Angela Booth's Writing Blog

Weekend writer: organize your time

If you're a weekend writer, it's essential that you develop organizational skills. However, even with just three or four hours a week to devote to your writing, you'll be amazed at how much you can achieve.

It's possible to: write a book in a year; develop a copywriting clientele; and also to write many articles and short stories.

Here are a couple of organizational tips weekend writers have shared with me:

* Use your weekend writing time to write new material. Print out your rough drafts, and take them with you. During the week, revise your drafts and make notes for your weekend writing session. Five minutes here and there keeps you in your writing, so that at your next writing session, you're ready to write;

* Get a box each time you start a new project - one of those plastic or cardboard archive boxes, with a lid, and keep all the material you need for that project in the box. This saves hunting for books, folders and draft, because everything's in the box.

Make money writing from home: ditch your day job forever

If you can write, you can make money writing from home. The Web has made it possible for ANY writer, no matter how new or inexperienced, to turn writing into a fabulous career. If you're stuck in a soul-destroying, or just boring job, writing is your way out.

Fab Freelance Ezine helps you - subscribe and receive the free report: "Write And Sell Your Writing: The Power-Write Report". It's 21 pages packed with information to help you to develop a six-figure writing career.

Technorati Tags: time management, write more, Writing Tip

Set your writing goals - make it a game

As I wrote in "From non-writer to writer: five easy steps to to develop a writing habit", you need to set goals for your writing.

Make it a game.

Here's a simple application which may help - Joe's Goals. It's cute, fun and  free and makes it easy to track your writing goals.

Give it a try, and make writing a habit.

Technorati Tags: be more productive

Copywriting Success - offer several different services

If you've decided to start a copywriting services business, you'll be wondering what kinds of services you can offer your clients.

The services you can offer include writing many different forms of copy, depending on your clients' needs. Because your copy will directly impact your clients' cash flow, you can charge highly for your services.

Although there are many different kinds of copywriting services you can offer, let's look at four kinds:

1. Promotional copy - advertising

Promotional copywriting includes all forms of advertising, as well as other marketing collateral for companies large and small.

So what kinds of advertising could you write? You can write everything from tiny classified ads to 100-page product manuals. If you have a flair for performance writing, consider offering radio and televisions scripts.

2. Lucrative direct response: you're a sales person in words

Direct response means exactly what it says: your words - in a sales letter, whether online or offline - will sell a product or service. Your words must sell. This is specialized copywriting, and highly lucrative, so many copywriters specialize in direct response.

You can practice your direct response copywriting skills writing for small local firms. As your skills grow, you will be hired by larger companies.

3. Writing copy for the Web world - endless opportunities

Web copywriting involves many different forms of copywriting, from simple text ads, to entire Web sites. As a Web copywriter, you'll be tasked with writing material like blogs and ezines, and well as all forms of product advertising.

4. Public Relations copywriting: you're a spin doctor

Public relations copywriters write material like company backgrounders, bios of company principals, and of course press campaigns. A public relations campaign for a company's new offering can take months, so many PR copywriters are on retainer.

Many PR copywriters are specializing in Web promotion, writing press releases and other promotional material for companies. Again, these PR copywriters are usually on retainer, under a yearly contracts.

There are many different forms of copywriting services you can offer. As you progress in your copywriting career, you'll specialize in different forms of copywriting at different times. Copywriting is an easy way to add to your writing income.

Love To Write? You Can Get Started Making A Six-Figure Income As A Copywriter Within ONE Week With This Copywriting Course

Whether you're new to copywriting, or are an experienced pro, you'll LOVE Seven Days To Easy Money: Copywriting Success because it's so easy. It's a complete copywriting course that builds a copywriting services business for you.

Just follow step by step to launch your own successful freelance copywriting business in SEVEN days. Others have done it, and are doing it right now.

Technorati Tags: copywriting

From non-writer to writer: five easy steps to to develop a writing habit

Want to develop a writing habit? You can.

