Archive for May 2010

My little guy with his teacher

I admired the incredible and teachers who inspired everyone in attendance last night’s Teacher of the Year event. Attendees donned red to signal they’ve been inspired by a teacher in their lives.

Each year, all the schools select one experienced teacher of the year and one beginning teacher of the year. Selected experienced teachers went beyond the expected teaching requirements. Beginning teachers show they have maturity, leadership and instructional ability to become an outstanding teacher in the future.

I don’t know how today’s teachers do it when I see the kinds of things my kids learn at a younger age. Plus, they communicate on a regular basis thanks to emails and phones in the classroom (not in my day).

One Teacher Who Inspired Me

My 10th grade English teacher was an inspiring teacher. I knew her before she was my teacher as her daughter and I played soccer together. I was relieved to finally leave the English teacher I had in my freshman year and somehow again in 10th grade. Awful teacher. Opposite of inspiring.

Shakespeare became interesting thanks to her. That year we did Julius Caesar and I had to memorize the “Friends, Romans and countrymen” speech. I dreaded memorizing poems, but the speech gave me a greater appreciation for the play. That year, we also read The Masque of the Red Death and The Telltale Heart and discussed the meanings behind the stories. I loved the discussions. Maybe that sparked my love for English and literature? Who knows. But I haven’t had many classes that led to interesting discussions like Mrs. Graves’ did.

Brain food…

• Stop! Look! Listen! Transitions for Writers: Excellent tips for dealing with big and small transitions. [Link: Debbi Ohi]
• Are You Really Going to Post That? Fabulous advice on thinking before blogging, tweeting and whatnot for writers. “It pretty much boils down to this: online stupidity can last forever and haunt your career.” I love the photo that accompanies the article.
• Writerly Tip: Know the Signs: Save time and read these signs of what to look for in an ad so you don’t bother answering the ad. Also, read Don’t Pay if you’re considering paying to join the Elances and Gurus.
• The most basic business lesson taught by World of Warcraft: “If you’re not open for business, no one can buy from you.” [Link: DJ Waldow]
• Should You Create a Facebook Fan Page? Jane’s right. “There’s no right way to do this.” I created a business Facebook page by trying to focus on the content — the platform — you get from this blog rather than my business. It needs work.
• How to Position Your Business in Three Sentences: Fill in the blanks. [Link: Valeria Maltoni]
• Nine Tips to Get the Most from a Writing Mentor: Love this post since it focuses on writing rather than basic business mentors.

For fun because we’re allowed…

• Molly and McGee: Owls in a barn on video 24/7. Molly is the female, McGee is her mate and they have four owlets. People are fascinated with these owls. You can also check out Molly’s blog and Twitter page.
• 8 Websites You Need to Stop Building: From The Oatmeal… you can always expect hilarity from ‘em.
• 12 Coolest Coffee Tables: Organized freak in me loves the Hexa Coffee Table. Most people have a bedroom set that includes a headboard and a small lamp table on both sides of the bed with one or two drawers. Mine has two mini-lights built in, shelves and three drawers plus space just above your head where I store my magazines.
• Top 10 Greatest Minor Characters in Geek Fiction: Characters come from Real Genius, Harry Potter, Star Wars and Princess Bride. Can you guess?
• French Ball Point Pen Art – Simple and Stylish: Wow. I love a good ballpoint pen especially blue and red ink with soft medium points.
• Inspiration: 33 Creative and Smart Print Ads You’ll Love: May be a couple not safe for work. Very creative work. [Link: Jon Ferrara]

Tell us about a teacher who inspired you.

Guest post from Melissa Tamura.

If you’re a non-fiction writer, you most likely rely on a system to bill your clients and manage payments. While it sounds like a straightforward process, invoicing can end up taking loads of your time away from work. Writers need a quick and simple method to guarantee receiving payments on time without having to hire another employee.

Here are 10 web-based invoicing apps to solve this problem. These services allow you to choose from different account plans are free, affordable or pricier expensive for more robust features.

1. FreshBooks

Deemed by most as the leader of online invoicing, FreshBooks delivers traditional features of an invoicing application. It features time tracking and the ability to manage subcontractors that work on any of your projects. The application works seamlessly with similar accounting and project management systems, most notably project management app Basecamp and QuickBooks. If you’re ever lost on how to get something done with FreshBooks, you can call support or ask on the community message board. First and third party addons are available to extend the online application, including an iPhone app and a Mac OS X widget.

