The Phantom Stallion

Phantom Stallion E-Newsletter October 2009

Dear Readers,

Next weekend, I'll be spending the weekend with a bunch of other writers at the St. Mary's Art Center in Virginia City, Nevada. This is the finale to our Nevada Mentor Program and while we gather for a great weekend of critique, discussion, and sharing what works and doesn't to keep us writing, I thought I'd share some of what we'll be talking about with you, because I know LOTS of you are interested in writing your own books.

I don't believe in Writer's Block

Now, watch.

Bad fairies will zoom down and smite me. I'm wincing as I check over each shoulder, hoping those silvery things zinging past my window are just hummingbirds, because it's true; I don't believe in writer's block.

I've been trying to figure out why the very mention of WB doesn't give me cold sweats, and I discovered there are strategies hiding in my brain's dark convolutions that I use without thinking.

Besides stripping it of its dignity through calling it WB, I mean.

Of course I've had days (weeks, months...) when I haven't written anything useful, when I've experienced the whiplash realization that I'm just la-de-dah typing away to hear the magic (not) of own words! That's why God made delete buttons and fireplaces.

But, to paraphrase Anne LaMott, author of BIRD BY BIRD,the best book ever about the writing life. The good news is, if you want to write, you get to...

But I do believe in Butterfly Nets

Google brings up 7,700,000 links to WRITER'S BLOCK articles, solutions, etc., so I guess I'd better clarify what I mean by the term. When my child had leukemia, writing wasn't on my to-do lists. For me, that wasn't writer's block, just prioritizing.

That said, I'm a believer in BUTTERFLY NETS as a way to jump-start your brain against WB.

I don't advocate snaring Tiger Swallowtails or Monarchs, but I swoop ideas out of the air and pin them down even if they struggle because ideas, like butterflies, are fleeting and fragile. The best story idea ever imagined can evaporate if -- before you jot it down -- someone surprises you by smacking your car door.

My butterfly nets are usually scraps of paper.

When I taught full time, my blazer pockets were full of ideas jotted on used tardy passes. My grocery lists include phrases like "sound of horse falling in mud" and my family's been warned not to toss out (or be alarmed by)envelopes or index cards covered with conversations which never happened or obituaries of people no one knows. Yet.

For instant use, my favorite butterfly nets is clustering. If you've never heard of clustering, read Gabrielle Rico's WRITING THE NATURAL WAY. It changed my writing life forever. I use it every day to charge up the sense of being there for my readers, and me.

Silence helps me hear my characters' thoughts. You might give it a try if you usually have music playing while you write. In that silence, you might learn things that don't fit in the chapter you've sworn to write that day. You may hear grass swishing TOO LOUDLY as your girl sneaks up on...who? And what if your guy feels a warm weight on his knee as the muzzle of a beloved dog looks up at him. Wait! He doesn't have a dog! He's allergic, so --??? Figuring out what's going on inside your characters' lives away from you is not time wasted.

If you're writing, you're not blocked.

For more writing tips, visit : My Writer's Corner
Writing Fix.com (look to the left and click on Writing Prompts!)

This just in . . .

Many of you want to rescue a wild horse, but you a) don't have the land, b) don't have the money or c)don't know how to persuade your family to allow you to do it.

Still, I know you don't want to look back with regret, saying, "Once there were wild horses and I loved them, but I let them go..."

Every day, others talk to Senators about wild horse legislation, they discover hasty round-ups and tell us about them, negotiate with caring vets, and try to figure out how to help wild stallions that glare through their forelocks, not wanting human help. Now you can help them help wild horses.

The Phantom knows such organizations first hand, and because wild horse angels like YOU deserve recognition, I'm offering gifts to the people who help the people who help the horses! If you followed that, please keep reading!

