Beyond Words

Words are the building blocks of writing. They’re what pulls readers in and keeps them there. But having a great vocabulary isn’t all there is to writing. In fact, it’s only half the story. Besides being able to choose the right words, a writer must also know how to assemble them to communicate a clear message. And part of that is mastering the language in which the writer is writing—in this case English.

The use of sentence structure, punctuation, and capitalization is called English usage. Grammar is part of it. As a writer, you cannot ignore grammar. Too many beginning writers today think that it’s the editor’s job to correct their sentence structure and grammatical mistakes. And while an editor may correct the occasional grammatical error, his or her main job is to make sure sentences read correctly and that the content is clear. This is the job of the copy editor.

If you don’t make sure that your final draft is free of grammatical mistakes, then you’re not much of a writer. And while good editors will make sure to point out all of your grammatical errors, it will take away from the job they were meant to do. Plus it will cost you since the more time an editor spends on your work, the more an independent editor has to charge.

If you send your work to a publisher, he or she will assign an editor to work with you. But before an editor even begins to edit a book manuscript, for example, a reader will be assigned to read it. If there are lots of English usage and grammatical mistakes, your manuscript will be rejected.

If you have a problem with sentence structure, punctuation, and the like, you’ll need to do something about it before you go on. A professional writer is a not only a wordsmith but has honed writing skills. They’re the tools of this profession.

Perhaps you felt that grammar and such were unimportant as you sat in English class bored to tears as the teach went on about participles and gerunds, for example. After all, you want to write—to create interesting stories. Why do you need to concern yourself with such mundane things. What you didn’t realize at the time was that those mundane things would become your everyday tools to help you create those interesting stories.

So where can you get help? You could sign up for a basic writing class at a local adult evening school. Or you could buy yourself a book on English usage. You can easily find a used one at a local library book sale or get it online at Amazon.com. You can also improve your English usage and grammar online.

Begin with the article “14 Must-Visit Websites to Learn English Grammar Online.” Then check each one of them out and see which offers the best resources for you. Another great site is English Grammar 101. There are whole lot more to choose from, so take your pick.  Use the exercises provided to improve your writing skills. And before you know it, you’ll be writing like a pro because isn’t that what you want to be—a professional writer. 

Keeping Your Writing Style Up to Date

Have you kept up to date with your writing skills? Unfortunately, after most people leave school–high school, college, or graduate school–they rarely brush up on their writing skills. And while their skills have stayed the same, writing has continued to evolve.

Writing changes about every five years. While most people don’t notice these subtle changes, they’re there, nonetheless. Sometimes, it’s a change in the way people use punctuation while for others these changes may manifest themselves in certain forms of sentence structure.

Probably the way writers use punctuation has changed the most. Take semicolons, for instance. Back when teachers taught that writing was a more formal affair, people used semicolons extensively. Today, many writers use them rarely, as they tend to slow the reading down. Instead, they substitute a period for the semicolon and begin a separate but related sentence immediately following it. Are you one of those who’s still using semicolons?

Another form of punctuation that has seen more frequent use is the dash or more specifically the “em dash,” the longer of the two forms of dashes. This form of punctuation creates a visual separation that readers can easily see at a glance. Also, today’s writers are using commas less frequently.

Lots of things influence changes in writing style, but none more so than the creation and appearance of electronic text, both on the Internet and in E-mail. Instead of writing in a longer, more formal style, writers today use a more concise approach. Writing is tighter and less flowery with fewer longer, more sophisticated words that many readers may not know.

There are lots of ways to keep your writing style up to date. The easiest method is to read more contemporary writing—writing done yesterday not even 10 years ago. And if you really want to improve your writing style, avoid most literature, except the modern variety written after 1930 or so.

You can also enroll in writing classes. Professional dancers constantly take classes to improve their technique and writers should, too. You don't have to enroll in college-level writing courses.  These can be expensive and more time consuming than you need. However, many colleges offer continuing education courses that are just right. Most of these target a particular kind of writing—novels, short stories, articles, etc.  They usually last only a few weeks and don’t have the added pressure of grades that you’ll find with credit courses.

Another alternative is to attend a writing conference. Here, classes are short and intense, usually  lasting only one to three days. These conferences also offer you a chance to learn from other professionals who are experts in their fields.  Do a search for "writing conferences and your area" to find one near you.
                   
Whatever you choose to do, improving your skills will give your writing a boost. 




       

While Facebook is probably the most widely known social network on the Web, it’s not the only one of use to writers. Facebook takes in everybody, not just one group. Sure you can create a professional page, but it’s main purpose is to connect people. As a writer, you may want to socialize on a more professional level, targeting those who can help advance your career. For this, you need to join LinkedIn, a social network of business professionals.

LinkedIn
Unlike Facebook, the people that use this network come from all sorts of professional careers. You’re more likely to find editors, publishers, and public relations consultants here. But it takes time to build a useful network of contacts, so be patient.

Look at LinkedIn as a tool in your marketing arsenal, not as a fast way to get to an editor or agent.

As with other social networking sites, you have a profile page and a network of connections. You can also join groups, pose questions to your network/groups, post events and add widgets, such as your blog feed, to your profile.

LinkedIn creates visibility for what you do and offer. Your profile will appear in search engines and can be accessed by the public if you allow it to. The site also allows people to publicly recommend your professional work. Used wisely, it’s an effective and dynamic way to network and spur new ideas for promoting your writing.

