Hope Writes

The Bulimic Writer

Posted by Hope

Photo by roland

The bulimic writer appears to be a “healthy” writer, but in reality she is just as puny as the anorexic writer.

Rather than totally starving herself, the bulimic writer goes on writing binges. She has an incredible idea for a novel and sets into writing for weeks. Then, her writing well dries up and she becomes blocked, so she puts the novel aside. Several months later, she picks it up again, works on it for a few more weeks, then stops again.

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 45% [?]

Get Paid To Blog With Smorty

Posted by Hope

Last November I wrote a post delving into the topic of whether or not you can get paid for blogging. I know several people who signed up to participate in the ever-popular Pay Per Post paid blogging network. Like them, I signed up for that in hopes that I’d be able to pull in some extra money here and there with my blog.

The first major drawback I saw to PPP was that if you had a fairly new blog, the opportunities were extremely limited. After making a few paid posts for them, I decided that program was not for me. It took more effort on my part to find equitable offers that I could write about on my blog.

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 37% [?]

The Anorexic Writer

Posted by Hope

Photo by shadowhut

The Anorexic Writer is one who starves herself of many things. She becomes so wrapped up in what she’s writing that she neglects interaction with her family, friends, and colleagues. She becomes so consumed with the project she’s writing that she even neglects a properly balanced nutritional diet and exercise.

The Anorexic Writing diet is one that should never be attractive. It most often begins when you have a writing project on your desk that you are excited about. Adrenaline pumping, you dive head-first into the writing, without planning or seeing the big picture.

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 27% [?]

The Writing Diet

Posted by Hope

Photo by Lost in Scotland

We’re rounding out January now and everyone’s just about past all the hype of setting New Year’s resolutions. The good intentions everyone had at the start of the year have begun their course on that road where they’re gone forever by the year’s end.

Among those good intentions for many is a better diet. Lots of people set goals to go on a diet to lose weight, lower their blood pressure, or save themselves from a heart attack. But have you ever thought about going on a writing diet?

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 25% [?]

Put Your Own Polls And Surveys On Your Website

Posted by Hope

I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, but a few months ago I added a poll plugin to my blog. I love reading polls and I love getting people’s input on all sorts of topics. If you’ve been wanting to add a poll or free surveys to your website but don’t know anything about HTML or creating databases for them, I found a website that makes it super simple.

Easy Poll lets you sign up for a free account and then you can start creating your own poll and surveys to place on your website. You go through a series of steps and then when you’re finished, you get a snippet of code to copy and paste into your website. Very easy! This service is pretty cool and if I didn’t already have a poll plugin installed on my blog, it would look very enticing to try out for my own website.

Popularity: 26% [?]

Twitter VS Pownce: Do You Pownce?

Posted by Hope

If you haven’t discovered it yet, Pownce is a social networking tool, similar to Twitter but a little more sleek. It is free to use. All you have to do is sign up for your account. You can upgrade to Pro for $20/year if you choose.

I’ve been using Twitter for a while, but have increasingly grown “out of like” with it. When I originally joined, I didn’t have a plan for using Twitter. I just signed up for an account and started adding folks at random.

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 35% [?]

Linky Love Friday, January 25th

Posted by Hope

(Each link opens in a new window/tab.) Here are my favorite reads this week. Enjoy!

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 31% [?]

Interview With Courtney Ramirez, Author of "The Content Chef"

Posted by Hope

When did you start writing full-time?

I started writing in November of 2005. I quit my job to be home with my daughter, who was 9 months old at the time. It was a big change of pace! I always knew I wanted to work from home and I just decided to take the plunge. I’d been writing forever, and once I realized I could do it only and get paid instantly…I was sold.

Why did you want to become a writer and work from home?

I’ve written for most of my life…even since before I could write or type (I dictated stories to my dad). Even though I tried other things and tried out other majors in college, I think I always knew I wanted to be a writer in some form. I never liked the corporate world and felt trapped in an office environment. I like to be in control of my own stuff, and I like working by myself most of the time. It didn’t seem fair to me that if I finished my work at 11 am…I had to pretend to be busy for the rest of the day. I also knew that I wanted to travel the world, and that’s just not possible with a regular job.

