magrrwwritingtips

LEVERAGE YOUR TIME
AND VISIBILITY WITH VIDEO!
By Lou Bortone

Weaving Words
& Selling Them

Art by Kim Reale Johnson

Beating the Block
by Dellani Oakes

Writer’s Block - these ominous words send
shivers down the spine of any writer.
Insidious, it strikes with no warning,
clogging the brain, paralyzing fingers,
bringing grown writers to their knees.
There are many types of writer’s block,
each with its own pernicious
characteristics. Below, I have listed those
which plague me the most often.

1) Mid-Line Crisis: This is less destructive
than its brothers, but still annoying.
This is the unfinished sentence,
incomplete thought or dialogue left
hanging. The tortured …. of the soul.
Though frustrating, it is not
insurmountable. Usually a little
brainstorming, trial and error and copious
use of the delete button get me past this
tiresome creature.

2) Ex Thesaurus: Also known as “What
Word”?
This usually runs with mid-line crisis and is
fairly easy to circumvent. A visit to
Thesaurus.com or a quick flip through the
desk copy of Roget’s can pull a writer past
this hurdle.

3) Post Climactic Stress: Or “Where Do I
Go From Here?”
The hero has saved the day, villains
vanquished, lovers unite, children dance
around May Poles - celebration time! All
right, where does the story go now? It’s not
over, but it needs to be soon. However,
these pesky little loose ends suddenly
electrify, screaming “Solve Me!” What to
do?
Falling action after the climax isn’t always
easy. The one question a writer fails to
answer is the one readers will point to and
say, “Hey! What about this?” To avoid the
lynch mob, sometimes it’s better to
eliminate a secondary thread unless it’s
absolutely necessary to the plot.
Otherwise, it’s a trip to blockage category
# 4.

4) The Never Ending Story: As much as we
might want our book never to end, it must.
Sometimes thought, we can’t seem to find
a stopping place. The book goes on
forever until we get fed up and stop writing,
or force an ending.
I have one book that is 873 double
spaced, typed pages. Not only can I not
find an end point, I can’t even read all the
way through it without getting lost. The
problem is too many sub-plots. (Hearken
back to Post Climactic Stress.) Everything
needs resolution, making the book go on
forever. It will require a mighty re-write or
splitting into multiple books.

None of these minor blocks are as
frustrating as the fifth category. It really
needs no introduction because even the
most prolific writers have, at one time or
another, suffered from it.

5) The Full Monty: Like its name implies,
this is full blown, frontal exposure writer’s
block. Insurmountable, uncompromising,
frustrating, infuriating, aggravating,
annoying, constipating….
There are no words at our disposal
formidable enough to fully describe this
condition.
Any writer who has never experienced Full
Monty Writer’s Block obviously hasn’t
written long enough. Suddenly, out of
nowhere, completely by surprise it strikes! I
equate it with being hit by a Volvo station
wagon at 90 mph. (Hm, can a Volvo go
90?) Maybe an Escalade?

In any case, WHAM! In the face, hard core,
heavy metal writer’s block. There’s no way
to avoid it. Once in awhile the Muse takes
a coffee break and so must we. As
frustrating as they are, embrace these
blocks. They force us to leave the security
and sanctity of our homes and participate
in life for awhile. Use this time to observe
others or engage them in conversation.
Each encounter gives us a little more grist
for our imagination mill.

“I see you everywhere!” Yup, I get that a
lot! Colleagues and clients tell me all the
time that I seem to be “everywhere.” They
see me on YouTube, Facebook, on blogs
and on Twitter. I am definitely visible! But
my online visibility is no accident. My
visibility strategy is simple: I leverage the
power of video to increase my exposure –
and you can, too!

Online video is the perfect tool to maximize
your web presence because it’s highly
visible and viral. You can create one video
and have it spread from YouTube to
Facebook to your own website and beyond.
It’s the ultimate leverage resource, because
you create it once and use it in many
different ways, and in many different places.

Best of all, creating a video to enhance your
visibility is quick, easy and inexpensive.
Armed with only a webcam or an affordable
Flip Video camera, you can shoot a simple
video message and upload it to YouTube in
minutes. All you need is a (high-speed)
Internet connection and a free account on
YouTube.com.

Once your video is posted on YouTube, you
can send it to Facebook and MySpace with
one click! Other free video hosting sites like
Blip.tv give you easy sharing and cross-
posting functions to add your video to your
own website, or to social sites such as Digg
and StumbleUpon. To really leverage your
time and energy, use another free service,
TubeMogul.com, to blast your video out to
over a dozen sites with one click! You get
the idea: One video to many sites means
leverage and visibility across the web!

Keep in mind that even just posting your
video to Facebook is going to give you video
some mileage. As others comment on your
video on Facebook, the video then appears
on their Facebook page in addition to your
own. That’s the “viral” in viral video!

And let’s not leave Twitter out of the video
party… While you can’t post the video itself
on Twitter, you can certainly promote the link
to your video on Twitter. Better yet, there
are several free services, such as Tweetube
and Twiddeo, that will notify Twitter for you
whenever you put your video on their sites.

Finally, if you want the ultimate, maxed-out,
super-charged version of video visibility, be
sure to get in touch with me about a free trial
of Veeple.com. Veeple is the video hosting
platform that I use to make my videos
clickable (with live links) and interactive.
Veeple’s new deal with TubeMogul means
you can even blast your video from Veeple.
com to a boatload of popular video sites. It’s
one-stop shopping for massive video
visibility! You can find more info on Veeple
here: http://tinyurl.com/ltdjgv.

If you’d like more information or a quick
crash course on video visibility, please feel
free to visit my “Video Traffic Blast” website.
There you can find out more about my step-
by-step viral video process. Be sure to get
your video online now! Start sharing your
video on the web and soon, you too can be
seen “everywhere!”

LEVERAGE YOUR TIME
AND VISIBILITY WITH VIDEO!
By Lou Bortone

Lou Bortone is a
long-time marketing and
branding consultant who
helps
entrepreneurs build
breakthrough brands on
the Internet, with services
such as online video
production, video
branding, coaching and
creative support. Lou is a
former television
executive who worked for
E! Entertainment
Television and later
served as the Senior Vice
President of Marketing &
Advertising for Fox Family
Worldwide, a division of
Fox in Los Angeles. Lou
is an author and
ghostwriter of six business
books, a Certified
Guerrilla Marketing Coach
and a Book Yourself Solid
Certified Coach. He can
be reached at
http://www.OnlineVideoBra
nding.com

It’s no secret that “business as usual”
isn’t going to help your business
survive and thrive in a tough
economy. These days, you need
every marketing advantage you can
muster. Fortunately, Online video has
become a mainstream low or no cost
solution that can have a powerful and
immediate impact on your business.

The reason web video is growing so
fast is simple: Online video helps
attract new customers and convert
more sales. Use of video on the web is
exploding because it works!

The good news is that creating videos
to brand and promote your business is
easier than ever. Once you learn the
basics – and there are plenty of
teleclasses or self-study programs that
can teach you how (such as www.
OnlineVideoMadeEasy.com) - you can
use video to generate new business.

