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Burning the Midnight Oil Book Zine - a FR*E*E monthly ezine for writing parents. ******************************************************************* You are receiving this e-zine because you subscribed through e-mail. Unsubscribe information is below. ******************************************************************* TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. WELCOME NOTES 2. QUOTES FOR THE MONTH 3. EDITOR'S ARTICLE: GOAL-SETTING AND GOAL-PLANNING: STRATEGIES TO GET FROM HERE TO THERE by Dawn Colclasure 4. CONTEST CORNER 5. ADVERTISEMENTS 6. GUEST ARTICLE: WORK-AT-HOME PARENTS CAN CREATE SUCCESSFUL ONLINE WRITING BUSINESSES by Sara Webb Quest 7. BOOK EXCERPT: INTERVIEW WITH JIM VINES (from BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL: How We Survive as Writing Parents by Dawn Colclasure) 8. MARKETS 9. INDUSTRY INTERVIEW 10. BOOK GIVEAWAY 11. WHAT??™S UP WITH THE BOOK??™S WRITERS 12. BOOK NEWS 13. SITES SITED 14. FREEBIE CORNER 15. WRITING PARENT TIPS FOR JANUARY 16. FORUM NEWS 17. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES (check out new guidelines!) 18. UNSUBSCRIBE INSTRUCTIONS ******************************************************************* Welcome Notes Happy new year! Welcome to 2005! A new year means a new E-zine for all of you subscribed to BTMO Book Zine! I??™ve added sections such as ???Markets,??? ???Book Excerpt,??? ???Contest Corner??? and ???Book Giveaway.??? (And, FYI, should you have a book, ANY kind of book, you??™d like to offer in the giveaway, please E-mail me at BurningMidnightOil@hotmail.com Please note that all books MUST be in excellent condition.) I hope you enjoy the new and improved E-zine! Please feel free to pass it on to all of your writing friends (and please forward it in its entirety). Instructions for entering the giveaway are below and the winner will be announced in the next issue. I had a problem. There I was, writing an article for this issue of the E-zine, when my previous intention to write a short article took a turn. My article ended up getting longer and it started to look like something I could sell to another E-zine or print magazine. And because I rely on any money I make with my writing to help put food on the table or clothes on my daughter (or even to buy copies of my books to later sell or give away), I knew I??™d be doing myself a favor if I didn??™t toss this article aside as a freebie. Rates are higher for original work, and since this article was lengthy, the rates it could earn made me think twice before using it. I spoke with a writing friend and two other E-zine editors about this very dilemma and the consensus was: Try to sell it first. (This is actually the advice I give out to all writers who think about writing for free.) But what to do about this E-zine??™s content? After all, I still had an article to include here. Another common piece of wisdom these fellow scribes gave was to try to write a similar, shorter article. And after some brainstorming, I finally decided on writing up a short piece with the same theme but what the other article didn??™t have: Expert quotes. And since Dr. Philip Humbert, a life coach and author of many books, is the ???go-to??? guy on my list for this subject, I knew readers would benefit from his very helpful information. I??™m actually pleased with the results, too: Not only do I have my longer article on its way to a paying market, but I??™ve also got another great piece to include here. Having interviewed Dr. Humbert on writer??™s goals has given me some very thought-provoking information that I??™d otherwise wouldn??™t have had, and I??™m delighted to be able to offer it here for you, too. Also in this issue, Sara Webb Quest ciomes back with more GREAT advice for the work-at-home writing parent. If you??™re a writer, consider offering your knowledge and experiences in the form of an online course via Suite101.com. Sara will show you how! Enjoy this issue! Here??™s wishing you a successful, productive year! Hugs, Dawn Colclasure Editor and Publisher http://dmcwriter.tripod.com/ ******************************************************************* Quotes for the Month ???Defining your goals will speed you on the road to success.?????”Shaunna Privratsky, author and freelance writer ???People who set goals have a higher rate of performance than those who don't.?????”Lisa Wood Curry, novelist ???I would not have made it as a writer without goals -- written out, put up where I could see them on the day I decided I was going to be a writer for real, and checked off as I reached them or updated as I changed them. Goals change a vague dream into a plan of action. Clearly stated goals are the step between what you want and what you get.?????”Holly Lisle, novelist ???The key is to remember that goals are not your destiny. They are simply highly effective tools that you can use to reach that destiny. ?????”Moira Allen, author and freelance writer "The nature of life is movement and creativity, and goals give you a clear focus and direction in which to channel your natural creative energy, thereby helping you to outflow and contribute to the world, which enhances your feeling of well-being and satisfaction in life. Goals are there to help you and support you in your true purpose.?????”Shakti Gawain, from her book, CREATIVE VISUALIZATION "Depending on which survey you believe, only about 4% of Americans use a list of personal goals. Even among business executives, the percentage who can describe their personal goals rarely goes above 10%, even though we ALL know that written goals are the heart and soul of success. The fact of the matter, of course, is that we all have goals. The problem is that most of them are either unconscious, unclear or unproductive. Too often our most important "goals" are to be comfortable, to avoid risk, or to maintain a familiar routine. ... From sports to business, and in our personal relationships, ANYTHING will go better if we write down exactly what we want, and describe a path for getting it.?????”Philip Humbert, Ph.D., life coach, author and writer ******************************************************************* EDITOR??