Jill Williamson is a chocolate loving, daydreaming, creator of kingdoms. She writes weird books for teens in lots of weird genres like, fantasy (Blood of Kings trilogy), science fiction (Replication), and dystopian (The Safe Lands trilogy). Find Jill on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or on her author website.
Until my dad came to visit. Dad is a carpenter, and he was kind enough to allow me to put him to work while he was on vacation. So for two-and-a-half days we built those shelves! Then my husband put all his movies on them, leaving me with the old shelves for my books. (My books finally have a home! I’m so happy!) This rearranging was the start of an accidental spring cleaning in October. But clean we did. And many things went away.
It’s a good feeling.
But I had a some things that I didn’t want to just ship off to the local thrift store. These things, I felt, were valuable to writers. So I decided to host a House Cleaning Giveaway. Here’s how it works. I’m listing all my freebies individually. Each will have it’s own Rafflecopter entry box so that you don’t end up winning something you don’t. want. Enter one. Enter them all. Enter whichever ones you want. I will pay the shipping. But it is for USA only, guys. Sorry about that.
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First we have The Essentials of English. This is a great reference guide if you don’t own The Chicago Manual of Style. Keep in mind, The Chicago Manual of Style is THE go to manual for book writing. But this book is handy as well. It’s the fifth edition, and according to Amazon, there is a sixth edition out now.
Here’s the product description: This book fills a double purpose as both a useful classroom text and a practical style manual for writers. It reviews English grammar, sentence structure, punctuation, and correct word usage, and advises on adapting writing style to different formats, including both classroom assignments, business documents, and electronic communication. Readers will also find detailed instruction on essay writing, starting with outlining a subject, and going on to writing a draft and then editing and polishing it into a finished composition. New in this edition is a sample research paper that uses online sources and follows the widely popular MLA style for footnotes.
Next is Twitter Tips, Tricks, and Tweets. I read this book in hopes of becoming a Twitter guru. It didn’t happen. Though this book had some interesting content, it seems that I just don’t have what it takes to be amazing at Twitter. Ah, well. Guess I’ll keep on writing books, then.
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Here’s the product description: Twitter is hot! It’s used by everyone from teens keeping up with their friends to fundraising charities and organizations responding to natural disasters; even President Obama tweets. Twitter Tips, Tricks, and Tweets gets you in on the fun, taking you all the way from setting up an account to incorporating cool third-party applications.
Defined as microblogging, Twitter allows you to be as active or passive as you choose in keeping up with the conversation. Limited to 140 characters per comment, or “tweet”, it’s designed for here-and-now communication. This handy guide gives you everything you need to know.
•Guides you through setting up an account and following Twitter rules
•Explains how to tweet from mobile devices
•Shows how to add Twitter to a blog or to other social networking sites such as Facebook
•Offers ideas for using Twitter in business as well as for personal contacts
•Covers Twitter terminology
•Provides useful tips and tricks for expanding Twitter’s usefulness through third-party applications
Twitter Tips, Tricks, and Tweets explores all the features of Twitter, so you can join the conversation and discover what all the buzz is about.
Now we have Sally Stuart’s Guide to Getting Published. I’ve had this forever! It was published in 2000, so it’s pretty out of date. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t good tips in here.
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Here’s the product description: Every Writer Needs One Book that Jump-Starts a Writing Career. This Book Is It. In this one-stop writing resources, Sally Stuart will tell you how to:
•Find the publisher you want
•Write a professional query letter or book proposal
•Approach and work with editors
•Decipher copyright and tax laws
•Negotiate contracts
•Manage the writing life
•Set up a home office
•Develop your book and article ideas
With practical tips and anecdotes, technical details and legal helps, this essential compendium provides the information every writer needs to get in print and stay in print. Whether you are just beginning or you have been published for years and want to polish up on a few fine points, this is your guide to publishing success.
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The Synonym Finder is an old friend. Before WiFi existed, back in the days of dial-up, I used this book all the time. And you can tell from the picture. It’s a lot beat up. It’s a big book too. Two-and-a-half inches thick. Yes, thesaurus.com can do the same job, but sometimes it’s nice to have this book to leaf through. My husband bought me a leather-bound copy, so this one was going to go to the thrift store. Unless someone wants it! *grin*
Here’s the product description: With a simple alphabetical arrangement this book has been expanded to include thousands of new words and expressions that have entered the language in recent years, and includes clearly labelled slang and informal words and expressions.
