Money The Write Way a free eMagazine for writers of integrity *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ May 5, 2004 Volume 2 Number 8 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ To join our more than 4000 subscribers, and receive the FREE eBook, "So You Want to be a Travel Writer," click on: http://www.moneythewriteway.com It's FREE! *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ In this issue: 1.) Letter From The Publisher---On The Home Front 2.) Ask an Expert/Questions and Answers 3.) COMP-ortunity of the month 4.) The Business of Writing by Duane Newcomb 5.) Editor's Pick/Reviews by Victoria Beninga 6.) The Boast Post---Bragging Board of Writers Triumphs and Victories *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Money The Write Way eMagazine ISSN pending. Copyright 2004 Write Spirit Publishing. All rights reserved. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Start Comping today by purchasing our best selling eBook: "BEEN THERE---COMPED THAT!" Free Travel, Dining, and Entertainment, All for the Cost of Some Ink Available at: http://www.moneythewriteway.com *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ~*~ On The Home Front Carmel L. Mooney Wow, I love being a writer. I just took my third cruise in 18 months, came straight home to unpack and leave again for a resort and then went straight to a seminar I taught on writing. I love sharing the inside scoop with other writers and I love the benefits of traveling to luxurious destinations and writing about them and covering them on the radio too. I hope your love of writing is still fueled by a passion for what you do. I also enjoy publishing this eMagazine and sharing wonderful education, inspiration, networking, and fun with other writers and authors but I have decided to begin publishing 6 times a year. So beginning in July you will still receive our wonderful FREE eMagazine but it will be delivered on or around the first Wednesday of every other month. Please continue to keep sending us your comments, questions, boasts, and submissions and we'll see you again this summer. Until July, Carmel *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ~*~ This week's newest COMP-ortunity Carnival Cruise Line Website: http://www.carnival.com email: vgulliksen @ carnival.com Address: 3655 N.W. 87 Ave. Miami, FL 33178-2428 Phone: 800-438-6744 Contact: Vance Gulliksen Description: Carnival is the world's most popular cruise line. Coverage desired: Promote the cruise line, its itineraries, ports, and services. Prefers writers with any of the following: Writing samples/clips for review. Possible comp: Cruises when availability permits. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ~*~ "Ask a Pro" Publishing/Comping/Writing Q&A "Your Questions---You Always Wanted To Ask," answered by professional writing consultant/coach/author/instructor, Carmel L. Mooney To ask Carmel a writing, publishing, or comping question, email her at: Carmel@moneythewriteway.com. Questions may be edited for length or content if necessary. Question: What's the difference between starting out as a staff writer or a columnist for a newspaper or magazine? A. Williams Loomis, CA Answer: I started out as a staff writer, writing one assigned article each week from home for a newspaper. The subjects varied from covering a local soccer star to a couple doing humanitarian relief efforts in Asia. Later I branched into columns for magazines which usually covered the same subject matter such as parenting, nutrition, or travel. Either is a great way to build up experience and clips. Question: If I do email queries will they get lost in spam filters? N. Hansen Columbus, Ohio Answer: Generally, no. But only query by email if a publication says they welcome them. Then on your end, if you have a strong spam filter like me, check your deleted folder occasionally if you are waiting for an email query response. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ To ask Carmel a writing, publishing, or comping question, email her at: Carmel@moneythewriteway.com. Carmel Mooney is also available by phone and/or email for private consultation, editing, and coaching. Carmel has helped hundreds of writers achieve writing and publishing success. Email her at: Carmel@moneythewriteway.com or call her at: 916-205-4763 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ~*~ The Business Side of Writing Duane Newcomb Pick a Specialty Want to increase your writing income? Then specialize. Magazines like to buy their articles from an expert. There are several reasons for this. First, magazines like to feel that their writers know what they're talking about. If you've written fifteen or twenty articles on the same subject, they're more likely to trust you as an authority in the field. In addition, if you're built your name as an expert, readers are likely to know your name and trust your opinion. This is important to a magazine. What specialties are there? There are many fields in which you can specialize. Let's look quickly at a few broad ones. Business. Just for starters there are over 8,000 business magazines that take articles in specialized business areas. They buy interviews with industry leaders, articles on business problems, general business areas, and more. In addition, the popular magazines buy hundreds of business articles a year. Here are a few titles from the major women's magazines. "Credit-Crazed Dolls" (the credit situation), "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Bank?" (a discussion of how to deal with the bank), "Birth of a Saleswoman" (an investigation of this glamorous, high paying field), "Career Power and How to Get It," and "Crash Course in Personal Finance." If you are business-minded, this can be a lucrative field. Science. There's hardly a field more in demand today than science. Pick up practically any magazine and you'll find an article on some aspect of science: agriculture, anthropology, astronomy, space, aviation, biology, chemistry, physics, zoology, and more. The secret of breaking into this field is the same as it is for any other --study the magazines you're interested in hitting to determine