Notes from Minnesota

Hey Freelancers!

I haven't talked too much about my little puppies lately. They're certainly my pride and joy but with so much going on at Filbert Publishing, I haven't had the chance to keep you updated on their little lives.

However, this past week, we received a tad bit of bad news concerning little Rudie the Doxie Cross. While at the vet getting a minor bladder infection checked out, he discovered that she has a funky knee cap.

Now, I had no idea that dogs had knee caps, but they do. And hers wiggles around.

On a scale from one (not too bad) to four (YIKES!~!~!), Rudie is ranked as a “two.” This means if she starts limping, she'll likely need knee surgery.

Dang.

At this point I'm choosing to believe that she banged it on her wooden perch by the window and choose to believe that the ligaments can and will tighten.

Yup. Denial.

But she's such a pleasant little girl, I hate to think of her going under the knife.

So, I'm crossing my fingers, holding my breath, and whispering little prayers for my tiny little pup.

Onward and upward,

Beth

Beth's Hot Pick of the Week

Bob Bly rocks. Seriously, he does.

And with the launching of a new year, I'm feeling fairly festive. There's just something about the dawning of a new year to fill me with hopeful optimism.

And I want to spread the joy.

After much wheedling with our fulfillment person, I got him to agree throw in Bob Bly's “Outtake CD” free with every single order of Bob Bly's Guide to Freelance Writing Success.

This means you'll receive an extra 30+ vintage Bly articles covering important aspects of the freelance life.

Want more details? Click here. :)

January Events for the Creative Mindset Community

The Creative Mindset Newsletter has grown exponentially and is now the Creative Mindset Community. I want you to get as much as you can out of your membership so I've got a few events planned. They are as follows:

January 30: Our first monthly Freelancer Round Table Discussion. I was going to talk writing blocks, but a subscriber requested that we talk marketing... so we're discussing website building, construction of a good web page, how to get people to visit... things like that. If you haven't received your call-in information yet, e-mail me and I'll get 'er to you. I can't WAIT to hang out on the 30th!

Request: All members of the Creative Mindset Community needs to e-mail me so you can get your personalized invitation to our exclusive Yahoo Group discussion group. This is the place where you can ask questions, join in the discussion, and get a hold of me much faster than if I have to slog through a gazillion e-mails from the Filbert account. We're a small group but I aim to make us a grand success story. :) So... remember to e-mail me if you're already a member of the community.

Oh... and if you want to join us and receive monthly calls, CDs, books, a top notch newsletter, a private discussion group, and much more... click this link: http://filbertpublishing.com/creative.html

How Much Do You Write?

AKA: A fairly simple activity you can easily implement that doesn't cost a dime, it doesn't take much time, and it can literally transform your writing career

By Beth Ann Erickson

Every year I say I'm writing two thousand words a day. This isn't an arbitrary figure. I got it from the King himself... Stephen King... in his book On Writing.

He says he writes a specific number of words every single day except Christmas and his birthday. If I recall correctly, that number was two grand. He then went on to say that he actually did write on his birthday and Christmas after all.

Imagine what would happen to your writing career if you churned out 2,000 words every single day. That's 10k a week. In a month, you've got a short book.

How many sales letters is that?

How 'bout autoresponders?

Now, I'm not talking answering personal e-mails. I'm not talking chat-room typing either.

I'm talking hard core, career-inducing, real writing here.

It's amazing to consider how you'd feel one year from today if you actually wrote two thousand words every single day.

Now, I realize, 2k might be a bit high. After all, you may have work duties. Family. Obligations.

In fact, because I make this goal every year, I should probably mention how well I do with it.

Thing is, I'd have to say I'm fairly good at this particular goal. Where I fall of track is with the family obligations.

Here's the drill: something happens to a family member. Who do they call first? Yup. Me. When do they call? Well, they tend to call during my writing time.

And if I don't treat my writing time as gold, I'll answer that danged phone and will lose a day. That's because, as a writer, if I allow myself to get sucked into their world, I'll find myself stuck there for quite some time.

I know what I'm talking about.

This past December, a family member of mine got a DUI, daughter in the car, three cops had to take her down. She's on her way to alcoholic treatment as I write this.

Family crisis. Horrible mess. Crazy phone calls.

Not my problem.

I lost six complete days of work, no writing done whatsoever either fielding phone calls or fretting about the situation before I realized that her problem doesn't belong to me.

Sound harsh? Probably.

But what had begun as a family crisis turned out to be one of the most destructive behavior patterns I needed to break before I could live life on my terms.

I'm a middle child, the “fixer” of the family. I could have a full-time non-paying job listening to family members gripe and moan about this, that, and the other. And I let them. For many years.

It wasn't until my mentor told me to separate myself, break the pattern, and realize my middle name wasn't “Christ”, that I could move on and start enjoying writing.

Ouch.

But back to the story.

After losing all those days of work, I had to learn to use caller ID and not answer the phone during my writing time. I had to call them back after hours.

I had to view the situation from a detached position... like watching a movie... without getting sucked into the drama. I had to fiercely guard my writing mindset or I'd get sucked into a crazy alcoholic world that would cripple my productivity.

It was the hardest thing I've done in a long time, but I had to say “no” on more than one occasion.

And guess what? The family's doing just fine without my meddling.

And I'm happy.

Perhaps '08 could be the year that you prioritize your writing career first. Perhaps '08 could be your breakthrough year. What would you do if your writing dreams began to materialize in '08?

Pretty awesome thought, eh?

Now, I understand your life is probably different than mine. That's fine. That's the way it's supposed to be.

Perhaps you're a uber-writer and want to hit 5k a day.

Maybe you're holding a full-time job and 500 words a day is stretching it.

Just pick a number that works and commit to doing it every single day without fail.

Fifty words a day will always trump zero. A hundred consistent words carry far more power than 500 sporadic ones.

Just choose a number and stick with it.

And the interesting thing is, once you write daily, no matter how many words you churn out, you feel like a writer. And when you feel like a writer, everything else about the career comes much easier.

It's almost magical, difficult to explain, but I hope you'll give it a whirl.

~~~

Beth Ann Erickson is the “Queen Bee” of Filbert Publishing. She’s also the author of numerous titles including “101 No Cost and Low Cost Secrets To Turbo Charge Your Freelance Income.” Pick up your copy today at http://filbertpublishing.com/101.html She’s also a busy copywriter, speaker, and publisher of Writing Etc., the free e-mag for writers. 

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