Distractions While Writing Articles; The Good, Bad and the Ugly

Many people who write articles and post them at online article submission web sites will listen to music while they work. This can be distracting and sometimes cause mistakes, although for some it can be very enjoyable. For others it can be a knowing and detracting.

On the other hand visuals like watching Discovery Channel, Wings, Weather Channel, Sci Fi, Movie Channel, Sports or News can also be enjoyable while writing and yet watching TV while writing will most definitely add to the number of errors in your articles. I have also noticed that my articles also come out differently. That is to say that the subject matter of whenever I am watching may end up setting the tone for my article. Then if I switch while in the middle of an article it seems to change the outcome a bit?

I know if you are watching a Docu-Drama, Action film or listening to music with lots of verbal irony, Country or some of the newer stuff then you must re-check your articles and be careful editing, otherwise too many mistakes. If you are writing lots of articles and also listening to music or watching TV while doing so then perhaps you need to look over your articles a little bit better to make sure you are saying what you really want to say. Please consider this in 2006.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

Ten Ways to Make Money As a Writer

You know you're a talented and prolific writer. You have the spelling, composition and grammar skills to prove it. Perhaps your dream is to write a screenplay, television series or novel, but right now, there are bills to pay. Here are ten ways to make the rent money while you work on your future masterpiece.

1. Journalism
The field of journalism offers variety, because you can choose any of your favorite hobbies or interests, and write about them while earning a reasonable salary. You also have a myriad of venues to submit your writing, including printed media, such as newspapers, magazines and trade journals; or broadcast media, such as television, radio and the Internet. The most important components of writing good news copy are accuracy and timeliness. You must get all of the pertinent details right and submit the story while the topic is fresh. You also need to find your niche. Do you love sports, fashion or travel? The best part about journalism is the ability to write about things you care about, which leads to great copy, because you'll reflect your passion for the subject in your work, making it stand out above the rest.

2. Technical Copy
If you are one of those people that are technical-minded, then technical copywriting is the choice for you. This type of writing requires the ability to read technical specifications and engineering documents, then understand them well enough to break them down into simpler language for the average reader. This field includes creating user manuals, technical specifications and company documents, such as equipment lists, for both traditional print and for the web. A strong background in engineering, drafting and mechanics will prove beneficial in this specialized field of writing.

3. Scientific, Legal and Medical Research
You need a specialized academic background for this type of writing, such as law, research science, biology, chemistry and legal and medical terminology. However, there's a high demand for people who can write about medical products, scientific breakthroughs, new medications, legal issues and the latest regulations. There is also need for people who can write scientific research reports, as well as grant proposals for scientific research studies.

4. Marketing and Advertising
There will always be a need for talented copywriters. You can earn a steady income if you can write effective marketing and advertising copy. Copywriting offers variety, from writing for catalogs to producing web content. Having a working knowledge of search engine marketing and optimization skills is a plus in this field.

5. Public Relations
The ability to write and submit press releases and other copy to promote businesses and groups in the media is a great way to earn a living by writing. You will need a basic understanding of Associated Press style guidelines and press release format, but once you prove your worth, people will seek your services on a regular basis.

7. Biographies and Ghostwriting
Writers can help people document the lives of loved ones, whether they are well known or not. A new market has opened up with the introduction of one of the newest types of publications, the memory book, which contains both text and photos, to honor those who have passed. In addition, there is a great need for ghostwriters to document the lives of famous people, who are either too busy to do it themselves, or simply lack the writing skills. Ghostwriters also assist people write about other subjects, like an exciting adventure, unbelievable tragedy or historical event.

8. Newsletters
Many companies, clubs and groups publish a newsletter, either with traditional printed media or electronically, and need writers to provide content or edit the finished product before it's released. Although most newsletters have a specific focus, they're a good way to get your feet wet before you advance to media with a larger audience, such as newspapers and magazines. Newsletters, published on a regular basis, are a good way to earn a steady income, too.

9. Blogging
People blog for many reasons, however, blogging has quickly become an effective search engine marketing and optimization tool. E-commerce websites use blogs to attract new visitors to their websites, as well as to keep current users returning to read new content, with the hope that they will become regular customers or clients. Most people consider blogging to be an informal way of writing. However, in order for your reader to consider your blog informative and authoritative, excellent grammar, composition and spelling skills are a necessity. Good writers can earn a regular income with blogging.

