mXm • blog

11 07, 2024

tooth?

By |2024-07-11T09:00:58-04:002024 July 11th, |mXm • blog|

are we talking dentistry here?

no, not really – although what is common is that both relate to and/or refer to one’s mouth.
As in ‘mouthing off’.

the definition : : to express your opinion,  especially loudly and in a way that shows no consideration or respect:

nope

not me

of course, if/when I have an opinion, that matters to me, then I will usually bring it forth.

okay? we got that out of the way?

good

so – tooth……the tooth also applied to paper. as in : :

WHAT IS A PAPER’S TOOTH?

Nobody wants to feel like a novice at their local art store, and unfamiliar terms are certainly one of the things that can make even the most seasoned artist feel like a beginner. Have you ever heard people discuss paper in terms of “teeth”? Well, a paper’s tooth describes the surface feel of paper. Generally, the more tooth a paper has, the rougher it feels. You could easily exchange the term for the words, “texture,” or “smoothness.” In general, charcoal artists prefer paper with a rougher texture, as the charcoal adheres better to unsmooth surfaces.

the forenoted is copied from : : www.NitramCharcoal.com

…and so, recently, in that I had the good fortune to publish my first lil’ book, ‘poetix + prose’ on Amazon, as it happens I had to sign/inscribe copies for purchasers. It occurred to me, that a way more personal ‘feeling’ inscription might be written with pen and ink, I turned to my collection of lovely fountain pens, which I had not had a reason to use in at least a decade – maybe two – maybe more. Because they were, each and every one, so very lovely looking, I had mounted them on a grasscloth background in a framed display box. I carefully removed a few and of course whatever ink there may been in their reservoirs was long dried out.

ponder – wonder – – think, on that – as I did. Consequently I hied myself to the only remaining store in Québec, to my knowledge, that still sold things like fountain pen refills, bottled inks, etcetera, and with the aid of a most patient young lady, Allison, we worked our way through all nine of my ‘antiques’. All of which, amazingly, she was able to find the appropriate ink cartridges for. Wahoo!

returned to my writers’ haven and began ‘test writing’ with each one.

And, guess what?

I found the feel, the catch of nib against grain of paper, the fluid flow of ink, to be so embracing, so comforting, that I promised myself to write, daily, from then on.
To write something, anything.

And then, quite coincidentally I stumbled across a post in Clipboard that highlighted this great company in Japan that specializes in, specialty papers. I was delighted! I didn’t rush to order any, because, quite honestly, they are quite too expensive for me – as an indulgence.
But maybe there are some amongst you who might, just maybe – want to check them out.
And then, of course, my creative fount sprung another vision on me – what about white ink on black paper. ‘Yowza!, I declared…..thus, it is:

Did I write this? No – I didn’t. But I will make a return visit soon to Papeterie Westmount to buy a bottle of white ink. And if so, in a future post, I will show, that, which I have writ.

ITO Bindery is that Japanese company. Check them out.

All of which, of course, brings me back to tooth.

If ever, any of you, harbor the urge, the desire, to do as I have done – to return to some degree, to an earlier time, find that old favourite pen of yours, rinse it in a small bowl of warm water and dishwasher liquid, get on thy mount and head to Westmount Stationery – call first to confirm that Allison is on shift.

Bonus! They do have a wide selection of papers, pads, writing paraphernalia……oh joy!

Go ahead – indulge yourselves

End up looking at the world, today, with a toothy grin!

à bientôt!

22 06, 2024

‘poetix & prose’

By |2024-06-24T17:17:35-04:002024 June 22nd, |mXm • blog|

It is now finally, published and posted – both the ePub version and the paperback.

Available from www.Amazon.com

Although only published last month all reviews to date are
*****.  Five stars!

Available as an ePub (free for Kindle Unlimited customers) @ $3.33 or
in paperback at $8.49 USD.

• this has been a journey for me, both as a writer but also as a graphic designer
and as a seasoned business executive. As a writer, it has been
rewarding to work my way through the accumulation of
pieces, poems, short snippets of stories to arrive at ‘poetix & prose’
as being representative of my feelings, my thoughts.
I am humbled by the result, truly.

As a graphic designer with decades of experience under my belt,
the search for a cover design that was simple, elegant –
powerful – was all-consuming time-wise.
Believe it or not I reviewed and considered 600 fonts
before settling on my final choice.

