Posted January 27th, 2010 by Blog Editor

  My name is Mark Penstone. I am originally from Toronto, Canada. Sixteen years ago, I moved to Atlanta, Georgia to work with Coca Cola at their head office. Despite all this time around the Southern drawl, I still pronounce my distinctive Canadian “outs” and other sounds. I have been with the Bookrix.com team for about a year and have been privileged to watch it grow from a small group of writers and readers to one of the most popular online community for those who love the written word.

  Some of you might know me as Bookmix and the host of BookRix Radio. I started BookRix Radio about four months ago. The BookRix Radio show has helped me meet a lot of very cool BookRix members, contest winners and knowledgeable industry professionals who assist us in teaching our members the “ins and outs” of the book publishing industry. My goal at BookRix Radio is to “explore, entertain and inform”. This would be impossible without the active participation of our members.

  You may also recognize me from the BookRix “how to” videos. The purpose of the videos is to make navigating around BookRix a lot easier and it has turned out to be a great way for our members to learn what BookRix has to offer. If you need help, just let us know and we will consider developing a video.

  My goals this year are to develop the radio show to include live call-in shows. I want to test this concept with an industry professional who will be able to answer our members’ questions live on the air. I promise to keep you informed. I also want to bring on new partners to BookRix who will be able to provide our members with not just their knowledge and experiences, but prizes that will help our members with advancing their careers.

  Let me know what you’d like to see on your online writing community!

Posted January 12th, 2010 by Blog Editor

  Hello, my name is Ayelet and I’m the new Community Moderator for BookRix. Many of you may have seen me around and already gotten to know me a little through my postings. I wanted to take a moment to properly introduce myself to everyone.
  My professional background is in writing, editing, social media and marketing for nonprofit organizations. While I enjoyed my previous work, I always missed talking directly with people and being involved in a community.

  Ever since I can remember, I’ve had a book in one hand and loved discovering new authors and styles. When I first heard of BookRix and the Community Moderator position, it was so exciting to me that my two loves, books and social media, were coming together.

  My greatest aim at the moment is to help this community become everything you want it to be. As a Community Moderator, I’m here to listen and talk to you all. The BookRix community is so helpful and kind to one another; it’s been a delight to interact with everyone. I look forward to getting to know you all very well!

  Now, it’s your turn: please tell me a little about yourself! If you’re not sure what to write in the comments section below, you always can start with what got you started with writing books or how you came upon your love of reading, and a random bit of knowledge most people don’t know about you.

  Best,
  Ayelet

  p.s. I happily welcome messages to my account here with rants, raves, questions, suggestions or comments. I’ll also be active on the forum and in the groups, if you’d rather open up the discussion.

Posted December 19th, 2009 by Blog Editor

  There is currently running a free-to-enter short story contest on BookRix for writers and readers. The theme is “Family Stories”.

  Prizes on the line include $1.800,00 in prize money for writers, “fame!” and Amazon vouchers (each worth $20) for voting readers.

  The 10 best-rated stories will be given to an independent jury consisting of BookRix and the Georgia Writers Association.

  Perhaps you want to submit your own family story into the competition or become a judge and vote for others to win great prizes. If so, please go to the following contest pages:  http://www.bookrix.com/precontest.html?show=BX_1261137553

  Good luck to you!

_______
BookRix – your place to read, write and network free literature on the Internet.

Posted November 28th, 2009 by Blog Editor

  We are proud to present the first free-to-enter BookRix poetry contest: December 1, 2009 to January 15, 2010

  Prizes on the line include $1.600,00 in prize money for poets, “fame!” and Amazon vouchers (each worth $20) for voting readers.

  The 10 best-rated poetry books will be given to an independent jury consisting of the Georgia Writers Association and BookRix.

  Perhaps you want to submit your own poems into the competition or become a judge and vote for others to win great prizes.

  If so, please go to the following poetry contest pages:

http://www.bookrix.com/precontest.html?show=BX_1259321737

  Good luck to you!

Posted November 4th, 2009 by Blog Editor

    There is currently running a free-to-enter short story contest on BookRix for writers and readers. The theme is “Travel Stories”.

  Prizes on the line include $1.800,00 in prize money for writers, “fame!” and Amazon vouchers (each worth $20) for voting readers.

  The 10 best-rated stories will be given to an independent jury consisting of BookRix and the Georgia Writers Association.

  Perhaps you want to submit your own story into the competition or become a judge and vote for others to win great prizes. If so, please go to the following contest pages:  http://www.bookrix.com/precontest.html?show=BX_1256740851

  Good luck to you!

Posted October 1st, 2009 by Blog Editor

 By: Sandra Yuen MacKay

  – “There is nothing impossible to him who will try.” – Alexander The Great –

  Believing in your abilities goes a long way as a writer. I posted this quote on a sticky note beside my computer. It comes in handy when the agony of writer’s block takes over. I procrastinate, distract myself and find twenty things to do other than write. The screen remains blank until my muse returns.

  This saying is also useful when I receive rejection letters from publishers. Writing the “Great American Novel” is a desirable goal. However, how many of us invest the time and effort to make this dream a reality?

 One of my first creative writing instructors told me that my work was good enough to publish. I sent out submissions to magazines and journals.

  I was having coffee with a friend who asked me how the writing was going. “I don’t think I’m cut out to be an author,” I said. “I got rejected three times from this art magazine.”

  She shook her head. “You’re giving up after three rejection letters? Go and talk to them. Introduce yourself and keep sending them your writing!”

  Soon after I was published in that magazine and other print publications as well. I also taught creative writing and began to write more complex, longer works.

  It’s great to have the talent to write, but monetary success partially depends on marketing skills. It would be a perfect world, if we all had agents and publishers looking out for our best interests. However, the reality is no one will know you as a writer unless you put yourself out there. In ways, it’s like running a business.

  So you’ve fostered your writing and found a unique voice. Perhaps you’ve shown your stories and/or poems to fellow writers and received advice and suggestions. You’ve taken writing courses and participated in writers’ forums. Now is the time to approach publishers if that is your goal.

  Make sure your work is the best it can be. Judge it not as the author, but as a skeptical reader. What makes it memorable? What is not essential? Who is your audience?

  Skill as a writer can be learned. Natural talent puts you in good company. There are good writers who aren’t published and there are not so good writers who are published. Don’t be afraid of failure but treat it as a learning experience. If you’re going to dream, dream big. Your goals in writing are within your grasp. It may take time, but nothing is impossible.