Want To Make More Money From Your Writing? By Mara Reid Rogers
The Party Line:
You know how when you go to a party, or any get-together for that matter,
and the first question someone asks you is “What do you do?”
Peppermint Bark and Snow
I’m writing this on Monday. Each year, when we get a good early snow, I drag the children outside for the annual Christmas card photo. We usually get a bit of snow in November but we haven’t had any this year so far. It’s snowing right now, but there’s only a tiny bit on the ground. I prefer a raging snowstorm (heh…) for the photo but it looks like I might have to settle for a dusting this year. I told Ali to ride the bus home if it’s snowing at 2:00 p.m. Richard will pick Frank up and Zach has promised to be here on time, too. I’ll bundle up all the children, drag them outside and make them stand and smile for a good five minutes while I snap a few dozens photos, looking for just the right one. Matt is part of our family now, too, as he lives here when he’s not at school. But, he won’t be home from school until December 20th and it never snowed over the Thanksgiving holiday while he was here. So, I might try to superimpose a photo of him into the snow picture. We love Photoshop!
Prima Donnas Need Not Apply by Angela Hoy
Some authors are just a bit too big for their britches. We don’t work with people like that. We receive emails from authors all the time telling us they want to use Booklocker.com but, due to their qualifications, title or celebrity status in their field, they expect “special treatment.” We treat all authors the same and don’t show favoritism as that would not be fair to everybody else.
Letters To The Editor For December 6th
This Week:
- AnySoldier.com
- All Writers Have An Obligation To Be Ethical
Online Course Taking Tips by Victoria Groves
Gone are the days when you have to meet up at the bookstore or someone’s home, sit in a circle and be part of a physical writers group to get feedback on your work. Sure, it’s a great luxury if you have the time, and you live in an area with enough writers to create a constructive writers’ circle or support ongoing writing workshops. But if your schedule is already stretched to its limits, if you live outside of a city, or if you’re not quite sure if you’re ready for ‘in-person’ instruction and feedback, you need to look for other alternatives…
Watch Out for Fake Book Reviewers
Can you please tell me or point me in the right directions to find “reputable” book
reviewers? I have come across a couple and they don’t give me a warm and fuzzy feeling. I think they are looking for free books.
Baby Stepping Your Way to Writing Success by Rebecca Jens
I relate to Bill Murray’s character, Bob Wiley, from the movie What About
Bob? Bob is afraid of everything. When it comes to writing, so am I. So
when I finally decided to be a writer, I used Bob’s psychiatrist’s advice
– I took baby steps.
First, I visited the library and read Writers Market. Then, I enrolled in
Journalism classes and read every writing book I could. Two years later,
when our local paper solicited feedback about changes they’d made, I
finally took my next step by submitting a comment. The publisher thanked
me and asked me to visit.
Our Cuddly Monkey
We had a wonderful and very long Thanksgiving holiday weekend. I only got online to check for emergencies each evening. And, boy oh boy, did I pay for that on Monday when I had a flood of emails to answer. The time we spent with the children made it well worth it. We feasted on Thursday, shopped and wrapped presents on Friday, bought our tree on Saturday, and decorated it on Sunday.
Ethics vs. Profits By Angela Hoy
Sometimes, writers are given the opportunity to research and write about something that could pay off big in the end. However, it can also lead to a great deal of pain for the people involved in the actual story. Writers must then weigh the consequences of their actions with the possible good (or bad) that may come from exposing old wounds.
Freelance Favors For Friends
I wanted to comment on last week’s letter to the editor from Kevin Murphy. I want to tell Mr. Murphy that he has hit the nail on the head, to use a cliche, because that attitude of “anyone can write” is one I’ve encountered over and over during the last 20 years that I’ve been a professional writer/reporter. It’s so infuriating because, as the astute Mr. Murphy states, plumbers, doctors and lawyers don’t have to put up with that kind of ridiculous attitude when plying their trades.