Take My Publisher, Please!

Take My Publisher, Please!
by: Ed Williams


An actual phone conversation I had earlier today....

“Hello, is this Ed?”

“Uh, yes it is.”

“Ed Williams, the writer guy?”

“Uh, yeah, Ed Williams the writer guy.”

“How are you? My name is Sam Filbert, and I’m a big fan.”

“Hey Sam, it’s nice to meet you, what can I do for you?”

“It’s really you, isn’t it?”

“Yeah Sam, last time me and my mirror met, it was me.”

“What? Oh, okay! I see what you’re meaning. That could even be funny, you know. Did you mean for it to be?”

“Just horsin‘ around. What can I do for you?”

“I was given your name and number by your dad, Fred Williams, Jr. He seems like a really nice guy. We talked for a long time, and then he gave me your phone number so that I could call you. What a great guy!”

“Great isn‘t even close to how I‘d describe him right now, Sam. Old Fred is quite a guy, and then some. Now look, I have some work I have to get done, and I know you didn’t call just to tell me just how much you like sweet old Fred. What can I do for you?”

“Ed, I wanted to know if you’d like to help America’s next humor writing superstar!”

“Well, tell me the name of the person and what they’ve done, and then we can talk more.”

“Ed, with all due respect, I’m talkin’ about myself!”

“Sam, you write?”

“I sure do, Ed. Let me tell you a little about what I’ve written. For the last six months I’ve written something every day, in fact, I write at least two pages each day no matter what!”

“Sam, that’s very impressive. What kind of stuff do you write?”

“Well, I love to write stories about growing up in a small Southern town. I grew up in Shady Dale, Georgia, so my manuscript is a bunch of funny stories about all the crazy things we did when I was growing up there.”

“That’s great, Sam, I give you a lot of credit for being persistent enough to complete an entire manuscript. That’s quite an accomplishment. What’s next for you?”

“That’s where you come in, Ed.”

“That’s where I come in? What’re you talking about?”

“Ed, look. I know getting a book published is hard. Real hard. And I’m sitting here with all these great stories about growing up in Shady Dale - I have no doubt that they’ll be popular and sell tons of books. That’s where you come in, and that’s where you can help me. You can get me in front of a publisher in no time, and then I’ll convince them that they need to publish my book!”

“I can do that? How?”

“Just introduce me to the people over at River City Publishing, your publisher. I’ll take it from there. Once they see my stories, I guarantee you they’ll want to do a book.”

“Ummmmm, Sam, I don’t quite know quite how to say this, but my own stuff happens to be “growing up in the country” stories set in Juliette. If I bring River City your stories, which also seem to be “growing up in the country” stories set in Shady Dale, then I’m competing with myself. And that’s a not a very smart thing for me to do.”

“Ed, you’re being a little selfish here, aren’t you? I know my stories are better, but I’ll bet you could still find someone to continue publishing yours. River City is just one publisher, I’ll sure you could find another one.”

“Exactly, Sam, which is why you should take the initiative and go out and find your own publisher. I wish you the best in your search.”

“You’re not gonna help me? Don’t you think you’re being a little selfish here, Ed?”

“No, Sam, I don‘t. I wish you the best of luck.”

“Man, this isn’t how your dad Fred said it would go. I trusted him, especially after reading so much about him. Mr. Fred said you like helping new writers, and here I am asking you for help, and you don’t wanna help me.”

“Sam, tell you what, I’ll make a deal with you. I’ll help you out with River City if you’ll go out first and find me another publisher. Then we’d be even, you’ll have a publisher and I’ll have a publisher. Whatcha think?”

“I gotta run, Ed. The wife is hollering for me. Tell Fred hello!”

*click*........................

About The Author

Ed’s latest book, “Rough As A Cob,“ can be ordered by calling River City Publishing toll-free at: 877-408-7078. He’s also a popular after dinner speaker, and his column runs in a number of Southeastern publications. You can contact him via email at: ed3@ed-williams.com, or through his web site address at: www.ed-williams.com. >>Read more...

12 Ways to Research a Historical Novel

12 Ways to Research a Historical Novel
by: Ann Roscopf Allen


Whether you are fictionalizing historical events or making up your own story, attention to detail can determine whether your novel is credible to history buffs or if they’ll give it a pass.

1. Read about the general history of the locale where your story is set, so you have some context for your story.

2. If at all possible, visit the locale. Carefully observe details: types of foliage, local seasonal changes, weather conditions, architecture, perspectives. You may see interesting and important details that you wouldn’t know to make up. Also, make note of what’s not there; sometimes this is as important as what is there.

3. Visit local museums. They can be a wealth of information about the daily life of an era.

4. Explore old cemeteries, especially those where the models for your characters are buried. Take note of common names used in that area and era.

5. Research old newspapers. If you don’t live in the area, you can usually hire a researcher through the local public library or use inter-library loan. In addition to basic information about your story, you can get a sense of the language used at the time, other contemporaneous events, even products that were available.

6. Seek out and talk to knowledgeable people. The local librarian can help you find historical societies or amateur historians. Networking can be an essential part of your research strategy since not everything is written down somewhere, especially legends, myths, anecdotes, even the location of other written sources, such as letters and diaries.

7. Consider searching for any legal documents related to your story. Old deeds, contracts, and wills are likely to be filled with more unusual information than current boilerplate legal forms. Legal research can be tricky, but historically minded lawyers may be willing to help you out.

8. Take a look at the fiction written at the time your story is set. Often this proves to be a good source of details about the time period and even the locale.

9. Don’t ignore the footnotes. If you find a book related to your subject, don’t limit your reading to the body of the book. Endnotes, epilogues, indexes, and other appendices can contain a great deal of useful information.

10. Consider specialized data bases and sources. War records, genealogical information, and the census can reveal worthwhile information. This type of resource is often available through university libraries or research centers.

11. Buy some good reference books: a dictionary of slang or phrase origins to make sure you don’t use anachronistic language; a writer’s encyclopedia or other general reference of historical lists, dates of inventions, timelines; an unabridged dictionary; a thesaurus. Building your own reference library is a smart idea for any writer.

12. Use the Internet to its full advantage. Although reference books are often a quicker way to find information, the Internet can be more thorough, if you have the time to search. If you need to know something truly esoteric, place a post on the message board of a relevant website. But if you limit your research to the Internet alone, you are truly limiting yourself. Old newspaper archives, photographs, details of a particular locale may not be readily available online.

Because you’ll use probably only a fraction of the information you uncover in your research, you have to decide which details are worth the time to research and which are not. Regardless, the more you know, the more comfortable you’ll feel writing about a different time. Your novel will be more engaging and credible with artfully placed and historically accurate information.

About The Author

Ann Roscopf Allen is a college writing instructor and the author of the historical novel A Serpent Cherished, based on the true story of an 1891 Memphis murder. Visit her website at http://www.aserpentcherished.com/pages/1/index.htm.

info@aserpentcherished.com >>Read more...

Wake Up Your Writing Spirit

Wake Up Your Writing Spirit
by: Shelley Wake


The Blogfest 2005 Writing Contest has only been running for two weeks and already the results are overwhelming. And not because we’re getting far more entries than we expected. It’s because along with entries, we’re also getting heartfelt messages from writers all over the world. I’ve run a few contests before and received quite a few entries, but I’ve never been personally emailed and thanked by so many writers.

What’s the difference with this contest? I think the main reason is that the idea actually came from writers. Even though the writers at our company work in publishing, they find it a little sad that there’s so much focus on writing what can sell instead of writing what truly matters to you. They wanted a contest that would allow people to write whatever they wanted to write.

From that idea came Blogfest, a contest designed to encourage all writers to get the project of their dreams done. Unlike most contests, we decided not to offer publication and not to pay the prize for a completed work. Instead, we decided to offer the prizes based on how much the writing project means to the writer. This is one contest that isn’t about whether or not your work can sell or about what your writing will mean to someone else. It’s about what it means to you.

To enter, we asked writers to tell us about the one thing they’ve always wanted to write and to tell us what it would mean to them to write it. Now, after only two weeks, we have an inbox full of emails from people. Entries so far have included grandparents wanting to write their life story for their grandchildren, aspiring novelists, professional writers looking for the chance to write something for themselves and not for money, and a young woman wanting to capture and preserve her mother’s family recipes.

These people have entered and then sent us an extra email just to thank us for the opportunity. They’ve told us how just writing about the project has made them so excited and full of joy. They have enthusiasm and feel delight just for thinking about finally writing. And we’ve started reading the entries and the joy is there too. As a publisher, I’m used to reading submissions and contest entries. It’s often a joy but there’s rarely as much life as there is in these submissions. Reading them, I can feel that people have that spark of excitement that is only motivated by something much greater than money or even publication. It’s the joy of doing what your heart’s always wanted to do.

There is more to writing than publication and money and this competition is bringing out the real spirit of writing.

My message to all writers is to think about what matters to them. Think about that one thing you’ve always dreamed of writing. I challenge you to write down what completing that project would mean to you. If you feel that spark, I challenge you to commit to your project and get it written. Not because you can make money from it, but because it means something to you.

This contest has made me see more clearly than ever that there is far more to writing than making money. There will only be a few winners to Blogfest, and choosing them is going to be the toughest job we do all year. But I hope this idea can reach further than that. I hope all writers will listen to their hearts and complete their projects. I hope that just thinking about actually doing it will wake up that writing spirit that is in so many people.

About The Author

Shelley Wake is one of the organizers of Blogfest 2005 and the manager and editor of Writing Stuff. http://www.writingstuff.com. >>Read more...

