Notes from Minnesota

In today’s special episode of Notes from Minnesota, Victoria Rosendahl and I are joined by copywriter extraordinaire Donna Doyle to chat about the state of copywriting in the new year. What used to work, what works now… and why.

It’s a meaty discussion with just a dash of fun. Sharpen your pencil and take copious notes. You just may pick up some info that’ll make freelancing a little more profitable…

Websites mentioned: http://TheRosendahlMethod.com

Donna’s site: http://CopyByDoyle.com

~~~ Notes from Minnesota ~~~

Hey Freelancer!

Thanks for all the kind comments concerning the audio version of Writing Etc. I love that you enjoy it! If you’re short on time and would rather listen to this shortish email, just click the link, scroll down, and hit “play.” Heck, you can even download the MP3 to enjoy later. It’s up to you.

(Just scroll down to the end of this post.) 🙂

Now… with all these upcoming holidays in full swing, I’ll keep ‘er short except to note that Mini-Me, our newest office mascot (a short legged, wonky-eyed Jack Russell rescue) appears to be losing some of her hair. And by some I mean pretty much all of it on her chest and belly area. Now her ear hair is thinning, too.

The vet says she’s probably still suffering the after affects of extreme stress. Also, if you recall, when she arrived, the bottom half of her body was stained deep blond with urine. Turns out that acidic substance may have affected her hair follicles. PLUS the nine pound dog we adopted now weighs in at 13.4. Apparently, on top of everything else, she’d been starved.

Sigh.

But, we adore that little stinker. I’ve never met a dog with such a playful, loving personality. She’s regaining her weight. What hair she has left is dazzling white. It may grow back. If it doesn’t, I’ve got an entire puppy wardrobe ready to roll…

Enjoy December!

Beth 🙂

P.S. Check out Filbert Publishing’s bestsellers!

1. The Mocha Club Monthly Subscription (Where savvy Creative Entrepreneurs hang out.)

2. Stuck: Transforming Everything You Think You Know About Creative Blocks

3. Bob Bly’s Guide to Freelance Writing Success

4. Pocket Power: Become the Person You Were Born to Be

5. Jumpstart Your Writing Career and Snag Paying Assignments

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Combine two Filbert Publishing’s best sellers and you’ve got powerful information that’ll get you on the road to earning a living as a writer. Fast.

Discover down and dirty techniques, no fluff here, on how to:

* Land Long Term Clients

* Write Stellar Queries that Help Sell Your Writing

* Create an Effective Website that Works Hard For You 24 Hours a Day

* Tackle Nonfiction Markets Scrambling for Competent Writers

* Sell Your Writing to Various Outlets to Create Multiple Streams of Income

* And So Much More

If you’re tired of spinning your wheels, if you feel like you’re missing the one thing that’ll help launch your writing biz, if you want solid information (at a deep discount) that’ll help you generate a steady stream of assignments… nab your copy of this double feature today in your preferred format (.pdf, mobi, epub).

Click here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sprinter vs Marathoner… Which are You?

Beth Ann Erickson

Today I’m going to reveal a writing hack that’ll transform your writing session into a power guzzling, wordcrunching, mind zapping, something or another… some crazy brouhaha… er… eh, just forget it.

What’s up with all the hacks?

Get this “hack/product” and you can forget writing, just talk into your computer and words will magically appear, presumably with perfect punctuation, incredible flow,

(Pssst… No time to read? Want to nab the MP3? Scroll to the bottom. We’re talking six minutes this time.)

~~~ Notes from Minnesota ~~~

Hey Freelancer,

Well. After over five years of uncertainty, this past week I finally sashayed into the local cancer center, received my clean CAT scan and FINALLY rang that elusive bell.

I got my walking papers. I won’t go back. They’re done with me.

It’s surreal, thrilling, terrifying… so many emotions.

From here on in, I’ll have a yearly blood test to measure my CEA level and that’s it. I hardly know what to do with myself.

But, I wanted to share the good news, heaven knows you’ve heard lots of sadness in this space. And I appreciate every single kind word I received throughout that difficult time.

I’ve always said that Creative Entrepreneurs are some of the kindest people on the planet. And I still hold that opinion.

A tremendous “THANKS” for hanging out with me during this rough time. You totally rock. 😛

‘Til next time,

Beth 🙂

P.S. Check out Filbert Publishing’s bestsellers!

