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Conversations with Calliope- Ready to Publish

By Joseph Langen


 

 


(Summer Jetsam)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. Is your company gone yet?
JOE: Yes. They left yesterday. Back to normal this morning.
CALLIOPE: Where does our book stand?
JOE: I thought you might ask. In between visiting and swimming at our friends' pool, I managed to finish the table of contents, index and a few minor revisions.
CALLIOPE: So now what?
JOE: Next is final review of the text to see if I missed anything.
CALLIOPE: And then?
JOE: Then is conversion to PDF format and distribution.
CALLIOPE: How do you plan to go about it?
JOE: I will announce it to my readers who subscribe to my newsletter and also post notices on the websites of communities to which I belong.
CALLIOPE: Do you plan to automate distribution of the e-book.
JOE: Not at first. I will distribute it as an e-mail attachment to those who are interested.
CALLIOPE: What if you have a great response.
JOE: Then I will consider automating it. I thought the personal touch might be better if I can keep up with it.
CALLIOPE: It's nice that you have the time in this day and age of automation.
JOE: I think so too. At least I'll try it. Talk with you tomorrow.

 

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

By Joseph Langen

 

(More Sunset over Lake Erie)

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JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you this morning?
JOE: Struggling to stay calm and focused.
CALLIOPE: How so?
JOE: I received my bound galley of Navigating Life. After discussion I realized I had made some glaring errors in the manuscript.
CALLIOPE: And?
JOE: The bottom line is that I will need to correct them at an extra expense.
CALLIOPE: How did that happen?
JOE: ADHD strikes again. I thought I had that part of me under pretty good control.
CALLIOPE: Doesn't sound like it.
JOE: No it doesn't. I let my excitement about the project and rush to get it into print by Christmas lead to premature submission of the manuscript.
CALLIOPE: Now what?
JOE: I have been working steadily on corrections but taking breaks so as not to become fatigued.
CALLIOPE: How is it coming?
JOE: I think I have them done. I will look over the manuscript one last time to be sure I didn't miss anything. Talk with you on Monday.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

By Joseph Langen

(Sunrise over Leroy, NY)

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JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. Did you sleep in this morning?
JOE: If you consider 6:30 sleeping in, Yes.
CALLIOPE: What have you been up to?
JOE: Yesterday I discovered a site called Internet Career Builders run by Steve Weber with whom I have been familiar for a while. He has quite a bit of information about using the internet for business. I have been pursuing what he has to offer.
CALLIOPE: Did you need more information.
JOE: I think so. I do have my website and blog but have not gotten much response from my efforts so far. I think I need to learn a little more about how to go about internet marketing in a more constructive and organized manner.
CALLIOPE: I hope this site helps.
JOE: So do I.
CALLIOPE: How are the videos coming?
JOE: I did not get to them yesterday with my interest in the new site. I plan to work on them later today after yoga and lunch.
CALLIOPE: Revived and fortified?
JOE: That's my plan. I also have writers meeting tonight where I plan toread a revision of one of my chapters from Marital Property for feedback on my first person approach.
CALLIOPE: Sounds busy.
JOE: Yes. and exciting too. I feel energized today. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

By Joseph Langen

 

(Acrobats- New Orleans)

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JOE: Good afternoon Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good afternoon Joe. I thought I might not see you today.
JOE: Never fear. I got involved in a movie this morning and then a floor project in the utility room.
CALLIOPE: There's always something.
JOE: No doubt about it.
CALLIOPE: What did you do yesterday?
JOE: Mostly worked on Marital Property. I am in the process of reading it aloud to see how it sounds.
CALLIOPE: Then what?
JOE: I'll decide whether it needs more work.
CALLIOPE: What kind of work?
JOE: I need to decided if it's interesting enough for me and then get some feedback.
CALLIOPE: What kind of feedback?
JOE: Another point of view. I will take a chapter or two to my writers' meeting on Tuesday and then have Carol, Bob and possibly others read it.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like you're on the right track. What about the publicity videos.
JOE: I'll get back to them on Monday and continue recording until I feel ready to post. Talk with you then.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

By Joseph Langen

 

(Metropolitan Opera- New York)

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JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Doing well. I have been busy already.
CALLIOPE: Doing what?
JOE: Planning our cellar party for a couple weeks for now, doing AM Yoga with Rodney Yee and my journal. Now I'm here with you.
CALLIOPE: Glad you could fit me in. What did you accomplish yesterday?
JOE: I finished reviewing Gerry's annotated comments on my Marital Property manuscript. I also worked on the videos.
CALLIOPE: What's next on the manuscript?
JOE: I have Gerry's general comments to review again and then go through the manuscript to see how it reads out loud.
CALLIOPE: And the videos?
JOE: I recorded them and reviewed them for style and content. I could see ways where they could be improved.
CALLIOPE: Do you still think you can do them yourself?
JOE: I'm inclined to think so but will reserve judgment for a few more takes.
CALLIOPE: Keep up the good work.
JOE: Thanks for the encouragement. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

