Jerry Cleaver in his book, Immediate Fiction, said, “It’s not just about giving the reader an experience. It’s about having it yourself, as you create. Character, reader, author—they’re all having the experience, the emotion. Without emotion, nobody’s having anything.” Cleaver also said, “The first thing to realize is that the world is emotionally determined. Passion, […]
Rhetorical Device Polysyndeton
The rhetorical device, polysyndeton, is the opposite of asyndeton, the term I explained in my last post. Asyndeton omits conjunctions between words, phrases, or clauses. Polysyndeton adds several conjunctions in close succession between each word, phrase, or clause without commas. It makes the sentence slower and the items more emphatic than in asyndeton. The repetition […]
Asyndeton, a Rhetorical Device
Rhetorical Devices attract and hold attention with words. Asyndeton is one in which conjunctions are omitted deliberately from a series. Julius Caesar eliminated “and” when he said, “I came. I saw. I conquered.” Asyndeton produces a hurried rhythm in a sentence. It creates a concise, dramatic effect. Abraham Lincoln used asyndeton when he said, “of […]
Writer Interview with Jan Davies
Jan Davies has a short story, “Saving Sheena”, and a memoir essay, “A February Christmas” in my anthology, Written Across the Genres (available on Amazon). Jan is an independent business lady, President of the WiMe Group, Inc., who has always loved to write; poetry, journals, short and long stories and memoir. Her passions are family, […]
National Reading Group Month Event Saturday in S.F.
National Reading Group Month event called Mysteries at Opera Plaza! TheThrill of Shared Reading. October 11, 2014, Saturday, 2:00 to 4:00. Books, Inc., Opera Plaza, 601 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco. Come meet this year’s award-winning mystery authors as they discuss their new novels over wine and hors d’oeuvres catered by Max’s Opera Cafe. Free […]
Story Prompt for Writers
October is a perfect month for paranormal stories. Here’s a prompt, but if you don’t care to write what I call a “creepy” one, I collected a few images that could inspire any kind of story. I know a few humor writers who might come up with a laughable yarn. Let me know if you […]
Six Mark Twain Quotes
The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug. What a good thing Adam had. When he said a good thing he knew nobody had said it before. The right word may be effective, but no word was ever as effective as a rightly […]