And as a seasoned business executive, having been in the
role of senior design manager for many years, it has been both
a voyage of discovery but also one wherein the respect
I came to feel for Amazon KDP was, and is, off the charts.
The tools provided by KDP for the emerging writer are simply amazing –
and Amazon keeps improving them, amplifying them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And now, today, I am off to Ottawa – about a two hour drive,
to participate in my first ever book fair.
The Ottawa Small Press Book Fair is being held at the Tom Brown Arena,
141 Bayview Station Road, Ottawa from noon to 5:00 PM. It has been around
since 1994 when Rob MacLennan founded it.

Their Facebook page is here.

I will post photographs soon.

On another note I just returned from my first ever writing retreat –
it was organized by my writing partners/colleagues of the
Montreal Writers Collective, a MeetUp group which I’ve been a
member of for the last 4 years.

It was self-organized in that we – five of us – rented an Air BnB near
Mt. Tremblant, Québec (about two hours north of Montreal)
and arriving there last Friday we spent the week in relentless devotion to – writing.
Starting at 9:30 each day we began with our morning Pomodoro
session – write for 31 minutes, break for 5 – 7 minutes,
write an additional 31 minutes. Until noon, or thereabouts.

Following lunch if we didn’t participate in a ‘learning session’
which one or the other of us had organized (i.e., character development,
writing action scenes, writing from prompts)
we, again, spent the afternoons, writing.

And following dinner (which we each took turns in preparing –
mine was awesome   : > ).    (chili) we continued with the writing of our
individual projects. Which in every case, was the writing of a novel.

In spite of an intense two day heat wave (32 – 34 degrees), with NO air conditioning,
we ‘soldiered on’. It was, great. It was something we hope to repeat again next year.

My next post will include photographs of the Fair and our writers’ retreat.

Thanks, as always, for listening.

14 02, 2024

just published in Syncopation Library

By |2024-02-14T07:26:23-05:002024 February 14th, |mXm • blog|

I’m honoured to have my flashFiction piece • c o c o o n •  piece selected and featured in the newest publication of Syncopation Library.

When calls for submissions went out late last fall there was a simple criteria for consideration – the document/story must contain reference to the guitar.

Here is the link: :

I hope you enjoy it. One of my readers has already requested ‘more’ of the character….perhaps, maybe…..

 

4 02, 2024

writingMatters

By |2024-02-04T08:50:52-05:002024 February 4th, |mXm • blog|

writingMatters : :
&
healing through writing

come the Fall I will be offering a newly developed course through McGill School for Continuing Studies…..titled, ‘Healing Through Writing’What is it all about? Exactly what it says. The act of writing, regularly (daily if possible) has tremendous therapeutic value (well documented) – it is both clarifying and purgative if done, say as a personal journal. Simply because, it’s human nature – if one had ‘issues’, problems – conflicts, anger the very act of writing it out will usually result in a sense of balance restored. Not always, but usually.

This post, on medium.com, was written by WIZDOM (https://lnkd.in/eg4bX4-F) and it clearly presents a balanced argument for, w r i t i n g .

So – what are you waiting for?

I have recently acquired www.writingMatters.Online. In the coming weeks it will serve as a focal point for general writing matters, because, yes – writing matters.

How to Use Writing to Boost Your Focus and Productivity?

link.medium.com

writingMatters #1:
   • •pin•n : : coupla things – for those looking to escalate their writing tools – most specifically in the writing of novels, I cannot shine a bright enough light on Literature & Latte (www.literatureandlatte.com) the company that invented Scrivener. It is such a robust writing environment. And I have barely scratched the surface.
Its built-in sections for Characters, Locations, if nothing else, is a huge boon. To be able to, ‘on the fly’, jump into the Characters section and input your most recent character invention/inclusion is a wonderful asset. Similarly so with Locations – copy/paste images, websites, textual info – and it’s then all right there – in your document.
And if Scrivener wasn’t enough L&L also provides another awesome tool – Scapple. It provides a dynamic whiteboard upon which one can drop in notes, images, timelines – whatever.
Two great tools.
Another awesome tool is Elephas – it is a MAC plug-in AI assistant. I’ve used it with fabulous results for research.
Finally, between now and the next post/upload I will be looking to fine-tune exactly how www.writingMatters.online is going to segué into this site.
Stay tuned
mXm
1 01, 2024

• 2024

By |2024-01-01T03:49:40-05:002024 January 1st, |mXm • blog|

‘Tis that

Today

123123

Get it?

Will not happen again, ever – never.

And so where does that bring us? Where has it brought me?

I know – I’ve been remiss in maintenance efforts. Non-existent pretty much – but, New Year – NewLeaf.

As of tomorrow I will do my utmost to post regularly, once a week. Hah!

We’ll have to wait and see, right?

It’s not like I’m not busy, of course.

