Want to Learn about Writing from a Writer

Here is one of my favorite blogs to read about writing - from an upcoming writer. She shares challenges, tips, great resources, and fun ideas. It's a must read blog! Take a gander at it.

http://fromsarahwithjoy.blogspot.com/

Starting a Blog

Image via CrunchBaseSo you are thinking about starting a blog? Where do you start? What is the best blogging software? What IS a blogging software?

There are many thing to consider when starting a blog.

1. What subject do you want to blog about? Are you focused on one particular hobby or idea - or would you like to have a blog that is more like an online journal? If you want to earn money blogging and placing google ads, adsense or other blog ads on your site - it really is best if you choose a niche market to blog about. There are many great tools to research topics for blogging but pick something you enjoy or have knowledge about - otherwise your blog will become a chore rather than something fun.

2. Once you have selected your blog topic - you need to select the blog software you wish to use. The most popular blogging software platforms are WordPress.com and Blogger.com. Both provide free blogs that are hosted on their sites. If you have your own domain name (myname.com) and wish to pay for your own hosting - you can also do that - it's just takes a little more work. If you are a beginner - Blogger is probably the easiest and quickest way to start your blog. WordPress.com has more template options and widgets available - but will also take you more time and skill to maintain.

3. Each blogging software has great step-by-step instructions for starting a blog. Simply follow the instructions and you can have a blog set up within a hour. Then your next task is to figure out about blog writing and setting up your adsense or Google ads accounts in order to make money on your blog.

4. Start writing.

5. Realize that this is just a basic article about starting a blog - for beginners. As you become familiar with all of the options available and feel comfortable with blogging, we will cover many more aspects of creating effective blogs and how to market them.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Choosing the best blogging platform for your business blog (wsioms.co.za)
• WordPress.com to Self Hosted WordPress blog Migration Made easy (shoutmeloud.com)
• Learn WordPress.com Tutorial (onecoolsitebloggingtips.com)

Learning How to Write a Screenplay

Image via WikipediaYou may have some great ideas for movies but not know where to start. What is the best way for learning how to write a screenplay? There are so many resources both online for writing screenplays, but also books, classes and online tutorials for writing. If you search you can find screenplay writing software or simply use Word or your favorite wordprocessing software.

The first step is to outline your ideas and the characters you wish to develop. As you begin you will find the way you work best - whether you want to use 3x5 cards to outline the scenes or if you want to scribble notes in a notebook. The key is to write down all of your ideas for the storyline.

Take the first step in learning how to write a screenplay - writing your ideas down. Then check out some of the best resources on writing screenplays:

• The Screenwriter's Bible: A Complete Guide to Writing, Formatting, and Selling Your Script 
• The Writer's Guide to Writing Your Screenplay: How to Write Great Screenplays for Movies and Television
• How to Write: A Screenplay, 2nd EditionScreenplay Workbook: The Writing Before the WritingScreenplay Workbook: The Writing Before the Writing

Related articles by Zemanta

• Write Your Screenplay! (beliefnet.com)
• Format for Writing Screen Plays (brighthub.com)

Finding a Copywriter Service

If you have a small business or are looking for good copywriters, there are many copywriting services you could use. My recommendation is to begin with a freelance service such as freelancer.com or guru.com - you can get samples of previous work and determine if the writer is someone who will fit the style you want.

Another great option is to go to your local college or university and place ads for writers in the English or marketing departments. You could potentially get an intern or inexpensive student to write copy and perhaps find a great future employee that way.

Finding a copywriter service can take some time, and if you use a business you will end up paying their overhead costs as well as for the writing, but you also may get a few more guarantees and various styles. There are many talented writers searching for work, you might even consider placing ads in local classifieds and could find what you are looking for that way without having to go through a formal copywriting service. Be creative. You may find undiscovered talent simply by perusing blogs and forums. Just make sure you enter into any agreement as a limited contract or trial basis, or you may get stuck with a copywriter who has a different writing style or tone that you need.

Online Writing

In order to have effective online writing, you should keep in mind SEO (Search Engine Optimization) tactics, keywords that people use to search, and good writing practices.