As with Facebook, you’ll be able to create a profile on LinkedIn. But instead of posting your resume, show what you’ve achieved—examples of your work and excerpts from your books.

LinkedIn has a feature that other social networks don’t have. It allows its members to recommend other members to confirm the type and quality of their work. In getting work as a freelance writer, recommendations from editors, publishers, and publicists are important.

Like Facebook, you can post helpful articles, tips, and share links to sites that you think your followers may be interested in. And don’t forget to periodically link to your own Web sites and blogs and other places online where your work can be found.

TWITTER
Twitter is a mini-blogging network that is probably the least useful for you as a writer. First, you’re limited to 140 characters, plus a photo, which doesn’t give you much space to leave a detailed message like Facebook or LinkedIn. v

If you choose to use Twitter, follow people or companies that can offer you entertainment, information, promotion advice, inspiration, or news. Agents, editors, publishers, other authors, publicists are tweeting.

When you follow someone on Twitter, they generally respond in kind. This is true whether you’re following your cousin or the Washington Post. In order to send a message to a fellow tweeter, you must be following him or her.

With Twitter, it’s important for you to know why you’re tweeting. Are you doing it for fun,  to engage potential readership, to drive people to your website, or to spread the word about a giveaway or an upcoming book?

Use Tinyurl.com to add links to your tweets. This site turns unwieldy URLs into more manageable ones, helping you fit links into Twitter’s 140-character limit.

Above all, figure out how posting to Twitter will fit into your overall promotional strategy. You’ll find you won’t have the time to post to a group of social media sites, so choose which ones you use wisely.

Making the Most of Social Media Part 1

Are you taking advantage of today’s social media networks? If you’ve only been tuning in to popular networks like Facebook and LinkedIn, then you’re missing a golden opportunity to promote yourself and your work.

Today, it pays to be a joiner. Normally you’d want to stand out from the crowd, but in today’s social media world, it’s just the opposite. “Who you know” has always been as important in the writing business as “what you know.” But unless you traveled a lot and met key people face to face, it was difficult to network contacts.

There have never been more people participating in social networks. While there’s a personal dimension to nearly all such networks. But just joining isn’t enough. You must also use them.

Social networking demands a consistent investment of time. If you approach these sites simply as places to sell your book or service and never give back to the communities, you’ll find yourself losing “friends” faster than you add them. As with all types of marketing, what you do on social networks depends on what your audience will respond to and what your goals are. One of the leading social networks is Facebook.

Facebook
Facebook can be as simple or complex as you like. You can simply tell your friends what you’re up to using text and photos or you can develop a following that will greatly enhance your marketing efforts.

Above all, Facebook is a network that can help you find other people interested in the same subjects as you. You can join groups of users specializing in different types of writing or in different subjects that you write about.  You can also create your own group around your blog. Once you establish a group, you can send messages to its members. With such a targeted audience, you can post content with real value.

Facebook also allows you to announce events, such as book releases and readings, bookstore appearances and such, and invite people to it.

The key to keeping your Facebook page active is keeping your profile current. Even if you don’t reveal too much about your personal life, your friends on Facebook will feel they know you better.  Status updates are just that—posts that keep your Facebook followers informed as to what’s happening in your life or your work.

As part of your profile, you’ll also be able to post an image. As a professional writer, you need to use good photos of yourself. Try to make these more than a snapshot. Don’t use bizarre images in place of your personal one. Remember, your Facebook followers will judge you by that image as well as your profile.

Unlike other social networks, Facebook offers you three ways to promote yourself. The first is the personal page. Through this page, you’ll assemble a group of “friends.” Some may actually be friends of yours, but most will be strangers who come to your page because of the posts you make.

The second sort of page you can create on Facebook is the professional page. This page is focuses on your business, putting you in the same category as the Coca-Cola Corporation. Instead of assembling “friends,” you must get people to “like’ your page. This becomes a select group of Facebook followers, known as “fans,” to whom you can send targeted information about your work.

The third kind of page you can create on Facebook is the author page, which you assemble for a particular book or series of books you have written. This is also a “fan” page, but differs from the professional page in that its posts go only to fans of your books—in essence, your readers.

Facebook most likely offers the most flexibility of all the social networks, but there are others that can be of help in different ways.

NEXT WEEK: Part 2 of Making the Most of Social Media

Structure Your E-mail Messages for Maximum Impact

Today, Email is an essential part of doing business. People use it to communicate daily. Some organizations have policies in place that treat E-mail as a business asset, not a personal asset. Thus, from a legal perspective, E-mail is admissible in court. Therefore, it should be given the same attention as traditional forms of correspondence. Let’s face it, for many business people Email has replaced traditional correspondence.

As a writer, it’s important for you to treat all your outgoing messages as if you're writing professional correspondence. Everyone judges you on how you write to them. They expect you, as a professional writer, to uphold the standards of grammar and sentence structure, no matter what the subject of the message.

And when you’re writing to a client or editor, it’s even more important. In most cases, the only way editors get an impression of you is through your Email messages.

Previously, freelance writers sent queries and text by regular mail, then sat back and waited for a reply. Today, using Email, replies come a lot faster. And while an editor may take a few days to reply to a query, it beats waiting weeks or even months for it. However, there are a few editors out there that still cling to the old ways. One editor of an online magazine insisted writers still send quieries and manuscripts by regular mail.