What prompted you to write The Content Chef?

I got a lot of questions from new work at home moms, and also some people on the Internet marketing forums that I frequented, about writing for pay. I learned a lot in the past two years and I hoped that I could help some new writers get the kind of “leg up” advance that I wish I’d had when I first started the process. There are a lot of dead ends out there when it comes to writing online, and I knew some tips and tricks that could help newcomers.

What are some tips you could give other work-at-homers…

=> to be more productive?

Having a schedule is of the utmost importance. It can’t be rigid, especially when you have children, but if you have a range of time where you have to work it’s so much easier than just trying to fit it in wherever you can. Many people make the mistake of thinking that a flexible schedule is a good idea. I did too. When my husband came home to work, there was a transition period where I had to “school” him on getting into a schedule. To a lot of people, working at home means freedom…and it does, to a certain extent. Instead of being chained to the desk for 8 hours and pretending to work for five of those (like I used to), I can focus for three and be done for the day. But I still have to work. 

 => to market themselves more?

Market your name as much as possible. Make sure that your website or your profile or your Squidoo page is the first thing that people find when they look up your name. That way when people research you, they can find information about your writing services.

Also, networking in “customer” forums is a good place to start. Spending all of your time where writers hang out doesn’t get you new jobs.

=> to become more confident in themselves?

The best piece of advice I’ve gotten is to fire, then aim. Just get your profile page up there, send some samples out, apply for some jobs, set up your own websites, etc. Don’t wait until everything is perfect. The marketplace is very forgiving. If your samples aren’t up to par, you can always perfect them later. There will be fresh new clients out there who will hire you. Don’t worry about making it perfect…just do it and then perfect as you go.

Are you willing to reveal a figure of how much you made from writing in 2007?

I started out the year making about $300 per week, and at the close of the year I was up to an average of $1000 (most of that was in the last several months).

Any other thoughts or words of wisdom for new writers who want to earn a full-time income from writing at home?

If you’re going to be a web writer, take time to learn about the Internet, SEO and marketing online. Web writing is a different sphere with different rules and different rates. Some people take a look at the rates and don’t see the other benefits of writing on the web. You have a constant flow of work, you can build your own websites and develop your own income streams, you don’t have to spend months researching one topic, etc. I’m just as passionate about web writing as other people are about doing their first novel or writing for a magazine. If you aren’t interested in learning about how content is used online, or how to write for both search engines and people, then you are going to be very dissatisfied. This doesn’t mean that you can’t pursue other kinds of writing, but I think a lot of people get involved with writing for the web without really learning how it works and then end up throwing in the towel.

Thanks Courtney!

I give The Content Chef 4/4 Stars!

Click here to view more details about The Content Chef 

Popularity: 38% [?]

4 Tips To Make Your Writing Real

Posted by Hope

If you’ve been writing for any amount of time now I know you’ve either been told or have read/heard that your writing should reflect the same tone with which you speak. Do you fully understand what this means? If so, do you write like you speak? Is your writing real?

I think a lot of times we get too wrapped up in trying to sound perfect on the page. I’ve struggled a lot with this by…

• using "fancy" words instead of plain English
• cramming three (or more–YIKES!) sentences into a single sentence
• speaking in generalities

When this happens, my piece usually ends up feeling stiff and cold. I’ve received more positive feedback when I write from my heart and forget about trying to form perfect sentences.

I’m not telling you to write junk and play it off as something great. What I am telling you to do is practice writing like you speak. Here are some tips to help you work out the kinks in your writing…

TIP #1: Use a voice recorder.

This exercise doesn’t require anything fancy. If you have a plain old cassette tape recorder, that will do just fine. Schedule some time this week to recording articles. Instead of writing, you’re going to speak them into the recorder.

At first you’ll probably feel a little weird. That’s why I suggest you do this while there’s nobody else in the room with you. The sound of your own voice might be a little strange in the beginning.

You might begin by reading an article or two aloud that you’ve already written. This will help you break the ice. After you get comfortable speaking aloud, hit the record button and start talking.

