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WritersNotes.Net: Helping Writers Follow Their Dreams Through Information, Inspiration, and Encouragement!
June '08 Comment Recognition
Once again it's time to recognize my valued readers who have left comments at Writer's Notes during the month of June, 2008. (My apologies that this edition of my monthly comment recognition post is so late. Life has been especially hectic again this month!)
Thanks So Much!
I appreciate all your thoughtful comments! Thanks so much for taking the time to read and share your thoughts, opinions, ideas, experiences, and support at Writer's Notes! I truly enjoy reading your insights, experiences, and viewpoints! Thanks for making June another special month through your input! It's been fun!
June '08 Commenters
The following is a list (in no particular order) of all the fantastic folks who have left comments at Writer's Notes during June, 2008:
AmyHuang, at Travel String
Brad Shorr, at Word Sell, Inc.
Lillie Ammann, at A Writer's Words, An Editor's Eye
Raven, at Alaska Chronicle
Krissy Knox, at Sometimes I Think
Cindy Nichols, at Kaleidoscope
Renae Brumbaugh, at Morning Coffee
Dan (dcr), at dcrBlogs
Michele Tune, at Writing the Cyber Highway
Cheryl Wright, at Cheryl Wright Writes
Mike Goad, at Exit 78
Bobby Revell, at Revellian Dot Com
Morgan, at Red Raven Circling
Amy Derby, at Write From Home
TravelinOma, at TravelinOma's Library
Dianna G., at I Wish This Was 42
I Really Appreciate Your Comments!
Thanks, again for making the Writer's Notes conversation so much richer this month by visiting and sharing your thoughts, insights, techniques, advice, and personal experiences with us!
Many thanks,
Jeanne
* Haven't managed to write my last several comment appreciation posts on the first of the month, as I like to do. In fact, this month, I'm even later than I was last month--which was already later than usual! But, though I'm again late posting my thanks, please know that I appreciate your comments--and you--every bit as much as I do when I post my appreciation on time!
P.S. If you've commented at Writer's Notes during June, and I've somehow managed to overlook you, please let me know. I appreciate every commenter, and I want each of you to get the recognition you deserve!
Did you enjoy this post? Have anything to add...any insights to share? I'd love to hear your thoughts! After all, your comments are what this post is all about!
Please note: If the StumbleUpon and other social bookmarking buttons aren't visible, please click the "Add Comments" link beneath this post. Thanks!
Background: Work, Borrowed and Stolen
In my last post, I mentioned that I'd discovered two unauthorized postings of my work on the Internet. One of the two posted my byline and linked to both my blog and the blog I'd originally posted the piece to (though changing the title of the piece), and the other removed my byline, provided no link, and also changed the title of the piece. I've written all about the first instance in my previous post, Who Has the Right to Post Your Work? I'll cover the second, more serious offense, in this post.
Google Alert Comes Through, Again!
I learned about both these unauthorized postings of my work through Google Alerts I'd set up using unique phrases from my work. In the case of the second article, I'd instructed Google to scour the Web for the following phrase: "individual's simple personal musings about a subject." That's all it took. I had set up a comprehensive, as-it-happens alert. So, as soon as the Googlebot found my content, a notification e-mail, including a description and link to the offending website, appeared in my inbox. Finding my work was as simple as that.
A Visit to the Offending Site
When I clicked the link to visit the website that had posted my piece without permission, I discovered that it was a British blogging website. (My post was also, as you've likely guessed, about blogging.) There, unceremoniously gracing the site's webpage, stood my article, sporting a revised title, some added text, and three added links to other pages on the site (both of which had been placed directly into the body of the piece). Conspicuously absent were my byline and the last few paragraphs of my article. Needless to say, these things made me rather unhappy. And while I was glad to see that no one else's byline was on my piece, that did little to assuage my annoyance at this site's presumptuous handling of my work.
A Message to the Offending Site-Owner
I decided to send a message to the website's owner via the site's Contact form. The following is the message I left:
You have posted my article, "The Fascinating World of Blogging: Is It for You?" to your website without my permission, at the following URL: [LINK REMOVED]. This is a direct violation of my copyright as the author of this work. Not only have you used this article without my permission, but you have also removed my byline, changed the article's title, and made other unauthorized changes to the article itself.
If you would like to continue to use this article, usage rights to the article are available for purchase at the Constant Content website at the following URL: [ARTICLE URL].
To continue using this article, you must do the following:
1. Visit Constant Content and purchase usage rights to the article.
2. Replace my byline.
3. Restore the article's correct title: "The Fascinating World of Blogging: Is It for You?"
4. Remove the additions you’ve made to my article (i.e., your links using the anchor text "B___," "B___ blogger," and "Blog"--which you may place at the END of your post, OUTSIDE and SEPARATE FROM my article, if you desire to keep them) and restore any other changes you've made to the original article.
