A Writer's Life

STOP SOPA

2012-01-18T17:38:00.000-09:00

Do you use Wikipedia? Did you try to visit your favorite information sites today only to discover that some sites could be censored by SOPA?

The internet would be a bleak place if we tried to surf to sites only to be blocked from viewing them - because we are in America!

DO NOT let the government tell you what the Internet is. Educate yourself about SOPA and find out why so many sites like Google, Wikipedia, Reddit, Wordpress, Namecheap, Archive,org and many many others feel that SOPA is not the way to stop online piracy.

Chemical M&A Trends for 2011

2012-01-18T00:15:00.000-09:00

Financial freedom is something that we all want. The ability to get the things we need without any concern that the cost will cause us financial hardship. As we age we think more and more of the future and what our individual investments will mean for our future financial security.

There are many ways one can seek to secure their own financial freedom, and in this day when everything around us relies on the advances of science chemical mergers and acquisitions is one area that might warrant more attention. Companies such as the Valence Group specialize in chemical investment banking and have made themselves experts in the specialized areas of chemical M&A advising.

Lower investments in the middle-market level, those that deal in values under $100 million, are showing a better stability in the uncertain economy than larger mergers and acquisitions. The future for chemical M&A is growing, however, and it is anticipated that 2011 has the potential to be strong.

After 2008 and 2009 the market wavered, with buyers returning in 2010 to secure small and mid-sized investments in chemical mergers and acquisitions in what could be a reemergence of the market and a hoped for renewed stability in the economy.

It is not anticipated for the chemical M&A markets to reach per-recession levels in 2011, but there is definite hope for some marked improvement in the markets this year. One slow down in the market right now is in uncertainty of those who have market shares on rather or not they want to sell in this still low market, but even with the investors holding on for better times it seems like the chemicals M&A markets are going to be seeing a steady improvement in active trading in 2011 and beyond.

What does it take for writing to pay the bills?

2012-01-17T18:40:00.000-09:00

While every writer dreams of the day their writing will pay all of their bills, most writers live paycheck to paycheck and search for that next writing piece that might put them ahead enough to make ends meet completely.

So, how do you know when the writing is paying the bills? You calculate what your average monthly bills are for three months in a row, then subtract that from how much you have made from your writing in the same time span. If your writing income minus your bills leaves you in positive numbers, then you are starting to do good. If you have a significant amount more from writing than you are paying in bills one of two things may have happened: you might be doing really good, or you might have forgot a bill (you remembered the mortgage payment, right? Cost of food?)

Ideally you want your writing to consecutively pay the bills month after month with some left over for one to three years before you start to think about quitting your day job to write full time. And then you should have enough set aside to live at your current standard of living for at least one to three years after you have quit your day job just in case your writing hits a hard bottom after you start doing it full-time.

So, what does it take? Hard work, and a little-- no, a lot of luck combined with good planning for when is the right time to test your wings. It is always better to glide down slowly than to fall, and with luck you will take off and fly.

Nothing is new anymore

2012-01-17T17:52:00.000-09:00

It seems like everything you can think up, someone has already considered it somewhere in some way. Today I had thought that I had come up with a wonderfully unique creation for a character that would be unique to the world I had created it for. I even drew up what it would look like and gave it a name that seemed logical.

It was apparently very logical because a search online showed the name in use for the same creation I had dreamed up. I had never heard of any such creatures before, but they were so easy to imagine that it turned out I was not the first to imagine them.

Very frustrating when that happens. What seems like a wonderfully great idea is dashed almost to pieces because it is discovered to not be as new and unique as it had seemed when it was borne out of a conversation. Makes me wonder if there really are any new ideas out there after all.

World View, or Local view? Which is better in SEO?

2012-01-15T16:45:00.000-09:00

In the world of online marketing we really do need to think of it as being targeted at the world. Sometimes, however, we want to narrow the focus from a world view to a more localized view of things. This can be the case when we need to target a specific region for a local business, or we want to expand an already global reach to cover a more focused area that has gone, for some reason, under served.

When we attempt to focus on a smaller region, we want to be sure that our online marketing efforts will be targeted to the specific location we want our site or products to be focused. For example, if we are looking to market things in the middle East, then we will want to be sure that the Middle Eastern search engine marketing firm we select for the task understands the search trends and needs of the people in that area.

Every region has its own specific needs and trends, and having someone that knows what those are is vital to the success of any campaign. If you are trying to run a pay per click campaign, known as PPC, then you want to make sure that you have a firm that understands middle eastern ppc management to get the most for your spending.

If your campaign is not using the best possible search terms for the area in which you are targeting, then you are losing time, money and potential customers. That is why it is vital to know the strengths and weaknesses of any firm you work with, rather you need a middle eastern search engine optimization firm or someone that specializes in the marketing of gizmos to single housewives. Use the right company for your marketing needs and your PPC or SEO campaigns will show far more return on your investments.

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth - Mainstream Fanfiction

2012-01-15T15:36:00.000-09:00

I am reading a book that I picked up from Amazon- Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth by Christopher Golden. This is an official novel for the adventure game by Naughty Dog that features treasure hunter Nathan Drake in adventures to find lost treasures.

I have to admit that I am often a little uneasy about getting books that are based on games or TV shows, since it seems less like a book and more like authorized fan fiction to me. I am enough of an addict of the Uncharted games, and far enough behind in my reading, that I am willing to give the book a chance though. I'm not yet far enough into it to make a decision on if it is a good book or not, but so far it has not left me feeling I MUST keep reading it. I am easily setting my Kindle down and doing other things, which I do not think I should be able to do if it were a really great story - so, it has a balance right now in the early parts of the story of still holding enough of my interest that I keep going back to it, but not so absorbing that can not set it aside when I need to do something else.

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth
The story follows Nathan Drake as he goes to help an old friend, Victor "Sully" Sullivan, after one of Sully's friends is murdered. The trail leads to Egypt and Greece in search of three labyrinths that lead them to clues about a fourth lost labyrinth that holds within it the key to unmatched treasure.

Preparing to face 2012

2011-12-30T21:33:00.000-09:00

It is time to make those New Year resolutions once again, and what better place for a writer to start than with resolutions about writing? I am no different from anyone in that I make resolutions that I have high hopes for and then slowly each of them starts to flicker and fall to the back of the list of priorities until I forget about them entirely.

This year I have two simple resolutions. One, to live a healthier and fuller life in 2012 than I have lived in many years before it. And two, to make my work as a writer start paying the bills as it had done before the economic crash and my own series of life upheavals in 2008 and afterward.

Streamling my winter coat wardrobe

2011-12-27T08:38:00.003-09:00

Guest post written by Hannah Vincent

I've collected so many winter coats over the years for different occasions. It's so large that I'm running out of room for them in my hall closet, so I want to make sure that I'm actually holding onto just the coats that I wear on a regular basis. I have a couple of different coats for different functions and I want some coats that work for multiple things.
As you can probably guess, I really love buying winter coats because once you bundle up, that's almost the only thing that people can notice about your clothing. Well, I looked online with my Clear Internet Seattle to see if I could find a really cute, tailored coat that will also keep me extremely warm.
I have some really unattractive but warm coats that I would prefer to get rid of, so I did some online winter coat buying to find a coat for all cold purposes. I did track down a really cute tailored coat that has a thin but very warm winter lining in it that's removable. That's basically exactly what I was looking for. So I was able to get rid of three of my coats from my closet and donate them to charity.

Writing Resolutions

2011-12-27T08:38:00.000-09:00

So, if I am not going to make any resolutions that this is the year I will be published, what will I make as a resolution?

I will post something to at least one of my blogs every day throughout 2012.

I will spend at least half an hour discussing stories with my co-writers a few days a week.

I will work on at least one good article a month for two to three of my websites.

Not the most grand of resolutions, but ones that I am hoping I will be able to keep to longer than my diet resolution.

What resolutions do you have for writing in 2012?

No more "getting published this year" resolutions

2011-12-27T08:35:00.000-09:00

With the new year fast approaching, it is time to start thinking about resolutions. One that I have had on my agenda for the past --- I don't know how many years, is that this will be the year I am published. "This" of course changes for the current year. While I might not yet have a novel under my belt, or even a article or twenty in magazines, I consider myself a successful writer because my mom considered me to be one.

My writing helped pay the bills when things got tight for us, and today it is still helping to pay the bills - for three different houses as of the time I am writing this. So, yes, while I might not be an author in the sense of having a novel to show off, I am a successful writer in the most important of senses: my writing makes a difference. It keeps people fed and warm and able to go from one month to the next. What more could a writer ask of their writing?

I don't need a resolution that I will be published this year, because my writing has already been a success in all the ways that are important to me. My mom and dad saw it as a success and I am able to use the money I make writing to help those I love when they need it the most.

The Internet , The Law and Writers

2011-12-27T06:20:00.000-09:00

Today it is almost vital for a business to have some kind of e-commerce aspect to it, and that is just as true for writers. Rather you have chosen to share just a few short stories via download from your website, or you are publishing all of your novels online, you need to know a little about the online world of e-commerce law and what technology and the law mean to you.

One of the places that a writer is most likely to encounter issues with technology law is in the case of creating literature that accompanies software or other technology. Such instances would likely be covered by a non-disclosure agreement, which is intended to protect the hard work of a person when they share their information with someone else and there is concern that the work might be shared with third parties.

Another aspect that writers are far too familiar with is copyright infringement. In today's world, where information can be world wide at the click of a mouse, it is important to know something about international technology law especially as it pertains to your particular markets for writing.

While the Berne Convention offers copyright protection in most countries, it is still vital for a writer to understand exactly what that means and when it is not enough. If in doubt, and you fear you might have an issue with your intellectual property being adequately protected, then you should consult a lawyer that is well versed in copyright law and intellectual property protection.

