The Writer's Cottage

It’s 2010, do you know where your journal is? I’m not kidding. Journaling is one of the best ways for you to learn a new language, such as English. It’s always one of the ways to let your writing muse know that you are serious about being a writer. So, whether you’re new to the American English language or you want to apply your native speaking skills to the written word, get journaling!

It’s a brand new year, so there’s no time like TODAY to grab a new book (preferably lined) or start a new file on your computer titled: JOURNAL 2010. Scientific studies have shown some advantage to handwriting over typing on a computer keyboard–something about the physical motion of the hand on the paper connecting more directly to the language center in the brain. As a teacher of writing and English as a Second Language (ESL), I used to be pretty firm about my students handwriting in their journals. But, then I stopped journaling for a period of time. After about a year, I asked myself why I had stopped. It was then that I realized I had become so accustomed to typing so fast (about 110 words a minute) on a laptop keyboard, that handwriting was just too slow for the flow of my thoughts that came tumbling out every time I picked up my paper journal to write.

So, now I tell my students—use whatever technique feels right for you and supports your inner writing muse in his/her journaling. Just do it—start with five minutes a day, every day. After just a few days of this practice, you will feel so great about your new language skills and/or the amount of original writing you are creating, that you will most likely increase your journaling time.

What are you waiting for? Go start that journal!

Happy New Year of Writing!

Sue

An Author’s VA (virtual assistant) is your personal editorial and administrative specialist who helps you get the tasks and projects done that are keeping you from maximum success in your writing and publishing endeavors. For example, let’s say as a life coach you want to write, produce, and send out a free newsletter to your client list every month. But the month goes by and flies into the next month before you realize that you missed yet another month’s mailing–and most likely some new clients/sales for your business. Now think about this scenario–you hire an Author’s VA, and she does that newsletter for you–seamlessly, without you worrying about it, every month. At the end of the quarter, you discover your sales/client base has increased by 20%. At an average rate of $35-$45 an hour, your VA has more than paid for herself.

What if you want to finally write and publish that book? Your Author’s VA can help you by researching potential markets, editing your material, coaching you through the traditional or self-publishing process, writing and editing your query letters and book proposals, and writing and placing press releases in the media about your book, upcoming tours, and workshops.

Your Author’s VA can organize and coordinate your workshops and speaking engagements that are part of your book marketing. She can also do customized mailings for you.

In addition, a VA can offer you as an author the same services he offers other client audiences: financial management and bookkeeping; correspondence and email management; scheduling; travel arrangements, and more. It really depends on what the VA specializes in and what you need.

Do you want to add an online radio talk show to your marketing plan? Your Author’s VA can get that done for you! Your VA can coordinate daily the correspondence and scheduling that must go on behind the scenes to ensure that guests are booked for available slots, that potential guests’ books are sent to you for review, and that any questions guests have are answered promptly. In addition, your Author’s VA works with you, the host of the show, to find additional ways to market the show so as to ensure a steady flow of guests on the show.

An Author’s VA is not a publicist, however. A publicist specializes in advertising the author’s books to target audiences, whereas a VA coordinates all those details between you the author and the publicist. In fact, both you and the publicist can each have a VA helping them coordinate and manage all the administrative details and projects that go along with them doing their core work, be that writing a children’s book or publicizing one.

There are some other things you should not expect from your Author’s VA. For example, do not expect a VA to define your vision and mission statement for your writing and publishing career. Do not expect a VA to write your book for you, unless you are hiring that VA for ghostwriting services. Do not expect a VA to be your assistant, agent, publicist, and editor all in one role. Although some VA’s might offer publicity, editing, etc. as one or more of their VA specialties, you can’t expect one person to do three very different specialized jobs for you, unless you and your VA are very clear that these are the expectations and they are written out in a contract that you both have signed. Do not expect a VA to read your mind. One of the key parts of the VA-client relationship is communication. So you have to show up for meetings just as the VA does in order for both of you to make sure that you are communicating about the work and the expectations around the work.

A VA is paid hourly usually, unless his client retains him for a basic number of hours per month and in that case, he will be paid a flat monthly retainer rate (usually discounted off of the VA’s hourly rate). Any hours over that contracted amount, he bills at the end of the quarter to his client. A VA can also charge a flat rate by the project or service. It really depends on what works best for the client and the VA based on the work that needs to be done.

For example, as a Virtual Program Director for several clients’ blog talk radio shows, I charge for my services on an hourly basis, $40/hour. I keep track of my time in quarter-hour increments and bill each client weekly.

When hiring an Author’s VA, make sure that you and she can work well together, that your work personalities and mindsets blend well together. The best way to find that out is to ask for a half-hour free consultation where you can tell the VA what you need and ask her how she would go about accomplishing those tasks or managing those projects, be they on an ongoing basis or one time.

Also, make sure that the VA specializes in the particular services that you need. Some of the questions you can ask include: How long have you been a VA? Why are you a VA? What do you love most about your work as a VA? Who are some of the clients you have helped or currently work for? Can I have their names for references and testimonials?

