Writing Inrochester

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The 188 stage Hero’s Journey (Monomyth) is the template upon which the vast majority of successful stories and Hollywood blockbusters are based upon. In fact, ALL of the hundreds of Hollywood movies we have deconstructed (see URL below) are based on this 188 stage template.

Understanding this template is a priority for story or screenwriters. This is the template you must master if you are to succeed in the craft.

[The terminology is most often metaphoric and applies to all successful stories and screenplays, from The Godfather (1972) to Brokeback Mountain (2006) to Annie Hall (1977) to Lord of the Rings (2003) to Drugstore Cowboy (1989) to Thelma and Louise (1991) to Apocaplyse Now (1979)].

THERE IS ONLY ONE STORY

THE 188 STAGE HERO’S JOURNEY:

a) Attempts to tap into unconscious expectations the audience has regarding what a story is and how it should be told.

b) Gives the writer more structural elements than simply three or four acts, plot points, mid point and so on.

c) Gives you a tangible process for building and releasing dissonance (establishing and achieving catharses, of which there are usually four).

d) Tells you what to write. For example, at a certain stage of the story, the focus should be on the Call to Adventure and the micro elements within.

ABRIDGED TIPS, EXCERPTS AND EXAMPLES:

(simply go to screenplay-structure.com/ or story-structure.org/ for full details)

*****New Creatures of the Belly of the Whale*****

The Belly of the Whale is a world unto its own. Consequently New (unfamiliar), threatening creatures are not unusual. In Straw Dogs (1971), David arrives home to find ratboy and Cawsey.

*****Seizing the Sword*****

Seizure. The Hero takes the Sword. In Star Wars (1977), Luke rescues Leia. In The Matrix (1999), Neo rescues Morpheus. In Dances with Wolves (1999), John and Stands with a Fist kiss and make love. In Spartacus (1960), Spartacus and Varinia have a baby.

*****Magic Flight*****

This is very often, but not always, expressed as a running from Antagonisms and has an air of the supernatural about it. In Bonnie and Clyde (1967), the guy in the café calls the police, the cops raid the house and they all run.

*****Mentor’s Capabilities Demonstrated*****

The Mentor must often demonstrate his (or her) capabilties. This occurs on a number of occasions, including within the walls of the Outer Cave of the First Threshold. In Star Wars (1977), Ben uses the light sabre to chop off the criminal’s arm. In Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Clyde robs the store.

*****Magical Gift*****

The Mentor most often provides the Hero with a Magical Gift (In Wall Street (1987), Carl Fox simply gives Bud Fox some money). But the criteria is satisfied if the Magical Gift is simply made explicit. In Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Clyde shows Bonnie his gun.

Learn more…

WRITE THAT SCREENPLAY!

The Complete 188 stage Hero’s Journey and other story structure templates can be found at monomyth.info/ monomyth.info/

188 stages of the Hero’s Journey can also be reached from heros-journey.info/ heros-journey.info/

You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

Kal Bishop, MBA

**********************************

You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made, the author’s name is retained and the link to our site URL remains active.

There she sits by the window. Alone in the home that used to be theirs. Alone with her thoughts, way too many thoughts. Staring out the window, she pushes the curtain back further to get a better glimpse of the ominous cloud that hangs over her home. The cloud, so dark and filled with so much, just seems to sit there not moving at all. She tries to move from the window and the scene which now has captivated her for hours, almost crippling her thoughts. She tells herself that she needs to stop looking, but she just can’t take her eyes off of the cloud in the sky. So large and black, yet somehow so inviting. As though it were calling to her to just stay at the window and watch longer.

