View of Sedona, Arizona is even grander from above















One thing I firmly believe in is being open to adventures. Because of that, I’ve flown on everything from a small two-seater plane to an empty Air Force cargo plane (C-141), and from an engineless glider to a tiny helicopter with see-through rounded front.

The helicopter ride was my most thrilling ride since the pilot turned the chopper straight down with its tail in the air so we could look at fool’s gold in a creek near Mount Rushmore. We had discovered the helicopter parked by the road, and when we stopped to look it over, the pilot offered to fly us up to the faces on Mount Rushmore. The rest of the flight was just gravy—and I’m not sure this type of adventure could even happen now, with more stringent safety rules in effect. Sure, safety rules are there to protect us, sometimes from ourselves, but when you’re married to a risk-taking junkie like I am, you sometimes get dragged into adventures that you sure would have hated to miss. And sometimes, you could have happily stayed home!

A glider ride over Napa Valley in California followed a greasy hamburger, so I was too busy trying to keep lunch down to enjoy the ride or scenery. Then when the ride neared its end, the pilot had to spiral the small plane downwards in a tight circle because updrafts tried to keep us aloft. Aargh! I decided I much prefer the roar of an engine to the silence of a glider because the steady noise lets me and my stomach know that all is well.

The cargo plane ride involved flying around Mount Rainier near Seattle again and again, and the few of us onboard had to take turns looking out the one window. It was interesting, but it finally got boring, especially since there was nothing to do while not looking out the window, and no place to sit down in between peeks at the peak. Still, it was an adventure that few civilians ever get to take.

A few weeks ago we stumbled upon an opportunity to take a helicopter tour of beautiful Sedona, Arizona and its surrounding red cliffs and caves. We had driven up to the airport to get good views of the town for pictures, and my husband asked at the terminal counter about the chopper rides. The man behind the counter mentioned they had one going up in a few minutes that had two remaining seats and they would take us up for half-price if we liked. Not ones to pass up a bargain adventure, we hopped aboard. This was a much bigger chopper than my first one since it seated four passengers and the pilot, but was still an amazing ride.

And did I mention that this was the day after a snowfall on the higher elevations, so the red buttes were coated with what looked like marshmallow frosting? It was absolutely gorgeous! We took off to the west and wound among the snow-covered cliffs. We saw Indian cliff dwellings that most tourists and even many locals never get to see unless they are willing to hike for miles in the backcountry. The pilot swooped through a couple of very narrow passages to give us a thrill. Looking ahead at them, we passengers couldn’t be sure they were wide enough for the helicopter’s blades. There were four huge sighs of relief after we got through them.

Flying has nothing to do with RVing, but being RVers puts us in close proximity to all types of adventures, including flying. What fun it is to fall into an unexpected opportunity along the RV highway.

The Sometimes Strange World of a Freelance Writer

Here’s something you might not have thought about: Some people assume writers can do most of the things they write about. In other words, they are perceived as experts on many, many topics.

However, just because I wrote about banking didn’t mean I could step in and become a banker—nor even a bank teller! I wrote about real estate, but I certainly knew nothing about selling real estate, and I never knew anything about accounting even though I had several accounting clients. To me, accounting was a bore! And just because I write an article about skiing doesn’t mean I can fly down a ski slope. Been there, wasn’t good at it, don’t intend to do it again! I can interview people who love it and then communicate their love of the sport in an article without having to endure a frozen nose or broken bones. (Believe me, experience tells me it would be other skiers’ bones I would be concerned about if I actually tried skiing again.)

As a writer, I did learn about a lot of subjects, but that didn’t make me an expert on anything except maybe writing and gathering facts. Still, that didn’t prevent potential clients from thinking that I would already know something about their topic and that I would certainly know where to get any information I needed to produce their project. So as a result, I’ve received many strange, sometimes outlandish requests for help.

I guess the weirdest request I ever had was to run the political campaign for a local candidate. The type of experience I needed included 1. knowledge about how to run a campaign, 2. knowing how to get attention (hopefully good) for the candidate, 3. knowing how to make him marketable to the electorate, and 4. many numerous other details that I knew nothing about. I had a little experience writing speeches, and that was it! And I was able to offer the client advice on colors for his campaign signs and ads because I had experience in color psychology and color impact as it pertained to advertising.

Still, I turned down the job because I wasn’t qualified to run a political campaign, and frankly, I wasn’t interested, but I suggested that his signs must be eye-catching, employ strong, contrasting colors, and display patriotic colors, preferable red-orange and white writing on a dark blue background. Unfortunately, before he contacted me, he had already had signs printed in dark blue on a gray background, which was extremely hard to read, especially while driving by in the rain (this was Western Washington). He lost the campaign, but at least I didn’t have to feel guilty that he lost because of my inexperience as a campaign manager.

