Happy August!
I have been a busy bee this year, working, more working, reading, writing, and other things. I wanted to talk today about Read-A-Romance month.
You can check it out here: http://www.readaromancemonth.com/about-read-a-romance-month/
All through the month of August, authors and contributors are promoting reading a romance novel, even if you aren't into that sort of thing. I can honestly say, I was not a "romance" kind of gal either, and it has changed drastically from the "Sweet Valley High" days or the Harlequin Romance novels I read in study hall back in the 80's. They have kept up with the times, with social issues of the day, and some are just outright funny, but the writing is not just good, it's in some cases exceptional. Let me explain.
I only started reading romances about a month ago. I know, I can hear some of you out there rolling your eyes, and some of you may be saying, "Good! It's about time."
What got me going down this path, was an interview I saw about Jasinda Wilder and her husband Jack on the CBS Evening News and then later on the CBS Morning News. I was intrigued by their success story and ordered and read "Falling Into You" and was blown away by the story, the romance, everything. I loved it. I had to have more.
I bought more of her books and read them, and now I'm almost caught up with what she has available.
It got me thinking.
Could I write something like that? I think I could. But I wanted to read other romance writers and see what they had to offer as well before I go jumping into the pool. :)
Then I discovered Elle Lothlorien, author of "The Frog Prince" which I am currently 75% done on my Kindle. I have messaged her a few times on Facebook and told her how this story and the characters have me laughing out loud and causing much concern from my honey about my sanity. I love the story and the characters, and will be giving a review on Amazon once I'm finished.
What I have discovered through this month is it's good to read outside your own personal genre. Good writing, no matter if it is fantasy, romance, horror, thriller or literary fiction or non-fiction, is just good writing.
I will let you all know of any other discoveries all through the month of August.
Have a fabulous week!
Laura :)
P.S. I'm interviewing Karen Magill on a teleseminar call on Tuesday, August 6, 2013, at 10:00 am, Central Time. Karen is the author of "The Bond: A Paranormal Love Story," and "Missing Flowers".
Email me if you want to listen in on the call at crawfordwrites@yahoo.com. And it is FREE! :)
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Saturday, June 19, 2010
How To Define And Achieve Your Success: A Guest Article From Beth Ann Erickson
In my last post, I promised to announce the winners of my writing contest. I apologize for the delay, AGAIN.
Next week, the winners and prizes will be announced, awarded and the winning entries posted here and on my website. My most sincere apologies to everyone. I've had a lot of personal issues to deal with the last few months and I am happy to report things are back to "normal", so to speak.
I appreciate your patience during this difficult time in my life. I am now committed more than ever to making my writing career and business the priority it should have been all along. If you want to read more about it, go to my personal blog at http://www.greetingsfromthepolebarn.blogspot.com/.
I will be writing an article and posting it here next week.
This week, the featured article is from Beth Ann Erickson of Filbert Publishing. Enjoy, and see you next week!
How to Define and Achieve Your Success
Beth Ann Erickson
You can easily define your success and achieve it.
But here’s the rub: You must, absolutely must, know what you want. You need to define what success means to you.
Does success mean a six figure income? Does it mean you set your own hours?
Does it mean you’re working with people you enjoy? Maybe you want to make a difference in your community.
Perhaps you want to ________ (fill in the blank).
Once you define success, once you know what you want out of this biz, it will become your Polaris, continually guiding you through this crazy profession.
Whenever a new opportunity arises, and new opportunities always arise, you can measure it against whether or not it will enhance your voyage toward Polaris.
It’s tough to say “no” to a potential assignment, but when you follow this path, you’ll be amazed at how assignments present themselves, you evaluate, you decide whether or not to take on the task, and how new, targeted doors will continually open.
Once you know exactly what you want to achieve, you leave the rest to the magic of the universe.
You don’t know exactly how you’ll achieve your goal. Those doors open exactly when you need them.
It actually becomes a matter of trust.
But I can break it down a little more.
You know what you want, then you pour hope into the process.
You send the query, then you hope.
You hope you’ll eventually hit pay dirt.