Here are five very simple steps.

1. Schedule time for your writing every day

For something to become a habit you have to train yourself. So every day, at the time you choose, sit down and write.

This is purely mechanical. No effort is required. Sit. Write.

2. When you're writing, write without expectation

When you write, write without expectation. Stay in the moment, and focus on what you're doing.

It takes around 11 minutes to change from one mind state to another, so after  11 minutes, you'll start to feel "inspired" and will write easily. Again, this is mechanical. It's just the way your mind works. :-)

When you're writing, write whatever you feel like writing. Make no demands on yourself, and expect nothing of yourself other than that in the time you choose to write, you will  write.

3. Don't talk about your writing until it's finished

Whether you're writing a book, an article, a short story or anything else, don't talk about the project when you're writing it, however long the project takes to complete.

If people (relatives or other) ask about your writing, tell them they can read it when you're finished. That should shut them up. :-)

When you talk about a writing project you dissipate the energy you'll need to complete it, so don't do it.

4. Set goals for your writing

You need goals.

But remember that when you write (step #2), you should write without expectation for whatever you produce in that particular session.

List your goals.

Choose a primary short-term goal from your list of goals. You may choose to write a book in 12 months (or in three months, if you have the time); a short story in a week; and article in three days - whatever. The goal you choose doesn't matter; what matters is that you set goals.

Review your goals once a day. Reading over your writing goals ensures that your goals stay in your thoughts.

5. Relax about writing

Relax already. Writing is not difficult, and it's not brain surgery either. When you write, you'll improve - writing is a skill which improves with practice.

The first four steps lead to step #5 - being relaxed about your writing. Once you're completely relaxed, you'll have formed a writing habit.

Just follow the steps. :-)

Subscribe to Angela Booth's fabulous free weekly ezine for freelance writers: get a free report just for subscribing. Even if you're a new writer, you can freelance your way to a fantastic writing career.

Join the thousands of freelance writers who are making great money freelance writing, using Fab Freelance Writing Ezine as their guide.

Technorati Tags: be more productive

Weekly Writers' Journal Prompts: Surprise yourself

This week, surprise yourself every time you write.

Here's how.

Open your dictionary and choose three words. Any words will do.

Write 150 words, including those three words.

Then open your dictionary again, and choose another three words.

Write another 150 words, including the three words you just chose.

Write quickly, don't stop and think about what you're writing, just write whatever comes to mind.

You've now written 300 words.

Close the computer file, or put your journal away.

Tomorrow, look at your 300 words - do you have the beginnings of a story, or an essay?

You'll often surprise yourself that indeed you do.

If you don't, do the exercise again.

This exercise is great to tap into your creativity, and you can do it anytime, anywhere.

Share your thoughts about the results you got from this exercise in the comments to this post.

Make more money as a freelance writer by writing more

Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You Write More

Technorati Tags: journal

Write PLR content and make money

Private Label Rights (PLR) content is becoming hot with freelance writers. It's a great way to earn a dollar a word with your Web writing.

To help you to get started with PLR this week's article in Fab Freelance Writing Ezine is "How to Create and Sell PLR Articles".

Here's an excerpt:

Private Label Rights (PLR) content is hugely popular online. Many Web site owners use PLR content to get new sites off to a quick start, or to create additional pages on their older sites, so that they'll get more search engine traffic.

So since there's a good market for PLR, this means that creating PLR is a good way to boost your freelance writing income.

Read the rest in Wednesday's issue.

Discover the world of Web writing - make a great income writing from home, or from anywhere

Sell Your Writing Online NOW
There's great money in Web writing. Some Web writers are making $20,000 a month by blogging for a stable of sites. Others are writing articles or ebooks.
Join the Web writing gold rush with Angela Booth's comprehensive training: "Sell Your Writing Online Now".

Technorati Tags: Web writing

Write fast to write more and to sell even faster

At least 95 per cent of writers' challenges are caused by not writing enough.