Another strange request I had was via a phone call from a man from Alaska who had “uncovered a scandal” and wanted me to help him produce a book on the story. First of all, he didn’t divulge where he had heard about me, which made me suspicious. He “couldn’t remember” where he got my name. Somehow, I don’t think I had a following in Alaska! I also had never done any investigative reporting, so wouldn’t have known where to start (this was before the Internet). And there was also no way to investigate the background of the person wanting to hire me, and I felt that I needed to know something about his credibility before I committed time to his “cause.”

One unusual request was conducting surveys over the phone. An editor friend of mine was doing it to earn extra money, so she asked me to help out. Uh-uh! No way did I relish interrupting people during dinner to ask them mindless questions that I wouldn’t have cared to answer.

There were other projects that were turned down for various reasons, often because I simply didn’t know anything about the client. My reputation was on the line, so that was my major concern before tackling a particular project. And to protect my reputation, I had to have enough knowledge about what was being asked of me so that I knew I could do a good job.

In your writing career, you will probably be asked to participate in a number of projects that are foreign to you, and you’ll be able to research and learn how to produce them. So much can be learned from reading, and now, on the Internet. But if you don’t feel comfortable, don’t be embarrassed to turn it down. And if you’re uncomfortable for any reason with the person hiring you, you’ll probably be better off turning him (or her) down. Or charge double!

I had one client that I just didn’t like from the moment I met him. No real reason except he seemed to be much more impressed with himself than I could imagine anyone else being. I decided to take his project on, but I charged him double the going rate and required one-half down. Then I rushed out and cashed his check before I started work on his project. Well guess what—he never paid the rest of the invoice when I finished the work. He was indeed a sleaze-bag, but it only proved that I had been right in my assessment of him in the first place. And I actually got all of my fee upfront, so I didn’t lose anything. The extra fee that I might have been paid maybe would have reimbursed me for the annoyance of working with him!

And there was the guy I interviewed for the newspaper who had previously had some kind of run-in with a neo-Nazi group, but he didn’t want me to mention that (Wonder why? And wonder why he bothered to tell me?). Then the newspaper I was writing the article for got a threat if the article was printed. No problem! They killed the story and I went on to write another article for them. I had to wonder who the threat was from, or if I was being followed and that’s how the caller knew I had interviewed the subject, or if the interview subject chickened out and didn’t want his name mentioned in the paper? Creepy.

When writers first start out, or if business is slow, it’s tempting to take on every job that comes along and be happy for the work. And since I’ve always been adventurous, I could have easily been led down some dangerous paths if my mother’s warnings hadn’t been implanted deep in my brain. When that little voice in my head warned me that something wasn’t right, I always paid attention.

Not everyone is weird

For the most part, writing has been the most wonderful, exhilarating work I’ve ever done. It has led to places I probably would never have gone on my own, provided an introduction to people I probably never would have met otherwise, and filled my life with rewarding experiences that have completed my life in a way that never could have been possible.

If you are hesitating about getting started writing, make this the day that you decide to do it. Make a to-do list about what you need to get going, then stick to it. And if you get some strange requests from time to time, realistically consider them. Don’t pass on something that can lead to better things, even if you have to do some research before you get started.

Most writing consists of producing articles for legitimate magazines, newspapers, or online news organizations or newsletters, or it will be for legitimate businesses in your hometown. Either way, you can usually count on receiving professional treatment and pay without any hassles.

Standin' on the corner in Winslow, Arizona.






A mural painted on a building behind the statue shows the girl in the flat-bed Ford slowing down to look back at the musician.

Winslow, Arizona – A song made it famous, and now the town is capitalizing on the song!

If you’ve ever traveled across the country on old Route 66, or you’ve taken the Winslow exit off I-40, you may remember the town of Winslow as a dusty, sleepy gas and food stop on the l-o—o-o-n-g trip through that part of Arizona. Certainly there wasn’t much of anything that would capture anyone’s interest in town.

Today, though, it has been spruced up. One of its newest features is a sculpture and a painted mural on a street corner that brings back fond memories of The Eagles and their song, “Take it Easy.” The words, “Standing on the corner in Winslow, Arizona, such a fine sight to see” put Winslow on the map a few decades ago. That street corner, pictured above, now features a sculpture by Ron Adamson, presumably of a member of the Eagles group with his guitar. Behind it is a mural by John Pugh that looks like a reflection in the window of a business. There, immortalized for all to see, is the girl in the flat-bed Ford (from the song) who is slowing down to take a look back at the statue.

If you love Eagles music, you’ll recognize the scene. The corner park is a fine tribute to the song because the mural that captures the essence of the song is top quality and very realistic. It causes viewers to quickly glance around to see if a girl in a flat-bed Ford is actually driving by.
Besides the famous corner, La Posada Hotel, a Fred Harvey hotel built in 1929, is being restored to its original grandeur and is worth a visit to see the magnificent design of Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter.

