Masquerading As Novel ~ Can Author?s Work Convey Important Perceptions?
October 28, 2006
While novels do not usually attempt to convey concepts about the need to protect ourselves, this one does. For Sale By Owners:FSBO. As the author, I have been told that I have broken all of the rules. Crime, Police corruption, Sexual abuse, and Scams are exposed. The Trucking, Real Estate, and even Street~Prostitution industries are laid bare.
This story is dedicated to all those who did not recognize the dangers which lurked behind the friendly faces of evil.
When questioned about my reasoning for choosing this layout, I’ve repeatedly said, “I selected the novel format because it allowed the freedom to develop hypothetical scenarios, involving fictional characters, while forcing awareness of real dangers. I wanted to make a compelling case for right choices, not just in marketing ones home, but in all aspects of life.”
Perhaps it was due in part to some good advice I received when I was attempting to decide what to write. A book I read said that an author should choose a subject that he or she knows something about. Wow, that made sense. For someone who had been involved in several industries, had spent much of his life cleaning up mistakes made on personal levels, and feeling a need to convey ideas to people that might dissuade them from similar dangerous avenues, a novel would be more flexible than a self-help guide of some sort. Especially considering that often those who are most at risk, don’t have any idea that they are.
Creating Great Business Correspondence
October 28, 2006
Obtaining the skills for writing good business correpondence is important; a job seeker needs to send customised job application letters. A secretary needs to send out an official invitation letter. A purchasing assistant may need to prepare an invoice. It does not necessarily imply that you must just have a good standard of English. You should remember that correspondence means to communicate a message. It is a two-way effort between the writer and the receiver.
Here are some tips:
The Printing
The quality of your printing reflects the stature of your own company. Ensure that your printer has an adequate ink cartridge and the printing is even. Do not set your printer to "quick draft" as the quality is not up to standard and may not be easy for the receiver to read.
Write To The Point
The structure of the business correspondence should always be to the point and not be opened to various interpretations. Your writing should not be repetitive and a business letter should preferably be a page long. If your receiver does not have any background information, you should include an attachment with the cover letter.
The Title Of Business Correspondence
Want to Put Your Names on My Article?
October 27, 2006
There’s a new sort of ghost stalking the digital landscape.
They let several people pay them for the right to put their names as authors to some articles and, maybe, other types of written work that they write. This differs from the traditional way that ghost writers work. Instead of writing pieces to order or supplying pre-written pieces for a fee to one client who buys the right to replace the ghost’s name with their own as author, the new arrangements involve the ghost being paid by several people for naming rights to the same article or other written piece. The ghost, in every occurence that I’m aware of, disclosed to all their potential clients exactly what they are doing - though, naturally, they may not tell each client exactly who else has the same rights to the pieces) that they are paying for.
Usually 20 or more people can buy the rights to any one article or package. My concern is for the effect of more than one person using the article with their own name on it as the sole author. Imagine that 3 “authors” circulate one of these articles through their mailing lists, remembering that many people who promote their services and products through their own web sites may have lists with several thousand subscribers, and one or more people subscribe to more than one of these lists.
Save Time When You Write
October 27, 2006
I’m in the process of moving from one computer to another, and one of the things I really miss so far is a good keystroke macro program.
That’s a program, a communication technology, that allows you to trigger long strings of text, including names and email addresses, with just a couple of keystrokes.
For example, I often have to write out the name of my book, A Manager’s Guide to Newsletters: Communicating for Results. With a macro, I simply type “mgx” (without the quotation marks) to write out the first half of the title (up to the colon), or “mgc” to write out the full title.
If you’ve used them yourself, you know how handy it is to be able to have shortcuts to commonly-used pieces of text (also called boilerplate).
Almost every kind of writing uses commonly-repeated words and names, and once you get used to using macros, they save a lot of time that would otherwise be spent hammering on the keyboard.
They’re especially useful for snippets of text that involve hard- to-reach characters on the keyboard. For example, when you type an email address, you have to reach to the upper left corner of the screen to hit the “@” key. So, I have macros for commonly used email addresses: “abcx” for “abbottr@managersguide.com” and “ralx” for “robert@abbottletter.com”
11 Quick (and Good) E-zine Content Ideas
October 27, 2006
Publishing an e-zine is the ideal opportunity to showcase your business. By sharing your knowledge and expertise, you build credibility as an expert, while spreading the word about your services and products.
While sometimes you’ll have dozens of content ideas, other times you’ll find yourself staring at a blank computer screen, grumbling that it’s publishing time again. Well, have no fear! Here are 11 quick (and good) content ideas for when you’re in a pinch.
1. Give real-life examples. Describe a problem you’ve solved for a client/customer, and use that as a springboard to offer more general advice. Show your readers how you’ve helped customers address challenges - "case studies" if you will. This positions you as the expert in your readers" minds more than your coming out and saying so.
2. Think of three areas in which you’d like your clients to think of you as a resource. Now develop content in those areas. For example, as a professional copywriter, I really enjoy working on Web sites. To help encourage my clients and prospects to hire me for these projects, I published several articles on how to write Web copy that sells.