™S ARTICLE Goal-Setting and Goal-Planning: Strategies to Get From Here to There Copyright ?“ 2004 by: Dawn Colclasure Like everyone living and breathing, you have a goal. It can be anything from getting to work on time today, cooking a meal without setting the house on fire or finding something to watch on the TV. Babies have goals, too, such as getting fed or exploring their senses. But if you??™re a writer, goals take on a whole new meaning. Your goals are more along the lines of writing something, learning something or creating something. What many fail to see is that it??™s not enough to just have a goal. You need to plan your goal, too. ???My own opinion is that everyone has goals, all the time, but they are either conscious and focused, or unconscious and often unproductive,??? said Dr. Philip Humbert, Ph.D., a life coach and author of the E-book TO YOUR SUCCESS! ???We have goals or ???intentions??™ to lose weight or watch television, to spend time with loved ones or to write a novel. The key distinction is whether our goals are well-thought-out, match our values and inspire us. And yes, effective goals require detailed, logical planning.??? Why do we need to plan our goals? Because, as Dr. Humbert explained, a ???goal??? can be just an idea without a plan to back it up. To say ???I will write an article today??? is just an idea unless you put some planning into it: What kind of article you??™ll write, when you??™ll most likely have the time to write it, how long it might be and what tone it might have. ???The key is a workable, practical, believable plan, something that feels ???right,??™??? Dr Humbert said. ???A ???desire??™ to write a novel or screenplay is not a goal, it's merely a wish or fantasy. A goal is a desire to write a novel matched with strategic thinking about the skills and knowledge required, the time required, the tools, and the energy. Do I have the support of friends and family? Do I have a schedule and the privacy, time and ???room??™ in my life to do the writing???? Planning your goals will help you find the answers to these and other questions. To do this, write down your goal and include ???mini-goals??? to figure out how you??™ll get one step closer to making this idea an achievement. In the above goal of writing an article, the options serve as ???mini-goals??? and a crucial part of your goal-planning. Taking the time to plan your goals not only allows you the opportunity to pay close attention to your goal and discover exactly how to achieve it, but it also enables you to decide whether or not your goal is realistic, and worth the time and effort. As Dr. Humbert explained, ???Goals that seem unreachable or unworkable or unbelievable are very discouraging, even defeating.??? Effective goal-planning makes for effective goal-reaching. Dr. Humbert knows firsthand the value of having goals as a writer. ???In my writing, I use all sorts of goals (and strategies for achieving them),??? he said. ???I have goals for income that make me think about writing that can be sold easily, or multiple times. On a short-term basis, I'll often set goals to finish an article this week, or to write a specific number of words by 5:00 today.??? Goals are great tools to helping you on your climb to success. Goals can be effective, but without the planning required to get from A-to-Z, the only thing a goal will do is serve as an idea for something you want. Planning your goals will help you turn it into something you have. As Dr. Humbert said, ???Goals are powerful and we need to treat them carefully and skillfully.??? *** Dawn Colclasure edits and publishes the Burning the Midnight Oil Book Zine, which is a product of her book: BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL: How We Survive as Writing Parents (Booklocker). She is also a poetry editor for Skyline E-Magazine, contributing writer to the newspaper SIGNews and a staff writer for the Web site, The Shadowlands. Shes been published both on and off the Web, in magazines such as Mothering and American Fitness, and Web sites such as Absolute Write, Writing Etc. and Writing World. Visit her on the Web at http://dmcwriter.tripod.com/ . ******************************************************************* CONTEST CORNER Writer2Writer No Fee Contest: The new Writer2Writer contest has begun! There is no fee to enter, but you must be subscribed to our *free* ezine "Writer to Writer". If you're not already subscribed, you can sign up on the website or send a blank email to: writertowriter-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.au Take a look at the photograph shown here: http://www.writer2writer.com/contest.htm Your assignment is to write the opening line and one paragraph (maximum 135 words) plus a snazzy title. (Title will not be included in the word count) It can be the beginning of a short story or novel, or if you'd rather, may be a complete story. Entries will be judged solely on creativity. There are absolutely no limitations on genre; write whatever the photograph portrays to you. Closing date for entries: 12 midnight, 30th January 2005(wherever in the world you live) Full details and rules can be found on the contest page: http://www.writer2writer.com/contest.htm Please check these carefully, as they will change for each contest. Entries that do not comply will be disqualified without notification. If you have any questions after