There are also some natural scenic wonders in the vicinity of Winslow, including Meteor Crater, where a giant meteor crashed to earth about 50,000 years ago and created a huge depression more than 4,000 feet across with a force estimated at greater than twenty million tons of TNT. There are also the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest nearby. Now I’ll have to admit that the first time I saw those two areas, I wasn’t very impressed, but then again, I saw them under the harsh sun of a cloudless November day when it was cold, windy and basically uncomfortable. And there is no standing forest, in case you wonder about the petrified trees. Instead, broken logs lie scattered on the ground, but they are indeed petrified wood.

Arizona is full of natural wonders, and there’s something for everyone—whether you like forests, mountains, deserts, or simply enjoy the many activities the State offers. I’ll be writing about some of the other “wonders” that you can see or participate in within the borders of Arizona, including panning for gold.

Blogs & Websites: Keywords and Links

Blogs and Websites serve the purpose of providing useful information to viewers as well as promoting your writing skills. But if you don’t get any viewers and no one knows that your site(s) exist, your time will be wasted. People must be able to find your blog and/or Website, and it is up to you to direct them to your site.

Keywords help Internet users find your site. First of all you’ll use “Metatags” when you set up your site—which are hidden descriptions and keywords for search engines to pick up. Then after you create your keywords, you’ll need to update them occasionally to reflect any changes you might make to your site.

To create keywords, you’ll need to find the location of that function on the toolbar of your Webpage software program. Mine falls under “File,” “Properties,” “Keywords,” but yours might be listed under other headings.

To make it easier to come up with keywords, go to other Websites similar to yours and see what words they have used. If you use Internet Explorer to search the Internet, you’ll find the place where keywords are listed in the toolbar under “View,” then “Source,” or it might be under “Page" then "View Source.” There under something called “meta description,” “meta keywords,” or something similar you can list the words that people searching the Internet would use to find your site.

The other important step you need to take to get viewers to your site is to provide and exchange links. If you’re familiar with sites that are related to yours, or that provide additional information that might be of interest to your readers, provide a link to those sites. On my software program, I go to “Insert,” then to “Hyperlink” to add links.

It’s also a good idea to ask the owners of sites that are similar to yours or that your viewers might logically also go to, if you can exchange links. Some site owners are happy to do this while others might be afraid of losing their viewers to your site, so won’t exchange links.

Be sure to read the instructions for your Website design software to learn as much as you can so that you can take full advantage of all its features. If you set up a blog, the instructions are usually fairly comprehensive and are easy to follow.

Contest

Subscribers are eligible to win a book on writing or a book on newsletter publishing by being the first two to answer a simple question. Not a subscriber? Subscribe by writing the word "subscribe" and sending your name and email address to: portable . writer @ yahoo.com (leave out the spaces), and you will be eligible to enter contests I run from time to time.

Writing Your Memoir

There is one writing project that everybody should feel compelled to undertake for their family and heirs, and that’s a memoir.

How I wish my grandmother and grandfather had left a written record of their lives. Yes, they told me stories, but I was the typical disinterested kid. It wasn’t cool to let them know I cared. Almost anything took precedence over their tales from the past.

Still, some part of the stories seeped into the corners of my mind. In later years, when someone brought up the name of someone named B.J. in my grandmother’s hometown and wondered if he had been her relative, I could answer with almost certainty because I remembered hearing her call him Uncle B.J. When my grandfather told of walking miles to court my grandmother, somehow I also remembered later where he had said they both lived. These facts weren’t important to me as a teenager, but they became important when later the family would get together and try to recall family tales. But we couldn’t verify anything because, unfortunately, my grandparents were no longer around to ask.

Most people don’t seem to realize that their story has value for anyone but themselves, but once you are gone, only your memory lives on. Very rarely are your stories recalled with any accuracy. How will your grandchildren know what life was like for you growing up as a teenager? How can they fathom the differences between transportation, school, clothing fads, or technology? Sure you might try to tell them about these things, but they probably feign disinterest in hearing about the “old ways,” and instead prefer plugging the earpiece of their MP3 players into their ears and tuning you out. But if you’ve put it all in writing, there will come a day when they pick up your memoir and read it. Often you’re no longer around when they decide to start asking questions about the family and the past. Your memoir may be their only connection to these stories.

Your memoir can enrich your family’s sense of connection to the past by weaving in old family stories as well as your own life story.

But you wonder, “Where do I start?”

The easiest way to get started is to jot down snatches of memories. Write down your recollection of eating an ice cold snow cone and having it drip down the front of your shirt on a hot, sticky day at a little league game. Jot down a note about your first car, and how it didn’t have reverse gear, so you had to park it where you could drive forward to get out. Make a note about the bunking parties you remember (now called sleepovers), who was there, and what you did to have fun. If your family had a garden, make a note about it and what was planted there, whether you helped till the soil or pick the fruits and vegetables, whether you ate them there in the garden or made it to the house with them uneaten. Note the simple things, which will probably spark more memories and become cherished stories.

These notes don’t have to be in any order. Later, you can organize your list in a way that makes sense for your memoir. The notes can be divided by age or by activity or family gatherings. Your memoir can start at the beginning and end at the present time, or it can start with some significant memory and go either backwards or forward, or it can start right now and work backwards. There’s no hard or fast rule about how memoirs are organized, so write it however you wish.

