Writing And Blogging: Beyond The Wall

It's finally happened. You've hit the wall. The dreaded writer's block has struck and you're being outstared by a blank screen. What do you do? Where do you turn for inspiration? The answer may be closer than you think.

Writers are often told to write what they know. So what do you know? My response: you know more than you think. Here are five places to look for inspiration.

Look inside
How do you define yourself? People describe themselves by age, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, nationality or, in my case, by hybridity. This last is a term used by Homi Bhabha to encompass those who have mixed cultural influences. My influences are the British and Caribbean parts of my heritage. Although these haven't yet made an appearance in my fiction writing, they've produced a couple of interesting poems. However you define yourself, there will be characteristics and issues to write about - and you'll have a ready made audience in those who also think of themselves that way.

What's the job worth?
The workplace is another rich source of inspiration. In addition to all my writing-related jobs, I've worked as a sales assistant in a bookshop, a receptionist/typist/temp (for three weeks), a human resources/personnel person and an English teaching assistant in France. All of these jobs have given me experiences and brought me into contact with people who might inspire a piece or pieces of writing. So what's on your resume (or off it) that might inspire you?

Family affairs
Casting the net wider, think about the wealth of experiences that you and your extended family have had. Marriage, divorce, childbirth, parenting and the like are rich fodder for writers. Medical and mental conditions such as gallstones, heart disease, hysterectomies, alcoholism, polio (to name only those that have affected people I know) can give you a starting point for an article or story.

Role play
Continuing the theme, your role within a family or extended family gives you even more to draw on. Are you a wife, husband, father, mother, parent, child, only child, sibling, uncle, aunt or grandparent? What have you learned from that role that you might want to share with others? Have you met anyone who seemed to epitomise the role, or someone who was getting it completely wrong?

Free time
Hobbies and interests are another rich source. I can still remember the pain of cross-country running around the school - and I'll write about it one day. I'll also write about tennis, badminton, volleyball, track and field, racquetball, netball, basketball and swimming. Don't think I'm athletic, I'm not. But I've tried all of these and learned something which I can use in my writing.

My point is that inspiration is all around you - you don't have to look very far. And don't think you have to bare all to make these ideas work. These are merely starting points for material that you may well alter and fictionalise completely. Some things have to stay private, after all.

Breaking Up Ain't Hard To Do

From beginnings to endings ... I've previously given advice on structure and writing for both news and feature articles, but there's one aspect I haven't touched on - the end of your story or article. So repeat after me:

Endings should not just be left to happen

What do I mean by this? That your story or article should have a point. When you get into a car and start the engine, you usually have a destination in mind. Use the same principle when crafting your article or story. Both you and your reader should know where you're going. That's so important that I'm going to repeat it, though with a bit of variety for the pernickety among us. Both your reader and you should know where you're going. That doesn't mean that the destination won't change while you're writing, but there should be no nasty surprises at the end of the journey.

What makes a good ending?

Only you and your readers will know. Your ending will fulfil the promise of the start of your story. To give a few examples:

• If you're writing a profile of a company, you may have started with some new venture they're undertaking and followed that up with a bit of history. A good ending would either summarise the company's philosophy or talk about next steps in its development (or maybe even both).
• If you're writing an individual's profile, a good ending may talk about plans for the future or may contain a quote that encapsulates how that individual thinks about life.
• If you're dealing with an event, a good ending may briefly assess its significance in the context of similar events, or may speculate on where the event may lead.
• If you're writing fiction, a good ending will tie up any loose ends. (Readers should not be asking: 'So what happened to so and so?')

This last example holds true for almost any kind of writing.

Now, please don't take those examples as a blueprint. They are just strategies that have worked in my own writing career. Since every piece of writing is unique, every ending will be too. So when you're writing consider this (with apologies to Bill Gates): where do you want to go today?

Do You Give Good Headline?

Headlines are key elements of news and feature articles (and blog posts). A good headline is the difference between catching someone's attention and losing it forever. This may not matter much in every situation, but if you've sent in a piece on spec (that is, in the hope that an editor will publish it) then a good headline is the way to catch the eye of the first reader. This also applies to press releases. Dozens of these cross an editor's desk each day and the ones with eye-catching headlines stand a better chance of being published.

What do headlines do?

Headlines draw attention to the content of your story. In some cases you may choose to refer directly to the story; in others you may prefer to make a pun or joke that will draw the reader in with humour. Be careful of this approach, though, as not everyone will find the same jokes funny. The key elements of good headlines are clarity and impact.Use short, direct, concrete words and avoid punctuation where possible unless you're making a point.

