Bill Bly and Andrew Lock

I subscribe to Bob Bly's Direct Response Letter at http://www.bly.com/. Periodically, I receive newsletters from him via email. Very interesting stuff! Today I received one, and in it was information and a link to Andrew Lock's "Help My Business Sucks!" FREE Internet TV show created to help entrepreneurs get more done--and have more fun! Please check out Andrew's program at http://www.helpmybusiness.com/. You'll find him very entertaining and full of great tips. You can also sign up for email alerts telling you when there's new programming. I did, and I plan on checking out every program.

What webcasts do you frequent? Share them here.

Come visit me on MomsLikeMe.com

I've started a new blogging gig at http://www.momslikeme.com/. Visit the Chicago link here. The site is designed to make life a little bit easier--and a lot more fun--for moms. Learn more about how the site is connecting moms with other local moms--in their own neighborhoods. It is a lot of fun and very informational.

Don't live in the Chicagoland area? Here's a link to other MomsLikeMe.com sites.

What sites do you like to visit for fun and inspiration?

Congrats, Allison Winn Scotch!!

I want to give a big shout out of congratulations to Allison Winn Scotch. Her new book, TIME OF MY LIFE (Random House, 2008), was just released, and she's having great success so far. Check out her blog today to catch her excitement and take her up on a great offer. She's offering to sign copies of her book for those who want one. See the site for details.

Coming up with great article ideas

Some writers have tons of magazine article ideas swirling around in their heads--at all times--and writing query letters for them is a breeze. These writers have more ideas than time to pitch them. I'M NOT ONE OF THOSE WRITERS! I seem to struggle while coming up with ideas--unless they revolve around saving money. If you're like me, then you'll appreciate this article written by Leo Babauta, who blogs about productivity, simplicity and happiness at Zen Habits. It was a guest post, at skelliewag.org ,titled The Top 20 Ways to Come Up With Amazing Ideas, and was posted in November 2007. The information is still very relevent, and I hope you'll find some inspiration from reading it.

How do you come up with ideas? Which of the ones listed by Leo Babauta is your favorite?

Tools you can use...and contests!

Mondays are typically my marketing days, even when I'm busy with contracted freelance work. I do this t0 keep a constant flow of work coming my way. On most Mondays, I...

• look for freelance writing jobs,
• update my website and check its traffic,
• update my LinkedIn networking site and see what's happening with everyone,
• check invoices and article due dates,
• touch base with editors,
• set appointments with people I need to interview during the week,
• send queries or letters of introduction (LOIs),
• check to see if my Craigslist ads are current (yep, they do work sometimes), and
• check to see what my favorite bloggers are talking about. If I'm honest, I check on my favorite blogs daily. Sometimes more than once per day--it's called procrastination. :)

Today, being a Monday, I have started doing all of the above, but have just finished reading a really great blog post that I'd like to share from The Renegade Writer Blog. Today they're featuring a great post by guest blogger, Michelle V. Rafter owner of the WordCount blog, who has written a timely piece about using LinkedIn for marketing . It's appropriately titled "Secrets to my LinkedIn Success" and you can read it here.

There are two contests that I ran across today for free, soon-to-be-released books. Read the posts and enter the contests. I did! Here are the links:

• Ask Allison- Allison is hosting a "Book Giveaway Bonanza!" here. Go ahead and enter the contest to win her new book, "Time of my Life", but spend some additional time on Allison's blog. She has tons and tons of info on magazine writing for freelancers, and, most recently, a lot of information on writing, publishing and promoting your book.


• The Urban Muse-Susan has a terrific blog too! After entering the contest to win a copy of Michelle Goodman's "My So-Called Freelance Life: How to Survive and Thrive as a Creative ," spend some time perusing the fabulous insider information at The Urban Muse. Susan recently left a full-time writing position to become a freelancer. Her blog site is posted with all types of very useful information.

Now, what are some of your favorite blogs?

Michael Stelzner, from Writing White Papers, has posted the winners of his annual "Top 10 Blogs for Writers" contest. You can find the winners here for the 2008-2009 contest.

Is your favorite on the list? If yes, which is your favorite? If not, who did Michael miss?

Spreading the love...to save Lori's house

Since posting here about the plight of Lori Hall Steele, a 44-year-old single mom and freelance writer, who was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease and chronic Lyme disease last year, lots has happened. There has been a lot written about the writer and her immediate crisis (losing her home), and it seems that hundreds of her fellow freelancers have rallied around her to help.

