Writers on the Move’s February 2011 Writers' Tour

WE’RE BACK! After a nice long two month hiatus we’re ready for action in 2011.

As always, we have a great tour planned with writers and authors who collectively, have tons of writing and marketing experience and information to share. 

We’ll be trying to provide more value packed informational content so you can not only learn about the authors books and services, but also pick up tips and advice on writing, ghostwriting, marketing, and more.

So, look over the schedule below. Each day in February a different author and information will be presented. Just follow the schedule and click on the corresponding day.

We really appreciate your comments and following.

Writers on the Move’s February 2011 Tour Schedule

1st Debra Eckerling is featuring Jennifer Gladden
2nd Kathy Stemke is featuring Jenny Turner
3rd Nancy Famolari is featuring Jennifer Wylie
4th Margaret Fieland is featuring Nancy Famolari
5th Carolyn Howard-Johnson is featuring Mayra Calvani
6th Heather Paye is featuring Virginia Grenier
7th Marvin Wilson is featuring Mari Taylor
8th Stephen Tremp is featuring Carolyn Howard-Johnson
9th Darcia Helle is featuring Margaret Fieland
10th Martha Swirzinski is featuring Kathy Stemke
11th Heidi Thomas is featuring Karen Cioffi
12th Dallas Woodburn is featuring Maggie Ball
13th Karen Cioffi is featuring Stephen Tremp
14th Maggie Ball is featuring Donna McDine
15th Virginia Grenier is featuring Shelby Patrick
16th Kevin McNamee is featuring Darcia Helle
17th Elysabeth Eldering is featuring Dallas Woodburn
18th Marietta Taylor is featuring Heidi Thomas
19th Robert Medak is featuring Debra Eckerling
20th Donna McDine is featuring Heather Paye
21st Shelby Patrick is featuring Robert Medak
22nd Mayra Calvani is featuring Martha Swirzinski
23rd Jennifer Gladen is featuring Elysabeth Eldering
24th Jenny Turner is featuring Marvin Wilson
25th Jennifer Wylie is featuring Kevin McNamee

Please join in the tour and comment!

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Related Articles

Book Promotion: Creating an Informational Funnel
Book Promotion: The Foundation
By-Pass Marketing and Book Selling


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:

The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing for Children and More
Babies, Tots, and Children

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Rae: My True Story of Fear, Anxiety, and Social Phobia - A Review

Title: Rae: My True Story of Fear, Anxiety, and Social Phobia
Author: Chelsea Rae Swiggett
Publisher: Health Communications, Inc., 2010
ISBN: 978-0-7573-1527-5
Reviewer: Irene S. Roth

Rae is a true story of an adolescent girl who really struggles with different psycho-social aspects of her life. She feels really uncertain of herself and everyone around her, and is unable to function socially. In addition, she is very shy, and awkward when she is around adolescents her own age.

Rae suffers from frequent panic attacks. For instance, Rae panics when a plane flies overhead. When she is called on in class to speak up or to make a presentation, this sends her over the edge. She fears the unknown, life, death, people, and even fear itself.

By the time Rae reaches ninth grade, she feels completely isolated, and convinced that everyone is mocking her, judging her, and picking her apart. What a painful way to live. No one can keep living this way for too long without some help and encouragement.

As I read this book, I started remembering how awkward I felt when I was an adolescent, and how difficult social interactions with my peers were for me. I found the book absolutely entrancing. The book is written in a style that adolescents will understand and be able to relate to. After reading this book, hopefully adolescent girls will take steps not to fall into similar patterns of destructive patterns and behaviors.

Rating: 4 Roses out of 5


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Other Reviews of Children's Books You May Find of Interest:

Who on Earth is Rachel Carson?
Frederico, the Mouse Violinist
Horatio Humble Beats the Big "D"
The Lucky Baseball

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:

The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!
And, if you subscribe in January 2011, you'll get a 5th FREE e-book: How to Create an eBook And What You Can Do With It

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Writers for Hire
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing for Children and More
Babies, Tots, and Children

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Tips to Generate Web Traffic

I have a valuable guest article from Beth Ann Erickson. So, without further ado:

Generate Web Traffic
By Beth Ann Erickson

You've got a website. Good for you! Now comes the hard part: How do you get traffic?

