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From to-do to we-can: Editor's Notes #316 June 24, 2020 |
| Hello, —William H. McRaven In this issue: 1. From to-do to we-can 2. Tickled my funny bone 3. Interesting Web site 4. Writing prompt 5. Letters to the editor 6. My Covid-19 offer to you 1. From to-do to we-can When my mom, who has dementia and mobility problems, went into the hospital last spring because she fell and cracked her pelvis, I went with her because I didn’t want her to be afraid and because I wanted to be sure all communication got through. During the three weeks I stayed in the hospital, I kept track of the people who made that possible. There were twenty-six of them. Some made sure my garden didn’t die for lack of water; some sat with Mom so I could rush home to have a shower and grab more food for me; one picked up library books; one even came to pick up my food when the cleaners needed to get it out of the hospital fridge while the fridge was cleaned. Even before Mom fell, I’d needed help. One of my most important helpers turned out to be my piano teacher because when the pandemic shut everything down, I had new needs: I needed something to remind me of who I am apart from my mom, and I needed an artistic outlet. My Skype piano lessons fill those needs. My piano teacher is here just for me for an hour each week. Nothing bad happens if I don’t meet expectations, and she shares my joy when I meet a particular challenge. I don’t know what you have to do these days, but I can guess that your to-do list can get overwhelming as you juggle work, home, and family in unfamiliar ways while your usual community supports have morphed in unimaginable ways if they exist at all. You may have to do with less: less income, less alone time, and ironically, less social time, depending on your circumstances, all with less help than you once had. These losses can lead to depression and loneliness. What about your creative side? Is it flourishing, or is it pushed aside? You may have an intimidating to-do list. Let’s switch from to-do to we-can. There is a lot I can’t help you with, but I am here to help you where I can. Like my piano teacher for me, I’m here to lessen, not to add to, your load, so I hope you know that using my services does not obligate you in any way to me. I am the one on the hook. I love the feeling of power I get when I master a piece of music, and I vicariously love the feeling of power my clients get when they change an unhelpful writing habit or they gain insight into another aspect of writing that is important to them. This week, a client wrote, "That was such a good idea you had about splitting those two readerships! Thanks again." I replied, "I’d say the split was your idea. You wrote to two distinct audiences. I just noticed it." I got the client ’s permission to use this interaction here to show you what I do. I help you see what you are doing, and to the best of my ability, I show you options where I think things could be better. I am here to help you become a better writer. I cannot guarantee that you will be a published author any more than my piano teacher can guarantee that I’ll become a concert pianist. I can promise to give you tools you can use to improve your writing. If you have writing on a to-do list that has you by the throat, move writing onto a we-can list, and let me help you. Take a good look at my Covid-19 offer to you below, and if you are at all interested, be in touch. Don’t stop with your writing. Have a little think about how to get some other tasks onto a we-can list. Look around to see if there is someone who might help you. (The Interesting Web site below may be of interest at that point.) Then take another look around you to see if there is someone else whose life could use the sunshine of your help, even if it’s just an interested friendly phone call. =========== 2.Tickled my funny bone (Let’s hope it’s a typo.) Thank you to the over 100 people who filled the Community Centre to help us with our destruction fund for the new fellowship hall. =========== 3. Interesting Web site The personal story in this article about how to ask for help makes it easier to understand the author’s point. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/turning-straw-gold/201106/how-ask-help/ (Note: Some of you may not be able to open this link even if you copy and paste it. If this happens to you, check the URL (address of the page) in your browser window. If it has a number like 20% somewhere in it, remove those characters, and hit return. That worked for me. I have no idea why that appears in the email. I did not put it there, so I can’t take it out for you.) =========== 4. Writing prompt There are many instances where just a little help gets someone over the finish line. Write about a time that you were involved in such a joint effort or invent one to write about. I always like to see your writing, so send me what you do in this exercise. =========== 5. Letters to the editor I am not including the whole email exchange that followed the last issue of Editor’s Notes, but I am including my final reply that cleared up a confusion I had created in case anyone else was likewise confused. Hello, XXX. Let’s talk about your specific situation. If the on-line poetry publication agreement says that that on-line poetry publication has the rights to your work beyond that one publication, they have those rights. It’s most likely that the poetry publication has the rights only for that one-time publication in which case, the rights revert to you. In either case, those first rights are gone once the work is published. If you still hold rights, you can still offer the work for publication, but as second rights. And of course, if you want to self-publish, as long as you didn’t sign away all your rights, you still have them (except for first rights, because those disappear when you publish the first time). Is this more clear? Try checking the site you submitted to. Somewhere there, there is probably something about rights or terms. =========== 6. My Covid-19 offer to you If you have skipped right to this, I suggest you go back and read the main article, From to-do to we-can, because it applies here. What follows is a copy and paste from issue number 309. It’s still in force for you and anyone you choose to tell about it. Along with the health threat hanging over the world, we are facing a huge financial hit. I’ve decided one thing I can do is to make quality editing less expensive during this trying time. For subscribers to Editor’s Notes and their friends, I am suspending the fee for the sample edit to anyone using the code EN19 until I cancel this offer. I intend to keep this offer open as long as the world is in crisis with Covid-19 and its aftermath, so watch this space. I will give a warning here before I pull this offer. You can submit your writing sample at https://www.writershelper.com/sample-edit.html Be sure to click the link below the heading "Promotion Code" to get to the special form for a free sample edit. If you find yourself at a form before clicking the special link, scroll slowly back up the page, and you should see the link for the code (EN19). But it gets better… When I return an edited writing sample, I include quotes for the full range of my editing services. Until further notice, I will give a true quote, but I will not charge writers the full amount. I am discounting my services 50% for subscribers to Editor’s Notes and their friends. I will give a warning here before I pull this offer. Feel free to pass this offer along to any writing friends you think may be interested. As long as anyone uses the code, I’ll honour the offer. This is what I can offer you in this time of crisis. I hope it encourages you as you face possible illness and financial uncertainty. =========== Join Writer's Helper Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/WritersHelperEditor Follow me on Twitter @AudreytheEditor Link on LinkedIn https://ca.linkedin.com/in/audreyowen (Email me first so I know how you know me.) =========== If you know a writer who would appreciate receiving Editor's Notes, forward this issue. If someone has passed this on to you, you can get your own free subscription by signing up at https://www.writershelper.com/newsletter.html |
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