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Showing posts with label writer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label writer. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Monday, April 20, 2009
Make Money Writing Online
Here's a brand new course that'll give you the potential to earn up to $100k a year writing for the Internet.
It's been jointly written by Nick Daws and Ruth Barringham who together have made a fortune writing online material.
Nick is the best-selling author of How To Write ANY Book in 28 Days, while Ruth is the author of many books and the founder of Australian company Cheriton House Publishing.
You've probably heard about other products that claim to be able to show you how to ear money writing online. I know I've seen dozens of them myself. So what makes this one different?
The main difference is that Nick & Ruth are both successful writers. They recommend tips and tricks that they use. They know how to get started making money quickly, because they're experienced, professional writers themselves.
And everything is covered in depth:
- article writing to affiliate marketing;
- blogging to copywriting;
- e-books to self-publishing;
- auction websites to sales copy;
and more.
As they say on the site, if you work quickly enough, it's possible you could earn your first paycheck as early as TONIGHT!
I was fortunate enough to be asked to edit the course, and I can tell you that it's truly excellent. I've even started using some of their tips myself.
Want your own copy? You can pick it up RIGHT NOW at a discounted introductory price. Just click on the link below to get started earning:
Thursday, February 12, 2009
How To Write With Style
Here’s an article I wrote for my Squidoo lens called Style: A Tricky Concept. The basis for the article came from a section in The Ultimate Copywriter.
The concept of writing with a particular style is a difficult one for many writers to grasp.
That might be because they're not sure what it means, or because style is something they think of as being personal and individual. But even so, there are things you can do to help build style into your writing.
Needless to say, you could write a book or two on the topic of style alone. This article is not meant to be the definitive statement on the subject: its aim is to get you started writing in a manner that will make it easier for your own style to shine through. And for that we'll turn to one of the stylistic masters of the twentieth century, Ernest Hemingway.
Hemingway began his writing career at the age of 18 as a junior reporter for The Kansas City Star. He only worked there for 6 months, but that was enough. He used the Star's style guide as the basis for almost everything he wrote after that:
1. Use short sentences.
2. Use short first paragraphs.
3. Use vigorous English.
4. Be positive, not negative.
That's all you need to know to inject style into your writing. And here's why...
1. Short sentences are easier to read. They get the information across quickly. They break up paragraphs into digestible chunks. And they stop you from constructing complex sentences full of commas and semicolons.
2. Short first paragraphs help get your story or article underway quickly. They give readers the crux of what you're saying and make them want to read on. They're the hooks that lure readers into the story line.
3. Vigorous English pulls, moves, races, propels readers into your text. It's packed with energy. Words aren't wasted or used unnecessarily. Anything that saps energy should be removed, including flowery adverbs and adjectives.
For example, look at this sentence:
"The young boy had picked up a shiny blue stone and tossed it unceremoniously at the cur."
That's a rather long-winded and clumsy way of saying: "The boy threw a rock at the dog."
If it's a boy, it must be young. If he threw the rock, he must have picked it up. If it's a dog, call it a dog. And forget the ceremony: it's just an action.
4. Finally, there's the notion of positive v. negative. What Hemingway means is that you should state what something is as opposed to what it isn't. Rather than saying the sky isn't blue, say it's dull, grey or cloudy. That new dress isn't inexpensive; it's affordable.
There are lots of other techniques you can learn to help give your writing style. If you write often, you'll pick up many of these naturally. You can also find information online and in good books by authors and editors.
In the meantime, these four tips from Hemingway should be enough to set you on the right path.
The concept of writing with a particular style is a difficult one for many writers to grasp.
That might be because they're not sure what it means, or because style is something they think of as being personal and individual. But even so, there are things you can do to help build style into your writing.
Needless to say, you could write a book or two on the topic of style alone. This article is not meant to be the definitive statement on the subject: its aim is to get you started writing in a manner that will make it easier for your own style to shine through. And for that we'll turn to one of the stylistic masters of the twentieth century, Ernest Hemingway.
Hemingway began his writing career at the age of 18 as a junior reporter for The Kansas City Star. He only worked there for 6 months, but that was enough. He used the Star's style guide as the basis for almost everything he wrote after that:
1. Use short sentences.
2. Use short first paragraphs.
3. Use vigorous English.
4. Be positive, not negative.
That's all you need to know to inject style into your writing. And here's why...
1. Short sentences are easier to read. They get the information across quickly. They break up paragraphs into digestible chunks. And they stop you from constructing complex sentences full of commas and semicolons.
2. Short first paragraphs help get your story or article underway quickly. They give readers the crux of what you're saying and make them want to read on. They're the hooks that lure readers into the story line.
3. Vigorous English pulls, moves, races, propels readers into your text. It's packed with energy. Words aren't wasted or used unnecessarily. Anything that saps energy should be removed, including flowery adverbs and adjectives.
For example, look at this sentence:
"The young boy had picked up a shiny blue stone and tossed it unceremoniously at the cur."
That's a rather long-winded and clumsy way of saying: "The boy threw a rock at the dog."
If it's a boy, it must be young. If he threw the rock, he must have picked it up. If it's a dog, call it a dog. And forget the ceremony: it's just an action.
4. Finally, there's the notion of positive v. negative. What Hemingway means is that you should state what something is as opposed to what it isn't. Rather than saying the sky isn't blue, say it's dull, grey or cloudy. That new dress isn't inexpensive; it's affordable.