Break in with Fillers: The Best Market for New Writers

Break in with Fillers: The Best Market for New Writers
by: Shelley Wake


Interested in breaking into writing or breaking into a new area? You can't go past writing fillers. Fillers are one of the most overlooked opportunities in the freelance writing world and offer one of the best opportunities for new writers.

Fillers Are In Demand

I've spoken to hundreds of editors and been told over and over again that fillers are the one thing they never get enough of. Most publications tend to publish more freelance fillers than they do freelance articles. Yet, they often receive 100 times more articles than fillers. This is a gap in the freelance market that you can take advantage of.

Fillers are a Great Place to Get Started

Many publications are careful about publishing feature articles from writers they don't know. Even if your article is good, an editor might decide not to publish you because they don't know you as a writer. This is especially true if you don't have a lot of experience or any clips. But even without experience or clips, most editors will consider a filler. In fact, many editors treat writing fillers as the testing ground to see if a writer can be relied on to write feature articles.

Here's what one editor had to say about fillers:

"One of the best ways to break in is to write fillers. It gives me a chance to start to build a relationship with a writer and see that I can trust them. Of all the freelancers I work with, over half started out writing fillers." - Margaret, Magazine Editor

So not only can writing fillers get you some clips, it also has the potential to turn into a long-term writing opportunity. Consider fillers a stepping stone to much bigger things.

The Smart Way to Write on Spec

Fillers are almost always submitted on spec. This means that you avoid the problem of having to query the publication and sell yourself as a writer, because your filler is doing the work for you and showing the editor your writing skill.

The big argument against writing on spec is that you spend your time writing pieces that might never sell. Fillers reduce this problem because they are short and take less time to write. So even if your filler doesn't sell, you haven't wasted as much time as you would have on a longer feature article. Fillers are also more flexible, with few publications having set guidelines for fillers. This means that a filler will often be suitable for more than market. So if it gets rejected once, it's not a waste of time. You can just send it to a new market, often without having to make any changes.

Fillers Rely on Information, Not Writer Qualifications

Fillers usually rely on information, not on the writer's qualifications. This means that you don't have to sell yourself when you submit fillers. Instead, the information you put in the filler sells it for you. This makes fillers a perfect option for writers lacking the experience or clips to sell themselves to an editor.

You Can Write a Lot of Them

Since fillers are short, you can write a lot of them and submit a lot of them. You could literally have hundreds of pieces out in the market for consideration in a short time. And if you write them well, you could have a lot of them published in a very short time. That means you can build a list of clips fast.

And one other benefit is that magazines don't have as limited a space for fillers as they do for feature articles. So if your filler gets accepted, it's likely to get published fast. The same isn't true for feature articles, where an accepted article will often be scheduled for an issue a year or two away. That's one more good reason why fillers are a great way to build clips fast.

Once you've got the clips, then you have a few more options. Until then, fillers are a great place to start.

And one final tip. Once you have the clips and start moving into feature articles, don't forget about fillers. As you're researching a feature, take note of interesting facts, trivia, or anecdotes you come across. These can make fillers and be an added bonus, bringing in some extra cash and some extra clips.

About The Author

Shelley Wake is the editor of "Getting Published Without Clips." Packed with inside information, proven methods, hidden markets, and more, it's successfully launched hundreds of freelance careers in record time.

http://www.writingstuff.com/fr02m.htm >>Read more...

Basic Writing Tips – Some Controversial, All Correct

Basic Writing Tips – Some Controversial, All Correct
by: David Clapham


As a previous article (“Making Better Word Choices – 4 Examples”) explained, writers can take steps to prevent simple, and common, errors from degrading their writing. Five areas of writing that cause authors problems are discussed in this article.

Split Infinitives

First let us exam the famously frowned upon split infinitive. Maybe some readers do not know, or do not remember, what a split infinitive is exactly. To understand split infinitives, readers must first remember what constitutes an infinitive. An infinitive is a phrase that includes a verb preceded by the word “to,” such as, “to play” or “to investigate.” Now that we know what an infinitive is, maybe we now remember our English teachers lecturing us against “splitting” them. Simply put, a split infinitive is when a writer puts a word between the word “to” and the associated verb. Therefore, a split infinitive would look something like the following examples:

He was going to quickly investigate the theft.

Tommy likes to neatly color in his book.

These two examples would be re-written as shown below.

He was going to investigate the theft quickly.

OR

He was quickly going to investigate the theft.

Tommy likes to color neatly in his book.

OR

Tommy likes to color in his book neatly.

Splitting infinitives is not criticized to the degree it has been in the past. As many reputable sources explain, occasionally splitting an infinitive is acceptable. Even some progressive English teachers will agree with this idea. Compact Oxford Online Dictionary explains that the rule for not splitting infinitives was based on an analogy to Latin, a language that writes infinitives as one word, such as bibere ‘to drink.’ The decision to argue with an English teacher about the acceptance of splitting infinitives is your decision to make. As Oxford states, “…in standard English the use of split infinitives is broadly accepted as both normal and useful.1” If you do decide to argue with an English teacher, feel free to point out that people such as John Donne, William Wordsworth, and Benjamin Franklin split infinitives at will. The larger problem occurs when a writer consistently splits their infinitives. If splitting the infinitive helps with emphasis or the statem!

ent flows better go ahead and split the infinitive.

Superlatives and Comparatives

Writers should also strive to use superlatives and comparatives correctly. Some cases of incorrect use may sound okay, but if the author remembers the rules that they learned for using superlatives and comparatives they will realize that they have made the error. For example when a sentence is written as below it sounds correct, but it is not.

One of the most common mistakes a cook makes is not using fresh ingredients.

In this example, the lack of fresh ingredients is either a common mistake or it is the most common mistake; there generally cannot be two, or more, most common mistakes. A case where there can be two “mosts” is in an exact tie. For example, if 20 mistakes are made and two of them occur six times each (making up 12 of the 20 mistakes) and the remaining eight mistakes are all different, then the two mistakes that occurred six times each could be labeled as the most common mistakes.

The sentence below shows another way that a comparative can be written incorrectly.

Of the three dogs, the bulldog was the smaller.

To use a comparative there needs to be something compared to something else. The bulldog either was the smallest of the three dogs or was smaller than another dog in the group. Both sentences below are written correctly.

The bulldog was smaller than the German shepherd and the St. Bernard.

The bulldog was the smallest of the three dogs.

A third sentence, shown below would also be correct.

The bulldog was smaller than the other two dogs.

This is written correctly because the bulldog is compared to a pair. It is clear from the sentence that the other two dogs, by being grouped together, are larger than the bulldog.

Comma Use

The use of commas can be confusing for many writers. Three rules for using commas are addressed here. The first rule involves comma use when a series is given, such as in the example below.

I bought carrots, peas, and watermelons.

Some readers may consider this rule controversial; some teachers and editors may say the final comma is not necessary, in my opinion the use of the final comma is more appropriate than not. If, for some reason, your teacher or editor tells you the final comma is unnecessary then ask them to explain why, I do not have an explanation as to why some have a preference for not using the final comma.

Do not use a comma when only two items are in the series, such as in the sentence below.

I saw birds and fish at the pet store.

The second rule for use of commas is to use a comma before the “and” when a wholly correct clause is introduced. The way to determine if the clause is wholly correct is to ask if it makes sense on its own, such as having its own subject(s) and verb(s). The example below shows two clauses separated by “and,” along with a correctly used comma.

We went to the store, and Joan bought some juice.

The third rule is an extension of the second rule; do not use a comma to separate a sentence from text that could not be a complete clause on its own. The example below shows an incorrect use of a comma in this situation.

We are going home, and sleep.

The ending of the example sentence (“…and sleep”) is not a complete sentence on its own, therefore, a comma should not be used before “and.”

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Completely spell out acronyms and abbreviations the first time they are used. Once a writer decides to use an acronym or abbreviation they should be used throughout the remainder of the text, switching back and forth between the full spelling and the acronym or abbreviation should be avoided.

Using “etc.,” “i.e.,” and “e.g.”

The final rules discussed in this article involve the use of several common abbreviations. The first abbreviation is “etc.” This comes from Latin and is an abbreviation for et cetera, which means “and others.” First, make sure that a period is included at the end; second, make sure that the “others” have been specified previously. A final note on this abbreviation, if it is used put the letters in the correct order; “ect.” is not correct.

The second abbreviation often misused is “i.e.” Also from Latin, this is a shortened form of id est which means “that is.” When used correctly this abbreviation indicates an alternative way of stating something. The most common error when using “i.e.” is not following it with a comma; there should be two periods and a comma in this abbreviation.

The final abbreviation discussed in this article is “e.g.” Again, this is an abbreviation for a Latin phrase, “exempla gratia.” This is used when the writer means “for example” or “for instance.” Some people believe that “e.g.” stands for example given, this is not true, but it can be a helpful way to remember that it does have something to do with an example. Similar to the use of “i.e.” many writers forget to put a comma after the second period in “e.g.” Below are three correct examples of these abbreviations.

Bob bought a whole bunch of office supplies, pens, pencils, staples, paper, highlighters, and erasers on his way home. He purchased so many things that when he got home he realized that he had forgotten a bag at the store. He had his pens and pencils, but the staples etc. were still at the store.

John is a big person, i.e., he is over six feet tall.

The black horse is fast, e.g., it has won all of its races.

By using the rules above your writing will make more sense and will be correct. Future articles will address other writing errors and provide additional advice.

