Tag: articles

Public Speaker, Writing

Who Am I? What Am I?

carolyncordon

If you ask me who I am, I probably won’t give you the same answer that I may have given you fifteen to twenty years ago, and I most likely will have to think about the answer I actually give you these days. Twenty years ago, I probably would have said, in answer to the question: I’m Jake’s mum.

And of course, whether naming myself that, in answer to the question of ‘Who are you?’ is an interesting thing to think further on. I am Carolyn. That is who I am. But I am also Jake’s mum, for sure, I am proud to be the mother of this fine young man I carried into this world.

But I’m Carolyn Cordon, writer and poet, as well as President of Adelaide Plains Poets writing group, Editor of the Mallala Crossroad Chronicle newsletter, and a former dog breeder, breeding dogs with the Kennel name of Holkschter Kennels. I’m a former Public Servant, a onetime (failed) dog food promoter, and a couple of other smaller jobs, including the Mallala and Dublin Towns Coordinator, a role I enjoyed, but one I suffered many sleepless nights because of.

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The writer and poet jobs, have been with me off and on for the most years, and they are pretty well always happening every day. Writers and poets don’t really turn off after work in the afternoon, because our workplace is inside our heads, thinking, whether we’re doing it consciously or not. And my role as the Editor of the Crossroad Chronicle is one that happens on the weekend too, sometimes, if a community event of note is on, for instance.

Writers and poets, as well as editors, are always looking for the next big thing to write about, hoping to put together something of interest to their audience, through a story of whatever kind is relevant to their role. And I am another thing as well, I am a blogger, with a few different blogs, of differing subject matter. So – gardening, dogs, writing, child abuse, multiple sclerosis & stoicism, these are all things I blog about, so I am open to anything relating to them all, all of the time, because, well you never know what might happen in this brain of mine, when  things are in there swilling around!

I have a main character from my unfinished novel, Meredith, and even though I am probably never going to complete that novel, I still see things and think, yes, that’s something Meredith would think, or do, or have happen to her. Meredith is with me, whether I want her there or not. I brought her to life, and I’m not going to abandon her, even though she probably would like me to get her story moving along some more …

All of the things that happen to me, may happen to Meredith, or some other person in that novel or in my next poetry collection, or they may come up in the next issue of the Mallala Crossroad Chronicle, or one of my blogs. I am who I am, a wearer of many hats, and doing of many things. Life is full of things, good and bad, and I can use them all in various ways, in my life.

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And of course, I am a Public Speaker, looking for more work in that role, so I am looking for interesting, informative, amusing things to speak about too. Life truly is a basket of things, isn’t it. Thinking, writing, speaking, being, they all blend together in great ways for anyone and everyone who are interested and are paying attention!

Anyway, the question of Who I Am, is tied up to the question of What I Am, always. Do you have many roles too? And how do you respond to the question?

Uncategorized, Writing

Why Get Published?

carolyncordon

What does ‘getting published’ mean?

Getting your words published can mean many different things to different people, and the reasons for wanting it to happen can also be quite varied. For some, posting your words to your own blog, or perhaps getting a letter to the editor in the local paper is enough, for others, getting published by a major book publisher with world-wide distribution is what they want.

There are many variations too. Some people post their words to literary magazines, either print or online, some people publish newsletters with their own words in them. Some people have their words published in newsletters such newsletters, and find that is enough for them.

If you have a hobby and like to write about it, you may write comments or articles on Social Media and find satisfaction in that way of ‘getting published’. And the reasons why can be varied too. Some people are more interested in spreading the word about only one thing, and there is nothing wrong with that. Other people are interested in a wide range of things, and write about a great many things, for many different publishing avenues.

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‘Publication’ benefits

Whatever the method you find to be published, if you are a writer of any kind, getting your words ‘out there’ is bound to be beneficial. We writers tend to have a desire to tell other people about the things we find important.

So obviously being published is going to be a necessary part of letting other people read our words, and so share our story, tell our truth, teach a lesson, or entertain and amuse people. These are all valid and fine reasons, and being able to do them will help the writer to feel validated, valued, understood, and appreciated by others.

That is a benefit for the heart and soul perhaps, but another less ‘spiritually worthy’ reason for desiring publication is to get payment from the publication of your words. This may be by having books published and sold by a mainstream publisher, or by a printer, or even by photocopying your words and selling little mini-books.

