Teresa Jade LeYung's BLOG

Posts Tagged ‘Love Made of Heart’

Writing Career Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan Loves Stories About Words

Tuesday night, my sister and I dined at Squat & Gobble Cafe & Crepery before going to my gig with fellow Women’s National Book Association member Birgit Soyka at BookShop West Portal.

At first I thought the eatery was called Squab & Gobble, but, the name is Squat & Gobble. Why “Squat” ?  Chickens squat. People squat.  Squatting is done with the lower half of our body. Why “Gobble” ? Gobbling is done with our mouths.

What’s the lore behind the phrase squat and gobble?

Here’s a story about the Chinese word for “heart”:   The word “heart” is inside the words “grace,” “forgiveness,” “perseverance,” “compassion.” The word “heart” is inside the word “love” thus love made of heart.

What was our gig? http://lovemadeofheart.com/blog/how-do-authors-teresa-leyung-ryan-and-birgit-soyka-celebrate-rebuild-your-life-month-in-june/

Sincerely,

Teresa LeYung-Ryan

Manuscript Consultant

author of Love Made of Heart

Writing Career Coach

author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW

How Do Authors Teresa LeYung-Ryan and Birgit Soyka Celebrate “Rebuild Your Life Month” in June?

Tuesday, June 28, 2011, 7:00-9:00pm

BookShop West Portal, 80 West Portal Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94127 415-564-8080

Women’s National Book Association (WNBA) members celebrate June’s “Rebuild Your Life Month” featuring books by members Birgit Soyka and Teresa LeYung-Ryan. Join us for a fun evening— reception; authors’ presentations; meet the new board and members of the San Francisco Chapter. Please RSVP by emailing BookShopRSVP@wnba-sfchapter.org

Birgit Soyka (author of To Drink the Wild Air: One Woman’s Quest to Touch the Horizon)

and

Teresa LeYung-Ryan (author of Love Made of Heart and Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days)

Birgit Sokya celebrates Rebuild Your Life Month

Teresa LeYung Ryan celebrates Rebuild Your Life Month

**

Teresa LeYung-Ryan uses Love Made of Heart to inspire adult-children of mentally-ill parents to speak openly about the stigmas and gain resources for their families. As Writing Career Coach Teresa, she helps fiction and nonfiction authors gain a competitive edge before and after publication with her workbook Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days. Visit Teresa’s blog at http://WritingCoachTeresa.com

Birgit Soyka (author of To Drink the Wild Air: One Woman’s Quest to Touch the Horizon )was the only female breaking into the male dominated sport of motorcycle racing in California, showing courage and determination to win a championship against all odds and encountering injuries, destitution, homelessness, and the threat of deportation. Visit Birgit’s blog at http://todrinkthewildair.com/

The Women’s National Book Association (WNBA) is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization that fosters professional development and exposure of our members (women & men) through a variety of book-related programs, workshops, and hands-on opportunities to make valuable contacts and connections that are beneficial at any stage of one’s career. WNBA-San Francisco Chapter (founded by Effie Lee Morris) is part of a National network promoting the value of books and reading throughout ten chapters stretching from coast to coast. Annual Membership is $45 http://wnba-sfchapter.org

I’m so happy for the contributing authors in Fault Zone: Words from the Edge (the California Writers Club-San Francisco Peninsula branch’s anthology). Available at Kepler’s Books & Magazines.

Ann Foster

Bardi Rosman Koodrin

Carole Bumpus

Cheryl S. Levinson

Christopher Wachlin

Darlene Frank

David Hirzel

Diane Moomey

Elise Frances Miller

Eve Visconti

Ida Lewenstein

James Hanna

Jo Carpignano

Laurel Anne Hill

Linda Newman

Lisa Meltzer Penn (also editor)

Lucy Ann Murray

Margaret Davis

Martha Clark Scala

Mil Pribble

Ollie Mae Trost Welch

Tia Creighton

Tory Hartmann

“For writers who want to study the craft and for readers who love engaging stories and poems, the anthology Fault Zone: Words from the Edge fits the bill. How to entertain with humor, suspense, poignancy? All here. Bravissimo, California Writers Club authors and editors!”  Teresa LeYung-Ryan, author, manuscript consultant, writing career coach

Teresa is author of Love Made of Heart

Teresa is author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW

Coach Teresa, how do I build fame as a writer?