I write a lot, by design. Through almost three decades of trial and error I've found that when I write fast and write more I'm happier.

Not only does the "write fast, write more" mantra work for me, it works for other writers too - my writing students are always amazed that as their productivity goes up, their income goes up, along with their job satisfaction as a writer.

So how do you write faster and write more?

Start by putting your attention on how much you're writing each day. Count your words. Did you write 500 words today? 1000? How many words did you write?

Count all the words you write as you write

Please don't guess your word count, and please count ALL your words - words in email messages, in reports that you write for your day job, in instant messaging... count ALL your words. If you use MS Word, keep a document open and copy everything you write into the document, then use the word count feature to count your words at the end of the day.

When you count your words, you're not competing with anyone else, not even with yourself. Your aim is just to be aware of how much you're writing. Once you put your conscious attention on HOW MUCH, the very fact that you're paying attention to how much you're writing means that you'll write more.

Don't believe me? Please just try it.

Write fast to stop brain-stumbles

One of your primary challenges in writing more is keeping up with your own brain.

You think much more quickly than you write. This means that if you think too much, you fall over your own mental feet. You lose track of what to write.

Your first thoughts are always your best thoughts.

Buddhist meditators understand this. With your first thoughts, you flash onto exactly what you want to say/ write - and it's brilliant. In his excellent book Blink, Malcolm Gladwell analyzes what he calls rapid cognition, which is "first thoughts" under another name.

Gladwell says rapid cognition is thinking:

It's thinking - its just thinking that moves a little faster and operates a little more mysteriously than the kind of deliberate, conscious decision-making that we usually associate with "thinking."

Writing your first thoughts is easiest when you use a timer, and practice free writing every day.

So whatever your challenges are as a writer, try writing faster to write more and sell more of your writing too, if you write for money.

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.
Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

Technorati Tags: be more productive

From beginning copywriter to pro: Copywriting Master Class

Enjoy writing? Now you can start your own copywriting services business.

My new class - “Copywriting Master Class - Ten Weeks to Copywriting Genius” takes you by the hand and turns you into a copywriting professional.

Every week, for ten weeks, you receive a new lesson and assignment, and as the weeks go on, just like magic, you'll find yourself the proud owner of a copywriting business.

The class covers copywriting for print, and for the Web, everything from advertisements to press campaigns and Web sales pages.

I created the class for everyone, not just for writers. My copywriting course, Seven Days To Easy Money: Copywriting Success, is essentially for writers. Copywriting Master Class is for everyone, even if you've never written a word for money.

Join me for ten weeks, and start a new life. It's never been a better time to be a copywriter. Every copywriter I know is booked up for months ahead, so clients are easy to come by.

How to cope with fears of rejection of your writing

Being a writer means managing your fears of rejection. Do YOU fear rejection?

If you know you're scared of rejection, you can manage your fear. Unfortunately some writers repress their fear, and either give up writing, or stay in a comfortable writing rut for years.

Rejection is a fact of life for writers. All writers, even bestselling writers, have been rejected. Conquering your own fear of rejection is a huge step forward for any writer.

Here's a simple way to manage fears of rejection: take control, so that you barely notice any particular rejection.

How to cope with fears of rejection when selling your book: take control of the process

If you're sending book proposals to publishers and agents, create a deadline for each response, and put the deadline right on the proposal. For example: "If I don't hear from you by X date, I'll assume this book doesn't meet your current needs."

Then in your calendar program, note the deadline: "Indication-of-interest deadline for publisher X; send to publisher Y."

Or send out simultaneous proposals to ten publishers at a time. (Some publishers don't like this, but until they have you under contract their likes and dislikes are no concern of yours.)

How to cope with fears of rejection when selling articles: assume a lack of response for a week means "no"

You need to write custom queries for each magazine, because each magazine has its own style, so blasting out simultaneous queries doesn't work. Inevitably, this means that until you collect a stable of magazines for which you write, you end up writing many queries without a sale.

