Dianne E. Butts About Writing

 

The Writing E-zine for Beginning and Intermediate Writers

October 2007 ~ 215 Subscribers

 

Cover Story:

 

"Your Platform"

 

    It's funny. I started writing because I wanted a platform. I wanted to talk about my Christian faith and share what I had learned about what it means to be a Christian and why I believe Jesus is the one and only Savior of the world, yet who could I tell? What was I going to do--get a soapbox, go stand in a park and...be weird?  I decided I could try to write articles, get them published, and in that way say what I wanted to say to whoever wanted to read it. Thus, writing would be my "platform," my soapbox from which I could speak.

    That was almost twenty years ago. And now guess what. Everywhere I go...at writer's conferences, on e-mail loops...everywhere writers gather there is this talk about "platform." To be successful, a writer must have a "platform."  Wait a minute!  I thought writing would be my platform!

    I especially hear about platform from book publishers and agents. If you want them to publish your book, they are going to ask you about your platform:  "What is your platform?" "How big is it?"

 

What is Platform?

    In my sarcastic sense of humor I always want to say, "Well, I have this four-by-eight piece of plywood up on two-by-fours.  If you want me to have a bigger platform, I can add another sheet of plywood." Of course we know that's not what they mean. I could actually build a real platform like that. But the problem would be, who would gather around it? Who would show up to hear what I have to say?  And actually, that is what is meant by platform. Not, what physical thing are you standing on? But, how many people are you gathering around to hear what you have to say? That is how "platform" is measured: in number of people you are reaching.

    So do you have a platform? And if not, how do you get one?

 

The Most-Often Talked About Platform

    Most of the time when I hear someone talking about platform, their main idea of a platform is public speaking. Are you a speaker? Do you speak to groups of people consistently? How many times a year? How many people are usually in the group? Some speakers may speak once or twice a year to several hundred people. However if you speak once or twice a month to groups of twelve or twenty, that is still reaching quite a few people. If you are a public speaker, this is your platform...or at least part of it.

    If you are not a public speaker, are you willing to become one? Are you able to make the time, find speaking opportunities, and travel to them? If you're interested in becoming a speaker, there are many resources available to guide you in getting started.

 

Other Types of Platforms

    But what if public speaking just isn't going to work for you...for whatever reason? While I most often hear public speaking as the main platform publishers want authors to have, there are other platforms we can build. Here are some I can think of. You may be able to come up with other ideas.

    The Internet has opened many new ways for us to build a platform.

    Besides all the opportunities the internet offers, there are still some good old-fashioned ways to build your platform.

    Other parts of your platform:

    Your platform does not necessarily have to be on the same topic as the book you have written or want to write. A writer who teaches workshops at writers conferences has a platform that can sell her novel because people who meet her at the conference and appreciate her workshop will want to buy her novel. You may have written a gardening book which would interest your gardening club, but all the people in your church will also be interested in a book you wrote, even if they don't garden.

    The bottom line is, publishing companies want book writers who have a platform (the bigger the better) because they want to know that author can and will help sell books (the more the better). So build your platform, and keep building on additions onto it. Keep track of how big your platform is by using features like www.SiteMeter.com from which you can print out statistics to show how big your platform is. And then use it to help sell your book to an agent or publisher. You'll find more about that in the Sidebar below.

      

 

Section 2:

Q & A: Dianne Answers Your Questions about Writing

 

Q: "If a person could only pick one writing magazine to subscribe to, which do you think would be the best? Living in a small town we don't actually have the opportunity to pick one of these magazines up and look through it. I did subscribe to Writer's Digest for a couple of years. Then it seemed that I just couldn't keep them all read so quit taking it. It sure had some good ideas in it though. I may need to subscribe to that one again or try another one."  Karen Sperra, Colorado.

 

A: Great question, Karen. I really like Writer's Digest magazine. I also really like The Writer, and I subscribe to them both and highly recommend both of them. If you had to pick just one...  Perhaps you'd like to try one you haven't subscribed to before. Or maybe you can buddy up with another nearby writer and each subscribe to one, then trade. You'd then have a deadline by which you'd have to have yours read before you swapped, and we know deadlines are great motivators. You can photocopy any articles you wanted to keep. It's easier to keep one or two articles than having used magazines stacking up anyway.

    If you can't buddy up with another writer, why not subscribe to one for a year and then the other for a year? You can also check with your library. Many libraries subscribe to one or both of the magazines (or would if they knew library patrons would make use of them).

