The Many Faces of Murders

Murder can come in many forms. It can be done with a gun, a knife, or poison. The victim can be pushed down the stairs or off a cliff or building. Then, of course, there is drowning or overdose.

The way the murder occurs can determine how your story progresses. The twists and turns of the story are what keep your readers interested. The murder scene is a very important part of your story and must be crafted carefully. I prefer to write my murder scene first and then build the story the rest of the story around it. This does not work for every writer, so the writer should find what works for her/him.

There are several murder types. There is the felony murder, which is committed during a crime such as a robbery or arson. An example of an argument-motivated murder would be a domestic dispute. The unknown motive murder is one that has no clear motive. Mass murders are broken down into two categories:  The family mass murder, which is the killing of four or more members of the same family by another family member; and there is the classic mass murder, which is the killing of flour or more non-family member in a single location at one time. An example of this would be the killer who goes to a university campus and starts shooting everyone and anyone in his pathway.

Unlike mass murderers, serial killers hunt their victims. Each murder they commit is in a different location and over a period of time. The murderer can be male or female and may have a motive or not.

There are sex murderers, pedophiles, cult-related murders, rapists who murder their victims. There are murders committed because of anger, sadism, and because of a desire to have power over their victim. These can often include raping the victim before killing them. Some pedophiles will kill their victims after assaulting them. Not all do.

Then there is organized crime. At one time in the history of organized crime any mobster could kill anyone for any reason. But as this entity became more organized in the 1930's, the contract policy came into being. Basically this was murder for hire. The victim was usually someone within the Syndicate, a rival criminal or someone who was a client of an organized crime family. Then came Murder, Inc. The victim was looked upon as a bum who would not pay his debts and had to be made an example. The modern mobster is better educated and more businesslike, emerging into society La Cosa Nostra.

Interestingly there are women murderers such as the black widows and nurses. Black widows kill husbands, children, relatives, boardinghouse tenants, and employees. Nurses are the angels of mercy or angels of death who kill the ones in their care. Both are considered serial killers. Nowadays, though, these angels of death can come in the form of females or males.

Last but not least are the terrorists. They are the ultimate predator who put terror in the hearts of vicgtims around the world. Their acts are generally performed due to social dissatisfaction, political dissatisfaction, political dissatisfaction, economic deprivation, and personal crises and conflicts.

I'm sure you can add to this list, bu these that I have mentioned here will hopefully give you some ideas for your murder scene. Be innovative and creative and add plenty of suspense. After all, murder should be enjoyed.

Reference: Malicious Intent by Sean Mactire

Faye M. Tollison
Author of: To Tell the Truth
Upcoming books:  The Bible Murders
                             Sarah's Secret
www.fayemtollison.com
www.fmtoll.wordpress.com
www.fayetollison.blogspot.com
Member of: Sisters In Crime
                  Writers on the Move

Logos for Writers

Logos permeate our daily experience and saturate the visual media.

They are known to be the visual synthesis of company’s image and philosophy.

When writers search for a graphic icon that can represent their work, same rule for sophistication and clarity should apply. However, while thinking up the concept of a logo is often easy, executing it properly is an entirely different thing.

In professional terms, logos can be typographical (made up of fonts) or iconic (a stylized graphic).

Even though good logos are easy to spot but hard to make, here are a few competitive points that contribute to a good logo:

• Concept – logo should have one unifying idea or message that is memorable

• Clarity – a logo should convey that message quickly and clearly

• Purpose – a logo should convey that message quickly and clearly to the right niche

 

• Function – a logo should be applicable across all medias (print & web) in color and black-and-white and it should be visible when it’s reduced to a smaller size.

In terms of graphic execution, there are a lot of subtle elements that a graphic designer employs as part of the underlying grammar of a strong logo. Some of them are:

• Effective placement and treatment of space

• Visual flow

• Visual contrast

• Visual hierarchy

• Color and value accent

Attention grabbing logos are often made up of unexpected combinations between literal objects and metaphors.

Here is an exercise that will help you to come up with intriguing visuals on your own.

1/ On a large sheet of paper, make as many columns as there are words in the name of your company. A column for each word.  Fill these columns with nouns, verbs, adjectives and phrases related to each word.

2/ On a separate sheet of paper draw two columns.