As long as you cultivate hope into your career, you won’t consider the option of giving up.
You cultivate hope by engaging in regular, consistent marketing. You send out a set number of queries every day. You send out solicitation letters. You write that second novel.
As long as there’s a glimmer of a chance that your short term goal can be realized, you’ll experience that all-important ray of hope.
Then, as you notice you’re making consistent progress towards your Polaris (as a result of your consistent action) your hope begins to evolve into full-fledged belief.
Hope begets belief.
This is a nearly imperceptible shift in your mindset.
One day you’re hoping you can make a living as a writer. Then you achieve just a few acceptance letters. Unknowingly, you tentatively strengthen your hope and find yourself believing that you can actually achieve your goal.
You know you believe when you feel confident joy as you write. You’re beginning to feel an inkling of adventure as you query, research, and plan your next project. Positive thoughts begin to outweigh the negative ones.
You believe you can actually achieve your loftiest goals, you believe nearly anything you can imagine if possible.
But it gets even better.
As you move along and allow belief to grow, you will eventually settle into a sense of knowingness.
Belief gives birth to Knowing.
You begin with hope. Hope grows into belief. Belief begets knowing.
Somewhere along the line, as you remain faithful in writing, marketing, querying, you begin to understand that marketing is a numbers game.
As you send out queries, you know a certain number of them will hit pay dirt. You understand that as you write a set number of words every day, you know that your skills will continue to develop and grow.
You no longer need to believe that all will work out, you know it will.
Subtle yet very distinct difference.
The bridge between belief and knowing may seem insurmountable when you’re in the “hope” stage, but as you proceed through your writing career, you’ll find the progress through these three stages as natural as breathing. As beautiful as the writing process itself.
All that is required throughout this process is continual, faithful action.
Write daily. Market on a regular basis.
Remain faithful no matter what physical reality may look like. The inward landscape always trumps what our physical senses may be perceiving.
You may occasionally feel discouragement, but when you focus on your Polaris, if you busy yourself acting like a busy writer, you will very soon find yourself living a busy writer life.
More on this next time. :)
~~~
Beth Ann Erickson is the “Queen Bee” of Filbert Publishing. You've just read an excerpt from her newest title, “Advice to Freelance Writers: Insider Secrets to Effective Shoestring Marketing, Managing a Winning Mindset, and Thriving in Any Economy, Volume 2. You can order your own copy along with a ton of freebies by clicking here.
P.S. You can use this article free of charge on your own website or zine. Just don’t make any changes and be sure to include the entire byline. Enjoy!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Next week, the winners and prizes will be announced, awarded and the winning entries posted here and on my website. My most sincere apologies to everyone. I've had a lot of personal issues to deal with the last few months and I am happy to report things are back to "normal", so to speak.
I appreciate your patience during this difficult time in my life. I am now committed more than ever to making my writing career and business the priority it should have been all along. If you want to read more about it, go to my personal blog at http://www.greetingsfromthepolebarn.blogspot.com/.
I will be writing an article and posting it here next week.
This week, the featured article is from Beth Ann Erickson of Filbert Publishing. Enjoy, and see you next week!
How to Define and Achieve Your Success
Beth Ann Erickson
You can easily define your success and achieve it.
But here’s the rub: You must, absolutely must, know what you want. You need to define what success means to you.
Does success mean a six figure income? Does it mean you set your own hours?
Does it mean you’re working with people you enjoy? Maybe you want to make a difference in your community.
Perhaps you want to ________ (fill in the blank).
Once you define success, once you know what you want out of this biz, it will become your Polaris, continually guiding you through this crazy profession.
Whenever a new opportunity arises, and new opportunities always arise, you can measure it against whether or not it will enhance your voyage toward Polaris.
It’s tough to say “no” to a potential assignment, but when you follow this path, you’ll be amazed at how assignments present themselves, you evaluate, you decide whether or not to take on the task, and how new, targeted doors will continually open.
Once you know exactly what you want to achieve, you leave the rest to the magic of the universe.
You don’t know exactly how you’ll achieve your goal. Those doors open exactly when you need them.
It actually becomes a matter of trust.
