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Writers On The Rise Inspiration, Insight and Ideas For Emerging Writers
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Dear Fellow Writers... Two Words: Sustainable + Passion Last month I had one word for you. This month I have two: Sustainable passion. What a great month to talk about passion with Valentine’s Day fast approaching! But don’t take the “sustainable” part out of the equation or you are likely to run quickly amuck. Nothing drives the importance of sustainable passion home more than my recent voracious read of Julia Cameron’s creative memoir, Floor Sample. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a Julia Cameron fan. Her book, The Artist’s Way, has been instrumental to my values and health, as well as my career. The author’s directive to write “Morning Pages” (three pages of longhand stream of consciousness) has helped me discover and pursue my own sustainable passion. Her belief in creativity as a central life-value brought my husband and me together (we met in a café where we were both writing our “Morning Pages”) and continues to ground and direct our union. We married seven months later and now have a beautiful daughter. Sometimes we just can’t juggle two creative careers and a family without those handy “Morning Pages.” Not only do they keep us on track, they help us enjoy the sometimes-bumpy ride that growth can bring. I interviewed Julia in 1998 while working on a non-fiction book that never saw the light of publication. Still, she was generous enough to recommend me to her agent, Susan Schulman, who rejected my book in a straightforward manner (the best kind of rejection, in my opinion, though it was disappointing at the time). However, Ms. Schulman asked me an important question that has served my subsequent career well. She asked, “What do you know?” She said that was what she’d prefer to hear about in my first book. She said what I know was more interesting to her than my compilation of what other people know (the book was, at that time, a collection of interviews). She suggested that my "book" might be better suited for magazines rather than collected. I have spent the past seven years responding to her question. I've focused my energy on writing for magazines and teaching writing-for-publication. I have had seven years to discover what I know and I learn more everyday. On March first, I have a book coming out and guess what's in it? Perhaps this didn't need to take quite as long, an issue addressed quite thoroghly in Writer Mama. And now I’d like to ask you, “What do you know?” Do you have a sustainable passion you can build from wherever-you-are-now into a platform for your writing career? Discovering a sustainable passion can give you an exciting new foothold in writing career you will love and one you will love to develop. And what writer wouldn’t want that? So remember the two magic words this Valentine's Day month: Sustainable passion. Repeat them. Make them your mantra. When your work is your sustainable passion, it’s fun and expansive and you never know where it will lead you next. In the writing spirit, Christina Katz P.S. Sage and I both wrote about acorns this month in our columns but from totally different angles. I hope you enjoy our inadvertent “acorn” issue. P.P.S. Two classes with Christina Katz begin on February 28th: Writing and Publishing the Short Stuff and Pitching Practice. Classes may fill, so don't delay. Register today! Get the full scoop at http://www.writersontherise.com/classes.html. Visit: Get Published & Prosper in 2007: The Essential Resource List Features: Agent & Editor Insights by Lori Russell ( Cindy Hudson—alternate months) The 'View: by Sage Cohen Platform Development 101 by Christina Katz
Ask Wendy by Wendy Burt Time Management for Writers by C. Hope Clark The Writer-preneur by Gregory Kompes The Parent-writer by Sharon Cindrich Freelancers Phrase Book by Abigail Green Writing Conference Success by Mary Andonian Conference Confab by Pamela Kim Good Reads For Writers by Cathy Belben Green Markets To Pitch by Susan W. Clark The Copywriter's Paycheck by Elizabeth Short Shanghai Writing Adventures by Kristin O'Keeffe Closing Words by Sage Cohen
WOTR-Related Announcements & Gleanings Upcoming Classes with Christina Katz Download the 2007 Class Schedule Contributor Appearances & Events Support WOTR (Anytime of year!) Look for the ^ Back to Table of Contents ^ button! WOTR-RELATED ANNOUNCEMENTS & GLEANINGS...
Shop for Mother’s Day by Valentine’s Day This Year! Writer Mama, How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids is an irreplaceable career-growing tool for mom writers everywhere. If you are excited about the book’s release (in March), please show your support by pre-ordering from Amazon by February 14, 2007. Writer Mama makes a great gift for you and all your writer mama friends. Christina appreciates your support! And you support WOTR when you order at our Amazon store!