I've read that when it comes to owning your own site, what matters most is how many hits you get.  However, I disagree.

As a writer, you're selling a specialized product - yourself and your writing skills.  This means you may not want every member of the general public visiting your site.  What you do want are potential clients and customers to find you.

How do you do that?

You can start by creating an e-mail signature.  A signature is a blurb your program inserts at the end of every e-mail you send. 

Mine reads:

Make your writing sparkle. Write killer queries. Get published.
Subscribe to Writing Etc. the free e-mag for writers.  Receive the
free e-booklet "Power Queries" by subscribing today. 
http://filbertpublishing.com

Microsoft Outlook allows you to create a signature under "Tools" on the menu bar then select "Options."  Other e-mail programs are probably different.  If you need help, just go to your program's
"help" option and run a search.

Make your signature concise, benefit oriented, and don't forget to include your URL.  Use everything you know about copywriting to write something snappy and memorable.

Now that your signature is done, write ten to twenty key words that describe your web site.

FilbertPublishing's key words include:
Writer, Write, Writing, Freelance, Copywriting, Fiction, Nonfiction... you get the point.

Now you're ready to register with a few search engines.

There are thousands of search engines out in cyber space but most of them aren't going to give you enough traffic to warrant registering with them.  I'd suggest you just shoot for the biggies and then go back to the smaller ones if you want to.

Some of the engines you may want to "submit your site" to are:

http://google.com 
http://AltaVista.com
http://www.dogpile.com
http://www.webcrawler.com
http://nerdworld.com
http://www.yahoo.com

As you "submit your site," you'll be using your key words and signature "blurb" to fill in their forms.

If your web site is about a particular subject, chances are there is a "web ring" you can join.  Go to http://www.yahoo.com, type in "web ring" and check them out.  Filbert Publishing is a member of a
number of fiction writing web rings.

Next, you need to find out where your potential clients hang out.

If you want to write for small businesses, find e-mail lists and newsgroups that cater to these folks.  A quick search in Yahoo or the Google Newsgroup (formally Deja News) will give you enough information to get to work.

Frequent these newsgroups, e-mail lists, and listservs, and join in the conversation.  Don't promote yourself blatantly, but let your new e-mail signature do the selling for you.  Blatant selling is not permitted, but the soft sell of an e-mail sig is certainly welcomed.

You can advertise in e-mags.  Find e-mags that cater to your target audience and place a small ad in them.  However don't place just one ad.  Run at least four consecutive ads - better yet, keep it running for an extended period of time.  You may be able to negotiate a lesser fee if you place a link on your site.

Finally, be sure to put your website URL on your business cards and in EVERY piece of advertising you purchase.  Be creative and always target your message to the audience you want to reach.  I have a
separate URL designed especially for my copywriting clients, my Writing Etc. subscribers, and the Web Ring surfers.

Be creative and have fun.  Do something on a regular basis (preferably daily) to promote your web site.  And always remember... you're going to make mistakes.  It's just the nature of this business.  But never let the fear of mistakes stop you from trying something new....

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This article is courtesy of Filbert Publishing (http://filbertpublishing.com). Make your writing sparkle, write killer queries, get published. Subscribe to Writing Etc., the free e-mag for freelancers and receive the e-book "Power Queries."


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Related Articles:

5 Marketing Reminders for 2011
SEO and Marketing: Basic Tips and Definitions
By Pass Marketing and Book Selling

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:
The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!
And, if you subscribe in January 2011, you'll get a 5th FREE e-book: How to Create an eBook And What You Can Do With It

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing for Children and More
Babies, Tots, and Children

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Book Promotion: Creating an Information Funnel

When thinking of book marketing, there are a number of rungs on the marketing ladder. The first involves creating a quality product, in this case a book. You want a book that you’ll be proud to offer for sale, and a book that customers will want to buy.