In the first column write down the message you want your logo to convey.

Under the second column you will write down objects and items that portray
that message.

Continue filling these two columns with different messages and words (even colors, shapes, feelings) that describe the messages.

After you’ve established a strong set of words for each column for both sheets, it’s time to look for connections within and between them that spark your imagination.

Perhaps you’ll find a combination between two different nouns that add up to an intriguing visual, or maybe an adjective from one column will lead to an eye-catching image when applied to an object from another.

Remember: you are looking for out-of-the-ordinary solutions. Make abundant notes and thumbnail sketches of potential solutions if you need to.

If you find out that there are major discrepancies between your company name and the message you want to convey perhaps you need to rethink that name.

Keep your notes from this exercise and share them with the graphic designer who will be working on your visuals. I would like to stress the point of working with a professional on your logo.

Designers are trained to simplify rather complex ideas graphically and logo art is more about editing and sacrifice than attempting to communicate everything to all people.

I wish you good luck and happy logo brainstorms!

Fani Nicheva is a graphic designer and author who works and lives in Santa Cruz, CA. She has written one design book "Type Talks" and is presently working on her first novel, "Mental Immigrant". You can view her work and writings at:

www.bfsp.net

www.aproposdezign.com

How to Write Anniversary Articles

photograph by Michael Gwyther-Jones  on Flickr under CC licence

Here in England. people everywhere are 
preparing for next weekend's celebrations of 
the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.


For weeks, newspapers and magazines have 
been full of articles on everything from The 
Day I Met the Queen to How to Make Royal 
Icing.


Special days and celebrations are ideal 
subjects for the jobbing writer looking for 
publication online, in newspapers or 
magazines.


Well-targeted anniversary articles are 
excellent too for the short 150 word fillers vital for 
plugging those small page gaps. Fillers are 
always needed and  a good way for new 
writers to break into publication in magazines.


How to Check Out Anniversaries


To check out anniversaries for a 
particular day use Wikipedia with care, 
use a search engine or try newspaper and radio 
websites. Your library may have a copy of 
Chase's Calendar of Events.


The New YorkTimes has an on-this-day feature
And Ottowa Researchers provide a similar service for Canadian birthdays and events. 


What Happened Today?


 In 1819, Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom was 
born  and  Nicolaus Copernicus, the Polish astronomer died on this day in 1643.


In 1930, pioneering pilot Amy Johnson became 
the first woman to fly from England to Australia while in 1962  American astronaut Scott Carpenter orbited the Earth three times in the Aurora 7 space capsule.


It would have made an ideal article for this 
year being a fiftieth anniversary--editors love 
round dates.


They also like quirky and unusual articles. Everyone will be targeting articles on the main stories. But for a writing magazine, you'd be better tackling today as the first publication date of Mary Had a Little Lamb.


How to Find Submission Dates


Obviously check for submission guidelines or request them by email. Remember that many magazines are working as far as six months or more ahead. In other words you might need to submit Christmas dates in May.


And how do you know what the magazine is planning if it's not in the guidelines? Check out the media kit or advertising calendar. It lists the year's planned covers and main focus for each month--useful if the magazine is one which is not visibly open to submissions. Here's an example from the New Hampshire magazine and another from Eating Well.


Footnote
May is also Revise Your Work Schedule month (oh dear, I should be doing that) and if you're looking for a recipe for Royal Icing, here's one from the BBC.




 Anne Duguid is a senior content editor with MuseItUp Publishing and   her New Year's Resolution is to blog with helpful writing,editing and publishing tips at Slow and Steady Writers far more regularly than she managed in 2011.

Writing Retreats

Is there a particular place you like to go to write? It could be a room in your home or somewhere outside.  Perhaps it is in the area you live.  Maybe it’s a distance away, like a vacation destination.

Are there times when you just can’t write for whatever reason? Maybe life was busy (Mine was this month and that’s why this blog post is so short!) and you haven’t had the time or inclination to sit down and write.

I have a special place, it’s a vacation destination, where I can relax and feel inspired.  I can sit by the water or in a park or in an historic inn. I can go for a walk on a trail or through the business district or around residential neighborhoods.

I just returned from a place that I like to visit. I packed my laptop and a tote bag. I filled the bag with some photos I cut out of magazines, a few issues of The Writer magazine, a book that I am reading, and three notebooks. 