Hard at work, writing. These days primarily focused on Book 2 of my Jim Steiner novels.
Heck, in the last 3 days I wrote 9,000 words.
Awesome, yes?
Tough pace – I’m now at 45,547 words – only about 50K to go. If I can keep up this pace I should see completion in about 3 weeks.
Let’s say end January. First draft. Then edits. Then what?

No idea. Have little or no faith in traditional publishing traction. Have no faith in self-publishing. So, what to do?
Carry on – move ahead.

Heck, not as if I’m lacking for writing projects – ‘The End of Oregon’, ‘Princess and the Jake’, ‘Veil of Tears’, ‘Twisted Roads’ and ‘The Art of BlackCat Moon’…….those are all works-in-progress – all novels in various stages of completion.

So, good luck with that, eh?

Yup

Back to work – come see me here next week – should have a new update then.

And, by the way, almost forgot – ‘The Thinn Man’, a serialized cliffhanger, is available to read on my Patreon page – www.Patreon.com/mxmoore. It’s a fun quasi-romantic crime romp – a new chapter added weekly.

And one of my poems, r o l l e r   c o a s t e r was published in:  Killer Nashville magazine, November 2023 issue
              (https://www.killernashville.com/issues/november-2023)

And, even more – additional pieces – flash fiction, poetry – are slated for release in other publications in February. I’ll keep you informed.

Promise.

30 07, 2023

writers travails | trivia

By |2023-07-30T09:09:40-04:002023 July 30th, |mXm • blog|

perhaps it’s of little concern – then again, perhaps not. I read recently that 35,000 new books are published every week in the USA.

Notwithstanding, most likely, self-published initiatives.

The pandemic spawned in the masses not only the raison to turn to writing the great novel – it provided the time within which

such efforts could move forward.

If one is on FB one can search for, and find, numerous groups that are focused on writers, writing. Many are dedicated to the world of Amazon/Kindle.

Thousands and thousands of hopefuls. The following might give succour to many:

  1. John Grisham’s first novel was rejected 25 times.
  2. Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen (Chicken Soup for the Soul) received 134 rejections.
  3. Beatrix Potter had so much trouble publishing The Tale of Peter Rabbit, she initially had to self-publish it.
  4. Robert Pirsig (Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance) received 121 rejections before it was published and went on to become a best seller.
  5. Gertrude Stein spent 22 years submitting before getting a single poem accepted.
  6. Judy Blume, beloved by children everywhere, received rejections for two straight years.
  7. Madeline L’Engle received 26 rejections before getting A Wrinkle in Time published—which went on to win the
    Newbery Medal and become one of the best-selling children’s books of all time.
  8. Frank Herbert’s Dune was rejected 20 times before being published and becoming a cult classic.
  9. Stephen King received dozens of rejections for Carrie before it was published (and made into a movie!).*
  10. James Lee Burke’s novel The Lost Get-Back Boogie was rejected 111 times over a period of nine years and,
    upon its publication by Louisiana State University Press in 1986, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

Hopefully the forenoted might provide a degree of relief, beyond it being a reality check.

Other helpful fact-checked statistics:

  • One writer spent 17 years writing short stories before writing their debut.
  • One writer wrote over 40 novellas before writing their debut.
  • One writer spent 10 years writing fan fiction before writing their debut.
  • One writer spent 25 years writing four books.
  • One writer spent 13 years writing one book (their debut).
  • Many writers didn’t sell the first book they signed an agent with.

….and,

  • 16.2% debuted with their first novel.
  • 17.1% debuted with their second novel.
  • 13.1% debuted with their third novel.
  • 16.7% debuted with their fourth novel.
  • 14% debuted with their fifth novel.
  • 7.7% debuted with their sixth novel.
  • 6.2% debuted with their seventh novel.
  • 9% wrote seven or more books before writing their debuts.

So – major takeaway? If you have the stamina – IF you have the determination, IF you are ridiculously persistent,
you may have a chance at being.  p u b l i s h e d …..which, by the way, is not at all connected to whether or not one becomes
a financial success.

 

Ken Follet (Eye of the Needle has written 44 books. His current net worth, all from earnings as an author, is approximately, $40 million.

J.K. Rowling, however, is the wealthiest of all writers with a net worth of $1 billion!

Don’t give up

 

 

8 05, 2021

a success story

By |2023-08-30T06:58:34-04:002021 May 8th, |mXm • blog|

For those of us who have creative aspirations – be it in music, drama, writing – rejection is the primary constant as we all try to peck away at gaining acceptance, making progress, making money, even. (Goodness! Who is in this for the money??? I’m shocked!)