Chilly Pepper the Miracle Mustang was rescued by my friend Palomino, a volunteer for the Wild Horse Sanctuary, home of the real Phantom. Chilly's fund for mustang orphans will accept any donation, no matter how small, and send you a thank-you postcard from Chilly, featuring her beautiful portrait! You can donate here: MIRACLE MUSTANG fund

The Wild Horse Mentors of Stagecoach, Nevada, have a Lucky Horse Project which saves orphaned, injured and displaced wild horses. You might remember that when the real Phantom's herd was plagued by packs of pet dogs and traffic, he was taken off the range and penned (like he is above). But then, he was cared for by the Wild Horse Preservation league working with the Lucky Horse Project. To see what else they do, follow this link: kbrhorse.net If you'd like to donate, here's how:

I will send the first 15 wild horse angels to donate $15 to either of these causes a free autographed copy of one of my PHANTOM STALLION or WILD HORSE ISLAND books.

I LOVE MY READERS!

Some of you know that I've also written SEVEN TEARS INTO THE SEA, a young adult fantasy. I sent one of my readers a bookmark showing its cover and here she is -- Ka-Yam in Germany!!!

Sam's blog

I don't think Blue Wings hates me, but he hasn't forgotten the last time I rode him. And he hasn't forgiven me for it.

Something dangerous happened and now, well...

Where is Terri Farley?

October 24, 2009
1 - 3 pm
BENEFIT autograph party for Washoe County Libraries
Barnes & Noble
5555 S. Virginia St.
Reno, NV 89502

Seattle, Washington in November
(details to come)

November 3 - Seattle Freelancers meeting
November 4th and 5th - available for school visits
November 5th - evening presentation, Edmonds Community College.
November 7th - autograph party, Barnes and Noble/ Silverdale.
November 8th - King County Library, "Muse on the Run" writing workshop
November 9th - author signing Barnes and Noble, Olympia.
November 10th - Western Washington SCBWI evening event

Saturday, January 30, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Writing Workshop at COWBOY POETRY GATHERING
Western Folklife Center

Authors Terri Farley (the Phantom Stallion and Wild Horse Island series) and Suzanne Morgan Williams (Bull Rider) team up to inspire young writers with their images of the west. In this workshop, students age 10 through high school will develop characters and a plot line from western settings and will leave with a plan for their own story.
For ages 10 - 18.

June 10, 2010
ORLANDO, FLORIDA
SCBWI workshop & available for limited school visits

Buy Phantom Stallion

Terri's books are available as ebooks!

Phantom Stallion books are available at your local bookstore and online at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and Indiebound.org


