Today's the Day! All Submissions for Creations 2020 must be in by 11:59PM


All Submissions for Creations 2020
Are Due Now!!

Send your submissions to adacreations2020@gmail.com

Questions or problems, please call me at 580-332-8373 or 580-235-5024
or email me at debbieanderson25@hughes.net or debbieandersonwriter1@gmail

Let's make this the best edition yet!!



Creations 2020!

Coming Soon! Creations 2020!

Were are counting down ONLY 16 DAYs left to get 
your submissions in for Creations 2020.

Please send your submissions to adacreations2020@gmail.com.
Submissions should be typed, double-spaced, and emailed no later than 11:59pm, June 27.

If you do not have a computer, be sure and get your submissions to whoever is going to type and submit it by June 20. 

Any questions please contact:
Debbie 580-235-5024


Ready, Set, Write!


Writing Prompts for June

1. You woke up this morning and there were no people!
What would you do? Where did they go? Why? 

2. How are you coping with the quarantine from the Corona pandemic? Write about your experience. Write a fictional account of what is happening. What do you miss the most? What do you like?

3. Father's day is just around the corner. Tell a story about your father.

4. Summer is here. What is your favorite thing about summer? Is it an activity? a vacation spot? a favorite food?
Write about it.

5. You are ship-wrecked on a deserted island. How did you get there? Who, if anyone, is with you? How will you survive?

6. Write a love letter or poem to a current or past love interest.

7. Write a news article. Make it fictional about something currently in the news or a subject of your own making. I recently saw an article about how Trump is not taking responsibility for WWII. Let me know if you want to read the article. It's pretty good.
 
8. 
9. 
10.
 

11.


Short Story Contest


Thank you for your short story submissions!
Yes, the short story contest is closed for submissions and we received many. The winners will be announced at our July meeting! 

Welcome Summer!


Happy Summer, Ada Writers!

Can you believe it's already June? So far 2020 has
been a strange year. But that gives us more to write about, right?
I hope everyone is well and writing frantically. After all, submissions for Creations2020 are due very soon!

The library is closed until further notice. I've checked with Pontotoc Technology Center to see if we could meet there until the library opens again. They are glad to have us. We just need to tell them a day we would like to meet. We can't meet on Saturday but we can meet any day Monday - Friday. We just need to let them know which day works for us. (If we meet on Tuesday we will join Writing for Fun.) Please let me know asap which day you prefer so we can begin meeting again.
call or text me at 580-235-5024



Writing Prompts for Jan/Feb

Don't forget to bring a story, poem, essay, memoir, using one of the following prompts as your subject
to our meeting on Feb. 8th
I look forward to hearing them!

1. Memoir, Write a favorite memory. Can be from childhood or anytime of your life.
2. Tell about your pet. Current or no longer with us.
3. Write a story about your pet. This can be true or fictional.
4. Tell about a special skill you have. Working with wood, gardening, cooking, sports, dancing, teaching etc.
  •  Write a story about using this skill.
  •  Write a how-to regarding this skill.
5. Write a love story or poem about a loved one.
6. Write a love story or poem about love gone wrong.
7. Tell about a concert you attended or were part of.
8. Did you play in a band? This may be a high-school marching band, a garage band with your friends, a band at church, or any other type of band you were part of.
9. Write about a place you visited while traveling.
10. Write a review of a book or movie you recently read or saw.
11. Write about the impact of a book or movie from your youth. Something that influenced your life (even for a short time.)
12. Tell about a special place. This could be from anytime in your life.
13. If you could meet anyone, living or dead who would it be and why. Write about it.
14. Where do you place in your family? Were you the oldest, middle, or youngest child? How did this affect your life? Write about it.
15. If you were a super-hero, what would be your super-power? What would you be called? What would your uniform look like? Write a story involving you as your super-hero self.
16 If you won the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes, what would you do?
17. Write about a tool or object you have that not many people have heard of. Describe it. Give instructions on how to use it.
18. Tell about a very hard time in your life. What did you learn from it? Did it make you stronger or leave a scar that won't go away?
19. Write about a favorite song. What is the meaning of the song? What does it remind you of?
20. Tell a story about a game you enjoy. Could be true or fictional. Make the reader enjoy it even if they don't know how to play or don't care for it.
21. If you were to write a logo for yourself, what would it be? Where would you want it displayed?
22. What are you most afraid of? Write a story about it. True or fictional. Make the reader feel the fear.
23. Have you ever been on a diet? Write a story about trying to lose weight. True or fictional. Is it a comedy or a horror story?
24. Pick an animal of your choice. Write a story from that animals point of view. This can be for children or adults.
25. Pick one of the following pictures. What is happening? Write a story using it as your theme.

