http://www.susant-creations.com From my mind to yours - my books, on writing, on creativity! Sat, 26 Jun 2010 02:49:24 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en We all know how important the first page of any piece of writing is. The first page must contain a strong opening, establish the setting, foster an emotional investment in the characters, use language creatively, set up a problem or conflict (tension), be organized and flow smoothly, and contain a ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2009/11/09/endings-and-beginnings/ Just in the last two weeks, I've received good news on the writing front. Perseverance, rewriting, workshops and critique groups make a major difference in any writer's output. The time it takes to "tweak" and polish pays off in big ways. In the SLO NIghtWriters Short Story Contest, two of my ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2009/10/12/when-it-rains/ We have come to another season of change in our lives, an ending that leaves a huge hole. A hole that will need to be filled somehow. For so many years Shirely has been a mainstay for us, the anchor that kept us strong even as she began losing strength ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2009/10/01/a-final-goodbye/ Being Shirley Tuttle's daughter has been hard work because, as I tell people only slightly in jest, she is a tough act to follow. She was loving, sweet, nurturing, generous to a fault, totally down-to-earth, empathetic, always putting other people's needs before her own - yeah, I know you're blushing ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2009/09/30/eulogy-for-shirley-rita-young-tuttle/ I'VE GONE HOME (words and music by Susan Tuttle) I am a child of hope and peace, Part of the Master Plan. I was sent to earth to learn to love, And to share my heart and hand. Now I've gone home, I've gone home, Let the trumpet sound, call the victory, For God was waiting there for ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2009/09/30/funeral-song-written-for-my-mother/ It has always been my belief and contention that writers have an obligation not only to entertain readers, but also to educate them. That premise is obvious in non-fiction, which by its very nature is based on facts, most of which are not known to the reading audience—else why bother ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2009/09/23/words-and-writing/ An act of faith. When we step out into any arena, no matter how familiar or uncomfortable, we commit an act of faith. When I moved out here to California, it was a spur-of-the-moment decision. I’ve never been an especially brave person, but somehow packing up my possessions, hopping in the ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2009/09/07/an-act-of-faith/ Here I go again, talking about change. I guess that’s because it’s such a constant in my life right now. Everywhere I turn, I’m faced with change of some sort: the economy has cut my work hours drastically; my church is re-organizing its service groups, just when I’ve gotten comfortable ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2009/02/05/paring-down-in-life-and-words/ I wrote Destiny for the 2005 SLO NightWriters Short Fiction Contest. Every story has to begin with the same opening line. That year’s opener was, “Keening, high-pitched, the sound grows in intensity…” The challenge was to build a tale that incorporated the opener into a seamless beginning, middle, end story ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2008/12/04/destiny/ This little piece took first place in the Lillian Dean First Page Competition for Short Story Category in 2007 at the Central Coast Writer's Conference. This competition judges literary works on the merits of its first 250 words only. I wrote the story originally for the SLO NightWriters Annual Short ... http://www.susant-creations.com/2008/12/04/rudleys-rage/