WOTR-related news: LORI RUSSELL’s story about a cancer survivor’s new business, “Hat Lady Turns Heads” appears in the February issue of Ruralite magazine. A reprint of her story “Cyclist Finds Life Gets better with Age” appeared in the magazine’s January edition. Portions of another reprint were included in the health and fitness piece, “A Plan for All Seasons” in the same issue. CATHY BELBEN'S story that would not die. I made my post-life body-repurposing plans national with the publication of my article “Death Becomes Her” in the October 2006 issue of BUST magazine. Now total strangers know of my plans to reside at the University of Tennessee’s Anthropological Research Facility (a.k.a. The Body Farm) after I move beyond the earthly realm. One of BUST’s readers, a Canadian filmmaker, contacted me about my plans because she is making a documentary exploring some of the post-death alternatives to body disposal. She’ll be visiting me on Thursday to interview me for the film. Contributor ELIZABETH SHORT has recently written and published a new e-book, "Seven Steps to Effective Web Content, How to Be Web-Word Savvy and Do More Business With Your Website." Download your copy for only $9.95 at http://www.write-design.biz/e-books.htm. WOTR Columnists are blogging! PAMELA KIM builds a blog! "After months of being inspired and entertained by blogs, I decided to join in. Sparkly Like a Holiday is an arm of the larger creative communications enterprise that is Studio PK. The blog gives me a reason to write for pleasure, to stretch my voice. And to share the things that inspire me about life, art, organizing and parenthood.
CHRISTINA KATZ blogs about the life writer mama (<<<with puppies, Izzy and Daisy, left to right!) at http://thewritermama.wordpress.com. Here’s where you’ll hear the latest updates on her forthcoming book and daily posts on strategies writer mamas can use to break into print. TECHNO-MAMA gets her Web game on! Visit SHARON CINDRICH'S website, Plugged In Parent for great tips on how to out whiz-kid your kids! Click on the "Plugged in Blog" to hear about her recent TV appearances. Wahoo! ABIGAIL GREEN'S essay, "Maybe Being Different Isn't So Bad" appeared in the Christian Science Monitor in January. Christina got the scoop from Abby about how others can break into this plum market and she's posted it in her blog. Abby's blog is Diary of a New Mom, which is where the essay originated. SUSAN CLARK'S article "Teaching Children to Garden" appeared in the January/February issue of Touch the Soil. GOT ANNOUNCEMENTS OF YOUR OWN? We've finally got a place for you to post them! Check out the RISING WRITERS ROAR BOARD. It's a great place to post your latest publications and get inspired by your fellow writers! Go us! RAFFLE-O-RAMA! Give books away, give ‘em away, give ‘em away now! That’s what Writers on the Rise is going to do all year long, starting in January 2007! We've got a Winner! Cheryl Courtney won Christina Katz' almost-fresh-off-the-presses, Writer Mama, How To Raise A Writing Career Alongside Your Kids (Writer’s Digest Books, 2006). Thanks for the referrals, Cheryl! How You Can Win Too! Every month of 2007 we'll be giving away one copy of Writer Mama, How To Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids. This copy, signed by the author, can be yours, absolutely free, when you invite three writer friends to subscribe to Writers on the Rise. CC or BCC us a copy of the e-mail you send them at Sagewotr@earthlink.net. You will earn one chance to win in our end-of-month drawing. Invite three more and win another chance. The more (legitimate writer friends only, no spamming, please!) you share us with, the better your odds of winning. (Offer not available for WOTR columnists.) Photo Credits: Unless otherwise indicated, Lisa Kae Van Meter Perry contributed our seasonal photographs, which offer this issue a little flavor of the season. You may view her credit below.
LOVE YOUR WRITING CAREER... PITCHING PRACTICE STARTS FEBRUARY 28TH Your Publishing Questions Answered By Wendy Burt
Q: I know that you’re an editor as well as a writer. Can you offer some tips for writers from the perspective of an editor? A: It’s interesting to be on the other side of submissions. I think it’s certainly helped me understand what I did to tick off editors all these years! Here are some of the most common mistakes I witness as an editor.
