**EDUCATION** Life-long Learning

This isn't the first time I have posted links to learning resources, but it's been a while. A long while. The last posting has gotten so old that I've had to do a complete update.

I am always interested in learning new things and I like encouraging my family and friends to do the same. Here is a list of resources for anyone who wants to expand on their knowledge in various areas. I find these links via web searches, reading articles, and watching videos. I try to link to sites with content that is mostly free of charge. I will come back and do updates as I find more resources to link to. Enjoy.

• The Open Education Database (OEDb) is self-described as " the most comprehensive collection of online college rankings and free courses anywhere online". It can be a bit overwhelming. I suggest starting here at the open courseware collection and scroll down to the list of 'popular online classes' or further down to browse course by subject.
• DIY Genius is one site I haven't had a lot of time to check out. I do know that not all of the content is free. I am including it on this list just because of the free content.
• Wikiversity was on one of my original lists and remains a favorite. If you read the Introduction page, you will find that the 'versity is just like the 'pedia and is open to editing. I don't care; it's still a favorite. I must also link to Wikibooks but for all other links, please check the left side panel on any of the Wiki pages for more. It's amazing what we miss by not looking at the side panels of webpages. 
• Open Culture ("The best free cultural & educational media on the web") is another new one for me. Some of the listings are links to off-site resources. I do like that some of the textbooks are in pdf format to be viewed online. I can't wait to check out some of the links
  
  for learning languages. The one thing I don't like is that the site shows in Chrome as not being secure.
• Khan Academy has to be on this list. It's one of the best put-together sites online. I think the video lessons are a great teaching tool for people of all ages. KA is definitely another of my favorites.
• ** Stanford Online is, in my opinion, better suited for those already attending school or navigating a career. It's worth checking out, no matter who you are.
• YouTube - okay, this is where you have to kind of work for it. There are a LOT of channels for specific topics of study. I've seen playlists of videos for learning languages, one of the sciences, or for a specific culinary skill. The best way to learn via YouTube is to make up your own playlists ahead of time (for whatever interests you), then search for and add the different videos to your lists. I have playlists for everything from Bible study to Breadmaking to Hokkaido breadmaking. One warning: Make sure you are really focused or get ready to fall down a deep rabbithole...

By the way, I recently picked up a couple of tips from a news article:

1. When searching for any low-cost or free digital content - from games to writing apps - search for "open source" instead of "free".

2. Another way to reference or search for open-source items is to use the search term "FOSS" aka "free and open-source software".

I have to go now because my brain is tired.

Peace

--Free

Pluspora & MeWe

I'm still in mourning for the soon-to-be-defunct Google Plus. In the meantime, I have been trying to find other online places to share the blog and connect with nice folks. So far, I have found Pluspora (nice place with a bit of a learning curve) and MeWe (I already have connected with a few fellow Plussers there).

My Tumblr account has been dormant so long that I forgot my username. Guess I need to reconnect, huh?

For all my new folks at Pluspora and MeWe, I wanted to put it out there where I can be connected with. I will update this as I get set up with other accounts.

Twitter
Pinterest
Tumblr
Pluspora
MeWe

I really hate Facebook and I'm not there much except to check out family photos. I might link it here later. Meantime...

Peace
--Free

Writing Status & Killing Time

The title of the post should actually be - Writing Status: Holding and Waiting, Not Procrastinating. By the way, excuse any rambling. I'm dealing with some brain fog today. However, to make up for it, I am including links at the bottom of the post. Have fun.


When I posted about getting settled in the apartment, a casual online friend asked if I was now back to working on the book(s).

Well, let's see...

This is my chair and desk.

All. Those. Pieces. Yikes!

As you can see, the chair is assembled - because it was a "Look Ma, no tools required" kind of thing. That desk... I broke down in tears of frustration just trying to identify all the parts and pieces.

Yeah, so, this is my current writing station:

Makeshift desk & my busted computer

At least I put on part of the un-assembled desk to good use.