Follow these tips to make your Email messages communicate clearly:

    1. Address one topic per E-mail message.
        Many people reply to E-mail as they read it, so it’s easier to respond if you discuss only one topic per message. If you introduce several topics, they may postpone responding until they can address all the topics covered.
   
    2. Write an informative subject line.
        Phrase the subject line so that it tells the reader what to do in addition to what the message is about. A subject line may read "Send a copy of your  latest issue." A precise subject line can prompt a reader to read your message before others.
   
    3. Avoid long messages.
        Organize your message so that the most important information fits on the first screen. Try to avoid having the receiver scroll to read the remainder of the message.

    4. Make it easy for your reader to respond.
        Word your message so that the reader can get back to you with a "yes/no" answer or a short response. Where possible, use questions instead of statements. Instead of saying, "Let me know your thoughts on my article," ask "Are you going to publish my article?"
   
    5. Include the context of a message in your reply.
        Even if you read a message and respond to it quickly, your colleague may not read your response immediately. The topic may no longer be fresh in his or her mind. The "reply" feature on most e-mail systems allows you to reply to a message and attach the original document. OR, if it’s a longer message, copy section at a time and include your answer directly below it.
   
    6. Change the subject line to reflect a new topic when sending a new message from an old one. 
        Your Email program will automatically include “RE:” in the subject line of your reply. Should you click on a person’s previous message to send a new message, be sure to change the subject line to reflect the new topic. There’s nothing worse than going round and round with multiple “RE:’s” from previous messages. Changing the subject line to reflect a new subject also will help you and your receiver to catalog your messages.

    7. Don’t forget to follow-up if you receive no reply.
        Sometimes E-mail does get lost or dumped into an anti-spam folder and deleted. Allow a reasonable time to pass–hours or days–then send a second message, including a copy of the first message (forward your first message and add a brief note before the message. This is particularly important with time-sensitive material.

Who Cares?

Lots of people think they have a story that everyone will want to read. But unless you’re a  celebrity or have done something extraordinary, no one cares. You could be the best writer in the world, but if your story doesn’t grab readers, it won’t matter. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that your story will be interesting to anyone beyond your family and close friends. And even they may not be interested.

Many writers truly believe that their story has the makings of the next New York Times bestseller, whether it be a messy divorce, their battle with cancer, or the adventure of a lifetime. But most of the time, their story lacks what it takes to make it big.

Those that have endured a traumatic experience often feel that the experience, itself, is enough to a make a story engaging. It isn’t. What’s needed is a hook, something to draw the reader in and keep them there. How much you’re involved in the story is irrelevant. What matters is how it affects the reader.

Once there was a woman whose husband had died after a failed operation. She blamed the surgeon and wanted to lash out at him by writing a book about the incident. What she didn’t realize was that she wanted revenge, not to educate her readers on how to avoid a similar situation or what to do if the same thing happened to someone they loved. This beginning writer wrote her story and then paid $8,000 to a vanity publisher to have it printed. What she ended up with was a room full of books and no way to sell them.

But in today’s digital world, you could write a book and put it on Amazon for next to nothing. So it’s important that you write your story with your readers in mind—what’s in it for them, not what’s in it for you.

Another problem with the scenario above is the word “beginning.” As a beginning writer, and most likely one who hadn’t written anything before, the woman would have lacked the writing skills and research expertise to enable her to do a professional job on her book.

A lot of seniors fall into this category. They feel that because they’ve lived a long life,  everything they have to say is interesting. They read memoirs of famous people and say to themselves that they could write a book just as good. But most of the time they can’t. The situation leads to a lot of frustration and disappointment.

So what does it take to hook your reader? First, your story doesn’t have to be earth shattering, but it does have to relate to readers on their level. It has to offer them something—information, advice, hard facts—that will allow them to apply whatever happens in the story to their own lives. This applies to both non-fiction and fiction.

Many beginning writers chose to fictionalize their stories to avoid having to be associated with them, thus avoiding the possibility of getting sued. Even if you turn your true-life story into a novel, you still have to relate it to the reader. And if your characters are anything like the real people in your experience, you could still get sued. But frankly, a non-fiction version will offer a lot more credibility since it actually happened to you.

Professional writers target their readers. They usually don’t write to a general audience, but to a specific group of readers—men, women, young, old—who would most likely benefit from what they have to say. True, bestselling books often get read by a large audience, but they weren’t written that way. They were first written for a specific one and then got picked up by other groups when the book became a viral hit.

So before you pour your heart out in a book that may not go anywhere, think about what you have to offer your readers.

How Good a Promotional Tool is Facebook?

Social media is all the rage today. It seems everyone—or almost everyone—is on Facebook, the leading social media platform. There’s a lot of buzz about how social media, especially Facebook, is a prime promotional medium for small businesses. But as a writer, is Facebook for you? And if so, how?

First, it may be good to begin by dividing writers into two groups—those who write books, either fiction or non-fiction, and those who write shorter pieces like short stories and articles. You may ask what’s the difference. There definitely is one.

If you’re a book writer, commonly referred to as an author although a writer nonetheless, you produce a product that you can sell directly to readers. With the ever-increasing proliferation of ebooks available from such online distributors as Amazon and Barnes and Noble, among others, you can write, publish, and sell your books directly. But that also means you have to do your own promotion. And that’s where social media networks like Facebook come in.

Create an Author Page
By creating a Facebook author page, you can promote your books and stay in touch with your growing list of reader fans. Through your author page, you can alert fans to book signings, new or upcoming books, reprints of older editions, updates of non-fiction books, and special book sales. Author pages also allow you to offer teasers for upcoming books in order to build reader anticipation.