Writing Prompts for Jan/Feb


Writing prompts for Jan/Feb


Writing Prompts for Jan/Feb


For those who missed our last meeting... Jan/Feb Writing prompts


For those who missed our last meeting....Writing Prompts for Jan and Feb





Next meeting - February 8!


Ada Writers Meeting, February 8, 11:00

Be sure to bring:
  1. Your dues. $12.00 for 2020
  2.  Your story, poem, essay, etc. from the prompts I gave you at the last meeting. 
  3.  A notebook or something to write on and a pen or pencil.
  4.  Your smile!
  5.  Special prize for anyone who bring in a good joke!




the Procrastinationo Cure - part 2 The 7 Steps


The Procrastination Cure - 7 steps
from  the YouTube video Procrastination-7 Steps to a cure 
by Med School Insiders.

1. Break down the steps.
- smaller tasks seem easier to accomplish than larger projects.
- use hyper specific timelines
Take 5 minutes to decide what you need to accomplish each day.
High levels of structure increases your ability to achieve your reward.
(This doesn't work for everyone)

2. Keep the task small.
Hardest part of getting a task done is getting started.
Example: Your have 5 chapters to read, plus lectures, and other things. This can be overwhelming so your put it off.
-Decide to work in 25 minutes blocks followed by a 5 min break. This makes the task less daunting.

3. Set the bar low
If you set the bar lower than what you are capable of your will almost always achieve the goal and often surpass it.
Example: You want to write every morning for 2 hours but your just can't get started. Instead decide to write for 20 minutes. Chances are you will meet your 20 minute goal and surpass it. If not, you only needed to write for 20 minutes.
As days go by, this 20 minute goal may increase a little daily or weekly. By the time your goal is again 20 minutes, you will have developed the habit of getting started and reaching your goal.

4. Hack pleasure from the experience.
-Give yourself a reward for completing a task. (have a snack, a cup of tea, call a friend for 15 minutes, go for a walk, etc.)
-Listen to music while you work. Find something without words while you write. (The theme from Rocky, or John Tesh, Live at Red Rock, etc.) 

5.  Use Parkinson's Law to your advantage:
Work expands to meet the time allotted to it.
If you have 30 minutes of work to do and have 2 hours to do it, you will expand the work to take up 2 hours.
- Make artificial deadlines to help force yourself to get things done more efficiently.
- This will decrease the delay in the motivation equation and decreases the likelihood of procrastination.
- Don't be too aggressive with your timelines, that can lead to unnecessary stress. Example: You usually complete a task in 15 minutes but you are going to set the goal to 5 minutes. It's going to be hard to meet that goal and therefore you are causing stress that can lead to procrastination.
-With time you will get more accurate with gauging how much time a task will take.

6. Be deliberate with your writing environment. 
-The biggest killer to our productivity are distractions
-Avoiding distractions through sheer will-power is unlikely to be fruitful long term.
-Approach it by crafting a work environment that minimizes distractions.
- In doing so we are decreasing impulsivity from our motivation equation.
Suggestions for getting rid of distractions while your writing:
  1. -Put your phone on airplane more, or turn off the ringer.
  2. -Ignore emails
  3. -Go to full screen with the work at hand.
  4. -If working at home distracts you - go to the library or a coffee shop to work instead.
 7.  Understand your personality type
Some people do well with strict time limits, or word counts, or page goals. For others these limits would cause stress. They do better to decide to write a chapter or another page. 

Big part of optimizing your own life whether it's productivity, study habits, diet, exercise, or anything else, is understanding one's self.






Procrastination Cure - Part 1


The Procrastination Cure - 7 steps

from  the YouTube video Procrastination-7 Steps to a cure 
by Med School Insiders.

We discussed procrastination at our last meeting.
Here are the high-lights:

Motivation = Expectance x Value
________________________________I
Impulsiveness x Delay

Motivation -the willingness to do work
Expectance - how much you enjoy doing the task and how much you enjoy the reward.
Value - The more you enjoy the task the quicker you're going to get your reward.