When I said that I had gotten things in the apartment put together. I meant that I had managed to get myself to put things together enough so that I have somewhere to sit and sleep. For now, I am concentrating on recovering from the move. My energy was at rock-bottom levels for the past couple of weeks. I'm hoping that I'll be feeling better now that I've finally had my (overdue) infusion.
This
Not only do I still need the desk assembled, I have to hunt around for an affordable bedroom dresser. And there are still my unpacked boxes to deal with...

While I'm waiting for my energy to power back up, I have been checking out some great websites.

"Wrote a song about it. Like t'hear it? Here it goes."
In Living Color (David Alan Grier)

• Lifehacker is just fun. It's a nice resource (sometimes) for writers
• WonderHowTo is for when you wonder how to. See what I did there?
• This video/GIF just because it nausates and fascinates me. 
• Unsplash for free photos. I actually just like looking at them, but you are free to use them.
• This is for when I need to let my brain just breathe. Good for when you feel overwhelmed and hyper.
• AlternativeTo is for when you are either broke or cheap and need an alternative to paid apps/programs. Maybe, like me you are both broke and cheap!
• Text Faces is just that. (ᵔᴥᵔ) See?
• Lifewire has the name that makes me think of Motley Crue, but a motto I like: Tech Untangled. 
• CamelCamelCamel is for Amazon addicts (me!) who like to price track (me!)
• WhichBook helps you choose a book to read.
• Have not checked out Instaread yet. Not sure if it will make me happy or sad...
• So, GeoCron is an interactive history atlas.

So, I'm not back working on the writing projects yet. There is no procrastination involved though. Trust me, I can't wait to get back into my writing. When I do, you will hear my whoops of joy!

Peace
--Free

**RESOURCES** For Writers (May 2016)

Some handy links I ran across in the last few weeks that might be helpful.

              

• The Word Counter blog is just good stuff. Show some support.
• Word Counter link 1 
• WC link 2 (for counting words by font/size/spacing etc.)
• WC link 3 (a quick-glance chart)
• Grammarly  is amazing (also the MS Word Add-in is extremely useful)
• I've already mentioned Scapple. Love, love, LOVE it. For PC and Mac.
• Should you market your work as "Literary" or "Mainstream"? 
• What do reps consider a decent length for fiction types? 
• Self Pub Nation has some encouragement for you.
• A helpful infographic for Kindle publishing (quick & short)

I will update this as I collect more links. For now, I am working like mad to finish reviewing the proof copy of my book. Hopefully, my sanity will return as soon as I am finished with that task.

Screenshot of Scapple
 just to show how it works

By the way, someone once saw what my "writing station" (meaning a tiny laptop table to sit at and everything else spread across my bed) looked like. They remarked that one day I might have a really nice writing office. You know what? I like my improvised situation.

Peace

--Free

**LINKS** For Writers, Net Users & the Curious

I found most of these sites via StumbleUpon. Enjoy.

I'll start with a fun one: Fodey lets you generate a newspaper clipping, like this one:

You KNOW I'll be using this a LOT!

There are other things you can create. Check out the links in small print at the top of the Fodey page.

