I decided to do something fun today for Monday Poetry…I decided to show y’all my poetry related pinterest boards. Pinterest is a black hole for me, a time sink where I will lose track of time. So let me show you some of what I have been doing there.
first board is other poets and fun bits of lyrics. I enjoy reading poetry as much as writing poetry. so I save the ones I like.
The second board is Prompts. because sometimes the muse is a fickle thing.
Hello my dear readers, I am hoping this finds you well. It has been a bit since we had our tea party. Tonight I am doing a nice hot cup of Chai.
Well, We have what looks like two volumes of submissions for Nightmare whispers. Fae dreams is collecting submissions as well. Both are planned for a October release. Fae Corps has managed a Duo-trope listing!
I have slowly been working on revisiting all of my older volumes to make the layout just that much better. I have also been writing, so I should have at least one new book to share before the end of the year.
Ok, last week I discussed desktop publishing programs – word processing types. I left the pdf programs for today. I have three different programs to suggest… And each has a different user feel.
We will start with the most basic. Adobe. I personally found that the editing ability for this program is lacking. It has a few free features, but with the pdf programs you really do get what you pay for. You used to buy it straight, but Adobe has taken most of their products to subscription. Right now there is 2 plans. ($15 and $13) both require a yearly commitment.
The next one served me well for many years. It is also one that I still use for details that are not supported anywhere else. The program is Nitro’s pdf productivity suite. It’s $159 for a single license. I honestly recommend this program, even if you do get one of the others.
And then the last one. This is my current program. Quoppa’s Pdf Studio is a solid editor. It has a solid ability to make sure your documents are just as you want them to be. Two tiers of possible cost. $89 or $129. The site lays out the features well.
So I was thinking about doing a discussion on Friday about the programs that I use/have found for making the files for publication. Then I realized that this was actually a better topic for a Monday Money post. The reason? Because the programs are an investment. A fairly costly one.
I will start with a free program. One that I highly recommend for anyone, author or reader alike. It is Calibre. It’s a ebook library manager for windows. It has a decent conversation ability and lets you edit epub files as well. That really makes it a very useful program.
My next suggestion is another free program, however it is only really good for the author who is looking at using KDP only. Kindle Create is wonderful if you have no interest in publishing anywhere other than Amazon. It has a previewer and is user friendly.
Another open source /free option, and one I am currently exploring, is Scribus. This is a complicated program with many options.
The last free option is libreoffice. It is a full featured office program that is free. I, personally, try to pay as little as possible for my tools and still try to retain quality. This is the best office program and it is free.
Ok. Here is where I start to talk about cost. Scrivener. It is not an easy program to use. There are a huge amount of tutorial videos on YouTube. It’s cost is $40, but there is often deals that can cut the cost in half. It is a one time cost vs subscription pricing. This program saves files in epub or any other format you want.
Now, this one is a program I found when I was looking for scrivener’s link. Iiving writer seems to be similar to scrivener. It’s pricing is a subscription service. It’s $96 a year or $9 a month.
This post has already gotten bigger than I expected. Next week I think that I will cover 3 pdf programs. That way I have a topic and this post can be ended.
Lyrics – I’m looking at you through the glass Don’t know how much time has passed Oh God, it feels like forever But no one ever tells you that forever feels like home Sitting all alone inside your head ‘Cause I’m looking at you through the glass Don’t know how much time has passed All I know is that it feels like forever When no one ever tells you that forever feels like home Sitting all alone inside your head How do you feel? That is the question But I forget, you don’t expect an easy answer When something like a soul becomes initialized And folded up like paper dolls and little notes You can’t expect a bit of hope And while you’re outside looking in Describing what you see Remember what you’re staring at is me ‘Cause I’m looking at you through the glass Don’t know how much time has passed All I know is that it feels like forever When no one ever tells you that forever feels like home Sitting all alone inside your head How much is real? So much to question An epidemic of the mannequins Contaminating everything When thought came from the heart It never did right from the start Just listen to the noises (No more sad voices) Before you tell yourself It’s just a different scene Remember it’s just different from what you’ve seen I’m looking at you through the glass Don’t know how much time has passed And all I know is that it feels like forever When no one ever tells you that forever feels like home Sitting all alone inside your head ‘Cause I’m looking at you through the glass Don’t know how much time has passed All I know is that it feels like forever When no one ever tells you that forever feels like home Sitting all alone inside your head And it’s the stars The stars that shine for you And it’s the stars The stars that lie to you And it’s the stars The stars that shine for you And it’s the stars The stars that lie to you I’m looking at you through the glass Don’t know how much time has passed Oh God, it feels like forever But no one ever tells you that forever feels like home Sitting all alone inside your head ‘Cause I’m looking at you through the glass Don’t know how much time has passed All I know is that it feels like forever But no one ever tells you that forever feels like home Sitting all alone inside your head And it’s the stars The stars that shine for you And it’s the stars The stars that lie to you And it’s the stars The stars that shine for you And it’s the stars The stars that lie to you Who are the stars Who are the stars they lie
My 2 cents – with all of the confusion in the world, this song feels like it is so relevant. I saw a meme earlier that asked if anyone else felt gaslit by 2020 ?! This year has been a trial for most of us.