1 Compact Oxford Online Dictionary. 25 January 2005. http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/splitinfinitive

About The Author

David Clapham is the owner of Blue Arch Consulting, a proofreading and editing business helping clients worldwide to generate English documents of all types. Their website is at http://www.blue-arch.net. >>Read more...

Are You Achieving Your Writing Goals?

Are You Achieving Your Writing Goals?
by: Mridu Khullar


At the start of this new year, like at the start of every other new year, I came across dozens of articles about the importance of setting achievable goals, challenging myself to do new things and fixing measurable standards and working towards them.

But what happens when you mess up the goals from last year? Where’s the real advice about missed deadlines and lost goals that all but kill the inspiration to come up with new ones? I didn’t achieve three out of the ten goals I had set for myself last year, even though I was obsessive-compulsive about looking at them each day and measuring my performance regularly. I’m tempted to say that life got in the way or blame the shift in priorities that happened mid-year. But these are things that can and will happen each year. Instead of putting your life on hold the year when the strains and stresses get too much, plan your goals accordingly right at the beginning.

If you didn’t meet some of your goals last year, here are some questions that you need to answer honestly, so that you do this time around.

Are you actively pursuing your targets?

It doesn’t work just to look at your goals each morning and then do nothing about them. Sure, that’s a good start and it means you’re conscious of where you are in your career, but if you want to move further, you need to create an action plan. Instead of just making yearly goals, make monthly, weekly, even daily ones and then try and meet them.

Also important is to work towards what you want to achieve step by step. One of my goals last year was to get published in Reader’s Digest. Guess how many query letters I sent them?

Two.

You’re laughing, aren’t you? I’m cringing. That’s because I know that two queries just doesn’t hack it if you’re targeting such a high-level publication. Two queries wasn’t even enough to get into my local newspaper; how’s it going to land me a national assignment? If I had been serious about getting into RD, I would have read every issue, sent a query each month and built a personal relationship with the editor. Yet, I did none of those things. Not surprisingly, my goal remained unfinished at the end of the year.

Are you being honest with yourself?

In my first year of freelancing, I earned over a 100 published credits. That’s because my aim was to reach this number, without caring about the money that came in. That meant that I wrote for low-paying publications, publications that paid in kind instead of cash, and on topics that I had absolutely no interest in. The next year, I shifted my focus to cracking the nationals and making a decent income from my work. But here’s where I went wrong: I assumed that since I had already proven that I could write a 100 articles in a year, I’d be able to do a repeat performance. But national magazines require much more research, very specialized queries, and a great deal of more effort per article. So while my goals of getting into national magazines and increasing my income were met, my goal of getting another 100 credits wasn’t.

Are the goals really yours?

I think almost all of us get sucked into aping the tactics of someone we admire at one point or the other. The thought process then works something like this: If she could write two children’s books, pen twenty greeting cards, author three non-fiction titles and syndicate a humor column in her third year of freelancing, why can’t I? Never mind that I’m not really that into children’s writing and I haven’t said anything remotely funny since I was 10.

I’m ashamed to admit that I’ve been guilty of doing the above. It’s easy to look at goals of other writers and think, “She’s got so many goals for the year and I’ve got only five. Let me increase mine, too.” But “she” doesn’t have your life, and you don’t have hers. So set goals that are appropriate for your career and your ambitions, not hers.

What’s your life like?

If you’re a new mom, don’t expect to be able to work 80-hour weeks like you did before you gave birth. If you have a full-time job, don’t try to take on same-day deadline assignments. You need to set goals that are suitable to your life, your speed and your talent, no matter what anyone else may do or say.

It’s also important to incorporate life changes into your goal-setting. I lost two grandparents this year, which not only forced me to take a physical vacation from work, but an emotional one as well. I needed to give myself time to heal in order to get back to work refreshed and with new vigor. If you’re going through stressful times, don’t expect yourself to be as productive as say, when you’re having a great year. Cut down on your goal list a little and be easy on yourself. Making yourself work too hard when you’re not physically or emotionally ready to, will not help you meet your goals; instead it’ll detract you from them.

Are you confusing your long-term and short-term goals?

Writing a novel is my long-term goal. A “someday.” But I’m not there yet. And I know I’m not going to be able to work on my dream novel this year, next year or maybe even the one after that. If I do, I’ll be taking time away from the non-fiction work that pays the bills and for the next couple of years, I can’t afford to do that. Putting “write a novel” on my list of goals for the year isn’t going to make me feel too good about myself, especially as this goal gets carried forward year after year. Instead, I’m putting it on my “to do before I’m 30” list. That way, it’s not too near, and it’s not so far away that it becomes a distant dream instead of reality.

Once I’ve cracked a good number of national magazines, finished and published a couple of non-fiction books and can afford to take time away from non-fiction, I can consider taking a risk with fiction.

Are you keeping track?

The biggest problem I face right now is keeping track of where all the time went. While to an outsider it may seem like I’m working almost all the time, the truth is, I waste a lot of time on e-mail, reading newsletters, networking with fellow writers and well, checking e-mail.

To counter this problem, I started keeping a daily journal to keep track of where my writing time was really going. My productivity’s almost doubled since I started doing this. Keeping an hour-to-hour or even a daily tab of what I’d achieved for that day kept me accountable and ready to tackle the next important task on my list, rather than checking e-mail one more time. And if an entry for a particular day reads, “Revised article for Wedding Dresses, conducted research on a new idea,” I’d immediately know that I needed to increase my productivity, and by how much. Sure, checking e-mail is work too, but it’s not bringing in any money. So I make it secondary work and answer incoming mails only once a day, unless they need urgent attention.

Are your priorities straight?

Which brings me to my next point. Set your priorities right and work top to bottom. A technique that works for many people is to make a daily list of things that need to be done. Then, in the order of priority, tackle them one by one, striking them off the list. At the end of the day, even if you have some work unattended to, it can easily be transferred to the next day’s list, since it’ll be at the lowest priority.

Do you have a fixed schedule?

I still struggle with this one, but each time I’m able to set a schedule for myself, I find that I’m happier, more energetic and much more productive. Getting up at six in the morning one day, not sleeping for another two days and then getting a whole lot of slumber on and off for the next three days eats into your energy and taxes your brain much more than it should. It also becomes a cause for unnecessary delays and interruptions. Instead of surrendering to your muse whenever it shows up, program your body to work for a fixed time each day. Your brain will automatically recognize that as time to work and get on the job. Make your routine consistent. When our body gets used to doing something at a particular time, we’re able to do with ease. So if you’ve decided to write five pages each morning before the kids get up, make sure to do it.

Answer these questions honestly and get to work on these techniques. You’ll find all your goals ticked off your list by the end of this year.

About The Author

Mridu Khullar is a full-time freelance writer and the editor-in-chief of www.WritersCrossing.com. Sign-up for her *free* 12-day e-course "Write Query Letters That Sell" at http://www.writerscrossing.com/ecourses.html. >>Read more...

Six Tips for Submitting Fiction

Six Tips for Submitting Fiction
by: Amber McNaught


You can learn a lot about what it takes to place a story in an ezine by starting up one of your own.

Last month we started work on a new ezine for writers, which we intended to use to publish high-quality, contemporary fiction, from writers all over the world. We placed a few adverts asking for submissions of just that. What we got was a revelation.

As a writer myself, I know how competitive the market is. Even non-paying markets are deluged by wannabe writers desperate for a by-line and some publicity. Competition, I had thought, would surely lead to a high quality of submissions, with every writer determined to submit only their very best work. Not so.

Of the handful of submissions we received the day after the adverts went out, only around four were fiction. One was a “how to write” style article. One was an essay on “the day my gran died”. Two were stories about vampires. One guy just sent us his CV – in Arabic.

Lesson one, then: read the guidelines carefully. If the market you’re aiming at publishes fiction, then no matter how brilliant your essay or article is, it’s not going to be accepted. Neither is your CV….

Lesson two, I hardly even need mention: If the publication is in English, don’t send your submission in Arabic, on the off-chance that the poor, beleaguered publisher will understand it. Simple.

Having deleted the non-fiction submissions, I moved onto the “good stuff”. Or so I thought. Of the four remaining pieces of writing, none had been proofread too carefully. One story made reference to a businessman “clenching the deal.” One made frequent use of the word “teh" and had apparently random. Punctuation. A bit like. This. The other two were … stories about vampires.

Lesson three: Proofread. Or, ideally, get someone else to do it for you. Any writer knows that once you’ve worked on a piece of writing, you become blind to its mistakes. You can “proof” it as many times as you like, but you’ll still just see what you think is there, rather than what actually is there. In any artistic endeavour, a fresh pair of eyes is essential in providing a little bit of clarity and perspective. For this reason, I present:

Lesson four: constructive criticism is your friend. There are a lot of aspiring writers our there. Get together with one, even if it’s only by email, and swap stories with them. Chances are they’ll be able to point out something about your story that you’ve missed. They may have some knowledge about your subject matter that you lack – for example, the fact that it’s called a “bass” guitar, not a “base guitar”, as one enlightening submission had it.

Finally, a quick note about bio’s. When you send your work to an ezine, of course you want a little something in return – other than cold hard cash. You’re looking for publicity, and your author bio is the ideal way to do it. Keep it simple, though. Of all of the submissions we’ve received so far, the one that sticks out the most is the one from the author with the most impressive credentials of the lot. So impressive, in fact, that her bio ran on for four A4 pages.