Impulsiveness - the tendency to get distracted by other things.
High impulsivity lures you to do other things rather than the task at hand.
Delay - The longer the delay the more likely, you are to procrastinate, you decide you can take care of it later.
So - You want to maximize the expectance and the value as they are directly related to motivation, and 
Minimize impulsiveness and delay to keep your from achieving your goal.


Dues are due!

Money, money, money - Money!
 (That's a song from the O'Jays, 1973, called the Love of Money)

Dues for 2020 are due as of January 1st.
It's just $12.00 per year - what a bargain!
Bring your checks or cash to Nora or another of the officers.
Thanks!


Poetry ContestL


Love is in the air!

The Poetry Contest is in full swing! As a matter of fact it's nearly over!

The Dead-line for entries is February 7th.

Get those love poems sent now!!

If you have any questions as to where or how to send  them in go to 

Happy February!


That's right, February is here. Did anyone see what happened to January?


Hope everyone has recovered from the holidays, that terrible bug that was going around, the winter storm (snow)! Hopefully, you've done some writing. 

All the Fixin's Writing Contest - $50.00 prize! And additional Ada Writers Prize!

Reedsy.com has a writing contest every week. 
This week is about eating a meal together. All you have to do is pick a prompt, write a short story, and submit it before Nov. 29, 2019.
For more information and to submit your story, go to:
https:// blog.reedsy.com/creative-writing-prompts/contest/17/

I'll go one better, anyone who writes their short story and submits it to the reedsy contest will automatically be considered for a second contest hosted by Ada Writers.
The winner of this contest will receive $25.00 for best story.
The winner of each prompt subject will win $5.00.

Anyone who does not have a computer should contact me for the rules and to submit their story to Reedsy.

The prompts you will be choosing from are:

1. Write a story about a family dinner from the perspective of an in-law who has married into the family.

2. Write a story about a family dinner that includes someone unexpected showing up.

3. Write a story about a "chosen" family dinner, where no one is related by blood, but they still feel like family.

4. Write a story about a family dinner that takes place in any time period other than this one.

5. Write a story about a family dinner that involves some kind of reconciliation.



Christmas Party News!

The end of the year is upon us.
Our last meeting for 2019 will be our Christmas Party.

The date: Saturday, December 14.
The time: 10:30 am to 1:00 pm.
The place: the Ada Library.
( I'm not sure which room but it will be one of the larger ones.)

The club will be providing a variety tray of Subway Sandwiches.
Everyone is asked to bring finger foods, salads, or desserts to finish off the meal.
Spouses or a guest are welcome!
Entertainment will be provided.
Be prepared to have fun!!

Everyone is asked to bring a wrapped gift. $10.00 limit. If you bring your spouse or guest they should also bring a gift.

Susan has volunteered to bring punch.
Richard and Pauline are bringing paper plates and cups.
Paula is bringing tabouli ( a tasty, Lebanese salad, for those who don't know.)
Betty is bringing a dessert. 


Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!


Happy Thanksgiving!

I know many of us will be traveling, so please be careful.
Many will be having dinner with friends and family, enjoy every minute.
However you spend it, think about writing about the experience.
A poem, a short story, an essay ...
What are you thankful for?



Writing Prompt #3


Write a poem or story inspired by this painting.

Writing Prompt #2 Midsummer Dip


Write a poem or story about this painting. What's the story?

Writing Prompt # 1 - Shadow

Imagine you are someone's shadow for the day.
Write a poem or story about it.

What do you think?



We are a team! Everyone is important!
Take a few minutes to think about your role in Ada Writers.
Are you the one who comes early to set up the room and make coffee? Enjoys sharing your experiences and talents? Are you upfront, giving presentations or are you a support person ready to take part when we have a special event?
What are you willing to do for the club?

Write down what you do for Ada Writers. What more would you like to do? What new positions would you like to see?
What would you change? 

Write it down and be prepared to discuss it at the meeting.
This Saturday, November 16, is our business meeting.
We have much to discuss:
1. Election of officers
2. Tax status of our club
3. Our plans for the new year
4. the Christmas Party

It is important that everyone attends. Your input is needed!

Creations 2019 - Now Available!


It's here and it's the best one yet!

Creations 2019

This year's anthology from our talented Ada Writer Members!

Great job everyone!

Special thanks to Paula for her hard work in putting this year's book together.

YULE TIDINGS ON SALE NOW!

Yule Tidings, the latest anthology from the writing group Prosateurs, is on sale now. The holiday-themed anthology celebrates Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s with works of fiction and nonfiction.