Okay so I have my own view on life. I am fairly open minded and will always accept that I might be wrong. That is… I don’t believe that I am wrong, but I am not infallible. That being said… I saw a post that I shared… And immediately regretted.
Not because of comments… Or the like… But because it made me think. Don’t we all hate being made to think? What is it that makes a good person? Is it a certain set of views on politics? I know that I am adamant on my view on abortion. A good friend who is usually seen as a good man… He has a differing opinion. So does that make me the bad person?
How do we determine if someone is good or bad… If it is easy to determine? I don’t know that it is. I think that the current events are enough to put division between neighbors… In religion we are taught to love our neighbors.. Doesn’t matter if they are good people or not… However it never says that we have to expose ourselves to their beliefs. Or them.
So I pose the question… Do you think that you have a good person?
I decided to offer links to a few calls for submissions today. This has been such a busy week with release day coming up for both Through the Sunshine & Poetic Reminders that I am afraid I have gotten very little else done.
then there is this list of 48 Writing Contests in June 2020
I know that this is a small post for me…but it is highly packed with possibility….If you enter let me know. I am curious as to whether anyone will see this.
Hello there. Today is a green tea sort of day for me. This year has been a strange one, time passes either on fast forward or in slow motion. I am looking forward to the release of both preorder books (Through the Sunshine, and Poetic Reminders.)
There is a deadline coming up for two of Fae Corps calls for submissions in June. Nightmare Whispers and Fae Dreams. There is going to be a call for submissions put out in August for a new anthology as well.
I have been updating keywords on my books… And it was brought to my attention that a few of my covers needed work. It feels like I do this yearly… But I have been updating covers again as well.
The original The updated coverOriginal coverUpdated cover
The person who made the suggestion is a poet of considerable talents. I had approached her for marketing advice, and what she said was basically that some of my covers lacked the personality of my poems… I immediately understood. There was some of the covers I liked better than others. I started with the covers that I liked least.
Please don’t get me wrong… That does not mean the covers are bad… Or even in need of replacement. It just means that I could see her point. I was not happy with those covers because they did not suit me. I had something similar happen with a logo I had been using… Someone stopped me and said that it did not suit me. When I asked why she simply replied that it was just not colorful enough… It seems that I have a lot of personality and it shows up in my work.
For me these books are my art. Yes I could pay for the “perfect ” cover… I would likely sell more… But it would not be mine… Does that make any sense? I don’t write for the money. I write because it is part of who I am, who I always have been.
Hello my lovely readers. I don’t know if you missed me yesterday… I was terribly ill. My daughter had it (a stomach bug)… And apparently decided to share. So I spent yesterday in illness. Today I am doing much better, though I am still being careful with food.
This week has been a slow one for news. The preorder for Through The Sunshine and Poetic Reminders are still going. Fae Corps still has 2 anthologies that they are taking submissions for.
Now… Here’s something that I rarely do. I have many writers as friends on Facebook. I don’t promote Facebook off of there much… It just feels pushy most of the time. However… This is a story worth sharing. This is part of why I have gone almost completely to draft2digital. I only use my kdp account for when Amazon gets too picky and refuses something that I know should be publishable.
Hopefully this finds you all well. Tell me what is new in your world?
Pattimouse 