1. From makeuseof (which is a pretty nifty site), some guides you might be able to make use of. I'm interested in the ones for audiophiles and building a PC. I'll point out for Apple-eaters that there are ones that Mac and iPhone users might really like to check out. (Notice that you can either view or download the articles.)
2. Text Mechanic is something I'll use when I copy and paste text from emails. Clean things up. But there's more here to check out.
3. This list of useful websites is from 2012, but I like that there is such a variety.
4. A QR Code Generator. I just want to play around with  this one, but I know some of you will know how to use it from the get-go.
5. Create a website? Hmm... Sounds interesting.
6. If you want to convert various media types. For free. Without downloading any software.
7. Another document management/converter site.
8. I don't know why you'd want to but, if you do, you can find sounds at Find Sounds. ~shrug~
9. This is called iTools, but it's for finding tools - for language, media, searching, etc. - Mac & i or otherwise.
10. When I saw the words "talk tech," I knew this wasn't for me, but... The blog is "where sys admins meet and talk tech." Talk tech to me. Love that.
11. I have no idea why you'd want to "barcode yourself" (because, as a Christian, the idea creeps me out), but that's what caught my eye on this site. There are many ways art-meets-tech kinds of things you can do.
12. The Hemingway app helps clean up your writing. 
13. Adjust Your Privacy helps you do just that. I guess.
14. Internet Frog (cute) helps you optimize your PC and internet. I guess. 
15. Votiro - use a cloud source to clean files before you... whatever you want to do with them. (Sounds good to me & I have no idea how to explain it!)
16. Login2 helps you log in to sites without signing up for a log in on that site. (It didn't work with some sites, but it did with others. Worth a look.)
17. Top Sites works well. For general searches.
18. AppStorm has a list of alternatives to popular software. I found replacements for Powerpoint in Sliderocket; PhotoShop in Aviary; and some others. The original StumbleUpon article is from 2011 so I wasn't surprised that the link for Acrobat didn't work.

I will be back with more, but I think you'll be busy with these 18 for a while!

Peace

--Free

Writers Just Write (***LINKS***)

I promised a post of links that might be helpful to newbie writers. Anyone who wants to write, can. Anyone who must write, will. I've always had to write because I have stories in me that have to be told.

It's my opinion that all good writers - published or not, educated or not - write for themselves. All any fiction writer (and some non-fiction writers) does is tell stories. A good story told badly is just wasted effort. There are a lot of published writers who tell horrible stories so well that readers can't get enough of them.

If you are like me, you are a writer with good stories to tell. The trick is learning to tell the story well.

(God, that gave me a little bit of a headache!)

Anyway, here are some links to resources that might help a "newbie" writer become a better storyteller:

• A very general definition of "Genre" (it's not that simple, but it's a start)
• Types of fiction (Who the hell knew there were so many?!)
• Types of plots
• Fiction types by word & page count
• Good article on "Plots" (Check out the entire site for great info)
• Wikipedia on "Genre fiction" (Use links within for more)
• Literary Devices (explains parts and pieces of literature)
• Character development tools (gotta love those folks on Tumblr!)
• (Meta)search engines (Dogpile, search.com, and a list of others)

Also, here's personal advice from me. I'm no expert, but these are things I do that (I believe) help my writing:

• I listen to comedians. Not to steal their material, but to watch the rhythm and pacing in the way they communicate with audiences. Comedians don't get enough credit for their craft. It's not about the jokes they tell, but how they tell them. Chris Rock, Sebastian Maniscalco, Bill Cosby, Richard Pryor, Ralphie May - they all have found their own "voice". Brilliance.
• I eavesdrop on everyone. I like to watch people who are different from me to see how they speak. I pick up on accents, cadence and dialect that I might be able to use in a story. I try to always base my characters on speech and mannerisms I've seen actual people use. The cliched advise of "Write what you know" is the best advice.
• I read books that I love. A lot. When I find a story that really grips me, I read it first just to enjoy it, then I go back and read it to see how the hell the author performed such magic.
• I read stuff that would put a coffee-swilling insomniac into a coma. This is something I usually save for when I do need to get some sleep, but I find that I learn a lot of interesting things this way. While sitting in the lobby of my doctor's office, I read two and half pages of a five-page article about the Maori's, learning something about the Maori's beliefs about death and afterlife. Over a year after reading that article, I was able to use the information in the story I'm now working on.
• I pay attention to people who are older than me. I write a lot of fiction centered around family, traditions, and generational history because I don't want future generations to get all their history from textbooks. No matter what type of fiction a writer writes, we all have to know where we came from in order to tell our stories with truth.
• Use the hell out of Google, Bing - or whatever your preferred search engine is. I like to use multiple search engines.
• I let people read my work as I'm developing the first draft. I pick people who love reading so that I can see how my story "plays" with an actual reader. This is tough because I like to choose someone who won't mind hurting my feelings with their honest criticism.

