Read Print is a Great Find

Read Print is a great site -- it offers lots of free access to classic works of literature, plus the complete works of Shakespeare. An added feature is a list of articles covering a range of writing-related issues: what is a sonnet? how to write a magazine article? Lots of fun, and there are coupons too! Nice.

No compensation has been received for this review.

Writer Lawyer Tip: Great Find - Natural Reader

I use Natural Reader all the time. I use the free version, with the voice that is far from human-sounding. In fact, it sounds so much like HAL that I am always tempted to type the lyrics to "A Bicycle Built for Two" just for a grin ....

Remember that scene from the movie? Dave ... what are you doing, Dave ....

Okay, fine. Look, Natural Reader gives a final, verbal edit before I send the draft out. It's a big help, and I thought I'd share that with you today.

It's NaNoWriMo Time Again

Once again, it's National Novel Writing Month and we're already four days into the month-long process. You're not too late, if you want to sign up online -- you'll get your own page with a tracker of your progress.

What's NaNoWriMo? From the site:

"National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

"Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

"Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.

"Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap. And that's a good thing. By forcing yourself to write so intensely, you are giving yourself permission to make mistakes. To forgo the endless tweaking and editing and just create. To build without tearing down."


There are local groups that have writing meet-ups during the month, as well as providing other support (group e-mails, etc.). And, yes, books do get written during NaNoWriMo -- some, ultimately, are even published.

Me? I admit to joining the 2005 NaNoWriMo and it did help me get organized and moving forward on a fiction work. However, no, I didn't finish. This year, I've got my two huge projects, plus a myriad of other assorted projects with deadlines and if I have extra time during this month, I need to focus on getting away from the keyboard ... but I have hopes for NaNoWriMo next year. It was fun.