Writing Career Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan here to say: “Use what you know to build fame. Use your three intertwining circles. Be yourself. Have fun.”

Contact me if you would like to invite me to your writers’ club.  My email address is on my website:  Writing Career Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan

I had so much fun yesterday with California Writers Club–San Francisco Peninsula branch members at the San Mateo County Fair.

Mary Knippel, Teresa LeYung Ryan, Martin Shane Dowd (far right in photo) and California Writers Club Fault Zone anthology contributing authors Ann Foster, Darlene Frank, Tory Hartmann, Lisa Meltzer Penn editor, Bardi Rosman Koodrin, Christopher Wachlin

************************************************

Congratulations to the Writers Who Entered The Immigrant Experience Writing Contest!

DIVISION 342 – THE IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE: NOVEL, MEMOIR, OR SHORT STORY
Sponsored by Teresa LeYung-Ryan, author of  Love Made of Heart and Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW

Patricia Tsang first place winner in 2011 Immigrant Experience Writing Contest created and sponsored by Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan

First place winner:  “My Chinese American Experience” by Patricia Tsang

Second place winner: “Dancing Among the Tombstones” by Ellen Six

Third place winner: “Culture Shock” by Lucy Murray

Honorable Mention: “Message Deleted” by Evie Groch

Honorable Mention: “Caught in the Current” by Uldis Zebergs

Honorable Mention: “The Luck of the Irish” by Martha Traynor

************************************************

Thank you, Boris Koodrin, Fine Arts Director at the San Mateo County Fair!

Thank you a thousand times, Bardi Rosman Koodrin, Literary Arts Director, for your big-hearted spirit and courage!

“Reach out, not stress out, when building your fame!”

Sincerely,

Writing Career Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan

author of Love Made of Heart

author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW

Help our underdog public libraries in every city, town, incorporated and unincorporated area in the United States of America!

Help our underdog public libraries in Oakland, CA. Mayor Jean Quan and City Council Members, please keep Oakland “literate” ! Libraries provide safe place for young and old; Librarians help us identify resources. Help us survive and thrive.

June 20, 2011, 6:00 am to 8:00 pm

14 Hours, 14 Branches: A Read-In to Save Oakland Libraries

Amphitheater in front of City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, CA

14 Hours, 14 Branches is a 14 hour read-in being held on Monday, June 20, 2011 to raise awareness that 14 of 18 Oakland’s branch libraries (including AAMLO and the Tool Lending Library) will be eliminated under the current budget Scenario A. City Council presents their budget recommendations on Tuesday, June 21, 2011 and we want to have our voices reading for an uninterrupted 14 hours the day before to send our message loud and clear: save ALL of Oakland’s public libraries.

Save Oakland Libraries created a survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/XGGQD7V

Dear Friends, Neighbors, Colleagues,

Please help spread the word about June 20, 2011 Monday’s 14 hours-14 branches READ IN to save Oakland libraries.
If you can’t be there in person, please please call or email Mayor Jean Quan’s office, City Councilmembers, and Oakland City Administration.
Libraries help keep a city “safe” and literate… http://preview.tinyurl.com/14hours
City Council: http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/CityCouncil/index.htm
Mayor’s office: http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/Mayor/a/ContactUs/index.htm
I’ll be there on Monday; I’ll email too.

