Angela Booth's Writing Blog

Serious fun: My new Google Page Creator site

I've been trying out Google Page Creator. Here's my new site, Internet Marketing For Writers.

The page took only minutes to set up -- about 20 minutes from Go to Whoa. I spent more time wondering WHAT I'd put on the site than creating the page. I finally decided that since I get so many questions about marketing and instant publishing the new site would be a good place to answer them. :-)

The Google Page Creator application is serious FUN to use. I love the fact that a few clicks gets you a whole new look and layout. Great stuff. :-)

Technorati Tags: Web software

(Mac software) Copywrite has been updated

If you haven't tried Copywrite, give it a go -- it's free if you use it for small projects.

I find it very useful for fiction, and keeping track of long projects.

Technorati Tags: writers' software

Kickstarting your fiction: dreaming your scenes

I've had many questions about fiction this week. A common thread is not being able to make progress on a short story. If this happens to you, you need to know that this is essentially a lack of communication between your right brain (creativity) and left brain (logic)… you can fix it, very easily.

One writer just writes one scene, and then gets STUCK. This one scene seems to be all there is, and no matter how much time he spends on it, he can't "see" another scene. He thinks he's procrastinating, but his challenge isn't time management, it's getting back into a right-brain mind state.

This is very common for beginning writers. Your single scene (or in some cases collection of two or three scenes) is what you can see/ imagine; it's what your right brain/ inspiration is serving up at the moment. ;-) Then your left brain kicks in, and you try to THINK your way to scene two, but it doesn't happen.

Here's how to handle it, if you have one-scene wonders, OR if you get stuck anywhere in your fiction. With novelists, this kind of sticking happens at around chapter three. Again, it's just a right/ left brain thing, and it's easy to fix.

THE FIX: dream the next scene, with your eyes open. That is, pretend you’re having a dream.

Write: "I'm dreaming that____" and carry on writing, describing a dream that you imagine. Write around a page, describing this (imaginary) dream. You're imagining that you're imagining. :-) This is excellent, because it kicks you right into your right brain – there's no way you can be logical about this.

If your dream has nothing to do with Scene One, or wherever you're stuck, that's fine. Write your page. Then, no matter what the subject matter of your dream sequence is, morph it into your stuck scene. Just cram it in there – you'll be amazed that it WILL fit.

Try it.

Technorati Tags: fiction

I love Google – and especially the Google Page Creator

I love Google (almost) as much as I love Apple. Both companies combine simplicity and elegance to create products that just work, and are always fun to use.

Google's latest triumph is the Google Page Creator. You can create your own ultra-fast Web site for free. No hassles about buying a domain name and hosting, just click and type and bingo, a new great-looking Web site.

If you haven't created your own writer's Web site yet, you've now got NO EXCUSE. Hustle over to the Google Page Creator site and get typing.

Please post your URL in the Comments, when you're done. :-) If you've already got a Web site, or several, create another with Google. You can have too many Web sites; creating sites is a completely benign addiction. ;-)

Technorati Tags: Web software

Start your writing with the EMOTION

Great ideas often don't look like great ideas. In fact, chances are that a great idea will seem commonplace, or boring to you because you know a lot about the topic.

For example, let's say that you're on a perpetual diet. You could write a dozen articles and a book about diets, because you know so much about weight loss. You've tried EVERY popular diet and you're still fat. But you can't seem to find a writing idea about diets that you WANT to write.

Start to identify some of the emotions you're feeling. Are you – angry? Sad? Disappointed? Ashamed…?

Write down some of your emotions.

Then choose an emotion, let's say disappointment. Identify three incidents when you were disappointed. Note – this is general disappointment in your life; the disappointments may be unrelated to your weight. Write down a short phrase which describes each disappointment.

Now relate those disappointments to your perpetual dieting. You will have several ideas you're eager to write.

Write… But remember the EMOTION. The emotion is the key to a piece of writing that you'll not only find EASY to write, but which will sell, because emotions are universal. Your writing will be powerful and true, because you used your emotions.

Technorati Tags: Writing Tip

The Truth, News At Nine: remember Inverted Pyramid Style

Before the daily news became a form of entertainment, news stories were written in Inverted Pyramid style. That is, the essence of the story appeared up front, as the base of the pyramid. "Frederick Thomas Smith, 48, was arrested today for burning down his auto supply business at ---"

Each subsequent paragraph expanded on the story. You could chop off the story anywhere, and still have the story make sense.