Nothing can protect your work one hundred percent, at least nothing short of locking it up in a safe and never letting anyone see it until the day you burn it. If you want to share your creative efforts with the world, then there is the chance that you are going to find that someone else has decided they want to try to use your created content for their own purposes, most likely monetary gains of their own. When that happens you will need to know that you have all of the necessary protections to safeguard your intellectual property.

It is important to note that you do not need to rush out and get a copyright for every blog post you make, or every article you write, not even for every novel you write. You simply should familiarize yourself with the laws so that if you do come across a situation where you need something other than the instant copyright afforded by the Berne convention, you know what you need and why you need it.

What Makes a Good Character?

2011-11-14T16:06:00.000-09:00

I would be surprised if there is a forum or question/answer site frequented by writers that does not have some variation on the question: "What makes a good character?"

It is something that every writer wants to do, to create a good character. Not a morally good character, but a good character that the reader will think about long after they set a book down. A character that the reader will like enough to seek out more stories that focus on that character, or that at least have that character in the story.

It is an essential part of many successful television shows. We tune in each week because we like one or more of the characters in the show. The same is true of successful books. We buy the next book in a series because not only did the story captivate us, but we liked one or more of the characters.

So, how can a writer create characters that bring back readers?

One suggestion I see again and again is to create a character with depth. One that has a back story that the readers will want to know about. I rarely see any clear advice on how to accomplish that, but for me it goes hand in hand with another bit of advice I read years ago when I started wanting to be a writer.

Start writing your novel, then throw away the first three chapters.

Seems a little harsh, don't it? Actually, in my opinion, it is good advice and a great way to build a good character. Most story ideas start out slow. As writers we want to know about the character before we toss them into trouble, so we spend a bit of time getting to know them. Then we place them in a crisis where they need to make a choice. That crisis point is what should actually start the story, and all of the information before it then becomes our back-story for that character that we can use to give the character more depth. We can reveal bits of what we already know about the character as the story progresses.

Do You Nano?

2011-11-05T00:02:00.000-08:00

It is that time of year again, NANOWRIMO is off and running. I was too busy to even think about it this year, so I am just wondering, do you NANO? If so, why? If not, why not join in on the insane writing fun?

I am not going to NANO this year because I have a bunch of writing to keep me busy already this month, including work on Mars Station One for my 3D mission to Mars project at Mars Station One, and being behind on a novel I am working on with a fried, and lots of work I need to catch up on in my copywriter job that is suffering from lack of time to actually work on things. It seems like between the flu and winter settling in around me I have had no time for anything lately. So definitely no NANO for me this month.

How about you?

Amazon Publishing?

2011-10-19T07:20:00.000-08:00

An October 16th article in the New York Times details how Amazon Signs Up Authors, Writing Publishers Out of Deal, and indeed, if you pay a visit to Amazon, you can find their self-publishing information that allows authors to self-publish their books in the Amazon system using CreateSpace to do manufacturing-on-demand publishing of books.

Amazon's publishing platform allows authors to take advantage of Kindle Books through Kindle Direct Publishing to sell eBooks. Even to use Amazon's Search Inside! feature to allow potential buyers to search inside of your book so they can decide if it is the book they are looking for before they buy.

Check out the Self-Publish page at Amazon to find out more about how you can self-publish your books through Amazon. Or to get an idea about the costs associated with self-publishing your book through CreateSpace see their Understanding Royalties page, or the CreateSpace product page for books.

Possible lead on stringer work

2011-10-14T17:38:00.002-08:00

I called a local paper and spoke to the person in charge of the news desk, and they let me know that the paper does accept freelance article submissions of local interest items. So, now I just need to get over the cold that knocked me flat, then get to work on some local interest news articles to see if I can come up with something that they would be interested in.

Circling ads in the newspaper

2011-10-13T07:03:00.001-08:00

I am sitting here with the local paper and a pen, reading my way through the "help wanted" ads and making large looping circles around anything that might be a possible work lead for a second job to help me make ends meet.

It is pitiful to me that someone would need to work full-time as a caregiver (for half-time pay), and work hard as an online advertising copywriter, and be working to make and sell handbound books, and STILL need to browse through the newspaper in search of a job they can work at to help make ends meet. I am currently hoping that I can find work as a stringer, but I am not sure if I will make that goal or not. I'll see how it works out and let folks know when I find another job.

Crestor Lawsuit

2011-10-08T22:04:00.000-08:00

The cholesterol-lowering drugs known as "statins" can, rarely, cause serious side effects. When then advertising for Astra-Zenec's Crestor was discovered to contain misleading safety claims in the advertising, the FDA took a closer look at the drug and its advertising. For Astra-Zeneca this meant the possibility of individuals that might have suffered some kind of injury from taking the medication filing a Crestor lawsuit because of the misleading advertising.

Crestor was originally developed by Shionogi, a Japanese pharmaceutical company, and subsequently licensed to Astra-Zeneca in 1998. Developed to help maintain cardiovascular health, Crestor works to reduce "bad" cholesterol in the body and help raise "good" cholesterol. This month Astra-Zeneca has been battling generic drug companies to try to maintain control of the formula for Crestor.

This has been a sponsored post

Is it fraud?

2011-10-07T16:37:00.000-08:00

In dealing with words I am often struck by the specifics of certain terms and defining just how the world views one term over another. Today the term "defrauded" has caught my attention. When a business is identified as having defrauded customers do any actual customers need to come forward to specify they felt defrauded, or is the basic actions of a business fraudulent with or without customers officially complaining?

I would like to think that a business can be held accountable for fraudulent activities when those actions are discovered, not when multiple persons have already been defrauded by the company.

According to www.consumerfraudreporting.org - Someone who defrauds someone else does so though deception that is practiced "to secure an unfair or unlawful gain". This can take the form of any action whereby information is expressed, concealed, omitted or in some other way concealed to provide a beneficial advantage.

In the Journal of Accountancy, in an article aimed at expert witness CPAs, fraud is defined in the legal sense of the word as:

Definition of Fraud

All multifarious means which human ingenuity can devise, and which are resorted to by one individual to get an advantage over another by false suggestions or suppression of the truth. It includes all surprises, tricks, cunning or dissembling, and any unfair way which another is cheated.

Source: Black’s Law Dictionary, 5th ed., by Henry Campbell Black, West Publishing Co., St. Paul, Minnesota, 1979.

For the CPA common law fraud is made up of three distinct elements.

A material false statement that was made with intent to decieve
The reliance of a person (the victim) on the statement
Damaged incurred by the victim as a result of the false statement

The Federal Trade Commission defines deceptive advertising as any form of advertising that might contain or omit information that would lead consumers acting reasonably to be mislead and would be important to the consumers decision to purchase or use a product.

The FTC also answers the question of rather or not a company is liable for fraud simply because no one has complained:

Are letters from satisfied customers sufficient to substantiate a claim?

No. Statements from satisfied customers usually are not sufficient to support a health or safety claim or any other claim that requires objective evaluation.

My company offers a money-back guarantee. Very few people have ever asked for their money back. Must we still have proof to support our advertising claims?

Yes. Offering a money-back guarantee is not a substitute for substantiation. Advertisers still must have proof to support their claims.

So, by having misleading information or providing products or services that are misrepresented in advertising claims, a company can be guilty of fraudulent activity even without any customers having complained, and with customers which have reported satisfactory experience with the company.

The Pendant

2011-09-07T21:01:00.000-08:00

A character that I created using Daz Studio. A lady holding up a glowing pendant.

Article writing practice

2011-09-04T17:33:00.000-08:00

I have started working on my article writing skills, and done the insane thing by putting them out there for anyone and everyone to critique.

Check out my first "critique this" article at Freelancer's Office, where I address the question, Who Controls Creative Work? The Creator or the Fans? Feel free to leave any constructive criticism on the article, I am trying to improve my article writing skills, and the best way I can think to sharpen them is to write a few articles that can be openly reviewed by others.

Thank you!

Tax Preparer Certification

2011-08-26T17:44:00.000-08:00

As a freelance writer I have come to be very familiar with the process of preparing not only personal taxes, but business taxes as well. Then enter my brother, and his now owning his own business. He has a fairly heavy reliance on me for all of his business tax preparation needs, on top of my already doing his personal taxes for him. It all adds up to me starting to feel more and more like a tax accountant every month.

If you are in the same kind of situation as I am, where a good portion of your family looks to you for tax help, then Fast Forward Academy would like to invite you to take a look at their tax preparer certification bundle to help you possibly make a career out of the skills you have in sorting out tax forms.

Their Tax Course plus RTRP Exam Study Guide and practice exams will help you move from preparing taxes for friends and family, into an actual career as a tax preparer with tax preparer certification. And the convenience of online testing makes it easy to study at home and in your own time for learning tax preparation.

Located in Maitland, Florida, Fast Forward Academy, LLC is a small company in education management that was founded in 2010. Their website and Facebook page define the materials they provide as being streamlined learning materials that have been trimmed down to remove unneeded clutter and provide their students with the core essential material needed to pass the exams and get tax preparer certification that can help them find a career as a tax preparer.

Be sure that you carefully consider everything before you commit to taking any tax preparation course or purchasing any books, tests, or other materials. Not everyone that finds tax preparation for friends and family easy will find enjoyment in a career preparing taxes, and any investments in education for tax preparation should be carefully considered before a purchase is made.

This has been a paid post. This blog does not necessarily endorse the products or services offered by this company.

New life for old stories

2011-08-26T17:37:00.000-08:00

I am working on teaching myself how to use Blender 3D, which is a 3D program that can do some fairly amazing stuff. So far I am still in the baby steps stage, but I am hoping that I can get myself, and my computer system, up to the level where I will be able to create short films of some of my short stories that I have wrote over the years but never felt were quite suitable for sending out for publication, or the ones that were sent out and were returned to me unpublished.

Hopefully before too much longer I will have some 3D short films to share, but like I said, I am still in the baby steps stage, so it will take a bit of time.

