Maria's Journal

All novice writers who want to perfect their craft have attended workshops and classes that have told us time and time again that we should read, read, and read, yet some of us fail to this. In the last three years when I realized that I too needed to make a commitment I began to add to my reading collection. At first, I didn't have a goal I just read whatever caught my attention. In 2010 however my daughter gave me a Nook as a present and it was then that I discovered a whole new world.  Reading books became so much more convenient, all I had to do was press the Buy Now button on my Nook and voila! the book was there. Needless to say in 2010-2012 I downloaded dozens of books some short stories some full length some by new and others by seasoned authors. And the more I read the more I realized they (mentors, other writers, seminar speakers, etc.) were right. All all the advice I'd heard over the years finally clicked . I needed to read, read and re...

Friends/Family, A new year means new beginnings and new opportunities. In my personal opinion, this holds true for all of us no matter where we are in life. With this in mind, I hope that you take the time to write down a goal or two to accomplish in 2013. If goal setting has proven to be ineffective for you however, then perhaps you may want to change strategies in 2013; choose a word that describes what you hope to draw to yourself in 2013.  What exactly does this mean? Well, let's say that you want to be more spiritual then you might choose a word such as spiritual or serenity ; if you hope to institute better work/life time management you might choose a word such as balance ; if you hope to find love you might choose a word such as joy or happiness , etc. In any case, when/if you decide to take on this challenge  keep in mind a few things: habit is easy, change is hard ...