Copywriting is the first type, it pays better and the chances of making money at it are higher. The other kind is fiction writing. This form is a lot less certain. If your good and happen to be lucky you could make a fortune. But you’d be more likely to hit it big at the crap table.
When I’m engaged in copywriting, I prefer to do my research before I start writing. It doesn’t always work that way, but that’s how I try to set it up. Fiction on the other hand, the research is more on an as needed basis. So I do it as I need it.
Both types of writing can be divided into a number of subgroups.
Since this site is suppose to be about copywriting, that’s the area I’ll cover here. There are two types of copywriting:
- commercial
- journalistic.
Commercial copywriting is the more profitable of the two. But it requires finding clients that need something written. This form of copywriting requires you to spend a good deal of time searching for potential clients. And that can be grueling.
Journalistic copywriting, on the other hand, is more iffy. It requires you to come up with an article idea. Find several publications that might be interested it. Write query letters and send them off (either one at a time or all at once—I’m not sure which approach to use. It would be more effective to send them all off at the same time and let the quickest take the prize. But that might not be considered the right approach.) Have to check that out. If you know, clue me in. Thanks. Then you have to repeat the process again and again…
Try both types of copywriting. In the future I cover both in more depth. Go for it.
I’m thinking of writing another mystery story. This could turn into a novel or remain a long short story.
But the main plan in writing this kind of story is to:
- have a group of characters
- have a problem one of them has to solve
- have an obstacle that makes solving the problem harder
- have to find a way to solve said problem.
The first step is to create the problem the main character must solve. It has to be a murder. Someone was murdered. It has to be a character that was in some way of value to someone else. And a character that represented a threat to the killer.
So the first step is to create characters. But I prefer to start to write the story and create the characters as needed.
Like this:
As Scott Mitchell walked along the crowed sidewalk toward the coffee shop two large men stepped out of the crowd one on either side. A long black limo pulled to the curb and stopped.
“Scott Mitchell you will come with us,” the man on his left said.
“I’ve seen this movie before, and I don’t think you got the right guy.”
Before he finished speaking, they grabbed him. One on each arm and ushered him into the waiting limo.
See what I mean?
You know that growing old is no big thing. It just kind of happens to you while you’re doing other things. Right?
But suppose you and I could turn that around. Make it work to our advantage. Great. You say, but how?
The big thing to do, I think, is to stay active.
Here’s what I try to do every day:
- walk a mile and a half
- do 15 push-ups
- take a break every hour or so and do some stretching.
Do I do it every day? I try to
I am growing old in America. And as I see it, that could be funny!
I don’t mean ha-ha kind funny. The kind of funny I mean is when you see something happen, and you know there is more to it than meets the eye.
The kind of funny we saw when Sarah Palin created her death panel myth. You had to know she was a paid spokes person for either big pharma and/or the health insurance companies or maybe both. It was as obvious as the nose on her face that she was being paid to stir up senior citizens.
So if you too are growing old in America, and you to see what’s really going on, stick around and bring a friend or two with you next time. This blog might help us all get through the darkness left by Bush and Chaney.
I began thinking about cooking a few years ago, while vacationing in South Carolina. So I went to a near-by outlet mall and bought a spun steel wok made in China. The pan (or is it a pot?) is unusual in a number of ways.
The most notable thing about it is that you wash it out with plain water, no soap needed. Then you wipe the inside down with cooking oil and put it away.
I’ve used my wok to stir-fry beef, chicken, pork, shrimps (as they say in New Orleans), and tofu.
One of my favorite recipes uses tofu. But any of the above foods could be used in it’s place.
You got to try this, I promise you’ll love it.
You’ll need:
- package of tofu (extra firm)
- package of your favorite mushrooms—washed and chopped
- chopped ginger (about an inch or so)
- head of garlic
- one hot pepper (you pick the type)
- a handful or more of nuts (your choice again)
Lay out three paper towels. Set the tofu on them. Use a forth sheet on top to press out the water. Then cut the block into bite sized cubes.
Chop up the ginger and garlic. Cut the hot pepper in half, length wise. If you like your food hot dice the pepper. If you don’t remove the veins and seeds, then chop it.
Put a little cooking oil in your wok and heat it. Test the heat of the oil by dropping a drip of water into it. When it splatters put the tofu in and stir fry for 3 minutes. Move the chunks around, to cook ‘em on all sides.
Add the ginger, garlic, mushrooms, and hot pepper. Stir fry for a couple minutes and add the nuts. Cook for another minute and serve over rice or noodles.
Try this recipe and let me know what you think.
Contact me. Tell me what your interest in. Let’s start a conversation.
I started my search for “Niche Writing Markets.” In the process I found something else of interest. But I’m thinking that I might not have used the best approach.
See the Internet is sort of like a little kid. You tell the kid or the Internet what you want them to do and they both deliver whatever they want to.
So I think the problem can be solved by asking carefully structured questions. You know the kind specifying the Who, What, Where, When, and How info.
So instead of searching for, “NICHE MARKET WRITING.” I think a search for, “SCRIPT WRITING FOR WEB SITE VIDEOS” would be more productive.
Another tip which has help me, and might help you too is, to use more than one Search Engine. I have a list of 8 different sites. Two of the these are actually list of various smaller SEs that I use.
So what I found by accident, was a list of colleges that provide free classes on the Internet. This is the address of the site, http://education-portal.com/articles/10_Universities_Offering_Free_Writing_Courses_Online.html
There are some good schools here, like MIT, etc.
Let me know what you think, I’m interested.
I started this blog on 7/16, and I have had 19 visitors. Way to go!
Today is Sunday, 8/1/10.
My short story MS No Bad Deed Goes Unrewarded is out again. I think it’s a good story. Concerning two people, one of whom is dead as the story opens. But by the end of the story they are both dead, but they’re not going to let that stop them. There are also four supporting characters in this story.
No Bad Deed Goes Unrewarded, leave a comment.
