Looking
for writing classes?
Want to write for publication or for personal growth?
Want to sharpen those professional skills?
WritersCollege.com is
the place!
Apologies
for the bad links to the featured courses in the last newsletter.I
have repeated those course links this week. I am also somewhat
intimidated
by a
fellow writer in ASJA (American Society of Journalists and
Authors) who manages to keep up abut ten blogs and newsletters
AND still have time to earn a living as a freelance writer.
He says he is efficient. I guess so. I htink he's a cyborg
but perhaps he can inspire me to do at least a little better
myself.
As
the administrator for the school, I see a few problems
occasionally arise. Among those:
Confused
e-mail addresses. Most students register for courses using
the PayPal system. Some of those have accounts that use
e-mail addresses or names that are not what the student wishes
to
use for the course. If Jim Smith uses his roofing-business
PayPal account to sign up, he comes to me as "Roofs 'r
Us" with an e-mail for that company. And this is OK, but
we need
to straighten things out, not least because I file all
studets by their e-mail addresses, not their names—which
may seem
odd but works best in the WebWorld we virtually inhabit.
So Jim needs to either add a note in the note section of
the registration,
or contact me separately to tell me the right name and
e-mail to use. Forget this part and I respond ot the wrong
e-mail,
the teacher sends a welcome letter or first lesson to the
wrong e-mail and, a few days later, I get a note from an
annoyed
student saying, "I'm Jim Smith. Where are my lessons?"
Much confusion then ensues, but we always manage ot sort
it out
in the end. Not aided especially by:
No
postal address or telephone numbers. Now, sure, those are
optional and will remain so. And some people are a bit shy
about
their personal information. But consider: Without the telephone
number I have no recourse, should the e-mail system fail,
other
than to sit and wait for the student to get in touch with
me. Much time can be lost. Without the postal address I cannot
send out a Certificate of Completion to a successful student.
I don't agonize over this; I figure that if you did not
give
me a place to send it, you didn't want the certificate.
That's OK too.
Late-term
drops. We have the most liberal refund system I know of for
an online writing school. We allow you ten days from the date
the course starts to ask for a refund. You will get it. You
need offer no explanation. But, rarely, I get someone who is
four weeks into a six-week course, or even who has completed
a course,
who now wants a refund. Something came up, I am told. I changed
my mind, I am told. My dog ate my homework, or I got sick,
or my hibuscus didn't put out enough blossoms to suit me. Whatever.
Here's the official word on all this: I don't care. After that
ten-day refund period expires I have to pay the teacher anyway.
No regular college gives you a refund halfway through the semister
because you changed your mind or because you got sick. I won't
either.
And,
last, you know how much I love road signs with bad grammar.
this one is just down the street from me: Solomons Used
Tire's Shop. Every time I drive by that, I want to call them on the
phone and ask for Mr. Tire. I could ask why he has such an
odd middle name.
FEATURED
COURSES (visit our Course Catalog to see ALL of the courses):
An
introductory course for mature students who want to explore
their writing potential. We will fuel the fire already
smoldering within your own life experiences.
Something
not working in your fiction or nonfiction? Here's your
chance to examine the seven most common problems that keep
a manuscript from being publishable.
Short
fiction is unlike longer fiction in more ways than length.
This course will help you understand the basic structure
of the short story, how to develop your own style when
writing one, and the importance and process of revision.
Adding
speechwriting skills to your writer's toolkit can make
you more marketable. Public relations firms, businesses,
local government officials, nonprofit organizations, etc.,
need people with this skill.
Also
available as an Extended course option
SCHOOL
NEWS: De nada this week.
WHO's
DOING WHAT: Also nothing. you
guys all got broken fingers and cannot tell me about your
writing lives? Send me e-mails.
USEFUL
STUFF: Just got my copy of the Writer's Market 2008 edition.
It's the bible for freelancers. I remember when they came out
in November. Then October. Now late July. Why this is, I have
no clue. I bought the deluxe edition, which includes the book
AND a year's subscription to the online searchable database.
I like the book because reading it stimulates ideas and because
I can quickly sort out the low-pay magazines and book publishers.
I have evolved, over many years, an ability to see only the
payment amount statement in a three-paragraph magazine subscription
without even seeing the magazine name. Honest to God.
If it looks like they pay decently I might deign to read the
name.
But
the book goes out of date quickly. For the most up-to-date
information it is better to use the
onlline database,
which is continually updated. But you cannot just idly browse
the online site, to generate new ideas. If you can afford it,
buy the deluxe edition, as I did. If it has to be one or the
other, go with the printed one. It generates ideas and is a source of
information, even if that information grows old.
As
for using older editions of Writer's Market, I cannot say I
can recommend it. Certainly anything older than
last year's is almost useless.
FEEDBACK: Got
a response? Visit our message baord at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/writerscollege/
Or
write
to me with:
Your
news about your writing
Suggestions
for the school
An
essay to be featured in the newsletter
Whatever
else I need to know
The
above might be printed. I usually use first names. If
you wish something different, or want a web site mentioned,
tell me.