How do you choose your headline?

Easy. What's the main point of your story? If you haven't got one, then maybe you need a rewrite. If you have, then that's what you base your headline on. Brainstorm around the key words of your story. If you're writing a blog post, the words you use to tag it may provide a clue. Another exercise which may work is to imagine you're sending a telegram (remember those? I don't - but I've seen them in films) at $50 a word. What are the essential words that will get your point across? Once you have those, your headline is born.

Headline writing is not an exact science. What works for some won't work for others. However, wcbelew's KISS advice for blogs works equally well for headlines. And a final word of advice: avoid hype. You don't need to use words like shock, horror and the like. They're so overused that most people are impervious to them. Stay away from the hyperbole and stick to the essentials.

So that's the theory, what about the practice?

I don't always get it right. I occasionally go back and change the title of one of my blog posts because it's not getting reads and it's obvious that the title is off-putting. For example, Working and Mothering was originally called WAHM, SAHM, Thank You Ma'am (which I think is better, but obviously didn't appeal). I couldn't think of a way to make ghostwriting sound more interesting. (Suggestions, anyone?). My favourite title is How I Put My Site On Steroids. I think it works because it tells you exactly what you're going to get, but does it in an interesting way.

Which of your titles have attracted most attention? Which posts did you think deserved to be read but fell by the wayside? I'd be interested to hear.

Blogging As Portfolio

Remember when I gave you reasons to get on the net? One of these was to have a quick way to show editors and publishers your work. If you're a freelance writer, a blog can be just as useful as your own website. Think about it. Do any of the following apply to you?

• You blog almost every day
• You're constantly thinking of new ideas for posts
• You try to make your posts useful to your readers
• You don't mind taking a bit of criticism

If all these things are true, your blog will make a great online portfolio. A blog is a wonderful place to rehearse your ideas for articles, stories, novel chapters, poetry or any kind of writing. If the community is active, the feedback you receive will tell you whether your writing is interesting and whether it's readable (not necessarily the same thing). You'll also be able to see where improvements can be made.

When editors are asking to see examples of your work, you can point them to your blog - I do. With two blogs and a website, I've got lots of examples of the variety of writing I can do - and I'll bet most of the writers here have the same.

A word of warning, though. Most editors want ORIGINAL content for their publication or website, so if you've written it on your blog, you'll have to make it slightly different if you want to publish the material elsewhere. But if you're a writer, that shouldn't be a problem. Happy blogging!

A Week Of Promotion

Last week was interesting. I'm beginning to see some real results from all the work I've been doing promoting my site. Here's how the week went. On Monday, wearing my academic hat, I completed a book review for a refereed journal. I've been quite vocal in the past about not working for free, and I still believe that, but in academia, at least here in the UK, it's not uncommon to contribute to journals just to raise your profile. That may lead to research money and a better job, so you get paid by a roundabout method. Anyway, I'd promised I would do it, so I did, though I found myself resenting spending time that I could have spent on paid work. At least my conscience was clear.

On Tuesday, I submitted and was paid for a review of a charity concert organised by one of my former students, who was very, very pleased with it. He's just setting up a website for band promotion, so I expect that more work will be coming my way. His site is down at the moment, but I'll add a link once it goes live.

On Wednesday, I tweaked my website some more and had a phone call from a television producer who had found something I'd written on books and wanted to talk to me about a programme he was making. Score one for Jane Austen.

So far, so good, right? Thursday was mixed. I was very pleased to get a project invitation from Guru.com, but as I've said elsewhere in comments, it turned out to be for a site offering adult material, and I wasn't sure that was where I wanted to go. I also completed a sales letter, uploaded a product onto Clickbank, and started investigating new software for my other blog.

On Friday, I attended an online meeting and came out of it with ideas for a couple of things I could write and earn from. Even though, I was tired, I felt that I'd been in the right place at the right time and my brain was buzzing!

While all this was going on, I continued to post on both my blogs, check my site stats, check on projects I'd bid for at Guru.com (I've just about given up on Elance) and write down ideas for posts for this week.

It was a busy week, but I felt as though some of my hard work on site and self-promotion had paid off. How was your week?

