Writer Beware ® Blogs!: Editing Clauses in Publishing Contracts: How to Protect Yourself

Writer Beware ® Blogs!: Editing Clauses in Publishing Contracts: How to Protect Yourself

As a writer researching which literary journals and magazines would be a good fit for my short stories, I find articles like "Editing Clauses in Publishing Contracts: How to Protect Yourself" very informative, and appreciate what blogs like Writer Beware are doing to educate folks like me. Give it a read. When you send your work out into the world, it's with a small sense of anxiety over possibly entering into an arrangement that can become a nightmare. We are fortunate indeed to live in a time where information like this can be shared with millions, giving them much needed heads up and armor to empower themselves. Life is quite a journey, I'm thankful we don't have to travel it alone. There are always others out there.

In other news, I'm going to the writer's conference. My friend Stacy who I met at the one in 2009 gave me a call and said she's on board, so that's the final push I need. Yay!!! Perhaps I'm a writer with a small network after all.

Rest In Peace Chuck Brown

Photo obtained from www.washingtonpost.com.

Dear Chuck,

I'd been meaning to see you perform. For years I put it off because I either didn't have anyone to go with at the time or a lack of money. And sometimes I wouldn't know about it until after the performance. When I heard you were in the hospital recently, I sent an email to my boyfriend saying that when you got out, he and I should go. I knew that even though you canceled your show at Howard Theatre, you'd be back on the stage in no time, and that I'd get a chance to see a newly remodeled piece of black history (Howard Theatre) and you at the same time. But I won't have that chance. Honestly, I'm not even a big fan of go-go music....the bands that I've heard just seem to be making a bunch of racket to me...but when I heard you play, I got it...I understood what made people love it so much. It was because you loved it.

So, thank you for your contribution through the decades, and though I was late in learning of you, it doesn't lessen my appreciation. What a legacy you left, what a life you led.

Farewell.

Signed,
Jennifer Singleton
----------------------------------------------------------

After being saddened today by the news of Chuck Brown's passing, I recalled my first impressions of go-go music when I first came to the DC area 10 years ago. Coming from Louisiana, I already had an appreciation for music specific to a particular region and culture, and was feeling homesick at the thought of not being able to easily listen to zydeco and bounce music. I soon began hearing the locals and radio hosts mention something called "go-go" and a man named Chuck Brown. They said he was godfather of go-go. I was unfamiliar with this genre of music, but I could definitely hear similarities between what we loved back home and this new music that seemed so near and dear to the hearts of many DMV (DC, Maryland, and Virginia) residents. Through the years, when I've heard people refer to go-go, the only person who came to mind was Chuck Brown. I could listen to anything he and his band performed. I'm deeply saddened that I didn't have the chance to see him perform. Time is so precious. Just when you think you have it, it has a tendency to prove you wrong.

I've been rambling for a while now, I suppose I should go to bed now. Just wanted to say something about Chuck.

This is one of my favorite Chuck Brown songs, the go-go'd version of the theme from 'The Godfather.'

Oh by the way....since I mentioned zydeco, how about I let you listen to some of it. This clip's from 2009's Crawfish Festival in Breaux Bridge, La., a small town I spent a lot of time in with my friend Joanel and her family (RIP Joanel). The Crawfish Festival is a very important occasion in south Louisiana by the way. Man I miss home!!!!!

Do you hear any similarities?

The Power of Music

This video touched me. Elderly patients in a nursing home, who seemingly have withdrawn into quiet, private places in their minds, are treated to music from their era. Henry, the focal point of this video, will steal your heart with his reaction. To see his eyes light up and grow so big....to hear him recite the lyrics to his favorite song from long ago. Music is truly a gift to us all. I especially admire those who are able to write it, to sing it, and to manipulate the right keys and strings to produce the sounds that have the power to stir us into a frenzy of emotion. Of all the songs I've loved during my lifetime, I wonder which one will give me the reaction Henry had. Will it be Donny Hathaway's cover of 'Yesterday'? Mary J Blige's 'Real Love'? Simply Red's 'Holding Back the Years'? Sheila E's 'Glamarous Life'? My god, which will it be?

I'm a writer without a network.