Mayor Jean Quan’s Office – officeofthemayor@oaklandnet.com

* District 1 – Jane Brunner    jbrunner@oaklandnet.com
* District 2 – Pat Kernighan  pkernighan@oaklandnet.com
* District 3 – Nancy Nadel  nnadel@oaklandnet.com
* District 4 – Libby Schaaf  lschaaf@oaklandnet.com
* District 5 – Ignacio De La Fuente  idelafuente@oaklandnet.com
* District 6 – Desley Brooks  dbrooks@oaklandnet.com
* District 7 – Larry Reid  lreid@oaklandnet.com
* At-Large – Rebecca Kaplan  atlarge@oaklandnet.com

Oakland City Administration – cityadministrator@oaklandnet.com

“Save Oakland Library”  saveoaklandlibrary@gmail.com

Our mighty voices are needed. Today, call or stop by your library and ask questions. Help Librarians help us. Thank you!

Thank you, Kathy Shepler, for emailing author and plot teacher Martha Alderson. Thank you, Martha, for bring this urgent matter to my attention.

Writers and Readers, please step out or shout out.  To promote literacy and help Oakland Libraries live well. I’ll see you all there!

Sincerely,

Writing Career Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan

author of Love Made of Heart

author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW

What Do Dr. Andy, Poetry, Technology, Bardi Rosman Koodrin, San Mateo County Fair, Oakland Libraries, and Coach Teresa Have In Common?

Promoting literacy, literary arts and underdogs (a.k.a. libraries) . . .

Thank you, Dr. Andy O. Jones, for contacting me when you needed an expert/local celebrity to fill 20 minutes of air time on your wonderful radio show “Dr. Andy’s Poetry and Technology Hour” and giving me a chance to invite your fans to fun literary events at the San Mateo County Fair June 11-19, 2011 .  To see the schedule of workshops and authors Thursday through Saturday click here: Literary Arts Stage in the Expo Hall at San Mateo County Fair

* * * * * * * * * *

And thank you for letting me broadcast about helping our underdog public libraries in Oakland, CA. Mayor Jean Quan and City Council Members, please keep Oakland “literate” !

June 20, 2011, 6:00 am to 8:00 pm

14 Hours, 14 Branches: A Read-In to Save Oakland Libraries

Amphitheater in front of City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, CA

14 Hours, 14 Branches is a 14 hour read-in being held on Monday, June 20, 2011 to raise awareness that 14 of 18 Oakland’s branch libraries (including AAMLO and the Tool Lending Library) will be eliminated under the current budget Scenario A. City Council presents their budget recommendations on Tuesday, June 21, and we want to have our voices reading for an uninterrupted 14 hours the day before to send our message loud and clear: save ALL of Oakland’s public libraries.

Dear Friends, Neighbors, Colleagues,

Please help spread the word about June 20, 2011 Monday’s 14 hours-14 branches READ IN to save Oakland libraries.
If you can’t be there in person, please please call or email Mayor Jean Quan’s office and City Councilmembers.
Libraries help keep a city “safe” and literate… http://preview.tinyurl.com/14hours
City Council: http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/CityCouncil/index.htm
Mayor’s office: http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/Mayor/a/ContactUs/index.htm
I’ll be there on Monday; I’ll email too.

Mayor Jean Quan’s Office – officeofthemayor@oaklandnet.com

* District 1 – Jane Brunner    jbrunner@oaklandnet.com
* District 2 – Pat Kernighan  pkernighan@oaklandnet.com
* District 3 – Nancy Nadel  nnadel@oaklandnet.com
* District 4 – Libby Schaaf  lschaaf@oaklandnet.com
* District 5 – Ignacio De La Fuente  idelafuente@oaklandnet.com
* District 6 – Desley Brooks  dbrooks@oaklandnet.com
* District 7 – Larry Reid  lreid@oaklandnet.com
* At-Large – Rebecca Kaplan  atlarge@oaklandnet.com

Oakland City Administration – cityadministrator@oaklandnet.com

Our mighty voices are needed. Today, call or stop by your library and ask questions. Help Librarians help us. Thank you!

Thank you, Kathy Shepler, for emailing author and plot teacher Martha Alderson. Thank you, Martha, for bring this urgent matter to my attention.

Writers and Readers, please step out this week and next Monday.  Step out to promote literacy at the San Mateo County Fair and help Oakland Libraries. I’ll see you all there!