If you prefer not to purchase usage rights to the article (which are really quite inexpensive); or if you're willing to purchase usage rights, but unwilling to make all the changes listed above, please take this article down from your website immediately, as you do not have authorization to use it, and as usage rights to the article include all the above requirements.
Thank you very much,
Jeanne Dininni
The Website-Owner's Reply
The very next day, I received an apologetic e-mail from the site owner telling me that he'd purchased the article from a writer--and I use the term loosely and only because it's the term he used--on one of the freelance bidding sites, who had told him she'd written it. He also said that he'd taken the article down.
That was the point at which I realized that I was indeed dealing with outright, intentional plagiarism--that my article had been hijacked by an unscrupulous "writer" who felt it was perfectly OK to profit financially by passing off someone else's work as her own.
My Unsuccessful Attempt to Get to the Bottom of It
I was quite relieved to learn that the website owner had taken down my article--though I admit I did feel bad that he'd been taken advantage of every bit as much as I had. I did, however, want to get to the bottom of it and do everything in my power to put a stop to this so-called writer's cavalier selling of other, real writers' work. So, I sent the following response to the website owner's e-mail:
Dear A___,
I'm very sorry to hear that you, too, have been the unwitting victim of the dishonesty of this unscrupulous "writer." Is there any information you can give me about the person who sold my article to you that might help me track down this individual and put a stop to this so others aren't taken advantage of as you were? If you have this person's name, [BIDDING SITE] username, or any other info about him/her, I might at least be able to contact [BIDDING SITE] and inform them that this individual is selling plagiarized work.
For your protection in the future, I recommend googling a unique phrase from any article you're planning to buy before you pay for it. This will show you where this work is already posted on the internet and who has posted it. You may not always be able to tell this way (e.g., when you've purchased it from someone selling it through a site where usernames are the norm). But, at the very least, if you see it posted under several different bylines, that should give you a clue. You might also be able to contact authors through their contact info on their websites to check on a so-called writer's ownership of an article.
FYI: I discovered that your website had posted my piece via a Google Alert that I had set up to detect any websites that had the following unique phrase from my article posted to them: "individual's simple personal musings about a subject." As you can see, Google can be a great help in detecting plagiarism—either through Google searches or Google Alerts.
I do appreciate your willingness to do the right thing by taking down the article. And again, I'm so sorry that you were victimized by this so-called writer, who gives real, honest writers a bad name; and I hope you won't judge all of us by the dishonest few.
Sincerely,
Jeanne Dininni
No Reply--and that Nagging Question of Why
The trouble--and I admit that I do find this a bit unsettling--is that the website owner never replied to this e-mail, which was dated June 8th (about 2-1/2 weeks ago). This does raise questions in my mind about whether the site owner had in fact been honest in the first place when he told me how he'd originally come to post my piece. Of course, it's every bit as likely that he simply doesn't recall the username of the individual from whom he bought the piece on a website that thrives on anonymity and mandates no outside contact between buyers and sellers. This would be a reasonable assumption. Yet, I would have felt so much better to at least have received a reply telling me as much.
My Decision Not to Identify the Website
I've decided not to reveal the name of the website that posted my piece for two reasons:
1. The website owner promptly apologized and removed my piece from his site.
2. Though his lack of response to my request for more information about the offending "writer" has left me wondering about his honesty, I really have no proof that his explanation for how he came by my article is untrue.
After much thought, I've also decided not to identify the freelance bidding site, since this could happen to any such website, entirely without the knowledge or consent of the site's administrators. I believe the negative publicity such a disclosure might create for the site would be both unfair and unwarranted under the circumstances.
Should I Pursue It Further?
My nagging question at this point is, "Should I pursue this further?" I can't help but wonder whether I shouldn't recontact the site owner--though that would seem fruitless--or perhaps try contacting the bidding site directly and giving them all the information I have, in the hope that they may be able to track down the transaction--and, with it, the offending "writer."
I must confess that I would find it most satisfying to have this unscrupulous individual banned from the site to prevent her from doing this to anyone else there--though, of course, I realize that the value of this action would be limited, since she could simply leave the site and perpetrate her thievery on other unsuspecting clients of other freelance writing websites. But, at least it would be a start--a small step toward righting a wrong and preventing the perpetuation of that wrong in one cyber location, anyway. I'll definitely be considering taking this step.
Come to think of it, though, I suppose it's possible that this person could actually remain on the same freelance bidding site by simply changing her username and registering with a new e-mail address. So, it's really questionable how much good it would do to contact the bidding site. I'll certainly have to give it more thought.
That's My Story
Well, there you have it--an intentional hijacking of a writer's work for purely profit-driven motives. A blatant disregard for an author's rights made possible by the sheer ease and amazing convenience with which modern technology has enabled Web content to be copied and pasted by anyone to any desired location, either online or off.
Do You Have a Plagiarism Tale to Share?