Q: When should I refer to an editor by his or her first name? A: Once an editor e-mails or calls you and uses their first name only (“Hi Susan, this is John at Men’s Health”), feel free to call them by their first name. Until then, stick with their more formal titles (Ms. Smith or Mr. Jones), or use their full name if it’s a gender-neutral name like Chris Smith. (Don’t assume that the editor of a women’s magazine is necessarily a woman or vice versa!)
Articles, books, greeting cards, oh my! Wendy Burt is a successful full-time freelance writer and editor who has more than doubled her income since leaving her job as a newspaper editor just three years ago. With two women's humor books for McGraw-Hill and more than 1,000 published pieces, Wendy's typical day might including writing ad copy, greeting cards, health articles, personal profiles or her marketing column for Her Business magazine. Her work has appeared in such varied publications as Family Circle, The Writer, MSNBC.com, NewYorkTimes.com, Home Cooking Magazine and American Fitness. Wendy teaches "Breaking Into Freelance Writing" and still finds ample time to spend with her beautiful baby, Gracie. Visit www.BurtCreations.com to see books by Wendy and her award-winning dad.
LOVE YOUR WRITING CAREER... CREATED ESPECIALLY FOR BUSY MOMS! Finally, a writing workshop that fits into the busy lives of moms! The focus is on getting you into print sooner, rather than later, and without pulling all-nighters or paying a fortune in babysitter fees. You will learn how to write and publish short, easy-to-write articles before you work your way up to longer, more time-consuming articles (like features and profiles). Try your pen at tips, fillers, short interviews, list articles, how-tos, and short personal essays. Have fun in the little time you have to write and submit what you complete for publication. The best way to prove you can make money writing is to start doing it! Two detailed reviews of your drafts-in-progress are included at weeks three and six (you choose one piece each time). Busy dads and non-parents are also welcome. Class worksheets are brief and get right to the point, while providing plenty of encouragement and examples from moms who have been where you are. Two detailed reviews of your draft-in-progress are included at weeks three and six. Visit http://www.writersontherise.com/classes.html for more information.
As a government manager with an organizational fetish, I gobbled how-to books like candy. One of my favorites was a skinny book by Kenneth Blanchard entitled The One-Minute Manager. Using a fictional story, Blanchard taught a manager how to deal with employees in terms of goals, praise and discipline. The simplicity of the message amazed me, and I immediately adopted it as my bureaucratic Bible.
A writer might ponder why such a publication would apply to freelancers since they are notoriously loners. While the information relates to managing people, the guidance applies to managing yourself in your struggles to become a career writer, and that includes dealing with other people like editors, peers and editorial assistants. The bottom line to the advice is this: be simple, focused and brief.
ONE-MINUTE GOALS. The most common mistake in setting performance goals is overwriting them. You need goals easily referenced. One I implemented five years ago involved keeping a fixed number of queries to magazines outstanding at all times. I posted the goal on my computer for one year. Today the routine is as natural to me as eating dinner.
ONE-MINUTE PRAISE. While Blanchard references praising other employees, these guidelines work in managing your work and the work schedules of those in your environment. When an interviewee cooperates well, tell him, send him a thank-you and send him a copy of the published article once it is published. Thank your editors as well. An annual holiday card doesn’t hurt, either.
ONE-MINUTE DISCIPLINE. Editors are busy people as are interviewees and experts needed for your material. Deal with issues promptly when misunderstandings, late appointments and lost paperwork occur. While you aren’t disciplining these people, you are dealing with shortcomings that impact your performance as a writer.
While you might not be an office manager, you have many of the same responsibilities and headaches. Think like a manager in organizing your time, and you create an efficient environment for your freelance career.
