The Necessity of Continual Pitching

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

I would love for writing assignments, speaking opportunties and many other aspects of the publishing world to just appear in my email or on my phone. While I’ve worked in this business for many years, it is rare that anyone approaches me about teaching or speaking or podcasting or writing or anything else. Instead everything that I want to get published involves continued pitching.

In this article, I want to show you what I do as an author, writer, journalist or speaker and encourage you to follow follow a similar well-worn path. 

Read Widely and Watch for Opportunity

I read books, print magazines, and numerous online publications. Also I subscribe to newsletters and blogs. When I get these publications, I read them (sometimes skim). As I read, I’m looking for opportunities or needs that I can take action and help the author but also expand the opportunities for my books and my work in publishing. As you read, look for changes--new editors, retiring editors, editors and agents changing roles. These shifts are often opportunities because in this new role, that person is looking for new people to write or publish or whatever skill is involved with their company. 

A Practical Example

In recent months, I have recorded two different podcasts with an author about two different books. In each case, I sent this podcaster a list of possible questions and a signed copy of the book. Then when the podcast was edited and appeared on the site, I have promoted this podcast a number of times. From my reading about others, some of these actions are different from others. Many people don’t furnish a list of suggested questions which means more work for the podcast host. Also they don’t mail a physical and signed copy of their book. Finally when the podcast interview goes live, they don’t promote the interview. 

This author / podcaster noticed my actions and wanted to do something to help me. He introduced me to three different podcasters in my topic area which could be a fit for their podcast. In each case, the podcaster sent me their calendar link and I offered suggested questions and mailed a signed copy of the book that we were discussing on the show. 

I’ve recorded these three shows but none of them have been launched--yet. With one podcaster, she asked if I would be willing teach an online class to her writer’s group. I agreed and have this workshop on my schedule. Another podcaster expressed interest in a return visit to her show and talking about a different book and topic. I noticed the opportunity and I’m working to get that second show scheduled and on our calendars.  

None of these actions are complicated but as an author, I have to be listening for the opportunities, then seize them and get them on my schedule. 

As an author, there are many possibilities for your work but you have to be listening for them, then when you hear an opportunity, seize it and follow-up. 

Learn to Create the Response Tools

Within the publishing world, every writer needs to learn to create the various pitching tools such as a query letter, a book proposal, a pitch letter, a news release and a suggested list of interview questions. 

It’s not complicated the create these pitching tools then when you get some interest or opportunity, follow-up on it. The follow-up could be to write and deliver whatever you pitched or simply a follow-up to make sure the other person received it. Using the gentle follow-up doesn’t push the other person toward saying no or a rejection. 

What’s Your Action Plan?

Your goal and desire may be completely different from mine but whatever your goal, you still need to continually pitch. As you consistently pitch, you create a steady stream of opportunity and potential additional writing work. If you aren’t continually pitching, then you will suddenly face a period where little is happening in your writing life. When you hit this silent period, I encourage you to return to the basics and do more pitching.

It’s also critical to continue to expand your network and reading as you look for opportunities. For example, LinkedIN will often suggest people for new connections. Take a look at those suggestions and if they make sense, then connect with these individuals and expand your connections. 

Continual pitching is a necessity for every published author and the awareness of opportunities. They are everywhere--whether thumbing through a market guide or using google to find more podcasts to pitch. Your continual actions is a critical part of this process.

What steps are you taking to pitch your ideas and your writing? If I’m missing some aspect or you have another aspect, let me know in the comments. 

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Much of the publishing process is outside of the writer’s control. 10 Publishing Myths helps writers have a realistic perspective and take action. Get 10 Publishing Myths for only $10 +FREE shipping + over $200 of free bonuses.

What Is Your Writer's Legacy

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

This week I learned one of my long-time writer friends, Mark Littleton, died. Mark has written over 98 books that have collectively sold over a million copies. It's just one of the many contributions Mark made to our world. As I look through the listing of his books on Amazon, I noticed the diversity in Mark's books: nonfiction for adults, nonfiction for children, Bible related books, novels and much more. Some of the books are Christian while others are general market books. He also wrote for a wide range of magazines including Reader's Digest and many others.