It's a lot of thankless work, which should inspire you to set time limits for your potential magazine clients.

Just as with publishers, use this formula: "If I don't hear from you by X date, I'll assume this article doesn't meet your current needs."

Give each publication a week - no longer - to get in touch with you. A week is long enough. Even without setting a deadline, interested editors will usually get in touch with you within hours of receiving your proposal. They know that professional writers are out to SELL, and will pass on to the next publication if they don't move quickly.

If a week goes by without a response, revise the query quickly and send it on to the next publication on your list.

Rejections are normal for writers. Fearing rejections is normal too. No one likes to be rejected. However, when you take control, you're too busy to notice rejection.

Take control of your writing process today.

Want to develop a six-figure writing income?

The September 2007 issue of The Writer had a great story: “Secrets Of The Six-Figure Freelancers”. The story’s wonderful because it shows you the potential of a freelance writing career; with the development of the Web and its unlimited markets, if you can write, you can make a great income as a freelance writer.

I chuckled when I read the story because many writers think a “six figure income” is hype. Either that, or they think that a great income is reserved for copywriters, or genre novelists, or other specialist writers.
The fact is that YOU can develop a six-figure writing career: you just need to know that it’s possible to earn $250,000 a year and more as a freelance writer, and then make that your goal.

And of course, you need know-how. That's what my writing ebook manuals give you. In 30 years as a freelance writer, I've learned the tricks of the writing trade, and I'd love to share those tricks with you, so many of my ebooks offer free coaching. Whatever your level of experience as a freelance writer, you can develop a fantastic career, when you know how.

Develop your writing skills today.

Technorati Tags: Motivation

Why you should journal

Whenever I encourage "blocked" writers to journal, they always have a reason (or several reasons) journaling won't work for them.

Usually their argument goes something like this: "But I already have all these projects I'm haven't completed... so now you want me to do MORE writing too?"

Yes.

Because:

* A journal will overcome your resistance to writing;

* A journal gets all your complains and doubts onto the page, and out of your head;

* A journal primes the pump. Write a page in your journal, and you'll get ideas for the projects on which you're blocked;

* A journal helps you to think. As I suggest in "Top Five Secrets To Writing More, and Selling More of Your Writing," your working memory is limited; you can only keep around five to nine elements or “chunks” in your mind at one time. When you block, or feel resistance, it ALWAYS means you're trying to use your mind in a way it's not meant to be used.

A journal helps you to write. If you're not writing as much or as well as you could, try journaling.

End your writing procrastination: become a prolific writer TODAY

Are you procrastinating? If so, you're feeling frustrated and guilty. You know you can write, and you know you should be writing, but you can't.
Now you can. You can end writing procrastination for good. Discover how you can become the prolific writer you were born to be with my bestselling ebook "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More".

You'll discover 70 ways in which you can write more, no matter who you are, or what your level of writing experience.
The 70 tips will help you to plan your writing time, stick to a writing schedule, and get more energy, so that writing is a pleasure for you.
End procrastination for good today, with "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More" - you can make writing easy and fun.

Technorati Tags: be more productive

Fast-start to online writing success - write, get paid

Want to write for money? You can. Right now. Today.

There are millions of Web sites online, and hundreds of thousands of them buy content (text), often in the form of articles.

You don't have to be a literary genius to write these articles, in fact it's much better if you're not. :-)

How much can you charge?

You can start off by charging $10 for a 400 word article. Some sites will pay you $20. Once you've got some buyers, you can sell many articles every day of the week.

As your skills improve, you can raise your rates and can begin creating Private Label Rights content.

With unlimited opportunities to parlay your writing skills into money in the online world, what are you waiting for?

Discover the world of Web writing - make a great income writing from home, or from anywhere

Sell Your Writing Online NOW
There's great money in Web writing. Some Web writers are making $20,000 a month by blogging for a stable of sites. Others are writing articles or ebooks.
Join the Web writing gold rush with Angela Booth's comprehensive training: "Sell Your Writing Online Now".

