 Creative writers come in all shapes and sizes. That is to say they have many different styles with which they ply their craft. There is the hard boiled writer, the visionary, the sentimentalist, the recorder or record keeper, the transporter, who takes us to an imagined time and era, the celebrator and of course, the enlightener. Each method has its limitations as well as its advantages. And, each method generally attracts a certain type of fan. Each niche, hails their leaders as being, the best of the best. Naturally the student will come to wonder what makes these writers so good and are there any defining, traits that all great writers share? Can the traits be learned or do you have to be born with the gift? Great writers have the same traits as great businessmen, great athletes, great public speakers, great musicians and just about anyone else who is considered great at what they do. They usually have a deep love for their chosen craft that is akin to addiction level. They enhance whatever natural talents they are born with by studying their craft to gain more knowledge. They rehearse and practice vigorously with the goal not of achieving perfection but for the pleasure and satisfaction it brings them from knowing they have done the very best they can. They work hard and are determined to meet their goals as well as willing to make the necessary sacrifices that go hand in hand with success. They are persistent to the fault of sheer stubbornness. They believe in themself, have a mission and can sustain momentum. They are not afraid to experiment or fail and they become great by trial and error. In writing, the defining skill that must be developed is the ability to communicate. Great writers can connect to every type, creed, race, social class and gender. They don’t necessarily need to be the best persuaders since they aren’t running for political office or trying to win a popularity contest. But, they must be able to inform. They all have the uncanny ability, some naturally, others keenly developed by hard, determined study and practice, to make every word and phrase they sign their names to, appear first and foremost completely honest and forth right. Next, they work on how relevant and entertaining their message is. Certainly, some great writers seem to specialize in one particular arena of literature or writing niche, for their own personal and professional, even spiritual reasons but that should not suggest that they couldn’t deliver the goods in other forums. They don’t ever talk down to their audience; in fact, they usually come across as being very respectful and even humble. There is no need to sugar coat, really good or really bad news. A great writer understands the truth is the only thing worth writing or reading about. They all realize that to gain trust and to expect readers, whom they will probably never, ever meet in person, to pay attention to anything they have to say they have to trust readers enough to open up to them. Surely it is important to present something of value too. But first, you must establish a true relationship with your reader. The great writers make us sit up and take notice as we wonder, “Who is this person who is willing to show me, as well as expose himself to thousands of others, his deepest wounds, share his utmost fears and discuss his dreams and visions?” Great writers make every paragraph seem personal. They are more often soft spoken than garish, as if they are in the room with you, sitting on the end of your sofa, having a casual talk while sipping tea, instead of you reading the words they may have scribbled over a hundred and fifty years ago. Sure it’s important to for a writer to develop the gift of clear, articulation and hone one’s skills of grammar and diction, while mastering the beauty of word choice. But, that is not what endears us to one writer over another. Nor is it our admiration for a great imagination that commands our loyalty. Great writers, teach, encourage, inspire, motivate, reassure and calm us, through respect. They acknowledge, celebrate, and exude enthusiasm with integrity and the utmost of human kindness. They command our confidence and gain our trust and we adore them because their true underlying agenda and reason that propels them to write is so very apparent. The great writers write, not for personal recognition or to acquire wealth but to serve. For them, it is all about us. They are selflessly sacrificing their time on earth, pursuing a life’s work that has nothing to do with self-gratification and everything to do with us. |
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 Every modern society feels they are the most unique, advanced, group of human beings to ever walk the planet. History be damned! In our times we’ve marched ahead in many different areas; Science, medicine, mathematics, human rights, weapons. But, Is there any real literature being produced now-a-days? Who are the Shakespeare/s of our time? What works have our authors produced that people will still be reading and studying three hundred years from now? Who is creating the new literary styles; using words and writing in never before fashions, to take us places no one has ever ventured? The real objective of literature is to enlighten the audience to see aspects of themselves they were not before totally conscience of. Through metaphor and symbolism we shed light into the darkness hoping to get a glimpse of the unknown. Through art and drama, we try to make some sense out of the unexplainable. And through it all we attempt to gain a better understanding of ourselves as individuals in our quest to decode the meaning of life and man’s role in all of it.
