Writing Prompt: Describe your Enthusiasm and Preferences in Topics.

Writing Prompt 111

Describe your enthusiasm and preferences in topics.

People don’t often factor in their own enthusiasm when asked to write. Nonfiction writers, like other types of writers, look at writing as a job or task or function. I look at writing as a passion – – as something I sincerely love to do. Passion and enthusiasm comes easily for me, but not for others. If you feel enthusiastic and passionate about writing, you are on the right track. If writing is more of a task or job that you must do to pay the bills, it’s still a good idea to inject enthusiasm in all you do.

Describing your preferred topics is a fancy and technical way of saying “write about what you know.” Which are your preferred topics? What are your favorite things to write about? Writing about what you know and love is a great way to start writing!

Education – Quick Tips

In this new education section, I’d like to provide a quick tip to motivate nonfiction writers.

Pose a single question and invite people to answer it.

I like to call the phenomenon of asking questions “softball questions.” I always think of the analogy of the pitcher throwing a ball to a person who is up to bat. As the pitcher throws the ball, he is giving the batter an opportunity to hit the ball. The batter can’t throw the ball and hit it himself. Technically, he can, but that would be an awkward move. It’s much better for the pitching and hitting of a baseball to be a two-person activity.

In writing, we are all nonfiction writers writing within our respective caves of solitude and independence. Every now and then, however, someone may want to interview us. Or, if we are especially friendly with social media, we may ask questions and invite others to respond. Either way you look at it, throwing softball questions to others is a great creative exercise on the part of the pitcher (writer) and a fantastic opportunity for the batter (writer) to respond to questions.

Both the pitching and batting positions in writing require creativity and inspire writing. Try it!

Marketing success in writing

Today’s feature is on blogger Sonia Marsh.

On Wednesday, we touched briefly upon Sonia but focused on the sponsors of her monthly contest. Now, I’d like to backtrack and talk a bit about the smashing success of her book. Sonia published her book Freeways to Flip-Flops: A Family’s Year of Gutsy Living on a Tropical Island in August 2012. Interestingly, she had begun her monthly contest My Gutsy Story, based on her manuscript-in-progress a full year prior to publishing her book, in October 2011.

The book itself struck a chord with many people who could relate with doing gutsy things in life. The contest turned into a platform for other writers who wanted to share their gutsy stories in a public forum and a keen vehicle to market Sonia’s book and related “gutsy” brand. http://soniamarsh.com/2011/10/join-the-weekly-my-gutsy-story-contest.html

All goes to show that being gutsy, adventurous, and outgoing in writing is a great strategy to help market your writing and bring you success.

Marketing success, non-writing

Here is our ninth feature on Artistic Toy Manufacturing Co. and the wild success of its custom plush and toys.

I’m a sucker for cool plays on words. Seeing people use language in interesting ways is as delicious and fun as how some people feel when they drink wine or beer. I often see plays on words with the whole “guerrilla marketing” or “gorilla marketing” vibes. The main goal of those marketing or advertising campaigns is to show the public that we can get the job done better than our competitors and we stop at nothing to achieve that.

Artistic Toy to the rescue with a clever plush in the form of a, you guessed it, gorilla, who is hanging on to dear life inside a box. Is it the guerrilla in him to get out of the box and show you all the great things he can accomplish? Or is it the guerrilla in him a means of survival in that cramped box? Either way, it’s cute and convincing.