Short, concise paragraphs are more effective for online writing.

Make sure you use keywords and phrases which are popular for search engines - so your online writing content will be found in searches from Google, Yahoo, and Bing! (The top 3 search engines).

You may decide to hire professional writers who have SEO / internet marketing experience to get content for your websites that are both optimized and easy to read and understand. There are many jobs available for online writers... if you are a writer looking for online writing jobs, just make sure you do not have to pay for any leads, and that those advertising are legitimate before providing your personal information.

Writing Competitions

Writing Competitions: How to Win

By: Kay Green

At the end of our second short story competition, I put together these guidelines based on comments from our readers and administrators about what makes them want to recommend - or throw out - a competition entry. Some of these points may seems obvious but it really is worth checking your entry to see how it measures up.

Practical Things

Read the competition rules before you start, when you finish, and once more as you prepare to send in your entry. Keep a competition check-list, and as you parcel up your precious work refer to the list at every move - format, word-count, required cover-sheet information, closing date, fee, who is the cheque to be made out to? Please do this - we all make a lot more administration errors than we ever know about. Why waste the hours you have put into your work by sending it to the wrong address, misdirecting the cheque or missing the closing date? And don't expect the readers to make an exception for you because your story is so good - if the entry breaches the rules, it will probably be sidelined by an administrator before it gets to the readers so your brilliance won't be discovered.

Don't trust your computer's spelling and grammar check. We've all heard those hilarious stories - 'I mis-spelled Gabriel and my computer corrected it to Garfield', 'it's turned burglar into bugger,' etc. It will give the readers a laugh but not a big enough laugh for your story to win the competition. And if you don't know how to handle punctuation and capitalization, find out. If you let the computer do it for you, it won't do it well enough. Readers might take on a story that needs correction but it has to be exceptionally good for them to make those kind of allowances. Why set extra obstacles to your progress?

Don't use fancy fonts, complicated formats or great new gizmos you've just downloaded. Whether you are sending paper or e-copy, the easiest format for most people to handle is a Word document (the file tag should be .doc or .rtf) on standard A4 paper with automatic (not hard) returns at line-ends. Anything else makes extra work and risks annoying (or at worst defeating) the competition administrators.

Creative and Style Points

Look long and hard at your title and first paragraph. Readers have a huge pile of work to consider and although they try to look at each one with equal enthusiasm, it's hard to stay fresh. All our readers speak with delight of those moments when they start a new story and the opening startles them awake. It's neat, smooth and original, it entices them to read on.... Is your opening that special?

Now look at the ending. It might be happy, it might be tragic or it might point to untold events in an imagined future but it must leave an impression. Don't let the story just tail off - the reader will get to the end and instantly forget it.

Try to avoid telling the reader too much. Find a way of getting characters and events to unfold your ideas for you. It is much more fun for readers if you lay a path for them to make their own discoveries. Remember that old line from schooldays - don't tell me, show me.

Introduce a question in the reader's mind as soon as you can. It doesn't have to be as obvious as the 'whodunit' of a murder mystery but there must be something to suggest that the reader will discover a treasure if they read on.

Read the direct speech of your characters aloud. Ask yourself if those people would really talk like that. Many stories are rejected because the writer has forced the characters to spool out information in an unnatural way. Make sure you have set out the dialogue in a logical and consistent way. For example, if you start out using double quotes for speech and italics for thought, keep it like that. Changing half way confuses the reader and infuriates the typesetter.

Ask yourself what is unique about your story. If there is nothing in the plot, the characters, the setting or the language itself that you believe is new, you can bet there won't be anything the judges haven't seen 50 times over.

If your word-count is near the maximum for the competition, look for opportunities to edit. Where two stories are being compared, the shorter, more tightly edited one is likely to be chosen.

Make sure you know why you are writing the story. It may not have a plot but it must have a point. If you know the point, it will be easier to see where you have wandered off the track. Cut irrelevant paragraphs and keep it clean and focused.

Avoid bashing on about the big topic of the moment unless you really have something new to say or an unusual angle on the topic.

