Entertaining Yourself During the Slow Times

January 24, 2012

heidit General Musings, Writing , , , , 13 Comments

Most writers go through periods of being incredibly busy and then being incredibly not busy (like the turn of phrase?). It happens. More ambitious writers will tell you the best way to ensure there are no downtimes is to always be marketing yourself, even when you are busy. Lucky for you, I’m not so ambitious. So instead, I’m going to tell you some fun ways you can pass the time while waiting for more clients to come in. In the event that you never have any slow times (show off), the following can also be used to procrastinate.

1. Create a vision board of the clients you most desire and people whose careers you’d most like to emulate. Fill it up. Be sure to include pictures of famous people, because there is no more noble desire than fame. Once the vision board is done, stare longingly at it and think to yourself, “I am putting it out in the universe that George Clooney will call me to write a fantastic speech for him.” Jump a little when the phone rings, because you’ve actually convinced yourself that he WILL call. Feel stupid when it’s just a Telus representative trying to convince you to switch phone companies. Hide the vision board because everyone you know will mock you mercilessly for having it.

2. Keep telemarketers on the phone longer than you should, just so you have someone to talk to. Because you know you’re not really interested in their newest bundle or savings, but it’s just so nice to hear someone else’s voice. Ask lots of questions to keep them talking and say things like, “That sounds very good, but what else can you tell me about your subscription service? Does the bundle include Internet services? It does? What can you tell me about the gigs and the RAMS and the memory usage data? What do you think the Blue Jays’ chances are of making it to the World Series this year?”

3. Torment your cats by waking them from their naps every 30 minutes to pick them up and snuggle them. Give them lots of kisses, because they LOVE that. Hold them a few moments longer than they’d actually like and see which one makes the most unimpressed face (in my house, Kanoa looks the most unimpressed, but Oskar does this awesome thing where he goes completely limp in your arms when he’s given up on ever being put down again). Watch the Whiskas “Snuggly Boss” commercial and imagine how much better the commercial would be if they just put a camera in your office and recorded for about eight hours. Then imagine how much richer you would be. Then imagine how you’d spend your money. Lie to yourself because deep down you know you wouldn’t give THAT much to charity, but it feels nice to pretend.

4. Read the list of Oscar nominations and imagine what it will be like when you’re nominated for an Oscar (Best Original Screenplay, of course) and all the celebrities want to be near you. Because of COURSE they all want to be near the person who writes the screenplays. That’s exactly how it works in the real world. But with you, it’ll be different, because you’re just the right mix of startlingly intelligent, bitingly witty, deeply insightful, completely mysterious and stunningly beautiful, with a bit of coy thrown into the mix. So why wouldn’t they want to be near you?

5. Check your email relentlessly. How else will you know if someone emailed you in the last 5 minutes? Do the same with any social media accounts you have. Be sure to update your Facebook status to something that proclaims to everyone how incredibly busy you are. It’s important to keep up appearances.

6. Go through all your pens so you can get rid of the dry ones. All the pens. Yes, even the ones in the bottom drawer. Yes, and the ones you left in the basement. And your bag. Yes, go out to your car and get those ones, too. And the ones that you left on the bookshelves and by the television and on top of the fridge. And under your bed.

7. Engage in a debate with your cat about the use of the Oxford comma. Really impress him by showing him statistics, data and websites that back up your stance. There’s no point having a debate if you’re not prepared.

8. Start a blog (that’s actually the reason most people start blogs; they’re bored or procrastinating).

9. Go to Google. Type in the phrase “best writers under the age of 30.” Contemplate the ramifications of developing a drinking problem when you read glowing reviews of all the amazing writers who’ve done amazing things with their amazing gifts, all under the amazing age of 30.

10. Decide you’re going to write a book. Come up with the book’s title and all chapter titles. Imagine the glowing reviews from JK Rowling, Stephen King, Michael Ondaatje and other great writers. Feel happy about your imagined future success. Go to bed and vow that tomorrow, you’ll actually seek out paying clients.

The Benefits of Renting Desk Space

November 4, 2011

heidit Business , , , , , , 6 Comments

In a post last year, I discussed the pros and cons of working from a home office versus having a location separate from your home.  The author of this current guest post discusses sharing office space with other writers (renting a desk, in other words), a situation that I’ve heard is becoming increasingly common (but I have no data to back that up).

The Benefits of Renting Desk Space

While many small business ventures start out at home, whether you’re a frelancer or an entrepreneur, a move into office space could well benefit you greatly in the long run. Some people, such as journalists or web designers, may feel a home office is perfectly adequate; but there are many things worth considering before ruling out a move into a dedicated office building.

Professionalism, Progress and the Work/Life Balance

Working from home can offer distractions that prevent you from simply getting on with the job, as well as blurring the boundaries between your home and work commitments. Having a dedicated office space prevents certain distractions, such as the television or housework. By having an office space, you’ll also be adding a professional edge to your name. Whether it’s simply having an office address or a professional place to meet clients, an office address can give you an edge over the competition.

