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by Julie Hood

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Writer-Reminders

August 18, 2003 - Let Go of Clutter
Volume 2, Issue 28

    
The weekly ezine with a road map for sidetracked writers.

"Be better writers today than we were yesterday."


A special welcome to all our new subscribers from The Writer magazine. It's nice to have you join us!

Thought for the Week - Let Go of Clutter

Have you ever noticed how hard it is to let go of some of your clutter? I love my stuff. I love my papers, and I love my books, and I love my kid's toys. I just don't want to get rid of any of it.

But eventually you reach a breaking point. The bookshelves are sagging. The piles are taking over, and the kids don't even play with half the toys because they are buried.

And you have to let some of it go... 

I have the perfect book to help you. Let Go of Clutter by Harriet Schechter is ready to gently guide you to a more peaceful home. See my complete review below.


Check out Kelly James-Enger's column, in the September issue of the Writer Magazine, where she mentions OrganizedWriter.com and Writer-Reminders.


Happy writing (and organizing!),

Best,
Julie
julie@organizedwriter.com

    

P.S.  "Julie, I love your book. I have read (or at least opened) more than a trunk load of books about writing over the years. Yours is the first I have seen that gives readers so much in one place. For me, the Master List and putting that together was more than worth the cost."

-- David Stoddard
Motivational writer, trainer and publisher of the
Terrific Life Concepts ezine.
http://djstoddard.net

Read more reviews or buy the ebook from Booklocker.com. 
  

August Reminders


1) Writer on the Web: Check Your From Line and Use Meaningful Subject Lines

Send yourself an email. How does it look in your inbox?

Is your full name listed? Or is the message from "Dan"? I even list my web site, so messages from me come from "Julie Hood, OrganizedWriter.com".

You can change how your name appears using your email software usually under Tools, Options or Settings.

What subject lines do you typically use? Are they content-filled, or do you use things like "Greetings" or "Hello" or "Question"?

I've noticed 90 percent of my ugliest and unwanted email messages (named after a famous meat product) come from Mark who says Hello or Jim who says Thank You. These first-name only senders use one- or two-word titles like I described above. So I've started deleting all of these messages without even looking at them.

If you're trying to reach me by email, please be sure to mention Organized Writer in the subject line so I don't accidentally delete your message. Thanks!


2)  Book Review: Let Go of Clutter by Harriet Schecter
 

Conquer your clutter. Stop being a slave to your stuff. Understand why it's so hard to get rid of your stuff.

What would your life be like if you could accomplish these three things? How much happier would you be? How much more peaceful would your life be?

Author Harriet Schechter gives you a step-by-step solution in her book, Let Go of Clutter.

In the first chapter, Why Letting Go is So Hard to Do, Schechter explains why we may be biologically programmed to accumulate, why the fear of regret keeps us from discarding stuff, and how society encourages us to gather more and more.

Chapter 4, Purging Paper and Preventing Piles, is another favorite chapter. The author walks us through the method she uses with her clients to quickly sort and purge paper piles. Just like Organized Writer, she recommends a File Index, and shows you how to set it up for your household.

The last part of the book looks to the future and explains how to keep your home clean once you've decluttered it.

On a side note, I was excited to see how similar many of the ideas in this book are to the Organized Writer. I felt like I'd met a kindred soul while reading it. It's filled
with lots of fill-in-the-blank forms and step-by-step pathways to take you from clutter-filled to clutter-free.

If your clutter is taking over and you've reached the end of your rope with no idea where to start, check out Let Go of Clutter by Harriet Schechter, regularly priced at
$16.95.

The author also has a fantastic web site at
http://www.miracleorganizing.com/

You can read an excerpt from the book at
or buy it from Amazon.


3)  Copyrights

Monthly task: Do you need to register any copyrights? See
http://www.loc.gov/copyright/

If you are not in the US, the US copyright office has a document about international copyright.


4) For the freelancers...

Writer's Clips 

It's our monthly "update your clips" tasks:

1. Review your Clips Index and Clips Detail Sheets. Add
new clips and fill in any missing information.

2. Next, dash to the copy center, and make copies of the
clips you have on paper.

3. Update your web site with the most current clips (with
permission first, of course).

----

Track Your Submissions

Monthly task: Glance through the Expected Response Dates on your Submission Tracker form. Is anything late? Do you need to follow-up?


5) Back to School

If you're like me and scrambling to get ready for school, here is a link to some detailed tips on getting organized from ParentSoup.com.


Happy writing! Julie

Like Organized Writer.com?  You'll love the book..... 


Check out the latest review of The Organized Writer, by Betty Winslow at AbsoluteWrite.com:

"With intriguing chapters...and an appendix of 25 ready-to-use forms, this book is exactly what disorganized writers need to pull themselves out of the pit of disorganization they have fallen into."

Read more from AbsoluteWrite.comThanks Betty!

Get your copy today (instant download, no shipping):

PRINTABLE CHECKLIST 
Click HERE for a separate screen for printing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PRINTABLE CHECKLIST
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

DRAW daily (Declutter-Read-Assess-Write)
What is this? 

M T W T F S S
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 1. Declutter (only 5 minutes)
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 2. Read (only 5 minutes)
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 3. Assess (30 seconds to 5 minutes)
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 4. Write (at least 5 minutes)


Weekly Checklist

For freelance writers: Use this weekly checklist to find, write and send a query every week of 2003!

Monday
__ Make notes on a new idea.


Tuesday: Accounting Day
__ Post your accounting records.
__ Pay bills.
__ Follow up on outstanding invoices and queries.


Wednesday
__ Find a new market using links below.


Thursday: Errand Day
__ Make copies.
__ Return books to library.
__ Make deposit at bank.


Friday
__ Finish query and submit.
__ Match your query to the market.


Saturday Weekly Review
__ How was this week?
__ What's up next week?
__ Review your Projects list in your planner and check the
status.
__ Jot the next action steps for your projects on next week's
calendar.
__ Backup your computer files.
__ Virus scan your computer.


Sunday
__ Relax and enjoy!
__ Do something fun today!

JOB/MARKET LINKS 

Organized Writer's Guideline Database
Absolute Write's Market Archives
Writer's Weekly Jobs
Writing-World.com guidelines
Writing-World.com writers wanted
Funds for Writers - Jobs and Markets
Paying Markets List
Freelance Job Bank 
Writer's Write Writer's Guideline Directory
Writer's Digest - Market of the Day
Writer's Market.com (subscription only)

Writer Gazette Job Board 
Writer Gazette Call for Submissions
Sell Writing Online
Writer's Crossing

 

Thanks for visiting Writer-Reminders! If you have comments,
success stories, or suggestions, reply to this message or e-mail
me at :julie@writer-reminders.com

- Julie


Writer-Reminders.com: reminders for all writers who want
more time to write. http://Writer-Reminders.com

OrganizedWriter.com: tips and tools for your writing
business. http://OrganizedWriter.com
 


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Copyright 2002-2003 Finally Organized LLC. All rights reserved worldwide. This newsletter is provided with the understanding that the author is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If legal or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

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Welcome New Subscribers!

Welcome! In January we did the 30-day WOW challenge to become a Wildly Organized Writer! You can start at the beginning with this link.

This 30-day plan includes links to my ebook, The Organized Writer: 30 Days to More Time, More Money, and Less Frustration. You can buy it for only $14.95 (instant download, no shipping) at Booklocker.com.

2003 Calendar

I put together a writer's calendar for you. It has inspirational quotes, my monthly routines, and places to record your monthly writing goals. 

Print it here and please send it to all your writing friends and discussion groups to help spread the word about OrganizedWriter.com.

 

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