Online courses via MIT

2011-08-17T17:08:00.000-08:00

In an effort to expand on my writing skills, I am going to take an online course through MIT. I'm going to take the Writing and Reading Short Stories course, which was offered by MIT in the Fall of 2006. The course is now a part of MIT's Open Courseware that they offer as part of their online classes. The class is an undergraduate course that focuses on short stories, and while I am sure I will miss a lot that would have been a part of the original class, I am hoping that I can still pick up enough from the class online to make it worth my while.

Torchwood tension back again

2011-08-03T00:07:00.000-08:00

Guest post written by Emmy Woodson

I think that one of the greatest things about Torchwood was closer to the beginning when there was obvious tension between Gwen Cooper and Captain Jack Harkness. I guess that the series had to start out like that because in Doctor Who there was always that bit of tension between the Doctor and his companion. Well, except with Donna. They could have never been romantically involved but they were hilarious together! But I guess that in Torchwood the tension was a little racier because the series was racier.

I guess now that the series is back on though, Torchwood doesn't have to rely so much on the tension. Besides Gwen has a family of her own now anyway. I was looking up some spoilers about other parts of the season and while I was doing that I ran across the website http://CLEARTVBUNDLE.com. Once I looked through it some, I talked my husband into switching over our home internet service to it.

I guess there are more pressing things at hand than romantic tension during this season of Torchwood, like reversing the miracle and saving the planet from over population.

This has been a paid guest post. Work at Home Newsletter does not necessarily endorse the products or services offered by this guest poster.

Shoulder starting to feel better

2011-08-02T15:50:00.000-08:00

Well, my shoulder is starting to feel a bit better from the pinched nerve I suffered from last week. It brought my writing to a standstill for a while, but I am working slowly on getting back into writing again.

I am still getting by through the use of ibuprofen pain medication, but I can at least move my arm pretty well and relatively pain free even without taking them. Limiting how much I sit at the computer and type has helped a lot, now if I can just figure out how to stop it from getting hurt while I am sleeping so I don't wake up to a sore shoulder I would be delighted.

Shoulder Pain

2011-07-27T16:24:00.000-08:00

As a writer, it is never good when I pull a muscle in one of my shoulders. Since I do a lot of hunt and peck typing - most of it with my right hand - it is even worse when I pull a muscle in my right shoulder.

A few days ago I did just that, pulled something in my right shoulder. So now I am being reduced to hunt and peck typing with my left hand doing 99% of the work to rest my right shoulder.

It makes trying to get work done very painfully slow.

Bye bye Banners

2011-06-22T18:27:00.000-08:00

The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) has delisted several ad unit sizes, including both the full banner (468x60) and half banner (234x60).

The delisting is part of a trend by advertisers toward ad types that more effectively communicate their brands in the ways they want them displayed.

Criteria used by the IAB in selecting the new ad types includes how effectively the ad format allowed for the advertiser's brand to be displayed, how positively the user was impacted by the ad format, how well the ad format fit with page formats, and how easily the format could be adopted by publishers for use on their web pages.

The trend for online ad formats seems to be moving toward leaderboards (728x90), and rectangular ad units. Even half page ads that run 300x600 and take up one entire side of a web page.

What does this mean for the writer? It is all about those looking to promote their books or writing skills. Suppose you are looking to launch a marketing campaign for your new book. You have a better chance for targeting the sites you want to target if you make sure that you are creating the right ad formats and not an outdated format. Most people creating an advertising campaign would likely start with a full banner ad size, which is no longer a preferred size.

Facebook Alternatives: Diaspora and Path

2011-06-21T16:21:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while I go looking for an alternative to Facebook. Today I noticed a article over at CNN that talked about Why some dissatisfied users are shunning Facebook.

Sounds like me. I started getting fed up most recently when some guy friended me out of nowhere claiming he found me on a Bible site and wanted to get to know and eventually meet me. He seemed really concerned that I should fear God. I became really concerned that he might be some kind of serial killer.

So, yeah, I want something that is like Facebook, but is not Facebook.

The CNN article suggested a site called Diaspora - which I sent in a request to get an invite when they go into beta mode, and another site called Path which I am uncertain about since they seem to rely in part on Facebook as a place to post things and just locks it to specific people. I do not yet see where Path is actually a alternative to Facebook rather than a tool to limit who can see your posts to the site.

Topamax Lawsuit

2011-06-09T20:31:00.000-08:00

On March 4, 2011 the FDA issued a safety announcement regarding the risks of women taking Topamax (topiramate) while they are pregnant. The announcement is based on new information from human data that indicates topiramates such as Topamax may cause birth defects that include cleft palate when taken by women during the first trimester of pregnancy.

If you took Topamax while pregnant, personal injury lawyers O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath would like to invite you to contact them for a consultation. You could have just cause to file a Topamax lawsuit for compensation to assist in paying the costly medical bills needed to treat your child's birth defect.

O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath
Personal Injury Lawyers
808 West Avenue
Austin, TX. 78701

phone: 512-494-9949

Note that in their safety announcement the FDA stated that there are cases where the risks of taking Topamax, and other topiramates, by pregnant women may be acceptable due to the specific benefits of the drug in the treatment of epileptic seizures. Topamax is a topiramate drug that is used, either alone or in combination with other drugs, in the treatment of epileptic seizures and to prevent migraine headaches.

When is a Journalist not a Journalist?

2011-06-09T15:17:00.000-08:00

An article published to the Contra Costs Times caught my attention earlier. It addressed the case of a gentleman at UC Berkley who stirred the question of what a journalist is expected to be doing while acting as a journalist covering a situation. I addressed the issue and my perception of it based on the Contra Costa Times article on Freelancer's Office in my article Journalist or Student Protestor, so will let you read there if you want the whole picture.

Here I just want to know what you think: When covering events, when is a journalist no longer acting in the capacity of a journalist? I would love to hear not only from writers and journalists, but the perspective of non-writers as well.

SPAMbots spreading SPAM comments

2011-06-09T12:38:00.000-08:00

I was reading my Google Reader today and noticed a question by DailyWritingTips asking about Nylon Stockings and Denier Spam.

If you have a blog, or forum, or even just e-mail then you have probably seen what the DailyWritingTips entry calls "Denier Spam" - it is the comments that are written as if the person is struggling with the language and is not quite sure what it is they want to say. It is often barely, if at all, on the topic of a post. In the more easily spotted examples it is complete gibberish that looks like a monkey was given a bag full of tiles with words on them and someone wrote out each word as the monkey pulled it out of the bag.

The first impulse is to assume that these are SPAM and it is an effort to embed links on your blog. Then many blog owners are tripped up on what to think because the comment has no evidence of any links.

My perspective on it is that the comments are posted by bots that search for websites where they can post a comment, then they look at the page again to see if they can locate the same words in the same sequence. That tells them if the comment is automatically approved. If it is, then the bot records the information on where the comment was posted and proceeds to post spam comments to the site.

That is why I deny comments that look funny in their writing or have a lot of poorly spelled words and any comment that just looks like it was wrote based on observations of a monkey with a bag of word tiles. Once those comments make it through the filter system, they are a giant flag to SPAMbots that the site will allow SPAM comments.

Topamax

2011-06-09T10:22:00.000-08:00

Writers know that rewriting is a part of life, however, it is never a good thing when it concerns rewriting a safety announcement for prescription medication – particularly when it concerns the safety of the drug in regard to pregnancy and possible birth defects.

Recently the FDA issued a safety announcement for the prescription drug Topamax. The safety concern was in regard to the risk of birth defects when the medication was taken by pregnant women.

The risks to the fetus include cleft palates, which occur during the first trimester – when many women might have been unaware they were even pregnant when prescribed Topamax.

If you feel that the prescription medication Topamax might have been responsible for your child being born with a birth defect, and would like to know if you might be able to file a Topamax lawsuit to seek assistance in paying costly medical bills to treat your child's birth defect, then the law office of O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath would like to invite you to contact them at:

O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath
Personal Injury Lawyers
808 West Avenue
Austin, TX. 78701

phone: 512-494-9949

Note that in their safety announcement the FDA stated that there are cases where the risks of taking Topamax, and other topiramates, by pregnant women may be acceptable due to the specific benefits of the drug in the treatment of epileptic seizures.

In less than four years ebooks outsell print books on Amazon.com

2011-05-22T22:27:00.000-08:00

Fifteen years ago Amazon.com began selling books through their online store. A bit more than 11 years later, Amazon began selling electronic books. This month they reported that they have seen a first as electronic books outsold published books for the first time.

Speaking of the preference buyers have shown for Kindle books over published books, Amazon Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos stated; "We had high hopes that this would happen eventually, but we never imagined it would happen this quickly."

Amazon.co.uk has shown to be doing good following the introduction of the UK Kindle store as well, with Kindle books outselling hardcover books after only a year. Amazon said in their press release that since April 1st there has been a 2 to 1 difference in favor of the Kindle e-books over hardcover books.

I know that on my Kindle, which I had bought for my father because of the capability to have books read to you by the device, I have downloaded a number of out-of-copyright books, of which Amazon has millions to choose from. And the Kindle market is a fast growing one, with over 175,000 books being added to the Kindle Store this year bringing their book collection to over 950,000 books and growing.

With all those choices, and the ease of downloading a good read anywhere (or nearly anywhere if you have to log in via a wi-fi hotspot), it is no wonder to me that they have managed to outsell print books. I would think that, like me, people that are going to purchase a print book would do so out of their local bookstore rather than buying online and waiting a week or more for it to arrive. There is the instant gratification of wanting to read something and being able to read it immediately tied in to the less expensive cost (790,000 Kindle books are $9.99 or less) of the Kindle Store books.

