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13 June, 2010 10:08 am

Time Management – Free Report Download

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by Deb    in NonFiction Writing, Writing Diary

Working with Demand Studios has shown me that I need to get to grips with time management.

This isn’t something that’s new to me. I’m well aware that I get sidetracked very easily. Particularly when doing online research – which writing for Demand Studios is really all about.

Consequently I’m putting a few brakes on myself to try and streamline my working process and stay more focused on the task in hand.

So I’ve been looking around on the net a bit, (hmmm, does that count as getting sidetracked?) for some time management tips. When I come across any I’ll pass them on here.

Here’s one, it’s an affiliate link but don’t let that put you off. The report is free to download and it contains some good advice with regard to getting more done in the allotted time: Time Management Secrets of a Madman

Speaking of Demand Studios – I’m now on my 8th article for them and my work is beginning to appear online. The regular payment is very nice, the not having to come up with ideas is nice too. The search for assignments can be a challenge (more on that later) and is another area where I need to be more proactive with my time management.

Here’s that link again. And remember, it’s a free download. Nothing to lose but your timewasting habits.

Time Management Secrets of a Madman

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5 June, 2010 9:11 am

Demand Studios Rewrites

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by Deb    in Articles, NonFiction Writing, Writing Diary

I was a little bit more canny with my next choice of assignment titles.

“Write about what you know” is almost a mantra for writers, so I decided to put it to use in a practical sense.

What do I know?

Well, sometimes that’s a hard question to answer. I know loads. Lots of little bits about a lot of subjects. But what do I know really well?

Writing.

I know how to write, and I know how to teach other people how to write – or at least how to make their writing better and avoid some of the pitfalls.

I plugged ‘writing’ and various alternatives into the demand studios filter and came up with a title on the writer’s code of ethics which I quickly claimed.

Having one title left out of my initial three, I did a little thinking ‘outside the box’, and found another title relating to telling stories to preschool children which I also claimed.

Writing about the code of ethics was easy for me, the research and writing combined took just over an hour. That’s better than my long ramble with the raccoons of a few days ago. I’d like to do it faster, and maybe when I’m more familiar with the DS style and voice I’ll be able to. For now, I’m happy with that.

Shock, horror. The article came back within hours asking for rewrites. Glancing through the rewrite requests it seemed just about everything I’d written was flagged for change.

I’d expected the raccoons to come back. They didn’t. I didn’t expect the code of ethics to come back. It did. Lesson. Don’t assume anything with Demand Studios. Copy Editors work to strict guidelines (as do the writers) and theoretically we’re all working to the same rules. Interpretations, however, differ.

For instance, I didn’t include a caption with the illustration I sent with the raccoons. No problem there according to the CE who reviewed it. But the copy editor who reviewed my second article insisted all photos must have a caption.

To be fair, the rewrites were very simple changes and on reflection I couldn’t argue with any of them. They were small changes, but as writers we know what a huge difference small changes to word order or language can make.

I made the changes as requested and resubmitted and, happily, the second version was quickly accepted. Again within hours.

The point I’m making here is that you just can’t be precious about your words. If you get a rewrite request, just do it. Of course there are instances when the request is wrong or will change the meaning or angle of your article, and in those cases you need to think carefully about where you stand on the issue. If the change goes against the grain with you then maybe you need to walk away from it. But you don’t niggle about the small stuff. It’s not worth it, not even when it surprises you.

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3 May, 2010 10:12 am

Writing with Demand Studios

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by Deb    in Articles, NonFiction Writing, Writing Diary

I’ve decided to give writing with Demand Studios a try, and I’ll log here how it goes and whether it turns out to be worth the effort or not.

First Impressions

Having got through the application process, which took about four days and involved submitting my resume along with a writing sample, I was required to fill in my profile/bio and submit tax information before I could claim any assignments. Fair enough. I’ve read a lot from people who object to giving tax information online (understandably), but as I’m writing from the UK all this meant for me was to give them my contact details and declare I was outside the USA. Nothing scary there.

The attractive thing about writing with Demand Studios is that it’s always there, with writing assignments on tap when other work is a bit scarce.

The pay’s not great, but if you’ve spent any time browsing the writing gig boards and become depressed over the number of $2 jobs, then $15 at Demand Studios suddenly doesn’t seem so bad. At today’s conversion rate it’s somewhere around the £9.80 mark for 400 – 500 words.

It’s definitely not a way to get rich through writing, but it is (possibly) a way to find ongoing motivation to write that has a tangible reward with twice weekly pay days through PayPal.

There are a lot of assignments.