I have found it helpful for my new clients to do a “trial” period of one or two months. We sign a contract for this time period that says I will provide these services at this hourly or project rate for this amount of time. I have found that after that contracted trial period is complete, both the client and I know whether we want to make this a “permanent” ongoing working relationship.

If you’re interested in a free half-hour consultation to discuss my Author VA services, please email me at:sue@thewriterscottage.com.

Whatever your writing needs, The Writer’s Cottage can help you succeed!

 I have a great life. I’m sitting here in my home office on a Monday morning looking out the window of an incredible winter scene. The river is still. Bordering it are snow-tipped trees and snow-covered banks. There’s even an adventurous duck floating down the icy river. I wonder if he, too, is enjoying this peaceful moment. The sky is clear blue, the deep kind of blue that looks like the ocean turned upside down in the sky. My beagles are resting on the floor surrounding my chair. They, too, notice the serenity of this beautiful first morning of winter.

The writer’s life isn’t always this serene, I know. Believe me, I know. Lately, it’s been more nerve-wracking, trying to get decent-paying work in a very tight economy. But for this moment, as I gaze out at the scene Nature painted, I am reassured that the writer’s life is indeed a wonderful one.

Happy Writing!

Sue

This morning, I got into a car I wasn’t used to driving and I expected to get to where I was going on time. Of course, I didn’t. Why not? I wasn’t prepared to drive this particular ar.

That’s how writing is: if you don’t do the prep stages in the four-step writing process, you won’t get to where you want to go in your writing, whether you’re writing a technical report, novel, short story, article, memo, or status report.

The prep stages of the writing process are first, pre-writing (getting the ideas through brainstorming or freewriting), and second, organizing those ideas into a logical format or flow. Skip these two steps and get right to writing, and you’ll end up where I was this morning — stuck in a driver’s seat going nowhere.

Happy Writing!
Sue

I’m reading some great books these days on positive thinking and how our thoughts affect our lives. What affects my life affects my writing, after all, so I consider this type of reading crucial to the health of my writing life. These days my writing life has been meager due to the stresses of downsizing, day job loss, and some health issues. But there is hope in this blog today because I have been finding hope in these books. The first one is As a Man Thinketh by James Allen. Originally published in 1902, this gem of a pocket book summarizes the world’s (ancient and contemporary) wisdom on the power of thought. I have highlighted and noted so many phrases in this little volume. Here are a few for your inspiration:

• [A person's] wishes and prayers are only gratified and answered when they harmonize with his thoughts and actions.
• [People] are anxious to improve their circumstances, but are unwilling to improve themselves; they therefore remain bound.
• [A person] is the causer (though nearly always unconsciously) of his circumstances, and that, while aiming at a good end, he is continually frustrating its accomplishment by encouraging thoughts and desires which cannot possibly harmonize with that end.
• Good thoughts and actions can never produce bad results; bad thoughts and actions can never produce good results.

Another book that is really “speaking” to my writer’s Muse these days is written by Dr. Karen E. Peterson: Write. 10 Days to Overcome Writer’s Block. Period. Dr. Peterson writes about how our right brain (the home of the Muse) and left brain often are at odds with each other. Through a series of dominant hand/nondominant hand exercises, she helps the blocked writer “see” into his/her right brain and therefore get insight into the resistance that the right brain is putting out there and thereby blocking the writer’s efforts to create. The promise of the title is true: in less than 10 days of reading this book, I have found I am able to finally put pen to paper (or fingers to laptop keyboard) and write 2,000 words. Now that’s progress!

On your writing journey, remember the rewards of reading, especially inspirational texts, for your writing.

Happy Writing!
Sue

Among all the barriers to pursuing one’s dream, writer’s block must be up there in the land of giants.  If any of you have ever suffered with writer’s block, you know what I mean. It’s very frustrating to sit down at your computer every day at the appointed time you have set aside for your writing only to find a barren desert where your creative mind is supposed to be!

As you have probably surmised by now, I have been facing writer’s block lately. Actually, this syndrome has been occurring off and on for three years. But now that I have made a clear decision to write every day, t’s harder to ignore the condition (which, in the past, I sidestepped with a nice chocolate treat, thank you very much!). Many extra pounds and days later, I realized that I have to face and conquer this giant that is standing in the way of my dream of an eclectic, fulfilled, and independent life as an abundantly wealthy writer.

Here are some of the ways I’ve decided to conquer this giant of writer’s block. Maybe they will help you.

1. I am going to write at least one full page every morning. Julia Cameron calls these “morning pages” in her books The Artist’s Way and The Right to Write  (great books to have in your writer’s library, by the way).
2. Write out the questions I would ask myself if I were interviewing myself for an article. This technique helps me to see myself — my life experiences, talents, etc. — objectively. One of these questions could develop into an excellent topic for an article or essay.
3. Go to my public library and read current and back issues of The Writer’s Digest. Sometimes, just browsing through a magazine about writing can stimulate your creative muse and give you ideas. Make sure to bring along your writer’s notebook so you capture all of those great ideas!
4. Take a walk with a recording device in hand. I find that when I walk I am inspired with ideas that would never have occurred to me. I discovered that my cell phone has an audio recorder feature in the multimedia section. So when inspiration hits, I pull out my cell phone and talk away. Several times a week, I sit down at my computer to record those bits of inspiration. I am amazed at what my creative muse came up with while I was walking outside in nature.