The problem was, her work stood out for the wrong reasons. She had certainly been published in a lot of magazines (I know, because she’d listed every single one of them) and won a huge amount of competitions (yep, she’d listed all of those too. Every one of them.) , but by the time I’d waded through all of the story titles, publication dates and other non-essential info, I was heartily tired of her. Her bio was four pages long: her story only two. When that happens, you know you’ve gone into overkill.

Essentially, too, after such a tremendous build-up, I was expecting something utterly spectacular which her writing failed to deliver. It seemed almost as if she was trying to use her bio to persuade me to publish her – the story was just an afterthought.

Lesson five: let your writing do the talking. When it comes to biographical info, less is more. I want to read your story, not a breath-by-breath account of the last twenty years of your life. Keep it simple, keep it short.

And lesson number six? Well, if you’re thinking of submitting your writing to a publisher, consider submitting it to us, first – the Hot Igloo proofreading service, at www.hotigloo.co.uk/proofreading.htm

About The Author

Amber McNaught is a proofreader, writer and editor, as well as co-owner of website development firm Hot Igloo Productions. Read more articles like this by subscribing to the Hot Igloo Newsletter at www.hotigloo.co.uk/newsletter.htm

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Cookbook Publishing - The Basic Ingredients and the Secrets to Success

Cookbook Publishing - The Basic Ingredients and the Secrets to Success
by: Denise Hamilton


You are about to embark on the most exciting enterprise of your life -- publishing a cook book! You will soon learn that writing a cook book is truly a fun, exciting and challenging project – more than you can imagine. Like me, you can publish your own wildly successful cook book. And if you ask me if I think publishing a cook book is worth the time and effort? You bet I do!

My cook book, Fit to Cook – Why ‘Waist’ Time in the Kitchen? sold over 250,000 copies (with, I might add, less than 10% of those sales coming from book stores). However, I wasted a great deal of time, back-tracking and scrambling in order to sell all those books because in the beginning I did not have a complete grasp of the publishing industry and the process of marketing a cook book.

Before you rack your brain figuring out how to write a cook book, and more importantly, how to publish a cook book, take some time to thoroughly research the why and what you are writing about, who you are writing for and when is the best time to launch your book.

Whether you want to get published or whether you want to self publish your cook book, the same basics apply – you need a good understanding of the publishing industry. Without the basics, will you know if your contracts are in order, that your book is the best it can be and that your cook book marketing plan is actually an effective strategy? No – but, knowledge is power. It is crucial that you take enough time to educate yourself about the entire publishing industry.

Understanding publishing, and the marketing of books, will clearly help you to identify why you are writing a cook book. Perhaps you are writing a cook book just to record secret family recipes or to have all of your own favorite recipes in a book format; maybe you are writing a cook book for a community or church fundraiser; or best of all, your goal is to create a bestseller. Cook books that are written for a very small group do not require business and marketing plans because you already know how many books will be purchased and who the buyers are. However, if you are planning to publish your own cook book for the mass markets, you need to understand that you have moved beyond author to publisher. That means that you are now a business person whose primary goal is the creation of a product to sell. There is no point in printing a book that no one will want to buy.

When I began writing my own cook book, I naively thought that it would be a two or three month process, and that in no time I would have a book on every book store shelf in the country. Ha, ha, ha, chuckle chuckle… Experience is a great educator, but who says that you have to learn the hard way? Obviously I had no idea how to publish a cook book in the beginning! However, through this article and via the publishing course that I and my partners have created, I intend to help you avoid losing time and money.

How did I create such a successful cook book? The short answer is research, research, research, and then more research. Thankfully I had the wisdom to do the research before going to print. But research can, and did, take years.

In my experience, after I learned how to write a cook book I had to learn all about cook book publishing:

* copyright
* trademarks
* ISBN numbers
* cataloging in publication data
* printing terms like cover stock, bindings, signatures and bluelines
* learning how to obtain printing quotes, (crucial in knowing how many books you can afford to print)
* barcodes
* graphic design (makes the difference between great sales and no sales)
* editing (cannot, and I mean cannot, be done by yourself, friends or family)
* titles and subtitles (they can make or break a book)
* title search (avoid duplicating someone else’s title)
* distribution

Next, I had to learn about how to start a business:

* business plan
* incorporation
* toll free numbers
* corporate logos and identity
* websites
* shipping arrangements
* accounting principles

Most importantly I had to become wise about marketing:

* writing a plan
* researching competition
* understanding target markets
* going through the difficult but crucial process of choosing a book title
* discovering the importance of a book’s cover – both the front cover and the back cover – and how to design the cover
* looking outside book stores for buyers
* learning the importance of publicity
* discovering the essential need for a stellar media kit and how to create one
* approaching the media and the importance of a good publicist

I learned, and I will share with you, a key point to consider when you are discovering how to write a cook book. Before you even begin to write your cook book, you must identify your target market. Who will actually buy your cook book? It is amazing that so many authors think that “everyone” will want their book, but that is not so. Not “everyone” is a target for anything! – not even the Bible.

Know who will actually buy your book. Interviewing the owners of cook book stores and specialty cooking stores can help you to identify cook book trends so that you know what people are actually buying. It is also a good idea to think of corporations and organizations that might benefit by using your book as a promotional item. Approach them even before you go to print, offering them special discounts, opportunities to place their information in a special printing of the book, advertising chances to offer your cook book as a “freebie” with the purchase of their product – just to name a few cook book marketing ideas.

If your cook book is targeted to busy families, the recipes must be easy to prepare in a short time period; if it is targeted to gourmet cooks, the recipes must be of the quality that you would expect to find in a four or five star restaurant; if it is targeted to a specific ethnic group, the recipes must be authentic; but if it is targeted to the mass market, your cook book must have a very wide scope with recipes that make any mouth water, and the ingredients must be readily available in grocery stores.

Once you have identified who will buy your book, you can target your marketing plan and your book design with your customers in mind, such as:

* Where do they shop?
* Where do they play?
* What style of book appeals to them? - (research your competition closely).
* What price are they willing to pay?
* How many pictures do they want in a cook book? (a lack of photos can kill book sales)
* What colors attract them? (spend time in book stores and libraries, learning which books have the most appealing appearance)
* What size of book is currently popular?
* What type of book binding increases sales?
* Are they concerned about health or other issues?
* Do they appreciate little stories, jokes, cooking tips or other information in the book?

Sometimes I took two steps forward then had to take one step back, but at other times I took one step forward and two back. Don’t waste time the way that I did – use my experiences to your advantage. Once you have a grasp of the basics, you can actually begin to put your cook book publishing and marketing plans into action.

Of course, a cook book has special challenges that other books may not have. Your primary goal is to give people unique, delicious recipes that they can create successfully in their own homes. That means that you have to measure exactly and your instructions must be clear and simple. You will have to test each recipe over and over until it turns out perfectly every time, then you will have to enlist other people to prepare those recipes independently of you. No matter what their comments, you must take the critiques of your testers seriously because if they do not achieve great results the chances are very good that your customers will be unhappy with their “flops”. Finally, it is a good idea to have the recipes tested by a professional home economist or other food expert.

Depending on the focus of your cook book, you might want to include nutrition information such as calories and fat content. Fortunately, there is now computer software that will do the calculations for you. You must also provide an index at the back of the book, and thankfully, software is available for this chore also.

Food photography is a special challenge of its own, requiring many tricks to make good look appealing. A good food photographer is a vital part of your cook book publishing team. Great attention must be paid to every minute detail, down to the grains of pepper in a dish and to the bubbles on top of a cup of coffee. Each photograph can require four hours of shooting time, if not more, so plan adequate time for the photo shoot.

The services of a food stylist are very helpful, but with research you can do a great deal of the food styling yourself. Find as many books as you can on the subject and practice in advance of the photo shoot. I learned simple tricks like:

* sticking sandpaper to the plate to prevent food from slipping
* using whipped icing or shaving cream in place of ice cream or whipped cream
* placing a shot glass under a very thickly cut slice of lemon to prevent the lemon from absorbing the liquid underneath
* using beef bouillon in place of “coffee”
* using dish detergent to create bubbles in the “coffee”
* using a blow torch to make meat appear cooked
* and the list goes on…

Food styling is such fun, but it requires a great deal of time, even in advance of the photo shoot. You will need all of your “props” in place, such as dishes, cutlery, flowers, table linens, food items and backgrounds. Many companies will happily lend these items to you in exchange for a credit in the book – this can appear on the Cataloging in Publication data page at the beginning of your book.

When your book is ready to go to print, it is time to put your cook book marketing and publicity campaign into gear:

* Decide on the best time of year to launch your book. September is usually the best month for Christmas sales, but you also face steep competition. Try to think of a time that is appropriate for your book, such as January for a healthy eating book, late Spring for a barbecue book, Valentine’s Day for a romantic book, Heart and Stroke month for a heart-healthy book, etc.
* Produce galley copies.
* Send galleys to appropriate book clubs (look at their websites to learn their submission requirements).
* Research appropriate catalogs and send galleys to them.
* Have your publicist approach magazines that review cook books (magazines have long lead times).
* Stay in contact with any corporations and organizations that might use your book for promotions.
* Find a reputable distributor to have your book accepted by the book store trade, as well as other retailers.
* Contact non-book store book sellers.

When your book is ready to roll off the press, get your publicity campaign into high gear. You can have the best book in the world, but if no one knows about it, no one will buy it. The easy part is over – publicity and marketing now become your life. This part is the most fun, as you now reap the rewards of all of your efforts. Your goal now is to turn your cook book title into a household word. Go for it -- publish your own cook book!