I can’t claim any before filling in the resume/bio bit, but I could glance through what was available. It’s a real mixed bag, with some titles making no sense whatsoever. I can see finding titles to claim could become a big time drain – and if writing with Demand Studios is going to pay then time is of the essence.

I’m putting a strict time limit of one hour on each assignment I take on, and that has to include the research, gathering of resources and sources where needed, and the writing. My practised ability to freewrite will pay dividends here.

Guidance for New Demand Studios Writers

Of this there is a ton. Everything from style sheets to finished, approved articles. It’s all in the resource centre. Whereas some people like to dive right in and get writing, I’m in the camp that likes to have a good read around what’s expected of me. Yep, I always read instruction manuals before I press buttons on new gadgets, and yep, I drive the family mad.

So I approached writing with Demand Studios in the same fashion, and I’m reading everything, including forum postings on the newbie board so I can get an idea of what other new Demand Studios writers have struggled with.

I advise any other new writers to do the same. The forum community seems friendly, helpful and knowledgeable.

As each submitted assignment has to go through an editing process, most new writers worry that they won’t pass, or that they’ll be fired for getting rejections. Or they fret over why something was rejected and whether or not a rewrite is worth the time. The more experienced writers provide a steadying, reassuring voice and I’ve yet to come across any patronising voices – the biggest turn off for newcomers who want to ask questions.

It’s early days for me, having not even claimed my first assignment yet, so I have no idea how it’ll turn out.

The thing is to make it work for me rather than the other way round. The articles/assignments aren’t rocket science, but I can already see that the format and research could make writing with Demand Studios time consuming if I don’t choose titles carefully.

Off to find one then. As a newbie, I have a maximum of three, which I need to write and get approved. After that I can maintain a queue of ten.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

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15 April, 2010 8:53 am

The Freewriting Process

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by Deb    in NonFiction Writing, Writing Courses, Writing Prompts

eBook Write Out LoudIt’s a few years since I brought out my eBook, Write Out Loud, on freewriting, and people ask me if I still write that way? Am I still freewriting? Hmmmm, do ducks still swim?

Of course I am. I don’t know how to write any other way.

The thing is, when you start a writing project you have to begin somewhere and freewriting is a great way to find that somewhere. The first word has to go down, followed by the second to make up the sentence. You may have a rough idea of what you want to say in the body of the piece, or you may have no idea where you’re going when you first start, but where ever it is, a start must be made. Getting those first words is even more pressing when you’re on a deadline.

If I’m writing nonfiction, I might start with research and let that suggest a few angles. For instance, I was recently asked to write a short piece on home insurance. What do I know about home insurance? Being ‘between homes’ I don’t even have insurance at the moment.

But this was a general interest piece for an estate agency (real estate) website. I didn’t have to consult experts, mention particular brands or focus on any one aspect of the subject. I just had to write an SEO article around the general subject.

I started with research and went to one of my favourite hunting grounds, the BBC News website. At this point I had no idea what I was going to write. I only knew I had to write something. I’d said I’d do it. I had a deadline. Between now and then an article on the given subject had to come out of my keyboard.

When I’m writing nonfiction I need a starting place before freewriting can work its magic. Freewriting prompts are great for fiction, but I find not so great for nonfiction at the beginning. On the BBC website I found my starting place within minutes, and a few minutes later, having scanned a couple of articles on the subject, I had enough knowledge to fire up Scrivener and begin freewriting.

I don’t fret about structure at this stage. I have a little corner of my mind on the clock – I’m on deadline remember – and if this writing is going to be profitable to me I can’t afford to tinker and angst over word choice. I trust my freewriting muse to deliver to goods, and with my general subject in mind I just start writing.

And from that point on I let it go where it wants. All the time I’m subconsciously giving it a little direction because the research I’ve just done is fresh in my mind. My muse has plenty of fodder to draw on.

One paragraph in and I’m rolling. A structure of sorts begins to suggest itself and I let it run. What I don’t do is make alternative suggestions to my muse, or worry about whether it’s be the best structure. It’s a structure. That’s all I need. Let it grow and see what happens.

What happens is this. The more I trust my freewriting muse the more it delivers to me. Words are there when I need them. Sometimes the best words don’t pop up until the last minute, and that’s okay too. It’s the popping up that counts, not the moment when they do so.

Having been given a great ending line, right at the point when I hit my given wordcount, I stop writing. Close Scrivener. Shut the laptop. Go and have coffee.

My first draft of the article is in the bag and what I need now is a little distance from it. When I come back, which might be an hour or so later, or given the lead time it might even be a day or so later, I read it with a fresh eye. 9 times out of 10 I’m happy with what I got and don’t need to do more than tighten, correct typos, check for SEO (which Scrivener is great for – see here) and alter accordingly.

