Fiction Set in Real Location Can Inspire Local Interest and Sales! By Marjorie Abrams

Published on September 21, 2005

People like to read about places they know. I discovered this to be true when I recently published my first mystery novel, Murder on the Prairie: A North Florida Mystery. The book is being received with an unexpected degree of enthusiasm for the setting, Gainesville, Florida - home of the University of Florida - the nearby Paynes Prairie State Park Preserve, and its Visitors Center in Micanopy. Reader comments and book sales have reflected this enthusiasm. …

Study Potential Literary Agents As Thoroughly As You Believe They’re Studying You By Damaria Senne

Published on September 14, 2005

Fifteen years after I first began to work as a writer, I decided that it was time I looked for an agent to sell my work to overseas publishers. At first I emailed writer friends, asking them to suggest agents who would be receptive to new clients. When nothing came of that, I visited my favorite writing websites and followed their market links. As expected, there were links to agents…

All’s Fair in Love and…Hey! Wait a Minute! That’s Mine! A Brief Discussion on FAIR USE By Neil Wilkinson

Published on September 7, 2005

Imagine you have written a book, say, about wine, or business, or how to get your cat through college. It really makes no difference what you have written, someone can use it. But there are limits. …

Ask and You Shall Receive: How the Novice Writer Lands the Expert Interview By Janene Mascarella

Published on August 31, 2005

While watching the evening news with my husband, there was a segment on NASA's mission to collide with a comet. I turned to my husband and said, "Oh, I'm interviewing one of the NASA experts on this subject next week". He gave me the strangest look, and replied, "How'd you get that?" "I just asked." …

Who Cares If It’s Spelled Right? By Johnny Gunn

Published on August 24, 2005

More and more in my position as editor of an online newsmagazine I come across what I'm calling e-mail English and spelling. Grammar mistakes are rampant, words are mangled, and punctuation is non-existent. In a recent letter to the editor, I chastised the writer for his use of our language and his retort was, "who cares if it's spelled right, you know what I mean." …

Negotiation is Not a Four-Letter Word By Victoria Groves

Published on August 17, 2005

Like public speaking or bungee jumping, negotiation is something that gives most people at least a little anxiety. When you're dealing with payment for your services, you don't want to seem greedy and obnoxious, and you don't want to be seen as a doormat, either. But whether you're haggling at a yard sale or buying a car, a little self-confidence and some carefully chosen words can go a long way. …

One-time, Low, Low Introductory Rate! By Pamela White

Published on August 10, 2005

Each weekday brings a pack of mail from banks offering me and mine low introductory rates that are meant to pull us in so we'll commit ourselves, right before the rates go up. …

No Rejection Slips: Sub-contract Article Assignments By L. L. Star

Published on August 3, 2005

Would you like to get an abundance of article assignments without writing a single query letter? By getting sub-contact work from public relations agencies, I wrote over 100 newsletter articles, a professional column in a monthly trade publication, and a chapter in a travel guidebook. Sub-contract work gave me the opportunity to write for large, prestigious companies such as Bell & Howell, Grant Thornton, LaSalle National Bank and many others. …

Freelancer Beware: Read This Before You Hire a Transcription Service By Bill Shirley

Published on July 27, 2005

A few weeks back I was especially busy in my communications consulting business. One late evening, as I pondered how I'd get everything done in the brief time available to me, I made a note to visit the Yellow Pages the next day to find a transcription service. I write a lot of feature articles for the employee newsletter of an insurance company, and most assignments involve interviews with executives whom I quote for the stories. …

What the Heck Is a Hed/Dek? Learning the Lingo in Periodical Publishing By Janene Mascarella

Published on July 20, 2005

When I first heard an editor mention my article had a good hed/dek, my first reaction was to offer her a throat lozenge. My second reaction was, what the heck is a hed/deck? …

Success is Just a Dollar Away By Rachel Carrington

Published on July 13, 2005

You've always wanted to stay at home and write, but can you really survive on an "eat what you kill" plan? That depends on your determination to succeed. If you have tenacity, you're in good shape, and, if writing is your passion, you can make decent money online. First, you need a clearly written daily planner so you will be motivated to move ahead each day. …

Flying High: Seven In-flight Magazine Markets By Kelly Kyrik

Published on July 6, 2005

In-flight publications are a unique breed in the magazine industry. Geared toward the flying public - which is a fairly broad demographic - they offer a wide range of articles, essays and shorts on everything from travel and food to politics and current events. Given this diversity, each publication is still very specific when it comes to their editorial needs. …