Unfortunately, the range of options isn’t as great on Facebook if you write short stories or articles. This is mainly because you normally don’t sell directly to readers but instead sell your work to magazine editors. Editors are busy people and don’t have time to actively seek out writers on Facebook, so unless you know an editor personally, chances are they won’t be following you on Facebook. Of course, you could sell your short stories and articles either individually or in collections as ebooks for Kindle or Nook. This is especially good for pieces that are too long for magazines.

In the above case, a Facebook author page probably isn’t the best option. Instead, consider setting up a business or professional page on Facebook. It works much the same way as an author page but allows you to also promote other writing projects, courses, and other communication services. For this you might want to create an umbrella title, such as “Your Name Communications,” substituting your name in the title. That’s broad enough to encompass a variety of projects and services. Check out my page for Bob Brooke Communications.

Remember, both author pages and professional pages have “likes” not “friends.” The people who follow them are essentially fans of your work and want to know more about you and what you write about.

Facebook’s Downside
Unfortunately, there’s a downside to Facebook. Many users, perhaps yourself included, have become frustrated that no one “likes” or comments or shares their posts. With the shear volume of messages on Facebook each day, that’s only natural. At best, it’s an indirect communication medium. Most of the time only those Facebook users who are actual real-life family members, friends, and acquaintances take the time to “like” or comment on a post. So you can see that could seriously interfere with promoting yourself as a writer or promoting your writing products.

However, if you have either an author or professional page, you have control of the content you post there. You decide just what you want your fans to know. And because they like you as a writer, they’ll interact to what you tell them. And it’s only on author or professional pages that you can see how many people have seen your posts. Personal Facebook pages don’t offer that. In this way, you can see which posts receive more attention and can then post accordingly. Think of your author or professional page as being the online headquarters of your fan club.

Getting the Most Out of Facebook
So how can you get the most promotional mileage out of Facebook? First, Facebook isn’t the place to post your writing for feedback or criticism. Facebook users generally don’t read more than they have to. Everyone is too busy to linger over long messages. If you want your fans to read your work, create a Web site or post to someone else’s site and then post a link on Facebook back to either.

Another way to get people on Facebook to read and share what you have to say is to write a blog, then link your blog to your Facebook page, either directly or through Networked Blogs. While you may not notice too many Facebook users accessing your blog on Facebook, itself, they may do so through any number of other outlets through Networked Blogs. You can even set up a special Blog App tab on your Facebook Page that enables fans to go directly to all your past blog posts right on your Facebook page.

Remember, the main purpose of your Facebook page is to keep your fans in the loop. Keep them informed as to what’s going on in your professional life. Don’t just hawk your books or other writing. They’re bombarded with sales pitches all day long on the Internet. Try to be a bit more subtle. Take them behind the scenes when creating a book or perhaps give them actual information on where your books are set. Offer contests, trivia about your book’s subjects, reviews, writing tips, whatever. Facebook users love to look at photos, cartoons, and infographics (photos with text overlay). Post these regularly on your favorite subjects on your Facebook page and you’ll definitely see results.

For some good examples, check out the author page for mystery writer Elena Santangelo. And the professional page for Bowers Watch and Clock Repair, even though this isn’t a writing page. Both have been extremely successful in their Facebook efforts. 

And one more thing: You need to have patience, lots of it. A successful Facebook Page doesn’t happen overnight. It requires a lot of effort and a bit of time to maintain it. If you don’t have enough of either of those, don’t bother.

Do You Have a Support Network?

Everyone needs someone to cheer them on. Everyone needs someone to pick up the pieces when things go wrong. Everyone needs someone to be there to help them over the rough spots. Even writers. Especially writers.

Writing is a lonely profession. But even though you have to be alone to write, you don’t have to write in a vacuum.

Nobody really writes alone, without the support of a partner, friend, neighbor, dog, agent, local bookstore. Who is in your support network? Who do you depend on to give you a lift when you’re down? Who do you turn to dump on when you get a raw deal from an editor or publisher?

If you don’t think you have anyone to support you, make a list of the people who can help you make it happen. Let’s start with your family.

If you live alone, are the members of your immediate family on your side. Do they ask you how your writing is going or do they constantly ask when you’re going to get a “real” job? Do they read your published work? Why not give your parents or siblings copies of your books, short stories, or articles. Books, especially, make great gifts.

If you’re married or live with a partner and have children, does that person allow you time to pursue your writing without feeling guilty? Can you and your spouse or partner agree to one kid-free night each? Can you trade or pay for babysitting services in your neighborhood?

Do you have any friends, and if so, are any of them interested in what you do? Do they ask about your latest project? Do you offer information about what you’re writing about when you’re together? Friends can be great sounding boards. They’re great for bouncing off ideas for new writing projects, and they’re great to unload the bad things that happen. Sometimes, a spouse or partner can be your best friend, but often a writer needs to speak with someone with whom they’re not in an intimate relationship.

And even pets can offer good support. You can talk to your dog or cat and pour out your guts, and neither will talk back. They’re always there for you, especially when you’re feeling really down.

If you’ve published books, one of the best forms of support can come from local bookstore owners. These are people who have a direction connection with readers. They hear what readers say about your books and can offer valuable information about how readers feel about your books.