checking the guidelines, feel free to contact Cheryl Wright (cheryl@writer2writer.com) Under no circumstances will attachments be opened. Please note: Contests are ongoing; check back often. ******************************************************************* ADVERTISEMENTS WALTER FALLS by Steven Gillis Available in Paperback Selected as a finalist for both the Independent Publisher Book of the Year Awards and ForeWord Magazine's Book of the Year, Steven Gillis' debut novel is now available in a trade paperback edition. All author proceeds from Walter Falls will go to Steve's 826 Michigan program to help public school students with reading and writing. WALTER FALLS makes a great title for reading groups interested in contemporary fiction. And, keep your eye out for our next newsletter in a few days about the release of Steven Gillis' new novel, THE WEIGHT OF NOTHING. The Story A provocative work of fiction, WALTER FALLS employs a fresh narrative voice while revisiting classic themes of identity, love and marriage, guilt, envy and ambition, all with surprising repercussions. The protagonist, Walter Brimm, is a financial advisor in his mid-thirties, husband to Gee, a professor at the University of Renton, and father to a seven-year-old daughter, Rea. His life appears nearly perfect, but this proves an illusion as slowly his world unravels; his actions and reactions to specific events costing him his job, his family, and his health. In search of redemption, Walter's personal journey provides a gripping story of intimate longing and a fallen man's brave attempt to reconcile all that has caused him to sabotage his happiness while answering questions seeded deep in his past. Steven Gillis Steven Gillis is the author of the critically acclaimed first novel WALTER FALLS. His second novel, THE WEIGHT OF NOTHING, will be published by Brook Street Press in 2005. He lives in Ann Arbor with his wife, Mary, and two children, Anna and Zach. His stories, articles, and reviews have appeared in numerous journals. He is at work on his third novel. Buying WALTER FALLS trade paperback As always, we encourage those who are interested in purchasing the book to visit your local bookseller. They are able to order any of our titles from either Baker & Taylor or Ingram, the largest book wholesalers in the United States, or through our distributor, Midpoint Trade Books. WALTER FALLS is also available from all of the online retailers. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0972429565/qid=1105485911/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-1964084-1083369?v=glance&s=books Brook Street Press P.O. Box 20284 Saint Simons Island, Georgia 31522 912-638-0264 ************ NEWS FROM PAT FARENGA, CO-AUTHOR OF TEACH YOUR OWN: THE JOHN HOLT BOOK OF HOMESCHOOLING (Perseus, 2003) ???My homeschooling seminars have been helping parents and kids learn together in joyful ways for years. In 2005 I'll be presenting my Teach Your Own: An Unschooling Seminar in Waltham, Massachusetts on January 22 and in Asheville, NC on Feb. 5. Can you please mention these events to anyone you know who might be interested in attending them???? THIS IS THE ONLY SEMINAR I'LL BE PRESENTING IN MASSACHUSETTS FOR 2005. ???Tickets cost $60 per each three-hour seminar at the door, but if you mail me your registration, postmarked by Jan. 14, you can save 10%. You can save even more by registering a group of 5 or more, or by bringing family members. Further, after you've taken all the group, family, and all-day discounts, if you mail me your registration, postmarked by Jan. 14, you can take the "paid in advance" discount off your already discounted tickets.??? SEMINAR TICKET PRICES Groups of 5 or more: save 25%! Pay $45 per person. Sign up 5 people at the same time and send a check for $225 (include each person??s name and address) to take advantage of this rate. Family discount: $60 for the first adult family member, $30 any family member over 13. All day rate per person: $90 for both seminars. 10% discount if paid in advance and postmarked by January 14, 2005. This is your chance to get up close and personal with Pat Farenga, to have him answer your questions about homeschooling as well as brainstorm about things you and your children can do besides read books, write papers, and take tests. Pat will be presenting workshops and speeches at homeschooling conferences in other states in the coming months, but his in-depth, three hour-long unschooling seminars are only being done in MA (Jan. 22, Waltham, MA), NC (Feb. 5, Asheville, NC) and NY (June 16, Garden City). Among the topics covered in these seminars: Unschooling for Beginners/elementary school years: ?‚¬ Getting started with homeschooling and its paperwork ?‚¬ Is learning filling a bucket or lighting a fire? ?‚¬ Living and working with your kids during school hours Unschooling for Advanced/teen school years. ?‚¬ Unschooling high school ?‚¬ How homeschoolers build transcripts and apply to colleges ?‚¬ How homeschoolers and others find work worth doing without college For more information visit www.holtgws.com, or contact me using email or the phone numbers below. Best wishes, Pat Farenga Co-author TEACH YOUR OWN: THE JOHN HOLT BOOK OF HOMESCHOOLING (Perseus, 2003) Voice: 781 - 395-8508 Fax: 781-874-1053 www.holtgws.com ALSO: ???I forgot to tell you how you can save even more money at my upcoming homeschooling seminar in Waltham, MA on Jan. 22. Family Resource Center (FRC) members receive an additional 10% discount on top of all the other discounted prices I offer. Contact FRC.info for more details about the Family Resource Center.??? ************ ???Pump Up Your Prose??? by Shaunna Privratsky is now available as an e-book for only $9.99 at http://shaunna67.tripod.com BONUS: an exclusive e-book and money-saving coupon at CoolStuff4Writers. Buy the print book at http://filbertpublishing.com/pump.htm with an additional extra: A Freelance Pack! Whether you like it in paper or PDF, It is like getting this energizing primer for FREE! ******************************************************************* GUEST ARTICLE Work-At-Home Parents Can Create Successful Online Writing Businesses By: Sara Webb Quest Work-at-home parents are using increasing cyber-world opportunities to start and run successful online writing businesses. Benefits of running the online business include: ?