Of course it is hard to predict now, what word art will stand the test of time, to become a masterpiece, earning the right to wear the badge of real, true literature. I’m sure most of you shall agree, reality TV shows will not go down as our culture’s legacy and yet the low budget series are quiet popular and have created many a successful celebrity as well as made many people quite rich. So, what constitutes a piece of real literature? Does it need to be an antique? Can someone sit down today and start typing up, a ten to fifteen page, short piece, of real literature; finishing it, proof read it then send it off to the presses by next Thursday? And if so, who will decide? Who has the guts to declare, “Now, that’s, a piece of true literature!” Do the words ‘New York Times Best Seller’ carry the same clout of decades ago? And, is being a best seller, one of the prerequisites of being knighted, ‘Literature’. Every age is its own worst critic. We enjoy the artists of our time. We support their gumption, laugh with them at their irony, cry with them through their pain. For our poets, painters, lyricists, authors are our voice! Our great artists make statements and take stands, which become our statements and our stands. A good song can outs a king. A play can bring attention to a wrong. Heck, we are relying on our artists more than anyone else to assure that our generation is remembered and remembered well. But, the majority of any art created in any age, is mostly commercialized art. The modern field of writing, for sure, is dominated by commercialists. With time, can some of the works which started out as commercialized writing transcend into being recognized as something more; perhaps real literature? Is real true literature always snooty and uptight? Does it always have to teach us a lesson? Must there be a moral to the story for scholars to agree that prose is worthy prose? Must poetry enlighten or can its rhyme and rhythm simply be soothing to the ear? Can written dialog be simply entertaining conflict and jokes, humorous for no other purpose except to make us laugh? Commercial writing is relevant! In today’s society, everyone writes to make money. An artist can’t avoid the so called trappings of notoriety; money and fame or be immune to the lure of the all mighty dollar. There is good commercial writing being created all the time that has the potential to rise above its peers, to touch society in a way that propels it to instant literary status. Every type, genre and category of writing has its good examples, bad examples and so-so examples of the craft. Quality of craftsmanship is what ultimately designates a writing piece to the level of literature. Nothing else really matters; popularity, depth, professionalism, technicality, sophistication, word length, none of these trump writing skill. I personally have always believed that any form of diction has the same chance or right to be judged literature; from a line of graffiti, spray painted on the side of a falling down building, to a rallying phrase hand painted on the side of a tank, to a medieval sonnet, to religious hieroglyphics painted inside a cave. I believe advertisements can be deemed literature, if worthy. I believe letters, diaries, journals of both famous and lay people can be quite literary. News articles, magazine interviews when handled properly, all have potential to be stamped literature. I also believe there is far more junk being written today than literature. But, that is not meant to sound condescending or portray any disappointed with today’s writers, especially today’s creative writers. For I’m sure this has been the plight of every generation. People write for many reasons. Some of the creations stand out as being special. These special works we deem literature. They are chosen sometimes by professors teaching at renowned institutes of higher education or by authority committees or because the general public has embraced them making them so popular that the Professors and authorities can’t ignore them. They all have one thing in common; many people agree there is value in sharing these particular works with the next generation. It’s up to the next generation to decide whether the same pieces will continue to hold enough merit that they should be passed down again and again, dissected and studied by generations to come. Can a writer sit down this morning to write a piece of literature? I would hope every time any writer sits down to press pen to paper he/she is inspired to write something prolific. Yet, I’m sure most of the writings we put on a pedestal were not begun by their authors with the intention of someday being required reading at Yale University. Creative writers write because nothing else in this world will satisfy us like creating something of un-measurable value out of nothing, simply by arranging words on what was moments ago a blank piece of paper. Writers know they are the ultimate artists, who if they wish, can create all the other art forms; paintings, photographs, sculptures. Through our words, we can bring the experience of a live Beethoven concert to people miles away, over and over again for years to come. Writers can allow you to view and experience the mystery of the Mona Lisa’s smirk, at your convenience, while relaxing on your sofa, in your robe and slippers. Creative writing is man’s miracle and man’s blessing. Therefore, all creative writing is literature. Some creative writing is obviously just better literature.  I wish I could say that the internet has brought about great advances in the fields of writing and literature. Or, report that the new electronic mediums; Kindles, Blackberries, I-pads, I-phones as a whole were opening doors of creative opportunity and that new e-writing mediums could be credited with producing great works of creative composition that couldn’t or wouldn’t have been hatched via any other mediums. But, I must be honest. The general public has decided to accept a lower standard of quality when it comes to accessing the text they encounter when surfing the web. This attitude towards accepting subpar written work online encourages more subpar written work to be published and thus the online mediums have begun to gain the reputation for posting amateurish text, both fictional and nonfictional and the e-authors of every genre suffer.