Finally, don't send work that doesn't impress you. When you've finished your story, put it away for a few weeks then get it out and pretend you've never seen it before. Read it because you want to enjoy a good read. If you don't enjoy it, the judges probably won't. Be really honest with yourself about this. When you read your work you will either get a sinking feeling and start praying for blind luck (you aren't going to win) or you will get excited butterflies, thinking this really is a special piece of work (you may well be going to win). If you get the sinking feeling, do yourself a favour. Ask yourself - and your best friends if they are honest - do you lack confidence in yourself or do you have doubts because there are faults in the work? If you suspect it is the latter, do take the time to re-think and re-write. When that cheque and/or that offer of publication come your way, you will be so glad you did.

Now, write that winning story and send it in.

Why not send your next entry to us at Earlyworks Press? We usually have poetry and short fiction competitions running and we set occasional specialist genre competitions and web-based challenges. We are story addicts and we are looking forward to a good read!

About the Author

Kay Green is editor and competition administrator at Earlyworks Press.

Writer, editor and English teacher, Kay Green is a lifelong lover of story in all its forms. Her collection 'Jung's People' was first published by Elastic Press and is now available through Circaidy Gregory Press

Earlyworks Press is also a club for the promotion of independent writers and illustrators. The club has an online forum for developing stories and poetry and 'enclaves' around the UK where like-minded writers get together for workshopping and discussion, and to organise book fairs and other activities.

(ArticlesBase SC #278338)

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ - Writing Competitions: How to Win

Writing a Thesis

Writing a thesis can be a little bit intimidating if you are not clear on what a thesis is or how to write a good thesis.

Basically writing a thesis is a way to tell the reader what your paper is about in one brief paragraph. First begin with a short introduction to your topic then include in one or two sentences your position about the topic. This position is your thesis statement and summarizes the argument you will present in your paper.

The rest of your paper provides evidences or proof that support your thesis, and tries to persuade the reader to agree with your thesis.

Coming up with a good thesis statement requires thought and consideration. Make sure your position is clear and you have strong arguments to support your position. There are many great resources online for writing a thesis. Take advantage of your local library and argument papers to get good examples.

Want to Get Published in 2010?

If you are looking to get published in 2010, there are many things that obviously have to happen. First is the actually finish your book, and then comes a very difficult part for many creative writers - finding a publisher and getting your work into the marketplace.

Here is a great archive / search engine of places that may publish your writing. Check it out. http://www.duotrope.com/

Online Writing Classes

As the new year is upon us, you may consider setting some writing goals and perhaps looking at some online writing classes. There are many online writing classes available and as you research make certain you assess cost, teachers, resources, and recommendations. Find others who have taken the class before and find out what they have to say about the course.

Or you may set a consequence for yourself if you do not achieve your goal. This past year my goal was to finish my book by the end of the year or I had to pay one of my nieces $100. Well, I'm sad to say I didn't finish my book - but I'm close. Now we've made another deal - I have until the 15th of January and if I finish by then, then she will give me 1/2 of the money back. It's not much money - but it does motivate me and give me a deadline that I'm determined to reach.

Whatever your goal is for the new year - taking small daily actions can get you a long way at the end of the year. Even if you write for 15 minutes each day - you certainly will have a lot to show for it after 365 days.

I'd love to hear your new year's goals and if you have had success with any online writing classes.

Disney on Hulu

Walt Disney is in negotiations with Fox and NBC to take an equity stake in Hulu.com. In exchange, Disney would get broader distribution of its ABC shows via the video site.
Disney had focused, in the past, on drawing viewers to the ABC website - the first major broadcast net to offer prime time programming online - but has apparently decided that the site alone is not strong enough for it to compete successfully in the crowded marketplace, writes the Los Angeles Times. Michael McGuire, media analyst with Gartner Inc., says a deal between Disney and Hulu is an acknowledgment of Hulu's growth and ability to sustain a large audience.