Price: Free to $39.95 monthly (30-day money back guarantee) [Details]

2. Ballpark

Ballpark aims to streamline communication and cut down on emails by centralizing conversations between your company and clients. Project teams can share, discuss and manage invoices together. It builds in client feedback and approval and tracks activities on the dashboard. Ballpark also features a notifier for OS X, an iPhone app, community forums.

Price: $6 to $99 monthly (30-day free trial) [Details]

3. Blinksale

Blinksale may be more ideal for writers with strong knowledge of web design and development. It lets you design your invoices using cascading style sheets (CSS) and it comes with an API for incorporating Blinksale into your workflow or other apps.  Blinksale offers all the basics and integration with Basecamp, so users can import and invoice clients without having to enter the data twice.

Price: $6 to $24 monthly (30-day free trial) [Details]

4. LessAccounting

LessAccounting monitors your banking data by connecting to the money management application Wesabe. You can also import data from QuickBooks into your account. If you have repeating invoices or drive places for business, you can set up automatic invoices and track miles. The service comes with role-based permissions and lets you invite your CPA. LessAccounting provides an iPhone app for invoicing.

Price: $12 to $300 monthly (30-day free trial) [Details]

5. Cashboard

Cashboard’s free financial time tracking service lets you invoice, send estimates, accept payments online and integrate Basecamp. It offers widgets for Windows and OS X and an iPhone application for managing your information without opening a browser. You can give clients access to Cashboard for tracking your progress, approving estimates and paying invoices online. Beware that pricing options look confusing with per employee and per active client options.

Price: Free to $140 monthly (15-day free trial) [Details]

6. Ronin

Ronin is a simple online invoicing app for individual freelancers to small businesses. Standard features include online invoicing, payment tracking, time tracking, client management and sending estimates. Ronin works with PayPal and Authorize.Net for online payments. The services can send invoices and estimates in multiple currencies for those working with international clients. Teams can take advantage of its role-based permissions feature so members are limited to what they can view.

Price: Free to $48 monthly (30-day free trial) [Details]

7. Simply Invoices

If you have minimal invoicing needs and little use for common features offered by other services, Simply Invoices may be your ideal option. The app is compatible with Basecamp, Less Time Spent, Tick and Harvest. Many invoicing apps have a lot of noise and features, but Simply Invoices keeps its interface, well, simple.

Price: Free to $25 monthly (30-day free trial) [Details]

8. Invoice Journal

Invoice Journal includes most commercial invoicing service features without the cost. This may be a good option for those just starting out as a writer. Since it’s a free service, you won’t find frills like desktop widgets or iPhone apps. But some people never use those features even if offered.

Price: Free

9. CannyBill

CannyBill is an online application targeted to professional services providers who can take advantage of the packages feature. This lets you customize your service and product offerings for your customers. Customers can select the products and services they want using online forms. CannyBill includes a “My Account” feature for your customers to check orders, make payments and change details. Like most apps, it integrates with Basecamp, QuickBooks and other third-party services.

Price: $8 to $48 monthly (30-day free trial) [Details]

10. Simplybill

Simplybill offers standard invoicing features found in most commercial invoicing services. It lets you create customizable invoices, or you can select from several pre-designed templates. Simplybill can create quotations and convert them into invoices, email alerts and send follow up messages .

Price: Free to $25 monthly (30-day free trial) [Details]

About the author: Melissa Tamura enjoys blogging and interacting with other writers online. She writes about online degrees for the Zen College Life blog. In her spare time she enjoys learning new things and Japanese cooking. See what colleges made her list of the top 10 communications colleges.

What do you use to manage invoices? What do you like / dislike about it?

Welcome to meryl’s notes blog (this here place you’re lookin’ at) in Plano, Texas. We’re honored to be a stop in Lisa de Nikolits‘ WOW! Women On Writing Blog tour.

Lisa’s book, The Hungry Mirror, tells the fictional story of a woman who starves until she finds herself trapped into a seeming-sanctuary cage of addictions walled by self-hatred and filled with doubt. She discovers the value of size zero is also zero. This novel doesn’t do the typical adolescent anorexia thing. Instead, the character is an adult who continues to function as a designer and wife despite being anorexic, bulimic and obsessed with her body image.