Here are some links you'll want to visit:

Hundreds of Freelance Writers Rally to Help a Seriously Ill Colleague to Pay Her Medical Bills, Support her Son and Save Her Home Published: Fri, 12 Sep 2008, 01:29 EDT
By Anglea PolchatStaff Writer, Publishers Newswire

The Friend I Never Met Published: Wed, 15 Sep 2008, The Huffington Post

Save This Single Mom's House Published: Tuesday, September 16, 2008, momlogic

Global village embraces ailing writer Published: Tuesday, September 16, 2008, Grand Traverse Herald, by CAROL SOUTH, Special to the Record-Eagle

Press Release

Go here for updates on Lori's condition.

Also:

*On Wednesday, September 17, 2008 Lori’s friends ask anyone with a Facebook account to change their profile picture for the day to the icon that says “Save Lori’s House.” (see below or use the top image at http://www.savelorishouse.com/lori%20art.htm) and please change your status to: “is helping to save Lori's House- won't you help too? http://www.savelorishouse.com/

*Don't have a FaceBook account? Join the FaceBook group here http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=27262941938&ref=mf

*To find out other ways you can help, write to Jane Boursaw Jane@savelorishouse.com or Kristen Hains Kristen@savelorishouse.com.

Lori Hall Steele

Lori Hall Steele needs our help. She's a fellow freelance writer who's been diagnosed with ALS--Lou Gehrig's disease. And she's losing her home. She's just days away from having it taken away by the mortgage company because she can't pay her bills.

I don't know Lori personally. I only know her through Freelance Success, a writer's forum that I belong to. They're a great bunch of people.

When the FLXrs found out that one of their own was in trouble, they rallied--big time. There is so much activity going on in that forum on Lori's behalf that it makes your head spin--and it's hard to keep up with who's doing what. I know that Lori and her family are thankful.

Today, because I don't know Lori, I googled her name and found one of her blogs. It really spoke to me, giving me an up close and personal view of what Lori and her family are going through--and a bit of an inside look at Lori herself. The post that really got me was one she posted on Saturday, March 15, 2008--before she lost the use of her hands, before she needed assistance with her breathing. It is called Snow patrol, and it's very touching. You must read it.

My thoughts and prayers are definitely going out to Lori and her family, and I'm being propelled to offer my financial support as well. If you would like to help, click on this link to learn more about Lori's plight and to offer your financial support. And, please pray for her and her family.

My Goal...

My goal is to write a blog post at least three days per week from now on. There, I've said it. I don't know exactly what I'll write about, but I've really been lax with this blog, and I don't like it. I know that the blogging format has the potential to bring a lot of writing jobs my way, but how do you apply to blog for someone else when you can't even blog for yourself?

Anyway, this is my goal, and I plan to stick with it. Anybody else have a goal they'd like to announce to the blogging world?

Zack and Chris--Fun with Photobucket

Thanks to Andrea of Simple Things and Writing From Kiddom, I learned about photobucket. What a cool program!

These are jazzed up photos of my boys that will make great--and cheap--Father's Day presents for their dad.

How cool are they?

Thanks, Andrea!

View Andrea's great explanation of how to work the program here.

The Department of Lost and Found-- Paperback

So tomorrow, Allison Winn Scotch is hoping that you'll all rush your local bookstore and pick up a copy of the paperback edition of The Department of Lost and Found, which makes its debut in paperback tomorrow. She says, "I know that a lot of people don't like to buy hardcover books, especially from unknown writers, but most folks are willing to splurge on the $14 paperback ($11 on Amazon.com!!), so I hope that you will too!"


"And, please," she says, "spread the word far and wide, via blog, email or just plain old word of mouth."

Allison, I'd be glad to!

I blogged about The Department of Lost and Found here, and as I said then, I loved the book! And I'm not usually attracted to books that deal with illness, let alone cancer, but I have to say that Allison's book is one of my favorites to date. This story is not only touching, it's smart, AND a great read.

Get your copy of The Department of Lost and Found tomorrow or preorder it today from Amazon.com for an additional 5% discount. For more information about Allison, and to get a sneak peak of The Department of Lost and Found, visit Allison's website.

Also, get a sneak peak of Allison's newest book Time Of My Life, coming October 7, 2008.

Gotta Love This!

I absolutely love this photo. What ingenuity, huh? It was sent to me titled "Redneck Mansion." Looks to me like more of an apartment complex. Pretty cool, actually.

The Scale is Stuck!

You’ve been adhering to your diet and exercise program since January. You’ve been doing everything right! Pounds were just melting away…until now. Why isn’t the scale moving anymore?

If you’ve added weight training to your exercise program, you are replacing body fat with muscle. With only a small amount of weight to lose (because you’ve been such a superstar!), your weight on the scale may actually go up, but you’ll look thinner. This is because muscle is much denser than fat and occupies less space. So, even if the scale is stuck, you’ve probably noticed a change in how your clothes fit.