Probably the least supportive are members of local writing groups. Unless a group is led by a writing professional or writing teacher, chances are that any support that comes from such a group won’t be sincere. In many cases, writers who tend to join these groups often are more interested in getting stroked, in hearing positive comments about their work, even f they aren’t true, rather than objective ones. A group led by a professional is more likely to provide more balanced and constructive support.

As well as recruiting your cheerleaders, you should also look at the people who distract or discourage you from your writing dreams or plans. Is there a family member who never takes your work seriously? Is there a writing buddy who spends more time moaning about the publishing industry than actually writing or providing mutual support? There’s a reason why people discourage you from your creative dreams. And the reason is them, not you.

Take time to beef up your support systems, and either reduce your time with the naysayers, or at least change your reactions to them.

Editors Can be Monsters

There’s no doubt about it. Writing is hard. Actually, it often isn’t the writing that’s hard but the crap writers have to take from editors that can set them back. Do you feel as if your writing career is in everyone’s hands but yours? Have you had less than stellar experiences with some of your editors?

For the most part, editors are nice people. They want you to succeed, but occasionally you find one or two that are so horrible that it may make you want to quit writing altogether. Let’s take a look at a few instances.

Take the frustrated writer/editor. This is an editor that tried to make it as a freelance writer but didn’t make it. She ends up having to get a full-time job to support a family and resents having to sit behind a desk and edit other people’s work. In the process of editing, this editor goes overboard and edits the work so badly—in fact, rewriting it—that the piece isn’t recognizable. And not only that, forgets to save drafts along the way, so that the piece loses its continuity. She then goes back to the writer asking all sorts of questions, making the writer fix her editing mistakes.

Or take the alcoholic editor. A travel editor of a large East-coast city newspaper, calls a writer to ask a question. The writer is working at a travel agency to make ends meet. The editor goes ballistic and says he’s throwing the writers work in the trash can and doesn’t give the writer a chance to explain. What the writer finds out later is that this editor has a drinking problem, making him irrational at times.

Or take the new editor. A writer works for a large-city business publication as a regular stringer for seven years. He’s got a great rapport with the managing editor—the editor even helps him out with leads for assigned articles. Then the managing editor takes a job at the city’s largest newspaper. A new editor comes to the business publication. After a while of putting off the writer with one excuse after another, he finally tells the writer he can’t write. And this is after working for this same publication for seven years.

Or how about the condescending editor. You’ve probably run into editors like this. They think they’re the greatest and that writers are nothing more than slaves to do their bidding. They don’t see writers as being on the same professional level as themselves. In fact, they most likely have a journalism degree and feel they’re several steps up the ladder from the writer. And while they continue to send work the writer’s way, there’s never a strong bond between themselves and the writer.

As you can see from the above examples, dealing with situations like this can be unpleasant and may even have a long-term affect on your work. Some writers quit writing altogether while others quit temporarily or become blocked.

Always remember this: Editors are just another step in the chain of publication. They’re no better than you. In fact, you may write better then they do. And some resent that. And to be fair, there are a lot of great editors out there. So if you run into a less than professional situation with an editor, move on, and keep writing.

It's Hard to Let Go

Just as in any serious relationship when one of the partners becomes disinterested or turns their attention to someone else, it can be hard for the other one to let go. The same applies to writers who become seriously attached to their work. As a professional, you can’t let this happen.

You must learn to step back and look objectively at anything you write. Beginning writers get caught in the trap of thinking that everything they write is good when actually it’s all probably pretty bad. That’s a hard pill to swallow for any writer.

Repeated rejection will often try to point you in the right direction, but most beginning writers ignore that signal. Instead, they blame the editor or whoever gave them the last rejection. Some, perhaps you, repeatedly show their work to others hoping that someone will finally say what they want to hear.

It’s doubly hard to let go of writing if it’s good. Perhaps you put long hours into it. If that’s the case, you may be reluctant to delete it for content or continuity. It doesn’t matter how long you labored over a section. In the end, you have to ask yourself if it’s contributing to the overall storyline, or in the case of an article, to the slant. If it isn’t, then it needs to go.

So where does this idea of hanging on to some of your writing come from? Most likely from school. In fact, most of your bad writing habits developed there. This isn’t anyone’s fault. In fact, you probably absorbed this idea from your teachers. It’s a common thing in academic circles to be possessive of your work.

It’s especially hard to cut sections from books. When working on a longer manuscript, you can lose sight of the bigger picture. You need to keep the whole project in mind and be relentless in our deletions. Whatever doesn’t contribute to the whole concept must go.

To put a positive spin on this problem, you might consider saving what you’ve cut to use in
separate stories or articles. These could be spin-offs or completely different pieces.

When you begin revising, be sure to save your work with a different file name each step of the way. All you have to do is add a number—2,3,4, etc.—to the project’s file name. That way you can always go back and review or possibly use what you originally passed over.

A good way to get some distance from your writing when you’re having a particularly difficult time cutting sections from it is to put it aside for a time to get some perspective on it. Not consciously being aware of your story, article, or book, will let your mind forget it. When you finally do go back to it, you’ll see it with fresh eyes. And your eyes are the one that should see it, not someone else who can only give you their subjective opinion.

As a professional writer, you need to develop good editing skills, so you can decide what form your writing should take. It’s not the reader’s job. It’s yours.

So You Want to Write a Column

A regular option open to you as a freelance writer is to write a column. Though it sounds simple enough a column requires discipline, creativity, and most of all ideas—lots of them.

