The Fabulist Flash

Issue 106

Orange Mum Journal
$10.00
 

In This Issue:

1. This Week
2. Media Release Formula
3. Seven Press Release Steps
4. Morgan & Phyllice take the 18Q
5. About The Fabulist Flash

1. This Week

Every writer should know the basics of the media release. Media Releases and press releases are really the same thing. The term media release is gaining popularity because there are so many nonprint locations that publish news these days.

Why are media releases important to writers? Everything we do is news, from publishing books, speaking engagements and book signings. Every time we get our name into the news, or on a blog or in a Zine, we increase awareness about who we are, what we've written and what we're experts at. All of this helps to sell more books and book more speaking gigs.

Speaking of gigs...for those in the Las Vegas area I'll be speaking at two events this week. On Friday, September 22, I join Darlien Breeze and Jo Wilkins at the Henderson Senior Center for the first session of a six week seminar for new writers. I'm speaking Saturday at the National Speakers Association (NSA) -- Las Vegas as part of an all day seminar "Get Published and Get Booked." The other speakers at this event include Dan Poynter, Robin Jay, and Carolyn Hayes Uber. For details visit www.nsa-lasvegas.com.

Back to the media release...in addition to the two articles below, I highly recommend visiting Joan Stewart's site www.publicityhound.com. She's currently offering a Free Tutorial: How to Write Press Releases. Joan always has great information and this course is no exception.

There are two articles on the media release in this week's issue. I share my Four Paragraph Media Release Formula and journalist Mary Cook shares Seven Steps to Seeing Your Press Release in Print. Plus, Morgan St. James and Phyllice Bradner take the 18Q.

Until next week,

Gregory
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Gregory A. Kompes (www.kompes.com) is a writer, manuscript consultant and author of the bestseller 50 Fabulous Gay-Friendly Places to Live, The Endorsement Quest, The Everyday Gay Activist and Your Intensive Care Unit Stay.

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Preview 9 essential books for writers on The Writer's Bookshelf

2. Media Release Formula

The Four Paragraph Media Release Formula
by Gregory A. Kompes

It's become a cardnal rule to keep your media release to one page. This is easy using my four paragraph media release formula.

Paragraph One

Your first paragraph should stand on its own. Many editors will use your headline and first paragraph. So, don't save your "best" information for last, it might never be read, let alone be seen in print. Study a newspaper and notice how deftly most writers work the who, what, where, when, why, and how information into the first paragraph.

Paragraph Two

Break down the main point in the Second paragraph. Make a relevant connection between your news and something currently happening in the world. Or, give a brief synopsis of your book.

Using a Quote and/or Bullet Points adds interest. These should come here at the second paragraph or between paragraph two and three.

Paragraph Three

Include a relevant biography paragraph. Why you're qualified to write the book, your home town, or other personal info that might be considered newsworthy.

Paragraph Four

Final Paragraph should be a "boiler plate" paragraph with details about your book (how and where to get it, cost, ISBN, website, etc.) Like the first paragraph, this one should stand on its own.

Helpful Basics

• Know your contact’s name, title, telephone, fax and department.
• Mail or fax your release 10 days in advance of the release date.
• Keep your release to ONE PAGE

Format Tips

• Keep your release clean and to the point
• Keep your release to One Page
• Double Space (or at least 1.5)
• Leave plenty of margin space and white space so editors can make notes and comments
• Use easy to read fonts (Arial for headlines, Times New Roman or Currier New for body text)
• Limit the graphics

Style Tips

• Keep the text short and simple. Use clear, accessible, everyday language. Technical or highly academic descriptions sound boring or may confuse. Avoid abbreviations and acronyms as the journalist may not be familiar with your organization.
• Avoid long sentences. Complicated sentence construction is a problem when information is being read over the radio or television. Try to limit your sentences to 20-25 words.
• Write from the media outlet's point of view. Think about what will make your story relevant to their readers, listeners or viewers
• Use Quotes or Blurbs and/or Bullet Points: they quickly convey a lot of information

About the Author
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Gregory A. Kompes (www.kompes.com) is a writer, manuscript consultant and author of the bestseller 50 Fabulous Gay-Friendly Places to Live, The Endorsement Quest, The Everyday Gay Activist and Your Intensive Care Unit Stay.

