Read, writers, read! Writers who don’t read other authors’ books: you are stunting your own growth and pretending that you know more than you really do! How am I aware of this? I was once like you.
Many years ago my oldest son, Nate Mansfield, spent a year in county jail on drug charges and read like crazy. He “escaped” the drudgery of jail by reading over 300 books in 365 days. I learned from Nate to see my own hypocrisy … and a lot more. I began to read and read. In time, my younger son, Colin, introduced me to author Stephen King’s remarkable non-fiction book “On Writing” and my writing grew like crazy. Don’t think your adult kids can teach you? Think again. Check out Nate and Colin, more in depth. www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1451678614?tag=simonsayscom... See MoreSee Less
The Early Beatles, Willie Nelson and Frampton Comes Alive - A tip for would-be authors: don’t let any “crazy” internal idea in your writing be set aside and not followed up on - just because it sounds goofy. Contact me and let me know how crazy your idea is! dennismansfield.com/contact/
A case in point for my writing: I wanted to use the names of rock n’ roll legends: (Beatle) Stu Sutcliffe, Peter Frampton and Willie Nelson in my most recent book. So…I reached out to the handlers of all three rockers and they said “Yes!” Choose to think differently! Then, go visit their websites! It’s not easy, but it is that simple. Try it! Take a look at the storyline that “Peter Frampton”, “Willie Nelson” and “Beatle Stu Sutcliffe” are in: dennismansfield.com/author/... See MoreSee Less
Here’s a story for you that outweighs any supposed clever plot. Seven years ago today, the lovely bride of WWII Sgt. Anthony J. Malone passed away. (At that time, I received notice of Mary’s passing from one of her daughters.) Mrs. Malone was such a gracious hostess to us in 2009 when she invited a group of Idaho teachers and students to her home in Middletown, CT. It was there that some incredible researchers who were then-high school juniors from Boise, ID joined me in returning a WWI-style dough-boy helmet originally worn by her husband on the battlefield - after a journey of some 64 years. Former-US Congressman Walt Minnick donated 300,000 air miles for the students to fly there and honor this wonderful woman and her family.
Along with that email came this photo of Sgt. AJ Malone just months before the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. It is the only pic in my possession of him wearing the WWI-style helmet that plays such a prominent part in my non-fiction book, FINDING MALONE. We chose it for the bookcover. For more information on the story, feel free to visit www.sofapress.org/findingmalone
Read, writers, read!
Writers who don’t read other authors’ books: you are stunting your own growth and pretending that you know more than you really do! How am I aware of this? I was once like you.
Many years ago my oldest son, Nate Mansfield, spent a year in county jail on drug charges and read like crazy. He “escaped” the drudgery of jail by reading over 300 books in 365 days. I learned from Nate to see my own hypocrisy … and a lot more. I began to read and read. In time, my younger son, Colin, introduced me to author Stephen King’s remarkable non-fiction book “On Writing” and my writing grew like crazy. Don’t think your adult kids can teach you? Think again. Check out Nate and Colin, more in depth. www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1451678614?tag=simonsayscom ... See MoreSee Less
The Early Beatles, Willie Nelson and Frampton Comes Alive - A tip for would-be authors: don’t let any “crazy” internal idea in your writing be set aside and not followed up on - just because it sounds goofy. Contact me and let me know how crazy your idea is! dennismansfield.com/contact/
A case in point for my writing: I wanted to use the names of rock n’ roll legends: (Beatle) Stu Sutcliffe, Peter Frampton and Willie Nelson in my most recent book. So…I reached out to the handlers of all three rockers and they said “Yes!” Choose to think differently! Then, go visit their websites! It’s not easy, but it is that simple. Try it! Take a look at the storyline that “Peter Frampton”, “Willie Nelson” and “Beatle Stu Sutcliffe” are in: dennismansfield.com/author/ ... See MoreSee Less
Here’s a story for you that outweighs any supposed clever plot. Seven years ago today, the lovely bride of WWII Sgt. Anthony J. Malone passed away. (At that time, I received notice of Mary’s passing from one of her daughters.) Mrs. Malone was such a gracious hostess to us in 2009 when she invited a group of Idaho teachers and students to her home in Middletown, CT. It was there that some incredible researchers who were then-high school juniors from Boise, ID joined me in returning a WWI-style dough-boy helmet originally worn by her husband on the battlefield - after a journey of some 64 years. Former-US Congressman Walt Minnick donated 300,000 air miles for the students to fly there and honor this wonderful woman and her family.
Along with that email came this photo of Sgt. AJ Malone just months before the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. It is the only pic in my possession of him wearing the WWI-style helmet that plays such a prominent part in my non-fiction book, FINDING MALONE. We chose it for the bookcover. For more information on the story, feel free to visit www.sofapress.org/findingmalone
What’s an antique in your hands - email me and tell me about it. dennismansfield.com/contact/ ... See MoreSee Less