She begins to cry, as does the cloud. One tear wells up in the corner of her brown eye and then, with the blink of her eye, falls slowly down her solemn face. The tears first fall with almost a grace to them. They are slow, much like those that fall from the cloud outside. Her tears are warm on her lips, much like his arms were when he truly loved her. Loved. A word that is now used in a past tense form. A word that used to mean everything, now means nothing more than the paper on which their marriage license was written on. It has become an empty word, at least in their relationship. As she recalls the memories, her tears begin to fall much faster and without any reserve for the mascara that also now runs down her face. She steadily wipes the salty water away, but can no longer keep up with the pace that is now becoming steadier than the rain which falls outside.

The days in which she now lives have become such a silent period. She hates how the circumstances have silenced her. She was not always covered with such a heavy heart. There were days when she laughed so hard that it took her breath away. Much like the day that he sealed their vows with a kiss. Or the days when the butterflies would fly so furiously around in her, as though she were on a a carousel spinning so quickly, as she was awaiting his arrival home. An arrival that would no longer be the same now. He had made that clear to her. Her presence was no longer needed in his life.

She continues to look out the window, hoping that the cloud which not only covers her home but her heart, would just stop dropping the water that quenches the flowers thirst in her garden. The same cloud that continues to flood her heart with a sadness that can’t be quenched. Much like a wildfire that has raged out of control. An unwelcoming demon that won’t be stopped. One that just persists with such passion for destruction of everything in its path.

As the tears flow like the brook in the place that they hiked once together, she lifts her lips to show just a hint of a smile. She remembers for an instant the passion that they once shared. The way his hand felt in hers, and the strength of his arms around her. The arms that had sheltered her for so long from anything that would turn her smile into a frown. His were the ones that would hold her as she drew her last breath when they were old. She wonders how those same arms that were the pillar of her strength could just crumble beneath her. No longer the strength that would hold her up. No longer the loving crutch that she had come to rely upon.

Perhaps that was the key. The crutch. Perhaps she had let the wall down too far. She had sworn she would never need to rely on anyone. She was the strong one. The one who had to learn early in her life how to fight off the dragons. She was the pillar of strength for her younger siblings at a time when all of the dark creatures that penetrated her childhood home would come out. She had made a promise to never allow anyone to permeate her shield that saved her from the pain. But then He came along. Damn that promise that she didn’t keep! She allowed Him to step into the world that she only knew. And now, he was destroying all that which she had built. She no longer was the strong one. She learned to lean. And worse of all, she had let him become her crutch.

She lifts her eyes from the puddle that has now accumulated on the windowsill in which she sits. Her eyes a mirror image of the darkness that still covers her home. And, alone she sits by the window that is now covered with the rain that falls, not knowing for sure if it’s really raining outside, or if it’s her tears that have created such a visual blindness that won’t allow her to see the difference.

A paralegal turned stay-at-home mom to 3 kids ages 8, 6 and 3. Through various twists and turns in her own personal life, she brings to life characters and events that mimic ones own situations.

News writing style is just as important for sports reporting as it is for general news, business stories or any other journalistic work.

The advantage of sports writing is that you are allowed a little it more leeway in your choice of words. In crime or business writing, you are restricted in your use of adjectives and adverbs and are encouraged to focus more on nouns and verbs.

Sports writing, however, allows you to go to town in describing plays, the atmosphere, fans and other colorful aspects of a sporting event.

For this article, we will go through, step by step, how to write a straightforward sports report using quotes.

Ideally, any sports story would have quotes from the winners and losers. Indeed, many sports articles are written around what athletes say rather than what they have achieved on the field of play.

However, you also have sports articles written without quotes. When rookies learn how to write like a journalist, especially in sport, they are likely to come across the structure that we will show you here.

We will adapt the NBA game between Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers on April 1 as our example article.

1. Intro – the most important news aspect of a sports game is the score. Who won? How did they win and what effect did the victory have? Also important is whether we are writing from a Boston perspective or Cleveland. In this case, we will go with Cleveland.

“Cleveland Cavaliers lost 98-96 to the Boston Celtics after Delonte West’s sank two free throws in the final seconds, dropping three and a half games behind the Pistons for the best record in the Eastern Conference.”