C. Hope Clark is founder and editor of FundsforWriters.com, annually recognized by Writer’s Digest in its poll of 101 Best Web Sites for Writers. She delivers four newsletters each week to thousands with her specialty being grants and income opportunities for writers of all sizes. She’s published over 200 articles on paper and online. Her magazine credits include Writer’s Digest, The Writer Magazine, ByLine Magazine, NextStep Teen, College Bound Teen, Landscape Management Magazine, TURF Magazine, and American Careers Magazine. Hope is a motivational soul known as “Freelance Hope” in many circles. Those reluctant to promote their writing cherish her trade paperback The Shy Writer: An Introvert’s Guide to Writing Success. Find more hope for your writing career at www.fundsforwriters.com & www.theshywriter.com Curtis Condon of Ruralite magazine By Lori Russell
Many publishing opportunities exist beyond those found on the shelves of the newsstand or bookstore. A savvy freelancer can also find success, and payment for his or her efforts, writing articles for trade and industry-focused publications.
One example is Ruralite magazine based in Forest Grove, Oregon. With a monthly circulation of 312,000 households, Ruralite serves rural electric cooperatives and public utility districts in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Alaska, Nevada and northeastern California. Each year, Editor-in-Chief Curtis Condon purchases 30 to 40 stories from freelance writers. Here he shares what he looks for from a freelancer and what to know about writing for the trades. How do trade magazines like Ruralite differ from consumer magazines one might find on the newsstand? CC: Actually, Ruralite is a hybrid, and much closer—in terms of content—to a consumer magazine. Trade publications are targeted to a specific audience, usually by business or industry type. Often, the content of these publications is moderately to heavily technical in nature. Ruralite is targeted toward the public power/electric utility industry, but most of the content is geared to a general readership. Individual rural electric cooperatives and public utility districts subscribe to Ruralite on behalf of their members/consumers, to use it as a tool to communicate with them. Ruralite is made up of two parts: the basic book pages, which appear in all 47 editions of the magazine, and the local pages, which are generated by each utility for its own edition. The basic book section of the magazine contains general-interest content and is open to freelancers.
What kinds of articles and/or subjects are you looking for from freelancers? CC: A well-written, well-illustrated personality profile is the best way to break into Ruralite. People like to read stories about interesting people. Our stories are about ordinary people with extraordinary talents, accomplishments, hobbies, etc. Keep in mind, 99 percent of the time the people we feature reside in the service territory of one of our utility subscribers, which mostly includes the rural and small town areas of the northwest and Alaska. Also, we do annual gardening and travel issues.
What catches your attention when you receive a query or an article? CC: A writer who does everything right: they pitch a good story idea, they demonstrate their ability to write it, they include information about photo support for the story, and, most important, they leave me with the impression that they have studied the magazine and know the types of stories we publish. Unfortunately, the majority of queries and unsolicited stories I receive don’t meet my needs, because the writer didn’t take the time or effort to find out what those needs are. A freelancer who plans to write a story for simultaneous submission should be sure to tailor the query letter and the story to each magazine, with a different lead and different sources if possible.
What qualities do you look for in a freelancer? CC: I look for good writing and photography skills, professionalism, dependability and consistency. Also, I look for people who can dig up good story ideas. I will work with new/inexperienced writers if they can show a talent for consistently coming up with excellent ideas.
Once a writer has had an article published in Ruralite, are there long-term opportunities to continue to write for the magazine? Absolutely. I’m always looking for writers who can deliver quality stories and photos, and who can meet or beat deadlines. New writers usually start by preparing a short feature for Side Roads. Then they might move up to writing sidebar material for a main feature. After I get to know and trust a good writer, they may be assigned to write a main feature or two.
Are there any trends in the trade publishing industry that writers should be aware of? CC: Trade publications are among the fastestgrowing segments of the magazine business. That is one reason why they are such a great potential market for writers. Another reason is because there’s certain to be one to fit almost any writer’s interests or expertise.
What advice do you have for freelancers wanting to break into the trade magazine market?
CC: First, pick a segment that you are familiar with or where you have expertise; second, study the individual magazines before querying the editors. Go to the library or online and read several recent issues of each title. Make notes about any trends and the slant of the stories. Finally, send a personalized query letter to the editor. A “Dear Editor” letter is a clue the writer hasn’t done his or her homework. If the writer hasn’t taken the effort to find out the name of the editor, what else hasn’t he or she made the effort to do?