Let me know if you try these techniques and how they work out for you. I’d also love to hear what you’ve done to help face and conquer your writer’s block giant.

Happy Writing!

Sue

Do you think it is easier to write a 1,000-word essay or a 360-word article? Think carefully before you answer. I had an interesting conversation today with a colleague who commented that he had so much respect for news journalists because they had to report the most important news in a very limited number of words. His comment gave me pause to think. When I was a technical writer pumping out 80 to 120-page user manuals in a week, I learned how to write 1,000 words in about 15 minutes. The 10-year experience taught me how to write a lot under pressure and how to self-edit my work. But I didn’t have a limit to the number of words I could write; news journalists do. And, that’s a very valuable skill to develop as a writer because it makes you focus your topic and choose your words very carefully. In other words, your writing becomes sharper, more concise.

The following exercise will help you develop those “news journalist” writing skills. Do it at least once a week and you will be well on your way to clarity and conciseness in your writing.

Choose a topic or ask a friend to give you a topic. First, write 1,000 words on the topic. Then write 500 words on the topic. Finally, write a 360-word article on that same topic.

Compare all three pieces. Which one do you think says the most with the least amount of words? You most likely answered the 500-word or 360-word one. You can consider the 1,000-word piece as your first draft (also known as your rough draft). Rough drafts are very important in the writing process. They are part of the third step (write), but they are not the end of the writing process. After you have written your verbose rough draft, you must proceed to step four: rewrite and edit. This is the crucial step that many new writers skip in their eagerness to send out their writing for publication. Unfortunately, it’s also one of the reasons their words are rejected by editors. Verbosity does not breed conciseness; careful rewriting and editing do.

Happy Writing!
Sue

I’m incredibly resourceful. So resourceful that all my friends and colleagues call me “The Resource Lady” or “The Resource Queen.” Whenever someone, friend or stranger, needs help with finding information, resolving a problem, or figuring out their next step, I help. No matter their question, I always seem to be able to point them in the direction of really helpful resources (people, places, things, etc.). Some days, I sit back and go, “OK, so what is this all about? What do I do with this? Do I make a business out of this not-so-hidden talent? Or, do I just continue giving it away, so to speak?”

Here’s what I think today: resourcefulness is a hidden, and necessary talent, of a good writer. Why? Because writers have to be incredibly resourceful to get the information and ideas they need for their craft. Whether you write fiction or non-fiction, writing comes down to this mission: organizing and communicating information for a useful purpose. That useful purpose could be entertainment, as in the case of a novel. It could be education, as in the case of a reference or how-to piece. It could be thought-provoking, as with a well-written personal essay.

The point is that no matter what you write, the fact that you are a writer means that you have a hidden talent of resourcefulness. It’s the only way you could be making it as a writer – somewhere inside of you, there is this innate ability to observe, gather, absorb, and remember the information and resources you need to know about in order to write about whatever it is you’re writing.

So the next time someone asks you what you do or what you are, answer: I am an incredibly resourceful writer! (Or, is that redundant?)…

Happy Writing!

Sue aka The Resource Lady

Every business document has the purpose of conveying information. Each business document type conveys information from a different perspective. The Sales Proposal’s purpose is to win the job by conveying to the potential client that you are the best person or company for the client’s needs. This is your sales story. Your sales story must be woven throughout your proposal.

Well-planned and well-designed proposals increase the likelihood of winning the job. Investing even an hour to plan your sales proposals can save you hours in writing your first draft. Remember, 80% of the writing process is NOT writing! 

When writing your sales proposal, remember to use PLEASE:

P is for Passion for your client’s needs—show the client that you “get” their concerns and that you are just as passionate as the client to address and meet those needs.

L is for Literally following the style standards of your language and your organization.

E is for Easy to understand and Easy to read. Following style standards will go a long way to making your sales proposal easy to understand. Completing the pre-writing and organizing steps in the writing process (steps 1 and 2) is also key in making sure your proposal is easy to read.

A is for Accuracy in all. Make sure you use your client’s facts correctly. For example, make sure their personal and organizational names are spelled correctly, that you have the correct information about them, that your numbers are correct, and that you can deliver what you promise.

S is for Show me with specifics and examples. Examples of similar projects you have successfully completed for other clients are powerful examples of the results you can obtain for this client.

E is for Everyone might be reading it. Your sales proposal should impress everyone, not just the person whose name is on the cover letter because, most likely, other people in the organization will be reading it.

Well-planned and well-designed sales proposals win results. If you or your organization would like help with writing, editing, or learning how to write winning sales proposals, please contact me at sue@thewriterscottage.com.