But I can break it down a little more.
You know what you want, then you pour hope into the process.
You send the query, then you hope.
You hope you’ll eventually hit pay dirt.
As long as you cultivate hope into your career, you won’t consider the option of giving up.
You cultivate hope by engaging in regular, consistent marketing. You send out a set number of queries every day. You send out solicitation letters. You write that second novel.
As long as there’s a glimmer of a chance that your short term goal can be realized, you’ll experience that all-important ray of hope.
Then, as you notice you’re making consistent progress towards your Polaris (as a result of your consistent action) your hope begins to evolve into full-fledged belief.
Hope begets belief.
This is a nearly imperceptible shift in your mindset.
One day you’re hoping you can make a living as a writer. Then you achieve just a few acceptance letters. Unknowingly, you tentatively strengthen your hope and find yourself believing that you can actually achieve your goal.
You know you believe when you feel confident joy as you write. You’re beginning to feel an inkling of adventure as you query, research, and plan your next project. Positive thoughts begin to outweigh the negative ones.
You believe you can actually achieve your loftiest goals, you believe nearly anything you can imagine if possible.
But it gets even better.
As you move along and allow belief to grow, you will eventually settle into a sense of knowingness.
Belief gives birth to Knowing.
You begin with hope. Hope grows into belief. Belief begets knowing.
Somewhere along the line, as you remain faithful in writing, marketing, querying, you begin to understand that marketing is a numbers game.
As you send out queries, you know a certain number of them will hit pay dirt. You understand that as you write a set number of words every day, you know that your skills will continue to develop and grow.
You no longer need to believe that all will work out, you know it will.
Subtle yet very distinct difference.
The bridge between belief and knowing may seem insurmountable when you’re in the “hope” stage, but as you proceed through your writing career, you’ll find the progress through these three stages as natural as breathing. As beautiful as the writing process itself.
All that is required throughout this process is continual, faithful action.
Write daily. Market on a regular basis.
Remain faithful no matter what physical reality may look like. The inward landscape always trumps what our physical senses may be perceiving.
You may occasionally feel discouragement, but when you focus on your Polaris, if you busy yourself acting like a busy writer, you will very soon find yourself living a busy writer life.
More on this next time. :)
~~~
Beth Ann Erickson is the “Queen Bee” of Filbert Publishing. You've just read an excerpt from her newest title, “Advice to Freelance Writers: Insider Secrets to Effective Shoestring Marketing, Managing a Winning Mindset, and Thriving in Any Economy, Volume 2. You can order your own copy along with a ton of freebies by clicking here.
P.S. You can use this article free of charge on your own website or zine. Just don’t make any changes and be sure to include the entire byline. Enjoy!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Monday, March 1, 2010
New Changes Coming In The Weeks Ahead
For those who are waiting impatiently for the results of my 1st Annual Fall Writing Contest, the wait will soon be over. The end of this month, I will announce the winners and award the prizes. I apologize for the delay. I've had some issues to deal with in the last few weeks.
But those are soon to be behind me. I have come to terms with what I need to do, and will be implementing some much needed changes to my business, my blogs and my websites.
First, I have a sale going on. My ebooks are now on sale for $9 each on my website. Go to www.crawfordwriting.com and check out "The Golden Rules of Making Money" and also "Prosperity Games". Sale ends soon, so don't delay.
Next, I will be holding seminars, and teleseminars. I am also working on an audio CD. Stay posted for futher details.
If you have any suggestions or ideas, I would love to hear from you. Please contact me at laura@crawfordwriting.com or crawfordwriting@yahoo.com.
And thanks for your patience. :)
But those are soon to be behind me. I have come to terms with what I need to do, and will be implementing some much needed changes to my business, my blogs and my websites.
First, I have a sale going on. My ebooks are now on sale for $9 each on my website. Go to www.crawfordwriting.com and check out "The Golden Rules of Making Money" and also "Prosperity Games". Sale ends soon, so don't delay.
Next, I will be holding seminars, and teleseminars. I am also working on an audio CD. Stay posted for futher details.