2. More info – The above is enough for those who have a passing interest in the sport. However, NBA fans would want more information and you could give it to them in one or two paragraphs.

“The Cavaliers were without star player LeBron James, suffering from a knee injury, while the Celtics were minus Paul Pierce. Gerald Green led the way for Celtics with 25 points while Kendrick Perkins had 12 points and nine rebounds.

The Cavaliers, for whom Larry Hughes scored 24 with Sasha Pavlovic scoring 17, have already qualified for the play-offs while Boston are out of the running.”

3. Quote – This is where you can provide a quote from the coach or a key player from both teams. You can precede each saying with a lead-in paragraph or go straight into the quote.

“Celtic forward Al Jefferson, said: ‘They were missing their best player and we were missing our best play. We just stuck in there.’

Cavs coach Mike Brown said James’ absence was a key factor in their loss.

‘We miss LeBron. We miss LeBron every time he doesn’t play. He’s our guy,’ said Brown.”

4. The rest – Once you got the main information and key quotes out of the way, you can go on to describe the game. Even better would be to describe just one or two plays and include more quotes.

The thinking behind sports articles is that people would have watched the game on TV anyway and would not want boring game description. Therefore, quotes from the people who matter, such as athletes and coaches, would offer better reading value.

There are many types of sports newswriterspost.com/hardnews.html news writing that is offered around the world everyday. We have merely showed you its simplest form. Certainly, it is a rewarding form of newswriterspost.com news writing for journalists who love their sport. And the structure they use allow them to adapt their skills to any type of journalism writing.

Nazvi Careem is an experienced journalist, writer and writing coach who has written for newspapers, magazines and global news agencies such as Reuters, Associated Press and Agence France-Presse. To download a free extract from his book on the secrets to writing news, check out his website dedicated to newswriterspost.com/intropage.html news writing.

Raider of the Lost Ark follows the Hero’s Journey template…

• Introduce the Hero, his nature, his capabilities and his character in his Ordinary World [Indy in South America].

• Introduce the Shape Shifter [Belloq] and the Hero’s inner challenge [the snakes].

• Hero’s status [attractive to women]. Introduce a Mentor / Supernatural Aid . Develop Hero’s character.

• Heralds (government agents) bring the Call to Adventure . Develop the Hero’s suitability to embark on the adventure. Explicitly state the Call to Adventure.

• Warnings (a form of Refusal ) before embarking to the First Threshold [by the Mentor].

• Journey to the First Threshold . Pursued by the antagonist [the Germans].

• Introduce the character of the romantic challenge.

• Hero meets and conflicts with his romantic challenge.

• Develop the Antagonism [the Germans]. A Trial [Marion in danger]. Hero passes the Trial [rescues Marion].

• No Way Back [Marion's bar burns down].

• Belly of the Whale . Physical separation from the First Threshold [Marion will journey with Indy. On the plane].

• Road of Trials . Meeting with a new Mentor. Mentor guides the Hero [updates Indy]. Mentor warns the hero about the adventure.

• Pursued by the Antagonist [the monkey and the Germans].

• Separation. Enhance the hero’s back-story; Hero separates from romantic challenge. Conflict [Indy loses Marion].

• Feelings of loss at the separation.

• Meeting with the Shape Shifter and Antagonist. Appreciation of each other’s abilities. Polarization. Restatement of the challenges.

• Escape from the Antagonist. Saved by the Mentor.

• Meeting with the Oracle. Antagonist sets up an attack on the Hero.

• Meeting with the Goddess . Hero discovers the location of the Sword.

• Mentor saves the Hero from the Antagonist’s attack.

• Antagonist references the Reward. Polarization between the Antagonist and Shape Shifter.

• Hero travels to seize the Sword. Guardians [German soldiers] interfere, but are overcome.

• Hero seizes the Sword.

• Hero escapes from the Chamber of the Sword.