About The Author

Denise Hamilton

© Copyright 2004 Ink Tree Ltd.

Ink Tree Ltd. helps authors publish, market and sell books. If you are considering publishing a cookbook, we will help you make it a success. http://www.inktreemarketing.com/PublishaCookbook.htm

info@inktreemarketing.com >>Read more...

Screenplay Slug Lines - An Important Element Of Screenwriting

Screenplay Slug Lines - An Important Element Of Screenwriting
by: Lynne Pembroke


Over the years, I’ve found that new screenwriters frequently have confusions and misunderstandings on the proper way to write slug lines, also known as master scene headings. This article covers the basics of writing industry accepted screenplay slug lines.

Tips On Slug Lines

Scene headings or slug lines, as they are commonly called, are a widely accepted convention of “spec” or “master scene” screenplay form. Over the years, I’ve found that new writers frequently have confusions and misunderstandings on the subject, despite having read a basic book or two on the craft aspects of screenwriting. Hence, the reason for this article.

Every time the “where” or the “when” of your story changes, it’s expected that you’ll reorient the reader as to location and time of day with a new slug line. A slug line is composed of three parts:

1) INT. or EXT.
Is it an interior or exterior scene?

2) WHERE
The physical location or name of the set where the action of the scene takes place.

3) TIME OF DAY
Usually simply DAY or NIGHT.

Examples:
INT. JOE’S BAR AND GRILL – NIGHT
EXT. SANTA MONICA PIER – DAY

Whether a scene is INT or EXT is to some degree relative. In truth, some of your INT scenes may be shot outdoors and some of your EXT scenes shot indoors against a blue screen. For the sake of simplicity and consistency, I recommend that if the action takes place IN something (a building, a car, a spaceship, etc.) label the scene INT. If the scene takes place outdoors, and not in something, label it EXT.

It’s generally considered poor form to use INT/EXT in combination in a slug line. If the action of a scene shifts from INT to EXT, or EXT to INT, write a new slug line. If you find yourself in a situation where you’re inter-cutting rapidly between an INT and an EXT location, chances are you’re usurping the job of the director by writing HOW your story should be filmed rather than simply telling your story in a compelling fashion.

Scene locations should be specific and descriptive. “INT. RESTAURANT”, is a poor slug line in that it’s neither specific enough, nor descriptive enough. Slug line locations such as, "INT. WANG CHOW’S CHINESE JOINT” or, “INT. BIG ED’S GREASY SPOON DINER”, being both descriptive and specific, are far more visual in the impact they have on the reader.

Be consistent in your description of scene locations. Once you’ve labeled a location as JOE’S BAR AND GRILL, it should not mutate into JOE’S RESTAURANT, and then later, THE BAR AND GRILL ON 8TH STREET. After your screenplay is sold, it will be broken down by location and time (day or night) for budget and scheduling purposes. (Obviously, it’s far more efficient to shoot all scenes taking place in the same location at the same time.) Be kind to your readers by labeling scene locations in a consistent manner.

Avoid presenting extraneous information in your slug lines. (EXT. SANTA MONICA PIER – 1912 - POURING RAIN – DAY) Remember that the audience will never see your slug lines. If it’s important, and not self-evident, that it’s pouring rain and the year is 1912, find a way to present that information via action or dialogue in a filmable way.

Keep your slug line extensions simple. Ninety-nine percent of the time, “DAY” or “NIGHT” will suffice. And again I would remind writers that the audience won’t ever see your slug lines. I know of no good reason to indicate action is consecutive by using, “CONTINUOUS” as a slug line extension. If action is “continuous” it should be self-evident.

Are some very good high-priced writers non-conventional in their handling of slug lines? You bet! But keep in mind as a new writer, if you follow the generally accepted conventions of screenplay form and format, you’re far less likely to distract the reader from the tale you seek to tell.

Copyright (c) 2004 Lynne Pembroke and Jim Kalergis, Coverscript.com

Lynne Pembroke and Jim Kalergis
Coverscript.com
URL: http://www.coverscript.com

We will be pleased to have the above article published but first, please contact pemburger@aol.com informing where this article will be published.

About The Author

Lynne Pembroke is a published author, poet, screenwriter and owner of Coverscript.com, with over 18 years of experience in screenwriting and screenplay analysis helping individual writers, screenwriting competitions, agents, studios, producers and script consulting companies. Services include screenplay, TV script and treatment analysis, ghostwriting, rewriting and adaptation of novel to screenplay. Jim Kalergis is a working screenwriter. Visit http://www.coverscript.com for details.

pemburger@aol.com >>Read more...

Standards of English

Standards of English
by: Samir K. Dash


From the history of English language it is clear that good English has the tendency to vary from time to time, from area to area and from one social group to another. And these variations can be generalized according to two types – i) Standard English ii) Non-standard English . Sometimes we also distinguish between the accepted and non-accepted form of English. But these two ways of distinctions are synonymous.

The distinction between standards and non-standard English depends upon the Cultural Status (or ambitions of the people who are using this language) as well as the Functional verities of the language.

Cultural Status

As far as the cultural cause is concerned, Standard English describes the speaking and writing of cultivate people. It is the verity of spoken and written language that enjoys cultural prestige and which is the medium of education, journalism and literature. Non-Standard English describes the written and spoken use of habits of the uncultured, uncultivated group. Such speakers generally lack formal training on the use of the language and are from the jobs scenario and backgrounds where little or no writing are involved.

Functional verities

As far as the functional causes are concerned, we refer to different function and use of the language with in standard English. The chief functional verities are Formal and Informal.

Informal

It describes the English conversation of some private correspondence of ordinary everyday writing and speaking.

Formal

It describes the language used in books and articles on serious subjects, of reports and documentations in industry, business, legal and research fields. Even many literary prose use this language.

Though in most of the spoken cases informality is given priority, still in speeches on serious subjects and occasions like lectures, seminars, the use of formal speech is preferred.

As far as strict definitions are concerned, it should be however remembered that there is no sharp distinctive line between the formal and informal use of language. At the extreme end of formality are scholarly and careful writings from research, legal and business communication fields. And at the extreme of the informality are the use of language by the educated people who use them for private and causal purpose.

Other Forms of Language use:

Colloquial

It simply means spoken, being related to eloquent and loquacious. In this sense , it may be traced to any form of spoken English, whether standard or non-standard, formal or informal.

Many times this term refers to the everyday speech of educated people and to the kind of writing that has the easy vocabulary, the loose contructions and other characterstics of that speech. An American College Dictionary sums up this term as the kind of usage of English “whose range of use is primarily that of the polite conversation of cultivated people of their familiar letters and informal speeches as distinct from those words and constructions which are common also in formal writing”.

Slang

Slang is an informal non-standard vocabulary composed typically of coinages, arbitrarily changed words and extravagant figures of speech. Some times it results from intentional mis-pronunciation of a word.

Many times slangs are considered vulgar. But, the fact is that it is a part of current usage of language. It contributes to the share of growth of language. In many cases it has been noticed that the use of slang becomes common in main stream use of language and thus the slang becomes one of the general language use (e.g. rascal, ad, gym etc.).

But slang has following two serious limitations:

* Very few of the slang used last a long period, others vanish with the flow of time.
* Slang are not always appropriate in all circumstances.

Clichés

Clichés are also called as hackneyed phrases. They worn out by constant use. For example:

Raving beauties, father Time etc. But it should be remember that words themselves are not trite. Rather the use becomes trite. As in French, Clichés means the “stereo type block”, such usage refers to such phrases that have become fixed or stereotyped in the language. Some like stock similes like “as good as gold”, “as black as coal” have a long history of their second-handness. In formal communications such use of language is avoided to maintain seriousness and exactness in meaning.

As our above discussion showed that there are verities of English usage and each usage has its separate role to play in a specific context or situation, the question may arise “Then why still follow the rules for any kinds of English usage, as there is no absolute standard at all?” Though there is no standard that can declare itself as totally absolute, still there are hypothetical ones, for each kind of usage, with their own set of rules. We follow a specific code of conduct while writing business letters, and a different one in writing a private one. Formal speech demands the use of serious grammar, while the causal talks and gossips have their own loose kinds of structures.

In fact the fact that there is no absolute standard in English usage doesn't permit us to be free of any notions of standards at all. We can't do away with the concept of standard to use language as we believe is right. This is because, by following a set of code of conduct in a given situation, both the listener and the speaker are in the same levels of understanding and interactivity of language for better communication.

For instance, can we replace the usage of spoken English in written case? No. Its because the conversational English depends for much of its force upon the physical presence of the speaker. .Personality, gesture, posture and intonation – all contribute to the success of spoken communication. Written English on the other hand , whether formal or informal, requires a structure that makes clarity without the physical presence of the writer. It must therefore communicate through the clarity of its diction, the orderliness of its sentence and paragraph structure and the relative fullness of its details.

That's why though we don't have an absolute standard of English, we still have to follow a hypothetical standard in order to get our meanings across.

About The Author

Samir K. Dash is a MA in English (UGC-NET qulaified) from Ravenshaw College, Cuttack (INDIA). Currently he is working as senior content developer at AniGraphs.com

He can be contacted at his homepage: www.samirshomepage.zzn.com

E-Mail: samirkdash@yahoo.com >>Read more...