Here are 5 great ways to use video to
boost your business starting today:

1. “Blast” a video postcard promoting
your compelling offer to your
prospects. Video is perfect for
demonstrating the benefits of your
offerings. Video is engaging and
personal, so you develop your “know,
like and trust” factor with your potential
customer very quickly.

There are a number of ways to send a
“video postcard,” which is essentially
an email video message. If you’ve got
a Flip Video camera, the included
software allows you to email a video
message with a few mouse clicks.

For something a bit more elaborate,
check out Michael Port’s free “Booked
Solid Referral Network” (http://www.
bookedsolidnetwork.
com/members/bysn), a membership
site that offers a video postcard
feature as one of it’s free benefits.

2. Create a fast and free video
montage with Animoto.com.
Another free website that allows you to
create and send videos is http://www.
Animoto.com. With Animoto, you
simply add your own photos, select
some music, add a bit of text, and
Animoto creates a custom video
montage in seconds. I’m also a big fan
(and user) of http://www.
OneTrueMedia.com. It’s a great way
to get started with video even if you
don’t own a webcam or video camera!

3. Add a welcome video to your web
home page.
If you do own a webcam or a video
camera, you can tape a simple
welcome message to add to your home
page. This brief video can introduce
your services to first time visitors to
your site. As you know if you read
Steve Krug’s “Don’t Make Me Think,”
web visitors like being told exactly what
to do when they arrive on your site –
and there’s no better way to do that
than with a personal video message!

4. Tape a brief “tip series” in your
area of expertise and upload your
series to YouTube.
Use your webcam or your Flip Video
camera to tape a handful of short tips
highlighting your expertise. They don’t
need to be fancy, just relevant to your
target market. “How to” videos are
very popular, so tape some quick tips
and upload them to YouTube. You
can then send a link to your YouTube
tips series to your clients and
prospects.

5. Post a video message on Facebook
and promote the link to your video on
Twitter.
Facebook is a great place to post your
videos, because the social network
encourages sharing and comments.
Your video can “go viral” once on
Facebook, because when someone
comments on your video, the video
shows up on their Facebook page, as
well!

Once your video is on Facebook or
YouTube, be sure to promote the link
to your video on Twitter. There are
also Twitter-related sites such as www.
Tweetube.com and www.Twiddeo.com
that will promote your video to Twitter.
The important thing is to share and
spread your video to as many places
as possible!

Whether you try one or more of these
video marketing methods, getting your
video online will increase your web
presence (24/7), enhance your
credibility, and promote your business
in a unique and compelling way.

Start using online video today to break
through the clutter, attract more of
your ideal clients and – best of all –
get more business!

Excuses, excuses! We’ve all got ‘em. Everyone I talk to who hasn’t jumped on the Online Video
party train seems to have a legitimate reason for not giving it a try. It’s a pity, because with 85
MILLION YouTube viewers, they’re missing out on a huge marketing opportunity! YouTube is
now the 4th most visited site on the net, and the second most popular search engine (right
behind you-know-who!)

To give that nudge you may need to dip your toes in the video waters, I’m busting the 5 biggest
video myths, right here, right now:

Myth #1: You need a webcam or fancy equipment to do video.

Wrong! You don’t even need a camera! Check out free websites like Animoto.com or
OneTrueMedia.com and you can use your own text and photos to create a slick, professional
video montage in minutes. Just add imagination… Otherwise, all you really need is a $40
webcam and a free account on YouTube!

Myth #2: I’m afraid I won’t look good on camera.

Solution A: Get over it! Solution B: See #1 – You don’t need to be on camera to make a video!
But assuming you’re still camera shy, try some test runs or rehearsals until you get more
comfortable on camera. You can even upload your screen tests to YouTube and mark them
“private” so no one else (except who you approve) can see them…

Myth #3: I don’t know what to say on video.

If you’re at a loss for words on video, start by focusing on your central message. What’s the one
key idea you want to share? Talk about what you know. Go with what you’re most passionate
about. If you need notes or a “cheat sheet,” check out free “Prompt” teleprompter software at
http://www.movieclip.biz/prompt.html. Prompt will turn your Mac or PC into a scrolling
teleprompter.

(Still need help crafting your message or getting ready for your close-up? Contact me, or stay
tuned for my “What to Say on Camera” copy-content-creation package coming soon!)

Myth #4: Video is way too complicated and technical for me.

NOT! However, if you’re a bit of a technophobe, start simple and go with what you know. An
affordable webcam and a free account on a video-sharing site are really all you need to get
started. The Flip Video camera and the new iPhone 3G with Video are also super simple for
shooting video – and the upload process on YouTube and other sites couldn’t be easier. Just
give it a try!

Myth #5: I don’t know what to do with my video when it’s done.

It’s one thing to make a video, it’s another thing to blast it out to the world. Still, it’s not difficult to
distribute your masterpiece. YouTube makes it easy to share your video to Facebook, Twitter
and/or MySpace with one click. TubeMogul.com is another free website that allows you to send
your video to multiple sites all at once. If you really want to put your video visibility and
distribution on steroids, get my Video Traffic Blast program at http://www.VideoTrafficBlast.com.

So there you have it! No more excuses; and no more reason for not getting in on the Online
Video Revolution! Now I know I’ll see you online!

Visit Lou’s website at http://www.OnlineVideoBranding.com and you can learn more about Lou’s
Video Traffic Blast system at http://www.VideoTrafficBlast.com

BUSTING THE 5 BIGGEST VIDEO MYTHS
by Lou Bortone

Social Networking: It's More
Than a Numbers Game
by Nancy Marmolejo

The 4 Foes of Your Message:
How NOT to Say Your 30
Second Elevator Pitch
by Nancy Marmolejo

If you're in business, at some point or
another you'll be asked what you do. The
30 second elevator pitch is your quick
opportunity to share who you are and
what you do, with the goal of getting the
treasured follow up question: "Really?
Tell me more." This is an extremely
valuable skill for getting clients, dealing
with the media, and finding referrals.

We sabotage our own messages by not
being clear on what we do and the
results our work brings others. You may
say too much, not enough, or project an
attitude that turns people off. I want you
to meet The 4 Foes of Your Message.
Understand that these behaviors not only
keep people from learning how to work
with you, they also repel opportunities
and dilute your powerful message. If you
resemble one (even just a tiny bit) then
start taking the recommended steps to
be clear and strong with your message

1. The BFF (Best Friend Forever!)
Overjoyed at the interest being shown in
you ("They like me! They really like me!")
you rapidly proceed to share the
heartwarming story that led you into this
line of work, what you used to do and
how dreadful that was, the nice way you
have your office set up, maybe drop a
gossip bomb or two, and pretty soon
you're whipping out the vacation
pictures. It's all about you, you, you. At
the very least, you figure they'll like you
and you consider that a victory.

2. The Overqualified Technocrat Slightly
annoyed that people can't figure this out
on their own and secretly wishing a
Vulcan mind meld could be performed so
you don't have to illuminate their infantile
minds, you proceed to rattle off a series
of acronyms and jargon that proves once
again, you're smarter than 98.5 percent
of the population.