Once you have a finished product/book, you need to move onto the promotion basics. This rung on the ladder involves establishing a presence - you’ll need to create visibility and a platform. To do this, the first step is to get a website or blog. Next, you will need to join writing groups in your genre, groups in your target market, and other social networks, such as Twitter and Facebook.

After you’ve established a presence, the next step is to create an informational funnel leading back to your website. The purpose of this funnel is to bring traffic and inbound links, to your site.

The more traffic to your site the greater your visibility in the search engines. More traffic also means a greater chance of visitors purchasing what you’re offering.

When it comes to an informational funnel, content rules. Here are three strategies to increase traffic to your site.

1. Add Content to Your Blog

Make your presence known by offering information in the form of content on your blog. Content is what will make you an expert in your niche, genre, or area. But, just posting the content to your site will not create the traffic you need. Each time you publish content to your site, you need to let your social networks know about it.

Tweet it and post about it to Facebook and your other social networks. Be sure to always include a clickable url link that goes directly to the article. This is a part of inbound marketing – it leads visitors back to your site through an information funnel.

In addition, using effective keywords in your posts and the post titles, related to your site’s platform, will help the search engines index your content.

2. Article Marketing

Once you feel comfortable with adding content to your blog, you can now venture out into the article marketing arena to capture a larger audience. While most article directories have guidelines, they are fairly lenient. Follow the guidelines and post an article to one, ten, or a hundred different directories. Most of them don’t require original articles, so you can use articles you’ve posted on your blog.

Usually you will be allowed to include a brief bio in the form of a resource box. Make it short and sweet. Be sure it links back to your website or blog, whichever you want the traffic to go to (if you have more than one site).

Those who click on the link will be creating inbound links to your site which is a feature Google and the other search engines like. In fact, quality inbound links are an important aspect of search engine optimization (SEO).

3. Offer to be a Guest on Other Quality Sites

Another avenue of inbound marketing is offering your articles to other quality blogs or sites; you become a featured writer on the site by providing a guest article. It might be viewed as visiting another neighborhood. The particular site you are featured on has its own set of visitors, thereby broadening your visibility.

Do your research though, before you approach bloggers. Make sure the fit is right by checking prior posts on the site. In addition, when you approach the blog owner to ask about a guest post, let him know that you are familiar with his site.

And, be sure to always make it a win-win situation. Let the blog owner know that you will promote your feature post, and you might mention that you’ll include his site in your newsletter.

Finally, self-edit all your articles before you post them or send them off.

Tip: Using content to draw visitors back to your site is inbound or organic marketing. It is free, and it works by creating an informational funnel leading back to your site. In order for inbound marketing to work effectively, you need to provide valuable content on a regular basis.

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RECOMMENDED TOOL: 7 DAY EBOOK BY JIM EDWARDS

Want to create an effective money-making ebook in 7 days? If you said yes, then you’ll want to know about How to Write Your Own Ebook in 7 Days by Jim Edwards.

Over the last 14 years, Jim has written, created, and sold ‘millions of dollars’ in ebooks and info-products online. And, he has helped thousands of authors.
Jim is a 10-year veteran newspaper columnist and author whose reputation for writing and promoting ebooks online is legendary!

Get your copy of How to Write Your Own Ebook in 7 Days and get started today - CLICK HERE!

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MORE ON ONLINE MARKETING:

Online Membership Sites – Should You Join One?
The Author Website – Keep it Simple and to the Point
Ebooks are a Must

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To keep up with writing and marketing information, along with Free webinars, join us in The Writing World (top right top sidebar).