“Besides making the perfect Christmas gift, Yule Tidings is great for planning your parties and get-togethers, too,” said Kathy Akins, Prosateurs vice president. “We have articles on easy party preparations and, of course, delicious recipes. And the stories, memoirs, essays, and poems will get you into the holiday spirit. It’s the perfect book to curl up with.”

Yule Tidings features works from these authors:

Kathy Akins has won several awards with her poetry, devotionals, and short fiction. Her short stories and poetry have been published in Prosateurs: Tales & Truth, Blackbirds Third Flight, Creations 2015, and Creations 2014. She is a member of Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc., Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and American Christian Fiction Writers. Visit her website at kathyakins.blogspot.com.

Debbie Anderson wrote the suspense novel Friend or Foe in 2018. Its sequel, Predators Among Us, will be published in early 2020. She writes short stories, memoirs, novels, children’s stories, and how-to books. She has been published in Prosateurs: Tales & Truth, Creations 2018, and Creations 2017.

Stephen B. Bagley's latest book is Floozy Comes Back, a collection of humorous essays. He co-wrote Undying, a book of dark poetry. His other books include: Murder by Dewey Decimal, Murder by the Acre, Tales from Bethlehem, Floozy and Other Stories, and Endless. His plays include: Murder at the Witch’s Cottage, Two Writers in the Hands of an Angry God, There’s a Body in the Closet, and Hogwild. His poetry, articles, short stories, and essays have appeared in Prosateurs: Tales & Truth, Writer’s Digest, Blackbirds First Flight, Blackbirds Second Flight, Blackbirds Third Flight, ByLine Magazine, Nautilus Magazine, Pontotoc County Chronicles, Tulsa World’s OKMagazine, Free Star, Dark Prairies & Deep Rivers, the Creations anthologies 2012-2015, and other publications. He is a member of Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc. Visit his website at StephenBBagley.blogspot.com.

Wendy Blanton wrote Dawn Before the Dark, the first book in a fantasy trilogy, which was published by the Christian fantasy publisher Bear Publications in the fall of 2019. She also co-wrote three fantasy novels, The Dragon’s Lady, Rogue Pawn, and Sword and Scabbard, under the name Elizabeth Joy. Her short stories, articles, and recipes have appeared in Prosateurs: Tales & Truth, Blackbirds First Flight, Blackbirds Second Flight, and Blackbirds Third Flight. She is a member of Realm Makers and Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc. Visit her website at wendyblanton.com.

Debra E. Chandler’s debut novel, Bone Sliver, was published in 2015, and the sequel, Nova Wave, in 2018. Weathered, a collection of her short works and poems, was also released in 2018. Her short stories, poems, photographs, and articles were also published in Prosateurs: Tales & Truth, Blackbirds Third Flight, The Green Country Guardian, The Sapulpa Herald, and Sapulpa News and Views. She is a member of Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc. and Oklahoma Bloggers and Influencers. Visit her website at dechandlerwrites.com.

Barbara Shepherd is the 2019 Voice of the Fair Poet, the Poetry Society of Oklahoma’s 2019 Poet Laureate, and recipient of more than 350 writing awards in local, regional, national, and international contests. Her books include: The Potbelly Pig Promise, River Bend, Vittles and Vignettes, and Patchwork Skin. Her writing has also appeared in: State Cops Cooking in the Heartland - More Than We Can Say Grace Over, Candle Flames: PSO’s 70th Anniversary Anthology, Oklahoma Centennial Heritage Collection, Harp Strings, A Centennial Celebration of Oklahoma Stories, travelin’ Music, Elegant Rage, Poetry Is For Everyone, Imagination Turned Loose, Beads On a String–Peace, Joy, and Love, From the Heart of Galaxy, Ain't Gonna Be Treated This Way, and other publications. Visit her website at barbarashepherd.com.

Joanne Verbridge was born in Oakland, California, spending her early life experiences in Northern California. Family brought her to Oklahoma where she enjoys writing memoirs and crafting. She works to inspire her young nieces to take an interest in storytelling and writing. Her memoirs, short stories, and articles have been published in newspapers and Prosateurs: Tales & Truth, Creations 2015, Creations 2014, Creations 2013, and Creations 2012.

Yule Tidings is now available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, BooksAMillion, Lulu, and other online retailers, and from the Prosateurs members while supplies last. For more information, including book signing dates and locations, visit Prosateurs.blogspot.com.