Words Matter

Hello Everyone!
"Words matter." This revelation came from the current mayor of Dallas, Texas when he was giving a speech commemorating 50 years since the assassination of JFK. He’s right, words do matter. The words you choose to speak in conversation matter. The words said in anger matter. And the words written down matter the most of all. That’s because readers can go back to them time and time again and those words won’t change. The tricky thing with words on paper is that they can be interpreted in so many different ways because on paper or in an email you miss the body language of the speaker. For a book of fiction, that’s ok. It’s the reader’s imagination that will create the entertainment, but the words they read guide them through the story in their own way.

While it’s great for fiction, it’s not so great when you’re promoting your business and / or product. The reality of the words I speak and write came back to slap me in the face on Friday. Gary and I went to a workshop on marketing and that’s where I discovered I’ve been using words that were unclear and open to interpretation. I am enormously proud of the fact that authors from all over the world submit their stories to us and get published. In my enthusiasm to relay this fact, I’ve given the impression that this is a magazine to appeal to authors – actually not a magazine – but a book. I love the fact that authors read this magazine and enjoy it. I’ve received all sorts of compliments on behalf of the authors that have been published so I know that these are good quality stories.

The market I’m looking for are the readers of the world. These are men and women who have busy lives - their careers, family and any other interests. They are the ones that don’t have time to devote to a full length novel but still need that escape – if only for a few minutes during the day.

This magazine is available throughout the world at a reasonable cost so that anyone anywhere can buy a copy. The app for Ficta Fabula has been downloaded in Pakistan and China (as well as Western Countries) and this fact tells me that people everywhere are looking for a distraction. A good read is often that distraction.

　
Everyone needs an escape from their lives – that’s what fiction is there for. That’s the responsibility of authors of fiction stories. The challenge is to write something that has a compelling story line as well as interesting characters – all in fewer than 5,000 words. It’s no easy task you authors have because readers of fiction have a lot of options. But it can be so rewarding.

I’ve always believed that good fiction can inspire creativity and imagination, and that’s what I want to do with Ficta Fabula and Pages Of Stories Publishing. Because fiction isn’t held back by the rules of the real world , anything can happen. When Gene Roddenberry had Captain Kirk talk to Enterprise on his communicator in the 1960’s Star Trek TV Series – I don’t think anyone realized that 40 years later that would be a reality with flip phones.

Gene Roddenberry’s imagination didn’t end there. It was shocking to see a woman in a significant role with Lieutenant Uhura as the Communications officer on the Enterprise. Of course the shock was not just her role but the fact that she was African American at a time when the U.S. was transitioning to a non segregationist society. I’m going to overlook the fact that her costume showed more leg than it covered – that’s a subject for another day. Since then we’ve had a number of women in leadership roles although the percentage is still far too low. While Great Britain has had women leaders in the past – those were Queens born to the role; Margaret Thatcher was the first woman to become a leader of a Western nation. Since then there have been more and more women running countries, businesses, and holding other highly influential political positions.

Because someone put the idea out there, it sparked the imagination of others. If even the most far out crazy ideas aren’t put forward, then we won’t know what we can do next. All great inventions started with someone with an idea and you never know where that idea comes from.

So, do words matter? You bet they matter. Words can help people enjoy their day just that little bit more; words can inspire people to make goals they never thought possible; words can hurt and words can soothe; and words can educate. My goal is simple – I want to help people enjoy their day and get a few minutes of pleasure by reading a really good story.

If you would like to read the rest of the newsletter and learn about some upcoming and exciting projects then send an email to info@pagesofstories.com. Or you can go to our website at www.pagesofstories.com.

Take care and happy reading!

Darlene Poier
Publisher
Ficta Fabula Magazine

In Flanders Field

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.       

John McCrae

---Thank you to all those that have given so much of themselves so that we can enjoy the freedoms that we have.