Posts Tagged ‘writing’

I am writing a paper about tattoos and piercings and I need help finding material?

I need research regarding cultures that either embrace or frown upon tattoos and piercings around the world. They have to have credible sources. Can anyone help me?

What Online Dating Taught Me About Writing AWESOME Articles

Most of what I’ve learned about article marketing, I actually “stole” from my very successful career as an online dater. But like lots of other great transformational moments in human history, my breakthrough moment in creating compelling content for my match dot com profile didn’t come naturally or easily. It didn’t come with effortless ease. Like lots of other great discoveries, NECCESSITY became the mother of invention for my journey from dubious and dateless, to swimming in success with the opposite sex online.

And yes, I know what you are thinking right now. You are asking how it’s possible that someone with so many obvious natural gifts – transcendent good looks, super white teeth and a poetic mastery of the English language would find himself having such difficulty on a dating site in the first place.

And you make an excellent point. And I really appreciate the compliment, it means a lot to me and I like you too. And I’m also an excellent tennis player as well, just in case you were wondering.  But the simple truth is that I was committing the very same sin with my dating profile that I was making as a struggling full time Internet marketer as well.

I was boring. Ordinary. Middle of the road. NOT saying anything interesting, outrageous, creative or confrontational. And you know what? No one cared. Sure, they would stop by and read my articles, stop for a brief moment….read what I had to say, and ultimately……move on. Because I didn’t want to ruffle any feathers. Or say anything that would rock the boat….or representative of the “real me” that had something FAR more compelling to offer.

So one day…….

I just changed it up. And started writing what I REALLY thought. My real opinions. And with a bit of an edge. And trying to be equally as entertaining..as informative. And guess what? People started to read my articles. And I started to make some REAL money as well. And all while this was happening…my online dating profile became one of the most popular, on one of the LARGEST dating sites in the world. And NOT just because I have a whole bunch of cool tattoos in unusual places….although that certainly didn’t hurt.

Because my “stuff” started to stand out. And because people got a little bit of a laugh…..or a head scratching “come again” after reading a few of the more odd and esoteric ideas I thought would be ok to share at 2am after one cup of coffee too many….and one hour of insomnia too much.

The BOTTOM Benefit to You is This:

99% of the people writing articles in your niche are saying the same thing. They use the same words, the same metaphors and same motivators. And by and large, they get the same results. If you TRULY want to transcend the tepid, ordinary results that most people are getting…you have to be fearless. And have fun. And be “free”. Aim to entertain AND inform. Challenge, confront and compel people to take another angle on the very same stuff they’re getting by the shovelfuls elsewhere. And most importantly, don’t be afraid to be yourself. The ride UP is far more fun – and once you start, you won’t have it any other way!

Collaborative Writing: When Two Brains Are Better Than One

I was so happy a few weeks ago when a boy in the third row of a freshman English class raised his hand and asked us, “Where do you come up with your characters? They are so…um… random.”

I think that’s partly what attracts both Brad and me to writing. In what other vocation or avocation is it okay to know a whole lot about bottle cap collecting, and anachronistic role-playing, and Bob’s Big Boy? Not to mention Brad’s extensive knowledge of all things related to 50′s television and my somewhat unfortunate obsession with apples and chocolate. I don’t think this obscure knowledge would even make us very good Trivial Pursuit partners for anyone. I mean, how often do you need to know that the first Ronald McDonald wore a food-tray hat, or that the Honey Crisp Apple is actually a cross between a Macoun and a Honeygold?

I was told something that I’m sure most writers are told when they are starting out. Write what you know.

The thing is no one told me that the things I know might not be the big ideas. I really don’t know how to stop global warming or how to heal a broken heart or how to get ahead in business. The things that I know are the smaller things that find their way into my everyday life. It’s in these obscure obsessions that I seem to find stories.

We set our first novel, Scrambled Eggs at Midnight (Dutton, 2006) in a Renaissance fair. And, not because we had all this extensive knowledge about them. (I’ve still never been to one.), but because the idea of adults pretending to be princesses and knights and queens and wenches seemed really intriguing.

Our second novel, Dream Factory (Dutton, May 2007) is set at Disney World. Again, not because either of us knew that much about it. Brad’s never been to Disney World and I’ve only been once when I was five. But we set it there because it was interesting.

Tattoo studios, mental health hospitals, pie eating contests. It is in these small places that maybe not many people know that much about that Brad and I find ourselves wandering.

People ask all the time how we decided to write together. I try to think up something smart to say. I’m sure I should say something about similar voices and matching literary sensibilities, but the truth is we chose to write together and continue to write together for the same reason we became friends. Both of us have an odd sense of what is interesting and probably more important, we both laugh at the same things. Well, to be honest I am the one doing all the laughing. Brad’s more of a smirker, but that’s just because he doesn’t like to let on that he’s as entertained as he really is.

The second thing everyone asks is whether we argue a lot. They want the dirt. Like I might tell them about the time I almost dumped a whole cup of coffee on Brad’s head or the time he threatened to leave me on the interstate somewhere in Connecticut. Okay, those things didn’t really happen. I always hate to break it to people because they always seem so bummed. We don’t really argue when we write. We argue about what’s better for dessert. (I’m for brownies. Brad’s vote is on cheesecake.) But, when it comes to writing, I think both of us have a sure sense of what we are each good at and where each of us could use some help.

I’m a starter. I can write enough first chapters to fill up the chest in my attic, but when it comes to final chapters Brad will tell you, I stink. Brad is great at details. I fear I’m way too distracted for that. I don’t really understand it all. Not even close. It’s probably part luck and part intuition. It’s probably the same thing that makes both Brad and I want to go see the World’s Largest Ball of String or eat garlic ice. It’s probably the same reason most everyone writes. It’s the desire to get inside someone or something that you know nothing about and for a while just live there. Just walk around and touch things and look at things and see what you can find out. It’s going to sound very pretentious, but here it is.

Paul Eluard, a French poet said it better than I could ever hope to. “There is another world and it is in this one.” I’m not sure if he meant that it could be found using the Park Hopper option at Disney World, but I’m going to try.

Why do people get TATTOOS in “asian writing”, knowing people cannot read it?

i just don’t get that.