· No set-up fees. If you have a computer with Internet access and email (chances are you do), you're ready! You will need to know how to use your computer's Disc Defragmenter and cookie-removal function every few weeks for a smooth-running computer, but these aspects are easy to learn ??“ Just go to your computer??™s Control Panel, click on Help and Support and do searches under ???Disc Defragmenter??? then ???removing cookies.??? ?· Grow-at-your-own pacing. The 24/7 accessibility of email and the Internet lets parents work whenever they want. With such flexibility, time is easily allotted for household chores and attention to kids. I work 9:30??“11:30 p.m. each night (after the toddler goes to bed) and a couple 7:00??“9:30 p.m. shifts each week (when the husband watches the toddler). ?· Achieving clients through free online groups: Freely-usable professional sites like Mompreneurs Online, run by the authors of MOMPRENEURS ONLINE: USING THE INTERNET TO BUILD WORK@HOME SUCCESS, offer home-career tactics, new job markets and like-minded groups / clients. Of the Top Ten Businesses for Mompreneurs [a.k.a. all entrepreneurs] Online (http://mompreneursonline.com/topbiz.htm ) here are some writing-related ones: ?· ???Coaching and Teaching.??? Career training is always in-demand and mixes well with online training jobs and the increased demand for work online. I offer training and counseling through my Suite-University course Becoming a Professional Writer (http://www.suite101.com/course.cfm/16713/seminar ). The course is designed to arm writers with the skills needed to write professionally for life, online or off and has attracted steady student enrollment since its inception a couple years ago. ?· ???Communications/Information.??? Informative columns at high-traffic sites will gain you lasting clients. I created a ???Professional Writing Hub??? site (at Suite101.com) where my writing students discover valuable pro-writing tidbits from their teacher. Here, my students discuss and network with me and each other via discussion threads. They can subscribe to the topic and receive free topical email notices. The site, in effect, promotes my course and business while helping others to do the same! ?· ???Work-at-Home Support.??? Business tools like inexpensive e-books for home-workers offer the information / support necessary to hone (or start) online businesses. I intend to create an e-book from my Suite101.com ???Professional Writing Hub??? articles, since Suite101.com has a Best of Suite E-Book program which allows topic editors to gather articles into e-books. The program itself has been quite successful, bringing monthly paychecks to its authors! HERE ARE 4 STEPS TO FOLLOW SO YOU TOO CAN BRING IN A STEADY INCOME FROM A THRIVING ONLINE BUSINESS: 1) Apply to become a Suite-University Course Author / Instructor (http://www.suite101.com/suiteu/devapp/member.cfm ). 2) Contact Maureen Fleury, manager of Suite University??™s Community of Interest (http://www.suite101.com/university/ ), at mkfleury@suite101.com, to learn how to start an Associate Editor topic for promotion of your Suite-University course. 3) From your Associate Editor topic, compile a Best of Suite Anthology e-book (http://www.suite101.com/topic_page.cfm/4651/4406 ). 4) Check-out Communities and Biz Centre links (http://www.suite101.com/coi/ ) for networking and business interests. For the cap, be sure to list your services at your new Associate Editor topic. You will have begun a successful online business capable of creating regular, monthly pay! ABOUT SARA: Sara Webb Quest is a freelance writer, author and editor. Her books include THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD (Suite101.com, 2004), BECOME A WELL-PAID BOOK REVIEWER (SelfHelpGuides.com, 2003), MOON OVER MADNESS (IndyPublish.com, 2001) and A MOUNTAIN PLACE (self-published, 2001). Her columns appear in CAPE COD PARENT & CHILD, she edits and publishes the PARENTS ADDICTED TO WRITING newsletter and teaches at the Professional Writing Hub at Suite101.com University. You can find my interview with Sara in the first volume of BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL: How We Survive as Writing Parents. She lives in South Yarmouth, Massachusetts, with her husband and daughter. Visit Sara on the Web at http://www.authorsden.com/visit/author.asp?AuthorID=2092 . ******************************************************************* BOOK EXCERPT Interview with Jim Vines FROM THE BOOK: BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL: How We Survive as Writing Parents By: Dawn Colclasure Booklocker.com, Inc., 2004 http://www.booklocker.com/books/1743.html Jim Vines ???Find time to write.??? Jim is a screenwriter who wrote the thriller THE PERFECT TENANT, which starred Linda Purl, Maxwell Caulfield, Tracy Nelson and Earl Holliman. Forthcoming are two horror projects slated for production this year: "Blackbird Lake" and "Dark Haven." He co-produced and starred in the short film "That Darn Bill," which is currently making the rounds at film festivals. He and his daughter live in Los Angeles. Visit his Web site at http://www.kingvictor.com. Have you always been a writer? Nope. I??™m not even sure I could spell my own name until relatively recently. However, I??