Another way to organize your thoughts and make sure you leave nothing out is to start a list of topics in the middle of a blank page, such as parents, siblings, extended family members, school memories, parties, dances, sports activities, first date, double-dating, first kiss, first boy or girlfriend, significant movies you remember seeing, first car, first bicycle, your neighborhood friends, games you played together, getting married, having babies, etc.

Circle each topic, then draw a line out from each and start a related list, such as: school memories—name(s) of school(s), first day of school, favorite teacher, favorite subjects, playground memories, getting in trouble, school plays or programs, friends, etc. This type of information gathering expands out, and will help you recall lost memories. Write about your parents: your mother’s favorite dress, how she wore her hair, her scent, favorite foods that she cooked; your dad’s work clothes, what he did for a living, how he smelled when he came home, the sound of his car as he drove in the driveway, the smell of grass as he (or you) mowed the lawn. It’s important to recall how you felt about specific moments: sad, happy, or overjoyed; whether you laughed, cried, or wailed; whether you were frightened or confident.

The above system can also be used for organizing someone else’s life story, even those who have hired you to write their memoirs. Everyone collects a lifetime of experiences, almost any of which will make an interesting story. Find ways to ferret out the most significant memories.

My sister was only 56 when she passed away—shortly after her first two grandchildren were born, so the only memories they have of her are from watching old videos in which she appeared. Mostly, though, she took the videos and didn’t have a starring role. When her third grandchild was born, I realized she had never even met her grandmother, so I sat down and wrote a memoir for all three of her grandchildren and titled it, “When Grammy Was a Little Girl.”

Since my sister was a year younger than me, I had memories of her when she was very young, plus photos and stories told by our mother and aunt. We played together, laughed and cried together, fought with each other, and shared most important life experiences until we became older teenagers. Her best friend from high school told me of activities that added depth to her school day stories. Still, I couldn’t recall all the memories she might have thought important to leave her grandchildren, and I probably remembered some things she would rather her grandchildren not know!

I’ll never know what she would have wanted, but her grandkids do now have a book with photos of her as a little girl and teenager, and stories about her life that hopefully brings her closer to them. I ended the book with her meeting and marrying their granddad. Even though she and I spent less time together after we both married, we still managed to share some funny, poignant, crazy and sad times even as we aged—some that her grandchildren might enjoy hearing someday.

Life can slip away before we know it, so make sure you get your memories down on paper as soon as possible. Even if you don’t think anyone cares about them, your written story will charm someone, somewhere, and will be a lasting record of your time spent here on earth.

The scene around Mount St. Helens, which still shows the river filled with mudflow, even after 24 years.








Okay, so this is not Geraldo, but I would have been shooting directly into the sun to snap his picture. The mountain was spewing steam at this moment, and officials as well as national news networks were anxiously watching the activity on the mountain.


Mount St. Helen’s Volcano

Right now a volcano in Alaska is threatening to erupt, and who knows when it will or what damage it might do to the surrounding area and the environment. However, we only have to look at Mt. St. Helens in Washington State to see the type of destruction that can happen.

We visited St. Helens a few years after its devastating blast in 1980, when more than 200 square miles of Douglas Fir forests disappeared beneath mud, and trees lay fallen where they had stood. The scene was beyond eerie.

In 2004, we once again visited the mountain to see if anything had changed. It still looks otherworldly, like a scene straight off the Moon’s surface. But now there are signs of regeneration on surrounding hills and mountains. Trees are sprouting, and manmade visitor centers and overlooks have popped up on nearby viewing sites. But even today, not all is safe or perfect there.

On the day we went, the mountain was threatening to erupt once again. It continuously puffed steam and the ground trembled, even as thousands of visitors, including us, drove up to get a close-up view of the action. Dozens of national network news vans with satellites on top were there filming the activity. We got out and wandered around Johnston Ridge, an observatory and visitor center named for the young volcanologist who lost his life reporting on the pending eruption back in 1980. In all, 57 people lost their lives on that picture-perfect spring day that quickly turned into night when ash and terror filled the skies.

I know some of you must wonder why we would go see the mountain while the seismometer was registering heavy earthquake activity. We were staying nearby in an RV resort and figured we were goners if it erupted, whether we remained there or went up on the mountain. The activity did hasten our departure from the area, though.

At Johnston Ridge, we watched the seismometer bounce up and down to the rhythm of the mountain’s burps, and then headed into the theater to view the horrifying big screen movie of the eruption in 1980. As the curtains parted following the movie to reveal a stunning view of what remains of Mount St. Helens, newscaster Geraldo Rivera walked by.