Sewing rather than writing

2011-05-17T23:15:00.002-08:00

I have been doing so much sewing the past week that I have got next to nothing done on any of my writing or websites. Heck, I have not even been able to log into AIM and chat with my co-writer about the novel we're working on. Argh! And it don't help that I am poking my finger with the needle to the point that it's not comfortable to be typing.

F+W Media acquires Tyrus Books

2011-05-10T19:18:00.001-08:00

You probably recognize F+W Media (www.fwmedia.com), they offer a variety of magazines and books, many of which you have no doubt read. Popular Woodworking, Woodworking, Watercolor Artist and... oh yeah, an obscure little title called Writer's Digest. I need to look for that last one sometime. ;-)

Anyway, F+W Media has announced in a press release on their website that they are going to enter the fiction market through the acquisition of Tyrus Books (www.tyrusbooks.com). Tyrus Books likes to put out crime books that focus on crime and its repercussions.

From this acquisition will be born F+W Crime, which will launch in June 2011 with around 200 e-book titles and plans to add print titles in the Fall of 2011. F+W Crime intends to continue publishing crime titles that live up to the quality that fans of Tyrus Books have come to expect.

Reading Speeds

2011-05-06T18:45:00.000-08:00

Out of curiosity I did a fast reading test. According to the information in the video in the last post, an average reader reads at a speed of about 125 to 200 words per minute.

My fast and dirty timer test indicates that at a relaxed normal reading speed I right now average about 165 words per minute when I read.

I just took and set the stopwatch on my cell phone to 1 minute. Hit "start" and started reading until it went off. Then counted up the words I had read up to.

It'll be interesting to see if my reciting repetitive simple sounds as I read, if I can speed that natural relaxed reading speed up.

Can Someone Learn Speed Reading?

2011-05-06T18:32:00.000-08:00

I remember back in the early 70's,, my mom was talking about speed reading one day and I asked her what that was. She showed me some advertisements in the back of a magazine that she said were for learning to speed read. It was something that held enough interest to me, as the daughter of a guy that read voraciously, that it stuck with me.

I have taken to watching Criminal Minds and they have a character on there, Doctor Reid, that made me think again, for the first time in years, about speed reading.

I never really considered learning speed reading, because my dad read for pleasure and I always equated reading with taking the time to enjoy the story. I need to speed up my reading, however, which over the years I have consciously slowed down in an effort to enjoy reading more.

According to the below video, however, I could speed up my reading and actually enjoy it more. That's surprising. I always thought the only reason to speed up reading was to read faster. I want to start working on reading faster, so since I am reading Timeline already (slowly) I am going to try to implement the below technique of reciting simple sounds as I read to try to stop silently voicing the words. And I know I do that, I often consciously sound out the words, particularly when a character is speaking.

Origin of Italics

2011-05-01T20:39:00.000-08:00

I was reading The Printer' Handbook by Charles Thomas Jacobi - an book from 1891 with information, recipes and hints on the letterpres and lithographic printing as well as covering aspects of bookbinding, stationary, and engraving.

On page 23 it has information on the origin of italic type.

According to The Printer's Handbook, italic was originally known as Aldine type, and the first volume printed in it was the works of Virgil printed by Aldus Pius Manutius in 1512. Manutius is believed to have been attempting to pay homage to the author of the Canzoni by requesting the creation of a hanging character that was cut in imitation writing style of the author of the Canzoni.

Palm Leaf Book links

2011-04-30T13:33:00.001-08:00

Links to information on palm leaf books that I want to save for later.

Palm leaf book

The Book; it's history and development by Cyril Davenport

The History of Bookbinding

What have I been up to lately?

2011-04-30T13:13:00.000-08:00

So... what have I been up to lately? I've been working my tailbone off, but not as much on writing as I would have wanted to be.

I worked on The Writing Office a bunch. Preparing it for a beta opening ... tomorrow. Gaspy! I'm not ready for that yet! I think I know what today is going to be spent doing.

Other than that I was a little busy this week (yay!) getting some work done that will actually help to pay some of next month's bills. Always nice when I check the work box and there is to-do stuff in it. I even still have a few more things to work on over the weekend to finish up this week's work and get ready for, hopefully, more work on Monday.

I did some reading. Must read, it is essential to keep reading and learn what styles you like and what things you would like to avoid having show up in your work. I'm reading Michael Crichton's novel TIMELINE, which my dad had in his books. He loved Michael Crichton, and had recommended TIMELINE to me in the past, so it became the first novel in my list of books I want to read this year.

Over the weekend I want to somewhere find the time to do major Spring Cleaning renovations on my office. I want to be able to sit at the window to write again. Not on the computer, but longhand. I have taken back to writing outlines longhand in a notebook with a sharp #2 pencil, so I want to be able to sit by the window and watch the garden while I work on that stuff.

Right now I have several websites I need to go check in on and update a bit here and there, not to mention some work that is waiting to be finished.

Neil Gaiman Twitter quote on The Graveyard Book - adult edition

2011-04-30T13:00:00.000-08:00

I saw what, to me, was a very amusing comment on Twitter yesterday. Author Neil Gaiman was discussing the release of his adult edition of The Graveyard Book and said about it on his Twitter feed:

The only difference in the editions will be the cover, the interior design, and where you find it in a Bookshop.

That alone has made me want to see what the book has to offer and I don't know anything about it. Think I might have found the first book of his to go onto my list of books I want to read this year.

Why I Love Yoga and Zumba!

2011-04-27T20:47:00.000-08:00

Post contributed by Hilton Miranda

I confess: I am a total fitness junkie. I love everything movement. I hike, workout at the gym, walk, swim and dance. My friends think I am either nuts or obsessed; I think probably both :) Others think I have no life.

Truth is, I am sort of a paradox. I can easily immerse myself in a book for hours on end, or research on line for even more hours non stop. Similarly, since I started doing group Yoga, I love the peacefulness and relaxation I feel after a great hot group session, yet, the adrenalin rush I get during Zumba aerobics is enough to keep me coming for more. And if exercise is addictive, what better vice to have than that?

They say bad habits (or good ones, as in my case) are hard to break. Why not develop a good one?

The beauty of engaging in some type of 'opposite' -for lack of a better word-group exercise such as Yoga vs Zumba, for instance, is to experiment the difference between a slower type of activity (though, Yoga it's not necessarily slow, there are many types of Yoga movements) versus a fast aerobic, dancing type of aerobic exercise. Variety is the key.

Start today, join a group exercise class, take a walk, go for a jog down the park, take a hike...but be careful...don't forget to set your Home security system before you leave...safety comes first!

This post was written by a guest
poster for a post sponsor

To-Do later notebook

2011-04-27T20:40:00.000-08:00

I have a new plan for how to make sure that I procrastinate less. I'm sure that it is nothing new, but it is something I have never tried before and thought would be a good idea. Where I got it was in watching Criminal Minds a couple of days ago I noticed one of the characters was always tugging a small notebook out of his messenger bag and making a few motes as he listened to the others talk at a crime scene.

That made me think that a good plan for how to avoid doing things that would distract me from my work would be to jot down brief, say 25 words or less, notes to myself in a notebook to remind me of the things I want to investigate later on.

The Writing Office

2011-04-27T16:13:00.000-08:00

I have a writing website called The Writing Office that is designed to be a virtual community office for writers. I opened registrations for new members, that was scheduled for May 1st, a bit early to help me work out the kinks in the system. I have also temporarily enabled guest posting access to the shoutbox on the main page of The Writing Office so that anyone that has any issues with the registration process can let me know that they need help with it.

Depuy lawsuit

2011-04-22T19:59:00.000-08:00

Last year DePuy Orthopedics announced a recall of over 90,000 hip replacement systems. In a recall announcement issued by DePuy Orthopedics parent company Johnson & Johnson on August 26, 2010, DePuy Orthopedics president David Floyd expressed his regrets at the concern the recall would pose people and his companies commitment to assist patients and healthcare providers and stated that they would cover any reasonable and customary costs of monitoring and treatment services.

O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath knows that while big companies will make such offers, they might not always be prompt in providing the promised care. If you were affected by the DePuy Orthopedics recall and might need to consider a Depuy lawsuit then O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath want to invite you to contact them to see how they can help you with getting the attention you need in your product liability claim.

O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath
Personal Injury Lawyers
808 West Avenue, Austin, TX. 78701
512-494-9949

Daily Writing Prompts

2011-04-19T19:23:00.000-08:00

Looking for a little inspiration? Want to stretch your fingers out and do a little writing just to write? Check out the Daily Writing Prompts in the forums at The Writing Office.

Recent prompts are listed on the main page of The Writing Office with a permanent archive of each prompt in the forums where members can post their responses or discussion on each of the writing prompts.

Damn Crackers

2011-04-09T21:55:00.000-08:00

It has been far too long since I have been able to work on all of my blogs and websites, which meant that some of them ended up laying dormant as I got other things worked out and organized my life to the point I might be able to work on them all once again.

During that time one of my websites was attacked by crackers that broke into the code and left ... distasteful content buried in the site. I tried to hack in and remove it, but I was not very patient in my efforts and finally decided to just tear the site down and rebuild it from scratch rather than mess with the cleanup efforts.

I don't know what kind of amusement crackers find in messing around with a little back corner of the internet website like mine, but it really ticked me off. I don't like crackers to begin with, then they go and mess with my little website and it really annoys me.

No NaNoWriMo this year for me

2010-11-02T08:13:00.000-08:00

I had great plans day before yesterday to get going and do the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) this month, but I have since reconsidered it and think I would prefer to not work on that, and instead just focus on other kinds of writing in random locations. If I have enough time to play with NaNoWriMo, then I have enough time to work on more serious and paying writing.

Hip Troubles and Recalled Items

2010-10-23T15:52:00.000-08:00

I have had bad joints in my hips and knees since I was a young woman. I can clearly recall a day in my early twenties when I had to shove an armload of glass items into one of my nephew’s arms, just half a second before my right knee collapsed and I went straight down to the floor. There are times when the joints in my hips will do the exact same thing to me, and it leaves me fearing that one day I will end up being left a candidate for hip replacement surgery. Not the funnest of prospective ideas.

