Saturday, February 12, 2011

Writing Skills - What You Can Do to Be a Master of It

Writing Skills
Just like every other skill, you can enhance your writing skills over time. It can be done easily if you keep in mind the following points.

Leave other things & focus on what you are doing
A focused mind is necessary for writing. Never get distracted with other issues in your life & career while writing. Focus on the topic that you have in mind. In this way you can write a lot more easily & in less time.

Think freely
Try to think freely while writing. The more you can think, the more power will be there in your writing. It does not mean that you should write whatever you are thinking but in this way, one can easily find a lot of quality in your writing.

Gain enough knowledge before starting
You should have a grasp on the subject on which you are writing. It really is a test of how much you know about the topic which you are writing. If you do not have enough knowledge then first give some time to research about that topic. It really helps.

Follow a plan
You should have a process in place which you follow while writing which must include research, writing, editing & final publishing. By having a process in place, you will help yourself in increasing your speed as well as writing quality. Success in any field is all about following a proven plan or process that always work.
If you can keep in mind the above points than you will see that with time your writing skills will improve considerably.

The Writer's Instinct

It's happened to every new mother. The baby is crying. She's checked the diaper, fed the new bundle of joy and has been trying for over an hour to rock him to sleep. Yet instead of quiet bliss the new mom is rewarded with piercing screams.

When it comes to writing, sometimes the same thing occurs. You've followed the written plans of what you should do. You've created a plot, developed characters, created quirky dialogue and still the story is off. It's as if your characters are trying to beat you over the head with a broom. It's your writer's instinct intervening.
Writer's instinct is the intuition that a writer has that something is missing from their work in progress (manuscript); it is that quiet voice that says that indeed something on some level isn't fitting correctly. The more one writes the better attuned one becomes in hearing the quiet voice.
When the writer is plagued by such, it is best to dive in, and be ready to listen.

1.Cause and effect
Does the plot make sense? Are the effects logical to the story or is a part of it forced? The writer's instinct trumps. If for some reason a nagging feeling is telling you that the cause or effect is not working, then it is best to analyze why and attempt to ascertain a solution. Just as the newborn is unable to speak words to clarify its discomfort, it is the same with story. It cannot tell you if the plot has holes or where it may need to be fine tuned. Instead all it can do is cry for your attention and hope that your instinct and fine handling will make it possible to become a better work in progress and ultimately a finished story.

2. Analysis - who, what, when, where, why and how
Make sure to ask the difficult questions. If for some reason you feel that something just isn't right with your story then there is a good chance that your reader will too. Take the needed time to analyze it.

3. Get help
When one is new in any field, including motherhood, even the basics have to be learned. In writing, this principle is the same. Don't be afraid to ask someone's opinion; to discuss your story with a trusted critique partner, family member or friend. Sometimes through conversation one is able to gain insight into the problem and come up with a new solution on how to fix it.
Each day brings new opportunities and chances to discover the writer within. Take the time to nurture your creativity and when you need it the most, it won't disappoint. The writer's instinct is there to help to make you a better writer. Let it whisper softly into your ear.

Monday, January 24, 2011

How to Jumpstart your Next Writing Session

How to Jumpstart your Next Writing Session
by: David Parton


I have always enjoyed writing. Sometimes it’s a problem for me to just sit down and write something. There are days when I choose “procrastinating” over “proactive.” Putting things off is common with everyone. I am very gifted in this area. ;)

Here are 4 areas to focus on to jumpstart your next writing session.

* Concentration
* Preparation
* The First Word
* Use your notebook

Concentration:

There are way too many distractions. Cell phones ringing, blaring car alarms and unexpected visitors are just a few things that can disrupt your concentration. It then becomes easier to justify not writing today.

The best thing to do to encourage creative writing is to make it a ritual. Find a nice spot to write, maybe, in a quiet room in your home where you will be left undisturbed for a period of time. Set a time to work; a scheduled time to write. Stick to it.

Keep reference books and materials close to hand.

Focus on one idea at a time.

View your next writing session as an opportunity; an opportunity to do something you enjoy. It can be fun. And when you are having fun nobody ever has to tell you to “concentrate!”