Mount St. Helens is an easy drive east of I-5, between Portland and Seattle, and is a fascinating site to visit since you can look directly into the north flank of the mountain, much of which disappeared during the volcanic blast. In the United States, there is no volcano site other than Hawaii that reveals the process of regeneration that can be observed there. Visit the Web site at: http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/mshnvm/

The Brass Tacks of Formatting a Manuscript

When I first started writing for publication, things were pretty straightforward. Everyone used a typewriter, and while some of us toiled away on a trusty little portable, others speedily whipped out articles on a big fancy IBM electric that did everything but think (or so we thought at the time). Still, they were all basically the same as far as setting margins, etc., and we weren’t using a variety of word processing software programs to confuse us and the publisher. Now it’s different.

Whether you are writing a book or a magazine article, if you will be submitting it to a publisher, you must know how to format it. Most publishers will send you guidelines for submitting to them, but sometimes the instructions leave out some small point that writers tend to get hung up on. Guidelines might say margins should be set as follows: Top – 1-1/2 inch, sides – 1-1/4 inch, bottom – 2 inches, but they don’t explain what the first page should look like, or they don’t tell how big the top margin should be when starting a new chapter, as for a book. And they don’t tell how to number subsequent pages and identify them. Often they expect you to know these things. Another thing guidelines will not tell you is how to set your margins in your particular word processing program, because editors have no way of knowing what you use.

So how do you go about learning these things?

Well, here’s a start. All magazine manuscripts should have a similar front page, with your **REAL name, address, telephone number, and cell phone number in the top, left hand corner. The guidelines from the publisher might ask for your social security number, especially if you are getting an assignment, so put it below your phone number. If enclosing photos with your ms., type in number of photos enclosed, if any, below the phone numbers. And be sure to identify and number all of your photos on the back with a return address label, and type a sheet identifying each one with a caption.

**(Use your real name on your ms. so the check will be made out to that name and you can get it cashed. However, I often get checks made out to Kay Kennedy, and I simply sign that way, then below it, sign with my real name which appears on my identification and my bank account.)

The top right hand corner, 1st line should tell how many words in your manuscript. I always count the words and then write “appx. xxx words,” simply in case I might be a few words off. The 2nd line should tell what rights you are selling (1st N. American rights, second serial rights, etc), and the 3rd line should show: © 2009, your name. Okay, this last line is questionable since a few editors take offense at authors showing that their article is copyrighted. However, I still include it. If an editor gets upset, that is probably an editor I don’t care to work with anyway.

Next, you should drop down to about 1/3 of the page and center your title. Beneath the title put your name, centered, such as: by Kay Kennedy. This is where you would use your pen name if it is not the same as your given name, because you want your name to appear here as it will in the magazine.

Unless you are sending an unsolicited book manuscript to a publisher, you should receive guidelines on how the layout should appear. Since there are many different ways of doing it, depending on whether you’re sending a hard copy or electronic one, I can’t even attempt to explain a system for book formatting here.

Now, as for laying out your article ms. page, every program is different, as are different versions of Microsoft Word. But somewhere at the top of your page will appear the word “page layout.” Click on that and you’ll find the place to set your margins. You may also want to select the font you wish to use. Do not use “courier” since that is what was used on typewriters. Editors would rather see something like “Times Roman,” which you will find on the list when you click “fonts.”

In my current MS Word software program, I choose line spacing under the word “paragraph” on the “page layout” page. You’ll see a place to choose “line spacing,” where you can click on “double” to get double line spacing.

Realize that although you have chosen a title and sent in a specific number of words, the title will likely be changed by the editor, and entire sections of your manuscript might be cut.

Confused? I hope not, but if any of you have questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I’ve been doing this so long that it’s automatic, and I might leave out something important without realizing it.

Because of the formatting limits of this blog, I cannot show an example of the correct manuscript formatting here, so if you are not a subscriber, you may contact me at portable . writer @ yahoo.com (don't use spaces between the words in email address) and I will send you a copy of the newsletter by email.

Scam Warning

I found this warning for a scam in WritersWeekly. It is one that many freelance writers would find attractive. Don’t become caught in its web. Go to: http://www.writersweekly.com/this_weeks_article/005040_11192008.html, to read the article that almost entrapped one writer. By the way, any writer hoping to make a living doing what they love should read Angela Hoy’s weekly newsletter, writersweekly, which always offers good advice and has lots of excellent articles. Be sure to click on “articles” at the top of the page to check out past articles that might be of interest to you.

Ways Writers Can Contribute During Recession

The following few lines originally appeared in an article on networking in Portable Writing Newsletter back in Jan. 2007. It seems appropriate to take an excerpt from that article to fit the current economic situation. As writers, we all have the ability to make a positive contribution to our communities. On the other hand, if our own situation seems dire, we have within us the ability to improve our situation. Sometimes, while doing one, we’re also doing the other: that is, helping ourselves while helping others. The excerpt follows:

“Most people love to help people. It’s inbred, in our blood.

And maybe that’s a good lesson for all of us to remember this holiday season. Perhaps you can’t give time or money to help someone less fortunate, but you can always give someone a leg up by recommending they call you later, or suggesting they call a friend who might can help them achieve their goals or dreams. People don’t always need a handout; they may simply need a helping hand up.