3. The High Plains Drifter Words, who
needs ‘em? Why bother with all this fancy
talk when you can just say it in plain
English? If people want me, they'll figure
me out.

4. The Trophy Hunter By golly, you're
getting something out of this encounter if
it kills you! You're at the ready with a
fake smile, feigned interest, and a steel
grip on the poor soul who approached
you. This one is NOT getting away, and
you're determined to make a sale, nab
them as a new client, get on the cover of
their magazine, frisk them for referrals, or
any other trophy you can claim. You'll
say whatever you need to say so you
can WIN this one!

The 4 Foes do little more than cloud your
message and make it hard for people to
understand what you offer. Put fear, ego,
and desperation aside and take a close
look at how you're communicating what
you do and what you know. According to
30 second elevator pitch expert Laurelle
Johnson, when you talk to others about
your business, keep in mind the
following: * Be clear and concise. * Keep
your focus on only one service or
program per meeting. Otherwise you
confuse people. * Be truthful, honest,
and reasonable with the results you claim
to create. Now go back and listen to
yourself when you're talking to others
about your work. Check your comfort
level and watch if you want to slip into the
behavior of one of the 4 Foes. Review
your materials and make sure you're
getting your powerful message out there
in the best way possible.

With the right words, opportunities will
open up for you and the words will flow
naturally.

Nancy Marmolejo simplifies social media
for entrepreneurs so they can attract
opportunities and build loyal customer
fan bases. Nancy’s advice has been
shared in over 100 media outlets as well
as on her popular blog. Download her
free resources by visiting
http://www.VivaVisibilityBlog.com

As internet marketers transition to the
fast changing world of social marketing,
people are learning that hard-sell and
relentless pressure aren't welcome. The
generation gap becomes a profit-
crushing divide as "old-school" methods
fail to fit in the sleek world of sites like
Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In. In the
world of social networking, the hard sell
approach is as welcome as "granny
panties" in Victoria's Secret. You
certainly stand out when you take the old-
school approach with social networking .
. . but it's not standing out in a good way.
You stand out as being outdated and
unable to navigate the streams of Web
2.0. The primary difference you'll
encounter has to do with numbers, but
not in the way you may think.

Numbers are crucial to traditional internet
marketers, from opt-ins to web visitors to
conversion rates. But with social
networking the focus on quantity is not
nearly as important as the focus on
quality. When you focus on quality, you
set up criteria that weigh the importance
of each contact a little differently.

Here are some tips to consider when
connecting with people via social
networking sites. You are to use these
criteria when building your contacts and
investing your time into relationship
building:

1. How is this person related to my
target market? For example, is this a
member of my target market or is she in
front of my target market?

2. What do I have that would be of
benefit to this person? What can I give
(it's not all about taking, remember!)

3. What is this person's sphere of
influence? Does this person have
contacts that I'd like to get to know?

4. Where is this person heading
professionally? Do we have similar
destinations? Similar goals?

5. Where does this person hang
around? Are there groups or sites she is
most active on? 6. Do I feel a sense of
synergy? Does this person seem
"likeable"?

When you examine your internet
marketing through a social networking
lens, you may first want to resist as it
goes against the traditional numbers
approach. Numbers are still important,
but more importantly are the habits and
networks of your contacts.

One incredible contact could yield more
business for you than 1000 mediocre
misfits.

Nancy Marmolejo simplifies social media
for entrepreneurs so they can attract
opportunities and build loyal customer
fan bases. Nancy’s advice has been
shared in over 100 media outlets as well
as on her popular blog. Download her
free resources by visiting
http://www.VivaVisibilityBlog.com

Beat the Clock: Time
Management for Writers
Part 1
By Bev Walton-Porter

What's the biggest excuse I hear from
people who want to write, but don't? I'll
bet you can already guess the answer:
"But I don't have TIME to write!"

The concern is understandable. In
today's society, 40 hours of work per
week has stretched to 60, sometimes
80, and after work we have the kids'
activities, community volunteerism and
other obligations and concerns. Not
having enough time seems to be an
insidious disease wending its way
through society's veins. We try to be
all, do all, please all. But you know
what? Here's the fallacy - we can't
be/do/please all the time.

The Fallacy of "No Time to Write"

First of all, I believe that somehow,
some way, there is always a way to find
time to write - if you really want to write.
That is the key. Many people want to
talk about writing and how they love to
do it, but when it comes down to the
bottom line, they aren't committed
enough to carve out the time they
need. If you want to meet any level of
success with your writing, you must
find time to write. Simple, but a basic
truism.

When I worked full-time at a job other
than writing, I had two breaks per day,
plus a lunch hour. That added up to
one hour and 40 minutes' worth of time
when I could etch out writing time.
Instead of using 40 minutes of my
break time sitting in the coffee room
gossiping about who wore what today
or who was having the biggest house
built on the other side of town, I chose
to read or write. "Read," you say?
"Why, that's not writing!" Ah, but when
you read instructional books on writing,
it is still doing the work. You read the
book, and then apply the principals
learned therein.

During lunch hour, I would hop in my
car and go have lunch by myself. I'd
pull through the drive-thru of a fast
food place and then pull in an empty
space in the parking lot to eat. After
eating, I'd pull out my notebook and
begin writing. Even if eating took me a
leisurely ten minutes, that still gave me
40 minutes to write and another ten
minutes to return to work.

Unbelievably, no one ever cared to
comment on my ability to waste time
sitting downstairs gossiping with the
rest of the company coworkers. But
once I began doing something
constructive with my time, people
became very interested in what I was
doing and why I was doing it. My
ex-boss even hinted that perhaps I
should "be more social and play cards"
with the rest of them. Since when does
my boss own my break time?

Then it occurred to me that perhaps
since I was using my time productively,
that maybe the others felt a bit guilty.
Eventually, I decided that I was free to
spend my break time they way I
wanted, just as everyone else did.
Eventually, it was accepted that break
time was my reading/writing time.
Amazingly, by the time I quit my
full-time job to go full-time freelance, a
handful of other ex-gossipers were
actually bringing their own books and
notebooks to work and began
reading/writing. I took that as a sign of
promise: rather than issue catty
remarks about a coworker's short mini
skirt and too much blush, people were
choosing to pursue more intellectual,
productive activities.

Did my reading/writing time pay off
during those last couple of years?
Resoundingly, "yes!" That time spent
reading, researching, learning and
writing gave me a firm foundation and
knowledge to strike out on my own and
become a freelancer. Where are my
ex-gossiping coworkers? They're still
working at jobs they hate. They'll retire
in another decade or two and get a
nice cake and punch and a party and
maybe a plaque for their time of
service.

But although I've given up the security
of a regular paycheck, I've gained
many more benefits -- like being home
when the kids get on and off the bus;
like being able to help out at the
school when the teacher asks for
assistance; like not having an insane
stress level which, in the past, actually
caused my nails to become ridged and
bent. Freelancing is stressful and
there are no guarantees; however, the
stress is remarkably different and quite
a bit less. What makes the difference?
I actually love what I do. And carving
out extra time to write during my
breaks or lunch hours helped me make
the leap to full-time.