Preparation

Once you have your topic: Google it. Read everything you can online and offline related to your idea. Search the net for testimonials, reviews and articles about your topic. Brainstorm related sub-topics.

Give it a rest. Let your subconscious mind percolate and play with the information you provided. Get some exercise. Some of my best ideas come to me while I am out walking around in the evening.

Getting Started

Where to begin? That blank page staring back can be intimidating.

Just dive right in there!

Type the word “The.”

Type the next word (the first thing that pops into your mind) and the next word.

At this point, quality is not important. You just want to create a “flow” where the words come easily.

Don’t stop to edit. Save all your corrections for the second draft. Resist the impulse to rewrite. That will only interrupt the flow and is another way to avoid the task at hand.

If you are like me you will have a 2nd, third and fourth draft. You have to get your first draft completed before your have anything to rewrite! Stay focused.

Carry a Notebook

As a creative writer, you will be “hit” by odd ideas and notions in the oddest of places.

Maybe you are stuck in traffic or brushing your teeth when inspiration strikes.

You could wake from a dream and have a killer idea.

“ I’ll remember that.” We say to ourselves, but when next we write there is no access to that memory file.

Just use a notebook. Jot those things down as they come to you. It only takes a moment.

Capture all your of your ideas as they transpire. Who knows? One of them may be the “Next Big Thing!”

- David Parton

About The Author

David Parton
Now You can Expand your Opportunities with FREE Tips & Resources about Affiliate Marketing, Making Money from Home, Website Development & Self-improvement for Both Sides of Your Brain! Discover... http://ExpandingMind.com

david@expandingmind.com

The Purpose Of Writing An Effective Memoir Article

In this world of high technology and instant information, it is easy to forget that it wasn't always there. As little as twenty years ago, cell phones were a dream. Fifty years ago computers were still on the drawing board. Whole generations of people will be growing up with no idea what it might have been like. This is a field rich with possibilities for senior citizens who have interesting stories to tell and share.

Memoir writing is not as difficult as it would seem. Mostly, it just takes a desire to remember details of a childhood without all the gadgets we have today.

Begin your memoir by brainstorming all the life events you can remember that were either very important to you in a positive way or memorable in a negative way. Talk to other members of your family to get ideas, to help you remember events from when you were small, and to help fill in the details that might have been forgotten.

There is no right or wrong time to start writing about your life. There is only now. If you are comfortable with writing on your computer, you can start directly into a Word or text document. If you don't want to do that, go to the store and purchase some type of spiral bound notebook. You will be carrying this with you and making your notes as you think of them. A combination of these is probably going to work best.
Whichever you choose, just pick a year and start making notes of all the things that happened to you that year. Label each page with a month and work through the whole year.

When you are ready to write, select the event, or series of related events, that seems most interesting to you. Brainstorm again but in more detail, trying to recall names, places, descriptions, voices, conversations, things, and all the other details that will make this an interesting account.

Ask yourself these questions - how much was food, what kind of car did my parents have, what was the politics, where did my parents work, what was my school like, what did I play, what siblings did I have, - and jot down notes for each month.

Work at this note-taking stage for a few days, until you feel you've got it all down on paper.
You will be surprised to see that even more details begin to appear once you start to write. For your first draft, write quickly to get all your ideas down from beginning to end. Don't worry about editing. Before you revise, share your first draft with someone in the family. Consider their response, but go with what feels right to you. Rewrite, and then start editing as needed.

Good narratives are about everyday things, but they are interesting; sometimes just as interesting to read as a good novel. But remember, this chronicle is supposed to be true, so be careful not to exaggerate or embellish the truth.

Once you have finished one year, begin on another year. You might want to write various versions of each year by focusing on different topics. It is your story. The only limit is your imagination.

Writing Articles Online - You Are Smart Enough

Writers are in high demand and website owners are willing and able to pay for simple, easy to read content.
This demand has opened the door for ordinary people to write for this need on the internet, while working from home. Authors are writing for money from their homes on a part-time basis, or even full-time.
You are not required to have a degree or to be a published author. If you can email a friend a reasonably easy to read message, you are qualified to write articles for money and can begin enjoying an online writer career with significant income.