The hardest thing to do is to write without comparing yourself to whoever may be on a "bestseller" list.  The next hardest thing is not being hard on yourself while writing a first draft. Everyone says it like it's no big deal, but -AAAAGH!!! - it's a huge deal to write (no editing allowed) to finish the story the first time around. What you rarely hear is how good it feels when you get to write those two most important words in any story: "The End". 

Happy writing!

Peace

--Free

March *Was* Madness (More Writing Links)

If we had gotten as much sunshine as we did madness, March would have become my favorite month. Instead, we got dumped on with snow, and I got dumped on with self-induced pity. Thank everything holy that this month is just about over!

Today, the writing is back on track (yes!), but I sure wish there had been a March Madness sale on blood and guts because I think I've poured all I have into this current manuscript. If writing a book is like giving birth, I'm praying to be induced early. Seriously, it's been rough.

I'm not complaining (much), though. I love writing and don't think I could live without it. It would be great if there was a way to make money at it - you know, other than actually finishing a manuscript and getting it out there.

Ah well.

I promised links. Here they are (in no kind of order):

• Phobia List
• How to Write Good (thanks for sharing this, Sandy-sis)
• Australian Slang (because I can't find an Aussie to help me out on this manuscript)
• Reverse Dictionary (when you are drawing a big ol' blank!)
• Words: Woe & Wonder (you'll just have to check this one out)
• Obscure Sorrows (because I was in a mood this week ~shrug~)
• Net Lingo
• Resource of Symbols, Signs & Flags
• Your Dictionary (I call it Dictionary for Dummies. No offense. I use it a LOT.)
• Garbl's (Many, many, many resources. I've had this link a long time, so some resources may be outdated.)
• Online Writing Lab
• Urban Dictionary (because I just had to look up "Restless Dick Syndrome". Yeah, U.D. has stuff in there like that.)
• Style Guides (APA, MLA, blah-blah-yay styles.)
• Richard Lederer's great list of language links.
• Diffen (compare anything, if you ever need to. I always do.)
• The People History (Who, what, why and what they wore and paid for it. I use the 1970's section a lot.)
• Occupational Information (when you need to know what that doctor or mortician really does.)

Hope you find these helpful. I think for my next post, I'm going to list information for wanna-be or newbie writers. When I started out, I didn't have much help in understanding the process of writing, or even the different genres. For now, I have to go an eat something. I'm all hopped up on about 6 cups of coffee. Funny to be so tired and wired at the same time.

Peace

--Free

***LINKS*** I'm a Tumbl'n Writer

To the links in just a moment but, in case you needed a smile today:

This is what I woke up looking like this morning. I call it my "crazy writer's hair", better known to other natural gals as "I-didn't-tie-down-the-naps" last night!

Excuse the glamour. I said I'd just woken up!

Look how that mop of mine is growing! Must be all the greens and biotin I'm ingesting. Whatever.

Now, on to the promised links....

Good Stuff on Tumblr

• Apostrophe Shame (just for when you need to be reminded)
• Grammar .net (I love the info-graphics)
• heretoedit (examples aplenty)
• Grammar Girl (because I love her)
• Writing from Books Amino (various nuggets of gold here)
• Resources for Writers 
• Practical Grammar
• Go Ask Yer Grammar (not the Tumblr title, but very cool, so...)
• A Question of Character
• Refs & Resources for Writers (scroll down their site for good info)
• Amanda Patterson (I use her stuff daily)
• Role Player Tips (that's "player", not "playing", you dirty booger!)
• Writers' Resources (varied and wonderful)

Just doing searches on Tumblr ("writer resources", "grammar", etc.) will yield useful info. Enjoy.

Peace

--Free