It is made even less fun whenever I hear about things like the August 26, 2010 DePuy Orthopedics recall on the ASR XL Acetabular Hip System and the DePuy ASR Hip Resurfacing System both of which were used in hip replacement surgeries after July 2003. The Depuy recall was a voluntary recall issued by DePuy after problems were discovered with hip replacement patients requiring a second surgery within five years of their initial surgery.

The law offices of personal injury lawyers O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath, would like to invite you to contact them, information below, or to visit their website at the included link, and find out how they can assist you with your liability claim if you had hip surgery involving a DePuy product after July 2003.

O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath
Personal Injury Lawyers
808 West Avenue, Austin, TX. 78701
Phone: 512-494-9949

This post was sponsored by O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath

Work evolving

2010-10-23T02:50:00.000-08:00

I have got things set up for working on my writing now, and it is starting to get closer to what I want to have my system be one of these days. I am working on one of a set of dual monitors on the new computer I picked up for cheap earlier this month. It is actually working out quite nicely, since I can place my work on one screen and my research on the second screen, and if I have to I have a third screen (on a second computer) that also allows me to get additional information or keep track of possible work opportunities and so forth. It is the start of my dream system and is so far starting to work out as nicely as I had thought that it would. Much better than having all my windows open and hidden on top of one another as I have been trying to work with for far too long.

What makes a writer?

2010-10-11T13:39:00.000-08:00

I remember years ago, when I was a little girl, my mom was watching something, and someone asked someone what they did. The person responded that they were a writer. The host, of course, immediately asked "Oh, what have you written?" and the person responded that they had not yet written anything, but they wanted to and were working on something.

I clearly remember my mom scoffing and saying that they were not a writer if they had not written anything. Anyone could want to write something, but wanting to write did not make them a writer.

Years later, when I began working to make a living as a writer, my mom encouraged my efforts. I was not yet a writer, but I wanted to be one. Then one day I got a check in the mail. It was not much, only $25, but it was a turning point in my efforts. I no longer wanted to be a writer, I was a writer. I was being paid for my ability to form words into something that others could read and understand. Into something useful for others.

My mom was proud of my work, and there were times when if I had not been earning a living as a writer that we might not have made it from one month to the next. Even today, my work as a writer is keeping me afloat and going forward in the wake of the passing of my parents.

So, what makes a writer? At one time, centuries ago, a writer was someone that knew how to mix stuff together to make pictures on rocks or cave walls. Later it would be someone that was able to use a stick to make records on wax or clay tablets. Years later a writer would be someone whose hands were stained from the ink of his quill pen. Then they sported stains from the ink in the cloth ribbon of the cranky typewriter that they worked on.

Today a writer can no longer be easily identified by the stains of ink, but you can still spot them if you know what to look for.

I have not had long fingernails... ever. I have to keep them trimmed back for typing. Well, I have to keep my index and first finger and right thumb trimmed, the others will, on occasion, grow longer since they are rarely used in my typing. A writer can type, even when they do a hunt-and-peck typing as I do, without looking at where the keys on the keyboard are at - and type fast. You have to, if you type slow, you waste time. And a writer will have a worn out keyboard that they still refuse to replace, despite the fact that the keys are half worn away and there is a groove cut into the space bar. Why? Because it is comfortable, all of the use they have put the keyboard through they know the keys, they know where they are and what pressure they need to get the keys to type.

Writers, in my experience, are creatures of comfort. We like our writing space to have certain comforts. A comfortable chair, a comfortable keyboard, a comfortable mug for our choice of beverage.

Most importantly, how to define a writer from any of a million other various types of people that wear out keyboards (such as gamers), a writer has the ability to actually earn a living from their writing. They might take jobs no one else wants, but someone has to write the ad copy for the local septic pump company - right? The important thing, at the end of the month, is to be able to say "I was paid to write." That was the measure my mom held up, and how she defined me as being a writer. I was paid for my writing, and paid consistently, month after month, so that we could depend on getting a specific amount of money from my writing work to see us through a month.

I am a writer.

Diversify your investments with gold

2010-09-27T13:34:00.000-08:00

Writing is not exactly the highest paying gig there is. In fact, one of the only jobs I know of that you work more for less is being a family caregiver. Of course, family caregiver is an unpaid full-time position, so it is hard to get a more demanding lower paying job, but you get the idea. Writing is tough. And just as tough is trying to save for the future when you live on a writer's income.

Investing is essential. As a general rule, writers do not have much in the way of retirement planning. And every day that passes is another day closer to retirement. Are you prepared?

Make sure that you make the right investments, which means careful planning and diversifying your portfolio to give you the best long term return on your investments. One of the best investments, in my opinion, is precious metals such as gold bullion in bar or ingot form.

If you want to diversify your portfolio with the purchase of silver, gold or other precious metals then the United States Gold Bureau would like to invite you to stop by their website. As an investment product, precious metals such as silver and gold bullion are excellent ways to diversify any portfolio, and their hard asset professionals are waiting to assist you in your purchase. Your investment in precious metals can be delivered to you via personal delivery or, if you prefer, you can work with them to arrange for your investment to be placed in storage at an independent bank or depository.

Started in 2003, United States Gold Bureau was incorporated as an LLC in Austin Texas in 2008. Their large, dedicated staff of hard asset professionals are committed to serving your precious metals investment needs and provide their customers with competitively priced precious metals.

To find out more about the United States Gold Bureau visit their website at the link above.

Note that no investment, even one in a precious metal such as gold, is without some risk. Enter into any investment with care and careful planning. The United States Gold Bureau is not associated with the United States government.

Soon I will be starting a bookbinding business

2010-09-27T12:33:00.000-08:00

I have decided that, since I need to up my income for saving my parent's house, I'm going to be starting up an official second job soon. It should even nicely compliment my current work as a freelance writer.

I want to start bookbinding, and maybe even repairing books, as a career that will produce a full time income as a second job.

I have been bookbinding since I was ten years old, and have perfected several styles of bookbinding, even creating a new kind of binding when I made my dad's memorial book earlier this month. I love creating books from raw materials, but was unable to do so in the past because I lived in a home where both of my parents were heavy smokers. Now, I want to clear out the spare bedroom and re-purpose it to be a work shop for professional bookbinding.

I spoke to the people at the funeral home that we use in town, and they would be interested in seeing a sample of what I can do, so now I need to get things set up so that I can start mass creating hand bound books that I can sell. I then need to go to a few more places and organize consignments for my hand made books.

It is going to take me a little time to get everything organized and the room fixed for the work, but hopefully by the start of November I will be ready for basic book production. I will then let the profits from the business help to expand things to be more and more advanced in my bookbinding until I can even craft my own hinges and things. I was taught basic metal working by a master metal smith after all, so it would be very cool to be able to craft my own hand made hinges for the books.

I need another computer screen

2010-09-27T12:19:00.000-08:00

I spend all of my time writing, which means that my work demands I do a lot of flicking between different websites and documents in researching and writing things. I can not get my work done without some level of multitasking, so I usually have my research open in one browser window while I am working on another one and have a writing document up in the background.

I really needs two screens on my computer. One for research, one where I cam write. I would definitely prefer to have more than that, but my computer is not set up for more than one screen right now. Besides, even if it was, the other screen that I do have is missing the power adapter.

What I really want one day is to get myself one of those computers that are set up for doing accounting on, those ones where the computer runs up to eight screens at a time. Now that would be nice! I know that I could make do with two screen, and I would be quite happy if I had up to 4 screens, but six or eight screens? Yeah, that's what I really need one of these days.

Gold Bullion

2010-09-27T11:09:00.000-08:00

As a writer I play with words all of the time, organizing them into groupings that make sense, I hope, when read by someone else. I love the way they work together and how they define what something means.

I used to read novels with a dictionary close at hand so that when I found a word that I was not familiar with, I could look it up. So, is it no wonder that as I talk about things such as "bullion" for the United States Gold Bureau, I wonder what exactly it means?

The term "bullion" refers to a mass of precious metal, such as gold or silver, that has been formed into an easily sortable shape such as bars or coins. For example, you might refer to a pile of gold in a safe as being "stacked bars of gold bullion".

Sounds nice, huh? Stacked bars of gold bullion in the safe. I wish I had such luck, but it is not something that is unattainable if you are looking to invest in gold or other precious metals.

The United States Gold Bureau specializes in gold, silver and other precious metals in bullion form such as bars or ingots. They have a dedicated staff of hard asset professionals that are ready and waiting to assist customers in the purchase of precious metal commodities, such as gold or silver, for investment purposes.

The hard asset professionals at the United States Gold Bureau can assist you in sorting through all of the confusion to purchase precious metals for investment, then assist you in arranging for home delivery or safe storage at an independent bank or depository.

Started in 2003, and incorporated as an LLC in Austin Texas in 2008, the United States Gold Bureau provides its customers with competitively prices precious metals. To find out more about the United States Gold Bureau visit their website at the link above.

Note that no investment, even one in a precious metal such as gold, is without some risk. Enter into any investment with care and careful planning. The United States Gold Bureau is not associated with the United States government.

Where Do Ideas Come From?

2010-09-27T02:01:00.000-08:00

It is a question as old as writing. Where do ideas come from? I don't know, if I had an easy answer I would not have to worry about coming up with ideas myself, right? Well, actually, that is right.

Ideas are everywhere. There is no shortage of things to write about. Pick a subject and look around. You'll see at least one thing you can think of something to say about something around you, and you can probably fit that into your chosen topic.

Narrow that topic a bit now, focus on say three things, specific things, that you could write about the thing. Now, pick one of those and refine it, prune the excess from the edges until your topic is fine tuned down to a single focal point and write on.