By Joseph Langen

 

(Carol examining jewelry)

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JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. What have you been up to?
JOE: I was in Batavia all day yesterday getting my car fixed and helping my son set up a print show as well as photographing his most recent prints.
CALLIOPE: Does that mean you had no time for literary pursuits?
JOE: Unfortunately it does. I guess I can't count on having every day available for writing.
CALLIOPE: I guess you're right. What about today?
JOE: A different story. I plan to get back to work.
CALLIOPE: Doing what specifically?
JOE: Further takes on my promotional videos for one thing.
CALLIOPE: Do you think you can produce acceptable ones on your own?
JOE: Good question. I was just thinking about that. I don't think they need to be highly professional for YouTube or MySpace. If I'm not satisfied I am considering looking for a communications student at Genesee Community College who might be in need of a project.
CALLIOPE: Good thought. Anything else planned?
JOE: I plan to get back to revision of Marital Property and consideration of my friend Gerry's comments which he sent some time ago.
CALLIOPE: How come you have not looked at them yet?
JOE: I wanted to finish my first person oriented draft first. Now it is ready. On with the show. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

By Joseph Langen

 

(Ornamental Grass- Pavilion, NY)

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JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine. I was a little surprised to reach the end of my revision of Marital Property yesterday.
CALLIOPE: Why were you surprised?
JOE: I have been working on it a little at a time but had many interruptions during my move. I can finally sit down for some sustained work and reached the end.
CALLIOPE: Great. What's next?
JOE: I want to review comments my friend Gerry sent me. I was waiting to consider them until I had finished this revision.
CALLIOPE: Glad to hear you are making progress. How about the promotional videos?
JOE: I recorded a couple practice runs. One version is easy to edit. The other version with the better video and sound seems to need some editing with a program I bought but need an access code which eludes me.
CALLIOPE: Do you have the code?
JOE: Somewhere. I think I just need to find it.
CALLIOPE: At least you are making progress on that front as well.
JOE: I am beginning to feel I am getting back into the groove. I also looked up some references for teen stories to include in Commonsense Wisdom for Teens.
CALLIOPE: Great. Keep it up.
JOE: I plan to. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

By Joseph Langen

 


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JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. What's been keeping you?
JOE: I have been working on my camera problem, trying to get it to work with my computer again.
CALLIOPE: And?
JOE: No luck. Just a lot of frustration.
CALLIOPE: What's you next move?
JOE: I plan to talk with the dealer about it.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like a plan. What's going on in the mean time?
JOE: Further work on revising Marital Property to a first person account.
CALLIOPE: How's it going?
JOE: I think I like the results. I had planned to review each part from the point of view of the narrator as I went along.
CALLIOPE: You didn't follow through?
JOE: Not yet. I tried it but decided it was too hard to revise and evaluate at the same time.
CALLIOPE: What's your new plan?
JOE: My new plan is to concentrate on one thing at a time. First I will finish the revisions and then reread the text from the point of view of the various narrators.
CALLIOPE: Sounds good to me.
JOE: Me too. It just takes a long time. Sometimes I get frustrated with the process. But I'll keep on plugging. Back to work. Talk with you tomorrow.
(Niagara Falls)

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

By Joseph Langen


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JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine. I feel rested and energetic.
CALLIOPE: How do you plan to use this energy?
JOE: I have several activities planned involving other people. Still, I have some time for myself. My first priority is to record Are You Afraid of this Book.
CALLIOPE: Please refresh my memory.
JOE: Okay. I think some readers are fearful of The Pastor's Inferno due to its theme and content. Rather than hoping their fears will abate, I thought it might be useful to address them directly.
CALLIOPE: Weren't you working on that over the weekend?
JOE: I was. I completed the outline Sunday but didn't have time to record it yesterday. It seems the summer is busier than I thought it would be.
CALLIOPE: So you plan to do it today?
JOE: Yes. I also learned something interesting yesterday.
CALLIOPE: Which is?
JOE: Larry Shearer wrote a review of Young Man of the Cloth for Amazon. He liked the book but commented that one particular conversation did not sound true to life.
CALLIOPE: So what did you learn?
JOE: That part of the editing process in fiction could be to read passages from the point of view of the narrator or other characters being described. I will be that character for a moment and consider whether the passage describes me accurately. I'll try it today and let you know how it works. See you tomorrow.
(Bailey on the Allegany)

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