09th September 2005
Pumpkin, The Halloween Cat
Copyright 2005, Michael LaRocca
The neighbor's car pulled into my driveway. She got out holding a stranger in her arms.
"I found this cat in my yard. Is he yours?"
"No."
"Oh. I thought he was."
"Well, he's not."
...
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07th September 2005
Print On Demand - A Definition and a Comparison
Copyright 2005, Michael LaRocca
The purpose of this article is to consider Print-On-Demand
publishing as an alternative for the aspiring author. It has its
strengths and its weaknesses. You may wonder ...
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07th September 2005
Frosty, The Wandering Vagabond Cat
Copyright 2004, Michael LaRocca
For a long time, we had a four-pet home. Daisy the border collie mix and Bebe the dachshund/doberman mix. Witchie and Taz, the Siamese couple. Pumpkin wandered into this mess for a dis...
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31st August 2005
Daisy - Part One
Copyright 2004, Michael Larocca
One weekend, Lisa and I visited the Humane Society. We looked at their dogs, and had pretty much settled on a beautiful tan mutt, a girl named Rocky. We wanted a girl, in theory less likely to stray.
...
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31st August 2005
Get Rich Writing Fiction
Copyright 2005, Michael LaRocca
Some of us write simply because we can't not write. Ideas grab
us, move us, and demand to be written. We strive to make it as
real as we possibly can, to improve at our craft every day,
hop...
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28th August 2005
Hurricane Cats
Copyright 2005, Michael LaRocca
You like cats, don't you?
Some people don't like cats.
Daddy doesn't like cats. Daddy's best friend, Bill Ball, loves his cats. Their names are Clipper and Keebles.
Clipper and Keebles are large ...
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27th August 2005
How To Break Into Print Publishing
Copyright 2005, Michael LaRocca
The big question. Do you submit directly to the publishers, or do
you find an agent who will do that for you? Based on anecdotal
evidence I've heard, it can work either way. The bo...
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27th August 2005
Dixie Dawg
Copyright 2004, Michael LaRocca
I met Lisa when I was 21 years old. She was 15. Her father took us to their house. Meeting the family cats may not sound like a big deal to you, but it was to Lisa's family. One cat was Siamese. Her name was ...
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27th August 2005
Common Writing Mistakes
Copyright 2005, Michael LaRocca
Most books aren't rejected because the stories are
"bad." They're rejected because they're not "ready to
read." In short, minor stuff like typos, grammar,
spelling, etc.
I don't mean plac...
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27th August 2005
Secret Agent Man
Copyright 2005, Michael LaRocca
Today's mission -- smuggle a contraband calico cat from my flat,
past security and a few hundred tenants. Find a taxi. Explain to
the driver that we're going to the Hong Kong SPCA even though I
don...
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26th August 2005
ABOUT WRITING
Copyright 2005, Michael LaRocca
Here's everything I know about improving your writing,
publishing it electronically and in print, and promoting it
after the sale.
Two questions you should ask:
(1) What will it cost me?
(2) Wha...
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Michael moved to China in December 1999. He edited an English-language educational magazine in Hong Kong, then moved to mainland China and became a teacher. He has worked as a fiction editor for several U.S. publishers via the Internet, and has been involved with the publication of almost 200 novels. He also works as a legal transcriptionist for a Hong Kong firm.
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