Kite's Pagination

Crisis of Focus

2008-08-31T10:42:00.002-04:00

It's been ages since I posted here.

At first, I thought my problem was choosing between working solely as a copywriter/web designer or going back to being an aspiring fiction writer.

They both are enjoyable to a certain extent, but I've learned that it wasn't my direction... it was my focus.

I simply don't give enough of my time to the business of being a copywriter or to the art of crafting a story & characters. My skills at both are "ok" but that level won't me successful in either arena.

So I have come to the point where I not only need to pick a direction but I also need to discover if I can commit myself to completing one of those dreams.

But one thing is certain: I don't need anyone's help. This is my own little struggle and I intend to keep it that way.

2007-09-18T20:19:00.001-04:00

Looking for some super web savvy writer who can make your website informative, interesting, and inexpensive?

Green Light Copy offers the complete package:

Web Design
Copy-writing
Research
Marketing

This is a great deal for small businesses looking to have their first website. For those of you unfamiliar with uploading, hosting, and domain names - Green Light can help you turn a free blog into your website. That means that you can get a space on the Web for only the cost of labor. Once it's up and running, you can learn the simple steps to change content.

Everyone is different, and being adaptive is one of Green Light's hallmarks. Your business becomes THE business. Don't be afraid that you'll be squeezed into some website mold. Solving the problem of your unique needs is what it’s all about.

Give Green Light a try. Green means go.

The Deciding Factor

2007-09-12T08:02:00.000-04:00

Why I chose not to move to Wordpress: Blogger.com is owned by Google.

The most obvious meaning of that answer is that Google has the power and ability to continually promote Blogger.com and add features to it. The second part is that Google supplies Blogger.com with all of its well-maintained servers, which allows for quick responses from the dashboard while working with your blog. Lastly, Google’s philosophy of freedom and community better suit me, i.e. I like being able to tweak all of my html and css code for my blog, and I like the slim navigational bar that comes will all blogs unless you hack the code.

Wordpress is pretty and just as if not a little more functional these days, but I won’t throw my chips in with them.

Wordpress

2007-08-26T00:49:00.001-04:00

After blogging for years at Blogger.com, I am considering Wordpress.

My test blog: www.jillspagination.wordpress.com

Writing Versus Copywriting

2007-07-24T10:56:00.000-04:00

Success at copywriting depends dearly on being understood when writing. Many creative writers who turn to copywriting in order to feed their starving career have a tendency to find that their artistic flurish is quite undesirable.

Look back at the sentence I just wrote; how could be more direct?

First, take out the unnecessary words:
'Creative' -> the noun 'writer' already brings a sense of creativity.
'in order to feed their starving career' -> is too descriptive, better to say 'who temporarily turn to copwriting' and delete the whole phrase.
'have a tendency' -> 'have a habit'
'to find that their artistic flurish is quite undesirable' -> 'of being undesirably artistic'

New sentence: Many writers who temporarily turn to copywriting have a habit of being undesirably artistic.

So a sentence that was once 26 words long has now been shortened to 14. That's almost half the size, yet it still carries the same meaning. Both were great sentences (even if I do say so myself), but one was from a writer, the other was from a copywriter. So Hemingway would make a decent copywriter, whereas Faulkner would be turned away repeatedly.

A great exercise is to sit down with one of your favorite works and just purge. Make it as short as possible and use the active voice. Test yourself by having a friend read both the original and the strip down version. Ask which one was easier to read, which one was more clear, did both of them carry the same message? Once you get the hang of it, try it with your preferred genre and see if it makes a difference in how your voice is projected off the page.

Technorati Post

2007-07-23T18:02:00.001-04:00

Technorati Profile

Breaks, Interruptions, & Distractions

2007-07-20T12:03:00.000-04:00

Time management is the key to all success. How you spend your time on something is a big decision, because you’ll never get that time back. Many don’t realize this until the moment has already passed.

While this concept can be applied to every aspect of life, I’m going to take a moment to apply it to the freelance copy/creative professional life.