Technorati Tags: make money writing

Writing reality: writing is a process

Many new writers expect golden words to flow from their fingertips instantly.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. Your first draft of anything you write should always be awful, nonsensical, and all but unintelligible.

This is because in your first draft, your sole aim is to generate text. Writers write - they think on the page/ computer screen. I've written about the Magical Number 7 before:

4. Remember The Magical Number Seven, Plus Or Minus Two - don’t “write” in your head Your working memory is limited; you can only keep around five to nine elements or “chunks” in your mind at one time. That’s not a lot, and it’s a primary reason some writers write very slowly. They’re trying to use their mind in a way it wasn’t designed to be used.

Don’t try to “write” in your head.

WRITE. Write your thoughts, so you get it out of your working memory onto the page/ computer screen. The Magical Number Seven is the reason free writing is such a wonderful tool, and why it’s so important for you to use this skill.

When you write, in free writing and journaling, you’re extending your working memory, and when you do this, you automatically write more.

Writing is a PROCESS, something like this:

1. Get vague idea about something or other; write idea in a sentence. Or have no ideas at all, just write a sentence, any sentence. Or, read your commission/ brief and summarize it (if you've been commissioned to write);

2. Expand on the original idea/ sentence, just writing whatever comes. Hope that this sparks further insights;

3. Write a draft, without expectations. You've now made a start, which is all your first draft is - a start;

4. Print out the draft, make notes. Get more ideas;

5. Next draft.

Writing is just a process. It's very mechanical. You need to WRITE. :-)

End your writing procrastination: become a prolific writer TODAY

Are you procrastinating? If so, you're feeling frustrated and guilty. You know you can write, and you know you should be writing, but you can't.

Now you can. You can end writing procrastination for good. Discover how you can become the prolific writer you were born to be with my bestselling ebook "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More".

You'll discover 70 ways in which you can write more, no matter who you are, or what your level of writing experience.

The 70 tips will help you to plan your writing time, stick to a writing schedule, and get more energy, so that writing is a pleasure for you.

End procrastination for good today, with "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More" - you can make writing easy and fun.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

What if your writing isn't working?

If you read any of my blogs, you know that I believe you should write a lot: you've got to shift a lot of dirt to mine a few diamonds.

This means that if something isn't working, you leave it - junk it if you will, but DO NOT delete it. :-)

There can be any number of reasons a piece of writing doesn't work. They include:

* You've lost your original inspiration;

* You started writing without a clear direction;

* There's something missing, and you're not sure what it is;

* You need a little more experience to make it work;

* You haven't found the form - for example, you may be writing an essay which would work better as a memoir, or you're writing a book which would work better as a play.

Junk it for now

Every day is a new day, and every day (as long as you keep writing) you know more about writing than you did the day before, so if something isn't working for you, leave it for now.

Chances are that next week, or next year, you'll pounce on this piece and you'll know exactly what it needs. Just put it into a Junk folder on your hard drive for now. "Call the folder "Junk" or "Needs work", and go on to something else.

You haven't failed - you've succeeded

You'll feel sad and disappointed that this piece of writing isn't working, but you haven't failed. I've written about writing for inventory before - look on this piece as a piece of inventory. You WILL unearth this treasure at some point, and you will find a use for it.

For now, just start something new, or if you've got many projects (good for you!) pick one, and work on it.

Make money writing from home: ditch your day job forever

If you can write, you can make money writing from home. The Web has made it possible for ANY writer, no matter how new or inexperienced, to turn writing into a fabulous career. If you're stuck in a soul-destroying, or just boring job, writing is your way out.

Fab Freelance Ezine helps you - subscribe and receive the free report: "Write And Sell Your Writing: The Power-Write Report". It's 21 pages packed with information to help you to develop a six-figure writing career.

Technorati Tags: be more productive

Five Ways Your Blog Makes You a Better, and More Creative, Writer

Every writer has writing challenges, and your challenges are good for you. They make you a better writer - if you'll just keep writing.