For many, writing one article is hard enough , but imagine having to come up with 52 of them—one each week—or at least 12 if you’re doing one monthly.

As you read this blog, you may ask yourself, “Isn’t this like a column?” Sort of, but not exactly.  A column is generally a short article on a theme that gets published regularly—weekly or monthly as a regular feature of a newspaper or magazine. A blog, on the other hand, may be posted regularly, but usually that’s up to the blogger. And while a blog may follow a general theme, it may stick to it loosely for a short time. A column, on the other hand, may go on for years.  The most important distinction is that a writer does the former for free and the latter for pay.

Over the years, the market for columns has changed dramatically. But one thing hasn’t: Publishers are still looking for new columnists. Generally, a column offers an insider’s view of a subject, of which the writer is an expert. It’s also a regular feature of a publication, either in print or online, and is personality-driven by the writer. It also contains an opinion or a point of view

A blog, on the other hand, provides for an interactive discussion with its readers. The blog writer  posts the blog, which the site displays in reverse chronological order—the most recent post appears first). Blogs can be the work of a single person or several persons, and often cover a single subject. And while a blog can be written by anyone, columnists are usually professional writers.

To be a successful columnist, you need to find a specific niche, but not so specific as to narrow your potential audience and topics of your column. You’ll have to find out whether other columnists are writing on the same subject and study their work to see how it differs from yours.

After you’ve done that , you’ll need to outline some topic ideas and write several sample columns to show to editors. It’s important to stay ahead of the game. You should continually update and add to your topic list so that you’re never at a want for ideas.

Because columns are short and published regularly, they don’t usually pay as much as even shorter regular articles. An advantage to writing a column is that you can publish it in several noncompeting market at the same time, thus increasing the amount you earn per column. 

In order to have a successful column, you need to come up with a unique angle or approach. You may wish to take the outspoken approach. Perhaps you’ll deal with controversial topics within you column’s subject area. If you feel knowledgeable about a subject, then a column may be just for you. You’ll need a substantial amount of knowledge and understanding about a subject to come up with topics week after week or month after month.

Next Week:  More on writing columns.

10 Points For Achieving Professional Status

It takes more than good writing to be successful at freelancing. While writing is important to produce your product, you’ll have to be professional in conducting your business. And neither does getting paid for your work make you a professional. That status comes by following these 10 important points:

        1. Be polite. Relax with some small talk first. Get to know your editors and other clients. Doing so will help you to develop solid professional relationships.

        2. Be confident. Learn the fine line between cockiness and confidence and observe it at all times. Have confidence in your work. Know that it’s the best you can do.

        3. Be competent. Show samples of your best work. Deliver on time or earlier.

        4. Be realistic. Don't overbook assignments when you find you're starting to get them regularly. Plan ahead what you can and cannot take on. Know how much work you can accomplish in a specified time. And if you run into problems, let your editor know as soon as possible.

        5. Be truthful. If it's not your type of work, admit it. If you already have too much to do, tell the client. Don’t pretend you can do a certain type of work if you have no experience.

        6. Be available. Help the client out of a crisis if you can. Be flexible. Helping an editor or a client out of a jam may help you later on.

        7. Be cheerful and optimistic. Life is traumatic and publishing is a business fraught with problems. Your attitude can be a helpful tool everyone will appreciate. Maintain a positive attitude.

        8. Be aggressive. There are many competitors out there. You'll be forgotten if you don't remind clients now and then that you're still in business. Know where you stand with your competition.

        9. Be a hard worker. All the above attributes won't help you if you aren't willing to work incredibly hard without constant reminders.

    10. Be patient. No one starts at the top. Slow and persistent wins the race.

Bluffing It

Bluffing isn’t only for poker players. As a freelance writer, you may find that every once in a while it will come in handy—but be prepared to fast-talk yourself out of a jam should you get caught. Generally speaking, bluffing is making someone think one thing when another or even the opposite is true.

As you start out in your writing career, you don’t have much going for you. You most likely haven’t published much or perhaps nothing at all. And trying to get something published seems to be an uphill battle. It’s a bit like trying to get a loan from your bank without any credit. And while you can’t bluff your way out of not having credit, you can stretch the truth somewhat about publishing.

For instance, let’s say you’ve had an opinion piece published in your local paper—if it still exists. You can list this accomplishment when querying an editor, just don’t say the piece was for the Op-Ed Page. Instead say you had an article published in such and such a paper. It will be difficult for an editor to track it down. But the credit still looks good and isn’t a lie. If you can get short pieces of 300 words or so published in print or on the Internet, that will help to bolster your professional image, especially if the idea you’re pitching is a really good one. What you’ve published and where you’ve published it won’t matter much.

The second bluff you can easily do is to make yourself look successful. Just as dressing for success can make a business career, so dressing your work can help start your writing career. Too many beginning writers think it’s just about the writing. There’s a lot more to it than that.

Start by designing a professional letterhead and perhaps even a simple, but professional looking Web page. Although you’ll most likely be conducting most of your correspondence electronically, you should make a good impression, nonetheless. Beyond correspondence, design your own invoice or get a free pre-formatted one from the Internet. Nothing says you’re professional more than a businesslike invoice.

Along with the above, its imperative to format your writing correctly. The writing biz has standards, and you should learn and follow them. Even if your writing isn’t that great, editors will more likely read it if it’s a good idea formatted as professionally as possible.