1. The Mocha Club Monthly Subscription (Where savvy Creative Entrepreneurs hang out.)

2. Stuck: Transforming Everything You Think You Know About Creative Blocks

3. Bob Bly’s Guide to Freelance Writing Success

4. Pocket Power: Become the Person You Were Born to Be

5. Jumpstart Your Writing Career and Snag Paying Assignments

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let’s talk shop!

This month in the Creative Entrepreneur Newsletter:

* Activism versus Persuasion (A real but misunderstood difference.)

* When you sell your writing, what… exactly… are you really peddling? (It’s probably not what you think.)

* Want an effortless way to keep in touch with your prospective readers? Yup. We talk about it.

Heck, it’s only 4.99 a month, the price of a mocha.

Freelancing is ever evolving… unrecognizable from when I began during the Internet stone age.

So… let’s untangle these crazy, all important topics. We’ll gossip (just a little). Share the latest and greatest info. Perhaps we’ll have a little fun, too.

Let’s hang out at the Mocha Club.

Get more info here (and download a complementary issue of The Creative Entrepreneur Newsletter. Just click here

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Writing One to One

Beth Ann Erickson

When it comes to persuasion, many newbie writers tend to make a few basic mistakes.

Before we get to that, let’s talk about persuasion. I’m going to propose the notion that most of what you’ll write has at least a modicum of persuasion attached to it. If you think even an informative piece doesn’t contain elements of persuasion, you’d likely be incorrect.

Word choice can affect your reader’s perception. Sources cited can skew perspective. Font, color, medium… all these factors will affect your message.

With all these factors influencing your reader’s opinion… how do you harness your writing skills to best reflect your thoughts?

Ha. Glad you asked. 😛

1. Know your reader. Seriously. Really know them as best you can. What do they like? What do they believe? What kind of language do they use?

2. Set the tone early. Let your reader know what they’re getting into. If they don’t like your style, they’ll exit early… and that’s a good thing. You want to build a readership,

Today’s Notes From Minnesota features a fantastic article by the ever fabulous Bob Bly. Enjoy!

~~~ Notes from Minnesota ~~~

Hey Freelancer,

Every now and again, I have the incredible opportunity to work on what I call a “passion project.” This project generally falls outside our established publishing niches, but it’s something near and dear to my heart, something I cannot put down.

Now, before you read on, I should note I’m about to discuss something deeply personal. If you get uncomfortable when it comes to discussing matters of faith, you may want to scroll to our awesome feature article. It’s by the magnificent Bob Bly! Consider yourself warned…

Lately, I’ve been chagrined to observe how the faith of my youth has transformed into something I don’t exactly recognize. Deep truths have been transformed into trite sound bites peppering the walls of big box retail stores. Complex Biblical passages are cited without context. Many folks appear to be somewhat unaware of what the Holy Bible actually says.

So, I figured I’d do my little bit to change that.

I, and my fabulous Filbert Publishing team, created what we call a “Consecrated Journal.” It’s a small Bible, no commentary with super wide margins, a perfect place to journal, doodle, study without feeling like you’re studying.

The first in this series is done and number two is ready for release very soon.

If you’re a person of faith, I hope you’ll check out this poignant series. (Plus, I made a fast one minute video to show how it works!)

I probably won’t mention this project much here, but considering how pleased I am with how this is unfolding, I figured it merited a mention. Peruse this beautiful volume here (plus, check out my one minute vid!) Ignore my messy desk, classy paper weight, and the strange black square blocking a credit card laying next to the book. Good grief! I need to work on my video-making game!

http://ConsecratedJournal.com

‘Til next time,

Beth 🙂

P.S. Check out our personal bestsellers!

1. Stuck: Transforming Everything You Think You Know About Creative Blocks

2. Bob Bly’s Guide to Freelance Writing Success

3. *New Title!* Pocket Power: Become the Person You Were Born to Be

4. Advice to Freelancers: Make a Living Loving Your Job

5. Jumpstart Your Writing Career and Snag Paying Assignments

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let’s talk shop!

This month in the Creative Entrepreneur Newsletter? We’re discussing advertising, audience selection, and some hard truths when it comes to persuasion. Oh… and if you want to make a living writing, make sure you do one thing first. (How’s that for a teaser?)

Heck, it’s only 4.99 a month, the price of a mocha.

Freelancing is ever evolving… unrecognizable from when I began during the Internet stone ages.

So… let’s untangle these crazy, all important topics. We’ll gossip (just a little). Share the latest and greatest info. Perhaps we’ll have a little fun, too.

Let’s hang out at the Mocha Club.

Get more info here (and download a complementary issue of The Creative Entrepreneur Newsletter.

Just click here: https://filbertpublishing.com/multi/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

25 Secrets of Online Marketing Success

So… this is the most recent edition of my emag, Writing Etc. If you’re into making a living writing, this one’s for you. Enjoy!