There are lots of other techniques you can learn to help give your writing style. If you write often, you'll pick up many of these naturally. You can also find information online and in good books by authors and editors.
In the meantime, these four tips from Hemingway should be enough to set you on the right path.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Banish Writer's Block
Ever suffer from writer's block?
I don't.
Over the years I've developed a bunch of strategies to keep writing no matter what. These include techniques for changing direction, ideas for injecting life into text, and just simply taking a quick break.
I put these ideas together in a little book called Knock the Socks off Writer's Block. It's available from Lulu.com by following this link.
I know lots of writers who tell me they never suffer from writer's block, or that they don't need any external motivation to overcome it. That's fine with me. But not everybody's so lucky.
If you're one of those people for whom a blank page can be daunting at times, then I think you'll find some of these techniques useful. If so, please be sure and let me know.
I don't.
Over the years I've developed a bunch of strategies to keep writing no matter what. These include techniques for changing direction, ideas for injecting life into text, and just simply taking a quick break.
I put these ideas together in a little book called Knock the Socks off Writer's Block. It's available from Lulu.com by following this link.
I know lots of writers who tell me they never suffer from writer's block, or that they don't need any external motivation to overcome it. That's fine with me. But not everybody's so lucky.
If you're one of those people for whom a blank page can be daunting at times, then I think you'll find some of these techniques useful. If so, please be sure and let me know.
Friday, January 23, 2009
A Load Of Nonsense!
Introducing the How To Be Funny course...Ever wanted to write jokes, gags, one-liners?
Every time you see a comedian on stage, you can bet there's another person behind every clever word that comes out of his or her mouth.
We sometimes forget that joke tellers need people to sit down and write those jokes for them. And that includes one of my favourites types of joke, the limerick.
Limericks are easy to write once you get the hang of it. Typically they're five lines long with a rhyme scheme a,a,b,b,a. Here's a famous example by Dixon Merritt:
A wonderful bird is the pelican
His bill can hold more than his belican
He can take in his beak
Food enough for a week
But I’m damned if I see how the helican
Part of the fun with limericks involves playing with language, and even sometimes corrupting the rhyme scheme altogether, such as this corker by W.S. Gilbert:
There was an old man of St. Bees
Who was horribly stung by a wasp
When they said, “does it hurt?”
He replied, “no, it doesn’t –
It’s a good job it wasn’t a hornet”
Or this well-know anonymous sample that pokes fun at the structure of limericks:
There was a young man from Japan
Whose limericks never would scan.
When asked why this was,
He answered "because
I always try to fit as many syllables into the last line as ever possibly I can."
Limericks are lots of fun, for sure. But they're also quite creative. Finding words that rhyme (or don't!) and still managing to write something interesting can tax the best of us.
This is just one of the techniques you'll find in the How To Be Funny course. There's also information on Spoonerisms, tongue twisters, and puns; tips on comedy timing and creating jokes out of thin air; and techniques for incorporating comedy into your social life.
It's a great book, full of useful tips for budding comics, writers or otherwise. I've read it myself, and it tickled my funny bone.
Hopefully it'll do the same for you :)
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Flutter Bunnies at Amazon!
Now it feels real!
My first children's book, Flutter Bunnies, is now available at Amazon. Seeing it there amongst all the other books I've browsed over the years is a great feeling. Let's hope it sells well and gets a few decent reviews...
I've also heard from my publishers, Guardian Angel Publishing, that they'll be publishing another of my children's stories in the near future. This one is for a slightly older age group with a bit more gore and terror. But nothing too bad. :)
Please keep checking in for updates on both of these books.
My first children's book, Flutter Bunnies, is now available at Amazon. Seeing it there amongst all the other books I've browsed over the years is a great feeling. Let's hope it sells well and gets a few decent reviews...
I've also heard from my publishers, Guardian Angel Publishing, that they'll be publishing another of my children's stories in the near future. This one is for a slightly older age group with a bit more gore and terror. But nothing too bad. :)
Please keep checking in for updates on both of these books.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
My First Children's Book Published
My first children's book has been published!
When I started writing full-time, I dreamed of having a book in print with my name on it. And now it's happened.
It's hard to believe, but I wrote the first draft of this story back in 1992. I sent it to a few of the big publishers, who weren't interested. Over the years I did some editing and revision, and also asked people to read it. Then, about 18 months ago, a publisher agreed that it was as good as I thought it was.
It just goes to show that you should never give up.
Flutter Bunnies is the first of several of my books for children that will be published in the forthcoming months. Check back here at my blog to find out when the others get released.
The pictures have been provided by artist Kit Grady, and they really help bring the story to life.
Copies of the picture book are available from Guardian Angel Publishing at http://www.guardianangelpublishing.com/flutter-bunnies.htm
When I started writing full-time, I dreamed of having a book in print with my name on it. And now it's happened.
It's hard to believe, but I wrote the first draft of this story back in 1992. I sent it to a few of the big publishers, who weren't interested. Over the years I did some editing and revision, and also asked people to read it. Then, about 18 months ago, a publisher agreed that it was as good as I thought it was.
It just goes to show that you should never give up.
Flutter Bunnies is the first of several of my books for children that will be published in the forthcoming months. Check back here at my blog to find out when the others get released.
The pictures have been provided by artist Kit Grady, and they really help bring the story to life.
Copies of the picture book are available from Guardian Angel Publishing at http://www.guardianangelpublishing.com/flutter-bunnies.htm
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