Many of the copywriters in the world today started as people who simply loved the art of writing: writers. Whether they were fiction writers or reporters, they appreciated well written work and strived to create it themselves. As they strive in their copywriting careers, it’s quite easy to slip back into old passions. Sometimes it’s useful and sometimes it’s just a waste.

My passion is fiction. When I get an idea, it’s hard to resist the urge to write it out even if I have project in my hands. I need to remember to classify these instances as distractions. One way I’m getting through them is by jotting down the idea briefly and then pushing it away.

A distraction is when something comes up that doesn’t need your attention even though you want to be consumed with it. If you fail in your project due to distractions, then you only have yourself to blame because you made the choice on which was more important to you.

An interruption is something completely different. It NEEDS your attention. Like one of your clients calling for pricing. Interruptions can be personal or technical; they can relate to your current project or not. Interruptions are a part of life. If too many unforeseen interruptions arise while you are trying to finish a project, you need to decide if you can finish the project on time. If you can’t make the deadline then you need to contact your client.

Taking breaks is another easy way to mismanage your time. I’m not saying you shouldn’t have breaks, but having breaks can often be a slippery slope. Remember: take a break when you are REALLY out of energy or ideas. Don’t take ‘pat on the back’ breaks. Just because you did something good doesn’t mean you should stop. Once the project is complete you can then celebrate and get back to all those ideas that were tempting you earlier.

Be strict with yourself and your time. Even an informal schedule can help you manage your time better.
i.e.
- Work at least 2 hours everyday
- No more than 5 minutes spent subduing a distraction
- If interruptions take up 1/10 the time available for the project then I need to call the client
- I shouldn’t need any breaks

Keep your CSS Separate

2007-07-17T09:05:00.000-04:00

You can upload all your CSS code as a separate page (i.e. "style.css"). You can then have a link to this page on every one of your HTML pages (i.e. "link rel="stylesheet" href="style.css" type="text/css"").

CSS is great for creating uniformity in a website. With all your code on this one page, one change to the style is reflected on all of your HTML pages. That can be a tremendous time saver. All you need is to familarize yourself with listing all the CSS code at once.

Example:

h1 {
margin:0;
font:200% times;
text-transform: none;
line-height:1em;
letter-spacing:.01em;
color:#000; }

Remember, when you list all the CSS code on a separate page, you no longer need to use the STYLE tags.

Coffee Cup DHTML Menu

2007-07-13T13:16:00.000-04:00

For all of you who are unfamiliar with the term, please check it out on wikipedia: DHTML

Though I didn't know it, I have been looking for a DHTML drop-down menu for most of my web designing career. With the advances in browser technology, DHTML has become a lifesaver for simple web designers working with few if not none of the high cost website building applications.

However, building a DHTML menu is a whole different story since it incorporates javascript and other concepts I'm not familiar with. Imagine my amazement when I found a DHTML menu generator. This software was free to download from an interesting company called Coffee Cup.

Their motto is that they make great web designers. They offer packages of tools that allow someone with beginner-level knowledge to create exceptional websites that seem well beyond their skill. These tools are available individually and Coffee Cup has a few freebies in order to show off their application-building abilities.

This menu generator most likely has a premium version that can be downloaded for a cost, but the freebie version is just great. It provides you with all the basic tools you need to make a drop-down menu in the color, size, & position that you need to fit your website. Amazing you have as many root, sibling, & sub-links as you need.

Reviewing some of their other tools, I found their applications to be well organized, easy to use, and full of useful features. I'm considering to buy their flash font application, provided that I confirm that they have the particular font I need. I already love the way this application was designed.

Deal Breakers

2007-07-01T18:53:00.000-04:00

Just as many writers dream of the day their novel is not rejected, many copywriters dream of a successful project. This means that the copywriter is not only accepted, but their work is submitted and the client is satisfied.

During that precious time between the agreed upon deal and the completion of the project there is a delicate balance. In this time you're working with your client in order to bring about their idea, and there are lots of things that can get in the way.

Lack of Communication:
Just because you know how to communicate doesn't mean you know when. You might be aware that a particular topic requires calling up the client and asking them more detailed questions. Perhaps you concerned about bugging them too much over all the little details. If you're calling them everyday, they could get the impression that you don't know what you're doing.