Sincerely,

Writing Career Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan

What Is Dr. Andy’s Poetry and Technology Hour?

Dr. Andy’s Poetry and Technology Hour is a weekly public affairs program on radio station KDVS 90.3 FM heard live on Wednesday afternoons at 5 p.m., Pacific. On the air since the year 2000, Dr. Andy’s Poetry and Technology Hour features interviews with local and faraway poets, innovative thinkers in the worlds of technology and social media, and practitioners of many other forms of creativity, including theatre, music, and writing across media. Poets with new books, creative innovators with new projects, and the representative of any local arts enterprise are invited to contact Dr. Andy to schedule an appearance on Dr. Andy’s Poetry and Technology Hour.

Cheers to Dr. Andy, his show, U.C. Davis, and independent community freeform radio!

Sincerely,

Writing Career Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan

author of Love Made of Heart

author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW

author and writing coach Teresa LeYung Ryan uses her mighty voice to say "Help our libraries and librarians help us stay literate."

San Mateo County Fairgrounds

1346 Saratoga Ave, San Mateo, CA 94403

Expo Hall, Fine Arts Galleria, Literary Stage

Will There Be Fun Programs for Writers and Readers at the San Mateo County Fair?

Yes! Yes! Yes!  Laurel Anne Hill and David Hirzel had led workshops this past weekend. You’ll see them again this weekend.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

5:00-6:00pm Audio-­book workshop with Kathy Garver!

Have you ever wondered how to find new markets for your writing project?
Do you want to find out more about how audio books are created?
Would you like to learn how to record the audio version of your book?

KATHY GARVER might be best known for her role as Cissy on the hit 60’s
TV show Family Affair, but she’s also an Audie Award winner for narrating books (An Audie is like the Oscar for audio narration).

Excerpts will be read from Kathy’s The Family Affair Cookbook. Visit Kathy’s website:  www.kathygarver.com

6:00-7:00pm Author Anna Booth

7:00-8:00pm Pacifica Poetry Forum

8:00-9:00pm Green Tea Band musical act

* * * * * * * * * *

FRIDAY, JUNE 17, 2011   4:00-9:00pm (5 hours of fun)

(30 minute mini-workshops – 4:00pm; 4:30pm; 5:00pm; 5:30pm )

Creativity Mentor Mary E. Knippel

Free Family Fun for ages 10 and up! Let’s Play!

• unleash your creative side
• meet your inner artist
• catch yourself having fun
Mary E. Knippel, writer, Creativity Mentor, speaker and workshop leader, conducts workshops on California’s beautiful San Mateo coast in which participants connect with their creativity, focus on fun, and pursue play as a proven method to de-stress and cope with life’s challenges. Mary will help workshop participants discover the secret of journal writing along with experiencing the magic that happens when bits of paper are infused with imagination.  http://www.coaxingcreativity.com

6:30-­8:00PM
THE SAN FRANCISCO/PENINSULA BRANCH OF THE CALIFORNIA WRITERS CLUB LAUNCHES THEIR ENDLESS SUMMER TOUR OF FAULT ZONE: WORDS FROM THE EDGE

an anthology of stories and poems to be read by the authors

Scheduled to present:
Lisa Meltzer Penn, Editor, Fault Zone: Words from the Edge
Ann Foster
James Hanna
Carole Bumpus
Linda Newman
Laurel Anne Hill
Ida Lewenstein
Darlene Frank
Bardi Rosman Koodrin, Literary Director, San Mateo County Fair

8:00-9:00pm

DON’T MISS THIS POWERFUL FICTION AND PRESCRIPTIVE NONFICTION MINI WORKSHOP BY ONE OF THE BAY AREA’S LEADING MANUSCRIPT CONSULTANTS, WRITING CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, AND BLOGGER EXTRAORDINAIRE!

Teresa LeYung Ryan will show you how to gain name recognition, fans, and advocates BEFORE and AFTER publication.