Karen Cioffi
Award-Winning Author, Freelance/Ghostwriter
Author-Writer-Home Business Online Presence Instructor

Create and Build Your Author-Writer Business Online Presence
http://www.karencioffi.com/author-online-presence-ecourse/

Karen Cioffi Professional Writing Services
http://karencioffifreelancewriter.com/karen-cioffi-writing-services/

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Frederico, the Mouse Violinist - a Review

Title: Frederico, the Mouse Violinist
Author: Mayra Calvani
Illustrations: K.C. Snider
Publisher: Guardian Angel Publishing Inc.
ISBN: 978-1-61633-114-6; 1616331143 Paperback
eBook ISBN: 13: 978-1-61633-125-2; 1616331259
Reviewed by: Karen Cioffi

Frederico, the Mouse Violinist is an absolutely wonderful children’s picture book. Through a delightful story, the author teaches about the world’s most famous violin maker, Antonio Stradivari, along with various parts of the violin.

But, what has a mouse to do with Stradivari and violins? Well, Calvani cleverly weaved a story that has Frederico living in the home where Stradivari creates his masterpieces.

Loving the violin, the mouse wished he could play. At night while the master slept, Frederico would play among the violins and move the bow across the strings, making sweet sounds. Hearing the music and seeing Frederico’s appreciation for the violin, Stradivari created a special tiny violin for the mouse.

Adding dimension to the story are full page illustrations that are vibrant and fanciful, making Frederico, the Mouse Violinist an engaging, kids-will-love-it picture book. The book also provides information on Stradivari; a glossary for words related to the violin, such as bridge, peg, and scroll; and two activity pages. It is an enjoyable and fun tool that parents and teachers can use to introduce the violin to young children.

I happen to love the sound of the violin, cello, and other stringed instruments. My appreciation for music came from my musical family, as well as school music education programs. In 7th and 8th grades my school offered violin instruction which I happily accepted.

Research from the 1950s through to today, demonstrates the benefits music has for children and even societies. Here are some of the benefits children can reap from music education:

• Increases memorization capacity
• Improves reasoning capacity and comprehension
• Helps children learn and/or improve time management and organizational skills
• Helps develop team skills, as well as math skills
• Helps improve coordination and concentration
• Is a universal language and encourages self-expression

Aside from the above mentioned benefits, you never know what will spark a child’s appreciation and love for music, it could be hearing a song, seeing musicians play, or learning about various instruments and their creation.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Other Reviews You May Find of Interest:

Horatio Humble Beats the Big "D"
The Lucky Baseball
The Power of the Penny
World's Easiest Astronomy Book
What is Electricity and Magnetism

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:

The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!
And, if you subscribe in January 2011, you'll get a 5th FREE e-book: How to Create an eBook And What You Can Do With It

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing for Children and More
Babies, Tots, and Children

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

How to Create an eBook – 5 Simple Steps

E-books are an amazing product that has multiple uses. And, it can be created for FREE, or for a very minimal amount. What else can you create that costs only your time and effort, and sells for whatever the market is willing to pay?

1. Create content

The first step is to create your content; this can be done as a simple word document. The content can be anything you think your readers or target market will want or need. In addition, it can be any length you decide upon. You can create a simple 10 page e-book, or a 100+ page e-book.
You can also create a compilation of articles you’ve already written on a particular topic and organize them into an easy to read product that includes a content page.

Note: It’s wise to include a disclaimer explaining that you, the author, strived for accuracy, but cannot guarantee it due to the ever-changing nature of the internet. And, it’s advisable to include an “All Rights Reserved” with a copyright reference.

TIP: If you’re offering the e-book as a freebie on your site you can allow others to pay-it-forward, emphasizing that all information must remain intact. This will help increase your visibility and lead readers back to your site/s.

2. Organize Your Content

Whether your product is a few pages or 100 pages, having it organized is important. The e-book needs to offer easy reading and clarity, along with value. If you are creating a longer product, divide the content or articles into sections or parts, and provide a Content Page.

Be sure to use a large and bold font for section headings and it’s advisable to include page breaks for each section.