I’d like to equate how the public perceives e-writing compared to traditional writing in the same matter in which the public thinks of the lavish Broadway theatrical productions when comparing them to Off Broadway productions. Most critics and followers of the stage would agree comparing Off Broadway Theater to Broadway Stage is like comparing apples with oranges or maybe with grapes. Certainly there has been some terrific off Broadway shows performed in the basement theaters of SoHo and Greenwich Village throughout the years, thoroughly enjoyed by audiences sitting on fold up chairs while bundling their winter coats tight around their necks to fend off the cold due to the fact that the heater was broken. The successful shows are usually extremely creative and entertaining but they cannot be put into the same category as a fully orchestrated play put on by the top; actors, dancers singers, musicians, conductors, choreographers and producers in the world. The grandeur the Broadway Theaters themselves add to the whole experience of going to see a Broadway production cannot be overlooked. There are things one can only achieve consistently when you are allowed access to an almost unlimited budget. True, it can be said that true art does not need all the ambience of balconies, velvet curtains, velour seat cushions, ushers wearing suits and bow ties and top of the line stage lighting nor lavish scenery, the best props nor the best costume designers to still be able to come alive. Some may even say the glamour of the Broadway theaters are a distraction from the true art and all the extra hoopla detracts from the performances. Still, if the public perceives Off Broadway to be the place where artsy, low budgeted, experimental theater is being performed then it is probably a good idea not to attempt to change that perception by spending a ton of money and trying to compete with lavish Broadway productions. Better to conform, go with the flow and give the many fans of Off Broadway Theater what they’ve come to expect, fresh, innovative entertainment. And, Off Broadway feeds their fan base with ground breaking creativity performed by newly discovered talent. The audiences expect the performances to be edgy, the producers, writers, actors and managers to take risks, some of which, will pay off and some of which won’t. It’s all part of the Off Broadway experience. But, if you were hoping to see a rendition of ‘phantom of the opera’ for half the ticket price, that ship has sailed. Off Broadway Theater is generally thought of as the training grounds for young, up and coming actors, choreographers, producers, writers, singers, musicians, stagehands and every other job position relating to theater. In the same way writing for the internet is thought of as a way for young inexperienced and new writers to begin to make a name for themselves in their preferred writing niche. But is e-writing merely a stepping stone for young authors to gain experience and prepare themselves for moving into the big leagues of land publishing; print magazines, newspapers, traditional book publishing and other static publishing venues? If the pay scale for e-writers and e-writing compared to the pay being collected by off line writers, writing the same types of text, is any indication then the answer is yes. At present, E-writers, on average don’t even come close to earning the same pay as established offline writers. But similar to Off Broadway, e-writers are producing some of the most innovative, entertaining creative writing ever. Maybe that’s a clue as to why e-readers and e-audiences are so permissive and willing to overlook the overall poor quality of the writing found on the net. Maybe, it is the price we are willing to pay or have to pay, in order to be able to find the delightful gems of writing we stumble upon when we’re online and just clicking around. E-writers are bending genres, creating genres, fearlessly crossing boundaries and re-visiting and re-writing the rules of literature every day. It’s a truly exciting time on the internet, a time of permissiveness, where experimentation is looked upon with awe, even when it falls short of hitting its mark. For the very first time in all of history, people anywhere in the world can write whatever they want with virtually zero fear of being censored. Global freedom of speech, a truly remarkable feat can be attributed to the development of the internet, progress and e-culture. This atmosphere will ultimately lead to more and more literacy throughout the world. The technology is already delivering a wealth of knowledge, news and culture to and from remote corners of the globe. By allowing the masses to have access to all kinds of information at a click that before was only privy to the affluent, the learned and the privileged few, we level the playing field. The quality of writing and literature in all its forms can only improve. My advice is to keep an eye on the internet e-writers. Yes, there is no denying there is a lot of drivel being published online. But, there are a lot of oysters in the ocean and we don’t condemn all oysters because most never produce a pearl. Instead we are thankful for and cherish the few special oysters who do.  As the computer age matures, the business community, driven by advances in digital technology, stretches it’s limbs towards more and more facets of our society that have been traditionally taboo. In the past, the artist and businessman have always been at odds with one another. Certainly, businessmen throughout the ages have been known to exploit artists, in pursuit of the almighty dollar. The starving young artist cliché is universally recognized in every society on our planet as is the true artist’s disdain for the conventions of society manifested by the notably recurring angry young man persona among others; quirky genius, artistic loaner etc. Now, more than ever, machines are making serious strides towards leveling the playing field between the talented artist and the lay person who knows how to push the buttons on a computer key board.
