All posts by sryan

Noble Pen Meeting, August 13th, 2009

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

August 13th, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

Do you know like we were saying, about the earth revolving? It’s like when you’re a kid, the first time they tell you that the world’s turning, and you just can’t quite believe it cuz everything looks like it’s standing still. I can feel it. The turn of the earth. The ground beneath our feet is spinning at a thousand miles an hour, and the entire planet is hurtling around the sun at 67000 miles an hour. And I can feel it. We’re falling through space, you and me, clinging to the skin of this tiny little world, and if we let go… That’s who I am. Now, forget me, Rose Tyler. Go home.
–Doctor Who

Victories

I am done with editing my chapter fifteen. Of those, 3 might not suck, and I still have 10 to go.

Adam is a low talker for Happy Chef, but if I understood him right, he wrote 100 pages last week, and has not yet slept.

One of Ciuin’s articles made the cover and center spread of City Revealed this month, the article wasn’t even about the editor’s children, and she’s already been paid.

News

Nathan Bransford’s blog has a good guest article on giving and receiving a good critique.

The Intern has a 5 tips on using numbers in your title.

Lettie Prell, my coworker and author of Dragon Ring, asked me to spread the word that she will be doing many events at ICON this year.

Upcoming Critiques

Thursday, Aug 13th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Events

I planned awesome stuff, so show up.

We are having a writing contest as detailed below. Right now, I have only two entries, but I will be accepting submissions until Sunday noon–when will I unleash the hurga.

We will be joined by Catherine Schaff-Stump of the Kirkwood English Department. Catherine is in the process of getting a young adult novel published by a small press. She is going to share some of her experiences with us. Her bio is further down the page.

Thursday, Aug 20th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 9, Nick passed out copies.

George- Chances Are. Email him for a copy.

Thursday, Aug 27th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Something by Ciuin

Ian – Some more Convenient Truth

Thursday, Sept 3rd. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Something by Ciuin

Something by Adam

Thursday, Sept 10th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Something by Ciuin

Possibly Scott depending on recovery.

Writing Contest

Submissions due: Sunday noon.

Write a piece of flash fiction based on one of the following prompts–provided by Bill.

  1. A visit to the dentist. Write about your protagonist’s reactions, or what he/she saw and heard from the other patients.
  2. What does a dollar bill hear in a day’s travel
  3. A fortune cookie comes true in an ironic way
  4. The piano tuner. Use either his/her POV or a client’s.
  5. Cat’s eye view – what does your pet see/think?
  6. Junk drawer. Everybody has a place they put stuff that has no other place to belong. Write a story that uses several items from the junk drawer.

The winner will receive one of my writing books, or pie.

Catherine Schaff-Stump

By day, Catherine Schaff-Stump is an English teacher at a community college.  In the evening and on the weekends, not only does Catherine fight crime, but she also writes fiction of the fantastic.  Her first novel, Hulk Hercules, Professional Wrestler, is due out in January, 2010.  You can find out more about her and her escapades on her website, http://cathschaffstump.com

Keep Writing

Shannon

Catherine Schaff-Stump

Events

By day, Catherine Schaff-Stump is an English teacher at a community college.  In the evening and on the weekends, not only does Catherine fight crime, but she also writes fiction of the fantastic.  Her first novel, Hulk Hercules, Professional Wrestler, is due out in January, 2010.  You can find out more about her and her escapades on her website, http://cathschaffstump.com

Catherine will be visiting the Noble Pen on August 13th.

Noble Pen meeting, August 6th, 2009

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

August 6th, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

A classic is something that everyone wants to have read and nobody wants to read
–Mark Twain

If you’re going to tell a story through one character’s viewpoint, the first thing to do is take a step back and ask yourself which characters can offer the most compelling perspective.
–Noah Lukeman

Victories

Adam, a perspective member, dropped by.  We tried to go easy on him.

Ciuin has landed her dream job. She will be writing for Assembly of Roma, a political organization branching into the United States. They found her via Facebook.

George is beginning a re-write.

News

A new trend in book covers shows the aliens are coming and they’re naked bald women.

A new excuse for students: Amazon ate my homework.

Upcoming Critiques

Thursday, Aug 6th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 8, Nick passed out new copies.

Revelations Section 9, can be found at: http://saclark.com/SAC-6-NP.html

Thursday, Aug 13th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Events

OK, this will be a special Thursday, so mark your calendars.

We are going to have a writing contest. As Bill won the last one, I will be using prompts he chose.

We will also have a guest speaker. Catherine Schaff-Stump of the Kirkwood English Department is in the process of getting a young adult novel published by a small press. She is going to share some of her experiences with us. I will follow up with a more detailed bio.

Thursday, Aug 20th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 9, if Nick passes out new copies.