Lori Russell is an award-winning writer who has had the pleasure to work with several great editors in her 17 years as a freelancer. She is a contributing editor to Columbia Gorge Magazine and has been a regular contributor to Ruralite for more than a decade. Her articles have appeared in newspapers and magazines throughout the country and her short fiction and poetry has been published in several journals and anthologies. Lori recently completed her first novel, Light on Windy River.
Brand Your Career with a Web site By Gregory A. Kompes
Every writer needs a Web site. These virtual sales brochures brand you as an expert in your niche. When well-designed, Web sites create a positive first impression with your editors, agents, publishers, clients and readers. By following these four steps, you'll have a great site online in no time, for under $60 a year.
Step One: Purchase a domain name that reflects you, your writing, or your services. It's good to be creative, but important to maintain a professional image. No matter what domain name you choose, it's a good idea to also purchase your own name (i.e., gregorykompes.com), before someone else does. I use and highly recommend FabulistFlashDomains.com where domain names are only $9 a year and site hosting starts at $3.99 a month. (Or ask other WOTR columnists which domain providers they like—there are a lot of them out there.) Most offer an annual payment that adds convenience and saves you money.
Step Two: Web sites need a “host” or a place to live online in order to be accessible to viewers. An internet search for "website host services" will jumpstart your research. When selecting a site host, avoid the "free" hosting sites because they put advertising banners on your site creating an unprofessional look. Many site hosts offer banner-free services starting at $3.99 a month. As your career grows, so will your reader following and website needs. It's good to start small and add services as you need them, so select a host that offers upgradeable services.
Step Three: Create site content that promotes you, your services, and your books. Take Jenna Glatzer (www.jennaglatzer.com), author or ghostwriter of 16 books, as an example. Glatzer describes her site: "I have info about each of my books, along with my bio, media appearances, reviews, free articles for reprint, frequently asked questions, and contact info." Websites are perfect for selling books, advertising services, blogging, and capturing your reader fan base through e-mail subscriber lists and newsletters. Future columns will explore these topics in more detail.
Or, if you are not technically inclined, you may want to hire someone build your site for you. After it's done, follow your host's upload instructions (or have your hired gun do so for you) and your site will start promoting you 24-7.
Gregory A. Kompes (www.Kompes.com) is a writer, speaker, mentor and coach. He is the author of the #1 bestseller 50 Fabulous Gay-Friendly Places to Live, The Endorsement Quest, Turning Your Writing Hobby into a Writing Career, and The Everyday Gay Activist. Gregory is the editor of The Fabulist Flash, an informative newsletter for writers, founder of LAMOO Books, and Coordinator of the Las Vegas Writer's Conference. The author holds a BA in English Literature from Columbia University, NY, and is currently a MS in Education candidate at California State University, Eastbay.
The Parent Writer: Strategies for Success How To Generate Quotes from Real, Live Sources in No Time By Sharon Miller Cindrich
Moms—we cook, we clean, we carpool. We are parenting experts—and often good ones—on everything from potty training to puberty, and we love to share our experiences with fellow comrades.
When I first started writing, I looked to my fellow parental comrades as just that—a juicy pool of parenting experts. Many of my article ideas were sparked by conversations with other parents about how much TV was too much or how to handle bedwetting on vacation. Not only would these conversations trigger a great story idea, but they came complete with juicy quotes and enthusiastic experts.
Using real, live parents in your writing adds credibility. Your connections with parents who are willing to share their stories with the world may be very appealing to an editor. When plunking in real moms (and dads), follow these guidelines:
Mother, may I… Make sure you ask permission before adding another parent’s quote or experience to your article—even if you are keeping her name anonymous. Don’t forget Grandma. Parents, grandparents, care givers, aunts, uncles and even teachers—whether they are parents at the moment, for the day or were parents years ago, may have valuable insights that you can share. Don’t forget to draw on those less obvious resources that work with children regularly or deal with parents on a daily basis. They’ve got e-mail. E-mail is easy, convenient and offers interviewees some time to compose an answer they are comfortable with. Send out a call for interviewees through e-mail, and always state the publication that you’re writing for, the subject of the article and the policy on using real names in the piece.