From recent experience, I would have to say that anytime something makes your work go slower and the solution is in the hands of the client - call. You may think they are slowing you down, but in fact you're the one not following up when you need to. They can't think of everything, that's why they hired you. If they get annoyed, just do your best to make it easy for them to answer you.

Lack of Finality:
Ok, so you agreed upon a deal over the course of a phone conversation. Now, put it in writing. Just because you're both being really friendly is no excuse not to be professional. This way there is no worries about expectations that could ruin your budding friendship.

Say your friend suddenly decides on a deadline that you don't remember him mentioning earlier. Or what if the project starts going in a different direction than what you had expected? If you had just had it in writing you could have renegoiated the terms... sounds professional doesn't it? Having a deal in writing forces great communication anyways.

Not Meeting Expectations:
Sometimes, you can't help not meeting someone's expectations. Othertimes, there are things you could have done in order not to lead your client down the wrong path. It's true that you should sell your abilities, but no one can see the future.

What if your schedule changes, or some technical problem occurs. It would be better if the client understood that you're not perfect. You can do that by being more conservative with your confidense. Be confident, but don't shrug tasks saying they're a cake-walk... even if they are.

I hope all this wisdom helps someone in the future. I believe I could have used it earlier instead of having to learn it the hardway.

Thanks for reading.

Marketing with Text Messages

2007-06-20T17:52:00.000-04:00

While drivers are beging ticketed for text messaging while driving, companies that use commercial text messages are being exulted for advertising on the cutting edge.

Urban Outfitters is testing their new program now. I wonder what how they can make an impact with such a short message? Now there's an accomplishment for some lucky copywriter.

CSS Play

2007-06-13T08:47:00.000-04:00

As much as I am proud of my web desigining skills, I have to admit that I am not as professional as some would believe.

Unlike other web designers, I try to couple my html/css skills with my marketing knowledge, but also unlike other web designers - my skills are limited. One way around my own limitations is utilizing websites like CSS Play.

Stu Nicholls IS a talented CSS writer who has developed web elements for the common amateur CSS user available on his website: CSS Play. Stu has developed drop-down menus, artistic menus, interesting website layouts and more. All he asks in return is recognition and perhaps a donation to keep his website going.

Without Stu, I would have never been able to develop a fashionable, highly-usable web menu without running into concepts unknown to me like javascript. It keeps people like me from having to split myself up. Instead of having to learn something new, I can just use this leg-up and get back to refining my current marketing skills.

Time is a very important thing in this world and I am not ashamed to say that I use a shortcut that's available to everyone. It doesn't make me an inapt designer; it actually makes me a better one.

What do you think?

Main Characters

2007-05-06T01:18:00.000-04:00

Recently, I have been thinking about the relationship between the author and his or her main character. For me this has always been something very personal. The character has always been very close to me if not a slight representation of me. This makes me wonder if this situation is true for some of the great writers. It makes me wonder if all main characters are just parts of us that we expand and elaborate on in some subconscious attempt to recreate ourselves in an alternate universe.

This idea gets it's origins in the concept that writing is a form of therapy for those of us born with this disease that keeps us up at all hours of the night tap-tapping away on a keyboard. Some have argued that it's not just self-awareness that we gain from writing, but also self-satisfaction in the way that we look back over our writing and find contentment.

That last saying is true for me. Yes, there is a story inside me that just needs to be written out – something for the world, but reading my own work is the greatest joy. Reading the story aids my own inner vision that's been fuzzy. I feel that a fully finished story shows you a clear picture of not only the soul, but also all the strange personal desires a writer might be harboring.

I don't know if this is true for others, but I would love to know.

Overloading Your Super Hero

2007-04-25T20:48:00.000-04:00

There are few Super Heros in the work place. These are people who not only work hard, but also have great creativity, innovation, responsibility, organization, and all those other wonderful traits in a neat little package.

These super people also have a habit of being work-a-holics, because they are perfectionists and need to do everything themselves in order to feel satisfied with the work.

Most companies love these people... you can rest anything in their hands and they'll take care of it one way or another. But overload their shoulders and you'll drive them nuts.

