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Vol
12 Number 1 - January 2, 2008
In this Issue:
This newsletter is only sent to subscribers. Instructions for unsubscribing or changing your email can be found by following the link at the bottom of this newsletter. If this issue was forwarded to you by a friend, take the time to subscribe for free by going to our web site at http://www.WritingForDollars.com and receive a free copy of the ebook, 83 Ways to Make Money Writing by Beth Fowler. Want to contribute to this newsletter? We are a paying market. Read our guidelines for contributors here: http://www.writingfordollars.com/wfdguidelines.cfm Welcome Happy New Year! Have you checked out our new article database? We added nearly 100 articles since last week, now over 400 articles from past issues are available to search and read. Find just the right information you need to make a few more bucks in the coming new year. Don't forget our database of writer’s guidelines is readily available to everyone for FREE! All links have been checked within the last year (the date that they were last checked is listed) so you can be sure to have the most up-to-date information. Be sure to watch for new features in the next few weeks. Here are the top-selling writing books at AWOCBooks.com - FREE SHIPPING on selected books! ($2.95 value)
Dan
Case, editor Get Your Own Bob by Tanya J. Tyler My friend Bob is my writing lucky charm. I regularly ask Bob to edit articles or stories I plan to submit to various venues. And every article or story he has edited for me has been accepted — every single one. So far that includes two Chicken Soup stories, a story for an anthology called "My Teacher is My Hero," and an op-ed piece that ran in my denomination’s national magazine. Bob and I worked together in the promotions department of our local newspaper. He is a very good writer in his own right and has also been published, so I know he knows the ins and outs of the business. I rely on Bob to bring a fresh pair of eyes to the things I’ve written. And that’s why every writer needs a Bob of their own. Fresh eyes on a story are essential. From his detached perspective, Bob points out errors I may have overlooked. You know how it is: Your mind is hard wired to skip over mistakes in a manuscript you’ve been working on for a while — you literally don’t see them. Someone else reading your work for the first time will often find misspellings and awkward phrasings blinking at them like a ferocious stoplight. You’ll be glad they’ve been caught. Bob catches them for me. Often writers get totally enamored of their story or article and might dig in their heels and insist on keeping in something that’s holding the piece back. An impartial but firm and fair editor like Bob is important to give your story some sparkle it might lack and to do some fine-tuning or tweaking. Because he’s not as wedded to my story as I am, Bob can pick up on things that don’t add to it and offer alternatives that will improve it. I value Bob’s insights and generally follow his suggestions about what to leave in and what to take out. It’s also good to have someone who focuses on another writing genre or whose style contrasts yours edit or critique your work. Bob and I are very different writer-wise. I’m usually straightforward and journalistic: get in the facts, tell a relevant and appealing story, maybe add something offbeat now and then. Bob can’t resist tossing in a quirky, humorous sentence of some sort in everything he writes, even his serious work. He is most talented at coming up with punchy endings, which is my weakest writing point. Sometimes I don’t start writing something until I know how I’m going to end it. Bob has a knack for crafting a finish that ties everything together neatly. So what’s in it for Bob? Whenever something he’s looked over for me sells and I get my check, I treat Bob to lunch. Granted, he will not survive on just the lunches I pay for because at this point the checks are few and far between. But our lunch meetings are times for us to regroup and talk about our writing and inspire and encourage one another. That’s another reason it’s good to have a Bob of your own — to keep you plugging away in spite of rejection, dejection, and writer’s block. Of course, there’s no guarantee the person you choose will be as lucky for you as Bob is for me. But anyone who tightens and strengthens and helps you improve your writing is worth a salad now and again. I am about to take the plunge with Bob. It’s time to move past the articles and onto bigger and better things. I have a novel manuscript I want him to read. I don’t dare send it off without letting him read it first. Telling him about his upcoming assignment at our latest lunch, I said, “It’s my kid’s story, Bob — not my cheap trashy romance novel. I can’t let you read my romance novel. We’d both be embarrassed.” But Bob just smiled over his salad as I rationalized. He knows, and I know, too: If I want that romance novel published, he had better read it. After all, that’s why Bob is on the job. (Now see how lame that ending is? Bob would have come up with something much, much better. But I wanted to surprise him with this article about how valuable his help is to me. I couldn’t have him edit an article about himself, could I? Will it sell? Well, if you’re reading this, I guess it did.) © Copyright 2008, Tanya J. Tyler 12 Paying Markets Updated or added in our database since December 19, 2007 High - Over $500
Medium - $125 - $500
Low - Less than $125