Before I continue, I have to share this
anecdote: a best-selling author, who
shall remained unnamed, once told a
packed room at a writing conference
the story of how she used to literally
lock herself in the bathroom of her
former place of employment to write. I
can't quite remember if it was on her
break time or during her lunch hour,
but I still remember the peals of
laughter which rang out and rippled
across the crowd when she admitted
her "bathroom behavior."

Although this seems funny, always
remember that when you're supposed
to be working at your "real" job, you
should do just that: work. That doesn't
mean to sneak your writing in on the
job. Now, the argument could be made
that employers could make a stink
about you writing on your break time,
but I don't think most of them will.
However, I believe that if you leave for
lunch and are off the premises
completely, then they shouldn't have a
beef with what you do in your own car.

Beat the Clock: Time
Management for Writers
Part 2
By Bev Walton-Porter

Managing to Find Time to Write!

Aha! So you're thinking I meant something
else by time management, huh? Maybe
visions of daily planners rolling around in
your head? Really, the true element of time
management is nothing more than taking an
honest look at your schedule and deciding
what you can do less of to write more. In
addition, it also means using idle time doing
something productive.

This is what I mean:

1. Television time. How many hours a week
do you spend watching television? You'd be
amazed once you add it up. A couple hours
each night multiplied by seven and you have
14 whole hours you could've used to write.
Okay, so you don't want to miss your
favorite shows? Tape them and watch them
only after you've devoted yourself to writing
at least an hour a day. Even if you cut back
your TV viewing by half, that gives you much
more time than you had before!
This is how I view television: it's an
interesting medium, but unless it's
educational TV or the news, I'm not very
interested. If you're planning on writing a
script for TV, I can understand why you
might want to watch a ton of series or
sitcoms, but otherwise, when you watch TV,
make it more of a quality experience: watch
public television, Discovery channel, The
Learning Channel, The History Channel,
Biography, A & E or any other station which
offers informative programs that you can
use as grist for the mill in your
writing/creating.
Bottom line: if you're a TV junkie, cut your
TV time at least in half to find time to write.

2. Idle Time. How do you spend your time
when you're stuck waiting in the doctor's
office or in the body shop customer center?
This is idle time -- use it to write! Make a
practice of carrying a small notebook and
pen with you so you can pop it out at a
moment's notice and jot down ideas or
article outlines -- or even begin an article.

Example: one year while returning home
from a trip to a writers' conference in Kansas
City, Missouri, I became bored as a
passenger watching endless miles of asphalt
race by outside the car window. Having just
come off a writer's high from attending a
conference with many published writers,
suddenly I had an idea for an article.

I reached into my briefcase and found a
small pad of yellow, lined paper and a pen.
Within a 1/2 an hour, I'd penned a rough
draft of what eventually became "Eight Great
Ways to Jump-start Your Writing." To date,
that article has been reprinted more times
than any of my other articles. And the idea
was hatched, then put in written form, during
idle time. Time I would have otherwise spent
watching flakes of snowing blow across cold
asphalt on the way back home from Kansas
City, Missouri.

Got idle time? Use it! Just because you're
stuck waiting on something or somebody,
that doesn't mean you can't make the best
use of that time.

3. Claim One Special Writing Day for
Yourself. Perfect timing for this topic. Why?
Because the day after tomorrow is my
birthday and I claim that as my day to do
whatever I want (within reason, of course.)
The gift I will give myself is the time to write
whatever I want, just for that day. Maybe I'll
decide to write haiku, even though I haven't
written haiku in ages. Maybe I'll decide to
just write in a journal all day. Whatever I
decide, it'll be my day and the gift I give to
myself is the time to write without guilt or
judgment.

Give yourself the gift of one special day to
write - but think in terms of every week.
Then, once a year (perhaps on your
birthday), give yourself the gift of one day of
writing creatively in any form and about
anything you want to write. Reconnect
yourself with your love of writing. This is very
important if you're a full-time or part-time
freelancer. Why? Because you write for a
living, and it's easy to get away from writing
just because you love to do it.

Don't be afraid to take the time to
experiment! This year I'm going to
experiment by beginning a children's book
that's been stuffed down in my mind for most
of the year. Will it sell? Who knows. Do I
care? Nope. Why? Because I'm setting aside
my special writing day to create something I
simply want to try for the pure pleasure of it.

4. Prioritize. Yes, even writing has a priority
in your life, but make sure it's ranked in the
right spot. In the grand scheme of things,
your family and duties as wife, husband,
mother, grandmother, grandfather, etc.
come before writing. Find a happy medium
and stick with it. If that means you have to
get up a little earlier or stay up a little later to
fit writing into your home life, then so be it.
You are entitled to writing time, but not to
the detriment of your loved ones. You know
what is reasonable, and so do they.

You may think it's impossible to find time to
write, but I would challenge that statement. I
say if you want to write, you'll always find
time to write, period. It may take some
readjustments on your part, but it can be
done. If you want to write enough and you
have that burning desire to create. In the
end, I believe writing either chooses you or it
doesn't. If you have the fever for the written
word in your veins, nothing will keep you
from creating those articles, essays, poems
or novels. Like water, air and food, the need
is basic and elementary.

This week, sit down and take a serious look
at your lifestyle and the demands on your
time. Grab a piece of paper and work it out
in black and white. Where are the spaces
that can be filled with writing? What activities
are you willing to curtail or eliminate in favor
of stalking your dream and making it reality?
Remember, writing doesn't just happen; you
have to make the commitment and take daily
steps if you intend to meet and exceed the
personal writing goals you've set for
yourself.

Bev Sninchak (writing as Bev Walton-
Porter and Star Ferris) is a professional
writer/author who has published hundreds of
stories on a wide variety of subjects. She's
also written four books: “Sun Signs for
Writers,” “Mending Fences,” "Hidden Fire"
and “The Complete Writer: A Guide to
Tapping Your Full Potential,” co-authored
with three other writers.

Bev also works as a contract editor, writing
instructor and creativity coach. She has
edited and published the award-winning
e-zine for writers, Scribe & Quill, for the past
12 years. She is a member of The Authors
Guild and is represented by the Meredith
Bernstein Literary Agency in NYC and MPL
Creative Services of Springfield, MO.

Please visit her websites at:
http://www.bevwaltonporter.com and
http://editrix.homestead.com

Writing Extremes:

We deal with extremes on a daily basis
even though the sound of the        word
makes it seem like its only so if it stands
out in some bizarre way almost
knocking us down or slapping us in the
face. The fact is, though, as a writer
extremes can be those things that pull us
away from actually doing what it is we
love to do...write. We need to remind
ourselves, often, even though we all know...
it is impossible to be everything to
everybody all the time. Try being
everywhere at once? I think not. The
balance lies in somewhere down the
middle if only we could pull ourselves
there, grounded between the extremes of
never and always.