The New Yorker Said “Sorry” and Other Great Rejections in the Life of an Underpublished Author By Carol L. Skolnick

Published on June 29, 2005

As a starving writer in New York City; you're supposed to say you're a writer even if you earn your keep shelving books at Barnes & Noble on Union Square. So okay, I'm a writer. It's just that I write direct mail, not books, for a living, even though I've published quite a bit. Hardly a household name, my essays and poems have appeared in inspirational anthologies, obscure literary journals, upbeat writers' e-zines and alternative monthlies nobody's ever heard of outside of western Pennsylvania, San Juan, Toronto and parts of South Africa (and I'm not making that up). The exceptions are a couple of paragraphs about the Chartres Cathedral that ran in Glamour - one of those "our readers write about their fab vacations" things for which I was not paid - and a piece at Salon.com which earned the distinction of "soft-porn pap" in a famous columnist's blog. I was thrilled; at least he read it. …

What to Do When Your Editor Leaves By Jeanette Hurt

Published on June 22, 2005

I couldn't have been more excited when my query made its way through the slush pile last fall to be accepted by an editor at Budget Travel. I was even more elated when that same editor accepted my second query on the spot a week later. That this editor took the time to send me a hand-written note, praising my writing prowess on the first story, was icing on the cake. I was all set, to paraphrase Casablanca, to begin a beautiful writer-editor friendship. I was just in the middle of preparing a flurry of new queries for this editor when I received the dreaded news. As soon as he finished editing my second story, he would be moving on to other things, things that didn't include Budget Travel. I wouldn't have been as disappointed if this editor had transferred to a different magazine, as I could have followed him there, but he was leaving to become a freelancer so where did that leave me? …

Circumventing the Editor’s Round File By Jacquie McTaggart

Published on June 15, 2005

Playwright and novelist Saul Bellow once said, "I discovered that rejections are not altogether a bad thing. They teach a writer to rely on his own judgment and to say in his heart of hearts, "To hell with you." …

Break in With Food By Barbra Annino

Published on June 8, 2005

Are you a pizza connoisseur? An expert cookie maker? Maybe you've visited a winery, know the best diners in 10 states, or your town hosts the world's largest strawberry festival. Even if the extent of your food expertise lies only in your grandmother's recipe box, you have an angle for an article. You just need to know where to sell it. …

Easy Steps Toward Better Writing & Getting Published More Often! By Janel C. Atlas

Published on June 1, 2005

There are a few steps you can take which will turn your great idea into a fantastic query letter, and, hopefully, a well-written, attention-grabbing article. …

First Book Singing a Success By Jeanne Prevett Sable

Published on May 25, 2005

Attention all you editors: That is NOT a typo in the above headline. I did mean "singing," not "signing." But if it's any consolation, the term "Book Singing" and the book marketing concept it represents did originate from a simple typographical error. …

Dodging Writer’s Brick: How to Keep From Knocking Yourself Out By Janene Mascarella

Published on May 18, 2005

Ah, good old writer's block. Those moments of utter frustration, when you are stumped for ideas. Can't write a ******* thing. If you tell a fellow writer that you are suffering from a case of writer's block, chances are you will get your hand held. Sympathy follows. Then, tips galore on how to overcome your dreaded block. I rarely suffer from writer's block. I suffer from something far more insidious. Something I call it "writer's brick". …

Quick Tips for Hosting a Successful Booksigning By Martha Reed

Published on May 11, 2005

The more thought you put into your book-signing the greater the chance of profitable results. At my last signing, I sold all 100 copies I'd arrived with. Angela asked me to share my hints with WritersWeekly.com readers. Here are quick tips for turning your next book-signing into a successful event. …

A Quick Check Online Could Mean A Check In Your Mailbox By Martha Miller

Published on May 4, 2005

Seeing my name in print gives me a boost to keep writing and to keep pitching. On a whim, several months ago, I Googled my own name along with the words "Rome" and "Italy" to see if anything I had written was still online. I lived in Rome for two years and most of my published work has come from that experience. When two unsold entries popped up in two different publications, I was shocked, then furious. My work had been stolen! …

