A Writers Space

A Writers Space Editors note: This is the seventh in a  series of 12. Find the others here. You need space, yes you do. If you want to write, you need a space all to yourself. You need a place for scribbling, drafting, drawing, and editing. You need a place to concentrate, daydream, plan, and wonder, ‘What if…’ And you need a place that inspires and makes you want to write, even if writing makes you sob like its raining out of your eyeballs or cackle evilly. Your writing space should feel beautiful, creative, and encouraging to you. I often write at my kitchen table. I call it, not-so-originally, my Kitchen Table Office. I usually have flowers and I am almost always slugging down coffee from my favorite owl mug. If there are cookies nearby, then I have only a few feet to traverse to find them, thank goodness. Who wants to work hard to find a chocolate chip cookie? Not me. The lion is from Rebel Dancing Daughter when she went to Kenya. I stare at it for humor. I keep journals around for ideas and to write through teeth-gritting problems I’m having with my book. One of my journals says: Trust Your Crazy Ideas. Which, by the way, you should, fellow writers. Take off and fly. Trust your crazy ideas and the zany, off-beat, swirling and twirling ones. Examine them. Throw them around. See if theyll work. I also love to write outside, in my backyard. This is called, again, not-so-originally, My Backyard Office. I can get distracted because I love to stare at my garden and make outlandish plans for building a blue, curving slide from the second story into a pool, a ten foot rock fountain, a hot tub with Keanu Reeves inside, and that sort of thing. But I find it peaceful, too, which makes me want to write. Ive seen hummingbirds, blue jays, raccoon, and possums out there and we have no problems with each other. As long as the bees aren’t swarming and wanting to eat me,  I like my little corner under the trumpet vine, next to the impatiens. Sometimes I have to write with Little Kitty nearby, the cat that Darling Laughing Son dropped off at my house before he skipped away across the seas for an internship. I like watching our wisteria vine grow and my faux windmill spin. Adventurous Singing Daughter and I planted Sunflowers and I love watching them grow taller each day. An outside office works for me. Nature is inspiring. Gardening gives me ideas. Maybe it would work for you, too, although for those of you who get three feet of snow in winter it probably wont work well unless you can keyboard in gloves. I do have a place for my extra books and journals in a small bedroom upstairs. And I do have a place for “junk.” The junk is in a corner of my dining room. I have NO IDEA why I keep it there. Really. Its a nice dining room with red walls and a chandelier. It makes no sense unless were going to EAT the manuscripts and notes. Paper is not tasty but, alas, there it stays. I should move it, I should. I probably wont. Many writers have cleaned out closets and moved in a small table. Other writers have claimed part of a room in their home for their office. The room might also have exercise equipment (MUST we use it?) and boxes of Christmas decoration (We really need to haul a bunch of that to Goodwill), but it’s their space. Some writers have a desk in the family room where the kids screech and yell and the dog barks. They learn to shut all that out unless there’s blood or the police arrive with a noise complaint. Some have a true writer’s office. (See PS below.) Their writers office is only for them, decorated with color, quotes, books they love, and lists of Things To Do. The views are cool, the dogs wander in to chat, and their imagination leaps about. Go and create a space for yourself. Go make pretty. Find a corner. Find a room. Find a wall. Find a desk, find a table. Clean it out. Plug your computer in. Add flowers, photos, a stapler, journals, notebooks, pens, a printer, and cool souvenirs. Add you. Then write. Write away. PS Where Writers Write is coming soon! We’ll peek into the offices of some of your favorite writers including Catherine Ryan Hyde, Barbara Claypole White, Kristy Woodson Harvey, Ann Garvin, Amy Sue Nathan, Laura Drake, Amy Impellizzeri, and Katie Rose Guest Pryal. . Main image credit.