I KNEW I bought this book at a thrift store in McCall, Idaho in the fall of 2012. But when I went looking for it, I couldn’t find it anywhere. So this past summer, I finally ordered it used online. It came missing the first five pages of the story! So I went on Amazon.com and tried to read them in the “Look inside this book” thing. Couldn’t quite read far enough, though. Sad.
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Then my friend Diana Sharples gave me a $25 gift card to Barnes & Noble online. So I bought the first three books in this series in a box set and finally read The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan. (Thanks, Diana!) Then, after the arrival of the new shelves, when we were moving things around, I found the first used copy I’d bought in McCall. And it has all the pages. So, I tossed the page-less copy, but this one should go to someone who writes epic fantasy and has not read any of the Wheel of Time books. It’s long. But it’s good. And it’s important to read the books that are as famous as this one. I think.
Here’s the product description: The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and go, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth returns again. In the Third Age, an Age of Prophecy, the World and Time themselves hang in the balance. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.
The Christian Writer’s Manual of Style is a book that is filled with information for anyone who writes for the Christian specialty market (Christian Booksellers Association/CBA). I bought this ages ago before I was published, then when I signed with Zondervan, they sent me a copy. So I now have two. If you want to be published in CBA, you should have this book.
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Here’s the product description: The Christian Writer’s Manual of Style is an essential tool not only for writers of religious materials, but for their editors, proofreaders, designers, copywriters, production managers, and even marketers. Rather than simply repeating style information commonly available in standard references, this newly updated and expanded edition includes points of grammar, punctuation, usage, book production and design, and written style that are often overlooked in other manuals. It focuses on information relating to the unique needs and demands of religious publications, such as discussions on how to correctly quote the Bible, how to capitalize and use common religious terms, and how to abbreviate the books of the Bible and other religious words.
Also included are rarely found items such as: • an author’s guide to obtaining permissions • guidelines for using American, British, and Mid-Atlantic styles • discussions of inclusive language, profanity, and ethnic sensitivities • discussions of Internet and computer-related language style • a list of problem words • style issues regarding words from major world religions • a discussion of handling brand names in text • a list of common interjections • issues of type design, paper, copy-fit
This edition has been completely updated since the 1988 edition and contains more than twice as much information as the previous edition. This is the most detailed and comprehensive guide of its kind.
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Here’s another book for those writing for the Christian specialty market. For the Write Reason: 31 Writers, Agents and Editors Share Their Experiences with Christian Publishing is a book filled with wisdom from professionals in the industry. It was published in 2005, so it’s a bit out of date in some areas, but there is still lots of gold in these pages.
Here’s the product description: Drawing on the wisdom of experienced writers, agents and editors, this book offers writers of all levels a valuable source of encouragement and wisdom. By combining personal stories with an in-depth Bible study, you can delve into God’s calling to write in your own life.
And finally we have The Art & Craft of Writing Christian Fiction: A One-Semester Creative Writing Workbook with Lesson Plans and Daily Assignments written by Jeff Gerke and Mary Aguis. Mary is the same author who helped me write homeschool literature units for my Blood of Kings series. This is the first project she did. It’s meant to be used along with the nonfiction book. So if you don’t have that book, you might have to get it to complete the course. It’s never been opened, still shrink-wrapped in plastic. Jeff gave me a copy way back when, just because, and I never knew what to do with it.
Until now.
Here’s the product description: The Art & Craft of Writing Christian Fiction: A One-Semester Creative Writing Workbook with Lesson Plans and Daily Assignments encourages high school level creative writing students to examine their motives for writing fiction, while challenging them to use their writing ability to honor God. Delivered in a convenient hole-punched 8.5″x11″ format.
Students who complete this biblically-based creative writing curriculum will benefit from:
•Setting a weekly writing goal and word count
•Working through the “Three Act Structure”
•Integrating engaging plots and captivating characters in a way that enthralls readers
•Learning how to spot and correct writing mistakes
And that concludes my House Cleaning Giveaway. If you could only choose one, which would you want and why?