As manuscript consultant and platform-building coach, Teresa LeYung-Ryan helps her clients identify themes, issues, and archetypes in their fiction and nonfiction books and choose the right publishing routes.  Coach Teresa’s motto: “Reach out, not stress out, when building your career.” She’s the author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW http://writingcoachTeresa.com

Author Teresa LeYung Ryan uses Love Made of Heart to inspire adult-children of mentally-ill parents to speak openly about the stigmas and gain resources for their families.

Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan helps fiction and nonfiction writers build their platforms and fanbases

* * * * * * * * * *

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2011

1:00-2:00 Science Fiction/Fantasy Open Mic with author Laurel Anne Hill

2:00-4:00PM AUTHOR BOOK DAY

WE HAVE PAGE-TURNING THRILLERS, COZY MYSTERIES, MEMOIRS, HISTORICAL NOVELS, CONTEMPORARY NOVELS, POETRY, COOKBOOKS, DELIGHTFUL CHILDREN’S AND YOUNG ADULT STORIES, AND MORE.

BETH BARANY
EZRA BARANY
ANASTASIA BLACKWELL
PAUL CARLSON
JON CORY
MARGARET DAVIS
PATRICIA V. DAVIS
ELIZABETH FAJARDO
VALERIE FRANKEL
CHUCK FROST
KATHY GARVER
JAMES HANNA
LIAN GOUW
LAUREL ANNE HILL
SCOTT JAMES
F.M. KAHREN
BEVERLY KALININ
LI MAIO LOVETT
LISA MELTZER PENN
EMERIAN RICH
TERESA LEYUNG RYAN‘s books will be available – please visit author BIRGIT SOYKA’s table
JOANN SEMONES, PH.D
BIRGIT SOYKA
KAREN STANTON
DR. PATRICIA TSANG
LEIGH TOLDI
DR. NORMAN E. TUTOROW
MATT WEBER
ANN WILKES

4:00-5:00PM THE WOMEN ON WRITING “WOW” GROUP WILL PRESENT READINGS OF POETRY AND PROSE IMMEDIATELY AFTER BOOK DAY
WOW WOMEN ON WRITING, Skyline College, annually hosts  Women on Writing (WOW), a festive literary event in early March that inspires creativity and celebrates community among writers and readers of all ages. Six dynamic WOW leaders will read original poetry and prose .
Participants include:
WOW founder Marijane Datson, coordinator Kathleen McClung, keynote speaker Li Miao Lovett, and ambassadors Georgia Gero, Lisa Melnick and Ellen Woods.

Coach Teresa, what books are you reading this month?

Two weeks ago I reported to jury duty. Before leaving my house that morning to catch bus and BART, I went to my bookcases to look for volumes of Greek Tragedies (I’ve had those books since college days).

Why did I want to reread translations of Greek Tragedies? To study literary works that engaged me decades ago and have been in my memory since. In Greek Tragedies, oftentimes the villains are the parents, with help from the gods and goddesses. My studying these classics helps me gain  examples of plotline structuring and archetypes for my clients whose manuscripts carry similar themes–what if a family member is the wicked antagonist?

So, I re-read Aeschylus: The Libation Bearers (translated by Richmond Lattimore) and Sophocles: Electra (translated by David Greene), and, I’m re-reading Euripides: Iphigenia in Tauris (translated by Witter Bynner).

Did I get selected as a juror?  That is another story which I will tell later.

Liz Bittner just finished reading Barbara Kingsolver’s novel The Poisonwood Bible and she lent me her copy.  I am enjoying it immensely.

Writers, I’ve updated my post “Coach Teresa, what should I do before hiring an editor?”

Happy writing and rewriting!

Sincerely,

Teresa LeYung Ryan

Writing Career Coach; Manuscript Consultant; Author

of Love Made of  Heart; Author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days

“Coach Teresa, what should I do before hiring an editor?”

Look at Your Manuscript with an Editor’s Lens

By Teresa LeYung Ryan

Writing Career Coach; Manuscript Consultant; Author

Since writing a story with the intent to engage the reader is so much like meeting a stranger and wanting him/her to be interested in you, you’d want to hook the reader’s attention in the first quarter of your story (starting with the first page, oftentimes with the first line).