Monday Motivation Career Links For Women Entrepreneurs

Monday Motivation Career Links For Women Entrepreneurs I spilled my guts in last nights post.  I really have no more words to say today so please go read yesterdays post about the real me (a.k.a Classy Career Girl:) Here are your weekly career links to start your week off right!  Since I have had a lot of requests for advice on how to start a business while working full time, hopefully these links will help you out! 5 Ridiculous Myths About Being an Entrepreneur by Entrepreneuress Academy 9 Steps To Success with Your Home Business by Women On Business Life Coach Kate Swoboda Talks About Courageous Marketing by One Woman Marketing 7 Business Terms Every Entrepreneur Should Know by BusinessInsurance.Org Six books on leadership worth actually reading by Entrepreneur magazine “Our business in life is not to get ahead of others, but to get ahead of ourselves to break our own records, to outstrip our yesterday by our today.” Stewart B. Johnson

How to Find Resume Writing Companies in Brooklyn, NY

How to Find Resume Writing Companies in Brooklyn, NYYou have several options for getting resume writing companies in Brooklyn, New York. There are professional resume writing services and there are companies that are professionals in their own right.You need to understand that there are professionals and there are the people who are just looking to take advantage of you. The biggest mistake that you can make is to think that a resume is a piece of paper that you can send off and hope that you get a call back. There is no guarantee that you will get a call back. What you need to realize is that resume writing companies in Brooklyn, New York will not just send out resumes to people who look at their websites.If you want to get a job that is going to bring you a decent salary, you need to be contacting real professionals who know what they are doing. The question is, how do you go about finding them? Well, there are a few things that you need to keep in mind when looking for a company t hat will be able to write your resume.The first thing that you should be doing is contacting as many companies as you can before you actually submit your resume. Your resume is one of the most important parts of your application and you don't want to waste it on a resume writer who will not get back to you. Even if the company offers a trial period, make sure that you look for the original information on their website. This is going to give you the ability to send them a resume so that they can contact you for a job interview.When you send your resume, always make sure that you put in the person's name, business location, and the name of the company that they are representing. There is no point in sending a resume that has any inaccuracies or incomplete information on it. Youneed to make sure that the resume that you send off is exactly what you want. If you want it to have a professional look, then by all means, have the professional look for you. If you want it to say that you are working with a particular company, then be sure to include this information on your resume.The best way to get professional resume writers in Brooklyn, New York is to send them a resume for yourself. If you have ever hired a resume writer, then you know that they always want to see a sample of what you are submitting. The reason is that your resume will be evaluated based on what they read and you want it to be a good representation of yourself.Make sure that the professional resume writer that you choose to help you with your resume is going to be willing to come out to your home and meet with you. They need to be able to assess what kind of employee you are and determine whether or not you would be a good fit for the company. You also want to be sure that the resume writing company that you choose is going to work with your company and not try to put it in another one's.Resume writing is a big task and you need to make sure that you choose the one that will be the best match for you. They need to be willing to travel to your home and meet with you. When you find the resume writing company in Brooklyn, New York that you feel is going to work best for you, you can send it off and hopefully get a job soon.

Online salary information resources - Sterling Career Concepts

Online salary information resources Online salary information resources Todays post is the final of a series of three, courtesy of the Center for School, College and Career Resources (CSCCR), an organization that connects people and institutions to expert-driven online resources that can help individuals leverage their futures, whether that means pursuing higher education or a new career. One of the universal topics considered by anyone who begins a job search or goes on a job interview is salary information what to expect, what to ask for, what others make in my industry, what others make in other industries, what others make in other geographic markets. Salary is but one consideration when considering a new job, but for many, its one of the most important.   Here are three trusted online salary information resources and a very interesting article from the Harvard Business Review on women and salary negotiations:   Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics  https://www.bls.gov/oes/ Glassdoor’s Salary Index  https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/index.htm A Guide to Salary Negotiation  https://www.moneygeek.com/careers/resources/salary-negotiation/ Harvard Business Review, Why Women Dont Negotiate Their Job Offers  https://hbr.org/2014/06/why-women-dont-negotiate-their-job-offers

A Season Made for Networking

A Season Made for Networking This time of year is all about parties, events, gatherings, food and people!   Yes, thats a good thing and a bad thing. It is good because: It provides an opportunity to connect with more people and reconnect with those we should be in touch with It is bad because: It can involve spending money or overindulging Keith Ferrazzis post  Tis the Season for Holiday Networking lists posts on how to more effectively network, plus it provides helpful links to cost-saving advice! My purpose in sharing Keiths post is to introduce you to him if you arent already familiar with his work (and oh, by the way, hes published some excellent books about networking, add them to your reading list) and second, we all need a little help. Heres a peek to entice you to link through! holiday guide by K Ferrazzi Dont just read this, put a couple into action.   Do you want to know how to make a graceful exit when you feel stuck talking with someone?   Or how about how to take the conversation to the next level?   How will you follow up?   Go ahead, read and act! Find the good in this time of year and by all means, give more than you receive!