what types of science articles they're taking. Use your local paper, as well as your local college public relations department, to discover possible science articles on topics you'd like to investigate and write about. The public relations departments of major universities will help. They also offer experts that you can reach on-line. Medicine. In a an increasing number of publications today, you'll find such articles as "What you Should Know About Male Cancers," "Do-It-Yourself Breast and Gynecological Checkup," and "New Ways to Cure Your Cancer." It isn't necessary to be a doctor to write articles like these, but you must do your homework well and build an extensive knowledge of this field. Food Nutrition. Is this a good specialty? You bet it is. Of course, most food articles in major magazines are staff written. You will, however, find freelance pieces like "Calorie Watch," "Cooking for Good Health," "The Ten Star Vegetables," and "Watching Your Weight--How to Decalorie Your Favorite Recipes." There are also numerous secondary markets such AARP, The Magazine, Family Magazine, Earthtone, Grit, Woodmen of the World, and American Health, which collectively buy hundreds of food and nutrition articles each year. Building a specialty means accumulating a library of all possible markets. As a start, go through Writer's Market and send for every magazine that takes health articles--don't overlook the religious magazines, farm magazines, company magazines, health magazines and others. Automotive. Pick up any popular magazine and you're liable to find at least one article on the car. Even in Family Circle, you'll find articles with titles like "You Need a Tune Up, Lady." Follow the rule of collecting information, relating your own experiences to what's being done, and then querying. Travel. Everyone thinks they can write travel articles, but many try the major travel magazines and quit. The market boils down to a limited number of travel magazines, travel sections in newspapers, and a much larger number of general and specialty magazines that take some travel articles. Some of the auto insurance magazines, for instance, take at least one travel article an issue. To find these, start your own library of magazines that take travel articles--go through Writer's Market and send for copies. In addition, scan every magazine you're not familiar with to see if they might be a market for one of your travel pieces. Outdoor Recreation. Outdoor recreation has exploded in many directions, recreation vehicles, boating, camping, hunting and fishing, water skiing, archery, snowboarding, Snowmobiling, canoeing, bicycling, river running, sail boarding, surfing, extreme sports, skin diving, and much, much more. You will find articles on these subjects in specialized publications like Cycling World, Snow Goer, Rodale's Scuba Diving, Bow Hunter, Bird Watcher's Digest, High Country News, and National Parks. You will also find hundreds of outdoor articles published every year in the general magazines. Other specialties that get good reception at magazines include fashions, marriage, the family and its problems, women's issues, Hollywood celebrities, politics, education, and religion. Make Yourself a Specialist. To start specializing, pick a field that you are comfortable with or know something about. After that, follow these steps: (1) Go through Writer's Market and send for all possible magazines that might take articles you write. (2) Study the magazines when they arrive. (3) Start reading technical journals--if it's medicine you're interested in, take the AMA Journal and others. Do the same for other fields. Also make yourself aware of any indexes in your field. Your librarian can help you with this. After this, the rest is up to you. A writer doesn't have to know everything he or she is writing about, but you must go to somebody that does. Every major university keeps a list of specialists available over the Internet who will often answer questions over the phone or by e-mail. Finally, you must continue to work in the field, build your files, collect voluminous literature on the subject and read extensively. If you want to double and triple your article sales, consider taking the online article workshop offered by the California Writer's Academy. This class teaches both the selling and writing techniques all article writers need but sometimes ignore. Check out the online workshops at www.californiawritersacademy.com. Duane Newcomb is a literary consultant with 36 non-fiction books to his credit, over 5000 articles and more than 150 client books in print. Subscribe to his free, monthly Professional Author Newsletter at: dnew@thegrid.com . *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~ Editor's Pick Book, Magazine, Website, and e-Book Review Victoria Beninga, Editor This Month's Review: HOW TO BE A FREELANCE SPORTSWRITER & PUBLICIST By James Raia Confession time: When I agreed to read this eBook for a possible review, I put it off as long as possible because I am not a big sports fan. I, like many people, thought sportswriting was a matter of reporting score after score after score. (Yawn). Surprise -- I couldn't stop reading it once I started, and even made plenty of notes for myself for my own freelance writing. James Raia has been a journalist since 1976, and a full-time freelance writer since 1987. He tells it like it is in his well-organized, articulate style. There is no self-esteem boosting or coddling. Statements such as "It's their way of doing business, so deal with it" create a sense of honesty for the reader. James Raia offers many chapters of advice for prospective freelance sportswriters, including information on selling stories about sports to publications which are sports- and non-sports related, how to get interviews with well-known sports figures, and how to arrange trips to cover sporting events. Also included is information helpful to any writer, such as the importance of the business end of writing, ethics, creating multiple sales from an original article, taking one article idea and expanding it into many different articles, deciding whether an article has worldwide appeal, selling