Enjoying the Benefits of Writing Contests

Are you trying to start a career as a freelance writer? If so, you might want to consider participating in writing contests in order to help establish a name for yourself and to gain experience in the writing field. In fact, there are many benefits that participating in a writing competition can provide to anyone that is interested in starting a career in writing or who simply wants to find a way to make some extra cash from home.

Get Experience With a Writing Competition

One great benefit to participating in writing contests is the fact that you can gain a significant amount of writing experience while participating in the contest. By following the contest rules and taking time to craft a quality piece of writing, you will learn more about your personal strengths and weaknesses in writing. This way, you can improve your skills and become a stronger writer.

Get Exposure When Participating in Writing Contests

Even if you don’t win, simply participating in a writing competition can help you gain exposure. First, the person or people reading the essays may be impressed by your writing style or may like your writing voice or tone. As a result, you may be contacted by those individuals to complete writing projects for them.

Even if you are not contacted by someone involved with the writing competition, your piece may still be published along with other entrants in the competition. As a result, someone else may see your writing and be impressed by your style. Or, when contacting potential clients for jobs they have available, you can refer to your published piece as a sample for those potential clients to read. Not only will these potential clients see a fine piece of writing that you created, they will also see that your piece has been published. Published pieces are even more impressive to potential clients than pieces that have not been published.

Gain Confidence and Make Money

If you do win some of the writing contests that you enter, you will certainly gain a boost in your confidence. After all, it feels great to win contests – particularly when it was your own personal talent that helped you win!

In addition to the confidence boost that winning a writing competition can provide, you can also win some money or some great prizes. So, if you want to put a little extra money in your pocket, participating in writing contests can be just the way to do it!

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Entering writing contests is a great way to earn some extra money while also giving your ego a boost. If you are interested in making money online or launching a freelance writing career, entering a writing competition is a great way to start.

Ralph King has been contributing to leading magazines for the past 10 years. He’s also an accredited researcher on the subject for leading research institutes in the US.
Source: http://www.articletrader.com

Are you ready for a change your life kind of experience? Yes. Then write the book you’ve been dreaming of writing. Few things hold the potential for a life changing experience like writing a book does.

You can receive life long income from writing a book. You can affect the lives of hundreds even thousands for the good. You gain the added respect of your colleagues after writing your book. You can leverage the increase of fees exponentially in your business.

Even so, many new authors don’t receive the rewards they deserve. They forfeit their advantages by making simple mistakes that block their book’s success. Correct the following mistakes to enjoy the rich rewards of a top selling book author:

1. Failure to set realistic expectations.

To be honest, your book by itself probably won’t make you rich. Don’t be disappointed with your royalty check or dismayed by direct sales of your self-published book.

Instead, plan to use your book as an important leveraging tool to advance existing sales, increase your business or catapult your career. Plan to receive open door opportunities that you may not have received any other way.

2. Failure to organize book project.

Researchers say we waste over 6 full days a year looking for mislaid information. Make it easy for yourself. Create a filing system for your book project. You’ll write faster and with less stress. Did you discover you can’t pull it all together by yourself? Delegate; hire an assistant to help. Do the part you are most skilled in and assign the rest.

3. Failure to turn off self-editor.

Turn off the self-editor while writing. The editor in you will want to stop and correct every error. Don’t allow him or her a voice until you finish the writing process. It’s more important to finish your rough draft than to write a perfect manuscript. Don’t let a too early editing process block your rewards.

4. Failure to avoid marathon writing.

Prolific authors at some point realize they don’t have to sell their soul to write a saleable book. They write a little each day to get it done faster. They avoid marathon writing (going away). You unintentionally set yourself up for failure if you opt for the marathon writing. What happens to your book goals, if you come back and your book’s still not written?

5. Failure to focus on one main topic.

Top selling authors focus on one main topic. They make sure each chapter supports that subject. If you scatter your focus, you’ll come across as unorganized, long winded, and boring. Your readers may find your book hard to understand.

Instead of an encyclopedia type book, chunk your information into modules, segments, chapters or parts. In each segment, offer plenty of detail to make it useful to your reader.