Photography was digitally conquered first with camera phones bringing the art form to the masses. It no longer matters how good your original photos are, with the advancements in editing, the image can be cropped, enlarged, digitally enhanced and photo shopped until it looks as good as if an expert snapped the picture. “Well, at least there’s still hand painting, sketching and drawing.” You say. After all, a computer can’t paint the scene, at a country lake. Wrong! Computers are now able to crank out 1000’s of variations of lake scenes, including some in country folk style, all painted with real artist paints on canvas that is undetectable to the average eye. Some of the down home scenes would make Norman Rockwell blush. And, the public is buying them up. For some, the question no longer seems to be whether the writing field will one day succumb to this same fate but rather how and when will human created text be made obsolete. The march towards Rome began with the text editors, spell checkers, dictionary and thesaurus software all designed to aid authors, poets and creative scribes with speeding up their craft and help with putting out better works of art. After a few years of globalization, the internet virtually made having a natural knack for researching, practically a mute-point. With a click of a curser, the word smith has at his disposal thousands of articles, blurbs and opinions about almost any subject. Recent computer software advances allow the lay person to spin the words from other people’s articles and related facts on a topic, sort of like dropping the articles into a blender, blending them up then creating 100to 200 variations out of the few originals. At the time of this report these spun articles usually need some editing and a lot of grammar, punctuation, spelling and language corrections, before they’re ready to be published for the public to read. But, a huge amount of the writers work is done and generally a non-skilled writer versed in basic grammar can spruce the spun articles into an adequate enough of a finished product to publish without having to pay a more expensive accomplished writing pro. Originally, the invention of the World Wide Web was expected to increase dramatically the demand for good authors, in order to satisfy the needs of an ever increasing number of websites. Due to the fact that the digital world’s very essence revolves around innovation and invention, the digital world community has developed a knack of becoming very self-reliant. Traditionally, when the internet needs something to make it run more efficiently, the internet community doesn’t wait for outsiders to present them with a solution. The internet community goes out and solves their problems. Google and other website directories play an important role in the success of any website or virtually all online endeavors. These directories have always, in the past, given text the most power and upmost role when it comes to deciding the factors of who ranks first in their directories. This status of importance assigned to text and the written word, would deceive one into presuming that the creative writer’s role in the evolution of the age of digital intelligence was assured. But, that was mainly because the directories, up to now, had no way to read and value the contributions graphics, photo images, sketches, audio and video feeds were lending to the equation. Now the technology has been developed allowing pictures, audio and images of all kinds to be evaluated when determining a website’s relevance and thus its rank. The role of the pro-writer has been further threatened by all the advances being made in digitally automated text writing, which has truly eclipsed everyone’s earlier visions of editing, grammar, spelling correction, dictionary and thesaurus aid which had originally been designed to assist the writer. Now the age of invention is attempting what most of us, a few years ago, would have deemed impossible; taking over the creative writers’ jobs. Can computer software automate creative writing? Will writers, author’s and poets soon become obsolete? There is already mystery, romance and sci-fi plot manufacturing software that claims it can rival the great Agatha Christie, Isaac Asimov and yes, even William Shakespeare. How close are we really to automating creative writing? How will this effect man’s interpretation of himself as a whole? As always, blog us and let us know how you feel about this interesting turn of events? Or anything else that has to do with writing, art or photography.  Recently, a lot of attention about the web has been focused on the issues of copy rights and plagiarism. Pinterest a popular, relatively new, social media website has been under attack for its format. Pinterest allows its members to copy any photos off any website on the net then re-post (or as they call it, pin) the photos to a like board of other website photos in a similar category to share with social media. The problem is, any photographers work is up for grabs and the Pinterest members don’t ask the original photographers or the websites for permission to use the art work and the artists don’t get paid.