• Reward and Reattachment. Hero rejoins his romantic challenge [Indy finds Marion]. Comedic element [Indy leaves Marion tied up].

• Woman as Temptress. Hero prepares to embark on the Night Sea Journey [Indy prepares to dig for the Ark].

• Time pressure caused by the Antagonist [Nazis push Belloq].

• Night Sea Journey . The hero descends downwards stealthily and in the dead of night [Indy digs in the dead of night].

• Danger of the descent recognized. The danger relates to the Hero’s inner challenge [Serpents block the way].

• Shape Shifter pursues the Romantic Challenge; attempt to usurp the Hero’s prize [The Shape Shifter is an alternative hero; Belloq hits on Marion].

• Serpent Battle. Hero battles the serpent [Indy faces a Cobra - his inner challenge].

• Romantic Challenge refutes the advances of the Shape Shifter [Marion rejects Belloq].

• Hero rewarded for defeating the serpent [Indy finds the Ark].

• Time pressure increases. Comedic element [Nazis prepare to torture Marion; it's a coat hanger].

• Hero et al forced into a near death experience [Indy and Marion buried underground]. Extreme time pressure.

• Antagonist foreshadows a confrontation [Belloq won't believe Indy is a problem solved until he is out of there].

• Atonement with the Father . Hero battles the Antagonism [Indy battles with the Nazi soldiers]. Extreme time pressure. [Marion is trapped and the flames are nearing].

• Apotheosis . Hero has an insight [it's now or never the Ark on its way to Cairo].

• Ultimate Boon Hero has inner resolve to capture the Reward [Indy chasing the truck].

• Refusal of the Return. Departure with the boon. Antagonism [Nazis and Belloq] not yet defeated. Friendships. Goodbyes. Kisses.

• Magic Flight . On the boat home. Sexual (reward) and comedic in nature [”it's not the age, it's the mileage.”]

• Rescued from Without . Hero forced to return [Marion and the Ark stolen by the Nazis].

• Hero dresses in the Wolves Clothing. Comedic element [Indy in the Nazi soldiers uniform].

• Foreshadow of the Final Conflict [Indy bumps into Belloq].

• Crossing the Return Threshold . Hero allows himself to engage in the Final Confrontation [Indy agrees not to destroy the Ark].

• Master of the Two Worlds . Journey to a dangerous place. Final Confrontation. Hero able to cross between Worlds.

• Freedom to Live [Hero and romantic challenge together post the adventure].

Learn more…

The Complete 188 stage Hero’s Journey and FREE 17 stage sample and other story structure templates can be found at managing-creativity.com/ managing-creativity.com/

You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

Kal Bishop, MBA

**********************************

You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author’s name and site URL are retained.

Kal Bishop is a management consultant based in London, UK. His specialities include Knowledge Management and Creativity and Innovation Management. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached at managing-creativity.com/ managing-creativity.com/

I have seen jobs posted for help with term papers. What I mean by “help″ is a little more than editing a student’s term paper. Specifically, there are college students who are willing to pay hundreds of dollars to have someone else write a paper for them. This practice is nothing new, but it is much more prevalent than many folks realize.

Truthfully, I could probably make a good sum of money writing term papers for the rich kids out there. In college, I usually garnered an “A” or “A-” on my papers. Yes, I did quite well and that was due to my paying attention to what the professor wanted written and being thorough with my research. Once my research was completed, I worked very hard to produce a “jam up″ paper. It was exhausting work, but personally rewarding!

So, my policy is this: write the paper yourself. Learn how to do it the right way and show some integrity and fortitude. You will be a better person for it, too, and prove to yourself that you can overcome a challenge.

How about you? Do you accept every project that comes along or do you have certain standards in place? How you answer these questions speaks volumes about you as a writer and as a person.

Copyright 2006 — Matthew Keegan is thearticlewriter.com The Article Writer who writes on a variety of topics including: advocacy, automobiles, aviation, business, Christian themes, family, news, product reviews, travel, writing, and more. Please visit Matt’s thearticlewriter.com/blog/ blog for absolutely stunning and humorous writings from the master himself!