10. Poetry and Prose
Are you a master with words? Greeting card companies, magazines, newspapers, websites and gift manufacturers are always on the look out for people who can write short poetry, funny sayings or entertaining prose. With so many holidays and occasions, the greeting card industry is a booming business. People will always need cards with funny, sweet or serious poetry and prose.

Barb Wright is a professional blogger, published author and owner of http://www.writemystuff.com

5 Tips On How To Position Yourself As An Expert

Writing articles will help you in many ways. You can build an online or offline business with your articles. You will also gain visibility and credibility when people see that you are an author. The word author come from the word authority, and it is this fact that will help you to position yourself as an expert in your field. Here are 5 tips on how to write articles that will build your business in a very short amount of time.

• Keep your articles short. No one wants to read a one thousand word article by someone they do not know. People reading online have a short attention span and want information in small chunks. Three hundred word articles will serve you best.
• Write in a conversational manner. Make it easy for the reader to understand what you are talking about and how it will help them.
• Give people useful information that they can put into action immediately after reading your article. There is so much fluff out there, people will appreciate and remember someone who honestly gives good, solid tips and suggestions in their articles.
• Show both sides of what you are writing about. Your readers need to know what will work for them and what will be a waste of their valuable time.
• Write as though you were talking to a prospect or client. If you learn to do this well enough, many of your readers will turn into clients.

Follow these five tips and you will position yourself as an expert in your field very quickly by writing articles for your business.

And now I invite you to join me for free weekly teleseminars that will teach you how to write, market, and sell your articles and ebook to increase your visibility, credibility and passive income by visiting http://www.EbookWritingandMarketingSecrets.com and download two free article writing templates at http://www.WriteArticlesWithJeffHerring.com to get started right away

How to Express Percentage Changes and Use Numbers Correctly in Technical Writing

A number is tricky thing. As a technical writer you have to pay attention to the way you are using numbers and expressing changes in ratios and percentages.

For example, when you say "the file size shrunk by 100%" you are basically saying this: "The file has just disappeared!" Is that what you really wanted to say?

If a 4 Meg file shrunk to 2 Meg in size, it shrunk by 2 Megs.

What was the original file size? 4 Meg.

When you divide 2 by 4 you get 0.5, correct?

Multiply that by 100 to get a percentage - and you get 50% (not 100%)

Here is a good rule to find out the percentage changes in file sizes:

1) Start with the original size (O).

2) Subtract the final size (F) from O to find the difference (D).

3) Divide D with O and multiply by 100. That's your correct percent difference.

You can apply this not only to "file size" but ANY quantifiable and measurable change as well.

For example, imagine you moved from a house that cost $120,000 to one that cost $176,000. How much more expensive the new house is?

1) O (original cost of [the old] house): $120,000

2) F (final cost of [the new] house): $176,000

3) D (difference in the costs of two houses): $56,000

4) Percent difference: (56/120) x 100 = 46.6%

The new house is 46.6% more expensive than the old one.

When you are describing a process that takes "twice as long," or "two-times slower," do not write "the process is now 200% slower" because that would be incorrect.

The correct expression would be: "the process is now "100% slower". Here is why:

1) O (original process duration): 24 minutes

2) F (final process duration): 48 minutes

3) D (difference in duration): 24 minutes

4) Percent difference: (24/24) x 100 = 100%

If you are interested to read more about technical writing as a career and how it can help you earn a steady living, visit http://www.learntechnicalwriting.com You might be pleasantly surprised with what you'll find out. Join the thousands who are already helped and inspired by this information provided by a Fortune 500 Senior Technical Writer. Visit today and claim your free report "How Much Do Technical Writers Make?"

Dr. Ugur Akinci is a Fortune 500 Sr. Technical Communicator http://www.technicalcommunicationcenter.com/

Technical Writing - What to Do During Economic Downturns

We are in the midst of an economic downturn as these lines are written. Things are not peachy for a lot of people right now, including writers. For technical writers, location is important in times like these. For those who do not live in hi-tech metropolitan areas, well-paying jobs might not be that easy to come.