Privacy, please. The mom who told the whole playgroup about her great new birth control method may be happy to share her insights with friends, but reluctant to put it in print. When writing articles with sensitive topics, it is sometimes best to search for sources outside your immediate circle. Post a call for interviews on your blog or the “Magazine Rack” here at www.mommasaid.net/magazinerack.aspx.
As your reputation as a “parenting reporter” grows, your network of experts may even start coming to you with new ideas that could trigger great articles.
Writer Mama, How To Raise A Writing Career Alongside Your Kids By Sage Cohen If you have a full-time job as a mom and think you can’t also have a writing career, think again! There’s a new book in town, penned by our very own editor and publisher, teaching mamas how to become professional writers––in addition to everything else they already do. Christina Katz’s Writer Mama, How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids inspires and equips mamas to make the most of their limited time, navigate the publishing world, and take their writing careers forward.
As managing editor of this publication, it wasn’t too difficult for me to convince Christina to give me an interview about Writer Mama (and if you ask her, I’m sure she’ll be happy to give you one, too). Read on for the exclusive, inside scoop on the forthcoming Writer Mama, How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids.
In your career as a freelance writer, you've written about diverse topics for a wide range of audiences. Why did you want to write a book specifically for writer mamas? Writer Mama was a natural book for me to write because I had a sincere desire to help moms overcome the challenges of writing for publication. Over the past six years teaching writing workshops, I’ve noticed that moms seem to have the most difficulties completing the coursework. As a freelance writer for seven years (and a mother for the past five years), I have had plenty of challenges of my own to learn from. And I have had terrific mentors who are working writer mamas, like Kelly James-Enger and Wendy Burt, who have taught me a lot over the years.
In Writer Mama, you bring together two parallel paths (motherhood and a freelance writing career) and make it seem so POSSIBLE to navigate both successfully. How did you accomplish this in your own life?
I made a ton of, what I would today call, “misjudgments” during the early days of my freelancing career. In Writer Mama I have a chapter in which I use the game CHUTES AND LADDERS as a metaphor for poor career choices and attitudes vs. better ones that can lead to more positive results sooner—just like in the game I loved as a child.
Many of the misjudgments illustrated in the book are ones I made along the way as a freelancer. And many of the positive outcomes are ones I was rewarded with when I started to accept and respond to the way things typically work in the publishing business. Writing success came to me very gradually, but anyone can certainly experience more success sooner if she has a flexible and practical attitude (which is coincidentally the attitude most mothers try to maintain). Motherhood makes us better writers and this book makes that clear without overdoing the message. I think moms will appreciate a little less error for their trials.
How did you make the leap from freelance writer to non-fiction author? Is this a trajectory you'd recommend for others?
An important premise in Writer Mama is that every writer, no matter what particular genre is her favorite, has a non-fiction book (or two or three!) inside of her. Look around at your favorite authors. Chances are very good, unless their books live on the “NYT Bestseller List,” that they have a smattering of books written across several genres or at least in their preferred genre and non-fiction. Since that’s the case, why not go ahead and break into print with non-fiction? Non-fiction pays better, faster, and helps you establish a recognizable platform that leads to more readers for your future books! It just makes good sense and moms are open to writing non-fiction because we simply cannot afford to be “starving artists.” We’ve got mouths to feed.
Just to clarify, I’m not saying, don’t write in other genres. Do! But get established in non-fiction, if you haven’t already, and start bringing in some money and racking up some publishing credits. You can always switch over to another genre down the road or work on more than one genre at the same time.
Let's say I'm a new mom and a beginning writer. I want to take on my first assignment. I'm sleep deprived. I get maybe five minutes to myself per day, and that's in the bathroom. The new frontier of writing feels completely overwhelming, as does the rest of my life. Talk me down from the ledge, Christina!
So let’s start at the beginning. New moms are in a very vulnerable place, especially if they are on some kind of maternity leave that will inevitably run out. So don’t delay. Start taking some “baby steps” in the direction of a writing career if that is what you truly want.