Power Words And Phrases
October 26, 2006
I like to use power phrases when writing sales material. These power phrases add punch to a line or a paragraph and I usually use them to start off a sentence.
You can generally find alot of “power phrases” when reading good sales copy. I usually keep a notebook nearby so that whenever I come across a line or a phrase that I Iike in sales material, I write it down for possible future use.
They are also great for writers block too. When I am stuck in the middle of writing, I’ll usually refer to my power phrases, and the next thing I know, the sentences sometimes start writing themselves.
Some examples of the power phrases I use include:
“Listen closely…”
“As you may already know…”
“Now, I don’t know about you…”
“Well, I’ve got news for you…”
“Let me explain…”
“And best of all…”
“In fact…”
“Here’s the bottom line…”
“Quite frankly…”
“Now, I know what you’re thinking…”
“Take a deep breathe and relax…”
“The answer is yes…”
Power phrases can be used to grab and hold people’s attention so that they keep reading. Some may even call these “hypnotic” phrases.
7 Steps to Successful Publishing
October 26, 2006
The decision to publish a book is very exciting! It causes the creative juices to flow and the eyes to light up. But wait ? before you begin the publishing process, know about the seven most important steps you need to know before publishing your book. Make sure that you take every step into careful consideration so that your road to success is an easy one:
1. Know why you are writing a book. Are you writing your memoirs for the family, are you writing a community cookbook, are you writing a book of regional interest or are you writing a national bestseller? All of these goals are valid, but each goal has different implications for your business plan. Know why you are writing and know that you can create that bestseller if that is your goal.
2. Treat publishing as a business. You are passing beyond the realm of author into the exciting world of publishing. You are not just a writer, you are about to become a publisher who wants to produce a profitable book, and you want to keep the profits for yourself.
Super Profitable Techniques for Selling Books By Mail
October 26, 2006
The total number of books sold by small, part-time mail orderentrepreneurs is growing each year. Total sales each year for thepast five years have increased by almost 30-percent over theprevious year’s sales.
Two “angles” have greatly contributed to this phenomenalgrowth in total sales.
One is the practice of offering a wide selection of books via”mini-catalogs” The other “angle” is the practice of sendingthese “mini-catalogs” to prospective buyers as “inserts” inprinted materials the prospect has already ordered.
Mini-catalogs are usually printed on 8 1/2 x 11 sheets ofpaper, then folded in half along the length, and simply slippedinside the covers of a magazine or the folds of a newspaper.Often-times, a mini-catalog is folded and sent out as aself-mailer. Both of these methods of obtaining circulation arevery profitable.
A book-selling “mini-catalog” is made up of a “full-pagecommercial” on the front page. This is your main sales thrust, orprimary attempt to sell a “featured” book with ease of yourmailings. The second, third, and half of the last page of themin-catalog should be two columns of listings of other books youhave to offer.
Do I Really Need To Write Articles For E-zines?
October 25, 2006
When I was first advised to start writing articles, this was the first question I asked. As I was totally freaked out at the thought of me writing for others to read.
Many people subscribe to e-zines and the readers often trust the recommendation of their editors. By sending articles to e-zines you will get valued visitors to your web-site. For each article you get published by them, the traffic to your website is increased.
What is there to gain from publishing e-zine articles?
At the end of your article you can add a resource box. With this you can brand your web site, business and yourself. In it you could include your name, business name, web site address, e-mail address, anything really that brands your business.
Become a GURU! By publishing regularly you will become known as an expert on the topics you write about. This gives you an advantage that helps you compete by giving you and your business extra credibility.
Some articles are placed on a publisher’s home page. If each issue is placed on their home page you can gain extra exposure. If your publisher archives their e-zine, in other words stores back copies. This again gives you greater exposure; it is good for the sceptics in that they can read previous articles before making the decision to subscribe.
Proofreading for Profits
October 25, 2006
How to avoid mistakes that undermine your credibility
You’re probably already familiar with the spell checker built into your software. Some work automatically as you type, others only run when you activate them.
Spell checking is just the start of your proofreading tasks. Don’t let simple grammatical errors, or text omissions, sabotage your message. Here are some things to check for that go beyond the capabilities of your software program’s spell checker.
But, spell checkers are not infallible! Know what yours checks-and what it doesn’t check. Does it check text imported from other programs? Does it flag words containing numbers?
Spell check limitations
Monitor your spell checker’s recommendations. Make sure each suggested replacement is a correctly spelled version of the original word, and not an inappropriate substitution. Double-check the spelling of proper nouns and industry-specific terms. Use care adding them to your custom spell check dictionary, or they will be misspelled forever!
Grammatical errors
Watch for homonyms-correctly spelled, but misused words-such as to, two, and too, or affect and effect. Most spell checkers are not context sensitive. Watch for singular nouns paired with plural verbs, and vice versa. Make sure you have used correct punctuation, like Em dashes (-) to indicate duration, instead of two hyphens (- -).
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