About Lisa de Nikolits: Originally from South Africa, Lisa has been a Canadian citizen since 2003. She also lived and worked in the U.S.A., Sydney, Australia, and London, England. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and Philosophy and contributed to various international anthologies. She has been an art director on Vogue, Vogue Living, marie claire and Cosmopolitan. Visit www.lisadenikolitswriter.com for information about the book and www.lisadenikolitsdesign.com for more information about her career as an art director. You can order the book at Amazon Canada and Inanna.

This Book Versus That Book by Lisa de Nikolits

“I’m writing a book on how to bounce back from bankruptcy,” my editor friend told me. “I’ve done the first chapter.”

“I’m doing a cookbook, you wouldn’t like it, I use a lot of oil,” my art director friend said. “I’ve finished two chapters.”

“I’m writing a book on being a life coach,” my women’s group facilitator said. “I haven’t started yet, I’m taking the summer off to focus on it.”

“Write a screenplay that I can make into a movie,” an editor friend advised.

“I’m writing young adult novels, and I came this close…” a freelance copyreader said.

“The money’s in murder, mystery and crime. Write a bestseller,” my brother-in-law insisted at the dinner table.

“Tell everybody about your book,” the account executive said to the creative director at a meeting about a photo shoot.

The creative director flushed red, said she had only thumb-nailed the intro really, and changed the subject.

Everybody’s writing a book, it seems.

It took me fifteen years to develop my book from quickly scribbled short story to a 344-page finished product. And mine proved to be a novel on women, eating disorders, body image and the like.

“Self-help always sells,” my family said approvingly.

Uh, no, it not self-help. Not by any means. It’s an up-close and personal look at the world of adult women who suffer from a range of eating disorders.

Not an easy book to write. Not an easy book to read.

“An unconventional treatment of eating disorders, which are often presented in fiction as merely an adolescent phase. De Nikolits shows how such disorders can in fact continue into adulthood. The sufferer appears fully functioning, while in reality their body obsession permeates every facet of their lives… an uncomfortable read…” says a review in the May issue of Canada’s Quill & Quire. But, it adds, “a thoughtful and strong conclusion.”

Doug O’Neill, Canadian Living Magazine commented, “In The Hungry Mirror, Lisa de Nikolits cuts straight to the bone and slices open the gut-wrenching hurts of a circle of self-conscious (and mostly self-critical) characters who are obsessed with weight and body image. De Nikolits takes us to the dark side of a Bridget Jones world where cliques of media-savvy women gather round the water cooler – but where real pain is exposed in broad daylight. The pages of The Hungry Mirror are a gluttony of references to bulimia, calorie counts, and bingeing, but de Nikolits’ real message is about cravings – cravings for self-acceptance, cravings for love.”

Many were the times I hoped the book wouldn’t ever be published. Did I have the courage to be the banner-bearer of this message?

Oh, far easier to write a murder-mystery, coming of age, self-help, cookbook that could be made into a screenplay and movie.

But something about this book wanted to live. This book, The Hungry Mirror, climbed and clawed its way to life, its message insisting on making it to the finish line of being printed.

And there it is, my voice, my message. This is the book I wrote. Not that one, but this.

How do you deal with comments from family and friends about a dream or project? Or share your thoughts about book authoring.

In Mystic Diary: Lost Brother, you take on the role of a Victorian-era magician on a noble quest to find his lost brother. Travel throughout the world using the magical pages of the Mystic Diary to unlock the mystery behind your brother’s sudden disappearance.

Find hidden objects and solve fun mini puzzles in this one-of-a-kind Adventure game. Save your brother and become a master of the Mystic Diary.

This $2.99 Catch of the Week runs through Sunday, May 16 at 11:59pm.

Catch the PC version.

Catch the Mac version.

The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the first ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:

Mon. May 10th: 100% off on Vastar

Tue. May 11th: 60% off on Redrum

Wed. May 12th: 100% off on Dark Tales: Murders in the Rue Morgue

Thu. May 13th: 65% off on Insider Tales: Vanished in Rome

Fri. May 14th: 65% off on Oriental Dreams

Sat. May 15th: 45% off on Flux Family Secrets: The Ripple Effect

Sun. May 16th: 50% off on Plants vs. Zombies: I love, love this game. Here the Plants vs. Zombies game review. Popcap outdid itself making all parts of the game (the various modes) fun. I rarely like the other modes for most games that offer more than one mode.