An Oldie But A Goodie By C. Hope Clark

Published on April 27, 2005

I'd held onto the brief guidelines for Landscape Magazine for months with the intention of dreaming of …

The Power of “No!” By David Geer

Published on April 20, 2005

I've been practicing the power of saying "No!", no to low paying markets, unfair deals and crazy time constraints and work loads. …

Beyond the Guidelines: Calendars, Calls, and More Material for Writing Success By Erika Dreifus

Published on April 13, 2005

The wisdom that rests behind checking a publication's guidelines is self-evident. One is more likely to encounter success by following a publication's stated rules and meeting its declared requirements than not. Sending a completed manuscript by e-mail attachment when the guidelines clearly state that only postal queries are welcome is an excellent strategy - if your goal is to dramatically reduce your chances of freelance success. …

Writing For Payment Or For Art’s Sake By Lynette Rees

Published on April 6, 2005

Whenever the 'P' word -- PAYMENT -- gets a mention, writers are frequently up in arms. There appear to be two camps of thought: those that think we should all write for free, 'because it is our art', and those who want to get paid what they are worth as a writer. Of course, you yourself, might fall somewhere in between where you prefer to get paid, but will write for free for good causes or if it is to promote yourself. …

Give Kids a Helping Hand with History By Natalie Hale

Published on March 30, 2005

Kids and history often don't mix, especially when it comes to getting history into their heads. But that doesn't have to be. Though it may surprise most parents and teachers, kids actually do like history. …

Uncooked Books: Why It’s Okay to Write What You Think You Don’t Know By Carol L. Skolnick

Published on March 23, 2005

One of my favorite lifelong non-writing excuses has been, "But I'm not cooked yet." Although I showed promise as a poet, humorist and playwright as early as age 10, and had some essays published in my twenties, I largely delayed my writing career until after 40. …

Writing Newsletter Articles For or About Children By Natalie Hale

Published on March 16, 2005

There are many advantages to writing with children in mind. For one, they and those who assist them, are often seeking advice. Parents, especially of young children, are usually very inexperienced when it comes to caring for a family. What should they look for in a good family doctor? What activities, books, magazines, or music will best entertain and educate the very young? And where can potential writers of children's fiction go to get help honing their talent to meet the needs of grade-schoolers? …

Naming Your Baby: How to Choose a Selling Title By Carolyn Campbell

Published on March 9, 2005

Your book title is very important. It encapsulates the essence of your book in just a few words. Like choosing a name for your child, selecting a title for your book is a critical decision. Just as your child is known by his name for a lifetime, your book will be known by its title for its entire publishing history. Even before you sell your book, its future title can help attract the interest of a literary agent or publisher when you include it in query letters. It will also appear on the first page of your book proposal. It's never too soon to start creating a possible title for your book. …

Reaching the Homeschooling Market By Margie Sims

Published on March 2, 2005

When our family relocated from Tennessee to Vermont, I was confident I could keep landing assignments from my southern editors. I wasn't so sure, however, if I could successfully continue teaching creative writing to homeschoolers-something I had been enjoying for five years. By asking myself the 5 W's and the H, I found answers that not only satisfied my itch to teach, but also met a legitimate need in my new community. …

Marketing The Genre Novel By Jeffrey Marks

Published on February 23, 2005

Award-winning novelist Jeffrey Marks is the newest instructor at WritersWeekly University. His class, Intent To Sell - Marketing Genre Fiction Works In Today's Marketplace, helps first-time novelists create the materials they need to start marketing their works. In today's article, Jeffrey details his introduction to marketing genre fiction. …

Fill your Mailbox with Checks from Fillers! By Debbie Swanson

Published on February 16, 2005

One day last year, I had an hour left of writing time but wasn't getting anywhere. Instead, I spent about 20 minutes jotting down a 'reader tip' I'd had inside my head. Without further thought, I mailed it to a magazine I frequently read, and called it a day. Several months later, I was surprised by a call from the magazine saying they'd like to print it, and soon received a check for $75. Not bad for 20 minutes of work on a dry day. …

Getting Taken by Bogus “Editing Tests” By Ingrid Schaefer Sprague

Published on February 9, 2005

Instead of my resume and clips, I should market this description for freelance work. In spite of my credentials and experience, or should I say because of it, I have been "taken" again by another bogus editing test. Although I am not a novice (with over 13 years of experience), I am still amazed that I get scammed by this old trick after watching for all apparent signs. …