Writers 

    Hmmmm well I established this page primarily so that it didn’t get dumped in a category that didn’t really match. I don’t see myself as a great writer (not yet). I have the desire, but the ambition and motivation hasn't manifested itself entirely as of yet.
   I have learned a few interesting things along the way. Number one, in this day and age, we should all be able to write well thanks to software that does all the thinking for us. Sounds incredibly lazy, but so are calculators, cash registers, power tools, and a host of other things that "do it the easy way". Currently as we speak my typing is being monitored by this word processing program, and telling me all of the spelling mistakes I make (according to the American dictionary though). I can then run it through a grammar program to ensure that my grammar is able to satisfy an 8^th grade English teacher. Although my writing literature says, the first rule is to ignore all your 8th grade English teacher taught you.
   Of course a spell checker won’t generate anything actually worth reading, that is my problem.
   I have learned that you can often get the best advice for writing on a subject, from the oddest places. But thus far my best advice is to check out the people at the Writers Digest Book club if you really expect to do any serious writing. Thanks to the Internet, it doesn't matter if you might be a bit removed from mainstream North American publishing sources. Also a college course won’t hurt either (sure paid handsomely for my very successful sports editor older brother), but you can always be self taught quite easily.
    Sometimes it all comes down to inside information. I suggest that anyone expecting to actually get paid to write, not begin without first securing a copy of the Writers Market, something that is released annually. It tells you who wants what and how to deal with them. My library also contains the Canadian Writers Guide (helpful if you are Canadian like me), The Writers Digest Guide to Good Writing, Beginning Writers Answer book, The 28 Biggest Writing Blunders. All of the books mentioned here I bought through the Writers Book club incidentally. And worth their weight in gold.
   I consider it a sad statement that so many people can actually not read, let alone write. This is a true tragedy. Much of societies pain and suffering is only as a result of to many people being fed lies. They are unable to see them as such because they were unable to read the truth for themselves. That is normally the focus of comments when I get around to writing. Annoyingly though, my message will not reach my target, for the simple reason that they can not in fact read it.
   I read Maclean's magazine regularly. I consider it my duty to respond to material when I can. I would urge anyone that wants to put their writing to practical use, use this method as a suitable means of practice. Canadians are often seen as an apathetic lot. It makes me wonder if there is much point to having elections. We are so used to having our opinion handed to us by a more vocal minority opinion. I have yet to have a letter published, but hey, they know I am out there at least. My opinions being typical of me though, our in no way politically correct. I'm not some form of cattle willing to do what I am told just because everyone else is willing to do so.
   I am taking this opportunity once again to plug the works of Carl Sagan. Read Demon Haunted World and Billions and Billions if you are wondering what to write about. After reading those two books, you will have all the material you can handle.