Overloading one of these people will make them work extra hard spreading themselves thin over the projects, but they still won't pass the torch. Once you give them something, they will expect it to always be their responsibility. Stretching them thin causes mistakes or forgetfulness to happen. When it comes time to give the project to someone else these heros feel like they've failed.

Some also get really angry at being taken for granted. They feel like they were forced into a position where they are doomed to fail.

It can easily make someone very depressed.

Sadly, just because I can say all this as if I'm some HR professional - I can't seem to say it at my day-job. Why? Because I am a super person caught up in the vicious cycle and no matter how I understand the end that's approaching me, I can't stand to ask that things be taken away from me.

A few of my supervisors understand my blight, but many of us have our hands tied. I hope things change before the busy season starts.

What's in a Name?

2007-04-03T20:38:00.000-04:00

If I have any readers, they will notice that I've changed the name of my freelance company. So I wanted to talk about the change and company names in general.

I chose to have a company name so that if my business ever took off, I could incorporate other freelancers who wouldn't have to work under my name. Having a company name makes it easier for others to take over the business should I choose to sell it or hand it over to family or co-workers.

There is also the fact that a company name is more catchy than a person name. Green Light Copy will stick in your head while 'Paula Zahn' might be hard to remember and even more difficult to spell correctly.

A company name can also speak of your qualities in one swoop. 'Green Light' is associated with Go, Good to Go, Moving Forward, Accelerate - it says that I am a copywriter with the potential to go places, that I can take you where you want to be, that you will be good to go with what I produce. Green briefly speaks of my 'Greenhorn' status, but vaguely. The color also has personal significance to me.

A company name like this also leads me to a new world of promotion items, icons, etc.

So my opinion is that a company name is worth it, which is why I felt the need to change mine. My original company name was "DaisyWheel Writing Services". Though it had endearing qualities, which I will not extrapolate on, to me it started meaning old fashioned and too cute. I think it made me look a little unprofessional or too novice. Though I am still considered new to the business it doesn't mean I am at all inapt.

If you still don't believe me. Look at them side by side and tell me, which one you would check out first if they were different companies competing for your business.

Green Light Copy

DaisyWheel Writing Services

Thanks for reading.

Answer to the Dilemma

2007-04-01T00:04:00.000-04:00

Recently, I posted about a little dilemma I had about using certain contacts to further my freelance business. See March post: Dilemma

After thinking about it a little more and discussing it with my partner in crime, my husband, I've come to an answer.

If you use your day job contacts to further your freelance moonlighting it will be impossible to keep those contacts from mentioning the freelance project to your co-workers or superiors at the day job. Especially praise since people think there is nothing wrong with giving compliments. You might think it's all the better, but once that day-job finds out that you're moonlighting often with real clients like THEIR clients there will be one sure response... they're going to wonder about your focus.

Your day job is paying you to focus and work hard on the work they give you. Distraction in the form of lucrative freelance projects are going to make them scrutinize your daily progress. They may even address the problem and ask you if you want to pursue this other job on a full-time bases. That is if they don't fire you on the spot for straining customer relationships. Yes, if you do a bad job or don't fulfill the customer's demands these people could complain to your employer.

All of this is too much risk.

The only way one can successfully use day job contacts to further their freelance business is if they keep the two completely separate. Which means that you can't talk to 'Mike' - the guy who always calls your day job. Instead you need to hunt down the marketing manager and sell your abilities to that person - the guy who never calls your day job. You would need to make sure 'Mike' isn't aware so he doesn't slip up and cost you your day job.

Does anyone else have an opinion on this answer? Let me know.

Thanks for reading.

2007-03-30T18:47:00.001-04:00

Client Name:	Robert Bly
Business:	Copywriter & Author
Date of last project:	July 2005
Project:	Reports on Weblogs

Client Name:	Artex Knitting Mills, Inc.
Business:	Manufacturer
Date of last project:	Jan 2006 & On-going
Project:	www.artexknit.com

Client Name:	Starleen Studios
Business:	Artist
Date of last project:	June 2007
Project:	Marketing

Dilemma

2007-03-27T21:33:00.000-04:00

Here's a big question for any of you business people out there...