™ve always been creative. When I was a little, I was always putting on shows for family and friends. It wasn??™t until I was eleven that I discovered this thing called filmmaking. I was at a friend??™s house in the summer of ??™74 and he showed me his Super-8 movie camera. I was intrigued by it. We shot some goofy little horror thing. Something about a werewolf, I think. Whatever it was, it was very, very crude. My friend had no idea how to make a movie and I certainly didn??™t either. But man, it was really cool being able to think of an idea, shoot it, then see it projected on a big screen. I mean, what a concept! I was hooked from that point on. I??™d get together with a group of friends after school and on weekends and we??™d shoot these little movies in my backyard and the surrounding neighborhood. We even made a studio in my garage. We really had fun. (To this day, when I see these old friends at high school reunions or whatnot, they??™ll talk very fondly of the good times they had back then!) But it wasn??™t until I saw ???The Towering Inferno??? in December of ???74 that I decided filmmaking was what I wanted to do forever. Oddly enough, soon after the release of that movie, I met its producer, Irwin Allen. (He was a friend of my best friend??™s parents.) Mr. Allen would invite us to Warner Bros. or MGM to watch him shoot. What a thrill it was being on those sets! Yup, this was definitely what I wanted to be a part of. Anyway, I made a lot of these little movies up until entering high school in 1977. Then the real fun began. I attended Beverly Hills High School and they had this great film/TV department, complete with TV studio, video cameras, Super-8 movie cameras, film and video editing equipment -- it was probably more advanced than most colleges! Anyway, all I did for four years was write, produce, direct, and act in my own film and TV projects. I got into writing a lot of sketch comedy. Monty Python-ish stuff. We??™d incorporate film footage shot on location with stuff we??™d shoot in the studio. Very silly, but very creative and so much fun to do. I was like a kid in a candy shop. I truly had a blast. And this is where I picked up the basics about structuring a story, dialogue, pacing... all of it. I still have many of those early scripts, too, and it kind of amazes me how really solid the formatting is. There weren??™t any books on this stuff, not like today. Budding writers today have it so easy since everything they need to know is a mouse click away. I had to learn about format from a neighbor??™s garbage. Let me explain: There was a movie producer that lived on the end of my block. One day I passed his garbage cans and found it overflowing with a real treasure trove of goodies -- movie programs, press kits, that sort of thing. I went back another day and found a stack of movie scripts. I piled them up, took ???em home and read each one. Studied them. What made you decide to pursue writing professionally? I got married in 1985. Our daughter was born a year later. I worked some non-film industry jobs, but also worked at the William Morris Agency in Beverly Hills. I worked various jobs there, but for a long stretch I was in the script duplication department down in the basement. There was this huge wall of screenplays. Some were well-known titles, and some were specs that had yet to be turned into movies. But I read as many as I could. Dozens! I totally immersed myself. I was having some problems with my marriage at the time. At one point, my wife took off with my daughter. No explanations. She returned a few months later and dropped my daughter off, leaving me to fend for myself. Talk about a scary situation. With the help of family and friends, I was able to hold it together. I??™d drop my daughter off at my friend??™s house, rush to work, come back on my lunch break to check on things, then rush back to work. During all this, I kept working and kept toying with the idea of writing screenplays as a career. My wife eventually returned and things pretty much settled down and got back to ???normal.??? One day, a friend of mine asked me to help him write a public service announcement for a power company somewhere back east. I wasn??™t paid much, but it was interesting putting together all these ideas and condensing it down into a two or three minute spot. Then another friend of mine, a budding actor, asked me to help him write a script based on his life. He claimed he had interest from a production company. I was pretty na??ve at the time and agreed to help out. No up front pay, of course. Anyway, this was probably my first real attempt at professional screenwriting. We eventually competed the screenplay. It went absolutely nowhere. But hey, I completed a full-length screenplay. I enjoyed the process. Was it a challenge to be a writing parent in the beginning? What were some of the hardest lessons you learned? What is one important lesson you learned? When I got married, I wasn??™t a writer. Not really. The writing came into focus only after my divorced in 1990. From ???90 to ???94, I was caught up in a crazy divorce and child custody battle. I had to chase my ex-wife (and daughter) all over the country, and there were dozens of court appearances, interviews with psychologists, lawyers ??“ all the usual bureaucratic stupidity that comes with a messy custody fight. Writing scripts was a nice way to get away from it all. In 1994, I finally won custody of my daughter and things settled into a fairly regular routine. That??™s when I really plowed headlong into my writing. How much confidence did you have in your ability to juggle writing and parenting? I don??™t think that??™s something you really think about while you??™re in the midst of it. At least I didn??