Open Slot- If no one else grabs this, I may bring in a piece that features space pirates. George- Chances Are

Writing Contest

Submissions due: Thursday, August 6th

Write a piece of flash fiction based on one of the following prompts–provided by Bill.

  1. A visit to the dentist. Write about your protagonist’s reactions, or what he/she saw and heard from the other patients.
  2. What does a dollar bill hear in a day’s travel
  3. A fortune cookie comes true in an ironic way
  4. The piano tuner. Use either his/her POV or a client’s.
  5. Cat’s eye view – what does your pet see/think?
  6. Junk drawer. Everybody has a place they put stuff that has no other place to belong. Write a story that uses several items from the junk drawer.

The winner will receive one of my writing books, or pie.

Keep Writing

Shannon

Noble Pen Meeting, July 30, 2009

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

July 30, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

I happen to remember  that over 20 years ago, when I first started telling people — when I was a teenager — that I wanted to be a writer,  I was met with this same kind of, sort of fear-based reaction.  And people would say, “Aren’t you afraid you’re never going to have any success? Aren’t you afraid the humiliation of rejection will kill you? Aren’t you afraid that you’re going to work your whole life at this craft and nothing’s ever going to come of it and you’re going to die on a scrap heap of broken dreams  with your mouth filled with bitter ash of failure?” Like that, you know…

Like my dad, for example, was a chemical engineer and I don’t recall once in his 40 years of chemical engineering anybody asking him if he was afraid to be a chemical engineer, you know? It didn’t — that chemical engineering block John, how’s it going? It just didn’t come up like that, you know? But to be fair, chemical engineers as a group haven’t really earned a reputation over the centuries  for being alcoholic manic-depressives.

–Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love


Victories

Ciuin wrote more pages. I don’t know for sure, but I imagine they are about something like this (ok, it’s old, but I still like it.)

Ian went home today and found his house beeping. It transformed into a Decepticon and shot his neighbor’s house. Then it did a little dance.

George has been working all week from home on a disaster recovery test. Thankfully, he put on pants to come to the meeting.

News

Remember how Amazon pulled all those books off it’s Kindle e-reader. This week, Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder and CEO apologized for removing them.

PBS’s Newshour also had a piece on electronic books.

Agent Jessica Faust tells you when she stops reading your query.

I found this great little blog written by an intern at a publishing house. And always remember this piece of advice I have heard from multiple sources: if you are talking to the intern of an agent or publisher be polite and treat them with respect. They might be the person who decides if a senior partner reads your work, or they might be the next up-and-comer in the business.

Upcoming Critiques


Thursday, July 30th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Petty Theft revisions from Ciuin Due to computer problems Ciuin will have to re-schedule.

Call of the Beast, Chapter One revised. I will have a copy on my website sometime this week. Remember that’s shannonryan.net/user with a username of noblepen and a password of nblpn

Thursday, Aug 6th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 8, Nick passed out new copies.

Revelations Section 9, can be found at: http://saclark.com/SAC-6-NP.html

Thursday, Aug 13th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

I assume Ciuin and Ian are going to want to continue, if they don’t, we’ll open one up and make the other a writing contest.


Keep Writing

Shannon

Noble Pen Meeting, July 23, 2009

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

July 23, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

Stephen King’s first four novels were rejected. “This guy from Maine sent in this novel over the transom,” said Bill Thompson, his former editor at Doubleday. Mr. Thompson, sensing something there, asked to see subsequent novels, but still rejected the next three. However, King withstood the rejection, and Mr. Thompson finally bought the fifth novel, despite his colleague’s lack of enthusiasm, for $2,500. It was called Carrie.
–Noah Lukeman

Victories

Welcome Keyron McDermott, who attended her first meeting on the 16th.

Sherry says she really likes us, and we should not take the fact that she sold her house and is moving away at all personal.

Scott attended the Sci-Fi session at the UofI and give us a great rundown last night.

Becky’s last day will be next week. She believes she is all ready to go. Make an offer on her television.

Nick’s house has new paint on it.

Ciuin knocked out two articles Thursday morning–too bad they were due two weeks ago. We were going to give her a special procrastinator’s prize, but it isn’t ready yet.

News

Once again, this week is the RWA (Romance Writers of America) 29th Annual National Conference. For all the people who can not attend, Lynn Viehl has a list of online events which will coincide with the conference. In addition to these events, she will also be doing her Left Behind and Loving It online conference.

Agent Anne Hawkins talks about why good agents turn down good books.

The New York Times blogger David Proust has found a good reason not to like Amazon’s Kindle–unless you’re a publisher.

Scientists have finally figured out what we’ve known all along. Artists are mentally ill. Nine out of ten Tracy Morgans agree.

Upcoming Critiques

Thursday, July 23th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Quint’s Adventures, email Ciuin Ferrin for a copy.

A Convenient Truth email Ian for a copy.