3. Seven Press Release Steps

Do Me a Favor: Seven Steps to Seeing Your Press Release in Print
by Mary Cook

You've just written that intended best seller or you're about to launch your writing-related business. Now you want people to know you're there. The press release is one of the widest reaching means of doing this.

You see that overflowing wastepaper bin over there? It's full of unused press releases, many of them unread. During my five years as a reporter for a regional newspaper, I trashed far more press releases than I actually used. Sometimes I reduced several pages to just one or two lines.

Before you open your mouth to complain, remember: when you send a press release to a newspaper, you're not doing anyone a favor. You're asking for one. The only people with an absolute right to see their words in print are the advertisers. The way you approach the editorial staff over a press release is every bit as important as what you write.

Here are seven tips to seeing your press release in print:

1. Touch base. A phone call to your local paper testing the water and seeing if the editor is likely to use a press release can be helpful.

2. Don't insist on talking to an editor who's clearly busy. Editors are not too keen on readers with delusions of grandeur and they're likely to pass you over to the nearest reporter: probably the most junior and one who is not in any position to make promises.

3. It's far better to wait until the editor is free. State your case with courtesy and don't make any veiled threats about taking your advertising elsewhere if you can't get your own way. For one thing, an editor won't care because the editorial department is run separately from advertising. And for another, if you're looking for free publicity, any advertising you may or may not place with the paper will make no appreciable difference to its revenue anyway.

4. Once an editor has agreed to look at your press release, you need to make it one that can be used with minimum work for the editorial staff. Taking the line: "You're an editor, so edit" cuts no ice.

5. Study the publication's house style. Note whether it uses contractions such as "don't" for "do not" or "they're" for "they are". Observe whether you need to use single or double inverted commas; a colon or comma before a line of dialog. Set out dates the way they appear in the paper. Always use third person.

6. Treat your press release as an exciting news story. Begin with a stunning introduction as you would with any piece of written work. Accentuate the positive but don't lie. All right, you can exaggerate, but only a little.

7. Set out the facts clearly, stating who, what, where and when. Bear in mind that some of those facts are likely to be edited out if they look too much like advertising.

Now you've done everything in your power to produce the ideal press release, it's highly likely it will be used in its entirety, assuming there's sufficient editorial space.

Good luck with the new project!

About the Author
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Mary Cook is a UK-based freelance writer and editor. Her articles, short stories and poems have appeared in numerous publications, both in print and online. Her main writing interests are humor, horror, self-sufficient living, and the craft and business of writing.

4. Morgan & Phyllice take the 18Q

Morgan St. James and Phyllice Bradner take the 18Q

Website:
www.silversistersmysteries.com

Bibliography
A Corpse in the Soup, a Silver Sisters Mystery, Wings ePress, Inc. www.wings-press.com

Upcoming: (Morgan only) "Shopping for Dancing Shoes," lead story in Chicken Soup for the Shopper's Soul, HCI Books, release October 1, 2006

Biography
Morgan St. James and Phyllice Bradner are sisters who grew up in Los Angeles.

Morgan and her husband, radiologist-photographer Hubert Kottlove, split time between homes in Los Angeles CA and Las Vegas NV. She has written many published magazine articles on such diverse subjects as interior design, human interest, dementia, travel and barter. She also earned recognition twice for feature article entries in the prestigious Writer’s Digest Competition. Morgan is a member of Sisters in Crime and Henderson Writer’s Group. Her story Shopping For Dancing Shoes will appear in Chicken Soup for the Shopper’s Soul, release date October 2006.

Phyllice lived in Alaska for 39 years. In 2004 she and her husband, retired optometrist Jim Matson, moved to a century-old farmhouse in Dayton, Oregon. She is an award-winning graphic designer, published writer, former antique shop owner, and has been a political print consultant on many statewide campaigns including four gubernatorial races and five candidates for U.S. Senate. She is an accomplished fine artist whose work appears in galleries in Alaska and Oregon. Over the years she has won four Alaska Press Club awards and two National awards for newsletter publications.