How about you? Has your work ever literally been stolen--i.e., used in a way that was obviously intended to be plagiarism, rather than simple posting of your work to another website in likely ignorance of copyright law and with proper attribution? Has anyone removed your byline without your consent? Has someone actually sold your content under his or her own byline? Has someone had the nerve to sell full rights to your work? If so, what did you do about it? What was the outcome? Even if it hasn't happened to you, what do you think about the issue? What would you do if it did happen to you? What do you think I should do?
Looking forward to your thoughts,
Jeanne
Did you enjoy this post? Have anything to add? Please feel free to comment on any aspect of this issue that strikes your fancy--whether or not your comment answers any of the questions I've used above to prompt thought.
UPDATE: New content has been added to this post. If you first read it on June 12th, when it was first posted, you may not have seen the new additions. If you're reading it after June 12th, the changes have already been incorporated into the post.
An Issue That Affects Every Online Writer
I've decided to interrupt my Guide to Polished Writing series with a post about plagiarism and unauthorized posting of a writer's content to the internet. (For the record, I differentiate between the two because they aren't necessarily the same. It all depends on whether a writer's byline is left intact or not.) The reason I'd like to address these issues is because both just happened to me--with two different articles--during the same week.
"Borrowed" Content: When Is It Stealing?
As most of you know, my guest post, 7 Secrets to a Striking Essay, went live at John Hewitt's Writer's Resource Center (aka PoeWar) June 4th. That was a rewarding day for me, as my work went before John's audience--which is considerably larger than mine, since he's been blogging quite a few years longer than I have. My joy quickly turned to consternation, however, when I received a Google Alert which included a link to a website I'd never heard of, informing me that my piece was posted there.
When I visited the site (which will remain nameless, as they've since removed my post), sure enough, I found my entire guest post on the site, under a similar but different title--the very same day it had been posted at WRC. The blogger who runs this site, to his or her credit, had at least credited me with the article, leaving my byline and the link to Writer's Notes intact--and even adding a link to the comments portion of my post at WRC, using the anchor text "[original]." That part was commendable, and I very much appreciated it. Yet, I felt violated all the same. And this was in fact an actual legal violation--of my copyright--because this blogger had no right to post my article in its entirety without my permission.
Two Violations in One
In fact, by posting that piece, the blogger in question had committed two copyright violations in one--because not only had this individual infringed my copyright as the author of the piece; but since I'd granted John the exclusive right to post that article to his blog, this person had infringed John's copyright, as well. After comments left on the post by John, me, and Michele Tune (who's not only a great blogging friend, but who also has one of my guest posts on her blog), the blogger promptly took down my post. I sent an e-mail expressing my appreciation that this individual chose to do the right thing--also mentioning that the fact that my byline, as well as John's and my links, had been posted with the piece had not been lost on me. But I didn't receive a reply.
The Question of Motive: Does It Matter?
I often wonder what bloggers are thinking when they do this. I'd rather not speculate on people's motives; and I do recognize that there's a big difference between posting content which credits--and even links to--the author and posting it without giving credit--or even posting it and claiming that credit for oneself. Yet, don't people--and particularly other bloggers who presumably write themselves (at least when they aren't posting other people's work)--know that they have no right to post another writer's entire piece without authorization?
There's no question that motive is important--even though we don't always know what a given person's motive is. I certainly don't mean to minimize the importance of motive--or the mitigating effect it can have on a literary transgression. Even criminal law differentiates between crimes committed with "malice aforethought" and those committed in the heat of the moment. And while we can't get inside a person's head, we--like the criminal justice system--can use the obvious evidence (such as bylines, links, title changes, etc.) to draw some conclusions about motive and get a general feel for the spirit in which our piece was posted.
Yet, while it may make us feel better to know a person's motive probably wasn't malicious, the fact remains that even the purest of motives require the author's permission to post a complete work. As writers, we have the right to give our work away for free--if and when we decide to do so. (And I've done so many, many times.) Yet, no one has the right to take it without asking--though I suspect many are unaware of this and actually don't even realize they're doing anything wrong. (There may, of course, be cases where someone has used our work and we decide not to pursue it. That, too, is our prerogative as the originator of the work. Yet, again, that decision is entirely ours to make.)
Should I Be Flattered?
Many say a writer should be flattered that someone would want to post that writer's work to his or her own site; but there's something not entirely right or comfortable about that statement. We may be glad that others like our work enough to post it to their own sites. After all, it is a compliment of sorts. Yet, would we be flattered if someone "borrowed" our favorite jacket without our permission--even if the person did only want to wear it to a party where he or she planned to tell everyone there that it was ours? Most of us wouldn't be too terribly flattered, I suspect.
I'd be willing to wager that even fewer would be flattered by the pickpocket's admiration of their wallets--which brings us to the question of just how much the unauthorized posting of our work can hurt us financially (in cases where we might actually want to sell the piece so posted). And, of course, there's also the little issue of the potential harm such posting can do to our search engine ranking for the piece in question. As can be readily seen, there are many nuances to this issue!
