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Clarion West Write-A-Thon 2018: Sprint #2

/ LH Moore / Leave a comment

So, it’s Saturday evening…that means it’s time for me to do my one hour Clarion West Write-A-Thon sprint!

9:50 pm: For my Saturday sprint project “Spire” (working title) I left off at 981 words and a whole lotta questions about birds…time to get cracking in 10 minutes!

10: OK…fingers to keyboard!

10:14: Oh crap…I need a character name. “Hey you” isn’t going to work…

10:16: LOL…I actually worked that into the story.

11:02: And…that’s a wrap! Ended this week’s Write-A-Thon sprint at 2204 words. I’m really enjoying this story.

11:06: Random/not so random thoughts…

  • What type of animal can climb with a person on their back? Are there any?
  • If you can be anything, what would you be?
  • Nothing like a good ol’ fashioned betrayal 🗡
  • I really like pineapple juice. 🍍🍍🍍

Follow my sprint craziness on Saturdays and feel free to sponsor me (and other writers) so that we can keep this great workshop going!

Clarion West Write-A-Thon 2018: Sprint #1

/ LH Moore / Leave a comment

twitter-profile-headCW2017WaTSooo…I’m participating in the Clarion West Write-A-Thon again this year! My goals? Get. Stories. DONE. Let’s get this show going…

10:06 PM: I’m doing the first of my hour-long Clarion West Write-A-Thon sprints…now! Word count is zero. I have a story in mind. I am a total pantser writing-wise tonight. As in, totally flying by the seat of ’em.

10:12 PM: Hm. Thing is…I know the very last words of this story’s end. That part I’m certain of.

10:50 PM: Well, I need more info about how birds communicate and the mechanics/physics of how they fly. Things you realize…

11:15 PM: OK! It’s been an hour! That went by fast! Word count is 994 and I’m pretty excited about this one actually. Working title is “Spire.”

11:20 PM: Things (OK…tangents) I thought about:

  • Are worms tasty?
  • Are some birds scared of heights?
  • Hostess CupCakes are delicious and I love them, but I have none and I’m supposed to be good, but ohhh…I want some SO badly.
  • I can’t wait to write more of this one!

Follow my sprint craziness on Saturdays and feel free to sponsor me (and other writers) so that we can keep this great workshop going!

Be About This Writer Life

/ LH Moore / Leave a comment

“I’m a 46-year old writer who can remember being a 10-year old writer and who expects someday to be an 80-year old writer…” ~Octavia Butler

“I have no ability nor desire to be other than a writer…though the fact is I whistle beautifully.” ~Dorothy West

20170918_112441I loved to write as a kid and here is an excerpt from a story that I wrote in the 4th grade. There are sorcerers, dragons, and even a “flute of dance!” I mean, you just have to include a flute of dance, right?? We’re talking ADVENTURE! Thing is…I kept doing it. I never stopped writing. And I can tell you: It’s never too late.

If you are thinking, I’d like to try my hand at this writing thing, go for it! I am so not a hater. There’s room for us all. There is no one definitive way to be a writer, but there are some basic truths:

Read the works of others and hone your own skills. Take workshops. Join groups. Read books or sites about writing. Talk to other writers. Be nice to other writers! Don’t be that person. Find colleagues. Find your peeps. Get a sense of it all. But most of all? Write! Pen to paper, fingers to keyboard. Pay attention to asked-for formats and guidelines. And when you feel ready, take that plunge and submit! Put yourself out there. You will get rejections. You will have moments of “Why the hell am I doing this?” or “I. SUCK.” I know it’s rough and feels a li’l hellish, but get out of your feelings and keep going because you love what you do. Keep at it. You will get published. Be about this writer life!

What are you waiting for?

See ya next time!

~L.