If you work full-time and have a freelance business on the side that does not compete with you daytime job, can you use your daytime business contacts in order to further your freelance business?

I work for a factory. I make their website, but I still offer my services freelance. I did freelance work before I started working for the factory.

Now I know a bunch of my company's customers personally and I am aware that they want to be on the web but haven't been able to find someone to take care of it.

Do I offer my services?

My biggest fear is that the customer will hold my factory responsible if I fail them as a freelance agent. Of course I have no intention to fail, but sometimes there is no way to meet someone's expectations... especially in this area where my expertise is limited and not a part of my formal training.

Is it bad business to do this or bad business to let such opportunities slip by? I bet I could get fired over something like this if something bad happens. Otherwise I might be able to slide by.

Right now, I fear it's not worth the risk to try this idea.

What do you think?

Beyond Google

2007-03-10T22:45:00.001-05:00

Still hoping to solve my Web-based word processor problems, I came across an article about Google Docs & Spreadsheet. At the end of the article the author listed his references including similar websites, which he had compared to Google. He listed Thinkfree & Zoho. I was instantly taken aback because I had never heard of these websites at all. I had to go check it out.

Thinkfree
http://www.thinkfree.com/

Is very similar to Google Docs & Spreadsheets, but it also includes a presentation application similar to Microsoft Powerpoint. Thinkfree offers 1 GB storage and makes things easier by offering a desktop widget that allows you to drag and drop files, which then immediately open through the website's application.

Thinkfree wasn't my cup of tea because it took a long time to open a document. Granted, they might have more professional tools, but I want something more friendly. Not only did it take too long to open, but it was also slow moving when it came to copy/pasting and editing.

Zoho
http://www.zoho.com/

Has many more features that I deeply appreciate. It has now become my new favorite and I'll tell you why:

First, it has a pretty fast working word processor that has few hiccups and more of the features I need, like a symbol menu that includes smart quotations and hangs around on the screen while you are typing (you don't have to re-open the feature). The word processor talks easily with blogs, email, and easily shares items or flat-out publishes them. The Zoho word processor also has a Microsoft Word plugin that allows you to use Word as the editor for your Zoho docs. That allows you to open, edit, save, and ADD Zoho docs with just your Microsoft Word application and a connection to the Web.

Zoho has sparked my interest not only because of it's wonderful word processor. It also has other great features like a worksheet application, presentation application, wiki service, project planning application, CRM services, planner application, virtual office, and my personal favorite... Creator. The Creator application lets you create forms/database applications that can be embedded into your website.

Zoho has also hooked up with the 'store-anything' storage website www.box.net. If you open a free 1 GB account and store some documents, you'll find that one of the available options on the drop-down box is to 'edit' that document. Click on that and a temporary Zoho editor pops up in a new window. Clicking 'Save' saves the document directly to your box.net account. Zoho has this same deal with Omnidrive. Currently, there is no limit on the amount of storage someone can have using a direct Zoho account, but their FAQ's say it could get limited to 1 GB in the future.

Zoho just offers more for the average versatile user. Heck, I'm writing this post using the Zoho word processor!

If any of you take my tip, I'd love to hear back from you.

Thanks for reading.

Quotation Marks

2007-02-27T21:12:00.000-05:00

Besides tripping over ill-copied indentation when moving MS Word documents over to Google Docs or to a able wiki, my biggest pain is the complete inability to use smart quotation marks. You can only use dumb quotation marks.

No, I'm not being opinionated. Those are actual terms. See below:

Smart Quotes
by Ilene Strizver
One of the most irritating typographic faux pas is the use of straight quotation marks (also called “dumb” quotes) instead of true typographic quotation marks (“smart” or “curly” quotes). How did this dumb-versus-smart muddle begin? Blame the engineers: the standard keyboard layout (which was not created by typographers!) has straight quotes in place of real quotes. As designers, it’s our job to use our “smarts” to work around this all-too-common problem.

Get smart!
What’s the difference between smart and dumb? Smart quotes are usually curved in shape and have different opening and closing versions for use at the beginning and end of quoted material, respectively.Dumb (or straight) quotes are usually simple tapered vertical or angled marks . These are also referred to as “primes,” and should be used in numerical measurements to indicate inches (a double prime) and feet (a single prime).