Thousands of people who are making money writing articles are working from their homes. If you have a desire and the ability to write at a 10th grade level, you have a gold mine at your disposal.
Getting paid enough to make a living is something most people are faced with. Becoming an article writer requires no monetary investment or up-front cost.

The quickest and easiest way I know of to make money writing articles is to make a list of your hobbies, interests and subjects you are familiar with. Research your list and write practice articles. When you are comfortable with your writing skills, do another search for websites along the same lines as your list and sample article. email a good number of these sites and send them your sample article. You may be surprised that soon you will have a writing assignment. Remember, webmasters can not find you, you have to find them.
All websites need unique, fresh new content to help their ranking with the search engines. Even if they have an article writer, it would be hard for them to turn down a unique article.

Article writing is a competitive field, but you never have to be afraid of competition. In fact, competition is good. It will make you a better writer, therefore creating more jobs for you writing articles for money. I urge you to start today, don't delay.

Getting Paid to Write Articles - I Rank It Five Stars

Most good writers are good readers. To make money writing online start reading other articles. You should be able to recognize a certain style and composition. You will also see that web content would not win any literary awards. Anyone that can write on a 10th grade level can write web content.
Writing for the web is different from traditional writing. When someone does a search, the content will be for information about products, services or general knowledge. Article writing is simply supplying information on these services.

Now, web masters are always looking for new, original, fresh ideas for their content. They are relying on web ranking for searches to locate their sites. Articles will help improve the ranking of web sites.
One of the easiest and quickest ways for you to get a job writing online articles would be to contact these sites with a free sample article. Ask for future consideration for writing opportunities they may have. If your articles are eye-catching, you may get a client. It doesn't take many clients to start making a good weekly paycheck. Most websites will want several articles weekly. You invoice weekly for completed articles and the web master normally pays weekly for your articles.

There are many people today on the internet getting paid to write articles or working as a freelance writer. I know one person that writes grandma's recipes for websites and makes extra money every month. The possibilities are unlimited.

I would suggest a good write at home system and begin on a part-time basis. After you are established, there is no limit to the amount of money you can make. There are thousands of online businesses looking for web content. You have to contact them, they cannot find you! Remember, research is the key here. Keep in mind that all you really have to do is write in the same way that you speak.

Writing Articles Online - Fight the Recession

Stop shouting, I can hear you - there is a recession going on. If you are reading this, you have experienced the down turn in this economy. You may have lost your job or you are not making enough money to meet your bills.

After spending years surfing the net, it finally occurred to me I had been looking at a gold mine and not even realizing it. Web content. All of the information on the net is written by someone. A lot of websites or web masters do not have time to write their own content. They use outside sources or what is termed as "freelance writers".

High demand is out there for unique, fresh, new ideas for content. Your content can be worth a good sum of money to these web masters or companies.

I started out by making a list of my hobbies, interests and subjects. I took my list and started doing tons of research. I even researched other articles to see their style and content. I then started writing practice articles. After I was comfortable with my writing, I compiled a list of websites that related to my list. I emailed my list a sample article and asked for consideration on their next writing assignment. That was two years ago. Now I write full time. It's like Christmas morning every day when I see my inbox filled with writing assignments.
In this area of internet opportunities, the recession is not an excuse or a reason to be unemployed or not making ends meet. You do not have to work cheap, economically, or for a low price or discount. The quality of your articles will dictate your prices. You do not have to invest capital or pay any up-front cost. There are no hidden costs in writing web content. You do not have to have a formal education or be a published author. If you can write on a 10th grade level, you can write web content. In fact, websites prefer simple conversational articles.

Writing an article is not rocket science. A good article is a small step, a bad article is wider than the Grand Canyon. A good article will bring you repeat business for years to come. Don't delay, start today.

Should We Drop the 'Dear' From 'Dear John'?

When was the last time you received an email from someone that started with the word "dear..."? I'm guessing you haven't for quite a while, if indeed ever, as the electronic modes of communication we now use to send information to work colleagues, friends and relatives has changed and for those of us for whom email is the norm, we've probably never used it ourselves.

