Farm, 1540 Marchbanks Drive, Walnut Creek.
6:30 pm Doors open
7:00 pm Microplastics Talk
Feel Free to Stick around for the Main Program
7:25 pm News
7:40 pm Snacks & Raffle
8:00 pm Main Program
I will be speaking on the topic of Acting Locally and Globally for Rhino ConservationWalnut Creek Rotary ClubAssistance League of Diablo Valley Conference Room2711 Buena Vista Avenue, Walnut CreekMarch 26, 2024, 12:30 PM, Doors Open at Noon
I will be speaking on the topic of Optimize Your Seven Keywords on Amazon at the Mount Diablo CWC meeting from 11:15 till noon at Zio Fraedo’s Restaurant, 611 Gregory Lane, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. Learn the best possible strategies to fill your sevenkeyword boxes on your Amazon publishing page. Yourseven keywords can minimize or […]