6. Failure to write ‘Grab You by the Collar’ titles.

It’s a known fact; titles sell books. In fact, titles sell a lot more than books. Titles sell newspapers. Titles sell magazines. Titles enhance the selling power of ads, brochures, web sites, booklets, and just about any kind of marketing element you can think of. Don’t forget chapter titles, sub heading titles, bulleted points (mini-titles) benefit from sizzling titles.

7. Failure to think series.

Top selling authors focus on a series of books rather than one book. Publishers look for concepts that can be expanded into a series of books rather than individual titles. Even your readers (if they like it) will look for the sequel.

8. Failure to think community.

Successful authors look for ways to engage and involve a nurturing relationship with readers and peers. You should seek to include the support of your family, friends, readers, other authors, book coaches and others who feed your enthusiasm. Most are eager to provide ideas, assistance and feedback.

9. Failure to engage in promotion.

Most beginning authors hope someone else will come along and promote their book for them. In the real world, successful authors take ownership in promoting their book. They know if they want their book to succeed, they have to promote it.

10. Failure to develop future income streams.

Even after you finish your book, new ideas will probably continue to surface. Ideas that you wish you had thought to include in your book. Instead of going back to re-work your manuscript consider using them in your promotional material.

Become a trusted resource and supplier of fresh information in your field. Create an ongoing relationship with your readers. Continue to develop your topic by creating articles, speeches, workshops, courses, or invite readers to submit questions and suggestions to your website.

If you continue in the mistakes above your book may never reach the level of success it deserves. Instead, implement good book writing tips and avoid the mistakes new authors make. Go ahead; take the wheel of writing well and drive your book to a wild success.

About the Author:
Earma Brown, 12 year author and business owner helps small business owners and writers who want to write their best book now! Earma mentors other writers and business professionals through her monthly ezine “iScribe.” Send any email to iscribe@bookwritinghelp.com for free mini-course “Jumpstart Writing Your Book” or visit her at How to Write a Good Book

This is the second book in the wildly popular Southern Vampire Mystery urban fantasy books written by Charlaine Harris. This book opens with our heroine, the lovable, plucky, Sookie Stackhouse, finding the dead body of a friend in the backseat of the local police detective’s car. Because the detective in question was at home at the time of the murder, it’s obvious that the body was killed at a different location and placed in the car.

Sookie learns that her friend had recently attended a local sex party. She thinks the members of that group might know something about her friend’s murder so she starts “snooping” by using her special mind reading talent. Since Sookie works at the local bar she’s afforded lots of opportunities to hear what the locals are thinking.

In the meantime, Bill Compton, Sookie’s vampire boyfriend, informs her that she’s been summoned to Dallas to help the local vampire leader find his missing brother. Sookie doesn’t really have a say in the matter since she’d promised to do the vampires a favor previously in exchange for the lives of several humans. Therefore she and Bill head to Dallas.

It’s here that Charlaine Harris provides additional insight into the modern day vampire world she’s created. In order to get to Dallas Bill must fly in his coffin on a special airline, Anubis Air, which specializes in transporting vampires across the country. Sookie is on the same flight but sits in the passenger area of course.

Once they arrive in Dallas she’s approached by a human who attempts to abduct both she and Bill. Fortunately, this occurs after dusk and Bill is able to save them. This encounter proves to be more important later in the book.

Bill and Sookie make their way to the Dallas vampire leader’s house to learn more about his missing vampire brother. By reading the minds of the humans that last saw the vampire she’s able to discern that a radical religious group called The Fellowship of the Sun is involved. This group “encourages” vampires to repent their sins by “meeting the sun”, a ceremony heavily attended by Fellowship members; the setting is reminiscent of public hangings from the Wild West. These people are dangerous. However because the Dallas vampire leader is understandably concerned about the welfare of his brother Sookie volunteers to visit The Fellowship the next day with the human boyfriend of one of the Dallas vampires.

This proves to be a big mistake.

The next scenes involve abduction, assault, and murder. This is where Charlaine Harris’ action-adventure writing skills really shine. These scenes are intense, heart-wrenching, and thoroughly entertaining. Sookie accomplishes her mission but at a great cost to herself and other humans and vampires. The ordeal concludes with an ethical disagreement between she and Bill which results in Sookie’s return to Bon Temps alone.