Source: http://www.fonts.com/AboutFonts/Articles/fyti/Smartquotes.htm

By default, MS Word uses smart quotation marks automatically. Meaning that the quotation marks change when they detect the usage. So any fictional work of mine that contains dialog has those smart quotation marks.

Copy and pasting brings them all over to the google doc page or the wiki, but when it comes to editing that page any new quotation mark will be dumb. It's just dumb!

But as I have been reading up on a way to solve this problem, I noticed gossip whispering about how smart quotation marks might disappear all together since dumb quotations are standard on keyboards and in website language.

I think that's a little scary. I think we need smart quotes. What do you think?

Mobile blogging

2007-02-24T22:55:00.000-05:00

Is mobile blogging really worth it?

Could someone really have that much to say while away from any computer station?

I'm debating that right now as I blog with my husband's Treo. I could have this device but would I feel comfortable using it when I could use any random computer. I guess the only advantage is that I don't have to worry about leaving my login hanging around. On this little machine everything is safe.

What do you think?

What's hot is what's published

2007-02-24T17:03:00.000-05:00

Here's a lesson from the New Fiction bookshelf... Drum-up a news story about the main theme of your book before you submit it to a publisher. Why? Because today's New Fiction seems to be consumed with the topics that bounce around the news room.

I'm sure this fact has been true since the dawn of publishing but as a literary writer I feel caged or used.

Thankfully, not all writers have to put up with this. Fantasy, sci-fi, and mystery writers can escape the trap because their novels are truly meant as an escape. Literary writers not only want to produce a great story, but one that has a message - whether it's social, political, or timeless.

Lately, those messages seem to be politically motivation by various groups with agendas. Some of them might think they have very noble agendas, and they could be right, but I don't like these fictional advertisements.

There was even a story about advertising through fiction. You'll find a link to it on my Google Reader.

Let me know what you think about messages in fiction.

Good Help is Hard to Find

2007-02-19T19:13:00.000-05:00

The search for good help at my office continues as Month 3 begins to come around the corner.

Discussing it with my boss, the owner, I learned how the phrase "fitting-in" really has a meaning when it's about a new employee. I use to think that phrase was just a meaningless string of words that sounded better than "We don't like you".

Someone could actually be a good, intelligent employee and expected to do well, but their personality plays a big role. If some one's personality doesn't jive well with supervisors or mix naturally with co-workers the friction could be enough to let that person go. Also, if that new employee isn't inspired to strive and care about his or her work, then the lack of enthusiasm could make that person look poorly suited.

I was a good employee for my previous office, but I am now a great employee because I feel so much better about the company and people I work for.

So, next time you get that phrase - "You're just not fitting in around here", before you start feeling completely destroyed or angry, just think about how well you were mixing in. Did you feel thrilled about the job? Did you have mis-communications? If it wasn't you then it was them and you shouldn't feel upset about not working there.

Thanks for reading.

What was it like?

2007-02-16T19:07:00.000-05:00

That's the question I keep hearing now that I'm back from my vacation. It really makes me think about the prosperity of being a travel writer.

There are always people looking for information on foreign places. They want to know what it was like, what you did, and what you thought of the place. I could hand it out for free, or I could put together an article and sell it to a travel magazine or website.

Travel writing can be a lucrative business if you have the free time to travel and gain some credibility on your writing. However, I have learned that fewer than half of travel assignments are given to freelance writers. Just like any newspaper, freelance articles require more editing and are less consistent. Since staff writers have more training and knowledge they can be dependable for quality content.

What about my opportunity? I'm going to pitch my story to a few of the local travel magazines, but if none of them bite, then I plan to sell it to the hotel chain itself as content for their website.

My only regret is that I didn't take the time to review all the features and services of the hotel. It truly was a vacation for me, so I only did what I felt like doing at the time.

Thanks for reading.

Vacation Time

2007-02-02T19:23:00.000-05:00

Please note that I will be on vacation from Feb 3rd thru Feb 10th.

I will be vacationing in beautiful Punta Cana - just as 20 degree weather moves into the North East.