You’ve long dreamed of being a writer. You read alot about how to go about becoming a writer but it still seems out of your reach. You have chosen your niche – you’re going to be a pet blogger. You’re a lifelong lover of pets and have one or more of your own. So, how can you go about becoming a great writer? Well, it won’t happen overnight. It takes time and effort but if you’re looking to build a niche, become an expert and be recognized for what you do and what you know, the benefits are worth the hard work.
Whether you’re looking to write for newspapers, magazines or blogs (or even fiction) here are some tips to help you hone your craft and achieve your dreams of greatness!
Read. Read. Read. If you don’t read you can’t become a good writer. If you don’t know good writing when you see it, how can you expect to put forth good writing? You can’t.
Write. Write. Write. Yes, you need to write every day to hone your craft and perfect your skills. The more you write, the better your words will be. It’s a skill like any other. You can’t be a concert pianist without practice, nor can you be a great writer without practice.
In my last post I wrote about how attending a conference can offer inspiration and motivation, now let's talk about how to actually make the most of your time at a conference -- by that I mean, network, network, network!
For some people, attending a conference is a big undertaking in and of itself but once you're there you need to make the most of it and shake hands, meet people, mix and mingle. Here are some general tips for making the most out of your attendance at a conference:
Share a room. While you may want to share a room simply for the saving money aspect, sharing a room will help you connect with another conference attendee and you'll have someone to pal around with at mix and mingle activities.
Take business cards. Even if you don't have a business to promote, take business cards with you that have your contact information -- name, email, phone number -- it's an easy way to meet people. Without a business card how will you connect following the conference?
Thinking of attending a conference? Well, as you know, BlogPaws 2011 is fast approaching, but this is not shameless self promotion of the upcoming event, it's about attending conferences in general.
These past two days I had attended the Lilac City Rochester Writer's conference. The organizers brought in the author ofGoal, Motivation & Conflict, Debra Dixon. The book, GMC, has long been on my keeper shelf and it is dog-eared from many years of use and reference. I did pick up another copy at the conference because for the life of me I couldn't find my own copy -- chances are I might have lent it to someone and never gotten it back.
You're a diligent blogger, putting up at least a couple of posts a week, you're building your audience,right? But now you're wondering, "is there anything more for me?" The answer is a definite "maybe!"
Chances are you've all heard of Julie and Julia; the blog by the woman who cooked her way through Julia Childs's cookbook, blogged about it, then sold the movie rights? We all want to be her, don't we? While there may be no magic formula for success, we know that diligence and persistence pays off and in some cases it's a matter of being in the right place at the right time.
If you are looking to take your blogging to a new (paid) level, there are a few things to consider:
Can your blogging lead you to speaking engagements? You'll never know until you have your blogging platform established then you can contact various trade associations and see about getting yourself booked as a speaker. As an example, as a writer and a former magazine editor, I contact writing conference organizers and offer to speak (they typically offer a speakers' fee and entrance to the conference and travel expenses).
Could you take portions of your blog and turn it into a book or a Top-Ten list to be downloaded from your website for a fee?
Can you repurpose some of your blog post information and turn it into a magazine article? Use your topics as a jumping off point for querying magazine editors.
If you have a unique voice, why not offer to write a column for a local newspaper.
Look on Craigslist or other job sites for writing gigs and use your blog as your virtual resume.
While blogging may not bring you fame and success, you may be able to find a way to monetize it enough to keep you in coffee and chocolates!