Three generations

I’m a lucky daughter because I have a caring, sweet, intelligent and energetic woman for a mother. Growing up, I hated that she had all these evening meetings. Part of that was her job of seven years working for a community center that required nighttime meetings because they included volunteers with day jobs. Besides that, she was also on the board for non-profit organizations, and those meetings were at night.

Despite these meetings getting in the way, I’ve always wanted to be a regular volunteer like her. I volunteer almost every week, but not for as many hours as I would like — must balance my time between kids and business. She was even president of a local non-profit organization while pregnant with me and raising a 10-year-old and 12-year-old. (Yes, I was like an only child. No, I was not a “surprise.”)

She also did whatever she could to provide me with the support I needed to learn how to communicate due to my profound deafness. She drove three-year-old me to Dallas (an hour from Fort Worth) three times a week so I could go to Callier Center for speech therapy. I can’t tell you how many sad stories I’ve heard about people who were deaf and had parents that didn’t bother to learn sign language so they could communicate with their child. Just makes me more grateful for my mom.

P.S. Still need a gift for Mom? How about a computer game? Big Fish Games is offering 30% off on all games except Collector’s Editions and special deals. Or maybe you’ll like one of these far out ideas from Oddee. Gotta love the tee that says, “You can’t scare me… I have kids.”

Brain food…

• Show, Don’t Tell: Showing tells more and in a more interesting way than telling. I read these articles whenever I come across them because I need constant reminders and tips. [Link: Brad Shorr]
• What’s in a Publishing Contract?
• 5 Ways to Find Local Clients: You can apply a couple of these to find non-local clients. [Link: Karen Swim]
• Do You Need an MFA? When my kids are older, I’d love to pursue an online MFA. I’ve yet to find any — found some in other types of writing or media, but not MFA. Lots of short residencies, but not exactly what I’d like.
• SMU Cox School of Business Has Free Research Page: SMU Faculty Research Page covers accounting, marketing, finance and investing. May be a good resource for business writers. SMU rocks. I even attended the business school for one semester. Who knows? Maybe I’ll get a master’s from there — just not business.
• Tools to Help You Write with Resonance: Links to lots of readability tools and resources.

And for fun because we’re allowed…

• Paper Airplane: Building a World Out Of Paper: Whoa… How do artists do tiny little things like the food trays? With lots of patience…
• Unusual Wedding Cakes — Have Your Cake and Eat It Too! I admire cake designs and catch the cake contests on Food Network in the summer.
• 12 Coolest Covered Cars: Well, the glass car shouldn’t have any problems with theft.
• 25 Awesome Illustrator Cartoon Tutorials: Saving it here… love to try ‘em someday… which will probably never come. I can’t draw and always wanted to learn how to do it the computer way.
• 10 Most Unique Stadiums: Betcha you’ll say, “Wow” at some point.
• A Sampling of Chinglish: “Hot Marxism…” nuff said.

Share a favorite Mom or family memory. Or share why your mom or a special family member means a lot to you.

Can’t find something for Mom with Mother’s Day is coming up? Search the web and you’ll see lots of women love playing computer games. BigFishGames.com is offering 30% off on all games (except Collector’s Editions and special deals) from Friday, May 7, at 00:01 AM PST through Sunday, May, 9, 11:59 PM PST.

All you need to do is enter the coupon code SUPERMOM in the “Have a Coupon Code?” box in the Shopping Cart. Need ideas? Browse The Game Zen or leave a comment with what you’re looking for and I’ll make suggestions. Go shop for Mom.

Few people can think of all aspects of starting a new business and know how to do each one. In Become Your Own Boss in 12 Months: A Month-by-Month Guide to a Business That Works, Melinda Emerson outlines all the key things to do and provides support with questions to ask, activities and resources to help you. And she does it with an honest, straight-forward approach.

Emerson has been through the good and the bad of starting a business, and shares her experiences and mistakes. She covers everything. Having family support, quitting your job too soon, creating an online strategy, marketing and more. The month-by-month plan built around the six-phased Emerson Planning System works like a step-by-step list so you’re won’t get stuck wondering what you need to do next or if you’ve omitted a step. Every chapter ends with an action steps checklist for easy referencing.