The Change in Communication: the Cyber effect

The Change in Communication: the Cyber effect
by: Samir K. Dash


The growing technology has become both a challenge and solution in the field of communication through language. I say this because, recent developments in the field of IT and telecom has brought a change that was never thought of by the guardians of the English language of the past. The focusing point here is that the use of internet, chat, e-mails and mobile SMS and MMS has brought us to a new dimension of communication which I would prefer to term as "cyber effect" in communication. Well, such a revolutionized concept of communication forced us to witness the disintegration of English expressions both in speech and writings. And this has made it difficult to arrange all expressions in one platform. But as this helped to globalize the language more effectively, it also brought with it wider scopes and possibility to exploit it up to its last stretchable limits.

Chat/ SMS languages versus English

Mobile in India is no more an asset of luxury now, as it was few years back. And hence the present generation (most of whom are youths) are more readily available to use expressions as the following:

"Tnks 4 ur invtn. Un42n8ly i cnt com2 ur hmm@10."

(Thanks for your invitation. Unfortunately I can't come to your home at 10 o'clock.)

And this shows that communication is certainly not a matter of longer words, rather it is the matter of how shortly you express the long. Abbreviated words like Satday (for Satur day) are accepted now a days both in written and speech.To this there are words of modern abbreviations like OIC (oh I see). And the SMS era has its own formulae to short out words. One of such is that "drop out the vowels first" and this means "Thanks" will change to "Thnks".

Another point to note here is that in such language, the priority has been given to the speech, more than the writing form of English. That's why any written expression that has a fix sound pattern can replace others with a similar sound pattern in any word. And that's why "un42n8ly" becomes the new image of the word "unfortunately"

To this you add smileys, emoticons and you get a wide range of expressions with less words.

The community decides the language, and hence the language is bound to evolve a change. English has grown due to the fact that IT and computer revolutions find English more suitable (as well as flexible ) than any other languages. And in addition to that English is now being localized. And this means this Cyber-English will certainly be a part of other localized ones like Hinglish, Chinglish and Banglish.

About The Author

Samir K. Dash is a MA in English (UGC-NET qulaified) from Ravenshaw College, Cuttack (INDIA). Currently he is working as senior content developer at AniGraphs.com

He can be contacted at his homepage: www.samirshomepage.zzn.com

E-Mail: samirkdash@yahoo.com >>Read more...

Why Book Writers Need A Running Mate

Why Book Writers Need A Running Mate
by: Marvin D. Cloud


By far, I have found that the lack of discipline is the biggest hindrance for most people, when it comes to writing a book of any kind. Although I urge you as a would-be writer to develop a theme because once you are clear on "why" you want to write a book, your motivational level will shift into a higher gear, I also urge you to get an accountability partner. This person will be the most important asset you can have as a writer.

However, choose carefully, because the role of the accountability partner is to make sure that you are following your commitment on a daily basis. The partner is responsible for calling, e-mailing you or talking to you by phone or in person every day to check the progress of your book. This person should be gentle enough to keep you encouraged, but forceful enough to not be afraid to chastise you.

In other words, your accountability partner will "hold your feet to the fire" to make sure you keep moving forward. Believe me; this person is worth his or her weight in gold. Why?

Although I promise you that writing a manuscript is easier than you might think—you don't need to be a seasoned writer—it is not the easiest thing in the world to do. There will be plenty of times when you will want to scratch the whole idea. Your accountability partner is your cheerleader, telling you, "We have spirit, yes we do!" and exhorting you on to "V.I.C.T.O.R.Y.," even when it seems like you are in the waning minutes of the game and your team is losing 42–0.

Games are played, one at a time. If you lose today, unless something tragically happens, there will be another one tomorrow. Television's Dr. Phil said, "Everyone wants to be a hero on Saturday. The big difference between winners and losers is that the winners work hard every day to do what it takes to win."

If you fail your writing task today, you can start again tomorrow. However, losing seasons occur when in the end, you have lost more than you have won. Most new writers and seasoned ones as well, don't write as much as they can on a daily basis.

Even writing part-time, two pages per day is a good start, and more can easily be done if the effort is put forth. However, most of us need that extra push from someone who genuinely cares about us and our project, to keep us in the game. Although it is good to find a like-minded individual, in some ways, your accountability partner's character should be diametrically opposed to your character.

For example, if you know you need a lot of hand-holding, your accountability partner should definitely be a self-starter. If you are a pessimist, your partner should be an optimist. However, if you are an optimist, it is usually better for you not to pick a pessimist for your partner.

About The Author

Marvin D. Cloud, founder of mybestseller.com and author of "Get Off The Pot: How to Stop Procrastinating and Write Your Personal Bestseller in 90 Days." Visit http://www.mybestseller.com and grab a free copy of the "Get Off The Pot" newsletter, dedicated to motivating ordinary people with extraordinary stories to write, publish and sell their books faster, efficient, and cheaper. >>Read more...

Symbolism

Symbolism
by: Samir K. Dash


I

Symbolism can have an extremely wide meaning. It can be used to describe any mode of expression to refer to something indirectly through the medium of another. But this doesn’t mean that a mere substitution of one object for another can be considered as this process. In fact symbolism can be considered as the process to express to express abstract ideas and emotions through the use of concrete images, as Milton does in his Paradise Regained, where he compares Satan’s defeated legions to ‘the autumnal leaves that strew the brooks in Vallombrosa’.

To make it more clear, T.S.Eliot puts it as “the only way of expressing emotions in the form of art ” [‘Hamlet’ by T.S.Eliot, Selected Essays of T.S. Eliot.]. But it should be noted that this expression mode is not done by just using a ‘symbol’, but an ‘objective corellative’ which means a set of objects, a situation, a chain of events which shall be formula of that particular emotion. Heneri de Re’gnier, a French poet and a disiple of Mallarme’ [Full name Ste’phane Mallarme’] defined ‘symbol’ as being a comparision between the abstract and the concrete with one of the terms of the comparision being merely suggested. Thus the symbol stands alone with the reader being given little or no indication as to what is being symbolized.

Symbolism, hence can be defined as the art of expressing ideas and emotions not by describing them directly, nor by defining them through comparisions with concrete images, but by suggesting what these ideas and emotions are by recreating them in the mind of the reader through the use of unexplained symbols or images. This is only one aspect of Symbolism which he called ‘Personal Aspect’ or ‘Human Aspect’ of symbolism.

The second aspect of symbolism is described as ‘Transcendental Symbolism’. In such type, concrete images are used as symbols, not of particular thoughts and feelings with in the poet, but of vast and general ideal world of which the real world is merely an imperfect representation. This concept of the existence of an ideal world lying beyond reality has its root sprinkled by Plato, which was popularized in 18th century by Swedenberg, and played a vital role in Christianity. In 19th century with the decline of Christian beliefs, a search for other ways to escape from the harsh reality was started. The religion was discarded for this purpose and poetry took its place. The purpose of poetry became to create for readers, a world outside reality. Stephen Mallerme’ claimed that he created in his poetry not real flower but “I’absente de tous bouquets”, the essential flower which is not to be found among any of the flowers of the world. The soul purpose of his poetry, he says was to create a pure essence, un hindered (un-disturbed) by any echo of the concrete reality which surrounds us.

Although the aim of ‘Transcendental Symbolism’ is to go beyond reality, the starting point is the ‘reality’ of this world. It is so, because this helps in transition from real world to the imaginary one. As the poem proceeds, the reality begins to be blurred and it gradually dissolves into the imaginary one.As Mallerme’ does in one of his poetry where he confuses the two images of rose and lily into one imaginary flower, to create an ideal flower. Here the essence of both is perceived in one.

II

Symbolism is in fact a developed form of Allegory. In this sense we can trace the root of Symbolism in English literary field from William Langland’s Piers the Plowman, where Piers sees the seven deadly sins in allegorical forms. Then it can be traced in chaucer’s Romance of the Rose which was in fact the English version of original French work Roman de la Rose of Guillaume de Lorris and Jean de Meun. Again in Milton’s Paradise Regained, the concept of symbolism grew more. But during all these period, poets weren’t themselves aware of this new form and therefore this form remained in its curdest form. But towards the early 18th century, the Christian beliefs began to decline. Hence people began to search for new means other than religion to escape from new means other than religion to escape from harsh reality of the world and ‘poetry’ became their favourite for this purpose. In France this escapism forced the poets to develop a new form and what discovered was the new developed version of allegory --- “Symbolism”.

In early part of 19th century, Baudelaire, a French poet created sensations by his sonnets named ‘Correspondances’. It was capable of conveying thoughts and feelings of corruption, wealth and triumph to its readers and in it the objects were not just objects, but were the symbols of Ideal Forms lying concealed behind them.

In 1857, Baudelaire published his volume of poems named Les Fleurs du Mal. In this was a poem ‘Harmonie du Sur’, which was a milestone for the literary career of symbolism. In the first reading of this poem, it might appear as a simple description of landscape, but while reading it again, one can find the clue in the last line, indicating that the repeated images of the poem such as ----- the setting sun, the fading perfume of the flowers, the dying note of a violine ----- all possessing a common factor ---- the notion of something beautiful that has passed away, are in fact object correlatives whose purpose is to re-create in the reader the emotion experienced by the poet at the memory of a past love affair.

In Baudelaire’s ‘Spleen’ a different kind of emotion is created by the same process. It is a sad and mournful scene. It may be regarded as depicting a scene from hell, ( a kind of hell that holds in some degree Jean Paul Sartre’s ‘Huis Clos’ ) as well as conveying a mood of black despair. While the recreation of emotions of ‘ Harmonie du Sur’ and ‘Spleen’ points to Human Symbolism, the existence of ideal image of the emotions points to the presence of Transcendental Symbolism.