    If you're writing for the Christian market, I highly recommend subscribing to Christian Communicator. It's a nice little magazine, but the feature I turn to first when it arrives in my mailbox is the marketing column where Sally Stuart, author of the annual Christian Writer's Market Guide, updates us will all the changes of editors, addresses, new markets, etc. In an industry where editors are constantly moving around and periodicals and publishers are changing or appearing and disappearing, it's the only way I know to keep up.

    You can find a link to subscribe to The Writer in the resources section of this e-zine or on www.DianneEButts.com. Unfortunately, my link to Writer's Digest is changing and the new one won't be available before this e-zine is published, but I'll put the new one on www.DianneEButts.com as soon as it's available, and in the archived edition of this zine. I also hope to have a link soon where you can subscribe to Christian Communicator from my site, but it's not there yet. Watch the Resources page of my web site or future editions of this e-zine for subscription information.

 
 

Sidebar

"Use Your Platform in Your Market Plan"

 

    So...now that you've discovered you do indeed have a platform, or now that you're busily building yours, what do you do with it?  First, you need to be able to state how big your platform is. Record how many times you speak, to whom, and to how many. Keep statistics of how many visitors come to your web site or read your blog. Keep a running list of your published articles and the circulation of the magazines that publish them.

    Use this information in the marketing section of your book proposal. Confidently convince the prospective agent or publisher that you are reaching a lot of people with your words, and then tell them how you can use that platform to sell a lot of books.

    Oh, and don't forget to add your platform information to your writing resume, too.

 

 

Section 3:

 

Period.

 

    Building a speaking business, building traffic to your web site or blog, or building a subscriber list for an e-zine or newsletter takes a lot of time and work. But I've found some great information about how you can get your site, blog, or e-zine noticed on the internet and therefore tap in to that huge platform of the world wide web. We'll talk about that next month.

    You can do it! Period. No buts about it.

 

 

Back Cover Copy

How to support this e-zine:  Do you know another writer who might be interested in this e-zine? Please feel free to forward this e-zine in its entirety to others who may be interested. They can get their own free subscription at www.DianneEButts.com.

    When you plan to make any purchases from any of the companies listed in this e-zine or on my web site, if you would kindly return here or to the site and click through my links, you will be supporting this e-zine so I can continue publishing it. Thank you! Your kindness and support is not unnoticed.

 

 

Bio: Dianne E. Butts has been writing for publication since 1989 with 200+ articles in more than 50 periodicals and contributions to fifteen books. Her articles have appeared in Focus on the Family magazine, The Lookout, Light and Life, The Salvation Army's War Cry, The Plain Truth, On Mission, Bible Advocate, Live, Evangel, the Christian Motorcyclists Association's HeartBeat, The Quiet Hour, Christian Communicator, SpiritLedWriter.com, and more. Book contributions include stories in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul 2, For Better or Worse: A Devotional for Married Couples by Marlene Bagnull, Beauty is Soul Deep, A Cup of Comfort Devotional for Women and Mothers, and Zondervan's New Women's Devotional Bible. Her work has appeared in Great Britain, Poland, Bulgaria, Canada, and Korea.

 

Subtopic 1:

Pull Quote

 

"I was scared to write this movie as truth. I first wrote it as fiction... Chris [Cain] told me to write the truth. I told him I didn't want people to get mad at me. God wants Holy Ghost boldness. We are in the last days and we need to stand up for our God and for the truth."

    Carole Whang Schutter, screenwriter of September Dawn ( www.ButtsAboutIt.blogspot.com September 7, 2007 post)

 

~ ~ ~

 

My Book: Dear America: A Letter of Comfort and Hope to a Grieving Nation (Ampelos, 2002). Available from www.DianneEButts.com or here, from Amazon.com:  Dear America, - A Letter of Comfort & Hope to a Grieving Nation.

   

 

 

 

Subtopic 2:

 

Helpful Resources

 

 

 Speak Up With Confidence: A Step-By-Step Guide for Speakers and Leaders

 

 

For the E-Book plus bonuses, click here:  http://www.webmarketingmagic.com/app/?af=658840

 

To order the original from Amazon.com, click on the book cover below.

 

 

 

 How to Write What You Love and Make a Living at It

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Link to Writer's Digest magazine currently unavailable.)

 

 

 

  VistaPrint Free Business Cards

 

 Save 30% Off All Letterhead, Brochures, Flyers, Folders

 

Subtopic 3:

 

Coming Conferences:

Dianne's Writing News

Writing Opportunities

 

What's happening on www.ButtsAboutIt.blogspot.com ?

 

 

Read more of my Blog interview on:  www.ButtsAboutIt.com and in Butts About It.com E-zine.

 

 September Dawn

 

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