Next Time: The Article That Was Intentionally Plagiarized
This post has grown far longer than I planned; so I think I'll save the story of the second unauthorized posting of my work for the next post. (The next one is worse, since it involved intentional plagiarism; but that's all I'll say about it for now.) In the meantime, I'd sure appreciate hearing your thoughts on this topic.
What do you think of the unauthorized posting of an author's work to a website not his or her own? Does it bother you to see it happen to other writers? Would it disturb you to have your own work posted without permission? Why or why not? Does posting the writer's byline and/or a link to his or her site make it OK? Or does it at least make it a little less offensive? What are your thoughts? Has it ever happened to you? If it has, how did it make you feel? What did you do about it? And what was the outcome? Or did you decide not to pursue it? (I, myself did that once.) Anything you'd like to share on this topic would be much appreciated.
(Note: The questions I've asked above are only designed to get you thinking and give you some ideas for sharing on this topic. Feel free to either use or ignore them when leaving your comment. After all, it's your thoughts that we're interested in!)
Awaiting your thoughts,
Jeanne
Did you enjoy this post? Did it speak to you in some way? I'd just love it if you'd share your thoughts!
Please note: If the StumbleUpon and other social bookmarking buttons aren't visible, please click the "Add Comments" link beneath this post. Thanks!
Note: This post presents Part 4 of my Guide to Polished Writing series. For more thorough coverage of the topic, please consider reading Parts 1 to 3 first.
Plot the Course
Phase 2: Create Your Framework
Begin mapping out the precise route you will follow when you begin your writing journey.
Make an Outline
Preparing an outline will allow you to map out the specific route you will take to reach your destination. (For guidance on how to format an essay outline, go to this page at BookRags [simple outline] or this page at Albany.edu [complex outline]. This traditional outline format may also be used for non-fiction books. For outlining your non-fiction book using the modern mindmapping method, visit this BookCoaching.com article. To create a plot outline for your fiction book, get the link to Holly Lisle’s free PDF mini-course at HollyLisle.com.)
Step 1: Main Points
First, determine your main points. Generally, about three main points are recommended when outlining shorter works, though this could vary considerably based on length of writing project, as well as depth and complexity of topic or storyline.
• In book length works, these are the equivalent of topical or chronological sections (non-fiction), major plot elements (fiction), or other similar divisions of your content into major categories.
• In articles, essays, or other short non-fiction pieces, these will include the main section topics and/or major points into which your work will be divided.
• In plays or screenplays, these will be your Acts.
• In short stories, these might be your sections or Parts (if your story is long enough and you stylistically choose to include these plot divisions.)
• For poetry, you’ll want to outline—or at least list—the progression of ideas and images you hope to achieve as your poem unfolds. The structure or lack of (formal) structure of your planned poem will, in large part, determine the degree to which you’ll be able to do this in advance of the actual writing of your poem. (Again, don’t worry too much about this, if your chosen poetic form is non-conducive to this particular planning technique; you’ll be able to make up for it during the creative stage.)
Step 2: Sub-Topics
Next, break these main ideas into sub-topics. (Again, the number will vary based on project format and size, as well as subject or plot complexity.)
• With books, whether fiction or non-fiction, this step will involve dividing your content into chapters. (This could vary, however, based on the book’s complexity, with more involved works possibly requiring further subdivisions prior to the chapter-division step.)
• For articles, essays, and other short non-fiction, these will be your secondary points or sub-headings.
• In plays/screenplays, and even short stories, these will be your Scenes.
• In poetry, this stage is akin to determining what you hope to convey in specific parts of your poem, such as in each verse—or even in, say, the first or last line of every verse (i.e., the progression of ideas and images that will carry the thread of your main idea or message through to the end of your poem.)
Step 3: Major Support
Then, add the major points of evidence, explanation, or clarification which support your premise, theme, or message to each of your sub-topics.
• For non-fiction books, these will be the major divisions of each individual chapter, or the main sections of which each chapter is built.
• For fiction books, this will consist of the skeletal structure, or basic framework, of each chapter—the main plot elements that will occur in the individual chapter.
• For articles, essays, and other short non-fiction, these will comprise your main supporting information for each sub-heading or sub-topic.
• With plays/screenplays, and short stories, these will be the plot portions that begin to unfold in each scene.
• For poetry, this section will likely be unnecessary—except, perhaps, in the case of lengthy epic poetry, which is broken down into sections, with various parts of the tale unfolding in each segment of the poem.
Step 4: Minor Support (Details)
Finally, add supporting details to each of your major supports.
• Book-length non-fiction, to be sure, will include still further divisions beyond these, as each individual chapter will also need its own outline (in which case, what we are here calling “supporting details” will, in reality, actually become the secondary points, or sub-sections, of each chapter-long subdivision of the book). We are, however, still following the same basic outlining format by applying outlining principles to both the main divisions and the more specific subdivisions of the larger work.
• For book-length fiction, this portion need not be nearly as involved as it is for non-fiction. In fiction, this would consist of notes on what the meat of the chapter, the actual narrative, will contain, including the specific scenes and descriptive and explanatory elements of the story. In fiction, it's rarely necessary to make a detailed outline of each individual chapter, as it is in non-fiction. It will generally suffice in this step to simply list any important plot or other elements you want to be sure you remember to include in the chapter.
• In shorter works, these will be the nuts-and-bolts details which illustrate, describe, or prove our points (non-fiction), fleshing out our piece, or a list of the specific actions, images, occurrences, conflicts, descriptive elements, or character-development revelations (fiction/plays/screenplays) that move our story forward. Again, for fiction, this may be limited to the more important elements, plot twists, etc., that the writer wants to remember to include.
• For poetry, these consist of the particular phraseology, and the specific imagery we choose to convey our message, as well as the manner in which we choose to express the more concrete aspects of our poem.
Asking yourself the questions listed in Phase 1 of this section and assembling your data into a coherent outline (or other format appropriate to the specific type of work) will help you maneuver through the planning stage, which is considerably more specific than the preparatory stage and puts each of the more-detailed systems into place that will enable you to move into the action stage—the stage of actually completing the project.
Happy framing!
Jeanne
Stay tuned for the next installment of this series: "Pursue the Goal, Phase 1: Complete Your Research."
Did you enjoy this post? Have any tips about creating a framework for your writing? Any outlining tricks, secrets, or preferences? I'd love to hear your ideas!
Please note: If the StumbleUpon and other social bookmarking buttons aren't visible, please click the "Add Comments" link beneath this post. Thanks!
May '08 Comment Recognition
Once again it's time to recognize my valued readers who have left comments at Writer's Notes during the month of May, 2008. (My apologies that this edition of my monthly comment recognition post is so late. Life has been especially hectic lately!)
Thanks So Much!
I appreciate all your thoughtful comments! Thanks so much for taking the time to read and share your thoughts, opinions, ideas, experiences, and support at Writer's Notes! I truly enjoy reading your insights, experiences, and viewpoints! Thanks for making May another special month through your input! It's been fun!
May '08 Commenters
The following is a list (in no particular order) of all the fantastic folks who have left comments at Writer's Notes during May, 2008:
AmyHuang, at Travel String
Brad Shorr, at Word Sell, Inc.
Lillie Ammann, at A Writer's Words, An Editor's Eye
Joanna Young, at Confident Writing
Raven, at Alaska Chronicle
Krissy Knox, at Sometimes I Think
Robyn McMaster, at Brain-Based Biz
Cindy Nichols, at Kaleidoscope
Yvonne Russell, at Grow Your Writing Business
Lynn Smythe, at Freelance Online Work
Renae Brumbaugh, at Morning Coffee
Whitney, at Gaming Life
Mark Antony, at Hotel Mark
Dan (dcr), at dcrBlogs
Mother Earth, at Best of Mother Earth ~ Creating Healthier Lives
Michele Tune, at Writing the Cyber Highway
Diane, at The Mommy Diaries
Amanda, at The Mom Crowd
Cheryl Wright, at Cheryl Wright Writes
I Really Appreciate Your Comments!
Thanks, again for making the Writer's Notes conversation so much richer this month by visiting and sharing your thoughts, insights, techniques, and personal experiences with us!
Many thanks,
Jeanne
* Haven't managed to write my last several comment appreciation posts on the first of the month, as I like to, due to my incredibly busy schedule. In fact, this month, I'm even later than usual! But, though I may be late posting my thanks, you may be certain that I still appreciate your comments--and you--every bit as much!
P.S. If you've commented at Writer's Notes during May, and I've somehow managed to overlook you, please let me know. I appreciate every commenter, and I want each of you to get the recognition you deserve!
Did you enjoy this post? Have anything to add...any insights to share? I'd love to hear your thoughts! After all, your comments are what this post is all about!
Please note: If the StumbleUpon and other social bookmarking buttons aren't visible, please click the "Add Comments" link beneath this post. Thanks!
Two Fantastic Sites That Are Hosting My Work
Just wanted to share with my Writer's Notes readers that I have two guest posts appearing so far during the month of June: one at Writing the Cyber Highway and one at Writer's Resource Center.
Writing the Cyber Highway: A Favor Returned
One guest post is already up at Michele Tune's blog, Writing the Cyber Highway.
Here's the link:
Motivation to Write: Is There a Magic Formula?
I've really enjoyed writing this post on motivation for Michele, who so kindly came to my rescue a while back when I was ill, penning a wonderful guest post here at Writer's Notes without even being asked to do it. That's just the kind of blogger--and person--Michele is! That's why I'm so happy to reciprocate. (See Michele's guest post here: That's What Bloggers Are For.)
If you ever have trouble motivating yourself to write, you might just want to follow the above link and check out the lessons I've learned about this topic that's so critical to the success of every writer. Hope you'll enjoy reading this piece as much as I've enjoyed writing it. And hope you'll get lots of new ideas about how to discover--or generate--new motivation for all your writing projects!