Baudelaire’s paradise symbol was a revolutionary step and it later attracted many English and French poets to use it in theirs. In his ‘ L’Invitation au Voyage’, time is objective correlative of an immaterial world (some believed that the landscape resembles to a Dutch landscape of Holland). At the end of Les Fleurs du Mal, Baudelaire is o longer sure exactly what is the nature of the world lying beyond reality. The probability of each possible thing awaits him ---- good or bad. But this helps him to rise his poems theme to some what we can call ‘Infinity’. This style was later developed by Paul Vale’ry. But irregularity in the structure of poem was revised by another one named Paul Verlaine.

French poet named Paul Verlaine, began his career at the time Baudelaire was at the height of his fame. He was influenced by Les Fleurs du Mal. He was impressed by Baudelaire’s shift from optimism to pessimism in it. But this transition was irregular. So Verlaine used a new type of melodies to solve this problem. His melody was much more subtle and intimate kind where as the melody of Baudelaire tend to be splendidly out stretched with the different senses called in to play their parts carefully chosen moments, images amply developed. Verlaine’s work differ from Baudelaire’s in another respect that his attitude remains an emotional one without the use of ‘Trancendental symbolism’. He lacked Baudelaiure’s imagination to create a picture of the paradise awaiting.

In the early part of 19th century, the versification of poetry was popular because music was considered to be the equation between poetry and any other forms of art ( say Scupture or Painting ). The reason for this belief was due to the thinking that ‘all art aspires towards the condition of music’. Music possessed the quality of suggestiveness, but with out the element of precision which words necessarily posses and which the symbolists wished to suppress. Hence it was what symbolists were loking for. Baudelaire and Verlaine were using this versification method, but Verlaine towards the later part of his career began to use free verse which inspired Rimbaud to revolt against traditional versification. He gave poetry a new kind of strength and directness that made it more fitting vehicle for the evocation of feelings and ideas.

In Rembaud’s ‘Le Bateau’, the most celebrated poem, one can find how ideal paradise concept varies from that of Baudelaire’s. his ideal world is not quite peaceful refuge that Baudelaire longs for, but it is a world of violence and tumult and above all of total freedom. The function of image of boat plunging rudderless through countless seas, dancing like a cork on the waves, is to make the reader feel the intense excitement and almost delirious happiness that Rimbaud experienced in 1871 (when he ran away from home thrice).

Patient is what Rimbaud lacked, and for this reason a critic described him as ‘ the impatient genius’. But there was another poet who was considered to be ‘the genius of stubborn patience’ and he was Mallarme’.

The patience of Mallarme’ helped him to develop his images slowly into infinite. The previous symbolists experienced a dissatisfaction, which led them to create an ideal world, with the use of ‘Transcendental Symbolism’. Specially Baudelaire’s shift from certain reality to uncertainity in his poem Les Fleurs du Mal, provided a new clue for Mallarme’. He found an answer to the longings of the symbolists’ intellectual minds. While searching for the nature of the ideal world, he reached the conclusion that ‘ beyond this real world there is nothing but an empty void’. German philosopher, Hegel also has published his ideas, which supported his conclusion saying that ‘the ideal world lies hidden in this empty void’. In his Allegorical Sonnets about Himself, Mallarme’ described an empty room, which was symbolic of poet’s mind. Apart from the flickering candle flame there is only one thing in the room ---- a mirror, which has no existence of its own, without the objects to reflect. In the very last line there is a sudden magical change as it faces north through the open window, with the ‘Great Bear’ in the sky. But the word ‘star’ is not used, instead seven mysterious points of lights are described with the use of French transcription ‘X’, which symbolizes the unknown.

Mallarme’s ideas indeed have an effect on symbolists, but there were few who were not completely satisfied with him. One of them was Paul Vale’ry. He was fascinated by philosophy, mathmatics and physics and along with it he shared a common sense of dissatisfaction with the symbolist poets. He began to search for the hidden relationship between the knowladges. He believed that Mallerme’ had gone far in search of ideal world. Vale’ry believed that the ideal world is in reality, not beyond it. This return to reality was supported by his gained knowledge.

In 1894, Valle’ry created a character named M.Teste in his ‘ La Soire’e avec M. Teste’. M.Teste was a character who succeeds in discovering new laws that govern the working of the human mind and who is totally divorced from the realites of everyday life. Both M.Teste and his creator, Vale’ry found that this emotion of life, the contact with reality and with the world of the sense could not be presently abandoned or suppressed.

As regarding versification of Vale’ry, this can be said that, he was a conventional poet who made less attempt to break its ‘Cruel bonds’ than any of his predecessors. Vale’ry may be said despite the suggestive rather descriptive nature of his poetry with its extraordinary musicality, to mark the end of symbolism in France.

In England the true symbolism started with Yeats. In his poem ‘Sailing to Byzentium’, Yeats creates an image of ideal world in the mind of its readers. In his concept of paradise he can be considered as the ‘English baudelaire’ as it is the eternal peaceful refuge, he longs for. He dreams to be in the world far from reality. ‘Golden Bird’ term of the poem suggests how the abstract ideal art is referred through a concrete. In the very last line, he magically shifts to infinite like Mallrme’, where time is objective correlative as the lines says : “ Of what is past, or passing, or to come.”

In Yeats’ ‘The Lake isle of Innisfree’ also there is longing for a chance to escape from reality. The clue to this Transcendental symbolism can be found from the last line, “While I stand on the road way or the pavements grey, I hear it in the deep heart’s core”

There is a deep sense of missing the paradise that has been created in readers’ mind. The image of “peace comes dropping slow”, “evening full of the linnet’s wings” creates the vision of the poet. This marvelous blending of Human Symbolism to that of Transcendental one proves the richness of the poem. Readers of Eliot also found him as a Symbolist. His transcendental Symbolism can be traced in his ‘The Waste land’, where there is the pessimistic view on life, seen as a waste land.

Among other English poets, who used symbolism were T.E. Hulme and Ezra Pound, who invented the term in 1912 and this group was later grew with Eliot as one of its member. Later symbolism found its place officially as a trend in Common Wealth Literature and also in the other parts of the world.

About The Author

Samir is presently works as a director of an animation firm www.anigraphs.com

You can know more about him at : www.samirshomepage.zzn.com

You can send feedback to him at: samirk_dash@yahoo.com >>Read more...

Writing Help

Writing Help
by: Jack Thompson


Whether you are working for a small business, large corporation, or are a student, there are numerous sources that you can turn to for help with writing. Businesses need to be able to effectively communicate with their customers, their employees and their potential customers. Effective verbal communication is equally important, but nonverbal communication in the form of copy writing, article writing, press release writing, and more requires a certain level of expertise and experience. The typical small business wants to focus their efforts on their core business activities without spending too much time on projects that can easily be outsourced to consultants or freelance professionals. Many small businesses turn to freelancers to help them save time and money. For example, a certified public accountant opened his own accounting practice after working in another accounting firm for the last ten years. One of the ways he decided to search for new clients was to embark on an advertising and promotional campaign. Although some of his previous clients followed him to his new practice, he wanted to increase the number of accounts he currently handled. These accounts included various individuals and small businesses from around the town. Rather than hire new employees or handle the projects himself, he decided to hire a consultant through a freelance web site to work on copy writing for a local newspaper ad campaign as well as to help with press releases and company news distribution. By outsourcing these non-core business activities to an independent consultant, he is able to save himself time and money and also gets the expertise of an established professional who specializes in the types of writing that he needs assistance with. He decides to list his writing projects in a freelance marketplace and receives bids from independent consultants and freelance writers. He was able to choose a service provider based on factors related to cost, the service provider’s experience, references, and previous feedback from clients. All small businesses have a decision to make about whether to outsource certain projects or to complete the work in house. Using economics as a deciding factor, it makes sense economically for businesses to outsource writing projects when the projects are non-core business activities that do not contribute to the company’s bottom line.

Small businesses also need to be able to effectively communicate with their current customers. Some of the more effective ways to get help writing effective communication for current customers involve using tools such as newsletters, email lists, and articles written by outsourced consultants. Newsletters are very effective ways to keep customers informed of current events and happenings within the company. They also offer you the opportunity to gain new clients as the newsletter gets passed around and is often seen by more than one person during its life cycle. It makes sense and is a smart move to outsource corporate communications instead of keeping it in-house. Hiring a separate professional will save your business money and time. For less than the cost of hiring a full time employee, and because it will contribute to allowing more concentration on the activities that will earn your business money, contracting with a consultant or freelancer for your corporate communications (writing of press releases to distribute company news, getting publicity through pieces in newspapers and magazines, and getting help writing newsletters or articles) simply makes sense. An expert in the field who has amassed many years of experience with business writing, persuasive writing, and copy writing in addition to having experience writing press releases, articles, essays, and possibly academic or technical research and term papers will have a lot to offer you and your business.

Large corporations use writing to effectively communicate on all levels of business. Business writing and corporate communications are essential elements that keep the public informed and give companies their corporate image. A company’s image, or its publicly perceived notion of credibility and reliability is extremely important to its bottom line. For example, upon its introduction many years ago an American car company introduced a car known as the “Nova”. After some time, it was discovered that the car was not selling well in many Spanish speaking countries. Because in Spanish, “No va” translates to “doesn’t go”, the car sales in these countries were dismal. Effective corporate communication can have far reaching effect. Ineffective corporate communication can result in lower sales as shown in the car sales example. Large corporations also need to be effective communicators with their current employees. Internal corporate communications are equally important and keep your employees abreast of company accomplishments, events and human resource issues.