A third bluff that may come in handy sometime in your career, but especially in the beginning, is obtaining an interview from a prominent person or celebrity when you’re not writing for the top markets. In this case, it’s important to be honest with the person or their publicist. Don’t lie, but, on the other hand, don’t’ tell them everything.

For example, find out as much about the person as possible. Flattery will get you everywhere in this case. Make an appointment and have your questions prepared ahead of time. In fact, it’s a good idea to send them to the person or publicist in advance of the interview. As in the case above where you list credits that lead someone to believe they’re more than they are, you’ll need to do the same.  Or you can bluff your way into seeing the person.

When George P. Chapman of the Westerly Rhode Island Sun wanted to get an exclusive from Albert Einstein, he pulled a trick that got him past the impatient crew of big-time reporters waiting outside, straight into the genius's living room.

Though he was a reporter, he was also a telephone repairman. Wearing his lineman's boots and work clothes, carrying his tools, Chapman strolled casually to the door of Einstein's summer cottage. "I've come to look over your phone," he said.

The maid let him in, saying, "Good. The professor has been trying to get Washington, and the dial is slow." Chapman produced a can of oil and fixed the recalcitrant machine. Then he turned to Einstein and announced he was a reporter for the local paper. Could he have a statement? He got his scoop with a smile.

Bluffing has its place in freelance, but remember not to overdo it. Once you’ve established yourself, use your own knowledge and credits to build your career.

Is a Writing Conference in Your Future?

The learning curve to become a writer is a long slow one, so you need all the help you can get. Just because you get a piece or two published doesn’t make you a freelance writer. Learning should continue as long as you continue to write. One of the best ways to learn new skills and make contacts is by attending a writers’ conference.

No matter where you live, unless it’s literally in the wilderness, you’ll most likely find a writers’ conference being held nearby. Some are worth the money and time you spend on them. Others are not. Matching yourself and your own writing and business needs to the right one in the right place takes planning, lots of research, and money—extra amounts of which are often harder to come by for many freelancers. Also, the quality of conferences tends to ebb and flow. What was a great conference one year may not be so great the next, depending on its management, the amount of promotion, the level of faculty expertise, and the state of the economy. And don’t be swayed by celebrity names on the roster. Just because a writer is well known doesn’t mean that they can convey what they know to you.

So what makes a good writers’ conference? You should judge a conference by the seminars it offers, not by how many editors or publishers will be there. Remember, your main objective at any conference, for writers or not, is to learn new skills. Pick a conference that will offer you the most new knowledge for the money.

A good example of a narrow view is the Philadelphia Writers Conference, held annually in June. The management of this conference prides itself in allowing seminar presenters to work at the conference only one time. This bypasses many really good instructors who could share their knowledge with even more writers over the years. It also requires participants to attend all three days of the conference. This is supposed to weed out wannabees. Instead, it makes it harders for professional writers to attend, giving the conference a definite amateur outlook.

If you're considering a conference coming up in your area, ask yourself some questions about it first. Can you tell from the flyer or Web site what type of writers the conference targets? Is this a conference for all writers—nonfiction writers as well as fiction writers and poets? Does it offer too broad a range or too narrow a one? Is it aimed at beginning writers or those already in the business? The American Society of Journalists and Authors runs an annual conference aimed primarily at those not in their ranks. They encourage their membership to volunteer for the conference, but not necessarily to attend it.

If you’re a working freelance writer, there’s nothing like enhancing your skills and knowledge better than attending a writers conference by professionals for professionals. Talking shop with other working writers for several days or a week can add immeasurably to your overall knowledge. The annual Malice Domestic Conference for both writers and fans of “cozy” mysteries, held each Spring in Bethesda, Maryland, is a good example of a conference that offers both seminars in writing skills and the exchange of ideas and the latest in mystery publishing between mystery writers. While not a writers conference as such, this massive mystery meeting draws mystery fans as well as working mystery writers.

Bouchercon, the world mystery convention held in a different location each year, attracts mystery writers from around the globe. All the major mystery writers' organizations have meetings there, and some, such as Sisters in Crime, even offer a writing workshop a day prior to the convention.
                  
Find out about the speakers at the conference you plan to attend? Do research on them beyond what you read in the brochure. Do you recognize the titles of their work? Do you know if they'll be criticizing work at the conference? Time constraints prevent one-day or weekend conferences from offering a critiquing service, unless you send in work ahead of time. However, longer conferences, with higher fees for room, board, and workshops, usually do. 

Will publishers and agents also be present? While it’s always good to mingle with these people, most of the good ones simply don’t have time to attend conferences. Plus, they’re not looking for beginning writers but more for ones who have had some work published. Does the conference have social hours scheduled or a place where you can meet and talk casually to seminar presenters? Try to find someone who has attended the conference in the past and ask them about its good and bad qualities.

The best way to find a conference near you is to search for “writers conferences” on Google. Writers’ Digest Magazine has also published a list of conferences annually in their May issue.

Brushed by the Wand of Success

Any writer who has deposited a check signed by the treasurer of a publication has, at least for that point in time, been brushed by the wand of success. To me, success is relative. It’s that special feeling I get at a particular moment when I feel I’ve made it.

In the beginning, it was all about getting published. Once I did that, I sat back on my newly-found success and waited for the assignments to roll in. I waited and waited and waited. In fact, I ended up waiting for nearly six years. And in all that time, I didn’t publish another piece.

Success is a funny thing. It does things to me, as I’m sure it does to you. I feel a not only a sense of accomplishment but one of euphoria. When I saw my first article in print in a national magazine, Popular Mechanics, I couldn’t believe it. The article looked great. And there was my name in print, as bold as it could be, letting everyone know that I was the writer.

