Gary Corbin Writing and Editing Great writing - fast.

The stage world is busy for me right now!

This weekend we open "A Talent for Murder" by Jerome Chodorov and Norman Panama at Magenta Theater. I play the sniveling brat "Lawrence" in Magenta Theater's production of "A Talent for Murder". It's been a pleasure working with the cast and director David Roberts. But as with every production, I'll be relieved when it's over!

The critique group to which I belong, Northbank Writers Workshop, is recruiting new members. As part of this process we have updated our ground rules, which I think are worth sharing:
Timeliness.

1. Submit work on time. Our deadline for submittals is Wednesday, 11:59 PM for the following Sunday’s meeting. Works submitted after that time risk loss of feedback from some or all group members.
2. Be on time for meetings, prepared to share critiques on all on-time submissions.

In case you didn't see my blog entry today over at Portland Walking Tours, I'm reposting it here and adding a question: What are YOUR favorite beer and chocolate pairings?

Portland is justifiably famous for its amazing local beers, and it's becoming almost as well known for its incredible array of quality local chocolate options. What better way could there be to spend V-Day than to pair these two great treats?

Whatever else I can say about 2010, it did not go as expected.

Shakespeare wrote that "All of life's a stage." I think he had 2010 in mind for me.

I spent my first 50 years creating stories that reached very few people's eyes outside of my inner circle. I viewed myself as a writer first, novelist second, non-fiction writer third. The stage was a hobby I dabbled in.

2010 changed all of that.

Some months ago I changed strategies with respect to marketing myself as a writer. It appears to be working. At least, there are a few signs of success recently.

The change in strategy actually involved three major shifts in emphasis. First I changed which medium would command my focus – from novels to plays:

Some time ago I wrote about my shift in strategy aimed at getting my first novel published. The shift was to change which novel to pitch. Happily, I have progress to report.