The Hero’s Journey (Monomyth) is the template upon which the vast majority of successful stories and Hollywood blockbusters are based upon. In fact, ALL of the hundreds of Hollywood movies we have deconstructed (see URL below) are based on this 188 stage template.

Understanding this template is a priority for story or screenwriters. This is the template you must master if you are to succeed in the craft.

[The terminology is most often metaphoric and applies to all successful stories and screenplays, from The Godfather (1972) to Brokeback Mountain (2006) to Annie Hall (1977) to Lord of the Rings (2003) to Drugstore Cowboy (1989) to Thelma and Louise (1991) to Apocaplyse Now (1979)].

THERE IS ONLY ONE STORY

THE HERO’S JOURNEY:

a) Attempts to tap into unconscious expectations the audience has regarding what a story is and how it should be told.

b) Gives the writer more structural elements than simply three or four acts, plot points, mid point and so on.

c) Gives you a tangible process for building and releasing dissonance (establishing and achieving catharses, of which there are usually four).

d) Gives you a universal structural template upon which you can superimpose your situational story. This is why stories such as Alien (1979), Gladiator (2000), Midnight Cowboy (1969), American Beauty (1999), The Graduate (1967) and many others (all deconstructed at the URL below) appear to be different but are all constructed, almost sequence by sequence, in the same way.

and more…

*****Hero’s Journey: New Self*****

An incremental change is made explicit. The detective hero advances to his New Self a little. A tangible element of the Old Self is lost. In The Maltese Falcon (1939), Sam wants precious to get rid of Miles’ desk and change the sign on the door.

*****Physical and Psychological States*****

As the Hero undergoes his or her psychological Transformation, so s/he passes through physical sets that match or predict the psychological state.

For example, that is why you will often see rain, thunder and cloud previous to and during the Rebirth through Near Death Experience. That is why you often see large space and open views during the Apotheosis stage, because this stage is release, freedom and flow after having overcome an Inner Challenge and restrictions.

*****Elixir*****

It is in No Mans Land that the Hero (and audience) are reminded of the Elixir. In Brokeback Mountain (2005), Jake and Ennis ride through Brokeback. Jake tries to convince Ennis to move to Texas.

*****Transcendental Powers Remain Behind*****

Previous to the Crossing of the Return Threshold, all Transcendental Powers must remain behind. The Hero must fight his (or her) final battle alone - how else will he or she know that the Antagonisms (which in no small part are psychological) have certainly been overcome. In Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Buck is shot and Blanche captured.

*****Journey to the Sword*****

Following the meeting with the Oracle, the Hero journeys to Seize the Sword. In Brokeback Mountain (2005), Ennis sends a postcard to Jack.

*****Pulled into the Belly of the Whale*****

Pushes and Pulls are an underrated aspect of storytelling. Pushes and Pulls force the Hero et al from one stage of the journey to the next.

Inevitably, the Hero is forced (pulled or pushed) into the Belly of the Whale. In Dances with Wolves (1990), there is an Indian meeting to encourage familiarisation with the strange White Man. In Superman (1978), Clark Kent must leave the farm. In Thelma and Louise (1991), both are forced to flee from the bar after shooting Harlan.

Supernatural Aid Encouragement. If there is a Mentor involved, he (or she) will encourage the journey. In The Matrix (1999), Morpheus ensures things progress along.

Time Pressure in some form will push things along. In Star Wars (1977), storm troopers hunt the ‘droids. In Titanic (1997), there is an iceberg warning.

*****Unbearable Antagonism*****

The Hero will suffer an Unbearable Antagonism that will force his hand (and push him past the stage of Lack of Commitment). In Star Wars (1977), storm troopers kill uncle Owen and aunt Beru. In The Incredibles (2004), Mr Incredible sees a person on the street being mugged. This causes him to snap.

