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Two Self-Published Books Aid Writers

© Roxianne Moore

I've found two little gems that are sure to get you thinking about new outlets for your creativity. Both are self-published, but they're high quality, no fluff guides to writing and selling.

How to Be a Syndicated Newspaper Columnist by Angela Adair.

If you're already writing a weekly column for your local paper, or if you've just entertained the idea but don't know how to start, this little booklet will set you on the road to syndication. As past president of the Deep South Syndicate, she knows what she's talking about.

She'll take you through the process, step by step:

• Choosing a topic
• Naming your column
• Formatting submissions
• Selling Yourself
• Choosing the right markets
• Celebrating (and documenting) your first sale
• Making the next sale, and the next

The supplementary diskette says it lists more than 6,000 daily newspaper markets. I counted 6,233, some of which were weeklies. I also noted a few (all the ones I've actually worked for) that weren't listed, including the two major dailies in my area.

Angela is also the editor of the National Writer's Monthly and Write Markets Report, and offers a number of informative booklets. How to Be a Syndicated Newspaper Columnist is published by Deep South Publishing Company, 1006 S. Country Club, Shoreacres, TX 77571 U.S.A. Or go to her website: National Writer's Monthly.

Write Well & Sell: Greeting Cards by Sandra M. Louden

So you're working on the Great American Novel (or just a good one), but you'd like to make money with your writing in the meantime? Writing greeting card copy is the perfect potboiler says Sandra Louden. She should know. She's been writing captions and greeting card copy since 1986.

In 1991, she won the Louie Award (the greeting card industry's equivalent of an Oscar). She also offers a 6-week online course, and teaches classes at the same community college as I do.

Sandra will tell you what sells and what doesn't. She'll show you how to:

• Write copy that sells
• Find your own style
• Find the right markets for your style
• Develop a variety of material for each season and occasion

This is not just a quick read that will give you a few tips. It's a workbook, with plenty of exercises to open up your thinking, show you how to recognize good greeting-card copy, and find ideas to get you started.

She also lists a few mid-market card companies and tells you how to find more markets. And she'll offer suggestions for submitting, filing and tracking your captions. She also generously offers to answer any questions.

The copyright of the article Two Self-Published Books Aid Writers in Resources for Writers is owned by Roxianne Moore. Permission to republish Two Self-Published Books Aid Writers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.