For over 30 years, Mark and his wife, Jeanette, were the early leaders of the Heart of America Christian Writers Network, a community of writers in and near Kansas City. Also this group has held an annual writers conference. I have been honored to teach at this event several times over the years. It's another part of Mark's legacy: training other writers in the craft of writing. Mark had been ill for months and I had been a part of the multitude praying for him and his family. He was only a few years older than me.

This experience got me thinking about our legacy as writers. It's a truth most of us don't want to think about: every one of us will eventually die. It's a part of our humanity. After we are gone, what are we leaving for others?

Books.  Since 1992, I've written over 60 books with many different publishers. A number of these titles are out of print but still in libraries and sold on the used market around the world. They are a part of the legacy you are creating as an author and will continue after you are no longer on the planet.

Magazine Articles. While not as permanent as books, magazines are not just for that particular issue in print. Many magazines are online and these articles continue to be available and read—long after printed.

Blogs and other Website Information. My blog on The Writing Life has over 1500 searchable entries. It amounts to pages and pages of information which will be available online forever. From the beginning I've been aware of this aspect. Also I have a number of products and domains. Some of these are depend on the renewal of the domain (by hand and not automated) so if not handled they will eventually disappear but are another part of our legacy as writers. 

Social Media Feeds. Some of my author friends have no social media presence. Others (like me) have a large and growing social media presence. I have tweeted 51.8 thousand times since 2008 (as of today). Now that is a lot of information. Don't forget (as some people do), these posts are around forever and never disappear. They show up on search engines. People read them and respond to them—often long after you have posted them. If you are active on social media (and I hope you are), then this is also part of a writer's legacy. 

Personal Teaching at Workshops. For many years, I've been teaching at conferences. While not always, often these workshops are recorded. People purchase the CDs or cassette tapes and listen to them later. Some people listen to these recordings over and over to glean information and insights. I'll be teaching at several conferences this year. I maintain my speaking schedule at this link. For example, I learned this week that I will be teaching a continuing class at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference in May (the largest Christian writers Conference in the US) and also
doing a single workshop tied to my new book, 10 Publishing Myths and a workshop with the same name. Each of these workshops is a part of a writer's legacy and will be around for many years. When I teach at these workshops, I work hard at having excellent handouts which contain online resources and links. This information lasts for years.

Each of us have the same amount of time in a day but different times on the planet. I encourage you to live with intention and be taking consistent action in your writing life. Whether you are aware of it or not, you are building a writer's legacy.

Am I missing something which will last longer than your lifetime? Or maybe you have other feedback? Let me know in the comments below.



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How To Eat An Elephant

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

How do you eat an elephant? It's an old joke but you eat an elephant one bite at a time.  It the same way to accomplish any huge task—one action at a time. Recently I began to write another book.  It doesn't matter that I've done it over and over through the years. Each time it looks daunting to write an entire book manuscript. No matter what others will tell you for everyone getting started is hard. The writing in the middle is hard and finishing is hard. Yes the task is difficult and looks impossible. So how do you get it done? One bite at a time.

What is the deadline for completing your book? If you don't have a deadline, then I suggest you set one. After you have a deadline, how many words a day are you going to write to complete the deadline? Make sure you build in some extra days for the unexpected (happens to everyone) but make sure you hit your deadline.

Or maybe your goal is tied to your social media. You want to reach a certain number of followers on Twitter or a certain number of connections on LinkedIn. Are you actively working on these networks? Are you posting a number of times each day? Are you connecting with new people? Without your regular actions, then it will be hard to increase your presence and meet your goals.

Do you want to do more speaking? Are you pitching different conference directors and leaders? From my experience you have to be proactively promoting your speaking skills to get more speaking meetings.

Do you want to appear on more radio shows and talk about your latest book? There are thousands of radio stations and programs which use guests on their program. These bookings do not happen just sitting back and waiting for them to call. Your phone will be silent if you take this action. Instead, you need to be actively pitching the producers of these programs.

