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Hey, Charlie!
Not exactly sure what you're trying to say, but as long as it keeps you amused, we don't need to worry about you.

Helena--
Just read your short story. Great start!  JP

Amen. The audience dictates the writing style. Which means we should know before we start for whom the work is intended.

Congratulations! So happy for you! I'll head right over. Under what name are you published?

In my first attempt at a novel, I posted a chapter here wherein a character was murdered. His dying words were supposed to be a clue.

Unfortunately, in my effort to protect the main and secondary characters, who had personalities I liked, the murdered guy was inconsequential in the story. The most telling comment I received was that I had killed off a character in whom the reader was not invested. In short, nobody cared that he died.

If a character is liked and accepted by the reader (and, by extension, the author), his/her death has greater impact. Makes a better story.

I took a peek. Very interesting.. It always helps if the reader can sense authority in a writer's work. Who among us hasn't come to a grinding halt when coming across a writer's dumb assumption?

Not planning to write anything with horses right now, but I'll earmark it for future reference.

What does Marilyn think about it?  JP

I tried it,Temple. It looks to me like something that would please those who have a long morning and evening commute and a cell phone.

Guess I'm not a word nerd. I can't see myself having the patience to fiddle around and wait for graphics to arrive at something I already know, or something that's at my fingertips in the American Heritage Dictionary or Roget's Thesaurus.

If I were a student who didn't have a great vocabulary or a firm grasp on the parts of speech, I might feel differently.

It's a toy. If it imparts learning as well as enjoyment, so much the better.  JP

Good to hear from you. I have planned to pare down my involvement with any more projects, so I won't be available to work on such a contest. You'll need to find someone to oversee the project.

At this time of year, most everyone will say they are involved in school, family and holiday events/preparations, so they don't have time to write a contest entry. If you would like to plan for early next year, I'm sure Sol would like to hear from you.

I haven't tried it, but I don't see why it wouldn't work. You're the author--you have the godlike power to create the story you want. Enjoy.

Good one, Temple!

The article does offer some useful suggestions. My pet peeve is related to the two about too much description of the setting and giving the character's height. That is detailed description  of a character's clothing, hairstyle and makeup. Unless it has a direct bearing on the plot, forget it. Give the reader a chance to visualize the character.

We have all gone through phases of overuse or misuse of punctuation. It's part of the learning process. (I wrestle with the semicolon, em dash and period, too.) For that reason, we should all learn to accept criticism with grace, even though we may wish to give in to feelings of hurt and anger. It does no good to offer protestations of artistic freedom. If It's wrong, it's wrong.

The good thing is once you get it right, your work is better, easier tor read, and more widely accepted. And isn't that what we want?