	Newsletter \| Newsletter Archive
	Phantom Stallion E-Newsletter October 2009 Dear Readers, Next weekend, I'll be spending the weekend with a bunch of other writers at the St. Mary's Art Center in Virginia City, Nevada. This is the finale to our Nevada Mentor Program and while we gather for a great weekend of critique, discussion, and sharing what works and doesn't to keep us writing, I thought I'd share some of what we'll be talking about with you, because I know LOTS of you are interested in writing your own books. I don't believe in Writer's Block Now, watch. Bad fairies will zoom down and smite me. I'm wincing as I check over each shoulder, hoping those silvery things zinging past my window are just hummingbirds, because it's true; I don't believe in writer's block. I've been trying to figure out why the very mention of WB doesn't give me cold sweats, and I discovered there are strategies hiding in my brain's dark convolutions that I use without thinking. Besides stripping it of its dignity through calling it WB, I mean. Of course I've had days (weeks, months...) when I haven't written anything useful, when I've experienced the whiplash realization that I'm just la-de-dah typing away to hear the magic (not) of own words! That's why God made delete buttons and fireplaces. But, to paraphrase Anne LaMott, author of BIRD BY BIRD,the best book ever about the writing life. The good news is, if you want to write, you get to... But I do believe in Butterfly Nets Google brings up 7,700,000 links to WRITER'S BLOCK articles, solutions, etc., so I guess I'd better clarify what I mean by the term. When my child had leukemia, writing wasn't on my to-do lists. For me, that wasn't writer's block, just prioritizing. That said, I'm a believer in BUTTERFLY NETS as a way to jump-start your brain against WB. I don't advocate snaring Tiger Swallowtails or Monarchs, but I swoop ideas out of the air and pin them down even if they struggle because ideas, like butterflies, are fleeting and fragile. The best story idea ever imagined can evaporate if -- before you jot it down -- someone surprises you by smacking your car door. My butterfly nets are usually scraps of paper. When I taught full time, my blazer pockets were full of ideas jotted on used tardy passes. My grocery lists include phrases like "sound of horse falling in mud" and my family's been warned not to toss out (or be alarmed by)envelopes or index cards covered with conversations which never happened or obituaries of people no one knows. Yet. For instant use, my favorite butterfly nets is clustering. If you've never heard of clustering, read Gabrielle Rico's WRITING THE NATURAL WAY. It changed my writing life forever. I use it every day to charge up the sense of being there for my readers, and me. Silence helps me hear my characters' thoughts. You might give it a try if you usually have music playing while you write. In that silence, you might learn things that don't fit in the chapter you've sworn to write that day. You may hear grass swishing TOO LOUDLY as your girl sneaks up on...who? And what if your guy feels a warm weight on his knee as the muzzle of a beloved dog looks up at him. Wait! He doesn't have a dog! He's allergic, so --??? Figuring out what's going on inside your characters' lives away from you is not time wasted. If you're writing, you're not blocked. For more writing tips, visit : My Writer's Corner Writing Fix.com (look to the left and click on Writing Prompts!) This just in . . . Many of you want to rescue a wild horse, but you a) don't have the land, b) don't have the money or c)don't know how to persuade your family to allow you to do it. Still, I know you don't want to look back with regret, saying, "Once there were wild horses and I loved them, but I let them go..." Every day, others talk to Senators about wild horse legislation, they discover hasty round-ups and tell us about them, negotiate with caring vets, and try to figure out how to help wild stallions that glare through their forelocks, not wanting human help. Now you can help them help wild horses. The Phantom knows such organizations first hand, and because wild horse angels like YOU deserve recognition, I'm offering gifts to the people who help the people who help the horses! If you followed that, please keep reading! Chilly Pepper the Miracle Mustang was rescued by my friend Palomino, a volunteer for the Wild Horse Sanctuary, home of the real Phantom. Chilly's fund for mustang orphans will accept any donation, no matter how small, and send you a thank-you postcard from Chilly, featuring her beautiful portrait! You can donate here: MIRACLE MUSTANG fund The Wild Horse Mentors of Stagecoach, Nevada, have a Lucky Horse Project which saves orphaned, injured and displaced wild horses. You might remember that when the real Phantom's herd was plagued by packs of pet dogs and traffic, he was taken off the range and penned (like he is above). But then, he was cared for by the Wild Horse Preservation league working with the Lucky Horse Project. To see what else they do, follow this link: kbrhorse.net If you'd like to donate, here's how: I will send the first 15 wild horse angels to donate $15 to either of these causes a free autographed copy of one of my PHANTOM STALLION or WILD HORSE ISLAND books. I LOVE MY READERS! Some of you know that I've also written SEVEN TEARS INTO THE SEA, a young adult fantasy. I sent one of my readers a bookmark showing its cover and here she is -- Ka-Yam in Germany!!! Sam's blog I don't think Blue Wings hates me, but he hasn't forgotten the last time I rode him. And he hasn't forgiven me for it. Something dangerous happened and now, well... read more Where is Terri Farley? October 24, 2009 1 - 3 pm BENEFIT autograph party for Washoe County Libraries Barnes & Noble 5555 S. Virginia St. Reno, NV 89502 Seattle, Washington in November (details to come) November 3 - Seattle Freelancers meeting November 4th and 5th - available for school visits November 5th - evening presentation, Edmonds Community College. November 7th - autograph party, Barnes and Noble/ Silverdale. November 8th - King County Library, "Muse on the Run" writing workshop November 9th - author signing Barnes and Noble, Olympia. November 10th - Western Washington SCBWI evening event Saturday, January 30, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm Writing Workshop at COWBOY POETRY GATHERING Western Folklife Center Authors Terri Farley (the Phantom Stallion and Wild Horse Island series) and Suzanne Morgan Williams (Bull Rider) team up to inspire young writers with their images of the west. In this workshop, students age 10 through high school will develop characters and a plot line from western settings and will leave with a plan for their own story. For ages 10 - 18. June 10, 2010 ORLANDO, FLORIDA SCBWI workshop & available for limited school visits Buy Phantom Stallion Terri's books are available as ebooks! Phantom Stallion books are available at your local bookstore and online at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and Indiebound.org