Or maybe you want to write more magazine articles or appear on more podcasts? Waiting for the phone to ring will likely not happen. What proactive steps are you taking to either go ahead and write the article then submit it to the publication? Or you can write a query letter and send it simultaneously to different publications and get an assignment?

Many are surprised that I have written over 60 books through the years. There are several keys in this process but one of the most important is consistent writing.  It is a matter of writing one paragraph, then another paragraph which becomes one page then another page. It is the same process as eating an elephant—doing it in bite-size pieces.

Do you break your writing into smaller pieces? I'd love to have your tips and insights in the comments below.

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Five Ways to Gear Up Your Writing

Gear up you writing with these ideas

Often within the publishing community, there is a noticeable shift right before Thanksgiving through the New Year. Emails don't get answered or returned as promptly. Phone calls and messages are ignored (unreturned). I'm continuing to work with authors, get new contracts and sign authors throughout this season. The overall pace has been slower.

For example, this week, I had several authors who have received new Morgan James contracts tell me they wanted to hold off and revisit it after the first of the year. I told them that would be fine and made a note to reconnect with them in January.

I understand everyone has a different mindset and agenda often during the holiday season. When I worked at a publisher years ago, I recall spending at least a day or two signing Christmas cards to authors. These types of activities interfere with the normal course of the publishing business yet are important.

If you are facing this type of response, what do you do? In this article, I want to give you five ways to gear up your writing.

1. Write query letters and pitch magazines for assignments.  It depends on the publication whether you write a query or the full article. Whatever your strategy, select some magazines and get your material out to them. If you don't know what to write, I would encourage you to write personal experience stories since almost every publication takes this type of article.

2. Create a new proposal. Use my book proposal checklist to get some ideas. If you have a proposal which has not been sold, pull that proposal out and see if it needs revision or updating then plan a strategy to get it back out to more agents or different publishers.

3. Work on a new information product or new online course. Information products continue to sell and it's a way you as an author can create something independent from a publisher and add an income stream. If you don't know what I'm talking about, listen to this free teleseminar from Bob Bly and follow his advice.

4. Get some new speaking gigs for next year. What groups tie to your book? Can you send email pitches or make some phone calls to get new bookings? Don't forget local civic groups like the chamber of commerce or these types of groups.They are always looking for speakers and need what you have for them. It doesn't happen  you aren't pitching so take this time to be pitch.

5. Beef up your social media conections. Do you need a new twitter header or a new blog header? Then go over to Fiverr.com and search for someone who can do it inexpensively for you and get it moving. In a recent article, I mentioned about expanding my connections on LinkedIn (currently about 600 more than my last writing. You can take time to expand your connections and see if it turns up some new writing projects. From LinkedIn, I've had articles published and met new authors. I encourage you to take this time teo expand your social media.

I know I promised five ways but I'm going to add a bonus sixth one: Read a how-to-write book then apply the information to your writing life. Whether you purchase the book or get it from the library, you can use this season to expand your writing through reading.

Did you notice something consistent about each of these suggestions? Anyone can do them. It does not matter your skill level or your experience. The key is to take action and move forward during this season. If I can help you in this process, don't hesitate to reach out to me (my email and phone is on the bottom of the second page of this link).

What steps are you taking with your writing during this season? Let me know in the comments below.

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Move Beyond The Book

I love books and have written many books over the years. I'm working at my third publishing house as an acquisitions editor working with hundreds of authors on their books. Yes the book is important and every author has to be passionate about their books and telling others about it. Yet in this article, I want to ask a different question: How can you move beyond the book?

In November, I spent several days with over 40 Morgan James authors in Nashville. Most of these authors were launching their book and we celebrated the launch with interviews on the red carpet and special time together. After this celebration, Morgan James organized a second day of marketing training for our authors. I don't know another publisher making this type of effort to train and encourage authors with their books. The marketing training was open to any of our authors—not just the ones launching their books. Morgan James did three of these events last year, three this year and three more are scheduled for next year. 
There is great synergy at these events where authors swap books (to review each other's books) and much more.

Whether you have published your book with a well-known publisher or self-published, you have accomplished something amazing in getting your book into the market. Now the real work begins of telling people about your book. Your on-going marketing efforts are important to tell others about your book. The key piece many authors miss in this process is: your book has made you an authority on your topic. Every author has to use their book to open new doors of opportunity.