™t. You just do what you have to do. I think it??™s only after a long period of time that you look back and say, ???Hey, I handled it all pretty well, and I got through it relatively intact.??? It builds your confidence for future hurdles that might come along. What was the hardest part about trying to find time to write? It wasn??™t that difficult for me. I find it fairly easy to plop down just about anywhere and crank out pages. I can work pretty quick, so I??™m able to get a lot done in a short burst. I know other writers that are only able to work at certain times of day and only for certain periods of time. I find that awfully constricting. These folks are always looking for that perfect block of time to get their work done, yet they never seem to get much, if anything, done. If you??™re a writer, you write. Period. Did your daughter understand what you were doing as you worked? I rarely wrote at home. If I did, it was late at night, so my daughter rarely, if ever, saw me hunched over my computer. But I remember once when I was staying at my dad??™s vacation house out on Long Island. My daughter, who was twelve at the time, was going to school in Florida and came for a visit. I was at the dining room table with my laptop, working on some script, and she asked what I was doing. I told her. Then she asked for some paper and started writing her own story. I tried to get her into the writing thing, and she actually seemed to have some interest, but it didn??™t last long. She??™s more into music. Did you receive any support in attempting a writing career? If so, how did it help? If not, do you think it might have helped? Well, I??™m lucky to have some really wonderful friends. They??™ve always been supportive of the things I do. Nobody ever said, ???Give it up, Jim. It??™s hopeless.??? In fact, I think my friends have had more faith in my writing ability that I have. I once sent a script to a friend. She read it and told me how good it was. She actually thought I was quite talented. Well, I figured she was doped up on Vicodin or something. The fact is, I never believe anyone who tells me they like my work. I??™ve been known to write scripts and just stuff ???em away in a box somewhere. It wasn??™t until after I sold my first script that I figured maybe I had an iota of talent. What was the biggest lesson you learned as a writing parent? I??™m of the opinion that you don??™t need to put your life on complete hold while your kids grow up. I have dreams and aspirations. I have things I want to do. If I don??™t try to accomplish any of it I??™d probably end up a blob of goo sitting on the couch watching Jerry Springer. What kind of message would that send to my kid? I pass my general good mood, my sense of humor, and my great enthusiasm for life on to my daughter. If she sees my exuberance when I??™m working on a project, or anything I do, she picks up on it and it becomes a part of who she is. I feel sorry for people who totally give up on their dreams in order to please their kids. I mean, I appreciate what they??™re doing, but I think it??™s kinda wrong. It??™s okay to be a little selfish. What did you learn about yourself as a parent? As I do this interview, my daughter is just a few months away from turning eighteen. Her thoughts are about her boyfriend, graduation, the prom, getting a job, college, etc. It??™s a bit of a juggling act dealing between her world and my world. Boy, eighteen years! Not that long ago she was a little bundle in my arms, and now she??™s smacking me around and pulling wings off butterflies. But seriously, she??™s a good kid and I??™m proud of her. She??™s come a long way. We both have. I??™ve done my job and I did it the best I could. Being a parent is a phenomenal experience. It can make you a stronger person, a better person. Don??™t be afraid of any of it. Let's talk about promotion. Writers everywhere know they need to put in the legwork to promote their writing. How can writing parents manage to do this, too? The Internet is a wonderful thing. No matter where you live, you can reach virtually anybody in the world from your kitchen table. If you don??™t live in Los Angeles, get yourself a copy of The Hollywood Creative Directory and hit the Internet. Query producers, make phone calls -- do whatever is necessary to make those all-important connections to the people who can do you some good. Even if you have just thirty minutes a day, you can do an awful lot. Did you ask for help so that you could have time to write? If so, are you glad you did? If not, do you wish you had? You find the time and get it done. Luckily, I was able to drop my daughter off with her aunt or grandparents for a few hours then go off to write. That??™s what family is for. Put ???em to work! Is there one point in your career as a writing parent that stands out in your mind? As of this moment in time, not really. Sure, I??™ve had a bit of halfway decent success, and I??™m having a good time, but I think the best is yet to come. In fact, as of this interview I have several projects on the burner. One project is scheduled to begin shooting very soon, and another (hopefully) later in the year. We??™ll see. That??™s part of the fun. And one great aspect of all this is that my daughter is able to see how success can come if you work hard enough at it. And believe me, she??™s seen me work hard! What writing schedule ultimately worked best for you? I??™m a confirmed night owl. In fact, some people tend to think I??™m a vampire because I have a tendency to stay inside all day and come out after the sun goes down. This isn??™t so much the case these days, but a few years back, that??™s how I??™d operate. Nowadays, I can write just about anytime, day or night. But I don??™t do much writing at home. I??