The previous post shows the rejection letter sent to Alice Walker, author of the Color Purple. I will be posting a few others soon.

But this news feature caught my eye. It’s all about persistence, perseverance and simply just not giving up.
Be that this may or may not be the very best novel or story ever written – is not the point – the point is, she just didn’t give up.

And so : :

Her story is worth reading if for no other reason than, ‘if she can do it, we can do it’. . . . . right?

With virtually no prior writing training or experience, but seemingly just a good idea, she made it happen for herself.

Read the whole article here

 

11 04, 2021

you’re no good, you’re no good, you’re no good

By |2021-04-15T13:52:13-04:002021 April 11th, |mXm • blog|

mXm : : Rejection is the currency of any creator – of music, of art, sculpture, writing • Dear John letters as they are also known. Personally, I think that writing efforts, writers, authors – given the nature of their craft, bare their souls in attempting to describe passion, pain, anger, fear – all the human emotions – and in the process of the actual writing, the conveying of such, are required to expose themselves – leave themselves vulnerable . . . . and the subsequent rejection by publishers, agents – the public, leaves scars – sometimes deep scars. Over the next days / weeks even, this page will carry visual copies of actual rejection letters sent to writers – who pressed on, persevered – and became world famous in spite of rejection.

This is the actual rejection letter sent to Alice Walker.

The following is written by : : Emily Temple, who is the managing editor at Lit Hub. Her first novel, The Lightness, was published by William Morrow/HarperCollins in June 2020

Tis (almost) the season for resolutions. If you’re a writer, here’s an idea: resolve to get rejected. 100 times this year, if you’re lucky. After all, some very famous books (and authors) began their careers at the bottom of the NO pile. To inspire you to keep on writing and submitting, here are some of the most rejected books I could dig up.

Of course, this list is incomplete, and I’ve given preference to books that were rejected but are now well-known and widely loved. (Books that were rejected many times because they were pretty mediocre are just not as interesting.) Even with the higher-profile books, I discounted those with numbers I couldn’t verify, or those that weren’t specific enough—for instance, it looks like Margaret Mitchell’s oft-repeated 38 rejections is a myth; Alex Haley may have gotten “hundreds” of rejections before publishing Roots, but they weren’t all necessarily for the novel; ditto Kate DiCamillo’s 473 rejections before Because of Winn-Dixie; Eimear McBride heard nothing but no for A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing for 7 years, but I don’t know if she got ten nos or a hundred. Some authors, like Beatrix Potter and Proust, got so many rejections that they decided to self-publish—and good thing they did—but I don’t have numbers on those either. If you do, give strength to your fellow rejectees and add on to the list in the comments.

 

4 04, 2021

and Momma told us. . . .

By |2021-04-04T05:03:25-04:002021 April 4th, |mXm • blog|

and Momma told us . . . . 

1971 • Al Waxman, the much loved and remarkable Canadian actor
appeared in this TV commercial for Kleenex.

It was a huge success in terms of the public’s adoption of most all aspects
of the tongue-in-cheek humour it embraced.

‘get plenty of rest’ . . . . . . . indeed – but more than anything, the last line,
‘and Momma told us to stay inside’ has stayed with me, in my memory,
these past 50 years.

Did Momma foresee the pandemic? Of course not – but there is, shall
we say, an aptness – to the message.

I hope you enjoy this – I still get the giggles.

Trust me!

31 03, 2021

voice|over

By |2023-07-30T09:25:09-04:002021 March 31st, |mXm • blog|

surely everyone knows what voiceover is, right?

It’s audio overlaid on top of a film sequence, a video or another voice-track…….

in a way, a voiceover might be the opinions being expressed  about an event occurring in the background.

So – think of a blog then, as a voiceover. Frequently the voice of a blogger is that of someone who is attempting to describe or explain details, facts, issues in a context that is consistent with the known voice of the blogger.

Think of, say, Rush Limbaugh. Not that I am in accord with any positions he ever propounded or promoted. But, his voice

came to be regarded as one true point-of-view of the ultra conservatives, in America.

On the other hand, such a voice, might also be viewed as noise – just background noise. Static, even to many people’s ears.

Thus, what I choose to write about – be it current politics, design innovations, cooking and kitchen tips – photography. . . . whatever, please try to hear it as a voiceover.

It doesn’t mean that what I may say, or my opinions, have any merit. For some of you they may – others not. Doesn’t matter.

I have chosen to use my voice, to reflect observations about things that go on around me.

 

And do not expect that I will have much, if anything to say, every day – or every week.

But whatever voice I do bring to you will be framed in simple honesty – that you can count on

 

michael

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