Life is a series of roles: as loving, sharing
participants in the lives of our families,
friends and lovers; as employees or
employers with jobs and work and stress
enough to stretch forever and a day; as
social beings with divest
interests constantly trying to entice us to be
active participants... is it any wonder we
try to find sanctuary ~ time to be alone
with our thoughts, a place to just
simply put words on paper ~ is it any
wonder that during this quest we come up
against these apparent road blocks to our
success? The fight often times leave us
feeling like a broken knight, battle raging
all around with no hope... we get to that
point where all we can do is stand, arms at
our sides, rapier fallen at our feet and we
wait. We wait to be discovered. We wait for
someone else to give us what we request.
We wait to take the hit and be taken out of
our misery. We wait for the next command.

Needless to say, the next command must
come from within. Take back what you
have in our own control...time. Not time as
in the big picture the “now to the end of
eternity time” but time as in the little
chunks we call our lives time. Start small.
Select daily...seconds, minutes, hours.

If you have time for others and want to
meet their needs, you must also
allow yourself to take time for just you.
Keep the promises you make to
yourself because...are you not important
too? We constantly give to others
without framing in some private perimeters
of non-negotiable moments of our own. It's
no great phenomenon but we hear it called
the “writers life”... the very essence of it
can pull you from the very task that makes
you a writer.

There are things we must do and it is
necessary to hone your craft,
involve yourself with others, who share like
passion, learn what you need to learn, hear
what others have to say, and share what
you know. It might make you feel
important to be in the “loop” so to speak
but if you have no time for the actual craft
how is it possible to call yourself a writer?
We need to practice all the time. Whatever
time we can pull from the every day. We
need to jettison waste from our minds in
order to clear obstacles that may block our
way to our writing destination. Take these
obstacles like if small hills...climb
slowly step by step and soon the distant
mountain range is under foot. Take
every avenue and explore all the
possibilities. It is not impossible to cross
to that other side for somewhere there is a
bridge and the size of the gap matters
not, for it stretches from here and there to
where you want to be.

And speaking of extremes: just think of
how it was for those before us...
their lives were just as hectic and they had
half the conveniences we do.
Interference is not a new concept, nor is
commitment, necessity, need.

Words fell to paper either by ink or
typewriter; we would not have such        a
wealth literature as we know today if life
were a permanent writer's block. So with
all that goes on about us filling our lives to
keep us busy, it is necessary to claim back
some time, just a daily ration, here and
there. We can make ourselves scarce and
hide away. It might be better though, to
just say “no” once in a while. Claim the
time for spending it with someone who
knows your passion, enjoys your hard
work, not only listens but hears the words...
you.

Go on now.

Write.

What are you
waiting for?

Linda J. Pedley © 05 / 2007

Creating Perfection
by Mark David Gerson

Are you frustrated?

Do you struggle to find the perfect words
that consummately evoke the depth of your
passion or flawlessly paint the fullness of
your vision?

Are you frustrated because the words you
have chosen seem inadequate, their
ordering unsatisfactory?

You’re not alone. Many writers echo your
frustration.

It’s a futile frustration, for language is an
approximation. It’s a powerful but often
inadequate device for translating
experience and emotion into a form others
can share.

When I originally wrote these words for an
early draft of The Voice of the Muse:
Answering the Call to Write, the sun was
sliding through a marbled Hawaii sky toward
the Pacific, its light skipping across wind-
rippled waters.

If I was successful in that description, you
will have seen some version of an ocean
sunset. Some version, but not mine.

It may approach mine. It may approximate
mine. Yet my words, as expertly as I may
have deployed them, cannot create a
Kodak moment. (Even Kodak can’t create a
perfect Kodak moment.) My words are more
likely to create an Impressionist moment.

That's not a bad thing. It gives readers
space to have their own experience, to
paint their own pictures from the words you
have freed from your pen.

Just as you can't control the words that flow
from you, you can't control your reader’s
experience of those words. Nor would you
want to.

How often have you been disappointed by a
film portrayal of your favorite literary
character because your inner director cast
the role more astutely than the movie
director did?

Empower your readers to have their own
experience and recognize that all you can
do is translate your experience as heartfully
as you’re able into little squiggles on a
page. Begin by recognizing that most of the
time you’re only going to come close.
Continue by knowing that it remains within
your power to have your words incite
revolution, topple dynasties, overthrow
"reality."

That’s perfect enough for me. How about
you?

Can you let go your natural human
perfectionism long enough to let your story
tell itself to you on the page?

What are you waiting for? Pick up your pen.
Describe what you see, what you feel, what
you yearn for, what you love. Don’t try to be
perfect.

Don’t try at all. Just allow. And know that
from that place of surrender, you are
creating perfection.

(c) 2009 Mark David Gerson
Adapted from The Voice of the Muse:
Answering the Call to Write, winner of a
2009 IPPY Silver Medal as one of the top
writing books of the year

ASK PAT
Online Discussion
with Author Pat Bertram

Online Book Promotion:
The Ins and Outs
by Crystalee Calderwood

When it comes time to promote their first
books. There are so many options out
there, from taking out ads in newspapers
and magazines, to passing out postcards
and flyers around town. In this day and age,
there is one valuable marketing tool that
can’t be ignored: the internet.

The following is a list of just some of the
ways you can (and should!) look into:

1. Create a personal webpage. Sites like
Bravehost allow you to create a website for
free or at low cost.
2. Blog. Some writers argue that blogging is
more beneficial than creating a static
website. Blogging allows potential readers
to get to know you and have conversations
about your work. It also allows you to
network with other writers, share writing
tips, and establish yourself as an expert in
your field.
3. Hold a virtual book tour for your book.
Have fellow writing friends host you on their
blogs. Offer prizes for purchasing your
book. Online groups like VBT: Writers on
the Move on Yahoo! Groups offer a small,
friendly and experienced group of writers
who will regularly blog about your book in
exchange for you blogging about theirs.
(More about this in another article.)
4. Join social networking sites like
Facebook (where you can set up a fan
page for your book and/or yourself),
MySpace, LinkedIn, LibraryThing and Good
Reads. Good Reads and LibraryThing both
allow you to create author profiles with
information about yourself and your book.
5. Once you’ve created an author profile on
Good Reads, offer a free copy of your book
through their giveaway program. You’ll
instantly have hundreds of people
competing to win your book, and hopefully
some of them will buy your book if they don’
t win it.
6. Join groups like Red River Writers on
Facebook, which allows you to network with
other writers. I had a lot of fun appearing on
Robin Falls Kids Storytime on Blog Talk
Radio to talk about my book Angeline
Jellybean! Look into online radio shows on
which you may be able to appear.
7. Mention your book on message boards
and in chat rooms with relevant topics.
8. Consider starting your own podcast. Or,
have a friend mention you on theirs.
9. Sign up for Amazon Associates, a
program which will allow you to link to your
book on Amazon, either on your personal
website or blog.
10. Set up your e-mail signature to link to
the website where your book can be
purchased.

With a little hard work and some web-savvy,
you can successfully promote your book
online. Of course, no method of promotion
is guaranteed to make your book a best-
seller, but online promotion is becoming an
increasingly more important aspect of a
writer’s life.

What do You Call an Unpublished Writer?
Puzzled in Pacuda

An unpublished writer is a writer, of course. All it
takes to be a writer is to write, and going by the
proliferation of blogs on the Internet, almost all of
us are writers.