I have some other ideas for the next time I do this. I’m going to include some chocolate, perhaps one of my favorite brands of root beer or sparkling grape juice. While on vacation, I purchased a basket that I can use as a travel desk. It’s actually a carrier for casseroles, but I think it would hold writing materials too.

Here is something you can use for inspiration when thinking about a writing retreat. I recently found this website and it’s fun to dream! Check it out! http://www.thecreativewritersworkshop.com/.

Debbie A. Byrne has a B.S. in Mass Communication with a minor in History. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and is currently working on her first children’s book.

PUTTING WORDS DOWN ON PAPER: Random Act Of Kindness - Elysabeth Eldering

I'm featured on Susanne Drazic's blog as part of the Random Act Of Kindness blitz.  This was totally unexpected and very much appreciated - Thanks many times over, Susanne.  Stop by and see what the buzz is all about - E :)

PUTTING WORDS DOWN ON PAPER: Random Act Of Kindness - Elysabeth Eldering: Elysabeth Eldering is one of two people that I chose to honor for the Random Act Of Kindness BLITZ!  If you didn't get a chance to see the ...

How to Select a Writing Journal

 A friend of mine was shopping for a journal. She was debating whether to purchase a school themed notebook or a pretty journal.  My recommendation for writers is to buy both. 

Each August, with the back to school sales, I buy about 20 spiral notebooks.  They are not attractive and are very inexpensive.  They’re great if you do any sort of writing exercises, (e.g.  Julia Cameron’s morning pages).  The cheap price and disposable feel gives me permission to write crap. Fortunately, my inner critic doesn't seem to mind if I write crap in a spiral notebook.   I can write garbage, filled with spelling errors and bad grammar...but it doesn't matter because I write.  Besides, I know that most of what is in these notebooks will never to be seen by anyone but me without major revisions.

I also have some beautiful journals.  Usually, these are on my nightstand.  My special journals give me a completely different feel when I pick them up.  It’s an instant message that something important is about to be written.   I have a floral covered cloth “gratitude” journal.   Its purpose is to remind me of the blessings in my life.  

What does your writing journal look like?  

Is it an old spiral notebook                            or                 is it a beautiful bound book?

                   

It's likely that what it looks like reflects how you approach your writing and what's written inside. 

Happy Writing,

Mary Jo 

Dealing with the First Editor

One of the biggest deterrents to creative writing is the presence of your internal editor. She—or he—loves to interfere with your thought process by pointing out mistakes, typos, missing commas, or errors in your thought process.

"But," you say, "surely this is important? I don't want to produce inferior work."

No, you don't. But the time for editing will come later, once you've finished writing the article or chapter. If you stop to listen to all the suggested corrections of your internal editor, your work will lack creativity and flow and may never get finished.

Sometimes it can be as simple as playing music or wearing headphones. Other times you need to be far more drastic. Acknowledge the presence of your inner editor, then deal with her/him.

Cecil Murphey, in his Writer to Writer blog, is polite when he deals with his inner editor. He admits that he talks aloud. “Be patient," he says. "Let me get on with this. When I finish, I’ll let you rip it apart.”

Karen Swim at Words for Hire banishes her inner critic by "physically kicking her out of the room and locking the door. I have found that acknowledging her presence and ordering her to leave is as effective as it would be on a “real” person. She is only allowed back in when I have written the first draft, and then and only then she gets to have her say."

For me, I admit it all depends on how persistent she is. Sometimes I can be firm. "Go away! I'm busy writing!" And no, I'm not polite like Cec. Other times I do what every parent knows you shouldn't do, and say, "Oh for goodness sake here!" and give in to her.

What about you? How do you deal with this nuisance who tries to correct you as you write? Please share with us by adding a comment below.

SHIRLEY CORDER lives in South Africa with her husband Rob, a hyperactive budgie called Sparky, and an ever expanding family of tropical fish. Hundreds of her inspirational and life-enrichment articles have been published internationally. She is contributing author to nine books to date and her book, Strength Renewed: Meditations for your Journey through Breast Cancer  is available now for pre-order at  Amazon.com or at Barnes & Noble (B&N.com). You can contact Shirley through her writing website, her Rise and Soar site for encouraging those on the cancer journey, or follow her on Twitter.