Finally, be sure to add a brief bio including promotional material on an About the Author page.

TIP:  have plenty of white space. If you notice, this article has very short paragraphs, making it easy to read.

3. Include Images and Tweak Your Content

Once you have the content in place, add images. You can add an image at the beginning of each section, or where ever you see fit. This is another trick to make the e-book more interesting to read.
Using your word program’s clipart function is a free way to get images. Microsoft has clipart in the toolbar: Insert: Pictures: Clipart. You can also input free images from other sources. Again, the choice is yours.

The images will help break up the monotony of straight content.

TIP: You will also want to include your own head shot on your About the Author page. Readers connect more with a face, rather than just a name.

4. Create a Cover

Every book needs a cover, so you will need to create one. Again, you can use clipart, or other source of free images. You can also use the Word Draw Toolbar. I’m not sure if all versions are the same, but mine is located at the bottom of my document.

TIP: After you create a cover, be sure to click on Page Break.

5. Turning Your Word Doc into a PDF

Okay, you’ve created a great word document, now it’s time to magically turn it into an e-book. There are a number of free PDF creator software applications to do this.

For those wondering, PDF is an acronym for Portable Document Format. A PDF creator is an application that converts documents into PDFs by creating a virtual printer that prints to PDF files.

If you don’t already have a PDF converter, it’s time to do an online search for “free pdf creator.” Just be sure the one you choose is Adobe compatible.

My experience is with PDF995. You can check it out at: http://www.pdf995.com/

Install the software you chose, and you’re ready to go.

It’s that simple.

(Image courtesy of Free Digital Photos: Photographer: renjith krishnan)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Related Articles:

Benefits of Creating an eBook
Aim for Writing Success
Focused Keywords and Your Content

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:

The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!
And, if you subscribe in January 2011, you'll get a 5th FREE e-book: How to Create an eBook And What You Can Do With It (with a lot more details!)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Babies, Tots, and Children

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Write a Novel that SELLS

I have a guest article fromTHE BOOK MARKETING EXPERT NEWSLETTER!

Nine Steps to Writing a Novel You Can Sell
by Hillel Black

1) Be a story teller. You would be amazed at the number of writers who do everything but. Often novels come as character portraits or memoirs written as fiction. Absent is any attempt at suspense, any motivation for the reader to turn those pages. As the novel unfolds, the story invariably begins to tread water and then sinks beneath the waves. The reader does not sit on the edge of his or her chair, but instead retreats into a glassy-eyed coma.

2) An oversimplified definition of a good story. Not two cats on a mat meowing at each other or two dogs yawning but a cat and dog growling and spitting and about to launch into heated combat. Conflict, suspense keep the reader reading. Again so often ignored by writers.

3) Premise. You should be able to sum up the story in one sentence A woman police lieutenant and hostage negotiator must establish contact and overcome a faceless tormentor who is determined to make her a hostage of fear.-Nora Roberts, High Noon. An act of violence shatters a small town and the daughter of the judge sitting on the case should be the state's witness but cannot remember what happened-or could she.-Jodi Picoult, Nineteen Minutes.

4) Sympathetic character. You want to portray a character the reader roots for.

5) Equally important, it helps if you can devise a character who is villainous, evil, bad, someone the reader hates but cannot get enough of. My favorite was Hannibal Lecter. When he arrived on the page, I was always hooked.

6) A love story always helps. They do not have to go off into the sunset. But it would be nice if they get into the same bed. Sex is good. Love is better. Sex and love is best.

7) Surgeons go to medical school, lawyers go to law school. All you need to do is go to Amazon or the bookstore or the library. Read, read, read and think about what you are reading and why the novel works for you.

8) Writing is not something most people can dash off. Morris West, a best-selling novelist, could and did write his novels in his head but most people need paper and pen or a computer. It is an arduous but an enormously satisfying task.