The internet is a global medium utilized by both the public and business entities therefore the lines drawn by law sometimes get blurred. Businesses usually abide by their own sets of laws different and unique from the laws governing the general public and individuals. Ask any celebrity or public official and they’ll tell you, once something’s out there on the web there’s no controlling it. Sometimes publicity, wanted or unwanted, spirals out of control. A lot of people feel the internet as a whole is one big moral, ethical and legal question mark. “The internet is what it is,” Is the general attitude. “And, there are no clear cut rules of etiquette.” If you try to impose rules, a lot of people believe, you are just asking for the internet culture, full with hackers, mysterious gurus and e-geeks to revolt and purposely resist any and all restrictions. But, what if you are painstakingly taking photos that keep circulating around the web, popping up all over the place and everyone is enjoying your work for free! Don’t you deserve some green for your efforts? Don’t you deserve some say as to where and how your art is displayed, especially if no one’s paying you to display it? Yes, I’ve heard of starving artists but hey isn’t this super highway robbery? On anewtale.com we publish photographers’ works that complement our creative writing, short stories, song lyrics and poetry. Most of our photographers have said sure we’d like to get a few bucks every time our work appears reproduced somewhere, we never authorized. But, that’s a losing battle. We’ve learned to accept the extra, sometimes viral publicity social networks are capable of as payment in kind. “The right photo released at the right time can turn an unknown photographer into a house hold name.” Explains Ralph Masselutto, a freelance photographer whose works have appeared on anewtale.com’s site. “Most photographers, like most artists, dream of being discovered. Social networks make that dream possible and easier to achieve than ever in history.” What do you feel? Should social media sites like Pinterest have to pay royalties to photographers whose works they allow their members to pin (post) to their like boards? Should members have to get permission from the websites and photographers before they copy a photo from a website and pin or post it? What if there is damage to a photographer’s reputation because of photos pinned on Pinterest then shared on Facebook, then reposted from one social media website to another until they’re plastered all over the web? Who should be held responsible? Let us know your opinion by leaving a comment. Blog! Blog! Blog! As always we welcome any comments about fiction, creative writing, literature, song writing, lyrics, rhyming poetry and photography on our blog. Feel free to start a discussion. Thanks, Editor Writing a story, how to write a poem, becoming a story writer, writing fiction & song lyrics.7/26/2012  Hello, lyricist, writers, e-readers, poets and everyone who loves free poems, short stories on line and creative writing in general.
Since we started anewtale.com a lot of our readers have been expressing their desires to enter the creative writing field themselves. Our mysteries, westerns, song lyrics and poems seem to inspire our readers imaginations catapulting them to want to create fiction & write poems and music lyrics too. A large percent of our members at Anewtale are writers and poets. Story writers and poets to be, as well as seasoned e-writers and established poets and lyricist masters have been asking us for some sound advice articles on writing fiction, poems and music lyrics as well as for tips on writing a story in general. Always wishing to aid and encourage an up and coming story writer, we’ve decided the best way to really help would be to ask some of our more successful authors and poets who have struggled themselves with writing a story, writing fiction and music lyrics to respond. In the near future, scattered around the website, you’ll begin to see a few articles on how to write stories, literary essays on creative writing, tips on writing fiction, basics of how to write a story, as well as advice and suggestions for making it as a poet or an e story writer. We’re also adding a section called Articles, dedicated to helping all you struggling fiction authors, want to be poets and the aspiring new music lyricist. So, story writer, lyricist, poet want to be, we’ll be relying on you blogging us to let us know if our experts’ advice is helpful. As always, keep letting us know what you like to read and we’ll keep trying to publish rhyming poems, free poems, creative writing, literary short stories and now, advice for the new story writer and song lyricist of the future. Please, blog, blog, blog….  Anewtale’s best music lyrics results are in! The complete song lyrics, from the top three authors can be found on the bottom of our home page. If you haven’t read them already you’re in for a real treat! This season, you voted for your favorite lyrics and I couldn’t agree more with your picks. Three different song lyric styles took 1st – 3rd place. Third runner up, Crack by Abraham Newton is a haunting ditty about drug addiction and the author’s desperate struggle to try to kick the habit. One can really feel the author’s pain as he battles to get his old life back.
