Bad things happen to good people, including good editors. Sometimes they’re faced with a hole in the periodical’s layout when the deadline to go to print looms. Your story can save the day if you’re the editor’s go-to writer and they’ll likely return the favor to you…
I am a longtime reader of your newsletter and short time freelance writer. I won an essay contest in May. My check was supposedly lost or stolen in the mail and I have still not received payment. I don’t want to make waves or any rookie mistakes in my correspondence with them that would create problems for me so early in my career path…
Back when I didn’t know where my first magazine sale would come from, a friend who was an established writer offered me a story assignment that a personal crisis was going to prevent her from completing. Her generosity opened the door to the nearly endless publication possibilities of food writing…
I love Christmas but I am SO relieved it is over. One of my favorite pastimes is writing and holiday mayhem sends my muse into hiding. She is back, however, and begging to be let out to play…
Just two weeks ago, we published this article: Around 75% of Americans DON’T Own Ebook Readers – Are you ignoring 75% of the book buying market?!
Coincidentally, Publisher’s Weekly released their new annual survey results this week.
As expected, the number of print book readers dipped slightly (only 3%) while the number of ebook readers rose 16%. This is good news on both fronts. Most people are still reading print books (triple the number of those reading ebooks) and those reading ebooks can buy more books because ebooks are less expensive.
Only 5% of library patrons reported borrowing ebooks. That means 95% of them borrowed print books…
This Week:
Managers of businesses, nonprofit organizations and government departments have long complained about the poor written communication skills of many of their employees. Managers are often too busy to edit their reports so they read smoothly. Yet these reports must present a professional image to a company’s customers and decision-makers. The answer for a growing number of firms is to hire freelance writers and editors to edit reports for clarity.
“Get a job that involves writing.”
That was the advice my English professor gave me on the day I dropped out of college. Like any good teenager, I immediately forgot her words and took on a warehouse job at a staffing agency, and now, looking back, I can see what that professor saw in me years ago: A passion for writing…
Boy, I sure am tired of people getting offended by the word Christmas, and Christmas decorations and the like. I am not Jewish yet I’ve never been offended by a Menorah, nor any other symbol or celebration of a religion to which I do not belong. To each his own, live and let live, and all that stuff. Why do people have to spew so much hatred this time of year? “Can we all just get along?” (R.I.P. Rodney King!)
I had an interesting conversation with my dad last week. He’s 69, retired, and has had some health issues lately. He has always been an avid reader. I can remember him sitting in the living room each night, his shoes on the floor, his feet on his ottoman, a cold Schlitz on his cork coaster, his glasses perched on his nose, and a large hardcover book in his hands. He read quite a bit about history and he enjoyed suspense novels. We had a large living room and one entire wall was floor to ceiling bookshelves. I loved that room.
Anyway, when I was talking to my dad last week, I asked what he was reading. He told me he’s reading two books right now – both novels. He had them both next to him and read the titles to me. I asked him if he ever read ebooks. He guffawed pretty loudly. He said he had never read an ebook and he never would. He likes visiting bookstores, enjoys the smell of a new book, and likes holding it in his hands. He also loves his bookshelves.
The fact is the vast majority of Americans (around 75% based on the most recent studies) don’t own ebook reading devices…
