Behind The Scenes (11 December 2012)

Posted on December 11, 2012 by pittsburghflashfictiongazette
Woman As Art

Woman As Art

It’s late afternoon in Pittsburgh on an overcast, chilly (39) Autumn day.

I don’t know what is going on in Spain, but this blog has already gotten 339 (out of 887) visits from Spain.  Thank you so much my brothers and sisters in Spain .

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The new story by the talented erotic Australian writer Heather Kinnane is at the top of the page.  It will be there only until Sunday.  Be sure to check it out; and be sure to check out her other three stories and a revealing interview, all of them on the front page.

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English: Cymbeline Villamin is a pioneer of ep...

English: Cymbeline Villamin is a pioneer of epublishing in the Philippines, having edited Infoscience, the first online science magazine in 1996 and the STII science ebooks CD in 2003. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I’m working on a new report on women doing their first online adult videos that has a working title of “Online Adult Videos And The Ritual Of Sex”.

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I think my computer problems are over.  I certainly hope so.  The new (used) monitor is working fine so far.  Keep your fingers crossed.

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That’s all the Old Soldier has for you today.  Keep reading and keep writing that flash fiction.

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The Pittsburgh Flash Fiction Gazette is an online magazine of serious writing and brazen sexuality.  Check the front page for the latest updates.

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Flash Fiction And Dialogue Without Quotation Marks

Posted on August 8, 2012 by pittsburghflashfictiongazette

Woman As Art

Why would a writer write a story that has dialogue in it but not want to use quotation marks?

I’ve written several stories with dialogue that had no quotation marks.  And I have done this because it demands more from me and more from the reader.  I have to make sure that the story (especially the dialogue) is clear.  That there is no confusion.

The reader has to focus more, has to really be in the story for it to work.  And it is this partnership of the writer and the reader that makes the creative process work and more rewarding for the reader and the writer.

Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971 film)

Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971 film) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This is the nature of art.

What is the best way to write dialogue without quotation marks?  Just write the entire story out and use quotation marks when you write the dialogue.  Then after the story is complete, after everything is in place and you are statisfied with your work simply take the quotation marks out.  That’s it!

I recently did a short story in which the dialogue has no quotation marks.  I think it does work.  The story is showcased on the front page.  Check it out before it rotates to the archives.  The story is not for everyone.  It has explicit sex in it; but it is my contention that sex is a valid subject for a serious writer.  It always has been and it always will be.

The story is “Barbara’s Adult Video.”

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Hello hello hello, all my fans from all over the world.  Here’s a special shout-out to all my fans in Spain.

Facsimile of Edgar Allan Poe's original manusc...

Facsimile of Edgar Allan Poe’s original manuscript for “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”, from the Susan Jaffe Tane collection, Cornell University. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Well, if you are a writer you have to read the masters.  I’m still reading Poe: Poetry and Tales; but I have to call the public library for an automated phone renewal.  I’m right in the middle of “The Murders In The Rue Morgue.”

A serious writer has to read the masters.  There is no way around it.  Invest in your own talent.

Keep reading and keep writing that flash fiction.

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The Pittsburgh Flash Fiction Gazette is an online magazine of creative ideas, serious writing and brazen sexuality.

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Read.  Study.  Write.  Submit.  Get Paid.  Follow Or Subscribe Today.

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Flash Fiction Writers, Open The Eyes Of Your Readers

Posted on July 12, 2012 by pittsburghflashfictiongazette

 

Woman As Art

Seeing is believing.  It’s true in life and it’s true in flash fiction.  The writer who can use words in such a way that his or her readers can vividly see what is going on in the story has an enviable talent for a special kind of writing.  That writing is known as “show don’t tell” writing.

How does “show don’t tell” writing work?

The writer uses a steady stream of specific, concrete visual details.  These can be actions or things that we can detect with our sense of sight.

In this way the reader actually “sees” the story on the little movie screen of his or her imagination.

You can’t beat that with a stick!

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Interior view, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh,...

Interior view, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, 4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I never did make it to the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh yesterday; but I have to go today to return a book that is due.  I don’t want to pay a penny for an over due book.  That money is better in my pocket than it is in the pocket of the public library.

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Speaking of money, the Old Soldier watched the financial news yesterday on television.  I’ve always been working-class and now that I’m retired I’ve become a financial news junkie.  And for good reason.

The Euro zone is going to give the banking system of Spain a bailout; but the unemployment rate there is already around 24%.  In my humble opinion, no austerity program will work without some economic growth.  The United States faces the same challenge.

English: image edited to hide card's owner nam...

English: image edited to hide card’s owner name. author: Arturo Portilla (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I recently got a letter from the Social Security Administration saying that the State of Pennsylvania was no longer going to help to pay my Medicare medical insurance.  The money will now come out of my Social Security.

Ouch!

No doubt a lot of other retirees in Pennsylvania got the same letter.  Now do you see why we all have to pay more attention to the news that affects our money?

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International Banks Caught Manipulating Interest Rates

Interest Rates

Interest Rates (Photo credit: 401(K) 2012)

And now several major international banks are being investigated for illegally setting interest rates, making billions of dollars in profits for themselves while costing their customers billions of dollars in loses.

There are still plenty of reasons why middle-class and working-class people all over the world need the Occupy Movement.

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The Pittsburgh Flash Fiction Gazette is an online magazine of ideas, serious writing and brazen sexuality.

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Read.  Study.  Write.  Submit.  Follow.

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