Beat your writing challenges with blogging

Here's what will help you with 90 per cent of your writing challenges: blogging. This is simply because most of your writing challenges aren't crises, they happen because you're not writing enough.

Every HELP ME plea I've received from a writer this week, and every week, can be solved with a blog.

Your blog helps you to sell your writing too, it's your primary marketing tool. As I wrote in "Writers' Marketing Basics 1: ERR":

There's one primary rule in marketing, and only one: repetition. My favorite marketing acronym is ERR.

ERR means:

E: Exposure
R: Recognition
R: Response

So let's look at five ways your blog makes you a better and more creative writer:

1. Writing begets writing - the more you write, the more you can write

Writing is a muscle, and like all muscles, if you don't use your writing muscle it will atrophy. What you're writing is not as important as the act of writing itself.

Over time your blogging will help you to recognize a state of flow, and you will find that you can access this "flow" creative state at will.

2. You gotta shift a lot of dirt to find a few diamonds

When you write a lot, some of your writing will be good. A snippet you wrote on your blog a year ago can provide the inspiration for a novel, nonfiction book or a screenplay today.

Without the initial seed of the blog post planted in your subconscious mind, the idea for the novel etc won't occur to you.

3. You get confidence just like Sally Field: "You like me, you really like me!"

Many writing challenges stem from self-doubt. Your blog gets you readers, and your readers give you confidence.

When your blog attracts daily readers, knowing "You like me, you really like me!" gives you a warm glow.

4. Blogging makes you stronger: creativity becomes a habit

When you blog, you're open to creative impulses. As you hunt for blog topics, you'll find areas you want to explore in your other writing.

5. You learn to stand up for your words

Your blog gives you exposure, and exposure gets you commissions. Most writers spend far too much time hunting for writing gigs rather than writing. If you blog for exposure - you write your blog as a marketing exercise - editors and agents will approach you to write.

You'll also become more confident and will stand up for your words. Rejections will cease to bother you: you'll realize that writing commissions are like buses, there'll be another one along in a moment.

Your Blog: Your Vital Writing Sales And Promotions Tool For 2008

Gotta blog? My ebook, Writing Success with Blogs by Angela Booth, helps you to take the first steps into the new world for writers: instant publishing on blogs.

Your writers' blog is your must-have branding tool. It also has a very practical use – it's a writing portfolio.

From the ebook:

"Before editors will pay you to write, they want to know that you can write. They want clips – copies of material you've published. This seems like a Catch-22: you can only get published if you've been published. Your writing on your blog can be in lieu of clips. Your blog lets editors gauge your abilities and style, before they put down the cash."

The ebook helps you to create your own writer's blog.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Just Write: Find the Confidence to Write More

Here's a short exercise. On a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is totally and completely trivial, and 10 is vitally important, please rank writing in your life.

How did writing measure up?

Be honest. :-)

You're not making a moral judgement, you're just aiming for clarity.

At some stages of your life, writing isn't important. Other things are much more important. If you're raising a family, working two jobs, and studying for example, writing may rank at 3.

If writing is important to you - you've ranked it at 7 or over, then it's time to make room for writing in your life.

Here's how: schedule your writing. Make writing the first thing you do each day.

As soon as you get out of bed, stumble to the computer (forget coffee) and start writing.

Julia Cameron's Morning Pages helps with this. Morning Pages allows you to write without pressure, just getting your pen moving across the page. Once you learn to do this, you can transfer this writing-ease to whatever other writing you're doing.

In "Just Write: Find the Confidence to Write More" I wrote about brain lateralization and giving yourself the freedom to write junk. This is a great attitude to have.

Morning Pages will help you in your quest to free yourself to write junk. When you stop putting pressure on yourself, you'll find that the overall quality of your writing goes up, and that the best writing you do is very good indeed.

You can only write more if writing is important in your life... and if you free yourself just to write, without making demands.

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative