The Business Cards Lesson I Learned

In February of 2012 I was fortunate to see Donna Messer, the "Queen" of networking and President of ConnectUs Canada, speak at McMaster's Inspiring From Within conference. One of the many tips I picked up from Donna, was to always carry business cards. I noticed right away Donna had a pocket full of business cards ready to be distributed. I later learned her other pocket was empty, ready to receive business cards. Of course, I didn't have any to give her (Darn it!). I didn't have any cards related to being a writer even printed.

 Since writing is currently a hobby I wasn't prepared to invest a lot of money into business cards. I've discovered a few cheap, yet effective options.

 1) Print your own business cards. From your favorite office supply store you can purchase business card paper for $10-$20

 2)Vistaprint - http://www.vistaprint.ca You can order 250 business cards online for free and only pay for the processing and shipping. You can also purchase cards; 250 for $20.00. See site for full details.

 3)Moo - http://us.moo.com/partner/sample Order a sample pack of 10 MOO Business Cards, for free. These are the ones I ordered and they are really nice cards however, they come with the moo.com URL in the corner on once side of the card since they are free. You can also purchase cards starting at 50 cards for $19.99.

So now I have 10 business cards related to writing in my purse, so I'm prepared for the next time I run into Donna, or anyone else I'm networking with.

Lack of Doubt Could Be Due To Lack of Talent

Author Joanne Levy had us guessing what is her biggest writing handicap. I was sure I had the correct answer with "self doubt." Even though I wasn't right, she agreed with me that she, too, has self doubt. Wait! She agreed with me. You mean, I'm not the only writer with self doubt?

@JaneFriedman tweeted about a fabulous post written by Eugene Cross about writing and if you have self doubt, you might be on the right track. I particularly liked the comparison with American Idol.

Find out more by reading Eugene Cross's post at http://www.glimmertrain.com/b62cross.html


By the way, Joanne's the answer to her biggest handicap is, Joanne Fears Death by Shoehorn

HUNTED Book Trailer + First 6 pages - by Cheryl Rainfield

Read the first 6 pages of HUNTED a paranormal fantasy YA book by Cheryl Rainfield

A New Trick for Inspiration

This has nothing to do with writing. Well, it could be if you use it as inspiration. :) This is my guinea pig, Beanie. She's only 4 month old and we've perfected her standing trick. Too cute!

My Name Is Not Bob: Do You Put Too Much Pressure on the Beginning...From the Beginning?

ROBERT LEE BREWER has a way with words, and his post below is no exception. I often get hung up on the hook (so to speak) when I should 'just write.' Uninterrupted, free-flowing_thought, get-it-all-out-there writing. Read Robert's post below and let me know what you think. Do you get hung up on the hook?

Do You Put Too Much Pressure on the Beginning...From the Beginning? (from My Name Is Not Bob)

Happy New Year!! Watch out 2012

Yes, I realize it's the 2nd of January and I'm just posting about New Years now.
I wanted to wait to see what the first day of 2012 brought and so far the year is shaping out pretty well. Nobody is in the hospital, nobody is sick and my house is clean-ish.

As far as writing goes, I've hit the ground running, starting off the year with #MoP12 (Month of Poetry 2012) hosted by @KatApel http://monthofpoetry.wordpress.com/ The goal - write a poem a day for the month of January. I have my first 2 poems completed, a third one started and a few ideas on the side. I'm doing well.

I've also been doing some research for submissions and it looks as though I have a few options, which always makes me happy.

A couple of years ago I submitted one of my children's manuscripts to a publisher, it was one of 6 to make it to the final round. Unfortunately, it wasn't chosen. I've been fiddling with it since. This year I plan to finish fiddling  and submit to agents. I've never submitted to an agent before so this makes me excited and nervous but I believe it is the best move for this manuscript and myself as a writer.

This year I already have one publication lined up. In August I will have my 2012 Horrorku published in the print edition of Scifaikuest. This will be my second time in this publication.

Finally, I plan to post in this blog more regularly. Though I still have the Auntie Flamingo blog I am going to phase that one out and continue on with this one. I feel that the other blog has pocketed me into the children's genre and though I still write for children there are other areas of my writing that need attention. There are so many other sides of me, which some people may be surprised by some.

So the plan is to regroup, refocus and reach out. This is the year to get my name out there more and get noticed. This is MY year - 2012!

Guinea Pig Surprise - The Surprise

Be sure to see Episode 1 - The Plan and Episode 2 - One week away

Guinea Pig Surprise - One Week Away

Be sure to see Episode 1 - The Plan

The surprise is planned for November 18th, 2011

Guinea Pig Surprise - The Plan

See Episode 2 - One week away

Halloween Horror Poster Competition

I created this image for a Halloween Horror Poster Competition, on the Lyons New Media Centre Facebook page! I'm in need of votes and they have to be in before Oct. 31, 2011.

Click here to see it in full and vote : http://bit.ly/sKMMFO