Thursday, July 30th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Petty Theft revisions from Ciuin

Call of the Beast, Chapter One revised. I will have a copy on my website sometime this week.

Thursday, Aug 6th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 8, Nick passed out new copies.

Revelations Section 9, can be found at: http://saclark.com/SAC-6-NP.html

Keep Writing

Shannon

Noble Pen Meeting, July 16, 2009

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

July 16, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

A southern writer named John Kennedy Toole wrote a comic novel about life in New Orleans called A Confederacy of Dunces. It was so relentlessly rejected by publishers that he killed himself. That was in 1969. His mother refused to give up on the book. She sent it out and got it back, rejected, over and over again. At last she won the patronage of Walker Percy, who got it accepted by the Louisiana State University Press, and in 1980 it won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction.
–Rotten Reviews

Victories

Becky is reasonably sure she has a place to live.

Ciuin shared some excellent experiences from the city of brotherly love and enjoyed the city’s rich culture. She also got some great information at the Holocaust Museum.

Bill has been replaced by his clone. Don’t let on that we know.

News

Next week is the RWA (Romance Writers of America) 29th Annual National Conference. For all the people who can not attend, Lynn Viehl has a list of online events which will coincide with the conference. In addition to these events, she will also be doing her Left Behind and Loving It online conference.

Nathan Bransford has a post by Victoria Mixon telling us everything we need to know in 1000 words.

In the obvious news today, a new poll shows women are titillated by romance novels but not so much by reference books.

Upcoming Critiques

Thursday, July 16. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 7, by Nick. I have two extra copies I will bring next week.

Revelation, Chapters 47-, by Scott Clark. Visit his website at saclark.com, navigate to the “Publishers” tab, and click on the “NP” button to download copies of this section. If you cannot access his website, email him

Thursday, July 23th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Petty Theft, revisions from Ciuin

A Convenient Truth (I got the name right that time,) new chapters from Ian.

Thursday, July 30th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 8, I’m guessing

Call of the Beast, Chapter One revised.


Keep Writing

Shannon

Noble Pen Meeting, July 9, 2009

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

July 9, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

…there’s a hormone secreted into the bloodstream of most writers that makes them hate their own work while they are doing it, or immediately after. This, coupled with the chorus of critical reaction from those privileged to take a first look, is almost enough to discourage further work entirely.
–Frances Ford Coppola

A classic is something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read.
–Mark Twain

Victories

Nick got an HP netbook. He will now explore the final frontier of e-mailing attachments.

Bill and I both have ideas for new sci-fi pieces. His will involve transmission correction algorithms. Mine will have drinking, gambling, and nudity.

After several warnings, Facebook has decided not to cancel Ian’s account despite his penchant for complete sentences. Of course, grammar isn’t the only thing Facebook has destroyed.

I have a new keyboard too. Mine is made of aluminum. ALUMINUM!

Editorial Note: I was going to do links in the above victories, but for some reason they were all highly offensive. They will be available upon request.

News

The New York Times blog has a wonderful piece using illustration and informal prose to tell a bit about Thomas Jefferson.

The editor of the Absent Willow Review asked me to inform you they are looking for submissions. They offer a $50 prize to the best story in an issue.

B&N.com has discounted minimum shipping for the holiday weekend; you can get free expedited (three biz days or less on in stock items) shipping for online orders of $10 (versus the usual $25.)

You know how every once in awhile I say that I got something off the site of that Canadian Sci-Fi author whose name I can never remember? His name is Robert J. Sawyer, and he is a Hugo and Nebula winner. Here is his information on writing. Some of it is a little outdated, but it’s good stuff.

Upcoming Critiques

Thursday, July 9th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique
Revised chapters from Ciuin?

A Convenient Truth—new chapters from Ian.

Ian and Ciuin, please note
Tell me by Saturday if you cannot make it for any reason, and I’ll give Scott an extra slot, as he’s going to be on the injured list towards the end of the month.

Thursday, July 16. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 7, by Nick. I have two extra copies I will bring next week.

Revelation, Chapters 47-, by Scott Clark. Visit his website at saclark.com, navigate to the “Publishers” tab, and click on the “NP” button to download copies of this section. If you cannot access his website, email him

Thursday, July 25th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique
Right now, we don’t have anyone requesting these slots. If we don’t get anything by Monday, I will be calling a flash fiction contest using prompts given to me by Bill. Also, I have some revisions of Call of the Beast I’d like to throw into the ring at some point.

Keep Writing

Shannon

Noble Pen Meeting, July 2, 2009

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

July 2, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

Don’t waste yourself in rejection, nor bark against the bad, but chant the beauty of the good.
–Ralph Waldo Emerson

The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.
–Mark Twain

Victories

Ian wrote another Convenient Truth chapter, and created a Facebook page. His first awkward friend request is already on its way.