First, state the tentative title of your article. Then give a brief summary of the article, followed by the article itself. If you’re still having a hard time doing this, imagine you’re talking to your best friend, sister, or uncle. What would you tell her about this particular topic? What would you want him to know?

TIP #2: Throw away your thesaurus.

The thesaurus has its place in this world. But it doesn’t belong anywhere near your desk when you’re writing. I hear all the gasps of horror. Sorry!

Just about the only thing a thesaurus is good for is making your writing sound over the top and ridiculous. I know, I know. I’ve used it many times myself.

I’ll concede that there are a few instances when a thesaurus is handy. A necessity? No. What would happen if you had to live without it. How would you figure out what you want to say? You’d talk it through with yourself. You might even call a friend and brainstorm with him. But somehow, you’d figure it out on your own.

That’s what I want you to do now. Figure out how to say what you want to say without prettying it up.

TIP #3: Give specific examples.

When you write an article, depending on the type of article, it is important to give examples. Readers can identify with examples. It brings the point you’re trying to make closer to home.

You can almost always find examples in your own back yard. Take a look at your article and see if you can recall a certain situation that is relatable to the article. Let me show you what I mean…

I wrote an article for the Jackson Parent Magazine about simple ways for Moms to relax. I interviewed several experts, all of whom gave me really great and simple ways moms can relax. When I finished the piece though, it seemed a little flat. I thought for a while about how I could add a tad more depth to the article. I wanted other Moms to be able to relate to me. And then–AHA!

At that very moment, I was stressed out! I had been dealing with a sick baby and lack of sleep, which was making my stress levels rise even more. So I added this to the beginning of the article:

I braced myself as Elijah screamed for the fifth time that day. It was an ear-piercing, I’m-mad-at-you scream; a fit that persisted for over an hour. (Why didn’t someone warn me that the Terrible Two’s for boys is much worse than girls?)

My heart pounded in my ears. My breathing quickened and my palms became sweaty. I thought I might faint. Oh great, an anxiety attack in the making.

By adding my personal experience, I immediately connected myself with thousands of other moms in my community who felt just as stressed as I.

TIP #4: Write tight.

If you don’t learn anything else, learn to write tight. But then, I’m sure you’ve heard that a million times, too. Right?

Tight writing is nothing more than cutting away the excess. Making each word count. When you can compose a sentence in which each word stands on its own, you’ve accomplished a great feat.

To put it plain and simple, writing tight means:

• Short sentences
• Short paragraphs
• Short phrases
• Lots of action words
• Focused thoughts

When you write tight, you’ll often find it necessary to cut words. Sometimes you’ll even need to cut entire sentences out of a paragraph–or paragraphs from chapters. When you write tight, you keep it short and sweet. Succinct. Detailed. Action. Focus.

If you’ve been told your writing sounds too cold or stuffy, you can warm it up in no time by putting these simple tips into practice. Don’t worry if you can’t seem to make the switch immediately. These things take time. And remember…practice makes perfect.

Popularity: 69% [?]

Do You Sell Your Own Products?

Posted by Hope

Lots of writers create their own info products on the side. Some even create an entire business built around their own info products. I also know some writers who, in addition to writing, have online storefronts. They do pretty well with these, too. Most of them use ecommerce software to create a shopping cart so customers can stock up on the items they want.

If you are such a writer, you probably need some type of shopping cart software to sell your products with. There’s a ton of shopping cart software out there. I mean, all you have to do is Google terms like “shopping cart” or “shopping cart software” and you’ll end up with a lot more websites than you need.

I personally use one and love it. I have my email lists set up in it, as well as any products that I sell. There’s usually a learning curve at first, but once you play around with it, you’ll get the hang of it pretty fast.

Ashop has a ton of extra features with it that is just mind-boggling. They include things like user stats and sales reporting, SEO optimized links, 128bit SSL, email accounts, and even Quickbooks integration. If that isn’t enough, they even have live support. You don’t get that with every shopping cart program….trust me, I know!

Anyway, check it out if this is something you’re in the market for. It’s one of the best shopping cart programs I’ve seen so far.

Popularity: 69% [?]

« Previous Entries