Some great information and H.I.G.H. 13

Thursday

According to my statistics this is one of the low readership days. So for you loyal readers out there I have some great information for you.

1st. Thanks for the great response to my Mentorship program. I'm moving forward on it and hope to have something to release very soon to all of you. You've really touched my heart.

2nd. I've run across some great information here recently as I've read around the blogosphere. One great blog if you've ever had an editor rejection for Episodic writing.

http://seekerville.blogspot.com/2008/01/episodic-writing-editors-definition.html

This is a blog posting by a published writer quoting an editor. I think it will help you as you work on craft to avoid that kind of writing in your fiction. I know it is not directly marketing related BUT building a great platform will do nothing if your writing isn't up to par.

Also, you know I'm all about planning. I read this blog earlier in the week and LOVED it. It is all about plans and goals which I've talked about here recently.

http://www.jamesbrausch.com/98-are-kidding-themselves/

Okay, the blog may not be as loving as mine are [wink] but it is so true. I've seen it in my own business. For every 10 people who purchase my Writing Career Coach course I have 1 who finishes. Not because it's hard but people are easily distracted. They think buying the product will make it easier. That is why I'm creating the mentorship program. That will allow MUCH more interaction and accountability.

You know this makes me think of my ow path to becoming a writer. I had a number of mistakes [that we'll get to over the next few postings]. One was, when we had a bit more money, is I would buy things...then never use them.

So here is my challenge to you. Think of one great idea you've had over the last 3 days and implement it. If it is something that will require money that you don't have then write out EXACTLY what to do and EXACTLY how much it will cost, create a plan to earn that money, and DO IT.

That was how this program was born. I can't wait for all of you to start to have great results. Actually, you'll see that that was key to my writing career suddenly taking off.

Now H.I.G.H. 13

So I had just accepted this great opportunity to write an article about a local family who would be featured on National Television.

I was terrified.

See, what I hadn't shared up to this point was I was PAINFULLY shy with new people. Being in direct sales had helped that just a little bit but I was still TERRIFIED, to the point of shaking, when I had to call someone I didn't know.

And now I had to call and interview this local celebrity.

I got the contact information and asked a quick question to the interview subject. He was so nice. He chatted away about what had happened to them, the miracle that occured, and then what it was like to be featured on National TV. He talked to me for about an hour and I wrote feverishly on my notebook [why hadn't I learned shorthand???]. When I hung up the phone I was so excited. I ran out to tell my step-mom all about the conversation.

I wrote up the story and emailed it to the publisher [it was a donated article]. For the next two weeks I was a ball of nerves. I had continued to submit stories...and add pages to my rejection binder [which I'd affectionately named 'my fan letters'].

The story hit the stands on September 1, 2003. I grabbed about 10 copies of the paper and came home. I typed up a nice letter to that national publication I'd spoken with previously and told them I now had a feature by-line. I sent the front page of the publication as well as the center spread where the article appeared.

Seven days later they asked me to do an assignment [for pay]. The next day I received a letter in the mail from a second major national publication asking to publish one of my articles I'd submitted.

Two national paying markets in two days!!

I could hardly believe it. I fired off emails accepting the assignment and giving permission to publish the other story. I was starting the 12th month of my full-time writing career and I now had two national publishing credits.

Then I got an email two days later from the publisher at the local paper. Would I like to do an assignment every month for their paper.

My mind was swimming. I was a REAL writer. I was going to write every month. Smooth sailing now.

But there were waves up ahead and I was about to learn even more about the twists and turns of life, and the writer's life.