Writing...Just because!

As 2010 wraps up and we get ready to head into another year full of unknown yet hopefully exciting adventures I thought I would take the opportunity to reflect back on my social networking learning curve of 2009.   At the beginning of the year, I started keeping a tally of all the Twitter apps that were available to help manage the sometimes overwhelming demands of the Twittersphere.   We’re still not sure if it’s going to be worthwhile in the long run but if you’re not Tweeting you’re missing the boat…maybe.   I keep trying to find the best measurement tool and tracking metrics and voraciously read about other people’s and companies’ experiences.   It really depends on what you’re hoping to accomplish but there’s rarely any time to step back and take a breath. Anyways, I also wrote a couple articles and blogs about different apps I had found and was using but then as they kept coming at me thick and fast and I would find ones that were better or as I used a parti...

I was chuckling to myself the other day as I was enjoying a day at the water park with my friend's two teenage daughters and one of them told me she liked my "swimming costume."  It took me a minute to realize what she meant.  Ah...It would be what my fellow Canadians would call a bathing suit.  Of course her terminology (which originated from her Kenyan upbringing) is more literally accurate, isn't it?  This is something that us global writers have to contemplate with every single project we take on.  Where does it originate and who is the main target audience?  We must choose our words very carefully.  I remembered another story this same friend was telling me about her daughters visiting their paternal grandmother in Canada.  When it was time for supper she told them to put their toys in the "bin."  Well, in Canada she was referring to the large plastic Tupperware container that she was using as their toy box.  The girls burst into te...

During a recent visit to my hometown, Halifax, Nova Scotia, I stumbled upon an amazing opportunity to learn more about the book publishing process.  As I was sitting around the kitchen table with my mom, having coffee and perusing the Chronicle Herald (the local paper), I spied a notice about an event that was coming up the following weekend called, "Pitch the Publisher" which was part of The Word on the Street Festival , a day long literary event that's held every year.  It was a call for all aspiring authors to bring their manuscripts, ideas or proposals and test them out on an actual panel of local publishers (yes, I am working on a book about living in Dubai and it's to the point where I'm developing my proposal and researching agents and publishers).  I decided it was too great an opportunity to pass up and called right away to find out how to get on the list.  Alas, the schedule was full but I was put on a waiting list and reassured that the previous year t...