New hiking book available June 2011

Grab one and hit the trail!

On Demand Studios and Defining Your Job

I've weighed in on the pros and cons of writing for low-paying content providers in the past, so there's no need to revisit the whole debate. Today, however, I managed to remind myself about two important things regarding Demand Studios and other low-budget content farms. In case you need reminding, too, here they are:

The Good: Sometimes you're getting paid to learn! 

I recently snagged an assignment about creating writing prompts for third-graders. Next month, I'm presenting to middle-school students about the writing process. What a perfect excuse to do a little research and get paid (a little) for it, I thought.

It worked out just like that. (I'll paste a link to the article here as soon as it's published.)

The Not-So-Good: Some assignments are poorly defined.

In my excitement over the first article, I grabbed a second, on creating T-shirt slogans. The problem? The assignment just wasn't well-defined. I should have recognized that, but it's not always easy.

An article for eHow, for example, is supposed to be pretty cut-and-dried. Think how to tie your shoelace, or replace the engine block in a '79 Camaro. It might be involved (and you're supposed to cover it in 500 words) but it's well-defined.

Now, I think it's more fun to wrestle with T-shirt slogans than with engine blocks, but the fact is, I wasn't dealing with motor head T-shirt slogans or political slogan.  I agreed to write about T-shirt slogans. Totally unqualified, undefined T-shirt slogans. Dirty T-shirt slogans? Funny T-shirt slogans? Nope. Maybe I could have covered that in 500 words.

My mistake. I'm still wrestling with the slogans. On the plus side, I got a blog topic out of it. I also got  a little philosophical exercise thinking about the creative vs. the copywriter.  While that may be worthy of a blog entry, it definitely doesn't belong on a T-shirt.

If I figure out what makes a good T-shirt slogan, I'll be sure to post it here. And if I figure out how to make money entertaining philosophical thoughts, I'm outta here!

Social Media Policy: Who will write it? and why?

Gartner's Customer 360 Symposium starts today (in sunny LA, without me - sigh). While the session addressing Seven Critical Questions to Ask Before Developing a Social Media Policy is likely to be a tad dull, I think it'll be one of the most important.

If your company dabbles in social media (Twitter, Facebook) and has no policy, better write one, quick. Then address the other 6 questions.

(Want help writing the policy? I can do that. Need a little help making your posts relevant, and keeping them fresh? I can do that too. More info: www.DianeStresing.com)
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Writer as Tour Guide

Would you get on a bus if you didn't know its destination? Or if you knew the driver was likely to deviate from the posted route?

Most people will answer "NO!" and maybe...

And my point is? Writing should take you somewhere. Whether you consider yourself a professional writer or you're just an exuberant Facebook "sharer," your words should direct readers to a point.

(If you're a writer/illustrator, you know the same goes for the visual stuff, too. Darren Rowse's article at Digital-Photography-School.com explains it well.)

Writing should take you somewhere.

Good bus drivers and good writers have a little tour guide inside. They shouldn't describe exactly what I'll see - that spoils everything! - but I need to be confident that they know where we're going. Or I'm not going along.

Whether you're writing creative fiction, performance reviews, recipes, or a letter to the editor, you probably have a point in mind. Once you start writing, hey, it happens - you can get lost. Words can be misleading, send you off in the wrong direction. When that happens, call it a draft. Read it before you send it, and ask yourself: did I take the reader to the intended destination? If the answer is oops, not quite - revise it, get back on track, and get your reader to the right place.

Losing your way? Here's a quick fix: Start with "I am writing to you to ______________" and state your purpose.

I am writing to you to quit my job.
I am writing to you to tell you the party is here next Saturday. 
I am writing to you to ask for money. 
I am writing to sell you a box of widgets. 
I am writing to you because your Facebook status updates bore me. 

Of course no polished piece of writing starts with a clunker like that. Remember, this is a draft. Once you've stated your point (to yourself) your destination is clear. Then, you're ready to roll.

No matter what you're writing, be part tour guide. Keep your intended destination in mind. Mentioning points of interest along the way is nice; just check the map occasionally to make sure you're still on track.

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Words that Sell & the Semantic Web

For the most part, people communicate in words, and computers do their best to understand us. Now their best is getting better. Now semantic web tools - touted as "the next big thing"in 2001(!) - are really proving their worth as great interpreters (of our search keywords) and the result is...well, happy retailers, at least.

In addition to investing in software platforms that take advantage of semantic searches customers use while shopping online, retailers are also learning that integrating blog content with behind-the-scenes sales tools and including terms shoppers use to find products leads to more "organic" traffic (generated from searches on-site, rather than visitors arriving from off-site) and higher conversion rates.

The difference the words make: Fickle customers decide to buy or abandon a site within a couple of minutes. That means to make the sale, your site has to understand what a customer wants when she types in "small red bag" or "dainty maroon clutch" and figure out that it may or may not be the same thing. At its most basic, a semantics-savvy search engine won't deliver something related to a manual transmission and is likely to counter with a question like "to take to the gym or accessorize evening wear?"

So what does today's more mature semantic web mean to copywriters? If your paycheck depends on using words to sell, you need to understand its behavior well enough to use it to your - and your clients' - advantage.

Photojournalism Still Does the Job

First, look at this.


Freelance photojournalist Jodi Bieber won top prize in the 2011 World Press Photo awards for the striking pose of Afghan woman Bibi Aisha. 


Aisha, 18, suffered Taliban justice when she left her abusive husband. Her punishment for wanting out of the violent marriage? Her husband cut off her nose and her ears. The photo is arresting because it is sickening in a way that cannot be ignored. 


I am completely unable to put the whole story into context; I will never be able to comprehend the deeper meaning, to understand how a society exists that respects the "justice" of the act of violence that made this photo possible. 


This is why photojournalism exists. 


Some messages cannot be conveyed in words.


As I contemplated the winning photo, my head started spinning. Back in the dark ages when I went to J-school (and film was developed in darkrooms) I learned that a good photo could be worth a thousand words; a great photo worth a thousand inches. Of newsprint. 


What is such a photo worth now?


The world has changed; journalism has changed; the world has changed journalism and journalism has   changed the world. (Still spinning.) I believe, and I want to believe, that journalists will continue to work and some of their work will change the world. For the better, I hope. 


Back to the story, the one about the photo. Buried deep, because it can't be the lead - not with a photo like that - is this quote from David Burnett, jury chairman for the awards:

"A lot of the best work is done by photographers who went out and did it on their own. They didn't wait to be sent."

In other words, they were freelancers. In some cases, freelancers commissioned by (the remaining few) powerful corporate news organizations. But they went out and did it on their own.
  
Burnett's statement leaves me both encouraged and even more worried about Journalism's present and future. 


Unfortunately, as with the photo, I'm left with a only tiny bit of insight, and absolutely no answers. Anyone?


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Jodi Beiber's photo
http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/slideshow/photo//110211/481/urn_publicid_ap_org4165ff90a563409d9fc4dfe4e3a2118a/


World Press Photo 
http://www.worldpressphoto.org/
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