I love working with diligent writers who want to transform their manuscripts into page-turners. However, there are things you can do before you give your work to an editor. Let me show you how you can help yourself.

The big four elements to look for in your manuscript:

• Planting hook(s) or story-question(s);
• Grounding the reader with the three Ws (Who? When? Where?);
• Showing (not telling) what the protagonist wants;
• Paying attention to language and rules

Let’s learn from the pros.

Planting Hook or Story-Question:

In The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts, Maxine Hong Kingston hooks us with the first line: “You must not tell anyone,” my mother said, “what I am about to tell you…” Then, Ms. Kingston transitions into her story with: “Whenever she had to warn us about life, my mother told stories that ran like this one . . .”

Grounding the Reader with the Three Ws:

In Woven of Water, while the story timeline spans from 1957 to 2005, Californian author Luisa Adams brilliantly shows us who she was as a girl (not with a year-by-year narrative, but with a single exquisite chapter). Because she grounded us with “who, when, where,” we eagerly follow as she (the middle-aged woman) takes us into her enchanted world of a “cottage in the forest.”

Showing What the Protagonist Wants:

In The Other Mother, young Carol Schaefer wants to ask questions: “Was there any way to keep my baby? Was there anyone who would help me find a way to do that?”

Elizabeth Gilbert hooks us with “I wish Giovanni would kiss me…” in her memoir Eat, Pray, Love. Simple as that.  She’ll have other desires as her story moves forward, but, right there on page 1, she’s clear about what she wants.

In Love Made of Heart, protagonist Ruby Lin is thinking: What have I done?  I watch the uniformed police officers escort my mother from my apartment.

Paying Attention to Language and Rules:

Read the first five pages of Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt and you will see how this wordsmith plays with language and rules. (You can “bend” the rules to create flow, but you must not ignore the rules.)

Are you saying: “Coach Teresa, that’s my style–I don’t like to use commas all that much. You might see typos but that’s your job right to correct them? I write like I talk. Okay.”

I say: “Read your manuscript out loud.  Do you really talk like that?  If you hear yourself pausing in a sentence, that’s probably where you’d put a comma. You are a writer; use correct spelling.  Do use vernacular that is indicative of your story-world; however, will your reader hear the differences in speech patterns in your characters OR will they hear just one voice in all the characters?”

Sentences Deserve Your Attention:

Remember Groucho Marx’s line “One morning I shot an elephant in my pajamas…”? That sentence got a lot of laughs. But, what if you didn’t want to be funny (ambiguous in this case)? Watch out for those misplaced modifiers.

How would you rewrite these poorly constructed sentences?

• He likes to fish near the Farallon Islands and they jump when they’re hungry at dawn or dusk.
• She insists on knowing when I come home and leave, not to be nosy, but for safety reasons.
• Being cautious as not to step on the dog’s tail, the children tip-toed away from him while sleeping.
• My husband still in bed snoring, I have always enjoyed rising before dawn and I eat my toast and drink my green tea on the terrace.

To improve your sentence structuring and other skills, I recommend these books:

• The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White
• Woe is I: Grammarphobe’s Guide to Better English in Plain English by Patricia T. O’Conner

More Advice:

• In all the stories referenced above, the authors present memorable experiences by employing authentic details, unusual story-worlds, and poetic language. You want to do the same for your story.
• Also, the stories have another vital component–all the plotlines have what Martha Alderson, author of Blockbuster Plots, Pure and Simple, calls “Cause and Effect” linked scenes. Another must-read blog: Plot Whisperer
• When you’re writing non-fiction and do not have the luxury of rearranging the sequence of events to create a page-turning plotline, you can engage the reader by using concise expositions to leap over blocks of time in order to focus on the core themes and fast-forward the story. A helpful website: Linda Joy Myer’s http://www.memoriesandmemoirs.com
• You the author must show the reader what the protagonist wants, even if the protagonist doesn’t know at first.
• We don’t have to “like” a protagonist, but, we do need to connect with him/her on an emotional level.
• Read my colleague Vicki Weiland’s “Vicki’s Four Questions” © on her blog: http://vickiweiland.wordpress.com/vickis-four-questions-%C2%A9/

In the fiercely competitive arena of the publishing world, how does one stand out in a crowd? Building relationships is one key to success in this business. Another key is to know how to translate the themes from your life to your writing and articulate those themes as community concerns. I want to see all hardworking writers realize their dreams.