Ideas are everywhere. The hard part is not in finding them, but in refining them.

Google Documents

2010-09-27T01:54:00.000-08:00

I do a lot of writing, a LOT of writing, and one of my favorite writing tools, particularly when I am working with my writing companion, is Google Documents.

It allows us to work together on something and see what one another is up to in real time. Yesterday we were working on a story in Google Documents and discovered that they have something new since the last time we were writing together there, now you can see where the other person is selecting things. I can select something for her to see, and she sees the selection as highlighted text on her screen.

Very cool, and extremely useful.

Gold Bullion

2010-09-23T21:31:00.001-08:00

If you are looking to diversify your investment portfolio to include precious metals, such as gold or silver, then the United States Gold Bureau would like you to visit their website to find out how their hard asset professionals can assist you in purchasing precious metals in coin or ingot form.

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, the United States Gold Bureau has hard asset professionals that are ready to assist you in the purchase of gold bullion as an investment metal to help you to diversify your savings portfolio.

The United States Gold Bureau is not associated with the United States government.

Internets! My Kindle has Internets!!

2010-09-23T19:21:00.000-08:00

Playing with my Kindle, I got to toying with the experimental features, specifically the Internet connection. My Kindle has Internet capability! I love it! I did not do much playing with it, but it did load up Google and one of my websites. Even the background graphics I have on the site loaded. It is a very nice feature that I hope they keep. It would be great if it stays free, but I honestly would not mind paying a little bit (say $5 a month) for it.

I love my Kindle

2010-09-23T19:09:00.000-08:00

I was playing with my Kindle earlier, and I think I could easily get used to reading almost all of my books on the thing. The screen is very nice and is like reading a gray tone novel page with black print on it. I have not yet found how to change the brightness and contrast on the device, but have not really looked since it is easily readable as it is.

Gold Bars

2010-09-23T17:35:00.000-08:00

The United States Gold Bureau would like to invite you to talk with their hard asset professionals to find out how you can diversify your portfolio with the purchase of precious metals. The hard asset professionals at the United States Gold Bureau are able to assist you to buy gold bars or ingots as an investment to diversify your investments.

Gold is one of the most beautiful and desired precious metal, and has been valued throughout the years rather crafted into jewelry, ingots, bars or other forms.

The US Gold Bureau is a private distributor of precious metals and is in no way affiliated with the United States government. The US Gold Bureau is headquartered in Austin, Texas, and its hard asset professionals are ready and waiting to help you with your investment needs.

Amazon Kindle

2010-09-23T15:59:00.000-08:00

I got the new Amazon Kindle, the nifty one with the go anywhere 3G capability. I really, really like it. When I opened the box it was in sleep mode, so the screen showed me how to hook it up. That was amusing, as I at first thought there was a clear cover over the screen. It took a few moments to sort out that the information was actually displayed on the screen of the Kindle.

It was super easy to get started using, and the only complaint that I have so far is that the buttons to the side to move from page to page take a little getting used to. The assumption would be to click the buttons on the left to go back through the e-book, and the buttons on the right to go forward through the e-book. Instead you have two buttons on each side, and the bottom one advances one page, while the upper button takes you back one page. It makes it very comfortable for use with either the left or right hand, but I would have liked to have the option for the upper button to take you forward or back a chapter at a time, while the lower button moves single page at a time.

Overall, I am so far very happy with the visibility and the overall usefulness of the Kindle. It also has proven to be rugged, as my first day of having it, I put it into my ATV carry bag and took off down the dirt ATV trails to head for town 15 miles away. The Kindle bounced along the trails in the bag and back home (a padded bounce, not loose rattling about), and had no ill effect from what would essentially be months of jostled about bouncing compressed into a couple hours. I am very satisfied with the toughness, since that is the main use the Kindle will get from me, is being taken out on my ATV to let me read rough drafts of novels I am working on while out and about.

I have not yet loaded anything up onto the Kindle, but the information on how to do that was easy to find and looks very easy to set up so I can work on my novels on the go. And I can't wait to start getting that done! I will report more on it as I get more familiar with its use.

In Memory of My Father

2010-09-23T15:48:00.000-08:00

My father, Billy L. Fikes, passed away on September 10th. It was to him and my mother that I owe my love of reading and writing. Mom and dad encouraged me to follow my dream of being a writer, always believing in my ability to write and full of faith that I would make it as a writer.

My parents were so proud of me when I began to earn an income from my writing, that income having more than a few times been the difference between making it through a month, and failing to pay the bills for that month.

Now, after they have passed away and I am left on my own, I turn the time I had once spent caring for them to my writing to earn enough of a living to repurchase the house that they had been forced to place into a reverse mortgage. Assuming I can coax a bank into working with me to pay the house off.

2010-06-15T15:50:00.000-08:00

Argh. My computer's disk drive stopped working a few months ago and I have no idea how to get it working again. Popped the case open on the computer today, but everything seems to be hooked up right, so I have no idea what is going on with the disk drive unless it just broke or something. Really frustrating. I can't run any disks or save anything to disks or anything.

This is doubly annoying since I can not access my wireless router to lock it without the disk in the drive, so I have no way to lock up my router and keep people from sapping off of my internet.

Return to chasing a dream

2010-06-14T14:50:00.000-08:00

With a need to revive my slowly floundering career as a freelance writer, I have returned to the writing course that I was forced to drop out of when my mom passed away in the fall of 2008.

My mom and I had a dream of me being a published novelist, and while there have been a lot of ups and downs over the years, particularly in the past two years, that dream is still important to me - perhaps even more important than ever before because it was my mom's dream for me to achieve that dream of mine.

So, I am going to go back to chasing my dream of being a published novelist.

When have you made it?

2010-06-11T09:42:00.000-08:00

What does it mean to make it as a writer?

Think about it for a few minutes. At what point have you made it as a writer?

Have you made it when you earn enough from your writing to keep the bills paid? When you have a bit more money each month than you are spending on expenses? Maybe you have made it when you walk into a store and see your name on a book for sale on the shelf?

I know when I made it as a writer. It was the day my mom told me that the things I did, earning money writing, was the only way that we had made it through some hard times.

So, once you know when you have made it as a writer, what do you do after you have made it? Do you keep at the same things, or do you aim higher?

For a long time I kept at the same things, it was secure and safe and I knew that I was going to be able to keep money coming in by following the same path I had set myself on when I made it as a writer.

And my writing began to go from challenging and interesting for me to monotonous and difficult got me to keep at. I need growth in my writing, I can not simply stay at the same as I had been. So, my new goal, my "I've made it" level is to be set and aimed for and when I make it there, I will set another goal.

Too many distractions from writing

2010-05-01T16:11:00.000-08:00

Have you ever sat back and considered just how many things there are that can distract you from actually getting any work done?

Working at home it is a hundred-fold worse, because there are all of the distractions of home that one has to contend with in addition to the distractions that one can find. Even as I type this I am being distracted by the movie that my dad is watching on the television. And then there is the knowledge that we need to get ready to go to town, and the thoughts that I should get the bills all in order for the month, the unfinished quilt I am working on, and the thoughts of wanting to work on things for the garden...

Yeah, lots of things that can distract someone from writing. On top of it all is a need to take my dad to his monthly VFW meeting this evening. I plan to use the half hour that the meeting is in session to work on the finalization of the novel that me and my co-writer are working on. I had set a deadline of having that finished off by ten tonight so her and I can get back to the serious writing on it.

Gold Investing

2010-04-19T16:34:00.000-08:00

I've been working as a freelance writer long enough that I have been looking more and more at what investments I need to make so that I will be more likely to get the level of retirement I want.

One of my favorite investments that I want to be able to make one day is in gold, which is one of the few investments most people feel confident in the long term investment value of. The price of gold has steadily risen over the years, so that even with occasional declines, it is still far more valuable by the ounce than it was twenty years ago, which makes it the perfect way to diversify a portfolio, particularly one intended to provide for a retirement.

Those looking to diversify their portfolio might buy gold coins to be put in their private collection or deposited in a bank or depository.

The United States Gold Bureau, a precious metals investment company headquartered in Austin, Texas, can assist investors in buying gold and other precious metals in coin or ingot form, with the coins being available for personal delivery or the hard asset professionals an assist in arranging for storage in an independent bank or depository.

This post sponsored by United States Gold Bureau.

Need more time to work on novel

2010-04-19T15:57:00.000-08:00

Spent over twenty minutes earlier on the phone with my co-writer hashing out stuff about the novel we are working on. I have to say, that for all the hard work, it is great fun to work with her on the story and I only wish that I had more input for the story than I feel I have for it. There's a lot of times that I feel bad because I know I am not getting as much time in to work on it as she is. Must fix that and set aside a few hours in the mornings to work on the novel when I am not too unfocused by other stuff I have to get done.

Get your short sci fi story published in Torchwood Magazine

2010-04-19T14:56:00.001-08:00

Are you a science fiction writer? Do you just love the Torchwood series? The latest issue of the official Torchwood Magazine has information on how you can write a short story, 1,000 to 1,500 words in length, for publication in Torchwood Magazine.

Pick up your copy of Torchwood Magazine at your local retailer or at Titan Magazines - Torchwood Magazine

See the magazine for details of how to enter.

Regency Beauty Institute

2010-04-19T14:49:00.000-08:00

Writing is not exactly a nine to five gig, it is a long hard process. Is it one that has you considering a career change? Or maybe picking back up a second career to help pay the bills? Regency Beauty Institute would like to invite you to consider a career in cosmetology at one of their growing network of cosmetology campuses.

If you think cosmetology at Regency Beauty Institute might be for you, then you can find out more about their campuses by visiting their website and browsing through the information they provide for their cosmetology school in Wisconsin or any of the other thirty Regency Beauty Institute schools across nine states.