If you have any suggestions or ideas, I would love to hear from you. Please contact me at laura@crawfordwriting.com or crawfordwriting@yahoo.com.
And thanks for your patience. :)
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Toast the New Year With Lemonade
I'm watching the CBS Evening News last night and on the segment "Spirit of America" they told the story of a group of advertising executives and writers who were laid off, got together and decided to make a movie about how the lay off turned their lives around.
It's called "Lemonade", as in, "Life hands you lemons, make lemonade." I've seen the trailer and as my gift to all of you I am posting it on both of my blogs.
It amazes me still that something so simple, can change your focus in an instant. I've been looking for something to give my ideas and my life some sort of direction, and this little segment did, and after watching this trailer, I ordered the DVD. I'm now inspired to live my life on my terms. If they could do it, I can do it. Bless your circumstances this year, and bless the ones to come. And make lots of lemonade.
Happy New Year, Everyone!
It's called "Lemonade", as in, "Life hands you lemons, make lemonade." I've seen the trailer and as my gift to all of you I am posting it on both of my blogs.
It amazes me still that something so simple, can change your focus in an instant. I've been looking for something to give my ideas and my life some sort of direction, and this little segment did, and after watching this trailer, I ordered the DVD. I'm now inspired to live my life on my terms. If they could do it, I can do it. Bless your circumstances this year, and bless the ones to come. And make lots of lemonade.
Happy New Year, Everyone!
Monday, December 7, 2009
Hyperbole, Exaggeration, and Half Truths
(Today's blog post is written by Beth Ann Erickson of Filbert Publishing and was obtained from www.ezinearticles.com)
You've seen the webpages. I'm sure you have. They dissolve on your computer screen in a flurry of red headlines, black text, and little yellow boxes filled with gushing platitudes and exclamation marks. I'm talking about those one-page websites filled with promises to make your life easier, your wallet fatter... designed to make your wildest dreams come true.
They're the ones that claim to teach you such indispensable skills as how to "manifest" as much money as you'd like (up to $100,000!) simply by following a five-step "system." Or how would you like to attract potential clients to your business until they're "tingling" to give you their money again and again?
Or better yet, did you know you can purchase a "100% 'Legitimate' Way To Quickly & Easily Drive Targeted Cash-In-Hand Prospects And Visitors To Any Of Your Websites at NO Cost." PLUS you can even watch a "'shocking' play-by-play underground video" that'll "prove" this person's claims.
Based upon the number of these little one-page sales gems, I'd venture to guess that this form of selling is probably pretty lucrative. After all, if these sites didn't generate an income, they wouldn't exist.
But I have to wonder who would actually fall for these sales pitches. Seriously. Does any reader truly believe that any one product would live up to the hype generated on these sites? Probably not. And yet, people buy.
At least, that's what we're led to believe. Each morning I begin my day curled into my Lazy-Boy rocker reading. I read anything I can get my hands on, but I particularly enjoy marketing books.
This past week, while soaking in book #3 in the Wizard of Ads trilogy by Roy H. Williams, I'm struck by his most humane view of his client's potential customers. Williams says that instead of writing to a greedy non-faced entity whose only goal is to pour dollars into their pocket, he suggests that our readers are human beings. People who live a complex life as family members, brothers, sisters, parents.
According to Williams we shouldn't insult our readers by expecting them to believe anything less than the truth. He says, "The simple truth is that nothing sounds quite so much like the truth as the truth, and most people seem to know the truth when they hear it. The truth is never full of loopholes and generalities. The truth is made of specifics and substantiation, it's solid. That's why it's easy to spot in a world full of paper-thin lies, half lies, and hype." (Secret Formulas of the Wizard of Ads, page 15).
My suggestion? Avoid hyperbole, exaggeration, and half truths and instead focus on each product's benefits and USP (unique selling proposition). If you do this, you can avoid most of these unbelievable claims made by markets who should know better than to dehumanize their audience by appealing to the most base of human nature. After all, I like to think we're writers bent on making this world a better place, not hucksters out to make a quick buck.