What goes around, comes around. Every time you help someone else, it will eventually come back to you. Look at life that way and your in-basket will always be overflowing.”

Okay, so what else, besides giving money or donating canned goods, pet food or clothes, can you do to make life better for others. First of all, you could volunteer a couple of hours a week or make it a one-time shot to a charitable organization or your church. Food banks are seeing higher demand than they can meet, animal shelters are finding their kennels overflowing with abandoned animals as more and more people lose their homes, churches are having more people turn to them for help and spiritual guidance during tough times, thrift shops are reaching record sales as people seek out clothing bargains.

There are many ways you can help out any of these organizations, such as donating time, supplies, and/or money, but as a writer, you can offer to produce a newsletter, flyers, short articles for the local newspaper, inventory lists, or even maintain their membership list. There are numerous ways to put your writing and computer skills to use in almost any type of charitable organization. If your favorite charity doesn’t offer something that fits your skills, be ready to suggest a way to make yourself useful that involves using your writing talents.

Maybe you have life skills that would be useful to overwhelmed families, and could offer to teach classes in budgeting for a family, planning and cooking economical meals, writing a resumé, job interviewing skills, sewing and mending clothes, or starting a small home-based business. People are searching for ways to make their income stretch further, and useful skills that we might take for granted could possibly change the lives of some of those less fortunate. Writers generally have the ability to organize ideas and create useful courses on a variety of subjects, incorporating skills they’ve learned from raising a family or working at a variety of jobs. We all tend to think that what we’ve done isn’t that important, but we all know things that others would love to learn.

Your life will be enriched by the people you meet while volunteering, and you’ll receive other wonderful benefits, including improved mental and physical health from the simple act of helping someone else. Another benefit could come from the people you meet while volunteering. Many busy executives and their families volunteer, and it’s possible you’ll meet someone who is impressed with your dedication and talent, and will recommend you to one of their business associates. That, of course, could lead to an increase in your writing income.

Those of us who are fortunate to have good health, a roof over our heads, plenty to eat, and a lifetime of experiences, no matter what our age or background, all have something useful to give to others, especially in times like these.

Remember: good things come from doing good things for others.

Find the Real Old West in Oatman, Arizona

When I started this newsletter, I used to include a short story on fun places to visit, especially since traveling is the reason for RVing. So this time, I’ve decided to include an article about a place on old Route 66, which many of you have probably never heard about before.

If you take off on old Route 66 to the West, just outside Kingman, AZ, you can’t miss the little ghost town of Oatman. When we made the trip, we left out motorhome behind in Kingman. This section of Route 66 is not a road over which you want to drive your big RV, nor is there a place in the ghost town to park your rig. The road there is narrow and winding, plus it does some climbing. This town is also easily reached within an hour or so from Needles, CA, Laughlin, NV and Bullhead City, AZ, but the 25 mile road to Bullhead City is unpaved, although well graded.

You’ll know you’ve reached Oatman when you spot burros meandering down the street and along the wooden sidewalks. These are descendants of the original beasts of burden that were brought in to help miners back in the town’s heyday, and then were turned loose to fend for themselves when the miners left. The original burros and their descendants quickly learned to beg for food. Today they come down from the surrounding hills each morning to solicit food from friendly tourists and shop owners, and have no fear of poking their heads through doorways if they think a friendly handout might await them there. Most shops sell carrots to feed the burros.

Oatman was founded in the 1800s, then hit it big in 1915 when a gold strike worth $10 million drew 3500 people to the area. A narrow-guage railroad served Oatman for a short while, but the town died more than once as first, the gold played out, then later when Interstate 40 drew tourists and travelers away from the old highway and the town. The Oatman Hotel was made famous by the honeymoon stopover of Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, famous ‘30s movie actors, on March 18, 1939. Tourists who remember them still ask to see the room where they stayed.

Today, Oatman is still an active place on weekends, where staged gunfights take place on the main street. Prospectors still comb the area in search of gold, especially since gold prices have reached record levels during this past year. And you might recognize some familiar scenes from western movies like How the West Was Won.

The trip to Oatman is a perfect, picturesque journey into the past, and a glimpse into the true Old West.

A Recession is the Best Time to Build Your Writing Business

Because we are definitely in the middle of a recession and many businesses are feeling desperate, marketing is essential. This applies to all businesses, including yours, especially now that many businesses have closed their doors because they could no longer afford the overhead. You can stay in business because you can write at home, so no additional overhead. What could be better? But you want to make sure clients and prospects know you are in business.

I first started my writing business in the middle of the ‘80s economic downturn. I didn’t really hope to make much money at first, if ever, but I figured it was a good time for on-the-job training. How could I know my business would snowball, especially knowing that so many businesses were shutting down every day, and so many people becoming unemployed as their companies merged with others. What I didn’t realize at first was that many of those unemployed were deciding to start their own businesses. That’s what they did then, and it is likely what thousands of the currently unemployed will do now. And what an opportunity that presents to writers!