Regency campuses mirror upscale salons and provide students with cosmetology training that is fully accredited by the National Accrediting Commission of Cosmetology Arts and Sciences (NACCAS). As a fully accredited cosmetology school, Regency is able to offer federal financial aid to those who qualify.

Regency Beauty Institute got its start in the 1950’s as Myndall Cain Beauty Academy, assuming the name of Regency in the 1980’s. Regency got its latest makeover in 2002.

This post sponsored by Regency Beauty Institute

Gareth David-Lloyd pens Torchwood comic

2010-04-19T14:44:00.002-08:00

I am a bit late in discovering this, but I am ecstatic I found out in time that I should still be able to locate the magazine in stores. I was reading something a little while ago that said that Gareth David-Lloyd, the actor who portrayed Ianto Jones on the BBC series Torchwood, has written a comic strip for the show's official companion magazine.

The comic is titled 'Shrouded', and will focus on the character Ianto Jones, and David-Lloyd says "...a number of characters who have been missed by Torchwood's ardent followers."

The comic is illustrated by Pia Guerra, and is a two part comic with the first part in the April 15th issue of the Official Torchwood Magazine.

I plan to pick up my copy today.

Career Successions

2010-04-17T19:16:00.001-08:00

While writing is a great job for someone like me, who loves the written word, it is not for everyone. Writing is hard work that takes as much, often more, work and commitment than other kinds of work. Finding the right job in today's job market can be tough, however, so Career Successions wants to give you a hand with career advice from career counseling experts and job search guidance.

Using the Career Successions databases and job search materials, you can attain career advancement that will allow you to make a positive change in your life as you find the best job for you and make a career change that to a career that is better suited to your skills, goals and long-term aspirations.

This post was sponsored by Career Successions

Back to co-writing project

2010-04-17T18:23:00.000-08:00

My friend and I have got back to work on the book we are collaborating on. Been a long while since we had to put it on pause because of life stuff going on, but I am excited to get back to it now and be able to work with her on writing the story. We will pretty much be starting over from scratch on it, but I feel good so far that we'll get back into the swing of the writing fairly quickly.

What is procrastination?

2010-04-14T01:27:00.002-08:00

Is it the art of avoiding something that you know that you should be doing? Is it another word for doing other things that are important to you, rather than work on the thing you procrastinate from doing? Is it a good thing, or a very bad thing?

Wikipedia says:

".....Procrastination refers to the deferment of actions or tasks to a later time. Psychologists often cite this human behavior as a mechanism for coping with the anxiety associated with starting and/or completing any task or decision....."

Princeton defines a procrastinator as "... someone who postpones work (especially out of laziness or habitual carelessness)..."

I'm not sure that carelessness or laziness can truly be used as a wide spread generalization of the reason for procrastination, since a lot of my procrastination seems to be in the terms of "I have to do that instead..." and that always is something that is harder to do. So, I think the anxiety associated with completing a task is just as valid as any level of perceived laziness.

I realized a few days ago, in one of those moments of epiphany, that the reason I never finish my stories is because I had promise myself once, years and years ago, that my dad would get to read my first published book before he passes away. On some level, I think I have this fear of getting published because of that vaguely remembered thought years ago.

Cold therapy nerve damage

2010-03-31T01:18:00.002-08:00

Being a freelance writer I am all too aware of the risk of injuries from things such as repetitive the strain injury that can ba caused by all day typing, or the more serious danger of carpel tunnel syndrome.

Something that I had never considered, despite having had physical therapists use it for my dad in the past, is the potential for damage that cold therapy can cause. Commonly used in the treatment of certain muscle or joint injuries, if cold therapy is used improperly, or for too extended a length of time, it can cause serious injury including nerve damage, chronic pain, or frostbite.

O’Hanlon, McCollum & Demerath are experienced cold therapy nerve damage lawyers dealing in product liability claims. If you have been treated with cold therapy and believe that you have suffered injury from improper treatment, then you should check the Texas Injury Lawyer's website and see their cryotherapy lawsuits information page and frequently asked questions about the danger of cold therapy, also known as cryotherapy.

This post was paid for by the Texas injury law firm O’Hanlon, McCollum & Demerath.

Taxes Time to Learn: Depreciation & Amortization

2010-03-29T13:13:00.002-08:00

I am working on taxes, which would go smoothly if I did not have to work on the Depreciation & Amortization part of it as well. :::pounds head on desk::: That form seems, for some reason, to be written in some funky unintelligible manner that makes it impossible for me to sort the thing out without a tax program to do it for me. I don't want to use a tax program though, since that is the only form I would need it for, so I am dedicating most of today to reading the entire Depreciation & Amortization booklet to sort the form out and learn how exactly it works and what every part of it is for and does.

I expect to give up in about an hour. ::shaking head:: I better go put on the coffee before I get started.

Expensive flashlight

2010-03-17T16:48:00.003-08:00

I was reading my Twitter feed and Flashlight Worthy Books pointed out this LED Flashlight that has an unbelievable price tag on it. I feel bad when I pay $20 for a Mag Light, I can't imagine paying that much for a flashlight - particularly how easily they get misplaced or borrowed and never returned.

I think I'd have to buy some kind of lo-jack for the thing if I bought that flashlight LOL!

Return to work on novel

2010-03-17T00:27:00.002-08:00

I have determined that it is time to stop slacking off and get back to work on the novel that I was co-writing with my friend last fall. Stuff had got really insane in my life, so the project had been shelved, but we want to get back to it now.

Earlier this evening she updated the online files and I will print them out here in a few minutes to go over and get us back to working on it tomorrow afternoon.

Tracking Receipts

2010-02-14T11:57:00.001-09:00

As a small business owner I need to keep track of my receipts, and now that I am going to be running two small businesses from home (three if you count my work as a family caregiver) I need a much better way than to tuck the receipts into a pencil box to be sorted out.

I am not sure just what method I will be using, so am looking for any suggestions anyone might have on how to keep track of work receipts. Not so much the entry into a spreadsheet type of tracking as what to do with the actual physical receipt – particularly in this day and age when the paper that they are printed on fades over time until you can’t make out what is on older receipts.

Precious Metal Investing

2010-02-13T19:12:00.001-09:00

As a self employed freelance writer, I am the only one that will be there to invest in my own future. It is with this sobering thought that I have been doing a bit of dabbling in the stock market in recent weeks.

While it is fun to look into the different companies I could buy shares in, one investment I am particularly interested in adding to my portfolio is precious metals.

I was not sure that you could buy gold bullion the same as you can buy stock in a company. I have discovered not only is it possible to invest in precious metals, but there are several different kinds of metals, including platinum and palladium in which I can chose to invest.

Investors that are looking to invest in platinum and palladium should look into the recently launched Securities Physical Platinum Shares (PPLT) and Physical Palladium Shares (PALL), physically backed exchange-traded funds that allow investors to invest in physically backed holdings that are equal to one share equals one tenth of an ounce of metal.

This post was sponsored by USGoldBureau.com

Magazine Renewal

2010-02-13T13:30:00.001-09:00

I got the mail today and was puzzled to find not one, but two letters from Poets & Writers. This was made even more “Hmmm…” by the writing on the front of the two letters.

Letter 1: “Invoice Enclosed”

Letter 2: “Forget Something?”

Okay, this seemed a bit pushy, didn’t it? I mean, come on folks, Alaska has a bit of a delay in the mail, give me a day or two to send back the invoice before you ask if I forgot it. Right?

Yeah. I didn’t think they were really *THAT* pushy either. Investigating the contents of the two envelopes confirmed that the “bill me” renewal I sent in a while back had apparently arrived the same time that a “Why haven’t you renewed yet?” letter was already cued into the outgoing mail.

No time to work on novel

2010-02-10T18:18:00.001-09:00

I'm starting to get really frustrated. I have no time to work on my novel. It's not that bad, actually, since I have been putting my time into getting a new heater and new doors into the house, but still. I want to work on mu novels instead.

Romantic Vacation

2010-02-06T05:46:00.000-09:00

Romance writers are not the only ones that daydream of escaping to luxurious hotels hidden away on the Riviera Maya. Post sponsor Karisma Hotels would like to invite you to escape to one of their five luxury hotels on the Riviera Maya, perhaps as a getaway gift for you and your loved one this Valentine's Day.

Among their resorts is the El Dorado Seaside Suites. This is an adults only resort on the Riviera Maya. Just one of the five romantic vacation riviera maya luxury hotels offered by Karisma Hotels it is located on the white sand beaches of Kantenah. This is a secluded hotel that offers a relaxed casual atmosphere and a touch of rich design with amenities that cater to those seeking a sensual experience.

Sometimes

2010-02-05T13:37:00.002-09:00

There are times when I look at my books I want to write and just can not see where I have made any headway at all. Times when I consider giving up on writing for a living.

Then I realize - I am writing for a living. I do not have time to work on my novels because I am busy working on the stuff that will pay the bills now.

Does it make me feel better? Not really. I still want to write my novels and get them published, but I also have to keep up the day to day writing that will earn me a semi-steady income so that I can do more mundane stuff, like survive, until I get those novels finished.

I just wish I could sort out more work time on the novels during the day before my wrists begin to hurt from typing all day.

Lost Manuscript Found

2010-01-30T19:22:00.002-09:00

I found the lost manuscript of my first finished novel rough draft. I had scanned it into the computer last year, and then lost both the printout and the scans. Today I found the missing scans. I have a love hate relationship with this manuscript, but I am so glad to have found it. I am going to dive into it with the course I am taking for novel revisions and see what I can do to make it a novel I love, rather than on e I love-hate.

Tax season approaches

2010-01-29T20:31:00.002-09:00

Well, here we are headed toward tax season, so what did I do today... I dug out the Open Office spreadsheet program and spent all day learning how to transfer my banking information into a spreadsheet along with my earnings and expenses for my writing business. I'm so fried out on numbers and spreadsheet formulas. More than ready to just stop for the rest of the night and relax instead of keeping at that insanity.