Notice I didn’t say “author.” I reserve that title for those celebrity writers, like Stephen King, Ann Rice, and Norman Mailer, among others, who appear regularly as guests on talk shows like “Charlie Rose” and late-night shows like “Letterman.” I’m just a writer who works hard, the kind that makes up the backbone of the freelance writing industry.

After my initial bout with success, I realized I hadn’t handled it very well. While I managed to get something published, what good did it do me. I had my 15-seconds of fame. What I failed to do was build on that success which stopped me dead in my tracks. What actually happened was what I call a “happy accident”—a good thing that just happens but the chance of repeating it is slim. Some writers go through their whole carriers having happy accidents. I soon learned that I had to take control of my success or I won’t have any others.

I had written an article on building a modern “chuck wagon” box for my hatchback so that could travel across country camping while still eating home-cooked meals. The idea was a practical one, so the magazine's editor thought his readers would benefit from it. However, the subject was far from what I wanted to publish—travel articles about exotic places. It was only remotely related to travel, and the writing wasn’t anything like what I wanted it to be. In essence, this became a dead end piece, an article that couldn’t really help me get anywhere. That’s why I didn’t move on in publishing for six years.

The next big success for me was my first book, a book for teens on solar energy. I learned a lot from that book, but it, again, wasn’t in my field of expertise, just a field of interest. Because it wasn’t about travel or by this time history, but science, I didn’t get anywhere with that project, either. I couldn’t promote the book to publications because it wasn’t what I was writing regularly.

After that bit of success, I began to pay attention more to what I was writing. I focused on several different subject areas and made a point of not writing in others that wouldn’t advance my career.

My next book, called Amish Country, was a big success, and showcased my travel writing skills. The Amish live less than an hour from me, so it was easy to write about them. My future articles and books all moved my career forward, and successes became more frequent. Soon my successes outweighed my failures, and at that point I considered myself a professional freelance writer.

What Does It Mean to Have Cave Smarts?

Neanderthal man survived for a very long time because he had “cave smarts.” To survive as a freelance writer, you also have to develop cave smarts but of a different kind. While the Neanderthals learned to hunt by trial and error, you must know your strengths and weaknesses and use them accordingly.

Most writers are industrious, sometimes intuitive,  at times a bit impulsive and perhaps compulsive, and observant. What drives most writers is inspiration. The difference between writers and wannabee writers is how they handle it.  A wannabee writer believes that he or she has to be inspired to write anything while a professional writer uses inspiration to get ideas that he or she further develops into articles, stories, and books—all the while keeping an eye on their target market.

If you don’t have a reader in mind when inspiration strikes, you might as well not write anything. Writing for yourself won’t get you anywhere professionally. You have to write for a specific audience. This audience may change from publication to publication or from book to book, but it’s there, nevertheless. Knowing who that audience is ahead of time will enable you to use those inspired ideas to their best advantage. And that’s where being industrious comes in. It takes a lot of hard work to develop an idea to its full potential—perhaps hours of research, followed by an equal amount of time actually writing.

And men, don’t let the women convince you that only they have “intuition.” If an idea seems right, then it probably is. Follow your intuition once in a while. You may have a “gut” feeling about a topic. Follow it through. It may turn out to be the best piece you ever wrote or a runaway bestseller.

While it isn’t in your best interest to act impulsively, once in a while you may have to decide then and there—providing the light bulb goes on in your head—that you’re going to start working on an idea. This often will give you a jump on the competition. And in today’s super fast media world, that may not be such a bad thing.

Avoid acting compulsively. Don’t worry about sharpening your pencils or making sure your desk is compulsively neat. Sure, you’ll have to put on your janitorial hat occasionally, but don’t make it come before getting your writing done. Don’t use cleaning, filing, or sorting as an excuse not to write. As a professional writer, you should be able to write any where at any time.

Many believe that successful writers don’t clip, file, retrieve information. Only a handful of writers work at an empty desk with only a computer and a monitor. If you don’t accumulate lots of files on the work your doing, then you probably aren’t doing enough research. You may use clips of articles to help develop a current project, or you may let them age to help trigger ideas in the future. More important than talent or luck, is the knack for using clips and files to research and develop topics to write about. Contrary to popular opinion, professional writers don’t write off the top of their heads. Even writing a blog takes some thought and preparation.

Writers overdevelop their sense of observation the way a blind person overdevelop their sense of smell or hearing. You need to be alert at all times, even when you’re not actually working. Ideas are everywhere and if you’re not keenly observant, you’ll miss them and perhaps some great opportunities.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog. In the coming weeks and months, I hope to give you an insider's look at what it's like to write professionally. So many people say "I just know I have a book in me," but do they really know what goes into to writing one. Besides the hours and hours of painstaking care that goes into the actual writing of a book, there are other things a writer must consider.

I also write articles. In the last 28 years, I've published over 4,000 of them in a variety of newspapers, magazines, newsletters, and Web sites. My file cabinets--and my computer hard drives overflow with them. To read some examples, go to my Web site, Writing at Its Best, at www.bobbrooke.com.

And, unlike a fiction writer, I deal in facts. To me, real life is far more intersting and diverse than the fantasy world of fiction.

So stay tuned for information and, I hope, inspiration. If I can help just one person achieve their writing goal, then writing this blog will have been worth it.