Of course, when people used to write letters to each other the use of the word 'Dear' was commonplace and the norm. It's how you started any letter and when writing it still seems quite normal, however email is different.

If I receive an email from someone with the word dear in it then I have a little chuckle to myself as it seems to be an extremely old and out-dated way to begin any conversation. These days we're more used to seeing the word "Hi" or "Hiya" at the top of emails - but is this a bad thing?

When letters were the norm, we would spend time crafting them, sometimes hand-written and very often very long. We had a lot of information to cram in and we had to make the cost of postage worth the while. Sometimes we'd include some extra information like a card or a picture and the whole effort involved meant we were doing something a bit special. Writing 'Dear...' at the beginning was therefore the precursor to a missive, something to be enjoyed at the recipient's leisure.

Now we have email and conversations have changed. Our communications are shorter and more to the point and we normally send them with the expectation that we'll get something back. We no longer fire off an email expecting it to be digested over time or read in a wing-backed chair. Our email probably provides a quick blast of information followed by a question. We then get a question back and the conversation continues.
With an exchange of letters it could take many weeks to successfully conclude an issue and very often we turn to the phone to sort it out. With email it is fully possible to use it as a means to build a conversation and there is usually a thread that can be followed.

So should the 'Dear..' be dropped? I think it should, in fact I never use it, never had and those that are saying we should use it more so it doesn't drop completely are fighting the wrong cause. What we should be doing is ensuring our emails are readable and understandable, not worrying about a word stuck at the top of the page that nobody really reads anyway.

Essay Proofreading

The whole reason you are writing an essay is to communicate to the reader through your words, portraying and expressing explanations and evidence in a way that will support your point. For a fact, you will not do this well if you have errors scattered throughout your text, this impedes flow and takes the reader's attention away from your writing. This is why it is always important to ensure you are essay proofreading to a good standard.
Here are some basic tips on essay proofreading:

Read through your work with a physical copy. You will be amazed at the amount of errors you will spot when holding the document in your hand, opposed to on a screen.
Always get a friend to check over your work once it is complete. A fresh mind is able to pick up a considerable amount more errors than a mind that already knows the content. If you are unable to do this, at least take a break before starting to proofread you work, this will help clear your mind.

Read the words backwards, this will help to take away the meaning of the words, increasing the chance of spotting errors.
Keep a list of all the words you spell incorrectly, this will help when you come across the word in a later part of the text, and amend it.
Reading aloud means that you will have to voice each word separately, decreasing the chance that you will skip over some words unintentionally.

Many people find it hard to do their own essay proofreading, as they already know the content which allows their mind to skip over the words it has just written. Others just do not have time to proofread their work. Either way, you can get your essay proofreading done by professionals that offer proofreading services. This will improve your work a great deal, allowing the reader to interpret your work uninterrupted.

Overall, if you want a professional sounding good quality essay, you should always thoroughly proofread. If you really want to make an impression, consider proofreading services.

5 Ways to Increase Your Value As a Ghost Writer

A post on BNET tells business owners five ways to spot a $100 million idea. Those same five principles apply to increasing your value as a ghost writer. While you may not be able to become a $100 million ghost writer, if you pay attention to these five things, your service will be perceived as being worth more.

1) No matter how passionate you are about writing, if you don't meet your client's needs you won't have value.

Passion for what you do keeps you going when the job is tough. It's an important component to life as a ghost writer. Yet, passion without the skill to discover what your client needs is economically valueless. You must have the skill to see what your client's wants and needs are.
Sometimes this includes educating your client. And sometimes it means not writing content that fits what you think they need. You may have to write what they want! Never forget. You are a ghostwriter. Your personality can only shine through when it suits your client's needs.

2) When you identify your client's big problem, you make a difference.

Because you client is on the inside, he or she may be overlooking a marketing strategy or approach that would make a major difference. Sometimes the "big problem" is a collection of small problems that have taken on the snowball effect. Constantly look for solutions that will help your client's bottom line. Your writing may be part of the picture, or it may not. That doesn't matter.

3) Share from actual experience.