Although still distraught over her argument with Bill, Sookie returns to daily drudgery of waitressing at Merlotte’s, the local Bon Temps bar. She’s soon approached by a local who invites her to an adult sex party.

Since her friend’s killer still hasn’t been caught she agrees, but brings Eric Northman, the Shreveport vampire leader, as a bodyguard. The resulting scenes between Sookie and represent some of the funniest dialogue I’ve read in an urban fantasy book in a long while. It’s nothing short of hilarious.

Overall Charlaine Harris does a great job combining drama, romance, action, and comedy into a fast paced, entertaining storyline. Although this represents the second installment in the series it works well as a standalone book, due in part to Charlaine Harris’ fantastic character development and world building.
About the Author

To see these characters on the small screen check out HBO’s True Blood series which is based on Ms. Harris’ urban fantasy books. The first book in the vampire books series recently topped the NY Times Bestsellers List.

If you are interested in success in eBook writing, there are five easy steps to keep in mind in regard to great eBook writing in this day and age. Through this article, you are provided with these five steps towards great eBook writing. Armed with this information, you’ll be well on your way to eBook writing success.
The first step that you need to keep in mind when it comes to eBook writing is to write on a topic for which you have knowledge.

The second step associated with eBook writing is to make sure that you write it on a topic in which you have an interest. There’s nothing worse than trying to write about a topic that has no interest to you at all.

The third step connected with great eBook writing is making sure that you revise your initial draft. You need to keep in mind that the revision process really is one of the most important aspects of eBook writing.

Along those same lines, you will want to make sure that you thoroughly and completely edit your eBook, a great number of the book’s end up on the market that are poorly edited. There’s nothing worse than a consumer getting his or her hands on an eBook that has been poorly edited and filled with many mistakes.

Finally, when it comes to eBook writing, you want to develop a marketing plan to make sure that consumers know of your work. While it is all well and good to write an ebook but your ultimate goal is to get people to want to read it..

By following these five easy steps, you’ll be well on your way to eBook writing success. Indeed, in a very short amount of time, you will be able to join other people who have made a good deal of money writing and marketing eBooks. In addition you will find it to be a very satisfying endeavour.

It was reported that the great American author Sinclair Lewis was once asked to give a lecture on writing to a group of college students: “Looking out at this gathering,” he said to the assembled students, “makes me want to know how many of you really and truly wish to become writers?” Every hand in the room went up. Lewis looked at them for a moment and then folded his notes and put them away. “If that’s true,” he said, “then the best advice I can give you is to go home and start writing.” He then turned and left the room.

If the first secret of writing is to write and if you’ve set up some sort of writing schedule, the next step is to figure out what to write.

Opening a brand new file and looking at a blank screen often results in a kind of brain-freeze; we feel as idea-less as the empty screen we’re staring at. Writing exercises can help us thaw our idea bank. The goal of a writing exercise is to open your mind and allow you to hone your skills and experiment. The joy of such an exercise is it’s not ‘for real.’ That is, there’s no thought of pleasing an editor or finding a publisher or meeting a deadline or getting paid. You’re just writing, with your internal editor turned off.

Some freelancers find writing exercises so effective and freeing they actually begin every writing session with a 10 or 15-minute exercise. Others use them more sporadically. But however you do it, writing exercises will help you with your writing. Use writing exercises in your writing schedule, as a natural part of your writing discipline; use the exercises often and watch your writing improve.

Ideally, a writing exercise is short, requiring you to spend no more than 10 or 15 minutes writing, thinking and feeling about something that’s unrelated to the rest of your writing work. In a way, they are like mini-meditations and mini-vacations because they clear out the cobwebs and give you a new view.

It’s that new view, that different way of seeing, of expressing, that’s the key to a good writing exercise. Naturally, not every exercise blows your mind every time. Sometimes you are just not ready for the challenge presented, but even then, the seed is planted. Sometimes you are simply not up for doing a writing exercise, which is okay too. Again, simply reading can set some new thoughts in motion.

I just received an email asking:

“I am currently looking for a Urban Fantasy writers mentorship program? Do you know of any?”

I personally do not know of any “mentorship programs”. However I am posting this here for some other readers to comment on. so please…
I would love if I could get some feedback on the comments here of people that know of some mentorship programs in their areas.
Please list as much information as you can.
Thank you!