Writer's Resource Center (aka PoeWar): An Opportunity to Help Out
My second guest post is scheduled to run tomorrow, June 4th, at John Hewitt's Writer's Resource Center.
Update: It's now June 4th and the post is up, so here's the link:
7 Secrets to a Striking Essay
This post presents seven helpful essay-writing techniques that are applicable to many other types of writing, as well. I hope you'll enjoy it--and even more so that you'll get something of value from reading it.
I wrote this post in response to a request by John for enough guest posts to run through the month of June to help him take a much needed month-long vacation. I was honored that, in addition to his general call for guest posts, John also sent me an e-mail inviting me personally to submit a post. (How could I refuse?) Seriously, though, I'd already planned to submit a post but really appreciated John's reminder. It's definitely an honor to have my work appearing at John Hewitt's Writer's Resource Center!
WRC Post Involves a Contest With an Impressive Grand Prize!
What makes this WRC "gig" even more special, though, is that John is offering a $250 prize to the writer whose guest post receives the most traffic during the first week it graces his site! That's definitely a prize worth pursuing--even if I would have submitted a guest post anyway! So, I'd like to ask my readers to stop by WRC to check out my post--even if you aren't that interested in essay writing--though I promise that you will take home some helpful tips for other types of writing, as well. (And don't forget to tell your friends! I need all the help I can get! In fact, a Stumble wouldn't hurt, either (wink, wink), if you really like my article--or if you just want to be nice. I would be forever grateful. Certainly hope you will like my post, though.)
WRC Consolation Prize Is Generous, As Well
John is also offering a $50 prize in a random drawing he'll hold to determine which lucky guest blogger among all those who have responded to his call for vacation relief will receive the "consolation" prize. The two monetary prizes John is offering are more than generous and have certainly provided a wonderful incentive for bloggers to participate. It will definitely be fascinating to see who wins them! Of course, it would be even more fascinating to be who wins (one of) them! Time alone will tell who the two lucky winners will be!
Stay Tuned for John Hewitt's Guest Post Here at Writer's Notes
John has also graciously offered to write a reciprocal guest post here at Writer's Notes as soon as he's able--so we've all got a treat in store after John's vacation ends. I know he's a busy man, however, and certainly don't want to put any undue pressure on him. Though it's difficult to wait, I'm sure we can all be patient until John gets back into the swing of things in July and manages to find a bit of extra time to write a guest post especially for us! I know it will be well worth the wait!
Hope you'll visit my guest posts!
Jeanne
P.S. I haven't forgotten my comment recognition post this month, but have simply been so busy that I haven't gotten to it yet. (Would have posted it today, but wanted to announce my guest post at Writer's Resource Center, since it's set to go live tomorrow, as well as my guest post that went live yesterday at Writing the Cyber Highway. Hope everyone will forgive me for being so late with my thanks! I'll do my best to get that post up tomorrow. I'll also resume my Guide to Polished Writing series soon after. Thanks for your understanding!)
Did you enjoy this post? Have anything to add? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Please note: If the StumbleUpon and other social bookmarking buttons aren't visible, please click the "Add Comments" link beneath this post. Thanks!
Note: This post presents Part 3 of my Guide to Polished Writing series. For more thorough coverage of the topic, please consider reading Parts 1 and 2 first.
Plot the Course
Once you’ve decided on your destination and thus prepared the way for the writing journey ahead, you can then begin to focus on the specific course you’ll need to follow to get there.
Phase 1: Design Your Project
Ask yourself these questions to help you choose the best writing route:
• Which format would be best suited to the type of content I intend to deliver to my audience, as well as the message I hope to convey? Should the piece be long, short, or medium-length? Should it be presented in narrative form, Q & A, dramatic monologue/dialogue, stanza form, free form, or…?
• What voice will I use to express my message most effectively? What style will work best for the material I’ll be presenting? Should I be authoritative, warm and engaging, sympathetic, casual, ethereal, descriptive, scholarly, incisive?
• What will be the scope of this piece? How much information will I include? How detailed will my coverage of the topic be? Against what standard will I evaluate my information to determine what to put into the piece and what to leave out?
• Where will my material come from? Internet research? Print publications? Interviews? Personal experience? My own imagination?
• When will I begin the project, and when do I hope to complete it? How much work will I need to do to meet my writing or publishing deadline? Do I have a deadline at all? Is my deadline realistic? Can I change it, if need be? If not, what alternatives will I have for making sure that the project gets done in time?
The above questions should help you clarify the direction you’ll be taking, as you move forward toward the actual completion of your writing project.
Happy designing!
Jeanne
Stay tuned for the next installment of this series: "Plot the Course, Phase 2: Create Your Framework."
Did you enjoy this post? Have any thoughts, experiences, or tips on designing your writing project? I'd love to hear them!
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Note: This post presents Part 2 of my Guide to Polished Writing Series. For more thorough coverage of the topic, please consider reading Part 1 first.
