Publisher’s note: While Beth is recovering from her eye surgery last week, we’re pleased to present this slightly modified vintage issue of Writing Etc. Enjoy!

Writing Etc.

Tuesday February 1, 2002

For easier reading click to:

http://filbertpublishing.com/current.htm

Big News for 2002!

Stephen King’s retiring?

It appears to be true.  According to CNN.com, Stephen King will write five more books, work on a series for ABC, then he’s ending his career.  He says, “Then that’s it.  I’m done.  Done writing books.”

Read the entire article at: http://www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/books/01/29/stephen.king/index.html

Enough news.  It’s time to get to work.  Maybe one of us can fill the void that King will leave when he retires….  Oh, and be sure to forward this e-mag to all your writing friends.

Here's what you'll find in this issue:

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• Mix Your Concrete
• Market of the Week
• CORRECTION
• Get FREE Press Coverage
• News From Minnesota

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Be sure to purchase your copy of The Almach - the story of a woman's abduction in a Middle-Eastern country.  Reviewers are calling The Almach  "Unpredictable,"  "Outstanding," "Vivid," and "Lovely."

Darlene Kendall from http://simegen.com says, “THE ALMACH is a hauntingly beautiful love story full of insight into the lives of it's characters and the settings in which they live.  Deeply felt emotions will make you aware of the saying ‘love never runs smooth.’  This book has an intriguing and sensual tale with twists and turns which will thrill romantics everywhere.”

You can get your copy at http://filbertpublishing.com/Almach.htm , any online bookstore or your local bookstore.

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NOTE:  This article comes from page 54 of my newest e-book, “Jumpstart Your Writing Career and Snag Paying Assignments.”  It’s currently an e-book on http://filbertpublishing.com/jumpstart.htm but the print version will be available within the next couple months.  Enjoy!

Make Your Writing Sparkle by Mixing Your Concrete

This lesson is a companion to yesterday’s assignment about passive verbs.  But we’re not talking about verbs today.  We’re talking about abstract words.

What’s an abstract word?  An abstract word describes something that is not tangible or touchable.  Affection is an emotion.  You can’t touch an emotion.  Justice is a concept.  You can’t touch a concept.  “Affection” and “Justice” are abstract words.

Concrete words are action words that you can “see.”  You can see a kiss.  You can watch someone in court.

Because the notions of affection and justice can vary so much from person to person, it’s often very helpful to mix concrete action words in amongst your abstract terms.

So if you’re writing about one character’s affection for another, mix a kiss in there.  Describe it in concrete terms and SHOW your reader their affection.  Whether the kiss is a peck or one of those long drawn out Hollywood suck-fests (how’s that for a concrete description?) your description will tell you reader in no uncertain terms the true definition of “affection.”

Suppose a father stalked his child’s killer in search of “justice.”  Instead of telling me he’d achieved “justice,” show me how he raises his gun, takes aim, and shoots the killer in the kneecap effectively crippling him for life.  Now that may be a different notion of justice than you had in mind, but the vivid description puts us all on the same page regarding the character’s intent – and notion of justice.

Write something today.  Write about an abstract term like hate, violence, love, or fear.  Make it concrete.  Give yourself some shivers.  See you tomorrow.

Next time – More from “Jumpstart Your Writing Career”

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Market of the Week

“Government Executive,” a publication of National Journal Group Inc., is a monthly business magazine serving executives and managers in the federal government. Our 60,000 subscribers are high-ranking civilian and military officials who carry out the laws that define the government’s role in our economy and society.

Read the writer’s guidelines for this market by surfing to http://www.govexec.com/fyi/guidelines.htm.

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CORRECTION:

In the last issue, I incorrectly transcribed a URL in the “Build Your Research Library – FREE” article.  The corrected paragraph should read:

Small business owners have a plethora of free articles available to them from http://www.lowe.org.  Get information on starting, managing, and growing your small business.  You’ll find the free information you’re looking for under “Find Your Edge Over 1415 Ideas to Help You Grow Your Company.”

So sorry… I hope this helps you find the correct site!

(Note from 2005: You can read this full article under the “Free Writing Articles” page of http://filbertpublishing.com site.)

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Get FR EE Press Coverage

Advertising is expensive.  A small classified ad in my local paper costs around forty bucks to run a four-liner ten days.   Four dollars a day probably isn’t that expensive but those four-dollar increments add up to well over a hundred dollars over a one-month period.  To make matters worse, it’s almost impossible to make your ad stand out in the cluttered classified section, especially if it’s only four lines long.

Luckily, there’s a way to snag those column inches for free.

Write a press release.

Every time something good happens in your writing business – whether you decide to host a seminar, whether you land a new client (get their permission before you announce your affiliation, of course), or if you ink a book deal – write a snappy press release and fax, mail, or deliver it to as many media outlets as you can.

Each press release should contain the elements of a good article.  The better written your release, the better your chances of getting it published.

