In yesterday's post here at the Blood-Red Pencil , I talked about how writers can use PR to grow their writing career. Today, we're moving on to advertising, a totally different beast. As mentioned yesterday, PR tends to have a long-term goal in mind, that of building a relationship with its public so that the public grows to trust the company, to have loyalty with that company. In the end of all that relationship building, the company hopes that the relationship is strong enough that the public will buy their wares, support their causes, etc. Buy Now image by Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net Buy me now! Advertising typically has a short-term goal in mind. You are attempting to lure your audience into buying your products/services or support your causes NOW, not later. Being able to communicate in a concise way the availability and benefits of your products is vital in advertising. What is your product? Why does your audience need this product? What can thi...

If you’re looking to develop or redevelop your public relations (PR) and advertising activities for your writing career, it’s good to first differentiate between the two sets of activities and then take time to consider how each will benefit your career. Before doing so, however, you do want to think about two things: 1) how you will brand yourself and 2) who you are trying to reach because without knowing these two things, developing PR and advertising activities won’t connect with your career goals and with those (your audience) who will help your career grow. PR image by Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net Let’s build a relationship for the long haul . PR often has a long-term goal in mind. You are attempting to build a relationship with your public so that they become loyal to you, so that they begin to trust you. In building that long-term relationship and the loyalty and trust, your public ultimately comes on board to buy your product, support your causes, etc. On...

To write is to participate in a lifelong-learning endeavor. The good news is many avenues provide the learning we need to better our writing. Editing, reading, teaching, and walking are powerful learning tools for my literary pursuits. I learn with each story I edit. The learning may tie into the writing craft specifically or with me personally, and even then, the “personal” lessons often find their way into stories I write. Reading books on writing or books for education, entertainment, or enlightenment always ignite ideas for writing. When I teach, the interactions and experiences in and out of the classroom become potential fodder for stories. Walking allows me to see and participate with the world and people around me and to develop new story ideas through that participation. In what ways are you fostering lifelong learning in your writing career? Shon Bacon is an author, editor, and educator, whose biggest joys are writing and helping others develop thei...

How many times have we heard someone say that? How many times have we said that? I can ask because I’m sitting here with half a dozen novels started (as in years ago) and only two completed, one of which (the first one) needs a major overhaul. Speaking of years, they pass much too quickly. Children are born. They grow up, go to college, leave the nest. Jobs change, goals change, sometimes mates change or simply move on. Did we write that book? Grandparenthood brings new joys, and pending retirement comes with its own unique challenges. Time constraints ease—perhaps we can even call some days our own to do what we please.  Did we write that book? Many began their writing careers before the bloom of youth disappeared in a mist, never to be revisited. Others waited…or are still waiting. Is it someday yet? Let’s look at the advantages of writing after experiencing life’s roller-coaster ride—whether it’s our debut novel, a new release on our list of published works, or a story wr...

During the twelve years I’ve been preparing to publish my fiction, I have not spent every waking hour mooning over what publication may hold in my future. Instead, around the theme of writing, I created a rich, fulfilling life that has fed me in so many ways. Too many ways, it would seem, to fit my current circumstance. I have arrived at the threshold of my dream; all is about to unfold. photo credit:  DavidTurnbull  via  photopin   cc And I can’t find the time to write. Oops. Now that I finally have a book deal, I haven’t been able to maintain focus on my work-in-progress for more than a day or two at a time for months now. Editing jobs I've promised in two weeks are stretching to three+. I’m not keeping up. I live in fear of letting someone—especially myself—down. Here were the components of my life pre-book deal. All are still in full swing, in demand, and not ready to release their grip on my life: writing developmental editing for c...

When I was a preschooler, I loved sitting on the couch next to my mother and listening to her read stories. (This was long before television and computers and Nintendo.) After hearing them multiple times, I read the stories —word for word—to her. She assured me later that I had memorized them, but not so. I had learned to read them. So began my love of books. By mid-elementary school, I wrote poetry, which was often published in the weekly bulletin. In high school, I worked on newspapers and started a novel. And I read, read, read everything—Nancy Drew and Beverly Gray mysteries, as well as all kinds of fiction (mostly) from the school library. Visions of writing novels (my version of sugarplums) danced in my head. Then life interfered under the guise of five children, six step-children, a disabled husband, and a myriad other distractions that put writing—and even reading—on long-term hold. The children grew up. A novel took shape in my head, then a second and a third, etc. The dis...

In January 2011, I wrote about stretching yourself as a writer. This New Year, how about we think about our future writing self? In your writing career, where do you see yourself in five years? Ten years? What projects are you writing? How many? Are you self-publishing or going the traditional route? Have you moved into writing articles and non-fiction to promote your fictional works? Are you now writing screenplays? Coaching and editing? It's great to think yearly and organize what projects you plan to write within a year's time, but it's equally great (and important) to stop and widen, deepen the view of your writing career…and take notes. Knowing where you want to be will help you situate what you have to do now and in the immediate future in order to get there. ----- Writing in 140 is my attempt to say something somewhat relevant about writing in 140 words or less. ~~~~~~~~~~ Shon Bacon is an author, doctoral candidate, editor, and educator. She has published ...