Crayon Writer

I’m moving to a bigger apartment, so I’m in the middle of a home makeover.

So it fits that I would find out about this cute home makeover contest (I wish I’d entered).

Now it’s down to the semi-finalists, and the public gets to vote on their favorite from the semi-finalist gallery.

My favorite is the one with a family of girls and their mother. They videotaped a little mini-movie, going from room to room talking about where to place their TriScents plugins. The “acting” is really cute, and I like how they edited the video. As a mother, I really enjoyed watching a family with children work together. They seemed to have a lot of fun.

Some of the others were interesting too, and a close second was the family with triplet babies and a 3-year-old. The only reason I didn’t vote for them is because the only person speaking was the preschooler. The entry I voted for seemed like it had more teamwork. Of course, you can choose your own favorite. Don’t let me sway you.

Here’s screenshot of the video I liked:

If they win, they’ll get a $20,000 home makeover with Tanya Memme. Whichever semi-finalist gets the most votes will be the winner, obviously, and you can vote everyday until June 7. So go vote for your favorite, and vote often.

Back to packing. I’ve got my own makeover to complete.

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Freelance writers often write for businesses or magazines so we can make a living. But deep inside many, and not so far down in quite a few, is the desire to publish their first novel, or even some of their poetry.

It can be scary putting your “babies” out there for the world to see, and it’s heartbreaking if you get rejected. Luckily for you aspiring published authors, there is help available. I recently checked out Greendoor Publishing, a site that can help you get your poetry, fiction publishing, and writing dreams accomplished.

I like what Greendoor Publishing stands for. They believe every writer deserves a chance, and they’re willing to publish, free-of-charge, anything their editors think is worthwhile. The company encourages experimentation in writing, so you don’t have to write the way you think you “should.” Be yourself.

Even better than publishing your work, Greendoor will help your work reach its true potential with their online editing service. You send just 4 pages for a free appraisal, or send in your entire piece for a small fee. Their editors will let you know how much help the piece needs. When you’re ready, let their experienced team enhance your already great writing.

If you need a nudge getting started, perhaps with your personal memoirs, take advantage of their ghost writing service. All you need is a synopsis of your story, and you can begin getting great advice about where to go from there. 

Check them out when you get the urge to write the next great novel. Who knows? You may have the next Harry Potter on your hands.

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Writers often use famous quotes, sayings and proverbs in their writing. Bloggers are no exception, or at least we shouldn’t be. It’s a great way to add some extra flavor to your blog or article. Just-Quotes.com is a good way to do just that.

Perhaps you’re looking for a really cool saying or proverb by a specific author. This site has a feature that allows you to search by the author’s name. If you have a certain category in mind, you can search for quotes in subjects like business, fear, and last words.

One really nice feature is the ability to add random quotes directly to your blog or website, giving your readers new inspiration whenever they visit. Just-Quote has over 70,000 quotes and proverbs. If you’re a Latin buff, there are thousands of Latin Quotes, Latin Phrases and Mottos too, and a Latin dictionary with English translations.

As a source of inspiration for yourself, you can get daily quotes emailed to you daily, for free. When special days like birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine’s Day, or other major holidays roll around, you can be prepared to express your love with Famous Love Quotes, Latin Love Quotes, and more.

Clueless about all the Internet jargon and different acronyms? The site even has lists of common abbreviations, legal and medical terms, and email jargon. I think Just-Quotes is a really useful resource, and I will definitely be using it in my writing.

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If you’re a blogger, which most of you are, you’ve heard about having advertisers directly sponsor your blog.

Sounds great, in theory, but there are potential problems. Even if you get the advertiser, you have to figure out how to handle the transaction. One of you will have to take a leap of faith…that you’ll do the post if they pay you, or that they’ll pay you if you do the post.

PayPerPost Direct helps you get paid to blog, makes it easier for advertisers and bloggers to connect, and takes only 10% as a fee. They don’t find advertisers for you, so they’re not a middleman in the traditional sense. Instead, they help us complete our transactions a little more securely.

How do you find advertisers?

One way is for them to find your site and notice the PPP Direct widget in your sidebar.

What I’m looking forward to, though, is the PPP Direct directory of bloggers that are part of the program. PayPerPost should be launching the directory soon. 

I’m also considering marketing myself to advertisers on my own.

How does it work?

After you sign up with PPP Direct (click on my logo near the bottom of the right sidebar), you choose a minimum price and install your widget. Advertisers that like the quality of your blog can then make you an offer to review their product or site.

If you’ve used other review programs, including the original PPP, you know there can be substantial markups on your fee. Your widget says you charge $200, but you may only get $100 (while the review program gets the other $100).

With PPP Direct, if your widget says $200, you get $200 (while PPP Direct gets $20).

Pretty much a no-brainer.

I’ll be sure to report later to let you know how this program works out for me.

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