Birthdays: James Baldwin (1924), Isabel Allende (1942), Beverly Coyle (1946), Holling C Holling (1900)

Tip: There isn’t a formula for writing a blockbuster book and becoming successful, other than writing the best book you can. The rest of it is pretty much luck.

Thought for the day: “The most important lesson in the writing trade is that any manuscript is improved if you cut away the fat.” – Robert Heinlein

Jumpstart: Finish this: It wasn’t the first time I’d been caught (doing what?), but it was the first time I’d…

Birthdays: Herman Melville (1819), Amy Friedman (1952), Madison Smartt Bell (1957)

Tip: This is national eye exam month. A writer’s eyes are almost as important as his imagination. When was the last time you had a good eye exam? If you can’t remember, schedule one.

Thought for the day: “It’s easy to lose the energy that you need for a long piece unless the characters are surprising you and showing you something new every week, or even every month, or every other paragraph – however often it comes.” – Anne McDermott

Jumpstart: August is the only month without any sort of recognized holiday. You have been tasked with creating one. What or who will it honor? Why? Will it be national or international? Will workers get the day off?

Birthdays: Brett Halliday (1904), Primo Levi (1919), Susan Cheever (1943), Steven Womack (1952), J.K. Rowling (1965), Lynne Reid Banks (1929)

Tip: Thinking about your writing career and where it currently is. Are you happy with it and where you’re headed? If not, what can you do to change things? Remember, you can only adjust things you are in control of.

Writers are just about the bravest people I know. Who else would lay their hearts on the line the way we do? Who else would have the determination, the persistence, and the backbone to put up with criticism and rejections, to back the overwhelming odds that face every writer?” – Connie Laux

Jumpstart: You’ve just inherited a piece of land from a relative you never knew about. It turns out to be a junkyard. But one that specializes in a particular type of “junk” – each piece is haunted. What do you do?

Birthdays: Emily Brontë (1818), Archer Mayor (1950), Marcus Pfister (1960)

Tip: Even though it’s difficult or hurts, reading over rejections a second (or third) time can show you where you might have some weaknesses you need to work on. Especially if multiple editors are saying the same thing.

Thought for the day: “All serious writers are interested in experimentation. It is a means by which they honor their craft.” – Joyce Carol Oates

Jumpstart: You’re walking down the street, window shopping, when you hear a scream from an alley up ahead. You have no phone. What if it’s late night and you’re alone? What do you do?

Birthdays: Alexis de Tocqueville (1805), Booth Tarkington (1869), Stanley Kunitz (1905), Chang-rae Lee (1965), Sharon Creech (1945), Kathleen Krull (1952)

Tip: When thinking about marketing, think outside the box. Write a book about a pet shop? Try selling your books there. A hair salon figure in your story? Ask them if they’d sell some books for you. Be creative, but don’t be a pest. If you’ve never gone into a particular bookstore or shop, don’t expect them to be open to selling your books for you.

Thought for the day: “Being a real writer means being able to work on a bad day.” – Norman Mailer

Jumpstart: There was an accident at a science lab you were visiting and you’ve been shifted into a different phase. You can see and hear everyone, but no one can see or hear you. What do you do? Remember, being out of phase with this reality means no food or other comforts for you.

Birthdays: Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844), Beatrix Potter (1866), Malcolm Lowry (1909), John Ashbery (1927), Shirley Ann Grau (1929), Natalie Babbitt (1932)

Tip: If you can get into a good critique group, do so. They are invaluable. Not only will they help you with your writing, but in critiquing their work, you might learn a lot too. Just be aware, it make take several tries to find a good fit for you.

Thought for the day: “A man is not idle because he is absorbed in thought; there is visible labor and there is invisible labor.” – Victor Hugo

Jumpstart: Write up a zodiac profile of your main character. Is she a Leo, or a Scorpio? Or use the Chinese years – was she born in the year of the Dog or the Bull?

Birthdays: Hilaire Belloc (1870), Elizabeth Hardwick (1916) Paul B Janeczko (1945)

Tip: If you get a rejection letter that has suggestions in it, really look at it. The agent or editor took valuable time to write that to you so pay attention. Most rejections are form letters, when they even come. Having an editor respond personally to you is important.

Thought for the day: “Close the door. Write with no one looking over your shoulder. Don’t try to figure out what other people want to hear from you, figure out what you have to say. It’s the one and only thing you have to offer.”  – Barbara Kingsolver

Jumpstart: You’re hosting a dinner for a large group of people—two from each country of the world. What do you serve? What do you talk about? How do you seat them?

Here are the new reviews for this week:

Under Teresa’s Movie/Book Tie-ins:

The Dream 1989 David Suchet Hercule Poirot episode

Murder, She Said (1961) Margaret Rutherford

Under Fantasy: Prelude by CA Oliver – this was a 3 Sparkler for me not because it was bad, but because it is exactly what it said it was – a prelude to the books in the series it goes with. There’s a short story, but mostly lists of characters, lands, etc.

Under Romance:

Orange Cream Dreams and Murderous Schemes by DM Grant – a romantic suspense that got 3 sparklers

Love, Death, and the Art of Cooking by Linda Griffin – another romantic suspense with 3 sparklers

Don’t Mind Me, I Came With the House by CJ Zahner – a 4 sparkler riotous romance with an older (47) heroine

Birthdays: Midge Decter (1927), David Madden (1933), Robert Barrett (1937), Denys James Watkins-Pitchford(BB) (1905), Elias Canetti (1905), Eric Hoffer (1902), Josephine Tey (1896), Melissa Marr (1972)

Tip: Don’t overuse your character names. Once you’ve established the last name of a character, you don’t need to reuse it unless there’s a reason. Plus, in dialogue, it’s not necessary to keep using names. As long as you’ve got tags or action delineating who is speaking, that’s enough.

Thought for the day: “Letters to agents or editors should read like professional business letters. Don’t let your creative self get in the way of professional interactions. Sometimes that means writing replies but SAVING them as drafts for 48 hours so your mood can level. Being a professional writer (or pro artist, singer, etc.) involves switching modes between creative and practical.” – Melissa Marr

Jumpstart: Your character has created a virus that will cure all ills of mankind and extend their lives by at least double—but it means they’d be sterile. Would s/he put it out there? Why or why not? Would s/he use it?

Birthdays: Alexandre Dumas (1802), Zelda Fitzgerald (1900), John D. MacDonald (1916), Banana Yoshimoto (1964), Lord Dunsany (1878), Madeline Miller (1978), Percy FitzPatrick (1862)

Tip: Establish POV (point of view – the person who is telling that part of the story) often. Readers put books down or are reading other things while reading yours. They tend to stop at chapter breaks so be sure to establish POV at the next scene or chapter break.

Thought for the day: “As an author, one of the most important things I think you can do once you’ve written a novel is step back. When the book is out, it belongs to the readers and you can’t stand there breathing over their shoulders.” – Madeline Miller

Jumpstart: Write a scene where you’re a much older—and wiser—version of yourself. What advice would you give your younger self?