Get involved in social media. Practice SEO for your own ghost writing business. Put ideas you read about into use and test them. Collaborate with others. Grow your personal experience base. Your will have more to offer as a ghost writer. If you lack experience in a certain area, be up front about it. Always be honest about your abilities.

4) Market your service.

If you know how to market your own service, it will position you to help your clients market their product or service. Learn everything you can about marketing. You don't have to be into sales to develop strong marketing skills. Develop your elevator speech so you don't waste new client's time rattling on about what you do. Make sure you have an informative website.

5) Let you client help you develop ideas.

While most clients come to you looking for ideas, don't assume that they don't have ideas worth developing. Often, a collaborative environment where you bounce ideas off each other produces ideas that exceed anything either of you started out with. Your skill with writing is only as good as the underlying ideas. You will never lose out by bringing your clients into the process.

These five principles not only enhance your value as a ghost writer. They enhance your working relationship with your clients. It is easier for your client to feel confidence in you, especially when you are working virtually, when you are meeting needs, identifying trouble spots, sharing from your experience, presenting yourself positively through your marketing collateral and using your client's strengths to do the job right.

White Paper Writing: Sustainable?

Do you know what a white paper is? If you don't know then we need to start here. It is a paper that is very similar to an essay, an essay that is written to persuade whoever is reading it to go with a particular ideal or product. Why are they called that? They are called this because in the 1920's in Great Britain they were given this name because there were blue policy books and white policy books. We are talking about politics here, Winston Churchill was one of the most famous well known figures who wrote a white paper.

In this day and age they are still very much used in politics but you will find that they have moved on to a different type of style now. For example you will find them used very much in such fields as computers and software. A software company might just employ a writer to write one regarding a new piece of software that is due to arrive on the market. The whole point of the paper is to convince whoever they are selling it to, to buy into it. They would normally be selling it to a large corporation rather than to an individual buyer. They are written in a very concise manner, therefore; they have to be written by someone who knows what they are doing. Who knows how to write in this kind of style.
How long are they?
They are about six pages minimum. Sometimes you will find that they can be as long as one hundred pages. It really does just depend on what they are about.

How much do writers get paid?

The fee for writers can differ, because you can work for yourself as a freelancer. Or, you can work as a staff member. You will get paid a salary in which case, your salary could range from $50,000 and upwards. It all does depend, if you were a freelancer your fee would be $5,000 or more. Some really experienced writers are actually paid more than this.

So, if you want to get a higher fee you would have to gather a few good years of experience first. So in terms of sustainabliity, if you don't have the drive to carry out work that could take two weeks or more to complete you won't be able to do a job like this. White paper writing is the kind of job that could make you easily get burnout. Not to say that you would get burnout, but the sheer volume of content that has to be produced in order to make a very good living for yourself would mean that you are constantly writing. It is a very respecatable way of writing for a living though.

How to Write Articles That Make You Money

You may be wondering how to write articles that make you money, whether you are a freelance writer (or want to become one), or are trying to promote affiliate products or your own. You know that articles are an effective tactic for attracting interest - but you also know that you have to write a good article in order for it to be read, or in the case of a freelance writer, sold.

How can you write articles that make money?

1. If you're selling affiliate products or those you have created yourself. Create an attention-grabbing title. If the title doesn't capture someone's attention, they sure aren't going to read the rest of the article!
Write a good introductory paragraph, then write just enough in the body to entice the reader to want to know more. Include a good call to action in your author resource box.

2. Making money through writing. If you are trying to make a living as a freelance writer or by offering your services to website owners, your articles should be unique, on topic and interesting.
Again, you want a great title and introductory paragraph. The body of the article should expand on the introductory paragraph, delivering what was promised. Most of the time you will want to use a casual, friendly tone of voice that most people would enjoy reading.

Always check for spelling and grammar errors, otherwise not many people will want to pay you for your services if you aren't capable of checking your work before submitting it to the customer.
People like to read articles that are informative and enthusiastic; what most readers do not like are articles that are dull or read like they were written by an English professor. Write in a natural way, the way you would speak to a good friend for the best results.