Being a novelist is something completely different.
You need to be a writer, certainly, but you also
need to know the elements of storytelling, how to
create characters that come alive, how to describe
a scene without losing the momentum of the story.
And then you need to put it all together into a
cohesive whole that engages the reader’s attention.

But most of all, you need to actually write the
novel, to put your idea into words and get it down
on paper or into your word processor. That takes
discipline. So does rewriting the same novel
perhaps a dozen times until you get it right.
Because, as we all know, there are no great
writers, only great rewriters.

What is the first thing you should do when
you finish your novel?
Confused in Connecticut

The first thing you do when you finish your novel is
celebrate, of course. Though there are millions of
us worldwide who have written a novel, there are
billions who haven’t. When we try to break into
print, however, we enter a different dimension
where everyone has written a novel, and we begin
to feel as if we’re facing impossible odds in the
publishing lottery. And it is a lottery, no matter what
the insiders want us to believe. The right book on
the right desk at the right time is the name of the
game unless you are an extremely talented writer.
But if you are that talented, you would be reading
your contract, not this blog.

So, for us normal folk, what is the second thing to
do when when the novel is finished? Start the
editing process. And the first thing to do is throw
out the initial chapter. Beginning writers tend to tell
too much too early, thinking that’s the only way a
reader is going to know what’s going on, but by not
telling, we add a little mystique and perhaps some
subtlety to our writing. Being subtle is the sign of a
great writer. Not everything needs to be described;
not everything needs to be explained. If you let
your readers create part of the story, they become
part of the story, and they will remember it. (And
you, too, the next time they are looking for a book
to buy.)

I can feel you cringing, thinking that you need that
first chapter, that it contains information necessary
to the story. Don’t worry. If that vital bit of
information is not mentioned elsewhere, simply add
it to a later chapter. But if you are like me, you
probably already have a second mention of that
information in the body of your work, in which case
it won’t be missed when you get rid of that first
chapter. Don’t get delete happy though; be sure to
save the chapter. You will need it for future
reference as you revise the book.

One other reason to throw out the beginning: when
you wrote it you were a neophyte. By the time you
finished the entire first draft, you were a writer. You
learned how to put words together to create an
image, you learned how to make characters come
alive. That experience needs to be exhibited at the
start.

If you don’t like the idea of throwing out your first
chapter, do what Margatet Mitchell did. She wrote
Gone With the Wind from back to front.

What's the best way for a first time author
to approach getting published? It seems
all the publishing houses take
manuscripts only on referrals or through
agents. How do you get your foot in the
door?
Disappointed in Denver

Good question. One suggestion I have is for you to
research agents. You can find lists of agent at the
Preditors and Editors site: http://anotherealm.
com/prededitors/pubagent.htm and at the
Association of Authors' Representatives, Inc: http:
//www.aaronline.org/. Look for agents who accept
your genre and whose interests are similar to
yours, then write query letters geared to those
specific agents. It takes a lot of work, but every
step in the writing/publishing field takes work --
unfortunately, there are no shortcuts. While you
are researching and querying agents, check out
small independent publishers to see if you can find
a fit -- most small publishers prefer not working with
agents. There are also a few major publishers who
still accept submissions, but it takes research to
find them. You can find publishers at the Preditors
and Editors website mentioned above.

I don’t have time to research agents and
editors. Should I self-publish?
Frazzled in Franklin

Self-publishing is an option that works well for
many people, but if you want to self-publish only to
save yourself time, my suggestion is don’t. Books
do not sell themselves. It takes more time to
promote you and your book than it ever took to
write it. There are hundreds of books and
thousands of articles that tell you how to promote
online, and most of them give the impression that
all you have to do is make connections on social
networking sites, set up a blog, write articles. The
truth is, it takes a long time to make real
connections with people who are interested in you
and your work. It also takes time to build up a
readership for a blog, and it takes time to write
blog articles. So, if time is a factor, just write. Have
fun. Edit your work to make it the best you can.
And then, when you have time, decide how you
want to proceed.

Pat Bertram is a native of Colorado and a
lifelong resident. When the traditional
publishers stopped publishing her favorite
type of book — character and story driven
novels that can’t easily be slotted into a
genre — she decided to write her own.
Daughter Am I is Bertram’s third novel to be
published by Second Wind Publishing, LLC.
Also available are More Deaths Than One and
A Spark of Heavenly Fire.

If you would like to ask Pat Bertram a
question or to comment on a response in this
column, you can find Pat at Ask Pat on
Bertram’s Blog: http://ptbertram.wordpress.
com/2009/10/22/ask-pat/

Prior to being published, new authors frequently make mistakes that damage or even preclude
their book’s marketability. Commonly, these errors include

        Poorly designed or stock cover art
        Unedited, under edited or unprofessionally edited text
        Under funding of or lack of a book marketing budget
        Invisible or inadequately visible online presence for author and title
        Absence of platform and clear audience for the material

Book Covers make or break your ability to obtain reviews and readers. You can judge a book
by its cover.

As James Cox, Editor of Midwest Book Review puts it,

“Stack #3 are those titles that are immediately rejected -- not for their subject matter; not for
being written by a first time author; and not for their self-published, POD-published, or small
press published status, but because they are poorly designed or defectively produced in terms
of presenting substandard, inadequate, or otherwise unattractive covers.”

Appealing covers summon buyers. Whether these buyers actually read your book is another
matter, but the most important element for purchasing a publication is its wrapper. It has been
proven that people choose a book by what they see and read on the cover, especially if they
don’t know the author or the title.

Make sure your cover is designed by an award-winning book designer, not a general graphic
designer. For different angles and musings on book covers, visit book design web sites and
blogs.

Editing is also critical to your book’s success. You want to interview several editors and hold
their completed books in your hand. Choose a set of editors who are experienced with your
genre. Among equally qualified candidates, hire those with whom you have some professional
chemistry. For an explanation of the types of editing your work might benefit from, read Mindy
Reed’s short piece, “Types of Editing”, on the blog at www.authorsassistant.com.

What is a reasonable Marketing Budget for a book launch? Plan to spend $2.5 to $12K
before and during the first three months of your book’s life. If you get an advance on your
manuscript, I recommend spending the whole amount on marketing your book.

Line item expenses in a prep & launch budget might include research & fact checking, editing,
indexing, illustrating, cover & interior design, web design, optimization, & maintenance,
distribution, shipping, travel, publicity, and advertising. If you need media training or a public
speaking coach, include that. If you are independently published, add in book fair and
industry conference fees, book award submission fees, exhibitor costs, and presentation
equipment.

An author’s Online Presence is absolutely crucial in today’s book market. Internet book sales
have risen 18% year on year since 2002. For this reason, each author needs a web site that
pulls incoming traffic from people who are searching on the book’s issues, title, and author
name.

The internet is so dynamic that each year the way to attract customers on the superhighway
seems to morph. Right now it’s social networking and backlinking. Perhaps 12 million
Americans now keep a blog because they’ve learned that updating it every couple of weeks
will maintain or lift their page rank. If you are facile with a computer, use search engine
optimization (SEO) tools to discover high ranking keywords, and then repeat those throughout
your web site, blog and press releases. Seek a web designer who is both imaginative and
good at taking direction, while exhibiting a proficiency in English, design, programming, SEO,
and business.