Because you have published a book, others will want to hear you speak As you speak on the topic, people learn about you and hopefully purchase your book. I encourage you to approach event organizers and open up opportunities to speak on your topic. It's always best to begin in your local area with Rotary or Kiwanis or other such groups looking for speakers. Sometimes these are free opportunities where you sell books in the back of the room. Other times they will pay a fee. The key is to use your creativity to pitch yourself and book these opportunities. They are definitely out there.

Can you use your book as a springboard to create other information products that you sell online? If you want to know more details, I recommend you listen to this free interview I did with Bob Bly and look at the free Ebook with it.

Can you use your book and create an online course or membership site where you deliver content instruction and insights for your audience? I have a risk-free Simple Membership System product to give you much more detail and insight. Notice my 30 day no questions asked love it or return it guarantee.

Can you use your book to launch a personal coaching program? Your book has made you an authority and now use that influence to begin another aspect of your writing life—coaching. You will have a limited number of people but it can also create a regular stream of income for your business.

The overall key for any author is to create multiple streams of income. This article only gives a few of the possibilities. As an acquisitions editor, I repeatedly see authors focus on their royalties (or they tell me about their lack of royalties). There are many dynamics in play with a publisher receiving and paying these royalties such as the slow rate that bookstores pay publishers—which is something many authors forget. In my view, the royalty focus is the wrong focus. As an author, you can't control your royalty payment. If it comes, terrific. There are many element I mentioned in this article that you as an author can control. Seize those elements for your focus and work on them. It will yield a far greater financial result.

Every author needs to continually work at building their platform and expanding their influence. If you want or need to know more about building an author platform, get my free ebook on the topic. You can do it but it will take effort and initiative on your part. From my experience, it is not a simple one-two-three process but the journey is different for every author. Keep at it and if I can help you, just reach out to me and let me know what you need.

How are you moving beyond the book? Let me know in the comments below.

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Little By Little Gets It Done

How do you write a book? How do you get published in magazines? How are you invited to speak at an event or conferences? How did you get so many Goodreads friends or twitter followers? How did you write so many entries in this blog? I get these questions often from others. In this article, I'm going to give you the answers (which admittedly you may not like but they are a dose of reality).

1. Take consistent action. Writing does not happen when you “think about it.” Words are written for a book or a magazine article or a blog or anything else, when you sit in your chair, put your fingers on the keyboard and write. One of the authors I'm working with has a busy day job and is struggling to complete her work. I'm encouraging her to set a number of words that she wants to write every day (even 250 or 500 words would be OK). Then carve out the time in her day to write these words. From interviewing numerous bestselling authors, hitting a daily word count is one of the ways to accomplish the work.

2. Regularly reach out to others and knock on doors. If you want more people to review your books, you ask more people. If you want to sell more books, you have to be telling more people about your book (either in print or through social media or any number of other methods). If you aren't asking people (figuratively knocking on doors), then the chances of anything happening are slim. I have so many friends on Goodreads because I actively use it and I've used the Goodreads tools to ask others to be my friends. I have so many followers on twitter because I regularly follow other people.

3. Pitch editors. If you want editors to publish your book, you have to be talking with them about it through pitching your book proposal. If you want to write for magazines, then you have to be crafting a query letter or writing the full article and sending it to the editor. Look for publications with theme lists and then write queries and articles for those themes. It is one of the best ways to catch their attention—because you are giving the editor what they are requesting.

4. Reach out to coordinators, conference directors, and other leaders. Often writers will ask me how to get speaking engagements and more meetings. Just like the editors who are making decisions about books and magazine articles, coordinators, conference directors and other leaders are making decisions about who will be speaking at their events. As you raise your profile in a niche or industry, these leaders “may” approach you about speaking. From my experience, more often I pitch myself and my possible workshop or keynote talk to the leader. Make a list of events then pitch one or two leaders every day. Your little by little action will pay off.

