Junction Books

Anyone who has ever written a story will tell you it isn’t the story itself that is the challenging part – it’s selling that story. You have to sell both yourself and your story to an agent and that’s only step 1 – the agent must then sell your story to the publisher. Sure, you can try to go straight to the publisher but you better know what you’re doing because it doesn’t matter if your book is about spaceships, wizards, technology or credit card debt settlement – if your pitch isn’t solid they won’t even look at your manuscript.

That’s where it pays to know a little something about the industry and what it takes to sell yourself as well as your manuscript. You need to be able to sum up your work both briefly and completely and, more importantly, you need to be able to convince whoever you’re trying to sell to that it is in their best interest to pick up this story. It can be a tricky business and it is most certainly not for the faint of heart because the other element that comes into play as far as this goes is persistence. You must be willing to weather scores of rejections for that one faint glimmer of hope in the form of acceptance. If you can handle that, if you are prepared for that, then you may have what it takes to be published.

When synonyms escape you and there’s no thesaurus in sight, it can be very difficult. In order to make your writing more interesting, you must use a variety of adjectives otherwise your writing can become stale. The fact that no thesaurus is in sight can be quite the dilemma.

It is very important to use your imagination in these moments. Sometimes, when you can’t think of a synonym for a word, it helps to think of other words you know. By trying to find synonyms for these other words, you are exercising Read the rest of this entry »

If you are a budding writer of poetry or prose, you undoubtedly make use of metaphors in your writing. To use metaphors as effectively as possible, try these five exercises!

- Compile lists of similar metaphors. Think of as many different metaphors as you can, and write them down. Put them into categories based on their style, where they should be used, or any other relevant criteria.

- Be aware of metaphors in everything you read. Take note of how they are used, and keep track of instances where they could have been used more effectively.

- Learn the origins Read the rest of this entry »

For authors just coming onto the writting scene, whether you are writting a series of poetry books or pieces, a memoir about your life, and autobiography describing past experiences, or any other piece of literature chronicaling a special event in your life, writting something authentic and something which is near and dear to you, is a great way to connect with your audience base. If you write about personal experiences in your life, it will really draw your reader in, especially if it is something that Read the rest of this entry »

There are two definitions of the word ‘static’. The first is when used as an adjective wherein your usage is in reference to no motion or being fixed or stationary. The second is when used as a noun. It would be when it is unwanted noise, background interference and perhaps criticism and or anger. The second is the one we are discussing here. If you were attempting to create a poem or perhaps write a story, ‘static’ Read the rest of this entry »

Matsuo Basho is renowned worldwide as the ruler of the Haiku. While the haiku originated before Basho and was beginning to spread across Japan, Basho gave the poetic medium a heightened prominence and respect. Basho’s haikus are composed mostly out of his personal experience. He was known largely for his style, which was simplistic yet full of a deep wisdom.
Basho was never comfortable with his poetic fame, and he departed on many journeys in his search for a fuller understanding of his purpose and his unhappiness. Ultimately, Basho is a poet celebrated for Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever read a poem, http://www.poets.org that sounded so beautiful and so musical at the same time. You may be wondering how a poem can sound so melodious without a musical accompaniment. The trick here is that the poet used what is called ‘poetic rhythm.’

When a poet uses ‘poetic rhythm,’ the poet is carefully choosing both the correct word and the correct usage of said word in a poem. This is similar to a musician writing music. A Read the rest of this entry »

Black Mountain College was a grand experiment. Founded in 1933 by former faculty members of Florida’s Rollins College, the institution was named for its locationBlack Mountain, North Carolina. The purpose of the school was to apply John Dewey’s principles of education to real life and to situate art as the centerpiece and foundation of a liberal arts education. Architect Buckminster Fuller taught at the college, as did dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham and composer John Cage. Poetry also owes a heavy debt to the college, thanks to the efforts of a group known appropriately as the Black Mountain poets.Poet Charles Olson, who coined the idea “postmodern” in 1949, was an important leader of the group, thanks to the publication of his 1950 essay Projective Verse. This piece called for a new type of poetry that replaced classic forms with an improvised structure that reflected the content of the poem. Each line should exist of “a unit of breath and of utterance.” The other Black Mountain poets took this essay as their manifesto. Among their number were Larry Eigner, Robert Duncan, Ed Dorn, Paul Blackburn, Hilda Morley, Denise Levertov, Joel Oppenheimer, Robert Creeley, and Jonathan Williams. Read the rest of this entry »

Nothing is better than discovering a new favorite poet. Well, some people might disagree, but probably not the readers of this site. One of the best ways to explore a variety of poets is through a poetry anthology. Their higher prices belie their true value: offering you tantalizing tastes of fresh new voices and ideas. Here are a few of our recent favorites.Poems for the Millenium Vol. 3: The University of California Book of Romantic & Postromantic Poetry, ed. Jeffrey Robinson & Jerome Rothenburg, 80: For editors Jeffrey Robinson and Jerome Rothenberg, romanticism in poetry is defined as “experimental and visionary.” The poetry in this collection stems from different eras of the twentieth century and offers numerous experiments with form, sound, and imagery from both expected (Samuel Beckett, James Joyce) and unexpected (John Cage, Nathaniel Mackey). Read the rest of this entry »

WinnerVersed by Rae Armantrout: Armantrout has been a part of the West Coast poetry scene for over 40 years (she graduated from UC-Berkeley in 1970, and one can assume that her interest started before that). Her work combines postmodern language poetry with a strong local eye. In Versed, her fourth book from Wesleyan University Press and her first to win a Pulitzer, she uses disparate images of Anna Nicole and kidney cancer to create a well-rounded and fascinating book.Read Online: “Scumble,” “Unbidden” (Poets.org) Read the rest of this entry »