All of these are valid methods for publishing your words, depending on what you write, how you want it to be presented, who you want to read your words, and so on, but all of the methods can result in books you can sell for money. Having a website where you can display your book/s for sale will certainly be beneficial, if you have a book, or books that will attract an audience that will want to buy themselves their own copy.

If you live in Australia, and you publish a book, if a copy of your book is sent to the National Library, and your own State Library by you or by your publisher, you may well receive Public Lending Right, which is a payment the author may receive for each of their books in libraries. It will also show your book to libraries and others wishing to buy books.

 

Getting your Story Out

If you have an idea, a theme, a life story that you feel others will benefit from, you will want to let others know about it. Getting published is the best way to spread the word about your words. Others may want to know about your story, so if you can get the news of your book, your words published, in the media, such as newspapers or magazines, this will be of great value for your cause.

Having a website is a great and easy way to be ‘published’. It doesn’t have the obvious benefits that a book to but has, but it can lead to other people reading your words, for sure. And if you write enough blog posts, you may well have enough words eventually on your blog, for them to be published as a book, either by you, or by another publisher. If getting financial recompense for your words is something you want, then it’s certainly possible to sell copies of your book/s via your own website, or that of your publisher if your books are published by another publisher.

Self-publishing is becoming more and more an acceptable method for books to be published, circumventing mainstream publishers. Libraries will buy self-published books, if the books are deemed good enough and interesting enough for the libraries readers.

Without being ‘published’ in some form, you will have to rely on less effective ways to spread your words. Word of mouth is useful, but even if you have hundreds of family and friends, they may not all talk about your writing, and may not know many relevant people to talk up your book to! It is a wonderful feeling to sign a copy of your book which someone has just bought!

So if you can get word about your books published, it can lead to more of your books being published, which can encourage you to write more of your words, and that is a fine thing indeed. We can never have too many books in the world!

 

Writing

What Is A Writer?

carolyncordon

Points to Consider

  • Poetry
  • Prose
  • Journalism
  • Fiction
  • Non Fiction
  • Article
  • Blogs
  • Public Speaking

All of the dot points above involve writing, and involve writers. Not every one of them necessarily is seen as making a person a writer, but it’s is definitely true that if you write in any of these forms, you could call yourself a writer.

Whether or not you and your words ever get published is irrelevant, if you write, you are a writer, that is what I believe. Of course for some the idea of sharing their work with many other people, and even earning money with your writing is the ultimate result, but that isn’t as easy as it may seem.

So are you a writer who wants to get your words ‘out there’ and even earn some money? Read on, below:

 

Get your words working for you!

If you live in or near a town or city, there are probably many venues where you can meet with other writers. Many hotels and libraries, for instance, sometimes hold ‘Poetry Readings’ where poets can attend an ‘Open Mic’ session, having the chance of 2 or 3 minutes to read their poetry to audience members.

Service groups are another possible option, for being a place where an audience may be interested in your writing, and maybe but your books if you have them available.

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For the poetry options, the audience are often to also there read their own work out, so they are likely to already be interested in poetry. If you attend these kinds of events, and become known to other poets, there may be the chance of finding other events and other possibilities.

If you send your poetry to online or other magazines, you may gain publication and if you have enough of your poems published, or available online, you may have a higher chance of having a poetry collection published. If you want to cut some corners, and have some spare cash, you could self-publish a collection yourself, and possible sell some copies to heal to cover your costs, and maybe even make a profit!

The more you are seen, ‘out there’ with your poetry, the more likely it is that someone may ask you to present your words to an audience. If you write a lot of poetry about flowers and plants, for instance, perhaps a gardening group might like to have you speak to their club members.

‘Gigs’ like this may not be paid opportunities (although they may be, sometimes), but they can be a great chance to sell copies of your poetry collection, or whatever genre it is that you write. The same applies if your genre is something other than poetry, readings from collected short stories, or blog posts collected together, or articles, all these are possible avenues for a writer.

 

Bottom Line

So what is a writer? A writer is a person who writes. The world has many, many readers, as well many places looking for entertainment options. A writer can fashion themselves and their words as possible entertainment options, in a variety of ways. Comedy, for instance is an option. If you have a funny bone, and a good sense of timing, you may be able to become a stand up comic, or perhaps you could find somewhere you could sell your jokes – country newspapers are a possible place to accept such writing.

If you keep an open mind, and keep your options alive, who knows what and where your words may end up!

If you are a writer, the whole world is out there for you!