5. Seize opportunity. When you get the request or the offer from an editor or coordinator, take it. One of my friends books authors on radio programs. He tells me about authors who often have some conflict or excuse when he calls with an opportunity. I've taken the opposite approach when he calls and I always say “yes”—whether it is early or late in the day—even if I have a conflict. I will move that conflict to have the opportunity. It is what I recommend you do as well.

How do you divide your tasks into small chunks to get it done? Let me know in the comments below.  

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When You Face Discouragement

While I've been in publishing many years, not everything that I try succeeds. In fact, I've had some pretty unproclaimed but spectacular failures over the years. One of my books got a six-figure advance for my book proposal (exciting). Then when this book was published, the sales were way less than expected (read poor) and the publisher put the book out of print after six months. I have a few copies of this book but most of them were returned and destroyed.

Other times I believe in an author, convince my colleagues to believe, Morgan James issues a contract and the author signs the contract, so we are going to publish the book. A beautiful book is designed and published—but the author doesn't generate pre-sales or orders and the book launches with zero pre-sales and zero orders. Because of the huge financial investment to publish a book, these facts can be discouraging.

Discouragement comes in all sorts of shapes and forms. I've reached out to conference directors to see if I can teach at their event (one of the ways I find new authors as an acquisitions editor). My requests are ignored (unanswered) or they choose to go in a different direction with other faculty. I give these examples of a few ways that discouragement has come knocking on my door recently but it can be in many other areas of the publishing world. The reality is “no thank you” is a frequent response (or simply silence and no response). How do you keep moving forward in the face of such obstacles?

1. Switch gears to a different type of writing. One of the best and most basic ways to find new opportunities is to change to a different type of writing. If you are writing books, begin writing some query letters and getting magazine assignments. If you are not getting much response on your books, maybe work on getting some speaking engagements or workshops. If you can't get any traction on personal appearances, then set up teleseminars. As writers we have a lot of diverse possibilities with our skill set. If you need more ideas, look at the first chapter of my Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams book which includes a list of different types of writing. This change might be exactly what you need to find the next open door. 

2. Read and take a break. Can you read a how-to book and learn something new to apply to your writing? I continue to read how-to books and learn from each of them. A new opportunity can come from your reading.

3. Reach out to old friends and colleagues. Pick up the phone and call some of your writer and editor friends. Is there something new they are working on that you could do or help with? From my experience many editors and agents have possible projects yet are looking for the right fit for that project.Your call to check in with them might be arriving at the right time for you to get one of these pending opportunities. If you aren't on their radar, that casual phone call might put you on their minds again.

Life is full of every day challenges and surprises. You will hit periods of discouragement. In those times, it is critical to move forward and jump into a new activity. It will push the discouragement away and your concentration will be focused on something new.

What steps to you take when you face discouragement? Tell me in the comments below.

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Why I "Fish" Every Day

It takes great practiced skill to fish successfully. While some people fish for a hobby, the seasoned fisherman knows he has to fish many times to gain skill and also to catch fish.

To be honest, it has been years since I've been fishing but I “fish” every day. A fisherman puts his line into the water and is positioned to catch a fish. I put quotations around the word “fish” in the headline since I'm using fish for the word networking or connections. You have to be in the market talking and connecting with others every day to make a difference with your writing. Yes you need to craft an excellent book and good storytelling. I always encourage writers to learn that skill but you need something more than good writing. You need the right connection.

Much of publishing (and any business) is a matter of making the right connection with the right person at the right time at the right place. You can't make that connection working alone in your office at your computer or curled up with your legal pad writing your story.

What steps are you taking today to “fish” or network with others? It begins with your goals for your writing. Do you want to sell more books? Do you want a traditional publishing deal or are you going to self-publish? Do you want to build your platform or group of readers? Do you want more people to know who you are and what you ar doing? Then you have to make a conscious effort every day to reach out and touch other people.

Some of us reach out to others through Twitter. I've mentioned how I follow 800 new people every day—people within my target market of publishing. It does not consume lots of time but the consistent effort is important to my constant expansion of this tool.