Geeky and Not So Geeky Tasks to Start Now by Beth Fowler You're the creative type. All that technical stuff is, well, too technical. Even so, some of your capacity to earn money depends on your computer. You have a bunch of software programs, Internet access, email and a Web site. If something goes haywire with any of those, running your writing business would be like plowing a field without a mule. Slow going. Earning income from writing entails handling technology-related tasks. Most of these tasks can be accomplished by the least geek-like among us. 1. Track Web site visitor behavior In the 1990s, tracking "hits" was cutting-edge data, but the information was incomplete and misleading. An author's site might rack up hundreds of hits a month, but very few of the virtual visitors converted into actual buyers. Nowadays, Web analytics, or the study of site visitors' behavior, provides a mother lode of statistics to mine to help guide business decisions. Among other intelligence, you want to know where your Web visitors come from and how they engage your site. Web analytics software can determine if hits represent first-time or return visitors, which pages they respond to and which pages they hit and bounce right out of. With this data, writers can fine tune marketing campaigns and hone Web site content. To find out about tracking systems, type "Web analytics" in your search engine. 2. Create and use a PM plan According to Charles Kozierok, preventative maintenance (PM) saves time, saves money, safeguards data and improves system performance. With a little technical know-how – that means the ability to click purposefully and regularly – you can keep your hardworking beast the computer running smoothly and prevent major glitches. Install and then update antivirus, anti-spyware and anti-spam software. Clean temporary files out of the hard disk and check it for errors weekly. Run the defrag program monthly. Find PM instructions at Kozierok's site (www.pcguide.com) and read "Put Your PC Maintenance Routine on Autopilot" at www.microsoft.com. PM includes… 3. Back up! Several years ago my computer was stolen, so I now back up, back up, back up! No matter what the cause of data loss — virus, power surge, theft — business shuts down when email addresses, manuscripts and every other document and photo stored since you launched this writing gig are gone. Recreating files from scratch robs time from handling current projects and searching for new markets. Copy or "burn" files onto CDs, DVDs or ZIP disks or copy files onto USB flash drives. These external backup methods are fine if the amount of data isn't huge. Store backup files away from the computer and safe from hazards. (I keep backups at mom and dad's.) Backing up files over the Internet is an option that can hold larger amounts of data. Read about the pros and cons of backup storage systems at www.microsoft.com. 4. Pop up on searches In the old days, a "black hat" copywriter typed popular (but irrelevant) search terms in the Web content hoping the site would pop up near the top of results lists when unsuspecting surfers had searched for grammar rules or whatever. Proprietary algorithms, spiders and robots have stymied the effect of sprinkling Web sites with irrelevant keywords. Search engine optimization (SEO) boosts the odds of a Web site appearing high in Yahoo! AOL Search, Google, MSN and other results lists. Appropriate keywords are important as is submitting your site to search engines and online directories. Some search engine operators offer a paid submission service. Wikipedia provides a summary of SEOs. 5. Un-hype the copywriting Internet users want what they want ASAP, minus the hype. "Don't make your Web site look like an ad," says Marie Veloso, director of Web Copywriting University. Delete many first person pronouns from Web wordage. Address visitors directly as "you." Write titles and descriptions that are clear, factual and free of superlatives. For instance, "I guarantee my writing workshop is the best ever!" turns Web visitors off. "Are you tired of sitting in boring writing workshops?" is customer-focused and recognizes that people go online to find what they need, not what someone wants to sell. 6. Be precise, be concise Delete annoying flashing, blinking images. Delete audio messages that blast surfers when they open the site. Shorten sentences and paragraphs. Use lists in lieu of dense paragraphs. Invite visitors to click for in depth information rather than scroll through fluff. Visitors should be able to find what they want in no more than three intuitive clicks. Include basic info — phone number, email address, publishing credits. Don't rely on spell check to catch all misspellings. 7. Call a consultant Hiring a pro to solve technical problems or maximize your computer's performance makes sense. Write a list of your problems and requirements then search for a consultant who understands your needs and can explain things without jargon so you can understand what's she's recommending and can perform tasks yourself, within reason. Ask writers to recommend someone or search for consultants at www.icaa.org, the Independent Computer Consultants Association's Web site. 8. Network the old fashioned way "All things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those people they know, like and trust," Bob Burg wrote in "Endless Referrals." People feel they know a writer better after they've met in person or even over the telephone. Without both parties being present, nuances of body language and voice can make the phrase, "Good luck with that!" sound sarcastic or supportive. Brainstorming a seminar, negotiating terms and prospecting for new customers are activities best done in person. Geeky or not, writers need to turn off the computer and meet current and potential customers in the flesh and blood. After successful treks into the real world writers have an even greater need for computer systems that're up and running like a trusty ol' mule. © Copyright 2008, Beth Fowler
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