*****Celebrating the Physical Crossing*****

A celebration marks the Crossing into the World of the Transformation. In Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Bonnie isn’t worried that they′ve shot someone, she’s happy about it [in the cinema].

*****Physical Damage / the Beginning of the Transmogrification*****

It is somewhere in the First Threshold where the Transmogrification starts (often the Outer Cave). In Brokeback Mountain (2005), Ennis starts bleeding in the Middle Cave.

Learn more…

WRITE THAT SCREENPLAY!

The Complete 188 stage Hero’s Journey and other story structure templates can be found at clickok.co.uk/ clickok.co.uk/

The Managing Creativity and Innovation MBA dissertation, DIY creativity Audit, Powerpoint presentation and Good Idea generator software can be found at managing-creativity.com/ managing-creativity.com/

You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

Kal Bishop, MBA

**********************************

You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made, the author’s name is retained and the link to our site URL remains active.

Ok let’s talk about Tea today. In Malaysia we called it “teh tarik” which mean “pull tea” which is our Indian’s milk tea. Well the reason it was called like that is it because the way they make the tea.

They will use a larger metal container and mix the tea and milk together and hold it with one hand and another hand with a glass tea cup and both hands went the opposite vertical direction and pour it out like waterfall. And it creates a foamy or bubbles effect surface. It gives it a smooth feeling in the tea texture when you drink it, you will feel the tea is smoother than the normal one. Try order two and see, one with the pulling and one without you will definitely feel the different.

This morning I ordered one and asked for less sweet. Too bad it didn’t taste as good as usual. Today the tea content is a bit too much, too strong. That makes it kind of bitter and feels like it is biting your tongue. The color is slightly dark and dull compare to a real good nice “teh tarik”. Chinese restaurant and Malay restaurant both their tea are different from Indian restaurant. Chinese milk tea is slightly different from Indian in term of texture and taste. Both have their unique taste. I like both.

Why I didn’t mention Malay’s tea basically is the same with Indian. But I have yet to come across any nice Malay restaurant that make nice tea they are either too sweet or hardly got any taste of tea in it. We Malaysian have lots of 24 hours Mamak (which is our Indian Restaurant). We like to hang around and have a nice cup of tea which is about a $1 each. The price is ten times cheaper than Star Buck or Coffee Beans. Hope they wouldn’t sue me by doing such bad advertisement for them.

So if you are in Malaysia please have a cup of nice “teh tarik” sure you will fall in love with it. Hmmm… going for my second cup, this time I will have my “Teh O Ice Limau” which is more or less like “Ice Lemon Tea”. But instead of lemon now we use lime instead. You should try this too. If they give enough lime in it, it taste heavenly. Especially drinking it under a long hot sunny day, is really refreshing, it refresh your throat and all the way down your internal organs and your soul. I notice almost every table has a cup of “teh tarik” on it! O wow! This is so refreshing my “Teh O Ice Limau” that just came. It is so tasty! With the right portion of tea, sugar and lime blended nicely together it gives the perfect tastes that linger in your mouth. Ahh……… nice!

O I forget how about English tea than. I will try to use music term to describe them. As a singer myself.

I like

Look around. Things happen every day. Story ideas are everywhere. A newspaper’s role is to be reflective of, and helpful for, the community it covers. To make community happenings and news relevant - relevant enough to grab readers and keep them reading - you’ve got to make it fit in with their lifestyles.

Consider your readers. Are they active, on the go from class to class? Is it a conservative town or traditional school? Is it really progressive? When not in class, are they often out doing stuff? To be a part of their lifestyles, your publication must be active and quick enough to keep up with readers. It should be a place they check to see what’s happening and look for the stuff they’re going to go out and do.

