Monday Classroom

March 2, 2015

Monday Classroom: The Comma (sending us into comas) . . . .

Commas, those squiggly little cuties, cause more torn out hair and gnashed teeth. I’m not the perfect Comma Momma (teeheehee), so I do invite you to use the links below to learn allllllllll about those tiny little trouble-makers–particularly The Comma Splice, for which I do not talk about here, but if I did I would, have… Continue reading

appalachian mountain people, authors and books, craft of writing, Monday Classroom

Books, craft of writing, grammar, kathryn magendie, smoky mountains, strengthening manuscripts, writing

February 16, 2015

Monday Classroom: To be or to not be! – aw now.

There are writing “Rules” that have attached themselves to me—as leeches will do, some may quip – haw! And I have become rather picky when it comes to these particulars. You don’t write books? No matter! For your letters, business documents, and may I dare say texts and emails?, and other areas where you communicate, can… Continue reading

authors and books, cleaning up our manuscripts, craft of writing, grammar, Monday Classroom

craft of writing, grammar, kathryn magendie, strengthening manuscripts, writing

August 22, 2012

Will all y’allses authors stand on your head wearing a book suit with a little book hat?

For months I kept an eye on a new hot dog and ice cream parlor. This new business tried just about everything to draw customers to it—new items gaily written on the menu board, wi-fi now available!, bright colors shouting out, huge signs proclaiming their awesomeness, and a woman dressed as a hot dog with… Continue reading

authors and books, craft of writing, General Poo Dee Dah, Monday Classroom, Wednesday Classroom

Books, craft of writing, kathryn magendie, writing

June 11, 2012

Monday Classroom: See-Saw/Watch(ed)/Look(ed) – cleaning up our manuscripts, y’all (and no whining allowed!)

Morning all y’allses out there, wherever you are. I first want to say how much I appreciate you. Many of you come by here for every post, and there are those of you who leave comments regularly. Thank you. I have not been able to return the favor as I used to, but I am… Continue reading

authors and books, cleaning up our manuscripts, craft of writing, General Poo Dee Dah, Monday Classroom

appalachian southern fiction, Books, craft of writing, kathryn magendie, strengthening manuscripts, west virginia, writing

June 4, 2012

Monday Classroom: The angst we can heap on our pea-heads, or the joy – you are in control, right?

Sometimes I follow Good Man Roger into Ingles Supermarket as he shops for groceries (yeah, he does the grocery shopping and most the cooking because I just ain’t innerested, y’allses! Left to my own self’ses, I eat the weirdest stuff that does not require cooking, or very little of it). I wander the aisles touching… Continue reading

authors and books, craft of writing, General Poo Dee Dah, graces sagas, Monday Classroom, novelists

Books, craft of writing, kathryn magendie

May 28, 2012

Monday Classroom: We should all take a break . . .

Today I am thinking of so many men and women. And, I am thinking about my nephew. Gone 17 years now. He was almost 20 when he was killed in a training accident. He was in the Marines and something went wrong. He loved the Marines, and it did turn his life around. So young.… Continue reading

craft of writing, gratitude, Monday Classroom

kathryn magendie, photos

May 21, 2012

Monday Classroom: Why you’ses dumping information all up and down and all-over creation? Ain’t necessary.

Oh woe is us’ses but sometimes we feel the need to stuff down too much information at once, instead of gradually feeding information to our readers, or hinting, or giving them just enough so that they come to their own conclusions. We think, and I have done this, we have to tell the reader “certain… Continue reading

authors and books, cleaning up our manuscripts, craft of writing, General Poo Dee Dah, Monday Classroom

craft of writing, kathryn magendie, strengthening manuscripts, writing

May 14, 2012

Monday Classroom: Y’allses, we’s gonna clean up our languageamation, right? riiighht!

Morning, all y’allses! What? You think all y’allses isn’t correct? Well, it ain’t. It ain’t even correct in many southern towns. Nope. But it’s correct in my pea-head, so there y’allses goes’ses :-D Our manuscripts/work/language will never be perfect. Yeah, I know! It’s difficult to imagine, isn’t it? That we aren’t or will never be… Continue reading

cleaning up our manuscripts, craft of writing, grammar, Monday Classroom

craft of writing, grammar, kathryn magendie, strengthening manuscripts, writing

May 7, 2012

Monday Classroom: Iconic Giants & the Firsts – what do you wish your legacy to be?

All up inside my lil ole pea-headed brain, I was thinking about the creative endeavor, about where we’ve been and where we are and where we will go–and where we want to go, or think we want to go until we arrive and then we’re all “Huh? Whaaa?” Right?Riiighhht! Then, I ponderificated about those who… Continue reading

craft of writing, General Poo Dee Dah, inspiration, Monday Classroom

craft of writing, kathryn magendie, writing

April 30, 2012

Monday Classroom: What if writing/publishing your book were like any other job?

If we were to think about our writing life, and publishing life, as a Job, we may consider things quite differently. You interview and you then sit by the phone and wait for it to ring, sweating, hoping. Phone rings—you didn’t get the job—DANG IT ALL TO HELLVITICA! That happens again, and again, until finally that… Continue reading

authors and books, General Poo Dee Dah, Monday Classroom, publishing

amazon, craft of writing, kathryn magendie, writing

the asshole brain