Sometimes you just have to duck from your co-writer

2010-01-14T12:18:00.002-09:00

I'm working on a book with a friend and I realized that there are some times when, God love her, all I can do is duck. I'm sure that she could say the same about me too.

The other day I got a chance to work on the novel and was moving along adding some things to the story, which required I altered a bit of her writing to let us reference the stuff that we were adding to the story.

Let's just sum it up in saying that she was having a bad writing day and yelled at me. Thankfully neither one of us were stupid enough to get into such a project with someone that we could not yell at, so I just ducked my head below keyboard level and waited out whatever I had done.

It did reinforce a major point in collaborative writing, however, and that is that if you plan to work on a novel with someone - make sure that it is someone who you know you can fight with. I don't mean just disagreements on where to take the story, I mean we both agree that we could never have done this project if we did not have near ten years of hell and high water under our friendship and knew already that we are fairly well inseparable.

I will say that there is nothing so exciting as being able to discuss your ideas and have them brought to life by the ideas of a co-author. To have someone offer you a muse they have made and then have that muse come to life for everyone that has seen it in writing.

Co-writing can be one of the greatest thrills of writing, but you need to remember that sometimes you are just going to have to duck and cover if your co-writer has an off day.

Full Speed Ahead Into Week Two of 2010

2010-01-09T12:46:00.002-09:00

This first week of 2010 has been hectic to say the least. Here we are, into the second week of January, and I am still getting everything settled down and in line for writing more this year. Well, maybe not writing more, but at least writing more that makes me a living. I've made money off of my writing for several years now, enough to help pay the bills and keep the family in the black rather than in the red.

One thing that I have committed to for 2010 is to make a post every single day to the Daily Writing Prompt. I am also revamping several of my websites so that they are no longer going to take up so much of my focus and I'll be free to think on other things than that I need to get out and maintain the neglected sites.

New Year, New Start on Novel

2010-01-01T23:18:00.000-09:00

It is a new year, and I am going to get a new start on my writing. For 2010 I have decided that I am going to rebuild my novel, since i lost it in November and the dog, quite literally, ate my homework when it chewed up the thumb drive my novel was stored on. So, new year I am going to get a new start on my novel, and I DO NOT plan to still be working on it in 2020.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

Privacy Policy Reminder

2009-12-18T18:17:00.003-09:00

As 2009 draws toward a close, I have decided that it might be a good idea to remind my readership that this blog utilizes an assortment of paid advertising and that some of the subjects of my blog posts have been the result of paid campaigns by advertisers and/or were prompted by items which I received as incentives to write a review of the product.

At all times the posts reflect what is my personal opinion of all things reviewed, and every reasonable effort has been taken to assure that the information provided is as accurate as I am able to present it.

Being a full-time caregiver, which is the highest stress unpaid job in the world, it has come to be essential for me to utilize advertising to help in not only the offset of the costs of this blog, but in an effort to earn a living.. For full details please visit my Privacy Policy.

Writing Prompt: A fire argues

2009-12-16T07:09:00.002-09:00

Life had kicked me about a bit, but I am back now and will be getting back to writing and getting this blog back up and being posted to. To kick it off I am going to work on a bit of a writing challenge. What could one create with the writing prompt A fire argues?
__________________________

"You will burn."

The apprentice stood, eyes focused on the brazier and the flicker of low flame that burned within it. The fire seemed to laugh before it ducked down into the low coals and hid. Curses in several archaic languages followed as she apprentice cursed the elemental origins of the flame that refused to kindle. There was nothing that could be done about it, though. What could be done? Apprentices were simply helpless to do anything about it when a fire argues against being properly lit, even without the use of magic.

_____________________________

Okay, not much, but the best I could come up with to work in the phrase 'a fire argues', and I'm tired to it sort of lost the tense there in favor of finishing the exercise.

Livescribe 1GB Pulse Smartpen

2009-11-09T20:10:00.004-09:00

I got a lovely little tool a few weeks ago. Something that I consider to be my mom's gift to me for Christmas because she had wanted to get one for me. The Livescribe 1GB Pulse Smartpen along with some notebooks for writing in.

This has become my favorite pen. The thing is not clumsy as some people have said, in fact I find it to be very comfortable to hold and write with. The size is not as big as I had expected it to be, the entire pen being only a bit bigger than your standard Sharpie, about the size of a good size highlighting pen, and well balanced for comfort of holding it when writing. Best of all, the one I got came with a free text to script program with it and even my sloppy write anywhere on the page and skip about adding words or changing things is kept up with. I can even skip between multiple notebooks. I love it!

I can not recommend this pen highly enough for writers. If you don't have one, get one!

Liquid Story Binder

2009-10-16T22:42:00.002-08:00

I decided that I would pick up a copy of Liquid Story Binder, so I went the route of their get it free deal and picked up a subscription to Blockbuster Online and got a copy of Liquid Story Binder. I've been working to move all of the novels that I am working on into the program so that I can get back to working on them.

It is a very complicated program, but I like what I have sorted out about it so far. Just need to learn a bit of the finer details, like how to actually mesh things into some kind of book like format.

Google Documents for Collaborative Writing

2009-09-19T12:52:00.003-08:00

At her prompting my friend and I started checking into the usability of Google Documents for the purpose of collaborating on the book we are writing together. Being a fan of the old notebook and pen system, I was more than a little uneasy about using an online storage system. Blame it on a panicky paranoia of 'are search spiders going to index our story?'

I've got over the paranoia (mostly) after I got to looking at the documents feature a bit more, and checking into the security information on Google's Documents. While it is true that you get what you pay for, and Google Documents is free, it at least seems to be reasonably safe for tossing stuff back and forth for rough draft purposes.

And, I have to admit, the ability to see my co-writer's comments in real-time is pretty cool stuff. We were just working in it and I was able to see her comment even as I was writing something. Although, it is a bit scary to have someone else see the messy way I end up with a coherent sentence. LOL!

Karisma Hotels Resorts

2009-09-16T09:54:00.003-08:00

I am sitting here at my writing desk looking out the window at the yellow of the trees and thinking that it will only be a matter of weeks, if not days before the yellow of the trees gives way to the white snows of winter. Times like this are the times that make you think of the warm sands of far away beaches.

Offering family all inclusive vacations, The Karisma Hotels are located on secluded white-sand beaches on the Mexican Riviera Maya. Please note that the Karisma Hotels resorts do include both adult only and family friendly resorts, so make sure you know what -

Family-Friendly:
Azul Beach
Azul Blue

Adults Only:
El Dorado Royale Spa Resort
El Dorado Seaside Suites

Naturalist:
Hidden Beach Resort

Amenities that can be found at the resorts include services such as beach butlers, fine food, iced bartops, swim-up rooms, white gauze curtains around the beds, hot tubs, hammocks and more. If you want to find out more about the offerings of the resorts then you should check out the link above and the information for each resort for more details on which resort offers what services and for details on services offered exclusively by each resort, such as the milk baths and aromatic massages (don't that sound like a cure for writer's block? lol) of the El Dorado Royale Resort, or the kid-sized bathrobes and coloring books offered by the family friendly Azul Beach Hotel.

Early to rise is overrated

2009-09-15T06:15:00.003-08:00

Here it is, 6:15 in the morning, and I am up before the sun working on my writing. And oh gawwwd do I feel dreadful. I am not a morning person, however, I have made a promise to a friend of mine that I would stop being so slouchy in my work habits and she even got all bossy on me and made me schedules to stick to so... I'm going to do my best to stick to those.

Goal for now, get my blogs all semi caught up. I need to divvy them out into what ones I am going to post to when and then spend a set amount of time each day with nothing that I do other than work on the blogs. Already a bit behind on that, since I slept until 5 before I started rallying myself toward work, then did not start working until 6:00... but... I am trying. That counts for something, right?

Maybe after a few weeks of this I will get used to waking up early and staying up... nah, I doubt it. Can I go back to bed now?

Working on a novel with a friend

2009-09-12T19:41:00.002-08:00

Wow. A lot has happened since I had last had enough focus to get out here, most major event - me and my co-writer have a novel that has hit the halfway point in the dash to 150,000 words. Yay! Go us! Still in the very rough rough draft, not even to the end of what's doing on and plot wise we are less than a third of the way into it, but we are going along quite nicely and keeping one another hyper about the story and working on it.

Love writing with someone, but then this someone is someone that I have known for years and am closer to than any of my family aside from my dad (and my mom when she was alive). Writing with her is enjoyable and so easy to just relax into and feels far more like goofing off than work, even though there is serious work involved in the process. And more work as we get further into it and are looking into stuff that we need to make sure we understand. So I guess that is where a good part of my focus (what focus?) has been this past few weeks, is getting that novel started off and toward its goal of completion.

Late start to early work day

2009-08-20T12:30:00.001-08:00

I was going to get up early today and start working on resetting my internal clock so that I was waking up at a decent time every day and getting work done.

You could consider that one a total fail. Slept in until roughly noon before I got up, and now I can’t find my co-writer anywhere. lol So, I’m going to work on a few websites while I drink a mug of coffee and get myself woke up properly.

Be brief, not fancy

2009-08-13T15:52:00.003-08:00

I was wandering around the Internet reading select stuff - I won't point ot what it was, simply because I don't want to single anyone out, but... I had been feeling a bit unhappy about my writing, thinking that I needed to improve it, to make my writing better. I'm not exactly a very colorful writer, you know? I tend to write what I am thinking and not dress it up much with unneeded words or examples.

I had the thought that I was doing something wrong so I went looking at how others write online. I'm also not a very patient person. When I look for information I want just that - information. I don't want someone to write fancy flourish prose, I don't want to wade through stories about how something vaguely relates to what is being written about.

I would prefer to read 100 tight concise words than 750 meandering words that make me forget what I was reading about in the first place.