Beth's Blog http://blog.bethannerickson.com For Freelancers, Dreamers, and Creators Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:01:46 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.1 en First Contest. :) http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/02/18/first-contest/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/02/18/first-contest/#comments Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:01:46 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/02/18/first-contest/

Today I want you to punch up your writing by scrubbing through it and deleting every boring, dull, passive word and replace it with a vibrant, active term.

Need an example? How’s this:

He ran.

Booooring. How’s this?

He ran fast.

Ugh. Even worse. Let’s keep working on it.

He shot out of the car like a bullet.

Eh. Better but not quite there.

What do you think?

Comment on my blog and show me how you would beef up the sentence. The writer who comes up with the most interesting sentence will win an e-book copy of my first novel. Enjoy and have fun.

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/02/18/first-contest/feed/ All About Outlines http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/02/10/all-about-outlines/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/02/10/all-about-outlines/#comments Wed, 10 Feb 2010 20:47:59 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/02/10/all-about-outlines/ A Writing Etc. subscriber e-mailed asking about outlines, how to do ‘em, if you really need one, so I decided to contact the most prolific writer I know, Billie Williams, to see how she handles these little gems. Next thing I knew, we were creating a short podcast on the topic. Enjoy!

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/02/10/all-about-outlines/feed/ Death of the Slush Pile http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/01/20/death-of-the-slush-pile/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/01/20/death-of-the-slush-pile/#comments Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:46:53 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/01/20/death-of-the-slush-pile/ Enjoy!

Just click here to check ‘er out.

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/01/20/death-of-the-slush-pile/feed/ Crunches! http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/01/12/crunches/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/01/12/crunches/#comments Tue, 12 Jan 2010 22:08:55 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/01/12/crunches/ OK. Life is going well, I’m exercising daily.

I pop in a new Wii game called “EA Active, More Exercises.” Yeah. Talk about a lame title, eh?

But, the new workout is anything but lame.

Towards the end, I was supposed to do 20 “crunches.”

No problem. My weight is down. I’ve been exercising daily for months. I plopped to the floor, laid down and prepared for the inevitable.

As the kind lady on TV yelled, “One!” my head lifted from the floor.

Let me repeat: my head. Just my head.

Not my shoulders. Not my back either.

Just the head.

If I recall correctly, isn’t the body, from the waist up, supposed to raise during a crunch?

Dang. My only conclusion is that I’m still horrifically out of shape.

So… I’m still attempting to “crunch,” without much success after two days. :)

I’ll keep at it. But, if you’ve got any tips on how to get those abdominal muscles to work better, I’m all ears.

‘Til next time,

Beth

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2010/01/12/crunches/feed/ Very Good Day. :) http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/12/05/very-good-day/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/12/05/very-good-day/#comments Sat, 05 Dec 2009 20:48:24 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/12/05/very-good-day/ Stepped on the scale today and I’m down over 60 pounds. I also completed my certificate in plant based nutrition from Cornell. Yippee! Feels GOOD.

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/12/05/very-good-day/feed/ E-book Readers http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/12/03/e-book-readers/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/12/03/e-book-readers/#comments Thu, 03 Dec 2009 23:14:55 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/12/03/e-book-readers/ I personally own a Sony, but read this if you’re pondering an e-book reader. Enjoy! :)

http://tinyurl.com/yf2mw2o

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/12/03/e-book-readers/feed/ How to Write a Great Novel http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/11/11/how-to-write-a-great-novel/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/11/11/how-to-write-a-great-novel/#comments Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:01:34 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/11/11/how-to-write-a-great-novel/ Great link:

http://tinyurl.com/yhgrzv6

Enjoy!

Beth :)

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/11/11/how-to-write-a-great-novel/feed/ HA! We figured it out! http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/ha-we-figured-it-out/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/ha-we-figured-it-out/#comments Sun, 04 Oct 2009 04:14:19 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/ha-we-figured-it-out/

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/ha-we-figured-it-out/feed/ I just got back from my evening walk… http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/i-just-got-back-from-my-evening-walk/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/i-just-got-back-from-my-evening-walk/#comments Sun, 04 Oct 2009 03:12:33 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/i-just-got-back-from-my-evening-walk/ And I swear I felt a little snow in the air.

Arugh!

]]> http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/i-just-got-back-from-my-evening-walk/feed/ Video of Anne Frank http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/video-of-anne-frank/ http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/video-of-anne-frank/#comments Sat, 03 Oct 2009 22:57:08 +0000 admin http://blog.bethannerickson.com/2009/10/03/video-of-anne-frank/ According to the YouTube page: “The girl next door is getting married. Anne Frank is leaning out of the window of her house in Amsterdam to get a good look at the bride and groom.”In a word, WOW.Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hvtXuO5GzU

(If anyone knows how to embed an Youtube vid on a blog without messing up the formatting, let me know.)

:)

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