I am a subscriber to Paulette’s newsletter and recently, she included this information, which really got my attention:

Then there is always the price thing. Some people think anything is too expensive (translation is simply that it’s more money than they view the offer being worth to them). Other people question how valuable something can be if the price is too low. Everyone has a number that they assign to the value they place on anything, whether it’s tips booklets or a year-long round-the-world trip. It is your mission to find out what that number is and to discover how close you are to it. When you ask “what’s your budget?” it can be a circular conversation.  A way I’ve found to break that cycle is to give a silly range – “are we talking $100, $1,000, $10,000, or a million?” That usually prompts them to drop their guard and say “oh, we were thinking $1,500.” Now you know if you’re in the same range or not, rather than playing guessing games in presenting a proposal, like shooting darts on the wall.

If you have been around Paulette for any length of time, you know she uses both humor and a straightforward approach – both of which I can appreciate.  To learn more about her and what she has to offer, you can access her site here (plus you’ll see me along with several other tips booklets authors).

http://www.writersdigest.com/101BestSites

http://www.writersdigest.com/101BestSites/?m_sCategory=WritingCommunities&m_nYear=2008

http://www.writersdigest.com/article/101-websites-2009

Are you kidding me?  1001 ways….  And it’s true.  It’s quite the hefty book (704 pages) and it’s stunning the number of different ideas that are included.  Out of that number, any one of us can surely find at least…10 ideas we can use.  Or maybe even 100… 

Gini has carefully captured the notes and ideas from the most recent call in time for everyone to access.  You’ll want to access the next phone-in time, which she references – and be part of the next

30 Articles in Just 30 Days Call-in notes from April 7, 2010

What can I say? The notes are late and I apologize for that. I could list 95 excuses but unless they are all about writing and writing they are useless…

We had a great call. I always hang up inspired and ready to tap away wildly on new ideas and in new directions. Revitalizing – that’s what it is!

So what’s happening across the country with our many avid writers? Well, we started this session by discussing roses. With our resident expert, Beverly, there is always much to learn. I must say, I regard my roses with new respect and admiration after each conversation and while they are begging for pruning – roses run amuck – I am waiting until after the last frost. Thanks.

In additional to gardening her roses Beverly has been working on articles for the Rose Society, reworking manuscripts for review, and also participating in Script Frenzy. In November she hammered out the novel for the National November Novel Contest and with 80,000 words she feels with 15,000 more she’ll have her job complete. How exciting! She has been work-shopping parts of it with her writing group and that has been good help and feedback. Check out www.createspace.com to learn more about writing adventures that you may want to pursue. This website is associated with Amazon and has all sorts of interesting resources.

As for Script Frenzy – that is also with Amazon. How exciting to work in a new genre to extend technique and expand wordplay talents. I can’t wait to see some of your work, Beverly. By the Book sounds clever and fun.

Ann has increased her writing since the last workshop. She is working to develop some self-assessment tools and she also completed a big proposal. The problem remains… finding the time. That is always a struggle, I believe, whether you are raising a family, working outside/in addition to writing, and just living fully each day. However, while she says it is difficult to worm in enough writing minutes, she is writing more and writing better so that she can write more and wrote better. Ah, what a lovely cycle to be on!

We discussed submitting Top 10 Productivity Tips to Meggin. I personally found writing and submitting the tips to be fun and a quick reminder of the love of my work. 10 Tips tap out so tinglingly! (having fun with Ts even though spell-check objects!)

Rhonda admitted to some procrastinating – and I name it here because we all may fall prey to this at times. I don’t mean procrastinating as sitting in a chair, staring at a wall, and refusing to write but rather procrastinating because there are so many books to read, trips to take, plays to attend, and home improvement projects to complete. Multi-tasking? We are experts and that is sometimes to our detriment. And even though she says she procrastinates she has accomplished some wonderful things even if only a few minutes can be devoted to her work. Her best tip comes from the tele-conference with Meggin and Daphne – “Cover the screen so that editing is impossible.” As with many callers, editing is often a bug-a-boo for letting creativity flow. This cover-up is a great idea.

Rhonda also led us into good discussion on Mind Mapping to get ideas popping and churning. Map until you hit the golden glow of wise words and then cut ‘er loose. Knowing that the best ideas often explode when you are not even trying, Mind Mapping is a great way to accomplish powerful writing.

We also talked about linear folks who might find the free flow on MM irritating and seemingly irrational, those who want to organize and outline no matter what. I know that as a teacher I encouraged organization and outlining to make sure that a piece had a beginning, supporting details, and ended on the same topic. And while I still view this as a useful tool, how many excellent ideas were stifled so that there was a beginning, supporting details, and an ending on topic??

Stiff structure can kill creativity. Can kids learn to love to write and express themselves openly and independently if we squeeze them into a box? But if we just let them write… OK, so at what age does the organization portion need to kick in?