Second runner up, Don’t call me, I’ll call you by Shana Lee, I could see going country song, rock lyric, or contemporary music lyric. It’s a fun, flowing, very adaptable rhyme about the age old misunderstandings between male and females concerning dating and breaking up protocol. Anewtale’s First Place Music Lyric award went to Ira Epson for his song lyrics; My ship came in. Cute, easy going and fun, fun, fun…Describes this simple song lyric. The author re-lives the day he won the local lottery. You’re practically transported to the bar where the author buys rounds for everybody, even people he’s not particularly fond of, as he enjoys spreading the wealth due to his good fortune. All three of this season’s Lyric winners have the craftsmanship to be almost universal as to the genres of music lyrics they can be adapted to. They could all sound great as rock songs, country lyrics, top 40 style, contemporary or even on stage. Musicians remember, all the lyrics and poems published on anewtale are fresh and new. So if you see a music lyric or song lyric you’d like to produce, drop us an e’mail we’ll be happy to work out the details between you and our author. Once again, let us know what you like? How are we doing? What do you want to see more of? Should we have more music lyric contests? Blog us! Blog us! So have you figured out who our special entertainer is by the hints on the home page? If you think you’ve identified him, let us know! Blog! Blog! Blog! - Thanks, the editor  Hello everyone, Your long awaited Anewtale Kid’s page is up, live! Here we attempt to tackle the age old problem of creating and retaining childhood enthusiasm for reading, writing, the Arts and learning in general. Reading helps open and develop our children’s imaginations. Writing and creating gives kids the outlet where they can explore their dreams. Literacy opens new worlds and doors for everyone. Children get better at reading the more they read. Finding Motivation for children to want to learn is hard in a modern society with a lot of distractions. Interesting, thought invoking tales will keep their imagination engaged and active and hopefully yearning for more. The trick is in keeping their reading fun, challenging and thought invoking and making the reading time itself enjoyable. Always praise even the tiniest accomplishments they make. We added some challenging word games, along with word of the day, joke of the day, today’s birthday, today in history and more. The result is in for the under ten year old story/poem contest. Check out the winning poem, Bringer of a Language by Ryan L of Miami Florida. I’m sure Ryan would like to hear your comments in our blog. Stay tuned for the next kids writing contest. There’s no doubt, Digital technology is changing the way our children learn, develop, socialize, play and interact with society. To compete for a kid’s short attention span is becoming tougher and tougher every day. But, should learning be camouflaged behind something fun or entertaining like a new video game in order to deceive youngsters into thinking they’re playing while we hope they learn something too? Absolutely! As always, we welcome your ideas to make anewtale.com better. Who’s your favorite new fiction writer or lyricist? Blog us about anything fictional. Here’s your chance to vent! Recommend a new fiction book and start a discussion about it or the author. Thanks - Editor This season's theme for photography was the location of Philadelphia. 95% of our photos published this season were taken in the City of Brotherly Love. I think our photographers did a great job in scoring the city of Philly to find the perfect shots to enhance our mysteries, westerns, science fiction tales, poems and lyrics. Let us know which photos you liked best and why. Here's a few cool pictures from our Philadelphia photographers we didn't get to use. Vote for the best of the three photos. Do any inspire you to write a flash fiction or poem? If so, be our guest to show off your imagination and writing skills. We promise not to be too hard on you when critiquing. As always, we welcome all feed back, and opinions on fiction, poetry or improving!
Welcome to a New Tale. We hope you're enjoying this seasons edition. Here's your chance to vent, criticize, cheer and mentor our editors, writers, photographers and artists. Of course we're hoping that a few of you will bond with each other as well as spar over which works are the best and who your favorite contributors are. Read, enjoy and feel free to tell your friends to come check us out.  |
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