So what should a technical writer do in-between jobs? Such temporary downtimes can actually be an excellent opportunity to work on basic skill sets and build up one's portfolio.

For example, if you're a beginner level tech writer I recommend you practice your indexing and TOC skills and write a great 20-page "User Guide" about a software you're already using. If you do not have MS Office, download Open Office for free and write a sample guide about how to use the basic functions of Open Office. That way, when you go to a job interview in the future you'd have something to show as a proof of your tech writing skills.

You can also offer volunteer documentation work for your church or synagogue or house of worship, a membership club, or a sports or social organization that you belong to. Perhaps it might be the local chapter of your party, if you are into politics? Today you can start writing their Policy and Procedure handbook, handling their office correspondence, or writing a press release for them and doing other kinds of low-tech writing assignments. And tomorrow? You never know.... if and when they need a full-time writer or have the budget to pay for part-time assignments, you would be the first one they would naturally consider thanks to your earlier volunteer work. It's important to keep networking and keep in touch with such contacts.

If you are an experienced technical writer you can brush up on some advanced-level skills like learning XML, structured authoring and DITA. Enrolling in a graduate degree or certification program is another option to make the best of such temporary bumps on your career path.

If you are interested to read more about technical writing as a career and how it can help you earn a steady living, visit http://www.learntechnicalwriting.com. You might be pleasantly surprised with what you'll find out. Join the thousands who are already helped and inspired by this information provided by a Fortune 500 Senior Technical Writer. Visit today and claim your free report "How Much Do Technical Writers Make?"

Dr. Ugur Akinci is a Fortune 500 Sr. Technical Communicator http://www.technicalcommunicationcenter.com/

6 Highly Useful Things to Guide Students When Writing Their Essays

The students from the various scholastic levels would usually be required to write different kinds of essays for their classes. Professors would either give their student's a topic, something that is about their course, or give the students the option to pick their own topics. What these means is that writing an essay is always a big part of a student's life. However, Not all students are good with using language or writing essays. Some lack the proper grasp of grammar and vocabulary to make the article.

For the students who are not as skilled or are having difficulty in finding time for writing their papers, these 6 tips would help in creating a good quality essay.

1. Choose a topic that involves a personal interest. Crafting an essay becomes less tedious if one is innately enjoying what he is writing about. This makes writing about the subject something of a second nature to the writer. For car enthusiasts for example, an essay on the newest cars or parts is just like talking with their friends and sharing interests. In situations wherein the professor hands out the topics, the students can just write on the topic in a way that uses an angle related to the interest.
2. Do some research first. Before doing the writing, the student should first do some research. Being able to research the topic of the essay,gives the writer the opportunity to take various points and angles and use them in the essay. This research task is even much easier now with the advent of the internet and various online resources.
3. Create an Outlines for the essay. Creating an outline for the essay allows one to see how the essay will be structured and what kind of sentences each paragraph should have. A good outline would use either topic sentences or idea phrases, to make it a worthwhile guide for the essay writer.
4. Look at example essays. An essay example gives students the chance to learn more ways of writing their papers. Having access to other essays helps one learn how to use smooth transitions in presenting their topic. The essay example allows the student to look at how the author talks about the topic. One can then emulate the use of language, style, and flow of the author in their own papers. To be able to find examples, the students can ask their professors or can even browse some sample online articles.
5. Make sure the paper follows the instructions and guidelines set by the institution. Academic papers have to follow a specific set of rules with regards to its format. Format rules would usually include specifications for font sizes and styles, and margin width. Check that the paper is able to follow all these rules.
6. Check for grammar and typing errors. Avoid point deductions from your essay due to errors in spelling and grammar use. Low grades are given to well-crafted due to such markdowns. Grammar and Typing errors can be seen by the professor as sloppiness on the part of the student. Use the spellchecker in the software, as well as check the paper once it is printed out.

Angela Foster is an English Literature professor in her local college. She had been a teacher for 20 years and is known due to her essay assignments on everything. When not giving out or grading submitted papers and other articles, she spends her time by taking care of and playing with her granddaughters. She can be usually found visiting the park or zoo with her grandchildren, playing the role of their tour guide.