Most start up businesses tend to be conscious about money. Emerson gives options and resources for saving money. For example, you have three choices for hiring an accountant: bookkeeper, accountant and certified public accountant (CPA). She explains the differences, lists questions to ask when hiring one and offers suggestions for which one to hire as each has different hourly rates. What about leasing office equipment? I wouldn’t have thought of that or know how to decide if it’s the best option. Emerson guides you through all that.

Even if you’ve already started your business, you can gain value in this brimming guide as you may have areas that need addressing or improvement. Though my business is a one-person business and doesn’t have the complexities of hiring people, I uncovered some useful tips and information to strengthen parts of my business or to fill an overlooked gap.

The only nitpick is the formatting. Some pages have inconsistent content formatting in terms of paragraphs, spacing and bold text. Numbered and bulleted lists also feel off and take away some readability. Italics — hard to read when there’s too much of it — appear a little too often.

Become Your Own Boss in 12 Months is a fast and easy read because of Emerson’s casual writing style that stays away from dull, corporate-like business talk. For those starting out, I suggest reading the entire book on the first go-round to grasp the whole picture. Then, reference it often as you work on specific activities.

No one can guarantee your business will succeed. However, Emerson’s solid and organized plan makes good business sense. Her guidance will put you on track to do it right and increase your chances for long-term success.

FTC disclosure: Author received copy from publisher, which had no influence on the review or the affiliate link.

Magic Encyclopedia: Moon Light was a well-rounded hidden object game. Magic Encyclopedia: Illusions is the third release in the series. Catherine learns of an attack on the Magic Academy, and sets out to save her school from a fate worse than foreclosure.

In her quest, she learns about The Illusionist, a wizard that’s changed the appearance of countless objects around the world and is gathering an unstoppable army. To defeat her nemesis, Catherine must figure out ways to switch back and forth between reality and deception to solve puzzles in Magic Encyclopedia: Illusions.

Download and try Magic Encyclopedia: Illusions.

Welcome to meryl’s notes blog (this here place you’re lookin’ at) in Plano, Texas. We’re honored to be a stop in Cindy Hudson‘s WOW! Women On Writing Blog tour. We’re giving away a copy of her book, Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs. Read on to see how you can win.

About Cindy Hudson: Cindy Hudson is the author of Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs (Seal Press, October 2009). She’s the founder of two long-running mother-daughter book clubs. Hudson lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and two daughters. Visit her online at www.MotherDaughterBookClub.com.

Liven up Your Stories with Interviews by Cindy Hudson

You probably already know that good nonfiction often includes quotes from experts and other sources. Quotes lend an air of universality that the writer alone may not be able to portray. What may be less clear to you is how to find sources that will liven up your writing and give it credibility. Here are a few suggestions that to help:

1. Read books and magazines that quote experts like the ones you are seeking. When I was writing my guidebook for mother-daughter book clubs, I wanted to quote an expert in the field of mother-daughter relationships. I found my expert while reading an article about middle-school girls in Daughters magazine.
2. Put out a call through your blog or newsletter. Relating stories from moms in book clubs around the country was also an important part of my book. Before I started writing, I collected email addresses of those who sent in book reviews or contributed ideas to my website, Mother Daughter Book Club.com. When I was ready to write, I made a list of the kinds of stories I was looking for then put out a request to subscribers of my newsletter. I also posted a notice on my blog.
3. Talk to people you know. Chances are your friends and other acquaintances have a wealth of knowledge about many different professions, hobbies and interests. Make a list of everyone you know, where they work and anything else you know about them to help you identify sources. If you don’t find exactly what you’re looking for, ask those with the closest connection to recommend others. I connected with a well-known expert on library book groups through the librarian at my local branch.
4. Use social networking sites. Let your contacts at LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter know what you are searching for, and they may have ideas to pass along.
5. Ask sources you’re already using. Chances are, they know someone else they can recommend you contact.
6. Do a broad Internet search. I was recently reminded that you can find just about anything you are looking for by typing key words into your favorite search engine and pressing the return key. You may even find unexpected results that will add extra dimension to whatever you are writing.

Remember to leave yourself enough time to connect with someone you hope to interview in person or over the phone. Even email interviews may take more time than you expect if your source can’t answer your questions right away.

Win: For a chance to win a copy of Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs, please leave a comment at least 50 words long about how you make the most out of interviews. Or share an interview tip. You have until 11:59pm on May 11, 2010 to qualify for the drawing. The unbiased and robotic Random.org has the honor of picking the winner.