Prepare the Way
Phase 2: Articulate Your Intentions
Articulating your intentions is a way of compiling your newly-clarified purposes into a cohesive preliminary plan that will help you get started with your particular writing project.
Nonfiction:
Write out your thesis statement, or topic sentence, expressing exactly what your book or article will offer the reader. This will, of course, be based on your responses to the Phase 1 questions, which have laid out the purpose or purposes you have for writing this piece. At this point, your process will be similar whether you plan to write a book-length work or an article. In later sections, the process for each will vary.
Fiction:
Choose a genre appropriate to your planned story, and write out a plot synopsis, as well as any underlying message, or theme, you hope to convey through your story. Decide on a basic setting and overall mood and create a list of characters with a short description of each, indicating each one’s significance to the tale, as well as any character development that will prove integral to the story’s unfolding plot and theme.
List any specific settings/symbols/fictional techniques/literary devices you plan to use (e.g., suspense, irony, etc.), which would be instrumental in the effective presentation of your story. Here again the process for novels, short stories, and plays (including screenplays) will be quite similar at this early stage.
Poetry:
Choose your poem’s specific theme, focus, and tone. Decide on your poetic style and format, determining whether you’d like your poem to include end-rhyme, internal rhyme, and/or regular meter—or not. (Often, these aspects will take on a life of their own as the poem unfolds—so be prepared to change your plans here.) If your poem will be metered, either decide on a meter now or wait until you begin writing.
Decide on any specific literary techniques you’d particularly like to utilize to convey your message. (Here, again, you may be delighted to discover that some of these techniques will often strike you unawares during the writing of your poem, as inspiration carries you along; so don’t worry too much about these at this point.) Some examples: alliteration, assonance, consonance, simile, metaphor.
Your approach, as you begin plotting your actual course, will depend not only on your answers to the Phase 1 questions, but also on the time and care you take during Phase 2 to assemble them into a coherent expression of your intentions and to decide on the specific writing techniques and literary elements you plan to call upon to bring your work to life. Taking the time to ask and answer the Phase 1 questions and formulate your intentions in Phase 2 before starting to write will help you determine the best path to follow as you forge ahead in the direction of your goal.
Here's to your well-formed intentions!
Jeanne
Stay tuned for the next installment of this series: "Plot the Course, Phase 1: Design Your Project."
Did you enjoy this post? Have any thoughts on articulating your writing intentions? Or, have any other insights on writing that you'd like to share? Can't wait to hear them!
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Writing Is Serious Business
No matter what kind of writing you do, writing is serious business—even if you happen to write humor. You might have them rolling in the aisles, laughing so hard they’re sure their sides will burst; yet, you, the writer, must be in total control of the entire process the whole way through. You can seem as if you aren’t, but that will simply be your well-thought out ploy to set the mood you’ve been planning to convey right from the start. You are the architect, designer, and creator of your written works, and it is you who make them what they are. They never happen by accident, but are always the result of choices—choices made by you.
Other than talent, creativity, inspiration, and imagination, the key ingredient in the writing process that will enable you to end up with the finished piece that you hope to produce is planning.
When you write, you must have a clear goal—a destination or purpose—in mind. If you have no idea what you hope to accomplish when you begin writing, how will you ever know whether or not you’ve succeeded? If you don’t know where you’d like to end up in your writing journey, how will you ever know what path to follow to get there, and how will you ever know whether—or when—you’ve arrived?
Prepare the Way
Before you can begin to create a coherent and well-organized piece of writing, you’ll need to do a little prep work.
Phase 1: Clarify Your Purpose
To clarify your purpose, goal, or destination, ask yourself the following questions before you begin to write:
• For whom am I writing this piece? Is it meant for a specialized audience, or am I seeking more widespread appeal? If it is intended for a specific audience, who is that target audience? What do I know about that audience that will help me connect with it?
• Why am I writing this piece? Is it intended to entertain, inspire, inform, encourage, persuade, teach—or perhaps a combination of these?
• What do I hope the reader will take away from this piece? Do I want her to act on my recommendations? Do I desire to change his way of thinking about an issue? Would I like to help her solve a problem?
• Which vehicle will best lend itself to the journey ahead? What kind of “package” would be most appropriate for conveying the type of content I hope to deliver to the reader? Article? Book? Short Story? Essay? Poem? Play? Web Copy?
• To what niche, genre, literary or stylistic category does this piece belong?
• What materials, supplies, and resources will I need to effectively complete the project? Will I have access to these with reasonable ease and without great expense?
By asking yourself the above questions, you'll pave the way for the next phase, during which you'll make some concrete decisions about precisely what you hope to accomplish through your piece.
Happy questioning!
Jeanne
Stay tuned for the next installment of this series: "Prepare the Way, Phase 2: Articulate Your Intentions."
Did you enjoy this post? Have any thoughts of your own to share about clarifying your purpose or about writing in general? I'd love to hear them!