9) Before you begin, write a multi-page outline of the novel. A great example of a superb story teller and novelist who does just that is Ken Follett. Read WRITING THE BLOCKBUSTER NOVEL by ALBERT ZUCKERMAN, his esteemed editor and agent. You will learn how Follett does it.

Tip submitted by Hillel Black, free lance editor of over 20 NY Times best sellers and member of the Consulting Editors Alliance. Visit http://www.hillelblack.com/.

Reprinted from "The Book Marketing Expert newsletter," a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com

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Related Articles:

Writing Tip: Great Backup Tool
Fiction Stories: What Makes a Good One

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3 e-Books for the Price of ONE

Writing for Children One Step at a Time
The other books included are:
Writing, Publishing, and Marketing - You Can Do It
The Self-Publisher's Guide

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:

The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!
And, if you subscribe in January 2011, you'll get a 5th FREE e-book: How to Create an eBook And What You Can Do With It
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing for Children and More

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Walking Through Walls Cover Finalized

I'm very excited about the final cover design by Aidana WillowRaven, for Walking Through Walls.


Walking Through Walls is based on an ancient Chinese tale and set in the 16th Century China.  It is about a 12-year-old boy named Wang who dreams of becoming rich, powerful and feared.  He studies the legend of the Eternals, a group of mystics who are known and feared for their amazing magical feats.  When he is sure they are real, he journeys to their home in the Loa Mountain and begins an apprenticeship with the Master Eternal.

Walking Through Walls should be available March 2011. In case you're wondering, the background is white. Aidana felt the black, red, and white offers the Asian flavor of the book, and I agree.

I'll keep updates coming, and will let you know when presales are available.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3 e-Books for the Price of ONE

Writing for Children One Step at a Time
The other books included are:
Writing, Publishing, and Marketing - You Can Do It
The Self-Publisher's Guide

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:
The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!
And, if you subscribe in January 2011, you'll get a 5th FREE e-book: How to Create an eBook And What You Can Do With It
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Babies, Tots, and Children

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Freelance Writing - An Additional Path to Income

Many children’s authors or book writers in other genres realize that making money writing books may not be what many envision it to be. So, if as a writer you want to make money to either supplement your income or earn an income, you might think about other writing paths in addition to authoring books.

One such path is freelance writing.

According to Wikipedia, “the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, approximately 10.3 million workers in the US (7.4% of the US workforce) are independent contractors. In the past three years, companies have increased their outsourcing by 22% on the internet.”

These figures are rising every year as more and more businesses realize the necessity of marketing online.

Essentially, a freelance writer is self-employed. He or she looks for magazines that accept submissions or maybe businesses and marketers who are looking for writers, although this area may fall more under ghostwriting which is a form of freelance writing.

Simply put, in a freelance capacity, you will write for pay, whether with a byline or as a ghostwriter, and you will search for entities that are willing to pay for your services.

To get started in this area, you should establish yourself as a freelance writer; this will help you harness paying jobs. The best way to do this is to create a website that is devoted to you as a freelance writer. You may want to blog about topics you excel in, whether marketing, health, business, or other. Show the potential client what you are capable of, and post content on a regular basis.

You will also need to search freelance job boards. You can find job boards by doing an online search. In addition, you might ask writer acquaintances or friends for information in this area, since you want to make sure the job board site is reputable.

Another area to promote your freelance business and expertise is in social networks such as Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter.

With persistence, you may see you’re first freelance job.

Be careful though, before you accept a job it’s important to know your value; don’t under value your writing talent, or under estimate the work involved in a particular project. Writing a 500 word article for $10 is not the way to go, considering it may take you one to two hours to complete if you need to do research.

Your best course of action is to decide what fee you are willing to write for, and then stick to your guns. Often, once you fall into the writing-for-peanuts-pit, it can become difficult to get out, so seek quality writing jobs.

Once you’ve landed one or more clients, it’s important to manage your time effectively. You will need to put business first and other writing and social networking second. Now, this does not mean you can neglect other aspects of writing, such as working on your next book if you are an author, or marketing your freelance services and marketing your available books, it simply means take care of the writing that brings in an income first.