Hulu pulled 34.7 million viewers in February, per comScore Video Metrix, or about a quarter of the total U.S. internet users. The site climbed to the fourth most popular destination for online video in February, after experiencing a 33% jump in video views on the heels of its Super Bowl commercial at the outset of the month. Though the site is still dwarfed by YouTube, ScreenDigest predicts that Hulu's ad revenue will match that of YouTube's in 2009, with both pulling about $180 million in the U.S.

According to consumer tech researcher The Diffusion Group, 83% of adult consumers watch online video at least once a week, reports Reuters (via Yahoo). The report predicts that long-form videos, including TV shows and movies, will total 22.8 billion streams - or 4.1% of total video streams - annually by 2013. The vast majority of streams will be for short-form and user-generated video.

But advertising revenue will come in large part from long-form video, with 69% of total ad-related revenue coming from long-form in 2013, according to the report.

New Reality TV Show with Tony Robbins

Just learned about a new TV show that has been picked up by NBC. The new series will star Tony Robbins - life coach and strategist. It actually sounds pretty good and I predict will be a hit.

Variety Magazine recently posted an article about the series.

NBC has picked up eight episodes of a new reality series starring famed life strategist Tony Robbins.

Show, from "The Biggest Loser" producer Reveille, reps the first major unscripted series at the net greenlighted by new Peacock alternative chief Paul Telegdy.

In joining NBC at the start of the year, Telegdy zeroed in on the success of "Loser," which is one of the few reality franchises currently exhibiting ratings growth.

"This was one of the first things I was pitched," Telegdy said. "We were looking for shows complementary of each other, and this fit in thematically with 'Biggest Loser.'�

The as-yet untitled show (tentative title: "Breakthrough with Tony Robbins") will follow Robbins as he takes participants and helps them face personal challenges; the pilot, for example, focused on someone who was a lifelong stutterer -- and who, by the end of the episode, was speaking in front of a public audience.

For each segment, Robbins will create a 30-day program for the individual to get their life back on track. Cameras will capture that evolution throughout the month, documentary-style.

"My goal is to not make this the Tony show, but to put the focus on the people who are transforming," Robbins said.

Segments will also feature some of Robbins' friends, such as Quincy Jones and Donna Karan, as they spend time mentoring people.

Robbins said he had been pitched several TV ideas through the years, but most were of the daytime TV talk variety. When Reveille came calling, the company's success with "Biggest Loser" gave him hope that there was an audience for something more life-affirming.

"I want to do something that has impact, something real and raw," he said.

Robbins noted that some auds know him because of his infomericals -- and that "you're known by the company you keep, and I'm next to the spray-on tan guy." As a result, Reveille and NBC are making sure that the primetime show will look "radically different," Telegdy added.

"This is not an infomercial for any of Tony's methodologies," Telegdy said. "But the reason why Tony makes a lot of money is the tools he sells are good, and he's going to be unpacking a lot of those skills in broadcast TV for free."

Robbins will exec produce along with Reveille's Howard T. Owens, and Mark Koops. Bruce Beresford-Redman is also an EP. Meanwhile, Robbins said his regular business and foundation work will continue.

Quote: Writing Novels

I can't understand why a person will take a year to write a novel when he can easily buy one for a few dollars. -- Fred Allen

Writing Requires Balance

I've got tons of ideas and screenplays I want to write, but it seems that I'm suffering from a severe case of writer's block. It's not that I can't write, it's that I can't get myself to write. Everything else seems to come first. This past year I was saving a company from closing, and every ounce of my energy went into that business. Now that it's stable and I've moved to another venture -- I'm getting ready to move, attending conferences, packing, etc -- and writing seems to get put on the back burner. This is the first time I've had in months to even sit down and get caught up on my emails and my blogs.

I'm sure it's a common thing -- writing does take balance, energy, thought and focus. It's not something that is easy to just sit down and whip out a novel or a screenplay. You need to immerse yourself -- and that is difficult to do when the phone is ringing and the world demands your attention.

My hope is that since I do recognize what is happening -- that I can get myself to make writing a PRIORITY, rather than a task that gets moved from one day to the next.

I'd be interested in hearing from other writers how they deal with the challenges of making time to write, making it a priority, and what strategies can help with writer's block.