Here are a few common story types and how to tips for tackling them:

Reactive
Do: Be brave enough to localize a national or regional event or trend story with reactions from local experts. Do this only if the event impacts your readers and you can advance the story with local comments. Consider what this story means to your readers. What is happening locally as a result of this story? What happens next? Consider design and presentation. Maybe the national or regional story is strong enough to stand on its own, and your local addition to it is a set of quotes and mug shots. Or maybe everyone has heard about the story, and your publications’ role is to break down the story into key facts, questions, photos or things every reader must know about it.

Don’t: Just because it’s happening doesn’t mean you have to cover it. Oftentimes when readers hear of an event, they turn on the TV or head to the Net for the latest updates. Consider if this story matters to readers beyond the basics. If it does, in what respect? Write to that, but go further. Don’t just recap what happened if they’ve already heard all about it. Instead, look forward to what it means to their lives and the future. If you can’t do that, does it deserve a spot in the newspaper? Can you justify giving your precious news space to that event, idea or issue? If it’s not local, does it warrant coverage? If it does, why? Again, give your readers information that matters to their lives.

Trends
Do: Cover hot and up-and-coming ideas, issues and trends - in entertainment, sports, local culture, etc. - growing in local popularity and that reflect what’s also happening on a national or global scale. Be confident in readers intelligence and knowledge of what’s happening. Do talk to and photograph local, active participation in the trend or issue.
Don’t: Be careful not to use language that condescends to readers. Don’t spend too much time explaining the trend. If it’s worth covering, it probably has already created a buzz.

Walk-ups
Do: Indulge in the hype surrounding big games, events, concerts and shows, especially those taking place locally and/or involving local people. Do advance it, give readers go and do information and make that easy to read. Make sure the when, where, how to get tickets is set apart from the story in its own presentation. Do give extra info, fun facts, what fans must know.

Don’t: Sometimes you can’t do enough with a really huge event. Sometimes you can. Be careful not overdo it by considering what the story is and how important it is to your readers. How many people will attend? Is it an event that is already sold out? How much buzz has it created in the community? What additional information or angle can you offer readers that they don’t already know?

Steph Bernat is a consultant for J&S Solutions, a resource for student media. Need more advice on the workings of your student publication? Find information on J&S Solutions at jnssolutions.net/ www.J&S Solutions.net.

You might have gotten into writing because you hate math - sure was a plus for me! But you’re never really safe from math, no matter what you do. You can run, but you can’t hide.

There’s math in them there (pricing) hills!

If there’s one thing worse than math, it’s math done backwards. But that’s just what you’ll need to do to get your rates into good shape.

To motivate you to do the math, think about this. If you overcharge, you’ll miss a lot of jobs. If you undercharge, you’ll hate life! So, it’s important.

The first step is determining your hourly rate. Now, if you’ve been working in an office for a little while, but not really gotten into a high-paying job, you’re probably earning anywhere from $15-$40 per hour. (Of course, it’s packaged as a salary, but with a little number crunching, you can figure out your hourly rate.) If you’ve been in retail or hospitality, the numbers might be a little lower. So, you might be shocked (and even a little giggly) when you see writers quoting rates of $50 - $200 per hour. Get over it!

Take a look at other professionals to get the idea. If you think about attorneys, you′d probably assume the $500/hour guy is better than the $100/hour guy. I know I would - whether it’s true or not! So, keep that in mind.

You may have to grow into feeling like you’re worth $50 an hour. And that’s okay - but do it anyway until you feel worthy.

For writers, words come easy. We don’t tend to place a lot of value on things that come easy - we figure anyone could do it, since it’s easy. You′ve got to realize that if you can put words together, you′re the exception - not the rule. You have a talent - and that’s valuable.

Now, here’s an important thing about pricing.

You will make mistakes. And sometimes you’ll take a bath. But you’ll get better at it if you persevere.

You need a timer. Keep track of how long it takes you to do things. How many minutes to write an article? How long to do research? How long on the phone with clients? How fast do you write 500 words? 1000 words? How long to proofread?

