All posts by NewEngland_Muse

I'm a traditionally and self published author. I write in the genre of children and YA at the moment but working my way up to adults. I'm a sports loving, photo taking gal who loves to sing/dance to my own enjoyment. I love to laugh even at myself. I am also owned by 8 birds and 2 hamsters, and yes they know it. :)
Formula, Reading Levels, SMOG Readability, Writing

SMOG Readability Formula

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Have you ever wondered what age group you write for? Some of the lines blur between children, YA and adults. While some are clear-cut and obvious others are not so much.

There are some clever formulas one can use to calculate your written words to the age group of the readers. One such format is the SMOG Readability Formula. In short it counts 10 consecutive sentences in the beginning, middle and at the end of your story. It counts every word with three or more syllables in the 30 sentences regardless how many time it appears. It adds that total number and then compares it to the SMOG Conversion Table so we can determine what grade level we are writing toward.

There are some rules one needs to remember. A sentence is any string of words that ends in a period, exclamation point or a question mark, Words that have hyphens count as one word. Proper nouns are counted as words. If you have numbers in your story read them out loud to see how many syllables they have. In long sentences that have colons or semicolons followed by a list count each part of the list with the beginning phrase of the sentences as one sentence each. You also should count abbreviations as if they were not. Do not include verbs ending in “ed” or “es” for that will make the word have a third syllable.

This will give the writer a good clue of where their book is geared toward. I have found this particular useful for my writings when the line between the ages are so close together it is hard to determine who to pitch to. There will be some exceptions to the rule. By the time I was in 3rd grade the books being read by me were the ones my sister in high school was reading. You will have kids who are more advanced and will not fit this profile. But for the most part it’s a good starting point

Don’t have time to do all of this? Well it got easier. The link below gives you an opportunity to cut and paste from your story and it will calculate for you where the readability is.

http://www.readabilityformulas.com/free-readability-formula-tests.php

I am so glad these tools exist for us to take advantage off. This gives me one less thing to do which I happily embrace.

Bloggers, Kreative Blogger Award, websites, Writing

Kreativ Blogger Award

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The lovely Kate http://katepolicani.com/ has nominated me for the Kreative Blogger Award. This is my first time and Kate thank you that did put a smile on my face.

The Rules:

1. Thank my nominator and provide a link to their blog

2.List seven things that readers might find interesting about me

3.Nominate seven other bloggers

4.Smile on the inside, it does a body good.

Seven things about me:

1-I am owned by eight birds.

2-I love walking in the rain, for real, but especially in the snow.

3-My favorite genre to read is horror.

4-I am a budding photographer

5-I read my bible daily.

6-I still miss my dad even though we lost him in the 70’s.

7-I hate to be bored.

Seven bloggers:

Tracy http://tracyjamesjones.wordpress.com/2012/05/30/coming-soon-2/

Tiffany http://tiffanyawhite.wordpress.com/2012/05/29/tele-tuesday-pretty-little-liars-is-pretty-fantastic-for-teen-tv/

Susie http://susielindau.com/2012/05/29/date-swap/

Tracey http://traceybaptiste.wordpress.com/2012/05/29/querying-the-two-words-you-need-to-hear/

Nancy http://workingmomadventures.com/2012/05/28/memorial-day/

Emlyn http://www.emlynchand.com/

Dina http://makingbabygrand.com/

Cheers, Community, Kindness, Knows My Name, memories

Where Everybody Knows Your Name

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“Hi Sharon,” greeted Lori as I entered her used and new book store. Returning the sentiment I went to the back. It felt good to be recognized by the store owner. Growing up in a small town where the town population fluctuated between 800-1000 residents it was an adjustment moving to a larger area.  Granted this was just one of many cities I had live in since leaving the comforts of Northern Maine so many years ago. Over the years we have moved numerous times to cities of various sizes. Where I was no exception, my area had over 200K in number.

Having a place like Lori’s that made one feel cozy was nice. Lori always called when James Patterson or Stephen King had a book out. She knew I was their number one fan well in my heart and soul. I would be asked if I wanted a particular book or not, if I did she would hold it for me. There has been times she has called and the money was just not there for me to purchase the book. I would tell her to just put it on the shelf for I was not getting paid for another two weeks. Not a problem would always be her reply as she would place it in the back to wait for me. In the beginning I would tell her that if someone else wanted it to please sell the novel. She is running a business after all. This was something to this day she has never done. If I wanted it , the book would be there waiting for me. I don’t know about you but I am not familiar with any book store holding something for a customer that long. She is a gem for lack of a better word.

The kindness is continued by other shops locally. Being in a military town there is no lack of pawn shops. The one we visit has a layaway plan for 90 days. One of the rules is you must not lose your original ticket. A recent trip found me unable to find this little sheet of paper. Expressing my concern to the lady at the front counter I was informed not to worry. We know you and that you’re a good customer, this will not be an issue. They knew me by face and name and that was sufficient for them.

This kindness continues. The church we attend is not very big as far as membership but it still manages to have three masses during the weekend. Sitting in the same pew for a few years people get accustom to us as they nod and say hello inside and outside the church ground. Learning our names as we celebrate together.

All of the people who interact with me from the examples above will nod and say hello when they see me out in the community. It does a body good. While it is not easy adjusting to change these little experiences help. Adapting and overcoming is the key especially when our family is not near us. It is times like this that make our place in this city a home. I will probably never meet a good portion of the people who filter through the roads and businesses that lace our area. But that’s okay. For the ones I’m coming across are making our surroundings special and giving us lasting memories.