Linda has continued her writing with interviews and reflection. Writing every day has boosted her work to new levels of excitement and thrill. She shared with us that many therapists suffer “compassion fatigue” from working with suffering children and then facing powerful lawyers and judges who are set on “winning at all costs”, even though much damage may result for the child. Yikes – tough job, necessary job. I can’t imagine the nightmares that this might produce.

Follow-up on Linda’s cases includes checking on children years after a court case and decision. This will really add to the depth of her work.

Many of us are interested in blogging. Or if not truly interested (as in my case and finding the time) I know that is good to increase traffic to my website. Mary Reynolds offers a marketing class. Check it out at http://www.writethedamnbook.com/The website appears to be a handy tool.

Roses seemed to tie us together – Beverly the expert, Rhonda and Frank’s rose, me with my wild roses… There must be spring in the air – that is why the peaks out my window are covered with snow! Happy writing until next we chat.

Used with permission from Melinda Copp, who is one of the contributors to the TTPT for Writers:  www.TopTenProductivityTipsforWriters.com. 

Copyrighting your book is an important step in the process of becoming an author because it helps protect against people taking or using your work without permission. But how do you get a copyright? And when should you file for one? If you’re unsure about how to protect your work, consider the following suggestions.

First, a quick disclaimer: I am not a copyright attorney, and this article should not be taken as legal advice. Please use this only as a guide for where to find more information about how to protect your work. And, keep in mind that this is for authors in the United States. Copyright laws in other countries may be different.

Okay, so here are the most common questions about copyrighting a book.

How do I copyright my book?

The process is actually pretty easy. After your book is published, all you have to do is go to the U.S. Copyright Office web site, download and complete the paperwork, and send it in with your payment and two bound copies of your book. If you like, you can file for your copyright before your book is published, but then after publication, you’ll need to re-file it as a published work.

Do I need to copyright my book before I show it to an agent/editor/writing coach/colleague/teacher?

No. As soon as you write your book, it’s actually copyrighted. You automatically own all the copyrights to everything you write, and if someone tries to take it and claim it as theirs, you can pursue legal action against them and win. Filing an official copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office just gives you added protection in case something should happen.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve asked a potential client to send me their manuscript and they’ve said, “I haven’t copyrighted it yet—so how do I know you’re not going to steal it?” This is a common concern, but in all the years I’ve worked in the book world, I’ve never heard of anyone having their manuscript stolen by an editor or agent. Ever. Why? Because, like I said, your work is legally copyrighted as soon as you write it.

What about the title–can I copyright that?

Sorry. You can’t copyright a title, which means that anyone can use the exact same title you’ve used for your book. However, you may be able to trademark it. For more information on that, visit the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

How can I copyright my book idea?

You can’t. Copyrights don’t protect ideas, concepts, systems, or methods. If you write a description of your idea, or draw a picture of it, then you can copyright that.

Can I put the copyright symbol on my work, even if I haven’t filed the official paperwork?

Yes, and you should. Use the symbol of the lowercase “C” inside the circle, or just (c), followed by the date the work was created to show that your work is protected.

Protecting your book with a copyright is essential. When you do it is up to you, but you’ll definitely want to file a copyright for your book after publication. It will help protect your work against plagiarism and use without permission. And if you have additional questions, the U.S. Copyright Office web site or talk to a copyright attorney.

© The Writer’s Sherpa, LLC

Melinda Copp is a writing coach, ghostwriter, and editor who specializes in helping experts write and publish to establish expertise, build relationships with their clients and prospects, and grow their business. She is one of the contributors to the TTPT for Writers:  www.TopTenProductivityTipsforWriters.com. 

Sign up for her free e-zine at www.WritersSherpaPrograms.com, and get a free special report, “Write to Grow Richer; The 7 Secrets of Writing to Sell Your Services!”

I wanted to let you know about a thesaurus that I access everyday

www.MyFavoriteThesaurus.com

Because I’m an avid fan (and big promoter) of this tool, I asked if I
could get a code for you to use so you can try this out for a few weeks.

Here’s how to use this great online resource through 2/15/10:

Click on the link above and where it says, “already a subscriber,” click on that and then use the following:

Use the email address:  trial2@visualthesaurus.com
Use the password:  homer540

That should do it!  It’s a blast and extremely useful.  Kids love it at least as much as adults do.

Lots of great ideas!!

Title your set of tips, e.g., “Top Ten Productivity Tips to Help You _________.”