Here are some basic rules you can use to get your press releases read:

• Be sure to include the, Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How in every release you write.  Answer these questions and the press release practically writes itself.

• Make your headline snappy and relevant to their audience.  It should summarize your article succinctly.
• Write it in the “inverted pyramid” style.  This means you lead with the most important information knowing that if an editor is going to shorten your press release, he’ll usually cut it from the bottom and work his way up.
• Press releases sent to printed media can be longer than ones sent to auditory media.  Fill an entire typewritten page if you’re sending the release to a newspaper.  When you send it to a television or radio station, edit it until you can comfortably read it aloud in around one minute. 
• Read every press release aloud before you send it.  ESPECIALLY those releases sent to radio and television stations.  The less a news director has to edit your work, the better your chances are that they’ll use it.  And when you get a reputation for producing easy-to-read writing, you’ll get even more coverage.
• Send your release to an actual person.  Releases sent to “The New York Times” will probably get tossed by a secretary.  If you send your press release to “John Doe at the New York Times,” chances are he’ll at least scan it before he decides if it’s newsworthy.
• ALWAYS remember to mention your credentials.  Remember, a BIG reason you’re contacting the press is that you want to spread the word about your writing services.
• Don’t be afraid to “touch base” with the person who supposedly received your release.  I had to send a press release to our large local paper three times because they kept “losing” it.  I was always polite, professional, patient, and pleasant (how’s that for alliteration?) when I spoke to them.  My persistence resulted in a 1/3 page article on the FRONT page.  Wahoo!

When you send press releases, your worst-case scenario will be that they won’t use it.  Don’t give up.  It’s not personal.  Media people are extremely busy.  Keep trying, build a good reputation and you’ll eventually hit pay dirt.

Sometimes your press release will run as you wrote it.  Sometimes they’ll run it but it will be edited – sometimes it will be edited a LOT.

Best case scenario?  They’ll send out a reporter and photographer and you’ll get an entire article.  That’s when your job gets fun….

Next time we’ll talk about how to structure your press release.  In the mean time, you can take a look at one of the first releases I drafted when “The Almach” was just hitting bookstores.  Feel free to copy its general form and use it to promote your business/product/book this week.  And let me know how it goes!  Here’s the URL:  http://filbertpublishing.com/guide.htm

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• Organize your nonfiction articles so editors will happily publish your work
• Write powerful queries that’ll open new doors of opportunity
• Promote your writing business for little or no money

Absolute Write calls Jumpstart “a marvelous tool for novice writers and often published authors alike. It’s refreshing, easy to use, and applicable”.

If you want to jump ahead of the pack and start snagging great paying assignments, read more here:

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Did you know that you can forward this e-mail to your writing friends, family, and discussion groups as long as the entire issue is included?

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Notes From Minnesota: 

This past week I’ve been reminded of the newspaper writer’s credo… Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How.  Answer all these elements and you’ve got a pretty decent article.

The reason those words have been on my mind is because last week we received a cryptic telephone call from our local school’s guidance counselor.

“Your son is engaging in an odd activity.”

He wouldn’t tell me more.  However I called one of his teachers and found out what, exactly, my son had been doing.  In honor of his privacy, I won’t reveal what he’d done, but let’s just say it was kind of embarrassing.

As I thought about this situation, I could answer the “Who, What, When, Where, and How” but I couldn’t figure out the “Why.”

After a quick call to the family doctor and a five-minute appointment, we found out “why.”  Seems my son had a good case of eczema – the real itchy kind.  Peder received medication along with instructions to find out what’s causing the skin reaction.

This story is interesting because when we attended the meeting with the guidance counselor early this week, he was ready to recommend that my son go to a psychiatrist so he could receive medications that would make him “less anxious.”

He was very surprised (and a little embarrassed) to find out the kid has a flaming case of eczema.  It never occurred to him that there might have been a physical cause for my son’s behavior.

Within 24 hours of treatment for his rash, Peder was back to normal.

I guess the world needs writers – you see, a writer is someone who insists on knowing the answer to every word in that credo before they proceed with an analysis of a situation. 

I hope you’re the person in your corner of the world who will take the time and energy to answer every one of those credo questions, including “Why.”

It’s such a tiny word.  But the answer can certainly have a big impact in the world we live in.  The answer could even change the world for someone very close to you.

I never would have guessed that the tools for newspaper writing were so important.

Have a fantastic week.  See you next time.

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Don’t Forget to pick up your copy of The Almach. Reviewers are calling it “Haunting,” and “A Great Read.” http://filbertpublishing.com/Almach.htm

E-Mag And Web Site Owners! Did you know that Filbert Publishing has an entire cache of articles you can use FREE. Copy and paste these articles straight into your web site or publication. Here’s the URL: http://filbertpublishing.com/articles.htm

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Feel free to forward Writing Etc. to all your writing friends. Just be sure to include the entire issue. Thanks!

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