Back then, I joined a couple of business organizations that met regularly to network and exchange business leads. Each meeting would include a speaker who would speak on a topic that would interest attendees. Also, everybody present would stand up and introduce themselves and tell a little about their own business. The leader of the meetings would encourage everyone to think of possible leads for each person in attendance. That was where many of my clients came from—either the meetings themselves or somebody would give me the name of a friend in business that needed my services.

I also gave talks at some of the meetings about press releases and a number of other marketing tools that I produced for clients. I stressed that a recession was no time to stop marketing, and that those in attendance should definitely keep their names before the public while their competitors were ducking into their shells to await an economic upswing or their eventual demise, whichever came first.

Those networking meetings, plus some other marketing tactics I used meant that when anyone in the metropolitan area of thousands of businesses needed the services of a writer, many were bound to think of my business. When they needed someone to write a proposal, a brochure, an article for the newspaper or a magazine, or effective business letters, my business was often the one they called. I wrote a regular business column for the business newspaper, which also got me leads and kept my name before the public. But even if I hadn’t stumbled upon that opportunity, I would have offered to write articles for the newspaper for free.

You could research a topic relevant to the business community and write an article on that. I can remember writing about banking, office design, environmentally friendly offices, and of course, marketing for businesses. For the articles that didn’t pay, I made sure that my name, business name, and phone number appeared at the end. Free advertising in exchange for my articles, what could be better?

So if you are just starting out, or worrying that you won’t get much business during this recession, here’s what you can do. First of all, attend a meeting of local business networking groups, and then join if they look promising. Maybe there is a homebased business group near you, or another group that focuses on exchanging leads. If not, why not start your own?

Approach your local newspaper with some business article ideas. If your community has a business newspaper, they almost always welcome articles in exchange for free publicity. Research topics and make notes for future article ideas to impress the editor or publisher. You could write about home offices, marketing material for businesses, marketing on a budget, leasing commercial office space, or any other subject that would interest typical business owners. The list is endless, and who knows, you could end up getting paid for writing them.

A recession means opportunities for writers who can turn a marketing message into magic. That would be you, dear writers! While I know the holiday season means that you may be too busy for awhile to be very productive, it still would be a good time to start compiling lists of ideas to pursue immediately after the holidays, and researching some topics that you might want to write about.

Hey, this might also be the right time to check out some business meetings to see if they're planning some holiday parties where you can mingle and start building credibility. Of course, other than your waistline, the party treats never hurt, either.

Earn a Great Living as a Ghostwriter of Books
Based on a chapter in the book, Portable Writing by Kay Kennedy

Back in the ‘80s, I met someone who had turned her talent for writing into a successful career writing books for people who were willing to pay $25,000-$30,000 to have their story written. That’s in addition to the thousands they would then pay to have the book printed and bound. I’m not talking about celebrities, here. These would be books about ordinary people, like your neighbors and friends. And this is a field that is wide open for willing writers.

First of all, everyone has a life story to tell, and for every story there is a waiting and willing audience—which might only be a spouse, children, grandchildren, relatives and friends. No story is as treasured as the one passed down from generation to generation, yet most people leave very little behind except snapshots and perhaps a handful of letters and yellowed, brittle news clippings, and some material objects as evidence of their time spent on earth. Their joyful times, lessons learned, difficulties encountered and overcome, and a lifetime of wisdom are lost forever when they pass on. Everyone’s memories are priceless to someone, and as a writer, you can help preserve their stories for future generations.

One of those people wanting their life story told could be your neighbor who is nearing the end of his or her life and wants to produce a record of family history, successes, triumphs and tragedies, and all the changes that have taken place over the years. Your client might be a couple down the street or in your church about to celebrate a milestone anniversary. It could be that favorite teacher or college professor, or your minister who had an influence on thousands of people, but who doesn’t feel equipped to write a book. Or it might be the successful head of a company who wants to memorialize his business and its influence in his community. Maybe he wants to pass on knowledge of starting and operating a business venture like his.

And it could be the executive director of a non-profit organization who succeeded in spite of overcoming great odds, and wants her family, friends, and others to know about her struggles to achieve her career goals. It could also be someone who has great technical experience and wants to produce a how-to book, but doesn’t know how to organize thoughts or put words to paper.

The ghostwriter I met in the ‘80s earned $50,000-60,000 per year from the two books, on average, that she produced. Most ghostwriters could expect to make much more today depending on the size of book projects tackled. The most difficult task is in finding those who want their story told and have the money to pay, but believe me, they’re out there and ready and willing to use your services.

Ordinary people who want their stories told

Here’s how to find those people you might know who would want to have a book written about their lives.

1. First of all, writers must market their services. To start with, produce a simple but eloquent brochure that spells out why clients would want their story told, then explains how you would turn their memories into an interesting and intelligent story.