Now you know how to write articles the make you money, so get to it! The more you write, the better you will become - and the better the results of your efforts.

Goals of the Medical School Personal Statement (AMCAS and AACOMAS)

The medical school personal statement is often the most difficult part of any application. You are likely nervous, and you may have already hit writer's block before the first words are typed. Do not worry, you are not alone! Almost everyone who has applied to a college, a graduate school or a residency knows the feeling. You will claw at your brain figuring out a way to write something, anything, about the person you stare at in the mirror every morning. You will wonder how anyone could write a piece about themselves, yet come across as modest and likeable. You will struggle, and you will falter. But with a lot of hard work, and with the help of others, you will succeed in the end.
This short article will guide you through the steps needed to write a great personal statement/essay. There are many variations on the subjects and techniques covered here, but we hope you can use this as a starting point. Follow the points in this book and you will be on your way to writing a great medical school essay.

How is the Medical School Personal Statement Used by Admissions Committees?
The medical school personal statement is just one part of your entire medical school application. Your GPA, MCAT, extracurricular activities, letters of recommendation and interview make up the rest. However, the important thing to remember is that the personal statement is one of the most important parts of your application. This is not something that school's toss to the side. This piece of work will be read over multiple times during the admissions process by a large variety of people involved in the admissions process.

The Separator
Your personal statement can get you in, or leave your out, of medical school. A great medical school personal statement can set you apart from your peers. Many applicants are coming in with similar MCAT scores and GPAs, so the deciding factor is intangibles like the personal statement.
  • As an example, take a student with an MCAT score between 30-32 and a GPA between 3.40-3.59
  • The acceptance rate into a US MD school for this student is 57%.
What separates the half that was accepted from the half that wasn't? One of the factors is the medical school personal statement. A strong medical school personal statement can really make a huge difference in getting accepted and rejected.
Just as a strong personal statement can get you in, a poor personal statement/essay can quickly eliminate you from the mix. When a medical school committee has a few hundred applicants, seeing typos, spelling mistakes or bad content will quickly move you to the bottom of the pile. The personal statement is a quick way to "weed out" similar applicants. With two similar applications, the personal statement can decide who gets an interview and who does not.
As mentioned, this part of your application can be used to decide whether a school wants to invite you for an interview or not. Schools only accept students who have been invited for interviews, so getting to this step is a huge part of the process.

The Interview Starting Point
The personal statement is also the starting point for many interview discussions and questions. When committee members sit down to interview an applicant, they often have just a few minutes to skim the application. Your personal statement/essay provides the perfect amount of information for them. They can pick out a few key points and use it as the starting ground for your interview. If this is the only part of the application that they may read, you need to make it perfect.

Goals of the Medical School Personal Statement
With how information about how the personal statement is used by medical school admissions committees in mind, we will now look at what some of your goals for the personal statement should be.
Sell Yourself
Your main goal is to sell yourself to the medical school, but do so in a way that is not arrogant. You must strike a balance between selling them on yourself as an applicant and not sounding cocky or pompous. The mistake people often make is that they think selling themselves involves listing grades and honors. It does not. Rather, it involves telling the reader about you as a person. Remember, the admissions committee already knows how you look on paper, they now want to know who you are. This is the place in your application where you have freedom. You can be humorous, you can be serious, or you can be philosophical. The key is to just be yourself. Let your personality shine through.

Tell Them Why You Want To Go Into Medicine
The second goal for the personal statement is to tell the committee why you want to go into medicine. The committee needs to see your passion for medicine. While wheeling around patients while volunteering shows them something, this is your chance to really tell them why you want to go into medicine.

Keep It Readable
You will also want to keep your personal statement/essay to a readable length and writing style. Trying to use large words and convoluted sentences to make the personal sound more impressive will only lead the reader to put the paper down.

Make It Interesting
Perhaps the most important goal of all though is to keep your essay interesting. Your personal statement needs to be one that keeps the readers interest throughout. Remember, medical schools admissions committees are reading hundreds of these essays. You want yours to stand out in a good way. Writing a generic medical school personal statement or essay may not get your rejected, but it certainly will not get you into medical school.