Remembering Inverted Pyramid style is useful when we want to write ANYTHING. This doesn't mean that your article, press release, advertisement or short story will read like a news item – it means that when you remember the base of the pyramid, the SEED of the story, you won't inadvertently leave anything out.

When I write an ad for laundry detergent, for example, I write the USP (Unique Selling Point) on a sticky note and paste it onto my monitor: environment friendly, uses citrus oils…

Try it. Write the story-seed on a sticky note and refer to it as you write. It keeps you on track.

Technorati Tags: practice your writing

From aspiring writer to WRITER: upgrade your thinking

"I've been trying to write for ten years..."

"I want to write..."

"I'm a writer wannabe..."

If you've ever said anything similar to the above, please upgrade your thinking. Think of yourself as a WRITER. Because it's true. As I sit at my desk, sipping coffee and writing this entry, I'm writing, so I'm a writer. When you write, you're a writer, and you should think of yourself as a WRITER.

The way you think about yourself and talk about yourself creates your self image. It affects everything you do. If you're trying to write, you'll try forever. If you want to write, you'll keep wanting to write.

DECIDE that you're a writer. Start thinking of yourself as a writer, and talking about yourself to others, as a writer. It takes effort to shift self-concepts, so don't be surpised when this takes time and persistence. :-)

When you think of yourself as a WRITER, you'll begin to act like a writer: you'll write, send your work out, apply for writing gigs, tell others that you're a writer and they'll ask you to write for them... and on, and on. You'll shift your energy pattern, and you'll begin thinking and acting in a new way. Others will recognize this shift, and will start to view you and react to you in this new way.

For an excellent overview on how to recognize your current energy pattern, and how to shift it, please read "Growing Betty's Business - Using our business principles in practice".

Re EFT, I use EFT every day. It really works. I started to use it around four years ago, wrote a magazine article about it and promptly forgot all about it. Now I'm using EFT again -- tapping on your meridien points works like acupuncture and acupressure.

EFT is a wonderful aid to help you to upgrade your thinking. If you truly want to change your life, start tapping. :-)

Technorati Tags: Motivation

Writers' Marketing Basics 2: Advertising in the Yellow Pages

Yes, it's old-fashioned, but it's still worth advertising in your local phone book. You'll get work from local businesses. This is great because you may be the only writer in your local area.

Leave this listing until your writing business starts to roll along, say in its second year. Why in the second year? Basically because by Year Two, you'll get some idea of which direction you want to take your business. Therefore, you'll know in which section of the Yellow Pages you'll get the most bang for your advertising dollars.

For example, you may find that you enjoy copyediting, and would like to do more of it. This means that you'd write your ad to go into the "Editorial Services" section.

Perhaps you find that you're doing a lot of marketing communications work, if so, select one of the marketing sections for your listing, or perhaps the Public Relations Agencies section.

Technorati Tags: Business, copywriting

Seven tips to help you market your copywriting services with a blog

Here are some tips to help you market your copywriting services via your blog:

1. Join the blogging community. Leave comments on other blogs, with your blog's URL as part of your signature. This may encourage other blog writers to link to your blog.

2. Post to your blog frequently, at least three to four times a week. Spell-check. Write as well as you can, but don't sweat blood over it.

3. You don't have to be outrageous, or post your most intimate secrets. Your aim is to market your copywriting services. Share only what you're comfortable sharing. Yes, you can mention client names, and link to client sites. However, please be kind. Remember that the Web is forever. Anyone who cares to do a Web search can find that snippy note you wrote to a Usenet troll back in 1994, so don't let yourself rip about deadbeat clients, because your words may come back to haunt you. :-)

4. You don't need to become an HTML whiz, but learn a little HTML so you can format, and link to others. Here's a tutorial page which will help.

5. You may not stay with the blogging service you start out with. Try a couple of free services, for at least a month each. As you grow in experience, you'll gauge which features you need and which you don't. You'll also discover which service is helpful to users, and which isn't.

6. Be truthful. Don't make claims in your blog that you can't back up. On the other hand, don't be too timid. Your opinions are important.

7. Enjoy yourself. Although your blog has a serious purpose --- marketing --- you can have fun with it. Use an informal style.

Your marketing blog won't make you famous online, but it might bring you to the notice of your next big client. Happy blogging. :-)

Technorati Tags: copywriting, get started copywriting

How to use your imagination when you write

"Yes, but I haven't got any imagination!" This is recurring wail from writing students and it tells me that they have imagination, but that they're not entering their imagination fully.