Finally, if you cannot define your book’s Audience and Platform, your book will never get off
the ground. To market your book, you must be able to distill its issues and know who and
where your readers are and how they search for information. Create your log line to attract
them and prioritize your first year plan so that you fully fund and lead with the strongest device
in your platform.

Don’t end up in the slush pile! Spend time and money with your editing team, a book
designer, an SEO guru, and a publicist, so your book is more likely to remain competitive
among the 200,000 titles released in America each year.

Stephanie Barko is a Literary Publicist based in Texas. Clients include authors under contract
with traditional publishers, small presses, and independently published writers. Visit www.
authorsassistant.com/Barko.htm for genres accepted and services offered.

Creating stories for nonfiction
by Velda Brotherton

Would you rather read a story or pages of
facts and figures? The answer is obvious for
most of us. We probably had our fill of
textbooks in school, and prefer to see
happenings presented in story form. That’s
why creative nonfiction is gaining in
popularity, and why more and more writers
are finding a certain degree of success in
writing it.

It’s not all that difficult. If you’ve written
historical fiction or ever based a story on
something that really happened, you’ve
already written creatively about the truth.
You’re only a few steps way from writing
creative nonfiction.

The first time I wrote a book in this genre, I
really didn’t know that’s what I was doing. I
presented a selection of interviews from
newspaper articles I’d written, then tied them
together with my personal essays and
reactions to these people and their stories. I
went on to show my travels to find and
interview my subjects. Putting it all together, I
submitted it to a small publisher who said he
was interested in seeing manuscripts about
the Ozarks and the people who live there.
He bought it immediately.

In 1994, Wandering In The Shadows of Time
became my first published book. When the
publisher went out of business a few years
later, I reissued the book myself because of
its constant popularity. People like to read
real stories, and that’s what I’d given them
while also presenting a way of life that has
passed on.

Years later, after having had six historical
romance novels published, I collaborated
with a distant cousin to tell her story of
growing up on a homestead in New Mexico
after World War I. I wrote it as a creative
nonfiction biography, so that it reads like a
novel. In 1998 that book, Fly With The
Mourning Dove, was a finalist for a WILLA
literary award for creative nonfiction.

Telling someone’s life story, or our own, for
that matter, in story form, is no easy task to
undertake. Edna, the protagonist in the
book, began to write down her memories as
they came to her, in no particular order. For
about two years I collected them, some
through the mail, others when we went to
New Mexico to visit with her. That was less
than half the battle. Putting them together in
chronological order proved a daunting task,
but once I accomplished that, the real work
began. Writing the book like a novel.

I chose to begin using excerpts from her
mother’s diary to lead off each chapter, so
that I could begin when Edna was six years
old and the family traveled to New Mexico to
settle on their homestead. About a third of
the way through the book, I shifted
viewpoints and started telling the story
through grown-up Edna’s journal entries, all
taken from things she had told me and
written down for me. I was faced with doing a
lot of research about early New Mexico to
make sure, when I added dialogue and
internalization and interaction between the
Smiths and their friends and neighbors, that
I got it right. That is the creative part of
writing the truth. No one can remember their
exact conversations or thoughts, yet a writer
has to be true to the mores of the era when
writing their words and ideas.

This book has been one of my most
satisfying to date. Edna approved the
manuscript with only a few changes. Since
she was 92 when we wound it up, I decided
to go with a publisher I knew would not dilly-
dally about getting it in print. I wanted to
make sure she was able to hold a copy in
her own hands. Because of the choice of
publishers and the price of the book, it hasn’
t sold as well as I had hoped, though I do sell
a lot of copies myself. But Edna has her
book and I have the experience of having
written my first creative nonfiction biography.

There are a few steadfast rules to writing
this type of book or story. History cannot be
changed in any way. Dates must remain
exact as well as certain things that
happened presented when and how they
happened. The only things that can be
“made up” are the conversations and the
internalization of the point of view
characters. The writer should complete a ton
of research before going ahead with the
project to be sure he understands the
people of the time and how they lived,
worked and played.

Since life does go on around our character’s
story, we must also know what was going on
in that time period. Politically, artistically,
religiously, etc. How did people dress? What
did they eat? In general, how did they live,
raise their children, relate to everyday
occurrences?

Here’s a link to information on creative
nonfiction by the master himself, Lee
Gutkind: http://www.creativenonfiction.
org/thejournal/gutkind.htm Here the writer
can find plenty of information on writing in
this genre as well as places to get work
published. For more sites, Google creative
nonfiction or Lee Gutkind. Studying the
genre and its writings are as important as
researching the subject matter.

There is much being written today in short
and long pieces for this genre. Chicken
Soup for the Soul books are a fine example
of inspirational creative nonfiction. Inspire!
by Linda Apple, available online at AWOC.
com or at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, is a
great book from which to learn how to write
in the genre. Apple has been published ten
times in Chicken Soup books. Her website is
http://www.lindacapple.com

The bottom line is, as with anything you
write, learn your craft, practice, practice,
practice, edit and rewrite until your work
shines, study publishers, then submit,
submit, submit. And don’t give up on your
dreams. The road to success is littered with
quitters.

Writing fiction based on truth
by Velda Brotherton

A good way to be published in today’s market is in regional anthologies. Many organizations
publish such books filled with short fiction.

Currently, my short stories are featured in ten such regional anthologies. Five of them are
based on true occurrences that have taken place in the Arkansas Ozarks. In my research for a
weekly historical newspaper column, I come across many bits and pieces of stories that beg to
be told. In order to tell them without knowing everything, I choose to fictionalize them.

One is based on a Civil War soldier who came home from the war expecting the welcoming
arms of his wife and children, only to find she had remarried and had a child by her new
husband. He settled the problem by telling her that she could have a horse and her choice of
one of their children, but they all had to leave and never return.

This was all the story I had. I found it in some family writings that were published in an historical
quarterly. Some time later, after thinking about this for a while, I wrote a story titled “No Way
Home” that told his story. Here’s an excerpt:

Jacob lifted the stub of a pencil from his leather bound journal and leaned against a fallen log.
Around him men snored in their sleep, or cried out, tortured by memories of the day’s battle. In
the flickering firelight he read the scrawled words, nodded and wrapped the book and pencil in
oilcloth before stowing them away in his knapsack.

The night settled uneasily around his shoulders. A horn of a golden moon peeked through a
scud of autumn clouds to cast dappled shadows on the ground. Leaves fell in the wake of a
gentle wind, rustling in whispers around the exhausted troop. Sounded near peaceful. Hard to
believe a war raged.

“Writing to your woman?” Major Ames asked.

The man’s silent approach sent a shudder of fright through Jacob. Could have been some
damn Yank, come to shoot his head clean off, and him not hearing till it was too late. The major’
s gauntness, touched by the play of light and darkness, made him out to be more a ghost than
a man. Like the rest of them, he looked and smelled as if he hadn’t bathed in months. Course,
he hadn’t.