™m far too distracted there. Instead, I pack up my laptop or yellow legal pads and hit a coffee house, a library, a park, a plush hotel lobby, the beach, or anywhere I can settle in for an hour or two and work. But I??™m always on the move and changing the scenery. I just like to keep it fun and interesting. It??™s not for everybody, but it works well for me. Was there anything you had to sacrifice in order to get some writing time? Sure, it??™s called money. I??™ve gone for long stretches without working a regular job. Nothing drains creativity and energy like working some nine-to-five job. I think it??™s important to find a job that doesn??™t take a lot out of you. I got very lucky with a choice I made several years ago. I became a security guard for a major movie studio here in LA. For me, it was a dream job. I worked the graveyard shift, which meant I was alone most of the time. I got a lot of writing done while being on the sets of some of the biggest movies Hollywood has ever produced. Talk about a creative atmosphere! I worked a lot of overtime and socked away just about everything I made. Having a decent stash of cash in the bank allowed me to take time off and concentrate on the writing. In your own words: Is it possible to juggle writing and parenting? Of course! I mean, if I can do it, anybody can. You just need to prioritize. Sure, taking care of your child is the most important thing of all. It??™s the most important job in the world. But if you really want to be a writer, you need to write. You must make time for it. If you only have twenty minutes of ???quiet time??? after the kids are asleep, sit down and get something on paper. It doesn??™t have to be anything great. But get into the habit. This is what distinguishes a writer and a wannabe. Wannabes talk; real writers write! What is the best writing advice you have been given? The best advice I??™ve heard is the same advice I give out to anybody who asks. Write, write, write, and rewrite. Never stop. It??™s all about trial and error; discovering what works and what doesn??™t. Read tons of professional movie scripts. As far as I??™m concerned, this is the absolute best way to learn. What is the best advice you have for other writing parents? If being a writer is your ultimate goal, don??™t let anything stop you. No matter what the age of your child, develop your writing routine. Find time to write. Repeat after me: FIND TIME TO WRITE. Even if it??™s a few paragraphs a day, keep those creative juices flowing. Then, when you??™re finally ready to get your career going, you won??™t be doing it from a dead stop position. You must leap into action with a running start. Or at least a jogging start. ******************************************************************* MARKETS The following are market information for PAYING MARKETS. ByLine Magazine Address: P.O. Box 5240, Edmond, OK 73083-5240 Print or Electronic?: Print Web Site: www.bylinemag.com Guidelines online?: Yes Description: Monthly magazine for freelance writers, with lots of contests! Audience: Writers Types of material published: Per issue: One short story, one essay (on writing), articles on writing, department material (see guidelines), and poetry (that connects with writing). Current needs: All areas Departments easiest for new writers to break into: First $ale, Only When I Laugh Rates: Flat rates by department (see guidelines). Features, $75. Short story, $100. Rights: FNASR Tips for Querying Writers: Query for features only. Send full mss. for all others. All manuscripts must be sent by mail only, with SASE. Queries by e-mail are okay. Orlo The Orlo Exhibition Space The Bear Deluxe Magazine Mailing address: P.O. Box 10342 Street address: 2516 NW 29th (see www.orlo.org for directions) Portland, Oregon 97296 Phone: 503-242-1047 Fx: 503-243-2645 (call first) email: bear@orlo.org url: www.orlo.org Name: The Bear Deluxe Magazine Address: PO Box 10342, Portland, Oregon 97296 Print or Electronic?: Primarily print Web Site: www.orlo.org Guidelines online?: yes Description: Quarterly environmental magazine including reporting to poetry and all points in between Audience: national Types of material published: All forms Current needs: high-quality fiction, well-researched reporting Departments easiest for new writers to break into: short news, reviews Rates: $25-$350 for stories, $20 per poem Rights: 1st time only Tips for Querying Writers: send by regular mail with sase and clips Contact (name of editor and E-mail and/or address info): Tom Webb, editor, bear@orlo.org ******************************************************************* INDUSTRY INTERVIEW The following is my interview with Richard Day, Manager of editorial, production and the Web departments, and the acquisitions editor for Self-Counsel Press Inc. Mr. Day has been with the company for 6 years. Self-Counsel Press, Inc., is located at 1704 N. State St, Bellingham, WA 98225 and 1481 Charlotte Rd, North Vancouver, BC V7J 1H1, Canada. Their imprints are: Self-Counsel Press; Solutions on CD and Forms on CD. Sample titles: DIVORCE GUIDE FOR ILLINOIS, START & RUN A COFFEE BAR, TAX THIS! and COMFORTABLE CHAOS. They publish books that are Legal, Small Business. Q: What can you tell me about Self-Counsel Press? A: We are privately owned, have been in business under the same ownership since 1971, and we are a specialist publisher. We operate in America and Canada, employ full-time editors and artists, and sell to both the book and stationery trades. Q: What are the majority of books that get published with your company? Are you open to anything new? A: We publish self-help legal and small business titles, and legal and business forms. We are always interested in new titles within our specialty. Q: Do you work closely with writers who are accepted by your company? A: Yes, very closely, from manuscript