to foreign markets, things that can go wrong with paychecks, and queries. In addition, Mr. Raia shared how he took his expertise as a sports writer and earned extra income by doing public relations work for sporting events, doing PR for businesses, and teaching classes. Whether you are a fanatic who dreams about writing about your passion for sports, or someone like me who on any given day couldn't tell you if it's baseball or basketball season, HOW TO BE A FREELANCE SPORTSWRITER & PUBLICIST is a great addition to your library of helpful books for writers. To order this eBook, to order Mr. Raia's sports eBooks, or to subscribe to his sports newsletters, go to http://www.byjamesraia.com/. Copyright 2004, Victoria Beninga Victoria Beninga Publisher/Editor/Columnist, GOLD COUNTRY FAMILIES, a FREE e-mail newsletter and FREE eMagazine of Sierra Nevada Gold Country family-friendly activities, http://www.goldcountryfamilies.com Associate Editor/Columnist, MONEY THE WRITE WAY, a FREE eMagazine for writers of integrity, http://www.moneythewriteway.com *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ~*~ The Boast Post Don't be modest-we applaud you! Whether it's an assignment victory, a publishing accomplishment, comp, or a writing goal achieved, we'd love to hear it. Please include your full name or initials, and your city and state. Send your boast in 75 words or less to: Carmel@moneythewriteway.com (may be edited for length or content) Boast: More than 40 authors are showcased in the new Inspirational Anthology, Angel Over My Shoulder by Barb Karg and Rick Sutherland. One of the authors is R. D. Larson. R. D. Larson's story Crossing the Bridge is about the heart surgery she had as a child. Published in 2004 by Fair Winds Press, Gloucester, MA., Angel Over My Shoulder is available nationwide - ISBN I-59233-05303 - at all Major Bookstores and Outlets. The author is available to sign copies locally - Puget Sound - simply email R. D. Larson. with request. R. D. Larson has two other books available at Island Studios. They are Evil Angel, a Suspense Thriller, and Saving Reverend Clayton, co-authored with Louise Ulmer. The author is an EPPIE finalist for 2004. R. D. Larson recently won the Grand Prize of $100 for the story Christmas on Red Dog Road at ebooksonthe.net. RD Larson, Washington State *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Womenıs Poetry Competition First prize £1,000, second prize £500, third prize £250. Entry fee £5 for up to five poems. Closing date 31 May 2004. The 25 best entries will be published in Mslexia, the best-selling magazine for women writers. For conditions of entry, please contact: Mslexia (PC), Freepost NEA5566, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE99 1BR; 0191 261 6656; poetrycomp@mslexia.demon.co.uk; www.mslexia.co.uk Mslexia, the magazine for women who write PO Pox 656 Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE99 1PZ 0191 261 6656 www.mslexia.co.uk *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Websites for Writers! ---Hazel Nieves, expert on Internet Marketing and Online business success, is owner of Web Development Company, Sierra Technology Solutions, Inc. She has 20 years experience in sales, marketing, and technology and is a committed crusader in helping take the confusion out of taking your business online. You can contact Hazel at 530-367-2915 or Customerservice@sierratechnologysolutions.com Special Offer! Writers Special E-biz Website Package Turnkey Package Includes: *5 Custom Pages *Shopping Cart (up to 10 products) *Secure Server *One year hosting service *Uses your own domain *Up to 15 Email accounts *Attractive Professional designs to choose from *Copyright Statement page Special Price: $ 600.00 complete Get started today with your Affordable Professional E-business website here: http://www.sierratechnologysolutions.com /writers/writers_special.htm Learn more from Hazel at: http://www.sierratechnologysolutions.com *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Now you can access invaluable writing information at: www.californiawritersacademy.com http://www.californiawritersacademy.com *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Receive a free copy of Marco Polo Magazine. This is a great magazine to read or write for. Call: 727-735-9455 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ It's FREE ---List your inn, resort, restaurant, entertainment venue, business, or destination seeking written coverage---contact the publisher: Carmel@moneythewriteway.com *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ www.travelingadventureswithchildren.com is looking for writers to submit travel stories. For more details write Kim Lopez at: marketing@carriagehousepublishing.com *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Money The Write Way eMagazine TO SUBSCRIBE: Simply go to: http://www.moneythewriteway.com/free_emagazine.htm and check the SUBSCRIBE BOX (You'll also get a free eBook gift as our way of saying thank you.) TO UNSUBSCRIBE: Simply go to: http://www.moneythewriteway.com/free_emagazine.htm and check the UNSUBSCRIBE box Changing email addresses? Simply go to: http://www.moneythewriteway.com/free_emagazine.htm and subscribe under your new address *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Have something you'd like to offer more than 4000 writers and authors? Place YOUR ad in Money the Write Way today! It's affordable and effective. Email for rates and details: Carmel@moneythewriteway.com *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Write Spirit Publishing P.O. Box 3405 Auburn, CA 95604 Contact us at: Carmel@moneythewriteway.com We welcome your: comments/suggestions/requests/contributions Carmel L. Mooney, Publisher Victoria Beninga, Associate Editor http://www.moneythewriteway.com Should the links we provide not work, this may mean your E-mail program doesn't like our code. Simply go directly to our current online archived issue at: http://www.moneythewriteway.com You may freely distribute this eMag to friends, discussion lists, and writing groups as long as the issue is included in its entirety. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~