Warning! Here comes the backwards math part!
Let’s take an example. If it takes you 15 minutes to write a 500 word article, and your hourly rate is $60, you need to charge $15 per article to get your hourly rate. So when you see those article projects listed on job boards, and the employer wants them for $5 each - run! You won’t make it up in volume!

Now, what if a client wants a quote for a 100 page ebook? A general rule is that a page is roughly 500 words (I’ve seen other writers say it’s about 300-350 words, but I go with 500). So, essentially, you′d be looking at 100 pages x $15 = $1500. Right?

Nope! There’s a big difference between writing 100 one page articles and one 100 page ebook. There’s continuity, there’s making sure it’s not redundant, there’s more research, more planning, more EVERYTHING! I did my first ebook, 100 pages, for $500. Torture! And a great way to learn about pricing!

So, work with what you can figure out easily, and go from there. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes - just learn from them. There’s no scarcity of projects. If you blow your pricing by going too high, you’ll have another chance on another project. If you blow it by pricing too low, you’ll work like a dog for a while and learn a great lesson for the next time.

Next time, we′ll take a look at how we can learn from the truly analytical among us. I’ll tell you about a great tool for making your pricing a snap!

Sue LaPointe is the owner of workingwriterhappywriter.com WorkingWriterHappyWriter.com, a successful freelance writer, and writing coach. Come for a visit, and be sure to sign up for the free newsletter, Write Happy, which is full of great tips for building a successful writing business all your own.

A few sessions ago, I was running my class at UCLA Extension: “Building Your Consulting Business,” when a mature, highly experienced student asked a fundamental question about my practice and many others.

“Why does so much coaching and consulting skew towards training?”

His wife, not in attendance that day, is a trainer in an organization. This fellow, already a consultant, was wondering if most consultants simply do what she does, but for several companies instead of for one.

Many do.

Training is very simply a consulting medium, a platform for efficiently and effectively packaging and then sharing information.

There are lots of consulting forums or media, including conversing one-on-one, writing proposals, reports and white papers, utilizing email, encrypted web sites, and recording audios, and videos, to name a few.

From the viewpoint of the coach and consultant, training, especially in seminars, has several advantages:

(1) You select the modules, arrange their importance, and fill them with information you believe is most pertinent and valuable. This gives you control.

(2) You select the length of the program, and indicate the time units required for its proper delivery. If you believe the content requires 20 days of instruction or 2, it is your determination to make, and being the expert, who can refute you without first taking the class?

(3) Once you have designed the program, you can market it vigorously, and each time you repeat it, it is serving you like a template. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel, and you can focus on incremental improvements.

(4) You can develop your own, in-house clone army, and send them forth to do the training under your guidance.

(5) You can license the program to other consultants and to your clients and develop residual income from what you have already invested time in developing and proving.

There are inherent weaknesses in other delivery modalities.

For instance, when you’re doing on-on-one coaching, it can involve you in an inefficient process of give and take, and invite distracting side-stream discussions, especially if your client hasn’t been grounded in your overarching principles.

Seminars, and group trainings, impose discipline on you and on the client. There are specific topics, time units, and clearly stated objectives, and meandering is less tolerated.

Plus, and this is crucial, it is exhausting to improvise one-on-one, as you’ll be called on to do, if you aren’t sticking to a formalized training agenda.

Can you consult without doing some sort of training, without educating or edifying your client? I’m not sure you can, but by deliberately making training the centerpiece of your practice, you give it coherence, and it gives you something that is predictable, reliable, and valuable, that you can leverage, financially and intellectually.

Dr. Gary S. Goodman is the best-selling author of 12 books, over 600 articles, and the creator of numerous audio and video training programs, including “The Law of Large Numbers: How To Make Success Inevitable,” published by Nightingale-Conant-a favorite among salespeople and entrepreneurs. For information about booking Gary to speak at your next sales, customer service or management meeting, conference or convention, please address your inquiry to: mailto:gary@customersatisfaction.com gary@customersatisfaction.com.