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I saw this in one of your responses on Siren Sea
[My daughter tells me that a writer needs to imagine that at least one reader will have a catcher's glove and pop it with her fist and say, "put 'er there." ]
Please thank your daughter (and yourself) for a great thought for all us aspiring writers. It's worth adding to the quotes page.
__I Like Rhymes

"I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and brief sentences. That is the way to write English - it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don't let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in. When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don't mean utterly, but kill most of them - then the rest will be valuable. They weaken when they are close together. They give strength when they are wide apart. An adjective habit, or a wordy, diffuse, flowery habit, once fastened upon a person, is as hard to get rid of as any other vice." -Mark Twain

Favorite movies: Empire of the Sun, Cinema Paradiso, The Best Years of Our lives, Dancing at Lughnasa, The Wizard of Oz, Frida, the World According to Garp.

Favorite writers: Joseph Conrad, Thomas Mann, Mark Twain

Favorite poets: Laurence Ferlinghetti, Carl Sandburg), Dylan Thomas

Dislikes: country, gospel and most popular music

Enjoy: Opera, Mozart, Mahler and Salsa


[Please do not use the phrase "Good luck when responding to my poems. I know you mean well by using it, but it really grates when I hear it used. My experience with contest judges is that it is a "kiss off." I have never won when it has been used. Secondly, "luck" has no place in a poetry write, or any form of art, unless it is a spell cast by a Medium or Shaman. I know in theater or music, they don't say "luck," they say "break a leg."I have stopped using luck altogether, because it sounds like you are suggesting that it will take something more than skill (in other words, it is an insult.) You may be offended (I hope not) but I do hope you will think about this.]

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Check out my short story: The Black Phalange (on Story write)