How To Make An Editor Love You

I recently gave you some advice on feature writing but while lying awake one morning, I suddenly realised there were a couple of points I hadn't stated explicitly. I'm going to remedy that lack right now, and keep it relatively short and sweet. There are three ways to make an editor love you:

Meet the deadline

This is crucial. If you submit work late, you mess up the editor's schedule. Most editors only let you do that once before marking you down as a waste of time. If you're particularly well known in your field, you just might get away with it, but don't be complacent. The editor will be looking around for someone equally good who is reliable. Obviously, there are circumstances in which editors might be prepared to be lenient. If you're interviewing a major figure who has suddenly left the country on business, then there's not much you can do about it. Severe illness or bereavement will also count. If this happens, tell the editor in plenty of time so s/he can fill the gap you've left. The editor will appreciate your thoughtfulness and your understanding of the production process.

Meet the brief

If an editor commissions you to write a particular article or type of article, don't submit something completely different. S/he may have built a whole magazine or section of magazine around your article and s/he won't be pleased if you mess up her arrangements. So, if you've been asked to do something specific, do it - and you're likely to be asked to do more in the future. Now, we all know that writing evolves, so it is perfectly acceptable to ring or email the editor (well before your deadline) to explain that the article is turning out slightly differently than expected and to discuss ways of proceeding. Once you've agreed on on revised parameters, then turn in what you've agreed (on time).

Get in style

Make sure that the style and tone of your article is appropriate for your audience. The closer you come to getting this right, the more likely an editor is to think of you the next time there's a commission available. Remember to spell check your work - and remember to double check on the spell-check. Spell-check programmes do NOT catch all errors ('form' for 'from' is an example) so proofreading is essential. Keep your work error-free and you're likely to get hired again.

So those are my top tips for pleasing an editor. There are other things you can do, of course, such as having appropriate ideas for content and providing added value with your articles (in the form of material for sidebars or photos, for example), but the three areas I've listed are the ones that, in my opinion, editors will care about most.

Working and Mothering

Like many of the people here, I'm a work at home mum. In lieu of any inspiration for another freelance writing tip, I thought I'd share with you what my week is usually like. In essence, it breaks down into two parts. Monday to Wednesday, my daughter is at nursery (because those were my work days when I went back to work). The rest of the week, she's at home and we do kiddy activities. Here's our schedule.

Monday to Wednesday
6.30-7.00am - daughter wakes up and either (a) makes clanking noises in her room as she rummages for toys or (b) comes bursting into our room to tell us something important. Either way, I'm awake and haven't had enough sleep
7.00-8.00am - My daughter and I talk, play and get dressed, then her dad takes her to nursery
8.00-1.00 - check email (since I'm in a different time zone, there's always something in my inbox from North America; check WritingUp for recent posts and comments; write a blog post (or two); work on my house move ebook; check ezinearticles to see if anyone's picked up my articles; check google adsense; check my web stats; check my Ryze page for messages;
1.00-1.15pm - lunch
1.15 -5.15pm - more writing, noting down ideas; website management (what content am I going to add or what am I going to change this week so the search engines keep indexing my pages); if I can I draft a couple of blog posts I can use later in the week (you'll see why soon)
5.30 -7.15pm pick up daughter from nursery, followed by playtime, dinnertime and bedtime
7.15-8.00pm if my husband's on the bedtime shift, time for another quick email and writingup check; if not, it's the shower, story, bed routine.
8.00-10.30pm - grownup time: reading, talking, television

Thursday to Sunday
6.30-7.00am - daughter wakes up and either (a) makes clanking noises in her room as she rummages for toys or (b) comes bursting into our room to tell us something important. Either way, I'm awake and haven't had enough sleep
7.00-8.30am - My daughter and I talk, and play
8.30-9.30am - her dad gives her breakfast and plays for a while (he works from home too) while I do a lightning-quick email and blog check and post
9.30-1.30 - playgroups of various sorts (Thursday and Friday only); followed by lunch and a nap (for my daughter if I can persuade her.
1.30-2.30pm - catch up on email, writing or web management
2.30-7.15pm - playing, reading, singing, television, outing to the park, supermarket or wherever.
7.15-8.00pm if my husband's on the bedtime shift, time for another quick email and writingup check; if not, it's the shower, story, bed routine.
8.00-10.30pm - grownup time: reading, talking, television

So, how does it work? Well, I've never missed a writing deadline, though I'm always playing catchup on the domestic front. I spend a lot of time with my daughter, which I really enjoy. I never begrudge a second of it, because I'll never have that time again. I feel a bit guilty sometimes when I'm working and it's obvious that she's desperate for my attention, but by and large, I think the balance is right, though I am ALWAYS tired. However, there'll be time enough for me to focus even more on writing when she goes to school. So, that's my story. If you're a WAHM/SAHM like me, what's your week like?