Finally, students also need to be able to write effectively as well. Writing assignments can include writing essays, writing term papers, report writing, and thesis writing not to mention having to demonstrate writing ability in other subjects outside of English class. For example, law students need to be able to write not only persuasive but argumentative writing as well. Foreign language students need to be able to translate into their native language and then back again. Science and technology students need to be able to demonstrate scientific writing ability. Taking writing tips from college professors that teach correct formatting and usage, including APA style, and improving your proofreading and editing skills will result in quality writing assignments. For the student that is looking for writing help and homework assistance for their assignments, freelance marketplaces that allow you to hire a consultant or tutor could be a productive and time saving solution.

From a freelance or independent consultant’s standpoint, marketing writing skills to potential service buyers is important to keeping any consulting business thriving. Registering with freelance marketplaces will enable you to showcase your writing skills, talents and abilities. Previous experience with all kinds of writing ranging from grant writing, fiction writing and interactive writing to writing short stories, articles and ebooks or even technical pieces, in addition to all forms of business writing will enable you to prove your varied background and skills. All of which can be showcased in your freelance marketplace profile. Creating and managing a profile is important to make you stand out from the crowd of freelance writers competing for new writing projects. All in all, those looking for writing help can find a vast array of resources in the form of consultants who are more than willing to lend a helping hand.

About The Author

Jack Thompson is a freelance writer, business consultant and entrepreneur. He has helped thousands of individuals and businesses across the world realize the benefits of outsourcing. Independent consultants, freelance service providers, and companies looking to outsource service projects can post or bid on projects at www.smartylance.com. >>Read more...

Dance With Words: A new Writers Portal for the experienced and the amateur writer

Dance With Words: A new Writers Portal for the experienced and the amateur writer
by: Margot Van Sluytman


Are you a writer looking for a great place to share stories, experiences, to communicate with other creative souls? And individual who wishes to meet new and interesting people? If so, you need to visit www.dance-with-words.com

A diverse culture of writers with a wide range of experience and savvy participate in this group. Unlike other writing groups, www.dance-with-words.com is a free writers community, where you can find affordable resources for self-publishing, printing, and on-line courses that can inspire you to tap into your creative spirit.

Description of the Group:

“In this Group we will speak about the love we have for language and how using words motivates us to write poetry, meditations, stories, dialogues, journal entries, novels, novellas, all genres and styles, in order to both create and find joy and meaning. We will share the work of those poets and writers who have and do inspire and teach.”

I am Margot Van Sluytman, Published Poet and Writer, Administrator of www.dance-with-words.com, and I am holding the First International Dance-With-Words Poetry Contest. I am a Professional Member of the Canadian Author’s Association, Peterborough Chair of the Federation of Canadian Poets. Lover of language.

I have a wonderful dream of dancing around the world with language, with words, sharing within communities and groups who value how the process of using words inspires richness, springing from soul, even souls that have been hurt – finding and creating joy. www.dance-with-words.com was create to have a place to go to talk with respect and passion, to write poetry and prose, to listen to the words of others. To dance. To dance. To dance.

It is my other dream to promote artists who would otherwise not be able to promote themselves – to create a site for the work of individuals whose work must be known. Must be shared.

The First International Dance With Words Poetry Contest, which has already drawn television and newspaper coverage, offers an opportunity to showcase your work.

Let me introduce those involved with: “First International Dance With Words Poetry Contest”

**the individual who offered $175.00 for the contest prizes, and who wishes to remain anonymous;

**Rick McKenna www.rpm-computing.com who has donated all of his time to www.dance-with-words web design and marketing and who has committed to creating the web site for the artists we will promote;

**Joan E.Cadham, National President of the Canadian Author’s Association, who believes deeply along with our members in the motto, Writers Helping Writers. www.canauthors.org She is a judge on the panel.

**Lesley Parrott, well known public speaker and media interviewee. She is particularly noted for delivering uplifting and inspiring messages, based on life experiences. She runs a successful Toronto-based consulting firm. www.lesleyparrott.ca She is a judge on the panel.

**Gerry McCarthy, publisher of the highly successful, incredibly well written e-Zine, with mind-blowing content www.thesocialedge.com He is a judge on the panel.

For more information contact: info@margotvansluytman.com or visit: www.dance-with-words.com

I look forward to sharing this amazing dance with you all, Margot.

About The Author

Margot Van Sluytman
For more information about the author visit http://www.margotvansluytman.com

info@margotvansluytman.com >>Read more...

Writers Turn to the Internet for Support, Friendship and Advice

Writers Turn to the Internet for Support, Friendship and Advice
by: Patricia Gatto


Riding on the fumes of potential, you take pen to paper or keyboard to monitor. Endless hours of creativity intermingle with apprehension, but your need to write engulfs your spirit. You swim high on the waves of excitement and trudge forward through the waves of doubt. Finally, your manuscript is complete.

Looking back, the process becomes a blur, it's difficult to recall the point at which your first draft transformed into your final draft, but it happened. For a moment, you allow yourself to be still and bask in the glory of your completed manuscript. But only for a moment. Now a new process must begin.

As if going from concept to page isn't enough, the aspiring writer must now bravely pass his or her cherished manuscript along for opinion. Opinion is actually too light of a word; the writer must submit to, and endure the critique. For those faint at heart, the critique can be a frightening experience, rearing its ugly head of self-doubt to the highest position. But ultimately, it's what makes you stronger, better at your craft, and prepares you to for the next phase on your quest to publication.

Family and friends only hinder the critique process. Although supportive, their opinions are bias and counter productive unless they are professionals. So where do you turn if you are not fortunate enough to have a local writing group or personal mentor in your life? The modern writer turns to the cyber world.

As you make your way through search engines and dodge pop-ups ads in pursuit of an answer, message boards and writer's forums abound. Your ultimate goal, to find that band of brothers and sisters, bound together in their somewhat solitary pursuit of a writing career. A nameless group of competitors hooked together by modems, monitors, keyboards, nicknames, and electricity, generously willing to share advice. A group you can trust.

I have found such a writer's haven. A speakeasy filled with poets and prophets, editors, agents and journalists. A space where the published and unpublished exist together. By invitation only, I secretly found the backdoor into this cyber club. Over two hundred members and growing strong, this forum has everything from professional guest visitors to idle chatter. A place to receive feedback on your work, ask questions, share information, make contacts, friendships and share your successes and defeats.

Now that the secret code to this cyber club has been lifted, Backspace - The Writer's Place is open to the public. Why not click open the door and lurk for awhile? After you get to know the posters, reach out for some feedback on your work. Then you can move to the next phase with confidence. For after the dreaded critique process, you must endure another hurdle, the query letter. Why not tackle it with the help of your new cyber friends at Backspace? http://www.bksp.org/index.shtm

About The Author

To Visit Backspace – The Writer's Place go to http://www.bksp.org/index.shtm

Patricia Gatto and John De Angelis are the authors of MILTON'S DILEMMA, the tale of a lonely boy’s magical journey to friendship and self-acceptance. As advocates for literacy and children's rights, the authors speak at schools and community events to foster awareness and provide children with a safe and healthy learning environment. For more information, please visit Joyful Productions at http://www.joyfulproductions.com.

pgatto@ptd.net >>Read more...

Knock-Out Writer's Block: Listening To Your Inner Voice

Knock-Out Writer's Block: Listening To Your Inner Voice
by: Celise Downs


When I was young, I used to talk to myself. Long, drawn out, one-sided conversations. I didn’t have an imaginary friend, I just talked to myself. My mother says that’s why I became a writer: because of my overactive imagination. I admit she may be right. Those conversations currently get me through my worst cases of writer’s block.

I have to laugh when I read articles on breaking through a writing slump. They always have tips like: go to the mall and make up a story about the people you see there..or..write down a dream you had the other night..or..think about the happiest moment in your childhood and write about it. You can even sign up and have a writing “prompt” emailed to you everyday. And I can’t help but think, Does this work for anyone? I mean, really? I’ve come to discover that I’m not like the average author. The normal methods of combating writer’s block do not apply to me. In writing mode, I can only concentrate on one novel at a time. I get distracted easily, so writing something on the fly only leads me down one path: The-Hey-I-Just-Came-Up-With-Another-Great-Idea-For-A-New-Book-So-I’m-Gonna-Drop-The-One-I’m-Currently-Angsting-Over-And-Start-A-New-Novel path. Believe me, it’s happened before. I was young (seventh grade to be exact), just starting out, and I didn’t know any better.

Now, I just put the novel away..and wait. The wait has been known to last six months to a year. Sometimes longer. For others, the time frame may be shorter, but eventually they will come. The inner voices, I mean. I no longer hold verbal one-sided conversations with myself. My characters have one-sided conversations with me..in my head. When they start talking to me about dialogue and plot, that tells me it’s time to pull out the novel and jump in again.

So, go on. You try it: Open up your mind and listen to your inner voice. If we ever meet at a conference or a book signing and you tell me that you’ve been hearing voices, I won’t think you’re crazy. I promise.

About The Author

Copyright © 2004 – Celise Downs. Reprinted with permission. Celise is a Young Adult fiction author and owner of Gemini Mojo Press. Her books, “Secrets and Kisses” (Mar 2004) and “Dance Jam Productions” (Sept 2004), are currently available on the publisher website at www.GeminiMojoPress.com.

celise@geminimojopress.com >>Read more...