Write an introduction. Your introduction can be one sentence or a full paragraph. It’s just a little introductory piece that prepares everyone for the tips you have written. For example, “You know how you always wonder about this…” or “If you’ve ever had this happen and you’ve tried to figure out if there are any solutions, well, here are 10 tips for…”. All you need to do is just give the reader a little bit of an intro so that he/she doesn’t just see your title and then Tip 1, Tip 2. People like just the tiniest bit of preparation, that is so that they think, Oh, here’s what I’m about to read about.” So one sentence up to about a paragraph is usually plenty.

Write your tips. This is what people are there to read, i.e., your top ten productivity tips for ______. And if you are wondering “Now, how long do these need to be?” the answer is, “It depends.” It might be a short, bulleted list. Other times, you may have a tip and then an explanatory sentence or two. That is up to you and generally depends on whether you need or want to add more explanation (or even examples). Remember, however, that even though you could talk about the information in some of your tips for about 16 pages, people were attracted to your list or article because they saw the word “tips.” They are looking for something quick. If you are writing for the web, know that people are more likely to read what you have written if it shows up on their screen without a great deal of scrolling. If they choose to print it in order to have the information handy, they often like the tips to print in one, no more than two, pages. So you want to keep it reasonably succinct.

Write your closing. Write a sentence or paragraph (which follows the tips) that provides some kind of a closing idea. This is where you are just pulling your ideas together for your reader. You could make a recommendation for a book by writing, “One of the good resources I’ve read to learn more about this was…” and you would just put the name of a book in there. That might be your closing. Or, you could summarize the ideas in a sentence or two. Another way of pulling it all together is writing a ‘call to action’ for your readers to implement one or more of the ideas you have shared with them in your article or blog post.

Create a resource box/contact information section: Lastly, you will need to have what is called your “resource box.” Realize that at the end of your tips, you want to let people know who you are, what you do, and how they can get in touch with you to learn more. There are MANY ways of setting these up depending on who will be reading your tips and what your overall purpose is for sharing your ideas. The main idea to keep in minds is that you want to provide an invitation to readers to make contact.

Now get started generating lists of ten productivity tips (or whatever number of ideas you are ready to share). Use the structure of this article to help you get those ideas into a format so that you can help others.

And if you would like a venue for sharing your Top Ten Productivity Tips, then feel free to access

** http://toptenproductivitytips.com/ContributorInfo.php

It’s a great new project and you can be part of it! I look forward to reviewing what you’ve written and sharing it with a global audience!

It’s important for you to know this because that way, you can determine which series to write for, if you are wondering about that.

Top Ten Productivity Tips (the original series): Although this series is not one that I am actively recruiting for, if you have a set that would apply across the board, you could submit them to me and I can include them. I am not averse to adding contributors to this series although in the past, I was essentially the only contributor.

Top Ten Productivity Tips for Coaches: The audience is life coaches, executive coaches, expert coaches, etc. People who either coach full-time or have that as a part of the services they offer – either as small business owners or as part of a larger corporation or agency.

Top Ten Productivity Tips for Entrepreneurs: The audience is solopreneurs (one-person businesses), people who are looking to start their own companies, individuals who own a small or large entrepreneurial enterprise, and the like. The subscribers may be people who are full-time working for themselves or who are engaged in a side business as an entrepreneur.

Top Ten Productivity Tips for Principals: The audience is K-12 principals (or other administrators, such as assistant principals, deans of students, and the like). With the roles and responsibilities these folks have, they will welcome your tips and suggestions.

Top Ten Productivity Tips for Professors: The audience is college and university faculty members. They are likely to be involved in teaching, service, and scholarly work and they need LOTS of tips on how to be more productive in their work.

Top Ten Productivity Tips for Teachers: The audience is K-12 classroom teachers – both new and experienced educators.

Top Ten Productivity Tips for Women: The audience is… uh, women. That will be the common factor. Our subscribers may be CEOs of companies or home CEOs. They could be mothers or child-free. They might be in relationships or not. This is a very broad group and will have the widest range of professions represented. I see that the tips will go across this range and some weeks, the ideas may not apply to a particular portion of the readers – but they will KNOW someone who could use the ideas. For example, if you write a set of tips for mothers – if they are good tips then the subscriber who is NOT a mother will forward these on to her friends that ARE mothers.

Top Ten Productivity Tips for Writers: The audience is writers – of many different types. We will have professors who write, professionals who write as part of their jobs, full-time authors, people who want to write more (and better and more easily), college students who write, and more! I expect to have many fabulous contributors to this series and because writing is something that many folks struggle with, this is going to be a popular series.

If you are ready to learn more and to write for one or more of these series, please access the info here:  http://toptenproductivitytips.com/ContributorInfo.php

Just a thought – $50 (and free shipping) is a mighty good price. Here’s the link: http://www.nuance.com/givedragon/

I tried going to their regular page and it doesn’t show this price so be sure to use this link. When I clicked through, it looks like you can then order ANOTHER one for only $39.99 – so talk to a friend about this.

Happy Writing (and talking).