The weekly ezine with a road map for
sidetracked writers.
"Be better writers today
than we were yesterday."
Welcome to our new subscribers, and welcome back, if
you've been here before!
Thought for the Week - Clean Your Car
OK. I know you are laughing at me. Julie, what
does a clean car have to do with my writing?
Don't
we all live with too much clutter around? The best
thing about your car is that this is a small area
(relatively easy to clean and keep out the clutter) and
you spend time in it nearly every day (at least I do).
So,
it's fairly easy to get your car spotlessly clean.
Then make a rule that every time you pull into the
driveway, you take all the stuff (including the trash!)
out of the car. With this rule, it's easy to KEEP it
clean.
Then every
time you hop into your clean car, it will be soothing
rather than stressful.
How
do I know this? This week, my mini-van got a
thorough overhaul. It desperately needed the whole
works... and every time I've gotten into the van this
week, instead of thinking, "I've GOT to get this van
clean," I was thinking, "Wow. The van is
so clean." Then as I was driving, it was easy
to move my mind to my other projects, especially my
writing projects.
AND...
it always feels good to check off one of those projects
that has been hanging around on your to-do list for too
long!
In case you missed the announcement
last week, for the month of July and possibly August, you'll be receiving very short editions
after my parents stays in the hospital. I need to focus on my kids and
family along with some additional corporate work I've
scheduled. Thanks for understanding!
P.S. "Julie, I love your book. I have read (or at least opened) more than a trunk load of books about writing over the years. Yours is the first I have seen that gives readers so much in one place. For me, the Master List and putting that together was more than worth the cost."
-- David Stoddard
Motivational writer, trainer and publisher of the
Terrific Life Concepts ezine.
http://djstoddard.net
Do you need .PDFs of your brochures and flyers? Consider purchasing
The Print Shop Deluxe 15 from Broderbund.
For only $24.99, it creates .PDFs of your design files. I paid $400
for the full version of Acrobat last year, so this is a deal. Go to
the bottom of the home page to order for a limited time.
August Office Updates
Don't forget to set aside your cash
this week...
What does your office need? A new desk chair or maybe a printer? August, with all of its back-to-school sales, is one of the best months for purchasing office equipment. Look through the following list to see if you need anything:
-- Desk
-- Desk chair
-- Laser printer
-- Label printer
-- Filing cabinet
-- Bookshelves
-- Phone with time-saving bells and whistles
-- New computer/laptop
-- Cassette recorder
-- Stock up on office supplies
Estimate how much money you will need, and then divide it by six to get your weekly "set-aside" amount (August 15th is about six weeks away). Each week, set aside the cash in a special envelope. When the sales hit, you'll have the money ready and won't
have to use your credit cards.
BOOK REVIEW:
The Fast Track Course on How to Write a Nonfiction Book Proposal
If you are trying to publish your book with a traditional publisher, I
highly recommend The Fast Track
Course on How to Write a Nonfiction Book Proposal.
According to the author, Stephen Blake Mettee, "Most nonfiction books
are sold to a publishing house on the basis of a book proposal, usually
before the book has been completely written..."
But, just what is a book
proposal? Mettee dives right in with his explanation on page three,
"A book proposal is a ten-to-fifty page document designed to give the
acquisitions editor enough information and enough confidence in you as a
writer that he will offer to publish it."
Do
you know what you need before you put together the book proposal?
No? Find out in Chapter 2 which explains the goal of a query letter
and how to write one.
This quick-read provides the essentials you need to learn how to write
your proposal. It gets an A+ in the scan factor with lots of
headings and bulleted items. It also includes a sample query letter,
a sample book proposal, a sample agency contract and a sample book
contract. Before you pop your proposal in the mail, check out the
book proposal checklist on page 100.
My
recommendation: This is the perfect introduction book if you
need to know how to write your book proposal whether it is for an agent or
an editor.
To order the book, call the publisher direct at 1-800-497-4909 or from Amazon.
Like Organized
Writer.com? You'll love the book.....
Check out the latest review of The Organized Writer, by Betty Winslow at
AbsoluteWrite.com:
"With intriguing chapters...and an appendix of 25 ready-to-use forms, this book is exactly what disorganized writers need to pull themselves out of the pit of disorganization they have fallen into."
M T W T F S S
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 1. Declutter (only 5 minutes)
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 2. Read (only 5 minutes)
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 3. Assess (30 seconds to 5 minutes)
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 4. Write (at least 5 minutes)
Weekly Checklist
For freelance writers: Use this weekly checklist to find, write and send a query every week of 2003!
Monday
__ Make notes on a new idea.
Tuesday: Accounting Day
__ Post your accounting records.
__ Pay bills.
__ Follow up on outstanding invoices and queries.
Wednesday
__ Find a new market using links below.
Thursday: Errand Day
__ Make copies.
__ Return books to library.
__ Make deposit at bank.
Friday
__ Finish query and submit.
__ Match your query to the market.
Saturday Weekly Review
__ How was this week?
__ What's up next week?
__ Review your Projects list in your planner and check the
status.
__ Jot the next action steps for your projects on next week's
calendar.
__ Backup your computer files.
__ Virus scan your computer.
Sunday
__ Relax and enjoy!
__ Do something fun today!
Thanks for visiting Writer-Reminders! If you have comments,
success stories, or suggestions, reply to this message or e-mail
me at :julie@writer-reminders.com
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Copyright 2002-2003 Finally Organized LLC. All rights reserved worldwide. This
newsletter is provided with the understanding that the author is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other
professional services. If legal or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be
sought.
Writer-Reminders and OrganizedWriter.com provide links to other Internet
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Writer-Reminders and OrganizedWriter.com do not guarantee, approve or
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