Birthdays: Camille Paglia 1947), Emile Zola (1840), Hans Christian Andersen (1805), Scott Lynch (1978), Sue Townsend (1946)

Tip: Action verbs make your work more vivid and interesting. Each action verb paints a specific picture. Go through your manuscript and change weak verbs to strong ones. For instance, if someone is looking at a picture—are they gazing, studying, pondering, or staring at it?

Thought for the day: “Everything you look at can become a fairy tale and you can get a story from everything you touch.” – Hans Christian Andersen

Jumpstart: Finish this: I closed my eyes, held my nose, and took a drink…