For the article in question, my great line at the end was actually a lousy place to end. It was too sudden, had no element of conclusion and left the reader hanging. Not good.

I sort of knew this as I was writing, but because I was freewriting, and this is what you do when you’re freewriting, it had to go down. Always remember, freewriting is first draft stuff. A fast way of getting the ideas down and controlling the internal editor.

When I went back after my break, I realised my rotten ending made a perfect beginning.

It was a couple of minutes work to shift that ending up to the start and rejig the transitions so it read smoothly. A little editing in the body reduced my word count, and having done that tidying up I was more able to see the finished structure and add an ending that rounded off and provided a proper conclusion.

I could have sat for a couple of hours at the start, fighting with myself to find the perfect beginning. I could have refused to start until I had the structure planned out and the ending firmly in mind.

From experience I know this way of writing doesn’t work for me.

I found my perfect beginning only after I’d almost finished. What became the opening sentence of my article was actually the last one I wrote.

In freewriting this happens time and time again. It’s a process you have to learn to trust, and you can only learn to trust it if you try it out for yourself.

I’m not saying freewriting like this works for everyone. We all do things a little differently from each other. But it works often enough, for enough people, that if you haven’t tried it yet, you maybe should.

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5 April, 2010 9:34 am

Finding Your Writing Process

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by Deb    in Fiction Writing, Random Writing Rambles, Scrivener

A lot has been written about the process of writing – how you go from initial glimmer of an idea to the final draft – and for good reason. It’s one of the things that most bugs new writers, and most fascinates many more experienced writers. When you’re starting out, you wonder if you’re doing it right, and when you’ve been at it a while you’re curious about what processes other writers use.

For those just starting out, the question of whether or not you’re doing it right, whilst valid and, to some extent, unavoidable, is a question that can never be totally answered.

There are as many different answers as there are writers. We all do it a little differently from the next person, and we’re all right. It’s getting to the final draft that matters, not the route we take.

Having said that, there’s something very reassuring about reading about the writing process of someone who’s further along the road to success than you are. At the very least you can, maybe, learn to streamline your own process if you’re lucky enough to find someone who’s work pattern is already similar to your own. At the very best you can discover that other more widely published writers take a route that’s just as meandering and repetitive as your own. Very reassuring.

The important thing is that you don’t let another writer’s writing process totally derail your own.

This has happened to me in the past. I’ve read a workflow that sounds really good, efficient, clean and organised. I’ve thought it was something I just had to try. I’ve abandoned my own process and adopted the new one – with mostly disastrous results. Disastrous because I’ve had to study how they did it to make it work for myself, so I’ve wasted precious writing time. I’ve had to, in some instances, recopy notes already written in order to make them fit into a new pattern, and I’ve even had to get new software and learn how to use that before I could proceed. And in the end, just about every time, I’ve eventually abandoned the new process and gone back to the one that is uniquely mine.

Just occasionally I come across a writing process/workflow that really does help. In case you’re curious, the best ones I’ve found recently are the totally fabulous writing app Scrivener (which all mac users who write really ought to have, and which I was so sure would be the right one for me I actually bought a mac so I could use it), and which I now use for all my writing, the diary system used by David Hewson, and the notebook used by Antony Johnston.

I’ve always made copious notes about what I’m writing, including plot progression ideas, character sketches, motivations, questions to myself and my characters, reasons and consequences, and I’m more inclined to follow Mr. Johnson’s method of having one notebook on the go at a time, rather than a dedicated notebook for each separate long project/novel. I’ve never tried MacJournal, as used by Mr. Hewson but I am tempted by his latest idea of the private, online novel blog diary and may give that a go.

These two examples of successful author’s processes help rather than derail my own writing process because they expand on methods I already use – namely the notebook and Scrivener. With my notebook, I have tended, in the past, to leave my notes in there and eventually lose them in the plethora of random addresses, phone numbers and shopping lists that also get noted down. But if I adopt either the online diary or the extended use of Scrivener as described by Messrs Hewson and Johnston I should, theoretically at least, not lose track of my notes again.

I don’t think I’ll ever be totally cured of my curiosity towards other writer’s working methods, but hopefully I’ve learned over the years what works best for me and can now pick and choose which new methods I take on board.

The very best advice? By all means read how others do it, and learn from those who’ve gone before, but ultimately follow your own instincts and do what feels best for you. And never, never, ditch a working method half way through a project unless your present writing process just isn’t working and you’re starting again anyway.

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