1. Did you choose the writing profession or did it choose you?
[MORGAN] It sort of chose me. I liked writing stories when I was a kid, but never considered writing professionally. When I was an interior designer, I wrote several published interior design articles for a prestigious magazine and it expanded from there to multiple subjects and publications.

[PHYLLICE] I was one of the rare graphic designers who could also write copy, it made me more saleable in my career. When computers took over the graphic design field, I turned to my writing skills rather than learn all those complicated graphic computer programs.

2. What is your background? (education, work, etc.)
[MORGAN] I am an interior designer by profession, although I have done many things in my life. Early on I was secretary to a theatrical business manager in Beverly Hills and later a legal secretary. At that point, I knew I didn't want to be an attorney any more. For five years I was co-owner of a marketing-promotion company and that is when I really expanded my reach as a writer. I was also Director of Design for two Southern California residential developers.

[PHYLLICE] I've been a graphic designer and art director, fine artist, antique dealer, historic restorationist, political consultant, TV producer, newspaper/magazine art editor...and oh yeah....writer.

3. When did you 'know' you were a writer?
[MORGAN] I knew I was a writer when I was able to go to the news stand, pick up a Designer's West Magazine, and see my name and photo as a contributing writer.

[PHYLLICE] It not so much a question of "know" as "realize". I was in grade school when I realized that the other kids didn't have the same facility with words that I had. I have always been a writer. I cannot remember a time in my life when I was not writing poetry, journals, school newspaper articles or funny stories to amuse my friends and family.

4. How would you describe your style of writing?
[MORGAN] In a phrase, all over the place. I am writing the funny mystery series with my sister, a darker "woman in jeopardy" novel on my own, love writing articles and short stories on a variety of subjects.

[PHYLLICE] Aside from my poetry, journals and prolific letters to the editor, I spent most of my adult life as a copywriter and designer doing informational pieces of all sorts. Annual reports, travel brochures, political literature and white papers, advertising for print and TV. Now, I'm finally having some fun. My current style is quirky and fun.

5. What is your writing process?
[MORGAN] It varies, depending upon what I'm writing. Sometimes it's formula if I can only use a certain number of words or need to hit a specific market. Sometimes it's sit down and write. I frequently click into "automatic writing" and am told by other writers that I am lucky to have that gift.

[PHYLLICE] The process these days is Morgan, who is a Type A personality, writes the bare bones of a section or chapter and sends it to me. Being the consummate editor, I can't rest until I have edited it and added a little punch. If left to my own schedule I would probably not get much done...I need Morgan to prod me along.

6. What was your path to publication?
[MORGAN] For our first fiction novel, in one word, LONG.

[PHYLLICE] Write it, edit it, edit it, edit it, send it out, get rejections, get advice. Re-write, edit it, edit it, edit it, send it out, get rejections, get more advice and re-write again.

7. What is your favorite self-marketing idea?
[MORGAN] I feel comfortable in a lot of arenas, but I like to think in terms of reaching the most people. I also worked in executive sales for several years and those big numbers always rumble around in my mind.

[PHYLLICE] I like the idea we have to do a spin-off advice column on the web using our fictional character as the writer. I think when we get this up and running it will generate lots of interest in our characters and our series.

8. What are the biggest surprises you've encountered as a writer?
[MORGAN} That I didn't know how to write fiction! I thought I would just use the experience I had writing articles and run with it. Boy, was that a mistake. After a year of Phyllice and I working with a writing coach and multiple workshops, now I feel I know how to write fiction.

[PHYLLICE] I was surprised to discover how many books are out there, being published every year. There was a time, some years back, when folks speculated that TV and computers would distract people from reading, but instead the opposite seems to be happening.

9. How do you inspire yourself? What are your sources of creativity?
[MORGAN] Would you believe taking a long shower?

[PHYLLICE] I am motivated when my sister puts her fashionable size 7 ½ shoe on my rusty country butt and pushes hard.

10. What is your proudest writer moment?
[MORGAN] When I was able to take that Designer's West Magazine in hand, go to my Mom's house and say, "Here, Mom. I wrote this."