Leaving the home and heading to work can help you cross a psychological barrier between the two, as well as putting you in an environment conducive to work. One of the real advantages is that you‘re likely to be entering an area with like-minded individuals, often other creative freelancers.

This can be great both professionally and socially, as you can make new contacts, bounce ideas off of each other and even form friendships. Pus, you may find more work or be able to offload parts of jobs onto others who are more suited to meet different clients’ needs.

Flexible, Inexpensive and Hassle Free

Even if you can understand how an office may help you work and improve your business, you may be worried about issues such as cash and commitment. However, with the growing number of desk share schemes available, this fear is a thing of the past.

All cities and many towns now have a variety of shared and serviced offices available, where you can rent as little as a single desk for as long as you need, and as many hours or days that you need. Contracts tend to be monthly, with the flexibility to add more desks as well as cancel completely if you find it‘s not for you.

Better still, it is hassle free. Everything from the desk itself to broadband, heating and kitchen facilities are in place, giving you a ready-made office environment as well as security and insurance. And the prices start low, too, so you don‘t need to break the bank. The more you pay, the better location, facilities and style you‘ll find available.

Of course, if you want to make an impression, things scale up to professional, serviced offices with advanced facilities such as IT support, executive areas, post services and receptions. Plus, all the admin is done for you–all you need to do is turn up and pay the monthly inclusive bill.

Shared offices aren’t for everyone. Some people don‘t want the company–especially if they can‘t choose who they’re sharing office space with–and some want the choice of broadband supplier or furniture themselves. But for a lot of freelancers, a shared office environment can feel like a new lease on business and an introduction to a world of new possibilities.

About the author: Chris Marling writes on behalf of www.officegenie.co.uk, the UK’s first proper online marketplace for desk space and shared office space. [Note from Heidi: I was not financially compensated for this article. Even though the writer works for a desk space company, I feel his ideas are valid and worth considering, which is why I agreed to this post.]

Guest Post: Where Do Story Ideas Come From?

March 11, 2011

heidit Business, Writing , , , 3 Comments

By: Paul Lima

Many aspiring writers ask me: “Where do your ideas come from?” They read the articles or short stories on my web site (www.paullima.com) and they want to know how I develop story ideas. They know they want to write but they aren’t sure where to find ideas that will help them get started.

That’s a difficult question to answer because ideas come from so many places. For my fiction, ideas come from my memories, from incidents friends or relatives have been involved in, from overhearing snippets of conversation on the street or in restaurants. They come from reading newspaper articles or from asking simple “what if…” questions, such as “What if a teacher told his students to write first person fiction and then believed one of the stories he read?” The result of that “what if…” question became The Last Bang, and is on my website (www.paullima.com/cw).

Story ideas for my non-fiction come from chatting with entrepreneurs, reading media releases, reading a variety of publications and from walking my dog. In fact, you can read an article on how walking my dog helps me develop article ideas: Ideas, Inspiration and Dogs (www.paullima.com/articles/ww-1.html).

Since ideas are all around us, what is most important is what you do when an idea hits. Because if you don’t capture it, you just might lose it.

Here is what I suggest: Start a writer’s journal. You may want to use a notebook or a file on your computer. Whatever the case, it should be easily accessible, and it should be where you jot down notes, observations, actions and reactions and ideas. It can also be a place where you do any writing exercises that you read about.

In addition, it would be a place where you do your daily journaling. When I say “daily journaling”, I am not talking about keeping a diary. I am talking about 10 to 20 minutes of free writing, writing without purpose or focus. Why should you do this? You will find that making writing part of your daily routine will improve your ability to write. It will also help you establish the discipline that is required if you are want to write a short stories, a novel, an autobiography or non-fiction articles.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, it will help you almost unconsciously discover themes, images and ideas that you can use for writing stories and articles. I don’t know how else to say it, but if you spend 10 to 20 minutes each morning or evening engaged in free writing (also known as freefall*), themes, images, settings, characters, situations and ideas will appear. Over time, you may find that some of them appear repeatedly in your journal. These recurring themes may become the bones over which you layer the flesh of poetry, short stories, a novel, essays, letters to the editor, columns or articles.

It will be your job to recognize which ones you should use in your writing outside your journal. But that is part of what a writer does: find many possibilities and chose what to focus on. So go ahead and start a journal. See where it takes you. See what ideas it feeds you. Learn how to listen to your voice and how to discover your own ideas. Because no matter where they come from, they are not your ideas until you see them as such, and write them down.

* You can read a blog post on freefall here: http://paullima.com/blog/?p=961

Paul Lima is a freelance writer, writing trainer, and author. You can find out more about his books on creative writing, business writing and the business of freelance writing here – www.paullima.com/books. Visit Paul’s blog on the business of freelance writing at www.paullima.com/blog.

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