Story Endings - Ten to Avoid

A logical, satisfying ending is always required in a short story, but how do you ensure that yours is fresh and new? One of the ways is to avoid the obvious. Here are some common endings seen by editors: use them at your peril.

And then I woke up.

The 'Dallas' gambit. This approach is nothing more than a cop-out for people with no imagination. Stories should reach a logical conclusion that satisfies the reader and resolves any conflicts. This method does neither.

And then I died.

The 'Weird Tales' gambit. This one turned up regularly in horror tales during the early part of last century, until it was overplayed by HP Lovecraft, among others. A diary which ends in a string of nonsense words as a crawling terror from beyond comes for the author was fine the first time out, but most editors have seen it too many times.

And I found out I'd been dead all along.

The 'Sixth Sense' gambit. This is an old one, which is why people who were well read in the genre spotted the twist very early in M Night Shyamalan's film. An overused variation is to have someone breaking out of a coffin after a supposedly premature burial. Don't do it; the editor will see it coming from a mile away.

And they called them Adam and Eve.

The 'Bible' gambit or, as Michael Moorcock puts it, Shaggy God stories. If you start with a nuclear holocaust or human colonists on a new planet, make sure you don't use this ending or the story will be bounced back to you straight away. The other trap to avoid is having a computer become a god. That avenue was new in the '40s, but these days an editor will laugh himself out of his chair.

And then I saw the fangs, just before he bit me

The 'singles bar pick-up' gambit. With this worn-out ending, a person visits a bar and is seduced by a pale, interesting stranger who turns out to be a vampire, a ghost, a werewolf or an alien. There are several variations seen nowadays, such as same-gender meetings and graphic sex scenes before the revelation, but the stories are all the same and editors know it.

And then I caught up with the '@!* who'd done me wrong and shot the @'!** out of them.

The 'Death Wish' gambit is the beloved technique of Michael Winner fanatics and gun-nuts. It makes for a very dull story unless you can bring style, energy and a unique vision to it, in which case you'd probably be better off trying to sell it as a film treatment. There's a long tradition of revenge movies, but in the written word they all come across as being very similar. A variant on this handling is the Charles Atlas gambit, where the weedy nerd becomes a kung-fu expert to wreak revenge on his tormentors. Don't be tempted to use this angle. Editors will know what's coming.

And the next day I read in the paper that he'd died.

The 'I talked to a ghost' gambit. This practice turned up frequently in Victorian literature. It's usually no more than an anecdote turned into a story. Variations include talking to someone who is later discovered to be the victim of a plane crash, an automobile wreck or a major catastrophe. Editors see a slew of these after a natural disaster, but whatever caused the person's death, the stories are all the same.

And it was a man in a mask all along.

The 'Scooby-Doo' gambit. Pretend spooks are a clich. The whole story builds up a sense of supernatural menace, only to reveal a human agency behind it all. It won't usually get past an editor but if it does, readers will feel disappointed and let down.

And it was my evil twin; we were separated at birth.

The 'doppelganger' gambit. Stephen King got away with this in The Dark Half and Dean Koontz pulled off a variation by making both twins evil in Shivers, but unless you have their style and wit, you shouldn't attempt it. Another variation, beloved of the romantics among us, is to have the protagonist find out they're really the son, daughter or sibling of a rich family. This mode is really just wishful thinking on behalf of the writer. You shouldn't be sharing your daydreams with editors.

I'm really a dog/cat/demon/alien.

The 'non-human storyteller' gambit is tried and tested. That's the problem. If you don't leave any clues to the fact, the reader will feel the ending is a cop-out. If you do leave clues, the reader and your editor will spot the ending coming unless you're very good at disguising the fact.

Remember, people have been writing stories for a very long time. If you've read a similar ending in a story or seen it in a film, you can bet the editor will be aware of it, too. There are only so many original endings to go around; make sure yours is one of them.

William Meikle is a Scottish writer, now living in Canada, with seven novels published in the States and three more coming in 2007/8, all in the independent fantasy and horror press. His short work and articles have appeared in the UK, Ireland, USA, Canada, Greece, Saudi Arabia and India. He also has three shorts produced from his scripts, and several supernatural scripts currently on option, including four shorts, and a supernatural thriller feature.

William Meikle
http://www.williammeikle.com