[PHYLLICE] I guess it's pretty much the same for me. Mom always told us we could do anything we set our minds to and when we accomplished even the smallest victory she was so happy and proud. I would send her each brochure and booklet that rolled off the press and was proud to give her the joy of oohhing and aahhing about how wonderful it was.

11. What's the best advice you were given about writing?
[MORGAN] Forget about possessively hanging on to all the parts you love. Sometimes those are the first to go. Create an edited copy that doesn't show where the changes were made. Read it and see if you like it or need more changes. Don't let what was there distract you.

[PHYLLICE] From early childhood my teachers regarded me as an excellent writer, I always got top grades in school, editor of the High School paper, class yearbook, etc. My 11th grade creative writing teacher, Mrs. Rhodes was a highly respected Fulbright scholar and I was sure I would win her seal of approval with the first assignment I turned in. To my horror it came back with a "D" and was so marked up with red pencil that it looked like she had bled all over it. In big letters across the top she wrote "Cut out the deadwood!" She then gave me the assignment of rewriting everything I had in that 10 page story in less than a page. That semester she taught me that "less is more". It was great advice.

12. What is your most embarrassing writer moment?
[MORGAN] I wrote a three part series for a newspaper about the Art of Bartering. After I submitted it, I realized that I sent the wrong version.

[PHYLLICE] I don't recall having a memorable embarrassing moment although I've sometimes been embarrassed when I look back at what I wrote in some past publication.

13. What business challenges have you faced as a writer?
[MORGAN] Learning that writing was a business I really didn't know. Taking the time to listen to good advice, throw away the bad advice and be able to learn which was which.

[PHYLLICE] The older I get the more immediate gratification I want, writing a successful book can be a long drawn out process. If I wasn't having so much fun working with my sister, I might have put this whole thing on the back burner so I could actually make money on something else.

14. What is your writer life philosophy?
[MORGAN] To me writing is enjoyment, relaxation, passion and all the good stuff. Once I took on an assignment I hated. My philosophy now is if I can't enjoy it, walk away.

[PHYLLICE] If it ain't fun, don't do it!

15. When you're not writing what do you do for fun?
[MORGAN] I love to travel, go to plays, read and generally enjoy what is around me. I'm not very athletic and I regret that, but I am willing to try new things.

[PHYLLICE] I'm primarily an artist. I have more fun doing art than just about anything. I make etchings and block prints of whimsical cats and dogs and oil paintings in a light fun style and hand painted silk scarves, and you name it...I'll try it.

16. Who do you like to read?
[MORGAN] I enjoy a variety of writing genres. I like Mary Daheim, Janet Evanovich and cozy mystery writers like them, but I also like deeper stuff like Patricia Cornwall, Lee Child and James Patterson. I also have some tastes that go to the masculine side. I like action adventure and political intrigue.

[PHYLLICE] My favorite authors are Donald Westlake when he writes comical crime, Carl Hiaasen, Janet Evanovich, Bill Fitzhugh, Agatha Christie and the like. I also love the historical mysteries of Bruce Alexander, and non-fiction about life in foreign cultures.

17. What's your advice for new writers?
[MORGAN] Don't give up! And, learn…learn…learn. Know the field you are in and what it takes to break the barrier.

[PHYLLICE] Don't fear good advice. A bad review from a friend or relative is better than false praise.

18. What are you currently working on?
[MORGAN] The second Silver Sisters Mystery, SEVEN DEADLY SAMOVARS, a woman in jeopardy novel, working title DEADLY DANCE, just finished a short mystery story called WHO KILLED MANDY BLAKE. I am also working on a few more submissions for the Chicken Soup series. One is currently under consideration for Chicken Soup for People Helping People and profiles a remarkable couple that Phyllice and I know who have dedicated their lives to helping disabled children.

[PHYLLICE] I'm currently working on keeping my sanity while my sister comes up with endless ways to market our book! Of course, besides that, the project this year is to write the next one...Seven Deadly Samovars.

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Are you a published writer? Take the 18Q today!

To read all the 18Q responses or take the 18Q visit EighteenQuestions.com

5. About The Fabulist Flash

ISSN: 1554-0804

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