Also I dig into my network of friends and connections. I pick up the phone and call people leaving little messages or connecting with them for a few minutes. Yesterday I spoke with several literary agent friends. Why? Because these agents represent numerous authors who they want to get published.  Those agents need to be reminded that I'm constantly looking for great authors to publish through Morgan James. Our publishing program will not be right for every one of their authors. Yet it will be perfect for some of them. I'm looking for the right author—every day.

I have authors who have submitted their manuscripts and I'm scheduling calls with them to see if Morgan James is the right fit for these authors. I spend a great deal of time on the phone and answering my email but it's part of my daily work. Your daily work will be different but are you working every day at expanding your connections? I hope so.

I think about activity in the past which has been productive for me. For example, I've made terrific connections speaking at conferences. I'd like to do more speaking next year. It will not happen if I don't take any action. Instead, I'm making a list of conferences where I'd like to speak and conscious of who runs these conferences. Can I fill a need for this event with a workshop or keynote? There are numerous conferences and events where I can help others—but I have to be proactive to get on their radar.

I'm eager to continue to promote my Billy Graham and Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams books (as well as other books that I've written or been involved with). Can I book a radio show or podcast or do a guest blog post or some other event to get in front of a new audience? The answer is yes but from my experience it does not happen without my initiative (sometimes but rarely). Most of the time these opportunities come through proactive pitching and follow-up work. Are you building this type of fishing into your daily schedule?

Throughout today I will be emailing and calling people. You have to have a line in the water to catch fish. What steps are you taking? 

Use Speaking to Increase Your Book Sales

In many ways they seem opposite ends of the spectrum: writing and speaking. When they've tested writers and editors, the results have shown the bulk of these people are introverts. They aren't the life of the party. Instead they prefer to communicate with their keyboard or pen and paper.

Yet repeatedly I find the truth in what my friend Alex Mandossian teaches: the money in books is not in the book itself but it is in explaining the book.

One of the ways you give your book exposure and “explain” the book is through public speaking. As I've written in the past, someone has to hear about your product at least seven times before they decide to purchase it. A key part of this repeat exposure comes through speaking.

In the weeks ahead, I have a number of opportunities to speak and teach at different types of meetings. I maintain my speaking schedule at this link and continue to add new events.

Would you like to make 2012 a breakthrough year for your speaking?

I'm always looking for new resources to help you be more successful with selling your books and your writing. One of those areas could be speaking.

Last week, I learned about the Speaker Expert Teleseminar series which begins on Tuesday, January 31. If you hear the speakers during the live recording, then it is FREE but if you want to hear them on your own schedule then you can get the paid version to receive the recordings and the transcripts from the calls.

It looks like every Tuesday night for the next few weeks, the Speaker Expert Teleseminar series has a terrific line-up of teachers and topics.

Starting Is Easy but Finishing Another Story

There is something inherently exhilarating about a new year. It's a chance for a fresh start. It's the chance to do something different and turn in a different direction.

Many people make resolutions for the new year. I gave up on resolutions many years ago because most of the time they are not lasting and only survive a few weeks.

Instead, I look at resolutions with a twist. During the end of December and the first portion of January, I take some thoughtful time to consider what was accomplished in the last year. What succeeded and what failed? If we are honest, each of us have things that we tried and were successful while other things we attempted did not succeed and fell flat. I encourage you to gravitate toward those things which succeeded and let go of the things which failed and are draining energy from other areas. It takes some thoughtful consideration about the big picture of your work to put these details together.

I've continued reading online and printed publications. For example, here's an article from Dr. Oz that is loaded with a lot of great lifestyle and health tips. Lifestyle and health is an important emphasis for each of us as communicators. If we lose our family or health because of neglect, then we've gained little through our writing work.

Through my work as a publisher at Intermedia Publishing Group, I continue to guide a series of authors to produce their books and get them into the marketplace. I've worked on a series of remarkable books in the nonfiction and fiction area which are capturing attention and selling. If you are thinking about publishing a book with Intermedia, January is a great time to begin this process--especially notice our January special where you will get a free E-Book Reader if you sign on to publish with Intermedia. Just call or email me to learn more information about this opportunity.