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What Our Writing Is Made Of
Writing is a discipline that calls upon so many experiences, influences, facts, ideas, and emotions that it can be difficult to measure the effect of each of these on the literary whole. Because each of our lives, personalities, relationships, and outlooks differ so drastically, our own particular writing style, our tone, content, and insights tend quite naturally to reflect these personal values and combine to create the unique voice that is “us.”
Life Lessons Enrich Our Writing
Everyone and everything we encounter in life has a lesson in it—if we will only look for it. Sometimes that lesson will be glaringly obvious and sometimes buried a bit farther beneath the surface of our experience or our consciousness. Yet, it’s always there patiently waiting for us to discover its wisdom and apply it to our lives, increasing their richness. Only after we’ve done that can we apply that hard-won wisdom to our writing, one lesson at a time, and in that way pass it on to those for whom we write.
Some of My Own Lessons
Here are some lessons I’ve learned* during the course of my life:
School can be a place of real growth—yet not all learning happens there. Or perhaps it might be better said that “school” is everywhere.
Writing gives us the incredible privilege of speaking into the lives of other people. When our readers invite us in and attend to our words, it is we who receive the greater reward.
Children playing outside my window as I work remind me that laughter, simplicity, and chalk-pictures drawn all over the sidewalks of our lives bring a fresh, new perspective to an often inflexible grown-up world.
Television can be an insufferable distraction or a relaxing respite from overwork. At the same time, it can spark new ideas and increase knowledge. It’s up to each of us how we use it.
Recreation is an absolute necessity for a balanced life and an uninterrupted flow of inspiration. It rejuvenates us, recharges our batteries, replenishes our zeal, and renews our zest for life. Like the law of gravity, we ignore this truth to our own detriment.
Relatives shape our lives in so many ways; yet what we become is ultimately up to us. And the manner in which we use the lessons learned from our family ties determines who we will become and what we’ll have to offer those who later enter our lives.
Movies can affect us in powerful ways when artfully produced, touching our core, stirring noble emotions, and spurring us on to greater creativity. Classic movies often do this for me.
Friends help us feel better about ourselves than we think we should, building our confidence and helping us believe that we can accomplish our hearts’ desires—no matter what anyone else may think. They’re always in our corner, helping us fight the next round in the battle of life.
Heroes come in all shapes and sizes, colors, ages, and abilities—or disabilities. And the majority never receive the recognition they deserve. Yet, we are watching, and they profoundly affect our lives, giving us greater courage to face our own challenges and showing us that doing so is always well worth the effort.
Planes prove to us that we can do the impossible, that mankind—born without wings—can still soar high into the skies on wings powered by the science of aerodynamics, defying the laws of gravity, or by the magic of inspiration, defying the limits of mere logic.
Food of the physical, mental, and spiritual variety is necessary for health of body, mind, and spirit. Yet the single area where we seem to indulge most is the physical, though copious amounts of this type of food contribute the least of any of the three to our creativity.
Pets bring us pleasure and companionship and so often teach us the meaning of unconditional love, loyalty, and trust. Life with our pets is straightforward and uncomplicated, without the emotional complexity that so often plagues human relationships. When we bond with a beloved pet, we receive more than we give.
Trains are virtually unstoppable—as long as they remain on track. They teach us that we, too, will be unstoppable if we maintain our focus, build momentum, stay on track, and keep our eyes on the destination ahead.
Time marches incessantly forward, waiting for nothing, relentlessly passing, and quietly but powerfully leaving its mark on everything within its massive sphere of influence. It reminds us that nothing ever remains as it was, that life is dynamic, that we either grow or decay, improve or regress, move forward or backward with every passing day.
Space symbolizes freedom, the ability to move about without restraint—within as well as without. It represents our ability to break the self-imposed emotional bonds that constrain us and keep us imprisoned within their invisible yet powerful walls—and almost irresistibly beckons us to do so.
Automobiles represent convenience, mobility, “shorter” distances between people and between people and places. They narrow the gap that nature has placed in our path and help us to use the freedom of space to our greatest advantage. Our psychological “automobiles” are any of the things that minimize the relational “gaps” between people—things like understanding, respect, courtesy, love, and forgiveness.
Technology teaches us the vastness of human potential, promising not only future discoveries by the geniuses of the world for the improvement of our lives but also the virtually limitless nature of our own personal discoveries, our own as yet unrealized possibilities. It also connects us to people, products, information, and services in ways we’ve never connected before, enriching us in the process.
Mountains remind us that, though life isn’t always easy, it’s beautiful, glorious, majestic, and wholly worthwhile; and as long as we keep on climbing, we always have a chance of reaching the top.
Keep learning...climbing...and writing!
Jeanne
This post is my entry to the Middle Zone Musings What I Learned From…Mashing It Up! group writing project.
* Just to clarify: The 18 areas in which I've discussed my lessons learned were not chosen by me, but were the 18 fascinating topics Robert Hruzek dreamed up especially for this WILF mashup.
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