One way to check your progress, besides getting on the scale, is to measure yourself. Just use a sewing tape measure and measure your chest, waist, hips and one thigh (upper arm and calf, too, if you’d like). This will give you an easy way to chart your progress in inches lost instead of pounds. Do this once a week and you’ll be able to "see" your body shrink.

You may also want to visit your local gym and ask if they will do a body fat analysis (or composition report). Most gyms will do this free for members and may charge a small fee for nonmembers. The body fat analysis will show your current total weight and percentage of body fat (along with the breakdown of water weight and lean muscle). Do this every few months and you will see your body composition change dramatically!

Conserve water...and save!

Of all of our natural resources, none is more precious than water. We can't live without it. And while the media continually draws the public's attention to the rising cost and consumption of oil and gas, very little attention is given to what will become the most serious resource issue in the next century--the international water shortage.

Flushing our toilets alone accounts for a staggering 40% of our water usage, with the bathroom being where we use a whopping 75% of our water inside the home. With a little thought and effort, though, we can save money and be "green" at the same time. Use my favorite tips below to save cash and conserve our most precious resource:

Bathroom

• Check for toilet tank leaks by adding food coloring to the tank. If the toilet is leaking, color will appear in the bowl within 30 minutes. Most replacement parts are inexpensive, easily installed, and you can save more than 600 gallons a month.


• Place a plastic bottle weighted with pebbles and water in the toilet tank as a water displacement device.


• Install a low-flow showerhead to save 2 gallons of water per minute. They're inexpensive, easy to install, and can save your family more than 500 gallons a week.

Kitchen

• Install a low-flow faucet aerator, which can cut water use in half or 1 to 2 gallons per minute.


• Don't rinse dishes before loading dishwasher to save 20 gallons of water per load.


• Store drinking water in the refrigerator rather than letting the tap run every time you want a cool glass of water.


• Do not use running water to thaw meat or other frozen foods. Defrost food overnight in the refrigerator or by using the defrost setting on your microwave.

Around the house

Many homes have hidden water leaks. Read your water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter does not read exactly the same, there is a leak.

Never put water down the drain when there may be another use for it such as watering a plant or garden, or cleaning

Insulate your water pipes. You'll get hot water faster plus avoid wasting water while it heats up.

When adjusting water temperatures, instead of turning water flow up, try turning it down. If the water is too hot or cold, turn the offender down rather than increasing water flow to balance the temperatures.

Repair dripping faucets by replacing washers. If your faucet is dripping at the rate of one drop per second, you can expect to waste 2,700 gallons per year.

Wash clothes only when you have a full load and save up to 600 gallons each month.

Outside

• Fertilizers increase the need for water. Apply fertilizers, which contain slow-release, water-insoluble forms of nitrogen.


• Mulch to retain moisture in the soil. Mulching also helps to control weeds that compete with pants for water.


• Plant native grasses, ground covers, shrubs and trees. Once established, they do not need to be watered as frequently and will survive a dry period without any watering. Group plants together based on similar water needs.


• Use a broom to clean leaves and other debris from these areas. Using a hose to clean a driveway can waste hundreds of gallons of water.


• Do not leave sprinklers or hoses unattended, which can pour out 600 gallons or more in only a few hours.


• Consider using a commercial car wash that recycles water. If you do wash your own car, park it on the grass to soak up any run-off.

How do you conserve water?

Food for thought...save at the grocery store

Maybe it's the economy or maybe it's my mindset for getting out of debt, but lately my writing has taken a turn toward money-saving ideas. Regardless of the reason, I'm enjoying the ride--and the learning. Some of the great tips that I've learned recently involve grocery shopping. My favorites are:

• Bring cash--Leave your checkbook, debit, and credit cards home, so you don't overspend. Bring $10 extra to stock up on extra-special deals.
• Shop quickly--Every minute over a half-hour spent in the store costs you 50 cents per minute.
• Investigate all food sources--Include grocery stores, warehouse clubs, salvage stores, food co-ops, farmer's markets, department stores, even your gas station. never assume one source has the lowest price on every item.
• Know where to look--Look high and low on the shelves for the best prices. check behind fronted shelf items for larger bonus sizes, and shop the perimeter of the store for basic, most-needed grocery items.
• And stock up--Buy pasta, canned foods and boxed goods on sale. They are items used regularly that have a long shelf life. Als0, look on the front and back covers of the sale fliers for sales that the store takes a loss on, literally and build your grocery list and menus around these items for the greatest savings potential.

What are some of your best grocery shopping, money saving tips?