~~~ Notes from Minnesota ~~~

Hey Freelancer,

Greetings and salutations from the Great White North. (Actually, it’s pretty brown around here.)

I’m in a pickle.

Recently invited to take part in what could be an interesting writing event, I’m having second thoughts. Thing is, time is precious. This shin-dig would represent 24 hours of travel, a week away from the office, and uncertain benefits.

Plus, I’m a hermit. Also, I’ve been on a creativity jag that I’m loathe to lose. Oh… and I’m slated for what could possibly be my final cancer check-up shortly thereafter… assuming my lymph nodes have shrunk, every bumple cooperates, and the vitals check out. Traveling doesn’t do much for my blood pressure and strange foods muck up the blood numbers.

But it’s quite an honor… one I don’t feel enthusiastic about.

So… I figured, why not see what you think? How do you make decisions like this? Send me your thoughts. You can hit up the comment section or just hit “reply.”

OHHHHH… and be sure to check out the MP3 version of this emag. If you like it, I’ll continue this fun experiment in upcoming issues. You can find it here:

‘Til next time,

Beth 🙂

P.S. Check out our personal bestsellers!

1. Stuck: Transforming Everything You Think You Know About Creative Blocks

2. Bob Bly’s Guide to Freelance Writing Success

3. *New Title!* Pocket Power: Become the Person You Were Born to Be

4. Advice to Freelancers: Make a Living Loving Your Job

5. Jumpstart Your Writing Career and Snag Paying Assignments

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let’s talk shop!

This month in the Creative Entrepreneur Newsletter? We’re discussing advertising your writing, audience selection, and some hard truths when it comes to persuasion. Oh… and if you want to make a living writing, make sure you do one thing first. (How’s that for a teaser?)

Heck, it’s only 4.99 a month, the price of a mocha.

Freelancing is ever evolving… unrecognizable from when I began during the Internet stone ages.

So… let’s untangle these crazy, all important topics. We’ll gossip (just a little). Share the latest and greatest info. Perhaps we’ll have a little fun, too.

Let’s hang out at the Mocha Club.

Get more info here (and download a complementary issue of The Creative Entrepreneur Newsletter.

Just click here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Freelancing Like A Farmer

Beth Ann Erickson

I began my illustrious freelance career with visions of tweed coats, elbow patches, cigars, and pensive photos. My mind’s eye saw a cluttered office, checks strewn across my desk, and waking to one illuminating thought after another. I believed I’d tap at the keyboard, mail queries, read my articles on glossy paper, and assignments would flow like water.

Small problem with that scenario. Tweed coats don’t look good on me. I don’t smoke, never have. And I usually wind up looking goofy in photos, no matter how hard I try to strike a pensive pose.

Ah, but my desk is cluttered. I do occasionally find a stray check in amongst the mounds of papers. But illuminating thoughts? Bah.

Life’s fabulous! Have a thick skin! Never let ‘em see you sweat! Think happy thoughts! How do you handle social media glory with the realities of freelancing in a world... Read more »

Life’s fabulous! Have a thick skin! Never let ‘em see you sweat! Think happy thoughts!

How do you handle social media glory with the realities of freelancing in a world that doesn’t always cooperate? Today Beth and Victoria tackle reality, thoughts on mindset, potential earnings, and much more. Better yet? They also discuss:

* A six figure tweak some unscrupulous marketers use to make their income seem higher

* Where positive thinking can go awry

* What to do when you hit a brick wall

* Why if you hear a writer claiming to make “five figures” a month, you better do a little more math…

* Beware turning disappointment inward. Victoria has a strategy for avoiding that behavior

* Bonus: Victoria reveals her Hollywood roots! (Thanks for the Memories!)

* Double Bonus: Watch Victoria’s face when Beth brings up the KU strategy of releasing a book every 30 days

Tune in for an irreverent, fun discussion. 🙂

Links mentioned: Victoria’s website: http://RosendahlMethod.com

The Cocky Podcast: https://filbertpublishing.com/the-great-cocky-scandal/

How does trademark work? What are the implications of trademarking certain words?

Today Beth and Victoria (who just happens to be a retired attorney) discuss the current #CockyGate situation, ripples, reactions, publicity, infamy, obscurity… my goodness. Hopefully this level-headed discussion will add to this ever evolving, sometimes volatile story.

Victoria’s website: http://TheRosendahlMethod.com