Beth Ann Erickson is the queen bee of Filbert Publishing and editor of Writing Etc., the free zine that'll make your writing sparkle, help you create a profitable writing career, and get you on the road to publication fast. You'll receive the e-booklet, "Power Queries" when you subscribe today. http://FilbertPublishing.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Beth_Erickson http://EzineArticles.com/?Hyperbole,-Exaggeration,-and-Half-Truths&id=3117794
You've seen the webpages. I'm sure you have. They dissolve on your computer screen in a flurry of red headlines, black text, and little yellow boxes filled with gushing platitudes and exclamation marks. I'm talking about those one-page websites filled with promises to make your life easier, your wallet fatter... designed to make your wildest dreams come true.
They're the ones that claim to teach you such indispensable skills as how to "manifest" as much money as you'd like (up to $100,000!) simply by following a five-step "system." Or how would you like to attract potential clients to your business until they're "tingling" to give you their money again and again?
Or better yet, did you know you can purchase a "100% 'Legitimate' Way To Quickly & Easily Drive Targeted Cash-In-Hand Prospects And Visitors To Any Of Your Websites at NO Cost." PLUS you can even watch a "'shocking' play-by-play underground video" that'll "prove" this person's claims.
Based upon the number of these little one-page sales gems, I'd venture to guess that this form of selling is probably pretty lucrative. After all, if these sites didn't generate an income, they wouldn't exist.
But I have to wonder who would actually fall for these sales pitches. Seriously. Does any reader truly believe that any one product would live up to the hype generated on these sites? Probably not. And yet, people buy.
At least, that's what we're led to believe. Each morning I begin my day curled into my Lazy-Boy rocker reading. I read anything I can get my hands on, but I particularly enjoy marketing books.
This past week, while soaking in book #3 in the Wizard of Ads trilogy by Roy H. Williams, I'm struck by his most humane view of his client's potential customers. Williams says that instead of writing to a greedy non-faced entity whose only goal is to pour dollars into their pocket, he suggests that our readers are human beings. People who live a complex life as family members, brothers, sisters, parents.
According to Williams we shouldn't insult our readers by expecting them to believe anything less than the truth. He says, "The simple truth is that nothing sounds quite so much like the truth as the truth, and most people seem to know the truth when they hear it. The truth is never full of loopholes and generalities. The truth is made of specifics and substantiation, it's solid. That's why it's easy to spot in a world full of paper-thin lies, half lies, and hype." (Secret Formulas of the Wizard of Ads, page 15).
My suggestion? Avoid hyperbole, exaggeration, and half truths and instead focus on each product's benefits and USP (unique selling proposition). If you do this, you can avoid most of these unbelievable claims made by markets who should know better than to dehumanize their audience by appealing to the most base of human nature. After all, I like to think we're writers bent on making this world a better place, not hucksters out to make a quick buck.
Beth Ann Erickson is the queen bee of Filbert Publishing and editor of Writing Etc., the free zine that'll make your writing sparkle, help you create a profitable writing career, and get you on the road to publication fast. You'll receive the e-booklet, "Power Queries" when you subscribe today. http://FilbertPublishing.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Beth_Erickson http://EzineArticles.com/?Hyperbole,-Exaggeration,-and-Half-Truths&id=3117794
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Contest Update
Due to the large number of entries, the winners and prizes of the 1st Annual Fall Writing Contest will be announced and awarded on December 5, 2009.
Thank you for your patience.
Thank you for your patience.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
NaNoWriMo Is Here!
November 1st is the kick off date for National Novel Writing Month. In the next 30 days I will attempt for the 4th time, to write a novel or 50,000 words.
I've won 2 times, and going for my 3rd win will be especially sweet this year. I need an emotional boost. But I'm upping the ante this year by setting my goal to have my 50,000 words within 7 days or less.
To all of my fellow writers, I hope you all reach your goals. Good luck and I'll see you on the other side. :)
I've won 2 times, and going for my 3rd win will be especially sweet this year. I need an emotional boost. But I'm upping the ante this year by setting my goal to have my 50,000 words within 7 days or less.
To all of my fellow writers, I hope you all reach your goals. Good luck and I'll see you on the other side. :)
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