“Don’t reckon letter writing’d do much good,” Jacob said, too shy to tell the major he was
keeping a journal of this war.

“You’re from Arkansas, ain’t you?” The major squatted next to Jacob and rested his Colt
carbine across the nearby log.

“Yes, sir. Fayetteville, sir.”

Creating characters from such a tiny bit of truth is no more difficult than creating fictional
characters. The main idea is to study the era in which they lived as well as the locale. Read
some journals kept by people from that time to see how they felt about things, how they
thought, what their morals were.

In this case, I knew I had to create a man who dreamed of going home to his beloved wife and
children, yet a man with strong beliefs. Then I must place him in a very tough situation, have
him survive a terrible experience, and at last make his way home only to find his wife with
another man. As he trudges through his hometown, past the burned buildings of neighbors and
friends, he can only think of his own home. Does it remain standing? How about his wife and
children? Did they live through the dreadful war?

Both Confederate and Federal soldiers occupied Fayetteville at one time or another, and when
the Federal soldiers drove the Confederates out, the Rebs set fire to the buildings so the
Yanks would not profit from the occupation. Then, at last, he hurries up the lane to find his
home has been spared. Imagine his relief, his desire to see his family. And what despair he
must have felt when he saw another man’s babe in her arms.

In order to write this kind of fiction, one must go back to the time, learn to live as the people
lived, experience the hardships not only of the time but of that terrible war that tore the country
and its families apart.

For another shorter story, I chose an elderly man’s memories of the day, as a child, he watched
Yankees burn his neighbor’s home; how he peered in a window while they ransacked the
kitchen, taking what food there was before setting it afire. I began to wonder how much worse
he would have felt had he been forced to lead the soldiers to the home, and I wrote “The
Traitor.” Here’s an excerpt:

Ma always said there wasn’t no bad men just men that had to do bad things ‘cause of what was
going on. Us being created in the image of God, and all. But that was before the bushwhackers
came while we was at church and burned down our house and took our old milk cow, Bessie.

Ma cried a lot after that. I’d come on her when she didn’t know I was around, and she’d be
crying like her heart had cracked as wide open as granny’s blue glass pitcher them men
throwed down on a rock. The only purty thing Ma had, even before the war they called Civil
came along.

We was standing there, not knowing what to say or do, staring at the smoking pile of logs and
our old bedstead, burned black as tar, when Pa laid his big hands on my shoulders. They
shook and that scared me.

If you can’t find an organization to join that publishes anthologies, suggest that your own writer’
s group do so. In today’s world of Print on Demand, it’s easy to accomplish and well worth the
effort.

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Conflict: Where a Story Begins

Sometimes it seems as if most books and
movies today are glorified comic books, epic
battles between the good and the impossibly
evil. Conflicts in which there are no shades of
gray must be satisfying for many people, but I
like a little more subtlety in my conflicts, a little
more reality.

In a world that seems to be run by the major
corporations, the stories where a lone hero
takes on a megalithic corporation, brings
down the owner of the company, and saves
the world just are not plausible. Though I’m
sure the presidents of the major corporations
think they are indispensable, they are not. If
they are eliminated, there will always be
others to take their place, and the
corporations will go on doing whatever it is
that they do.

Because I know this and cannot escape it
even in a world of my own creation, the
conflicts in my books tend to be less clearly
defined. Of course I have heroes and villains,
but the villains are not always dastardly ones,
though my other characters may perceive
them as such. The villains are the heroes of
their own story, and though a corporation is
often the villains’ vehicle, my heroes don’t
bring it down.

I like my heroes to find a romantic partner, a
co-protagonist. It seems to dissipate the
energy of the story if the two are always in
conflict. I prefer it when they bond together in
their struggle against fate (or an employee of
a corporation as the personification of fate).
To me, the biggest villain around is fate. What
is more unfair, more murderous, more
disastrous than fate?

My heroes never bring on their fate. Perhaps
my books would be more dramatic if they did,
but I cannot sympathize with characters who
are the cause of their own problems. And why
do they have to when life itself is always ready
to cause problems for them?

When fate comes knocking on the door,
everything changes. And that’s when a real
story, not a comic book, begins.

Pat Bertram is a native of Colorado and a
lifelong resident. When the traditional
publishers stopped publishing her favorite
type of book - character and story driven
novels that can’t easily be slotted into a
genre - she decided to write her own.
Daughter Am I is Bertram’s third novel to be
published by Second Wind Publishing, LLC.
Also available are More Deaths Than One
and A Spark of Heavenly Fire.

If you would like to comment on this article,
you can find Pat Bertram at Ask Pat on
Bertram’s Blog: http://ptbertram.wordpress.
com/2009/10/22/ask-pat/

Mistakes of First-Time Authors
by Stephanie Barko, Literary Publicist

How to Write Like a Bestselling Novelist

I read the works of a bestselling novelist, trying
to pinpoint why she’s been so popular for the
past two decades. Her popularity has nothing to
do with good writing. Her writing style is
surprisingly amateurish, her characters are not
well drawn, she tells and explains instead of
showing, and she repeats herself as if she can’t
remember from page to page what she’s
already said.

So, why do people keep reading her books?

Passion. Her characters never like or dislike
anything. They love and hate, but mostly love.
“She ate a piece of cherry pie, and she loved
it.” “They had sex, and they loved it.”

Identifiable characters. She gives her
characters tags that readers can identify with
(mother, prosecuting attorney, abused child,
wronged wife) and lets the reader fill in the
blanks.

Issues. She picks an issue people are
passionate about, and wraps her story around
that.

And most of all, she gives readers someone to
love and someone to hate, and makes her
character choose between them. And, brilliantly,
the character chooses the one the reader
doesn’t want.

Example: a prosecuting attorney, who adores
her husband and their young daughter, gets
breast cancer, has a mastectomy and
chemotherapy. The husband can’t handle it, is
mad at her for “pretending” that she’s sicker
than she is, is totally unsupportive, and even
worse has an affair. A coworker supplies the
support the husband refuses to give her, and
she and the coworker fall in love and plan to get
married when her divorce goes through. A year
after being diagnosed, she is doing well, and
the husband comes nosing around again. In the
end, they get back together.

See? Passion. Identifiable characters. Issues.
Someone to love and someone to hate. And the
wrong ending.

Why is the wrong ending the right one? If the
author went with the new love, who would
remember? By having the character go back to
her husband, the author is manipulating us into
thinking about the story. Would we go back to a
husband (or wife) who treated us like garbage
just so we can uphold the sanctity of marriage?

As you can see, even though I hated the book,
she got me. After all, I am writing about it.

Pat Bertram is a native of Colorado and a
lifelong resident. When the traditional
publishers stopped publishing her favorite type
of book — character and story driven novels
that can’t easily be slotted into a genre — she
decided to write her own. Daughter Am I is
Bertram’s third novel to be published by Second
Wind Publishing, LLC. Also available are More
Deaths Than One and A Spark of Heavenly
Fire.

If you would like to ask Pat Bertram to comment
on this article, you can find Pat at Ask Pat on
Bertram’s Blog: http://ptbertram.wordpress.
com/2009/10/22/ask-pat/

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