My best wishes to you!

Sincerely,

Teresa LeYung Ryan

Coach Teresa edits manuscripts for authors who want to attract agents  & publishers  OR  want to be their own publishers. She specializes in contemporary novels, thrillers, children’s & YA novels, memoirs, short stories, and anthologies.

22-Day Platform-Building Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan helps authors identify their themes to hook agents' and publishers' attention.

author of Love Made of  Heart

author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days

Before I answer that question, I’d like to introduce you to my colleagues who are fine poets / excellent performers of their poetry.  I had asked them to send me links to their articles about mothers.

By Yolande Barial, a mom of 3, contributor in the anthologies If Women Ruled the World and Oakland’s Neighborhoods :

http://yolandebarial.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/www-examiner-com/

http://www.redroom.com/blog/yolandebarial/happy-mothers-day

http://www.redroom.com/blog/yolandebarial/thanks-mom

http://www.redroom.com/blog/yolandebarial/like-daughterlike-mother

http://www.examiner.com/motherhood-in-stockton/yolande-barial

http://www.tracypress.com/view/full_story/12489710/article-Her-Voice–To-helmet-or-not-to-helment?instance=home_opinion_lead_story

Joan Gelfand’s article “Mother’s Day Without Mom” for the Huffington Post

And, here are authors whose books are about relationships with mothers or mother-figures:

Lynn Scott – A Joyful Encounter: My Mother, My Alzheimer Clients, and Me

Deborah Grossman - Goldie and Me

Luisa Adams - Woven of Water

Lynn Henriksen – Telltale Souls

Linda Joy Myers - Don’t Call Me Mother

Matilda Butler - Rosie’s Daughters

Kate Farrell - Wisdom Has a Voice: Daughters Remember Mothers

(me) Teresa LeYung Ryan - Love Made of Heart

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Coach Teresa, what did you do on Mother’s Day this year?

Thank you for asking.  The day before Mother’s Day, I had helped dear colleague Mary E. Knippel create multiple videos about her fun Coaxing Creativity workshops:

http://www.youtube.com/maryeknippel#p/a/u/0/xZ2GgqEE3Q4

http://www.youtube.com/maryeknippel#p/a/u/1/JsaPHrUvVfo

Her events are all inspiring. “Simple” and “abundant” best describe what I get from Mary Knippel’s workshops.

The next Day (Mother’s Day) I met artist Chandra Garsson on Hayes Street.

Lunch at La Boulange Cafe & Bakery was delightful, sitting in the corner, with view of the entire cafe and looking out onto Hayes Street. My mom would have liked this place. People eating tasty-looking salads, sandwiches, soups, baked goods; you can see the baked goods and pre-made sandwiches in the counters, all appealing. People reading newspapers and drinking beverages.  High ceiling; a European-feel about the place.

Then Chandra treated me to San Francisco Ballet’s hypnotically beautiful production of The Little Mermaid. The story (tragedy) was written by Hans Christian Andersen.

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150573069220430&oid=27923251292&comments
Principal dancer Yuan Yuan Tan says: “on stage … I am dancing without thinking.”

Thank you, Chandra, for giving me a day of bittersweet beauty.

I come home and there’s a Happy Mother’s Day e-card in my inbox from publicity expert Lin Lacombe. The animated card shows a wishing well. I make my wish for my mom–wherever you are, whatever you’re doing, I wish you lots and lots of joy and love.

Sincerely,

Teresa LeYung Ryan

author of Love Made of  Heart

Love Made of Heart - get this book for your mom or sister

author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days

*******