Next, to generate more business, ask satisfied clients for testimonials and post them on your website. If you are ghostwriting, this may be difficult to accomplish, but it doesn’t hurt to ask.

One final note, write quality content no matter what the writing assignment. This effort will lead to long-term clients and referrals.


Photo by: jscreationzs

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Related Articles:

Tips for Content Subcontracting in Your New Freelance Business

The Ghostwriter

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:
The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by! And, if you subscribe in January 2011, you'll get a 5th FREE e-book: How to Create an eBook And What You Can Do With It

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing for Children and More

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Horatio Humble Beats the Big D - A Review

Title: Horatio Humble Beats the Big “D”
Author: Margot Finke
Illustrator: Ellen Gurak
ISBN: 13: 978-1-61633-101-6
eBook ISBN: 13: 978-1-61633-102-3
Publisher: Guardian Angel Publishing
Reviewer: Karen Cioffi

Horatio Humble Beats the Big “D” is a children’s rhyming picture book that tackles dyslexia. For those who are unfamiliar with the term, dyslexia, according to the Mayo Clinic, “is an impairment in your brain's ability to translate written images received from your eyes into meaningful language.” And, it is the most common learning disability in children.

Margot Finke, in her usual insightful and playful way, shows the academic and emotional affects that dyslexia carries with it. Horatio, like all children with dyslexia, wants to read like his peers, but just can’t. “He wanted to read and dive into books, to snuggle in bed, reading stuff about crooks. But something was wonky within his poor head, so words in his books stayed a mystery instead.”

The author captures the emotional impact a child feels when he can’t read like others, which leads to: the need for special resources, tutoring, low self-esteem, and even anxiety. “Special class is for nitwits,” he whined to his Mom. “Every one of my friends will think that I’m dumb!”

With vivid full page illustrations Finke brings Horatio through the process of “special class” and shows the outcome that can be attained with proper instruction. “Words came unscrambled and flowed smooth and clear. “Hey, I’m reading books!” He yelled with a cheer.”

I’ve mentioned it before, and I’ll do so again, I’m a fan of Margot Finke’s work. She has a unique talent for approaching topics that children can use help with, such as moving away from familiar surroundings and friends, as in her book Ruthie and the Hippo’s Fat Behind, and now with dyslexia. What’s wonderful about Finke’s books is she addresses these issues with lighthearted rhyming fun.

Horatio Humble Beats the Big “D” is a book every parent of a child who is struggling to read should get. It’s important for children to know they’re not alone in their struggles, and that dyslexia is a problem that CAN be overcome.

Included at the end of the story is a resource page that provides information on dyslexia and also offers links to pertinent articles, along with book suggestions. Listed in the information is the advice that encourages parents of children who have or are suspect of having dyslexia to let their children know it is not a sign of a lack of intelligence. These children should be told that actors/celebrities such as Tom Cruise, Orlando Bloom, Oprah Winfrey and Magic Johnson overcame dyslexia, as did Bill Gates and Albert Einstein.

According to statistics, one in five students (around 20% of the population) has a language based learning disability. And, less than one-third of the children with reading disabilities receive school services to help with their disability.

Reading Horatio Humble Beats the Big “D” with your dyslexic child is a valuable strategy to help with your child’s self-esteem and motivation.


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Unfortunately, I couldn't get a cover image of the book from Amazon, but here is a link so you can get your own copy today:



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Other reviews you many find of interest:

The Lucky Baseball (children's historical fiction)

Who on Earth is Rachel Carson? (children non-fiction)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:
The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!

And, if you sign up during JANUARY 2011, you'll get a 5th e-book: How to Create and eBook, And, What You Can Do With It

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Freelance Article Submissions: Having Trouble?

