NeoBluePanther

Writing, Among Other Things

Author: NeoBluePanther (Page 32 of 48)

And the Winner is…

May 17, 2008 / / 6 Comments

At the outset, I would like to apologise to all concerned for the delay in announcing the result for the 4,000 Etrecard credits giveaway contest. I was having a difficult time trying to decide a way to choose the winner.

Eventually, I decided to take the traditional route, and printed the name of all the entries on pieces of paper and the result looked something like this :

Before the draw

Then, I got one of my friends to pick one of the slips, and we had our winner.

After the draw

Congratulations Brenda! Your 4,000 Entrecard credits will be in your account soon. 

It was fun having a contest on the Blog, and, I think, I am going to be holding some more contests in the future. I would like to thank everyone for participating this time and I hope that the future contests are as successful as this one was.

4000 Entrecard Credits Giveaway Contest!!!

May 3, 2008 / / 27 Comments

I am sure you know what Entrecard is. If you don’t then, maybe, you should stop reading this post, and do a google search for Entrecard.

But, if you do know about entrecard, and use it, then this post might be of a little interest to you. After using Entrecard for a few days, I have come to the conclusion that I do not have the time, or the patience, to drop  enough Entrecards every day.

So, though I like the idea, I have decided not to use Entrecard as much as I have in the past couple of weeks. And if I am not going to use them, the 4,000 Entrecard credits I have are not of much use to me. Therefore – as seems to be the current fashion – I have decided to hold a contest and give away the 4,000 credits.

Earlier, I was thinking of dividing the credits into smaller portions and distributing them among many people. But, then, I felt that reducing the number of credits, might make the contest less attractive to some. So, the 4,000 credits are going to go to one lucky person ( I hope winninig 4,000 entrecard credits makes you feel lucky enough).

The winner will be chosen by a random draw…and there are three ways to enter the draw:

1) Leaving a comment on this post –  1 entry.

2) Subscribing to the RSS feed via e-mail – 3 entries.

3) Writing a post about the contest on your blog – 7 entries.

The contest is open till the midnight of 13th May, 2008 ( Indian standard time). You can do one, or two, or all three of the above activities, but one activity can be done only once per person.

Since this is the first ever contest of any kind on this blog, I am really looking forward to the response this gets. Best of Luck!

 

Writer's Block – A Myth

April 24, 2008 / / 8 Comments

 Can't Write

Anyone who has ever tried to write is sure to have come across these two words – Writer’s Block!

What is Writer’s Block?

The Free Dictionary defines it as “the inability to write”. But, come to think of it, what exactly does “inability to write” mean?  Does it mean something is wrong with your hands, and you can’t hold a pen or type? Or, you have a brain disorder that prevents you from stringing words together?

I don’t think anyone who has used the words Writer’s Block has used them in the sense implied in questions above. So, if your fingers can type (or write, as the case may be), and your brain can think coherently, what does Writer’s Block mean?

There was a time when I , myself, used to complain about Writer’s Block a lot. Then, I came across this article that said if you want to write, quit complaining and just write. And since then, I have stopped complaining about Writer’s Block and I feel, so should everyone else.

Complaining about Writer’s Block is like walking into your office on a Monday morning, and saying, “I can’t work”. Of course, no one ever says that. What they say, instead, is : ” I don’t feel like working today.”

So, when we – who write – complain about Writer’s Block, we should say , “I don’t want to write,” instead of “I can’t write.” Because if you really want to write, there is no reason you can’t. Don’t you agree?

Do you call yourself a Writer?

April 18, 2008 / / 18 Comments

I have always wanted to be  Writer. Ok! maybe not always. There was a time – long gone by – when I wanted to be a private detective; reading all those Hardy Boys books was bound to have some effect on a young and impressionable mind.

But, off late, the desire to be a writer has burnt strong in my heart. So, I was wondering, what the definition of a  writer is. Here is what the Free dictionary has to say :

“One who writes, especially as an occupation.”

That is a very basic definition, but even in this very basic definition, we have a contradiction.

I blog, therefore, I do write albeit every now and then. But, it is not my occupation, nor is my writing a source of my bread and butter. So am I a writer?

I don’t know.

Does blogging give a person the right to call himself a writer. Or, is there some other condition that a person must fulfill before he earns the tag of a writer. Maybe, having a published work is that condition. But with online publishing becoming so easy (a blog could be called an online publication), we enter into another grey zone.

So, let me ask you : What is your definition of a writer?

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