"Numbers" parody on the PC vs MAC commercials

Here is a very funny video clip for the TV show "Numbers" -- it's a parody of the PC vs MAC commercials. Thought I'd share. Enjoy!

Carl's Jr. Commercials - Love 'em or Hate 'em?

Okay, I have to say that I simply cannot STAND Carl's Jr. commercials. Perhaps it's because I'm sensitive to people chewing loudly, and food dripping everywhere. I actually have to change the channel! Now the new commercials with the guys licking the outside of a shake cup... not to be rude (as Simon Cowell would say), but I'm shaking my head. It's obnoxious and makes me NOT want to eat there.

I'm sure they must be effective, and the fact that I'm even blogging about the commercials is probably one of the reasons they make commercials like this... am I the only one bothered by the loud sounding obnoxious crunching munching sounds? I know I can't be the only one.

I hope Carl's Jr will take note and change their campaign. :-)
(Thanks for listening to my latest rant...)

Getting Back to Writing

Well, I've finally decided to take the time off from working to finish my book. I've been thinking about how to transition from the business and logical thinking required with work, and the creativity and inspiration which is necessary for writing.

It has been difficult for me to switch between the two sides, and thus I have put off my writing. However, I've gotten to the point where I feel such a need to finalize my first book, I'm trying to get rid of distractions and take time away from my routine in order to write.

Does anyone else have this problem -- probably -- and there are probably many solutions which would make it possible for me to do both. But I've not yet found that solution, so I'm thankful I can get back to writing for at least a little while.

New Publishing Company

For those of you interested in getting published -- there is a new publishing company called Meridian Publishing that will allow you to have a contract and they will print books on demand. It's a very exciting concept. I know the publishers and am happy to recommend them and this business model to any aspiring author. Check it out.

Dreams

"The key is to have a dream that inspires us to go beyond our limits." Robert Kriegel

Dave Barry "16 Things I've Learned"

Image via Wikipedia

I thought this was good and you might enjoy it.

By: Dave Barry, Nationally Syndicated Columnist

1. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.

2. If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will, its full potential, that word would be "meetings."

3. There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."

4. People who want to share their religious views with you almost never want you to share yours with them.

5. You should not confuse your career with your life.

6. Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance. (This one is very important.)

7. Never lick a steak knife.

8. The most destructive force in the universe is gossip.

9. You will never find anybody who can give you a clear and compelling reason why we observe daylight savings time.

10. You should never say anything to a woman that even remotely suggests that you think she's pregnant unless you can see an actual baby emerging from her at that moment.

11. There comes a time when you should stop expecting other people to make a big deal about your birthday. That time is age 11.

12. The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we ALL believe that we are above average drivers.

13. A person, who is nice to you, but rude to a waiter, is not a nice person. (This is very important. Pay attention. It never fails.)

14. Your friends love you anyway.

15. Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.

16. Thought for the day: Men are like fine wine . . . They start out as grapes; and it's up to the women to stomp the crap out of them until they turn into something acceptable to have dinner with.

Dave Barry Books

Related articles by Zemanta

• Deep thoughts with Dave Barry (beliefnet.com)
• Dave Barry on Death (paul.kedrosky.com)

Lost - Why I love it so!

This week's episode of Lost reminded me why I love it so much. It keeps you guessing! That's pretty rare for me -- since during movies sometimes I'll even say the lines in my head before I know what they are -- and most of the time I'm right. But with this show -- some things I just don't see coming.

Okay, I admit I knew that when John opened the door -- his dad would be inside. But last week I predicted that the reason John was in the wheelchair was because he had killed his dad or something like that -- not that his dad pushed him out a window. (nice dad huh).

But I do have a hard time believe that John's dad seems so much younger -- they seem about the same age to me -- oh well.

Blowing up the submarine was so dumb -- it's like shooting yourself in the foot because you're afraid you're going to shoot yourself in the leg -- let's hurt ourselves so we don't get hurt later -- or something like that.

This week I also had hopes again that Kate and Jack will get together. I hope the "other" girl won't get in the way.

So, kudos to the brilliant writers of Lost -- to the great actors -- and to everyone who makes it a pleasure to watch!