Imagination comes from the Latin verb to picture to oneself.

When you imagine, you're imagining something that isn't there to your physical senses. However, you can imagine that it is. :-)

Let's say that in your story, your hero is getting on a ship. Imagine the scene. Can you see, hear, smell, touch and taste the scene -- the dockside, the sea gulls, can you smell the salt in the air? The more fully you can imagine the scene, the more fully you're using your imagination.

Some writers imagine the scene as a movie: they focus, take close ups, pull the camera away, record, etc in their mind.

Other writers imagine entering the scene -- they're boarding the ship with their hero.

Your writing comes alive when you use your imagination, but you have to be willing to let go, and to enter your imagination fully.

Technorati Tags: creativity

Blogging your business: blogging kickstart workshop

I'm developing a personalized workshop for business bloggers, that is, people who own a business, or work in a company, and want to start a business blog in order to achieve enhanced search engine visibility.

If this is you, please let me know what you'd like included in such a workshop in the Comments. Many thanks.

Technorati Tags: blog how-to

This week's useful links: SATURDAY February 7, 2006

There's a mile of useful information on this site. (She says, modestly. :-))

To help you to explore the site's Archives, I'll present a list of blog items which answer questions that people have sent me this week, with some commentary. Thanks for your questions, and please keep them coming. You can always explore the archives by clicking on any category which interests you on the right of the screen.

1. Make a sale when you don't have any writing credits: create samples. You need writing samples for every writing job you apply for, so create them. Don't look on time you spend creating samples as time wasted: it builds your skills.

2. The world's easiest way to write articles which sell, everywhere -- write how-tos. I rarely do anything at all without wondering how I can get an article or a book out of it. You can do it too. It's EASY money.

3. Develop a successful writing business: create a writing plan. If you want to make money writing, consider that your writing is a business, because it is. Create a plan.

4. Expand your writing arenas and develop your skills by mining your creative intuition. I've often said that I'm the world's laziest writer. I let my intuition do the hard graft. On the Contentbee Self Development Blog you'll find a whole series on serious intuition, using your psychic ability.

5. Eliminate your inner saboteur/ inner critic and achieve writing freedom.

Technorati Tags: writing

Question and answer session with a writer who doesn't 'get' blogging

Q: What's a blog?
A: An online journal, resume, portfolio, rant, idea space, information store -- your blog is whatever you want it to be.

Q: Why do I need a blog?
A: The world is changing. It's changing for writers, very rapidly. Your blog is your entree into the online world. It's a small, safe place where you can experiment with exotica like HTML, RSS and CSS. If these acronyms make no sense to you, that's fine. Your blog will introduce you to them gently.

Your blog gives you options. It's instant-publishing. Post, and you've got readers. Some of those readers may be people who can buy your work, or who will hire you to use your skills for them.

Q: Yes, but I'm nervous; I don't know what to write in my blog.
A. Make a list of ten topics you want to explore. Explore them on your blog. Make a list of ten things that drive you wild. Write about them on your blog... you're a writer, write. :-)

People blog about their pets, about their cars, about their family, about their work, their romances -- write.

Technorati Tags: blog your writing, blogs

Writers' time management: Write organically, write more

Writers write. :-) Big surprise?

Although it seems self-evident that in the time that you allot to writing you should be WRITING, often you'll find yourself "researching" or doing other things which are only tangentially related to writing.

Researching is not writing. Writing is writing.

When you write, the only thing that counts is the word count -- the number of words on the computer screen. Yes, you need to research, but your research time should be separate from your writing time, and most of your research is done after your first draft.

Let's see how this works. You want to write a short story about a man who's caught up with a gang of thieves who are planning to rob a bank.

Get started. Write. Write an outline, or a character sketch. Write the opening of the story. Write some dialogue. Count your words.

Leave that project and work on something else.

When you come back to the bank story, your subconscious mind will have worked on it and you can get more words onto the computer screen. Over time, the project will grow. You'll be amazed at the number of words you write -- organically, a little at a time -- if you focus on the word count.

To get more out of your writing time: WRITE.

Technorati Tags: Writing Tip

Idea Knot (PC and Mac) to help you to LIST

Apropos of the lazy listing post, here's Idea Knot.

It's software for both the PC and the Mac -- the Mac version is free, you'll be happy to note.

It's a very simple application to use; perfect for listing.

Technorati Tags: writers' software