Start with the basics—the physical organization you’ll need to write. Get a basket or tote bag or laptop tray organizer and start gathering the materials you are going to need to grab quickly to get work accomplished in the nooks and crannies of time you have. So you need my book or another good how-to-start-a-writing-career book (I list good ones in the back of Writer Mama.). You need lots of pens, pads of paper, possibly glasses, and that’s enough to get started. Work with a book, tackling one assignment at a time. That’s how Writer Mama is set up and that’s how I work with my students in workshops. That’s the best way to find your writing rhythm, by applying what you learn as you go.
What's the most common mistake writer mamas make that can slow down their progress as freelance writers, and what should they do about it?
This one isn’t spoken about much, so I’ll talk about it. If you want to succeed as a professional writer, you’re going to have to get used to stretching beyond your comfort zone, possibly on a daily basis. That means doing things you’ve never done before and may feel unprepared or unqualified to do, like querying or negotiating a contract. Any task could be the one that strikes terror in your heart, but you really don’t have a choice. The industry is not going to change to appease your needs (although the landscape does shift constantly), so you are going to have to learn how to notice your fears and then act despite them. Hope Clark has said that in Writer Mama I turn stay-at-home moms into dragon-slayers and I think that was well said. I would simply add, dragon-slayers of their own fears because that’s where the dragons live—inside of us.
For many writers, not just moms, the process of writing for publication is not comfortable. It’s supposed to be that way. If you’re not uncomfortable, then you’re probably not stretching yourself enough. Just ask me. I do new things every single day. That’s what it takes to become an author. That is one constant for growing writers, in my experience—frequent fear and the resolve to overcome it.
Look for Writer Mama in bookstores near you starting March 1, 2007.
Sage Cohen is managing editor of Writers on the Rise. With a decade of corporate communications expertise (www.sagecohen.com), a long track record of creative writing accolades (www.sagesaidso.com) and a life coach practice dedicated to supporting writers with their craft, she is passionate about the alchemy of imagination and language. Sage’s writing has been published in journals and anthologies including Cup of Comfort for Writers, Poetry Flash, Oregon Literary Review, www.blueoregon.com and San Francisco Reader. She writes a monthly column for Black Lamb and was awarded first prize in the 2006 Ghost Road Press poetry contest. Tune into Sage’s musings about the life poetic at www.sagesaidso.typepad.com. Cheers and Applause Writing and Publishing Success Stories
SUSAN "USHA" DERMOND's book, Calm And Compassionate Children, A Handbook will be published by Celestial Arts, a Division of Ten Speed Press in March 2007.
KELLY HUFFMAN reviewed the Seattle Repertory Theatre's production of Edward Albee's "The Lady From Dubuque" for the website Theatermania.com. Weekdays, she writes boatloads of business stories for Recreational Equipment, Incorporated (REI), where she now works in internal communications.
LAURAL RINGLER learned about planet flybys and cultural star lore for
JOANNA NESBIT’s article, “Renaissance Celebration Features Local Glass Artists,” appeared in the February issue of Entertainment News Northwest.
Success happens in clusters, writers! Keep the announcements coming and keep inspiring us!
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Step Four: Build a professional-looking website. Some site hosts offer easy templates. If you can use PowerPoint, you'll quickly understand Web site creation software such as FrontPage, Publisher, or Website Tonight. If you're interested in learning the simple website programming language HTML, W3Schools.com has an excellent (and free) HTML tutorial. Christina Katz builds this zine in Contribute, which is inexpensive and easy to learn.
CLAIRE MICHAELS WHEELER'S book, 10 Simple Solutions to Stress: How to Tame Tension and Enjoy Your Life is coming to bookstores in mid-February (New Harbinger).
Freelancers' Phrase Book 
I e-mailed the magazine to request writer’s guidelines. My e-mail was promptly answered by Managing Editor Brita Belli, whose tone was welcoming. Belli said, “The magazine is very open to new writers…E-mailing is the best approach.” While the Editor, Jim Motavalli is listed in the masthead, it was only by e-mailing for writer’s guidelines that I found Belli’s name and discovered that both editors want to receive queries.