During the weeks ahead I will continue growing and learning as a writer and editor. I've selected a couple of different areas that I do not know much about and planned to emphasize and grow in these areas in the coming months. Are you picking out some areas for your writing life and making concrete plans to grow and learn?

Next weekend I will be in Marion, Ohio teaching an all day workshop on Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams. I'd love to see you at this event. Also recently I've been working on my speaking schedule for 2010. Not everything is firmly in place but here is where to see my speaking schedule. I encourage you to plan a conference for this year where you will learn a new skill or grow in an area of your writing. There are some terrific events in different parts of the U.S.

I continue to write about books and post customer reviews on Amazon. It's one of the ways I can support and encourage people to read good books. While there is no payment for these customer reviews, it is a way for you to gain influence over customers since many books only have a single customer review (mine) or the only have a few of these reviews. Last night I wrote an Amazon customer review for Sally E. Stuart's 25th anniversary edition of Christian Writers' Market Guide.

Also throughout 2010, I will continue hosting teleseminar events. If you are interested in the Christian market and would like to ask Sally a question, then I encourage you to check out www.asksallystuart.com. Even if you can't attend, register for the event because it will be recorded and you will receive the replay link to listen on your iPod or computer. Also if you register, you will receive a free chapter about writing books from Sally's out-of-print book, Getting Published. This chapter is loaded with wisdom for every writer about getting their book published, getting a literary agent and even what to do when your book goes out of print. Cruise over to the website, ask a question and get your copy of this chapter.

Every day I continue to look for balance in my life--health, lifestyle, exercise, family, work and writing. It's a challenge but I'm up for the task. Are you? Which projects have you started yet not finished? Commit to finishing those projects in the weeks ahead. The days ahead are filled with opportunity and hope.

The Next Time You Speak

Tonight I'm driving down to the southern portion of Phoenix to speak to the Arizona Authors Association on the topic, Why Should A Writer Use A Literary Agent? The event is free and if you can attend, that would be terrific. If you live locally and can't make it tonight, then I'll be repeating the information on the west side of Phoenix on October 20th (notice it's on my speaking schedule).

While I've spoken about agents in the past, I've never addressed the topic from this angle and I'm going to tell some new stories and provide some great resources through my one-page handout.

Because of the worldwide audience with these entries on The Writing Life, I know many of you will not be able to attend this event. To help you whenever you speak, I wanted to tell a few of the details about my preparation.

First, notice that I created a one-page handout. I'm not going to use a Power point or anything connected to technology. Too many times I've been in presentations where the speaker is panicked because his computer crashed or he can't get his machine hooked up for the event. To me that sort of stress isn't worth the pay off to the audience so I've gone low tech with a paper handout.

Second, I will encourage people to sign up for my Right Writing News during the event but my handout also uses two different ways to intentionally capture this information. I'm going to encourage people to download my free Ebook, Straight Talk From the Editor, 18 Keys to A Rejection-Proof Submission.

In addition, since the topic is agents, I've created a free list of over 400 literary agents with their contact information. This database is the second potential way that I could connect to my audience and collect their name and email address in exchange for a valuable resource.

Both of these resources are links on my handout. There are numerous links on this handout and while I've made the URLs as simple as possible, it's still a bit of a barrier for someone to type those addresses into their browser. I created an Internet location for my handout, and then changed it into a PDF which I uploaded to a website. Now after my workshop, the writer can go to this location and instantly access all of the various links. It's a pattern which you can repeat when you speak to a group.

Finally from my past experiences with these types of groups, I doubt that the group plans to record my workshop. Until recent years, I didn't do much with these recordings but now I see the value in each one. I'll be taking my Edirol R9 Digital Recorder to the event and recording my own workshop. I can use the recording as a bonus item or part of another audio product package like my Editor Reveals Book Proposal Secrets. While I know it is basic, I can't use the recording if no one makes it. I've taken matters into my own hands and I'm recording tonight's workshop.

I understand that I've not told you much about tonight's workshop. You will have to catch that information through another method. There are many great reasons to use an agent for your next book project. The challenge for any writer is to find a good agent in this busy publishing environment. I hope you will take advantage of these different tips for the next time you speak to a group.