A simple typed brochure printed on both sides of 8-1/2” by 13” paper and folded in half, like a booklet, would be sufficient. It doesn’t have to include photos or graphics, unless you want to include a photo of yourself on the back side with a compilation of your writing experience. Then make sure you distribute copies at your church, or at any non-profit organization where you volunteer. You might reach some interested clients by teaching classes at retirement homes to help retirees write their own stories. Some will probably want to turn that chore over to you, the expert. And I’ll bet that if they don’t want or can’t afford your services, many of them will know someone who will. Tell people what you do, and be prepared to answer questions.

2. When you get your first project, draw up a contract that specifies when you are to be paid and how much. Ask for at least one-third retainer fee, with one-third due upon completion of interviewing and research, then the final one-third due on completion of the manuscript. Set a time limit in your contract with your clients so that you and they have clear expectations of when the job will be completed.

You may or may not be involved in finding a printer and handling the submission of the manuscript to the printer, or you might only want to produce the manuscript and let your client take care of the printing details. If so, it would be helpful to learn how to format the book on your computer and give a printed copy plus a copy on disk to your client so all they have to do is send it to their printer. Or if a client only wants a few copies (say under 10), then you might want to have the copies printed by a local printer as wire-bound soft cover copies. Be sure to charge for those copies.

3. Outline of the types of information they might want included. Include memory joggers like school memories; birthdays and other celebrations; young adult and adult memories such as role models, going away to college, first job, first car, marriage, children, first home, holiday memories and traditions, and any other ideas that would make wonderful stories for family and friends.

Expand the list to include everything that might help your client provide you with more information, including what they’ve learned that they wish to pass on to their heirs. Have your client pull out old photographs and go through them, recalling memories of the people and events pictured. Ask your clients to tell how things have changed in their lifetimes. Suggest that they include a family tree to help descendants picture their place in the family.

Business clients

For business clients, obviously your questionnaire would include different questions such as when they started their business, how they came up with the idea, how the start-up was financed, etc. It might or might not include the personal information mentioned above.

Another type of book you might ghostwrite would be a technical or how-to book for someone who has knowledge and skills, but doesn’t know how to organize and write a book. If this is the type of client you prefer to attract, your brochure should appear more professional and focus on information that would appeal to a business-oriented person. You would still spell out what you do, but focus on how your skills would benefit your client (i.e., promote business, build credibility, etc.). This type of client might want to self-publish a book or look for a publisher, so that would be a consideration that might affect whether you want to pursue the job or not since it might involve having you find the publisher for your client.

Freelance rewards

Ghostwriting is only one type of freelance writing that might appeal to you. It offers its rewards, such as getting to know people with interesting stories to tell. As you can see, it helps if the writer knows a little bit about a lot of things, such as marketing, outlining, formatting a book, and printing, but these are topics that are easily learned from books. Ghostwriting is a profitable avenue that you might pursue while you are also writing your own great novel.

Remember, this is your livelihood, and you’re providing a great service for your clients. Don’t undersell yourself, even in the beginning. Realize that it might take longer than six months for you to produce your first book project, so you won’t be making the high hourly rates that you’ll receive once you have some experience under your belt. Once you have some experience, your name will become known and clients will start seeking you out to write their life stories.

Enjoy the process. While you’re writing about someone else’s life remember: your life is also being invested into the project. Make it into a wonderful, memorable experience and make it pay!

Lower Gas Prices Mean More People RVing this Winter

Gas prices have finally returned to a level that puts more people in the mood to travel. Canadians are especially finding RVing more enticing this year, and we are meeting lots of them in the park this winter. Many have not been here before.

For awhile, some RVers were hanging up their keys and trying to unload their gas-guzzling rigs, and while many are still wary of taking long trips, other are breathing a big sigh of relief and making plans to hit the road for an extensive vacation.

I can remember the early seventies, when gas suddenly spiked from an average 30 cents per gallon to around 65 cents per gallon. Sixty-five cents sounds cheap now, doesn’t it? But back then, we watched gas prices double in a very short period of time, and that was scary. What was even worse back then was that many gas stations closed, and those that didn’t had long lines because of gas rationing. We could only buy gas (according to numbers on our license plates) on certain days of the week. At that time, I drove hundreds of miles every week for my job, and in many unfamiliar neighborhoods, which often left me wondering if I would make it back to the studio, or home each day.

Then in the late seventies, early eighties, the same thing happened again. Gas was in short supply and expensive. I was still traveling hundreds of miles a week, and again everyone, including me, freaked out. I even changed hairdressers to cut down on miles.

The main thing I remember during both of those crises, though, was that RVs were practically being given away because owners thought they could no longer afford to travel!

Lesson learned: gas prices will go up, and sometimes they’ll go back down. Drivers, and especially RVers, will always react with alarm when they see their lifestyle threatened. None of us knows how long lower gas prices will hold this time, but it’s certain that they’ll go back up.

RVers learn to adapt. We either cut back on driving when prices get high, or we adjust our budgets to accommodate higher prices and keep going. The economy looks really bleak right now, and no one knows how soon it will right itself. None of us knows what will happen next. But I’m certain that no matter what, some RVers will continue hitting the road as long as they can get fuel, and as long as their budgets will allow.