After twelve attempts, Shannon has the next version of Call of the Beast Chapter One. If COTB falls through, he has vowed to quit writing and go back to his other live goal of winning the Wimbledon Tennis Championships.

News

Now is your chance to name Dick Cheney’s memoir. It is a pity “How to Lose Friends and Alienate People” is already taken.

JA Konrath has written an article asking “Should You Self-Publish.”

Nathan Bransford did an online poll on whether listening to audio books count as reading. Not to ruin the suspense, but it was too close to call.

Upcoming Critiques

Thursday, July 2. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 6, by Nick. All the folders he brought to Happy Chef were passed out.

Revelation, Chapters 43-46, by Scott Clark. Visit his website at saclark.com, navigate to the “Publishers” tab, and click on the “NP” button to download copies of this section. If you cannot access his website, email him

Thursday, July 9th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Revised chapters from Ciuin?

An Inconvenient Truth—new chapters from Ian.

Thursday, July 16th. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

I’m thinking Scott and Nick again if they’re willing

Keep Writing

Shannon

Noble Pen Meeting, June 25, 2009

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

June 25, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise.  The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.
– Sylvia Plath

I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.
– Douglas Adams

Not that the story need be long, but it will take a long while to make it short.
– Henry David Thoreau

Victories

Nick wrote something.

George got a new keyboard. I don’t want to know why he needed one.

Scott attended a writer’s workshop class, which was struck by an iceberg. He survived by boogie boarding on a frozen Leonardo Dicaprio.

Becky registered for classes and got a new netbook.

Ian helped his daughter rewire her house, absorbing enough voltage to drive his hybrid home without engaging the gasoline engine.

I won the slogan contest with “Dedicated to Developing Community Writers.”

News

Lynn Viehl reminds you not to make a sequel for a book which is still copyrighted.

JK Rowling is being sued by the estate of a guy that once wrote a book about magic.

Engadget is lukewarm on the Kindle DX.

Upcoming Critiques


Thursday, June 25. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Something by Wendy, I think it’s another revision of her chapter one. I might be wrong. An email to her will get you clarification and a copy.

A Convenient Truth by Ian. Available from Ian

Because Wendy can not make this Thursday, I went ahead and put Solomon’s Heist back online. This week, we can look at Thirteen and Fourteen specifically, but I will put the whole piece up in case anyone wants to review 1-12, or is so captivated they can’t stop reading until the end–I wish.

http://shannnonryan.net/user
user:noblepen
pass:nblpn

Thursday, (Possibly) July 2. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 6, by Nick. All the folders he brought to Happy Chef were passed out.

Revelation, Chapters 43-?, by Scott Clark. Visit his website at saclark.com, navigate to the “Publishers” tab, and click on the “NP” button to download copies of this section. If you cannot access his website, email him

Straw Poll

The meeting after next is July 2nd, and the 3rd will be a holiday for a lot of people. If I have a meeting, who will show?

Keep Writing

Shannon

June 18, 2009: Noble Pen Meeting

Newsletters

Noble Pen Meeting

June 18, 2009
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

A writer who obtains his full purpose loses himself in his own lustre.
–Samuel Johnson

Don Murray, a former editor at Time, a Pulitzer Prize winner and the author of 10 books on writing says that at age 73, he is still a young writer trying to learn his craft.
–Ken O’Quinn, Communication World, Oct 1998

Victories

Ian washed a new story and turned in his car for critique.

Becky has fixed her desktop, but claims she can’t tell us how she did it. I have it on good authority that she is now wanted by authorities in Nova Scotia.

Give George huge props. He has built us a wonderful new website, http://www.noblepencr.org, and footed the bill. I helped with the graphics, but is still not as cool as this site.

Bill won last week’s writing contest and took home a copy of “No Plot? No Problem!” by Chris Baty.  I think the organizers fixed the whole thing.

News

Lynn Viehl hates your antagonist. (Mine too.)

The BBC has a piece on songs influenced by JG Ballard, the piece is wasted on me as none of the songs are by Koda Kumi.

Finally, someone explains why all media comes out on Tuesday–including new windows viruses.

Upcoming Critiques

Thursday, June 18. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Exodus Chapter 5, by Nick. All the folders he brought to Happy Chef were passed out.

Revelation, Chapters 32-?, by Scott Clark. Visit his website at saclark.com, navigate to the “Publishers” tab, and click on the “NP” button to download copies of this section. If you cannot access his website, email him

Thursday, June 25. Happy Chef, 7pm Welcome and Victories, 7:30pm Critique

Something by Wendy

A Convenient Truth by Ian

Contest

George has given us a contest for this week. Come up with a ten word or less slogan for the Noble Pen web site (http://www.noblepencr.org). Mine is going to be “More fun than Monkey Steals the Peach.”

You keep writing, I’m going to go watch that Koda Kumi video again.

Shannon