An Exercise in Lyrics

/ LH Moore / 3 Comments

Hey there…I am so hyped to be a part of FIYAH Literary Magazine’s Winter 2018 Issue #5: “Ahistorical Blackness” along with Monique L. Desir, Irette Y. Patterson, Shari Paul, Phenderson Djèlí Clark and cover art by Trevor Fraley!
IMG_20171201_142345In addition to fantastic stories, essays and interviews every month, FIYAH releases a Spotify playlist in conjunction with the issue. The FIYAH team asked us to contribute three songs that complement our stories. I don’t know about anyone else, but I sat there for a moment like “Whoa…” as I hadn’t thought about it before. And I’ll be honest, I really enjoyed every minute of trying to decide.

I thought about my story’s themes and decided upon the main ones: freedom, dreaming, beginnings, creating. The lyrics of the songs themselves were also very important. Without telling you much more (you’ve gotta read “With These Hands” for yourself!) I went with Nina Simone‘s “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free”: “I wish I could live/Like I’m longin’ to live/I wish I could do/All the things that I can do/Though I’m way overdue/I’d be starting anew.”

The third song I chose, “Golden” by Jill Scott, has always felt like a celebration of self to me: “I’m taking my freedom/ Pulling it off the shelf/ Putting it on my chain/ Wear it around my neck…”

But the first one, “Fantasy” by Earth, Wind, and Fire, is a true love for me. It is one of the first songs that I ever knew in my life. I sang a part of it (“It’s your day/ shining day/ all your dreams come true”) to my baby when he was born. Its beautiful, hopeful lyrics have always spoken to me of dreaming, freedom and faraway places: “Come see victory, in the land called fantasy/ Loving life, a new decree/
Bring your mind to everlasting liberty.”

Enjoy the playlist and issue and support the hard work of the team at FIYAH by getting a subscription already!

See y’all next time…
~L.

 

 

 

Walk Down the Path

/ LH Moore / Leave a comment

I’ve been struggling with what to write in these posts, so I think that I am going to just go ahead and get personal with it. Let’s talk about perseverance.

This past year has been one of the hardest of my life. My husband needing a double lung transplant. Caregiving. Moving. Helping my son with autism transition through these changes. Feeling financially nervous (who doesn’t?). Finishing my thesis and graduating from grad school. A sick mom. Now needing to move yet again.

Yet, through it all I have been positive as an writer and now I’ve been recognized as a poet as well. Had a story come out in an anthology (Sycorax’s Daughters) and a poem published in Apex. And then there’s a project that I can’t even discuss yet. These are exciting, encouraging times for me right now. I see this momentum. I’m gonna walk right on down the path it’s taking me on. It might seem hokey, but writing has been my constant in the face of upheaval.

There have been times I have doubted my existence. There have been times that I wanted to close my eyes and just be done. We all have these moments of crisis when we are overwhelmed, when we are confused, scared, or want to give up. But that is just it. Please don’t.

The Ancestors are looking out for you. The Creator/Universal Energy that we are all a part of has a path for you to follow–and there is room along the way for your dreams. For writers and other creatives out there who are struggling: I know that it feels hard, but don’t give up.

Make it happen.

It will.

Until next time…
~L

As Seen in the Restroom…

/ LH Moore / Leave a comment
Interesting writing in the restroom stall...

Interesting writing in the restroom stall...

Yes…I really did take a pic of this while in a movie theater restroom in Toronto. No, I did not write that myself. My handwriting’s actually a bit more on the chickenscratch-y side and makes my schoolteacher grandmother shake her head sometimes while trying to read it.

Anyone else in there must have thought “Let me hurry up and get out of here” as I laughed in the stall while reading it. It did remind me that I needed to get cracking on this blog. Put some stuff out there in the interwebz.

I’ve been thinking a lot about “What do I want to say in this blog?” and finally, I’ve got an answer: It’s “whatever.” As in, whatever strikes me. Maybe art. Maybe writing. The state of the world of publishing or the world at-large. Maybe history or architecture or geek stuff or whatever gets me hyped.

Feel free to get hyped too…

Oh, and “Angels and Demons” was time in my life I can not get back now.