Whether you're writing for children or another genre, you need to have a well structured article to submit. Here are three tips from writing coach and author Suzanne Lieurance:

3 Tips For Writing More Marketable Articles
By Suzanne Lieurance

If you're trying to sell articles to a variety of publishers, you need to be sure your articles are marketable. Here are 3 tips that will help you do that. These tips can also serve as a template any time you're having trouble focusing your article and need an easy-to-follow structure for the piece.

1. Keep your introduction to a single paragraph. Too often, writers start an article with WAY too much introduction before they get to the "meat" of the piece. Today's readers want writers to cut to the chase. They want information that is easy to understand and quick to read. Don't bog down your reader with paragraph after paragraph of introduction. You should be able to introduce your topic in a single paragraph. If you can't, you probably need to give your article a narrower focus.

2. Use a list or bullet points to convey the main ideas in your article. Readers will appreciate this because they can skip the introduction entirely and still get the information they need from your article. They can also easily jot down the main points on a sheet of paper if the information is something they need and want to keep at hand.

3. End your article with a single concluding paragraph. Again, don't bog down your readers by expecting them to continue reading after you've made your main points.

Follow these 3 tips and it should be fairly easy to write your articles quickly. You'll also create articles that are more marketable!

Get more tips to help you move from rejection to publication when you subscribe to The Morning Nudge. Your subscription includes free membership in The Morning Nudge Club, where you'll have access to recorded informational teleclasses, tips sheets, helpful checklists, and other tools for writers. Find out more about The Morning Nudge at http://morningnudge.com and make this your BEST writing year YET!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Suzanne_Lieurance

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Related Articles:

Simple as ABC: 6 Basic Tips for Writing Children’s Fiction (Part 1)


Simple as ABC: 6 Basic Tips for Writing Children’s Fiction (Part 2)

Aim for Writing Success

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writers World, and get TWO FREE eBooks:

The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Blogger’s Checklist
(The books offered may change periodically)

In fact, check out the sidebar for two free gifts just for stopping by!

And, for January 2011, you'll get another free e-book, How to Create an eBook, And What You Can Do With It for signing up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing for Children and More

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice

Free New Year Gift for Signing Up - How to Create an eBook

Hold on a sec, you're at the right site - I changed the design. I hope you like it. Now on to business:

I sent out a press release announcing this special, and I'm adding it to all my sites:

For Immediate Release

FREE NEW YEAR Gift: How to Create an eBook – 5 Simple Steps (a 12 Page e-book).


As a special gift for the new year, I'm giving How to Create an eBook – 5 Simple Steps for free. All you have to do is sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter, A Writer’s World, by January 31, 2011.

The e-book includes step-by-step instructions beginning at the beginning, writing your content, and ending with the Print button for a pdf product. It also touches on copyrighting, the USBN, and e-commerce shopping carts.

How to Create an eBook – 5 Simple Steps should have you creating an e-book in no time.

In addition to the free e-book on writing for children, you’ll also get 2 additional FREE e-books:

The Self-Publisher’s Guide, 2nd Edition
The Bloggers-Checklist

But that’s not all. Just for stopping by one of our sites you’ll get another 2 FREE e-books:

Book Promotion: The Basics
SEO Marketing Tips that Can Help Increase Holiday Season Sales

That’s a total of 5 writing and marketing e-books!

Just click on the opt-in box on the top sidebar

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Articles you may find of interest:

Focused Keywords and Your Content
SEO and Marketing: Basic Tips and Definitions
Writing with Clarity
Finding Age Appropriate Words When Writing for Children

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Ghostwriting for Businesses and Individuals
Do you want to get that idea turned into a book? Do you want to write your memoirs? Do you need editing, proofreading, or a professional critique? Do you need an e-book or white paper to offer for instruction, platform visibility, or a gift? Do you need blog or article visibility for your business? We’re professional, experienced with keywords and SEO, and we cover a number of writing services. So, please stop by and check us out. Go to:
http://DKVWriting4U.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,

Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Acquisitions Editor Intern for 4RV Publishing

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing for Children and More

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kcioffiventrice