There I said it. I'm a writer....yet I have no writer friends or associates. How is that possible? How did I manage to create such a solitary existence for myself? These are questions I ask myself, among many others like my usual "who am I and why I am here?" This year I attended a writer's conference at Medgar Evers College, but I really didn't get as much as I was expecting from it. I suppose I was hoping to experience something like I experienced in Las Vegas in 2009 at the Black Writers Reunion & Conference, where I met some talented up and coming writers who inspired me. And now, the 2012 Black Writers Reunion & Conference is right around the corner and I still haven't made up my mind on whether or not to attend. I'll have a lot going on around this time, saving for my fall tuition being one. I have to prioritize. I attended in 2009 and still think about, it was just that rewarding. Worth every penny. In looking at the photos from last year's conference, I recognize some faces and see how attending every year builds lasting friendships and professional connections. I want that....no, I need that. I'll make my final decision by the end of next week after punching a few numbers in the calculator. Check out the sessions below. How can I not make this happen, seems pretty interesting, right? Friday's lineup is going to be awesome.



Wednesday, August 29, 2012

6:30 pm – 7:30 pm Telling Your Tale: Writing & Publishing Your First Novel
7:30 pm – 8:30 pm Meet the Author Reception

Thursday, August 30, 2012

7:00 am – 7:30 am Senses at Sunrise Dr. Anita Heiss
8:00 am – 3:30 am Registration
8:00 am – 9:30 am Welcome Breakfast — Opening Session
9:00 am – 7:30 pm Exhibitors
9:30 am – 5:00 pm Agent Pitch Sessions – By Appointment Only

Morning Workshops
9:35 am Writing Faction
Staging the Page
Judging Your Book By Its Cover

11:10 am 5 Senses to Impactful Fiction
Landing a Book Deal in 2012+
Gritty Writer’s Website Strategies

Afternoon Workshops
1:30 pm Get Media Coverage Now
Mastering the Art of the Book Pitch
It All Adds Up

3:05 pm Journaling as a Writing Tool
Plotting Boot Camp I (3 hrs)
Formatting Your Novel for ePublishing (3 hrs)

4:40 pm Clarity & Depth

Evening
6:30 pm – 7:30 pm Poetry on the Roof


Friday, August 31, 2012

8:00 am – 2:00 pm Registration
9:00 am – 7:30 pm Exhibitors

Morning Workshops
7:00 am – 7:30 am Senses at Sunrise
7:30 am Yoga on the Beach
7:30 am Plotting Boot Camp II (3 hours)
9:00 am M.A.D. Writing (Making a Difference)
Structure & Style
Powerful Writing: Spirit, Nature & Experience

10:10 am Conquering Writer’s Block & Silencing the Inner Critic
Using Test Readers
Comedy Writing

11:20 am Balancing Life & Writing
Characters, Emotion, Viewpoint & Voice
Your Writing as an Investment in Others’ Growth
Network the Write Way


Afternoon Workshops
1:30 pm Anatomy of a Bestseller
Live the Writer’s Life AND Pay the Bills
Legal Matters that Matter to Writers
Writing for Television

3:05 pm Bios, One Sheets & About Pages
Making the Most of Your Editing Experience
Screenplay to the Silver Screen

Evening
5:00 pm – 6:30 pm Reception
6:45 pm – 8:00 pm Sex On The Beach — Erotic Fiction Readings

hello...is it me you're looking for?

So, what have I been up to you ask? Well, since my last post I've finished with my spring classes with two Bs; gotten Employee of the Month at my job; kicked my sugar addiction; met a great guy who's now my boyfriend; been on a cruise to the Bahamas; and decided that I want to teach writing classes.

Not bad.

Right now, I'm gearing up for the summer term in my management program and just trying to keep myself on the right track. I have a ton of stuff I want to do, but I can't do it all, I must prioritize. I'm reading The Game of Life and How to Play It, which is helping me to understand the power of my own thoughts and words. 

I'm also researching which literary journals are best suited for my short stories. I want to begin submitting them this year. My hope is that publishing credits will strengthen my queries to editors, and of course provide me with a much needed sense of personal fulfillment that my work was deemed worthy of publication.