development through substantive and copy editing, and galley preparation, to publicity and promotion. Q: Is this a publisher open to writers who have never been previously published? A: Yes. Q: What do you hope Self-Counsel books will achieve for readers? A: Help them perform tasks themselves that would otherwise require an expensive consultant or very expensive lawyer; help make their small business more successful. Q: Where in bookstores can readers find titles by your company? A: Law / Reference mainly Q: Do prospective authors need an agent in order to get published with your company? A: No. Q: Is it a good idea for prospective authors to study the types of books you publish before they submit? A: Not a good idea - an essential idea! Q: What is the best way for a new author to land an acceptance with your company? A: Understand the kind of book we are looking for and send in an organized proposal. Q: Do you pay advances? A: No. Q: What kind of royalty schedule do you have? A: Royalties are paid twice annually. We have never missed a payment period. Q: What kinds of books are you hoping to see published by your company in the future? A: More of what we publish now. Q: Please share some of the common mistakes writers have made when querying/submitting to your company. A: ?· Not reading the submission guidelines ?· Submitting manuscripts as e-mail attachments (we won't read them) ?· Assuming our corporate name (which uses "counsel" in the sense of legal counsel) means we publish mental/spiritual/physical health books. Q: What are the submission guidelines? A: They are on our website (www.self-counsel.com) in some detail. The short form is: (a) find out what we publish and what we are looking for (b) ensure you are _qualified_ to write on the topic (b) send a written proposal, on paper, that follows our guidelines ******************************************************************* BOOK GIVEAWAY Wanna score a FREE BOOK?? Win a FREE COPY of the book, LOVE by TONI MORRISON (read all about it at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0375409440/qid=1105819969/sr=2-1/ref=pd_ka_b_2_1/104-2270314-7335948 ). How to win? Simple! Be the tenth person to E-mail me with an exact quote from this E-zine, with the person who said this quote, and your free book will be on its way! Send your quote (it can be ANY QUOTE) to: BurningMidnightOil@hotmail.com and, if you win, I??™ll contact you for land mail contact information. Good luck! ******************************************************************* WHAT'S UP WITH THE BOOK'S WRITERS? No news this month. ******************************************************************* BOOK NEWS What's the latest with the first volume of BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL: How We Survive as Writing Parents? No book news this month. ******************************************************************* FREEBIE CORNER Get a FREE Press Release Template: http://wordthunder.com/pro29.htm Download free E-books: http://www.free-ebooks.net/ Get free online training at EzineUniversity.com: http://www.ezineuniversity.com/ Get a free message board for your Web site at Amazing Forums: http://amazingforums.com/ ******************************************************************* SITES SITED The following are interesting, helpful sites that I??™d like to pass on. I Love to Craft: http://www.ilovetocraft.com/ Like Mom: http://likemom.com/ OnceWritten.com: http://www.oncewritten.com/ Regret the Error: http://www.regrettheerror.com/ What??™s the Rule: http://www.whatstherule.com/ ******************************************************************* WRITING PARENT TIPS FOR JANUARY: Tip: Decide what must come first: Writing or parenting. If you can??™t choose one over the other, choose parenting. You??™ll feel better about yourself and your kids will be happier. Tip: If you have small children, try writing with them on your lap or set them up a ???work area??? on your desk. Tip: DO NOT feel guilty for taking time to write! Remind yourself that this is what you love to do and just do it. ******************************************************************* FORUM NEWS Check out our forum at: http://p197.ezboard.com/babsolutewrite The password is: multitask The post ???BTMO Book Zine in 2005??? discusses my ideas over the new E-zine contents. Feel free to post your questions/comments here! ******************************************************************* WANNA SUBMIT TO THIS E-ZINE?? WE HAVE NEW GUIDELINES!!! I am always open to submissions for the E-zine!! Feel free to submit any of the following: 1. An article. Any style and length. Articles must relate to writing, being a writing parent or successful business/marketing ideas. If the article is a reprint, you must own the reprint rights. 2. Tips for writing parents. 3. Advertising info, a freebie link, fan mail or, if you are included in the book, news and updates on what??™s going on in your writing life! I prefer to use free reprinted articles whenever possible but I do offer payment, as well. Payment is only allotted to article submissions. You may choose any one of the following for compensation: --$5, paid in the form of a money order, on publication, for articles of 200-500 words. --$10, on publication, for articles 501-2000 words. --A complimentary copy of the book, BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL: How We Survive as Writing Parents (available in September, 2004). Book will be sent once your article is published. ******************************************************************* You are subscribed to this E-zine because you requested a subscription or signed yourself up on your own. To unsubscribe, send a blank e-mail to: 59308-unsubscribe@zinester.com |
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