Spilled Ink Marketing

Hi,

Chris and I have been working on a new website and it's finally up. www.spilledinkmarketing.com

Thought since it just went live, I might selfishly use this blog to promote ourselves.

Spilled Ink Marketing

We LOVE providing creative marketing solutions, and they comes in many forms:

• websites

• branding

• marketing materials

• social media

• education

We've worked with both individuals and companies for over two decades and still get a charge out of helping people get noticed.

We especially enjoy working with the creative community. Besides being fun to work with, we understand it takes a little creativity to help them stand out in a world of WalMarts.

Classes

I'm a big believe education. I have started offering online classes to help you promote yourself. Coming up are classes on social media . . . as well as screenwriting.

Both are subjects I'm passionate about am excited about teaching. If anyone has any questions about the classes, please ask. My email is diane@spilledinkstudio.com

Check it Out

Since a picture is worth 1,000 words, I'll stop blithering and just invite you to check out our website instead. And make sure to click on some of the samples under marketing tools. I think they will speak for themselves.

Thank you for letting me go on! Have a wonderful day.

Di

Five Ways to Keep Your Butt in the Chair

I'm reading a book called The Happiness Project. (Great book by the way if you're looking at examining the level of happiness in your life and adding more.)

Anyway, the author, Gretchen Rubin is a writer by trade and talks a bit about writing in the book. One of the things she mentions is that most writers don't like to write. They may like the research, or editing, finishing project, putting ideas together, etc. but the actual act of writing can be a chore.

What a relief! I thought I was weird. I hear people say, "I LOVE writing," and I'm thinking, "Seriously? You have no problem keeping your butt in the chair?"

Writing is About More than the Keyboard

Writing is about more than sitting at your laptop and banging out words. I write a lot of articles, and besides writing, you research, interview, type up notes, gather photos, check facts, edit, as well and spend time trying to play well with others (editors, proofers, publishers).

Of all the pieces, writing is by far the hardest for me. In fact, despite what anyone says, it can be down right grueling at times. The final product no matter how fabulous, is never as cool as I imaged it would be. And although it's gratifying to have the completed article and a paycheck (and I truly enjoy being a writer, don't get me wrong) I thank god for deadlines, or I'd probably never finish a piece.

Your Own Stories

It's even harder though to keep my butt in the chair when it's a script or story. There are no deadlines to push me forward, just passion for my story.

I can have piles of notes, all kinds of cool scenes I've been working for weeks, or even months, and when I sit down to write them up, suddenly a run to the store for groceries or weeding will take precedence.

The hard truth is that writing takes discipline. And sometimes that discipline is hard to come by. So what can you do?

5 Ways to Keep you Butt in the Chair

So here are a few techniques I use. If you have some, please feel free to let us know.

• Join a writers group that requires you bring pages to each group session.

• Hire a writing coach

• Go somewhere fun to write — like a coffee shop, or your favorite sofa

• Treat yourself when you're done

• Make it a habit. Even if it's just 5 minutes, challenge yourself to sit down at 7 a.m. and write. After a few weeks it will feel weird if you're not writing at that time.

These are few that have worked (at times) for me. Mostly though, you've just got to bite the bullet and as Nike says, "just do it". You'll be happy you did though. I've never once regretted I spent time writing, and I'm guessing neither have you.

Happy writing!

di

Major Legal Issues for Writers & Screenwriting Workshop

Hi,

I got a couple emails today with events that seem worth sharing. this email today I thought I would share.

Major Legal Issues for Writers

The first is an event put on by the Washington Lawyers of the Arts. They are holding a series at the Richard Hugo House in Seattle, call Major Legal Issues for Writers.

Here's the schedule:

April 29: Writers & Free Speech: Important First Amendment Considerations

May 27: Should I Sign? What to Know About Publishing Contracts

June 24: Get Answers to Your Copyright Questions

The cost is $40.00 and probably well worth the information that's presented. Hopefully I'm free to catch the May and June seminars.

To register or get more information, here's the info: Click on to register or call 800-838-3006. To pay at the door, RSVP to Washington Lawyers for the Arts at 206-328-7053. Visit thewla.org or call 206-328-7053 for more information.

Blue Cat Workshop

If you're interested in honing your script, you might be interested in The First 10 Pages Workshop.

Here's the information I got on it. Following this description are the class schedules:

This workshop will consist of twelve writers each submitting the first ten pages of a screenplay to each member in advance of the workshop day. This screenplay can be incomplete, a first draft, or a rewrite. We will go over each work individually, discussing the specific, unique and common challenges each writer faces. This discussion will include the technical aspects of description and dialogue, the depth and reality of the characters, and how the first ten pages reflect where the entire story begins.

We will read each writer's pages in the workshop, allowing the screenwriter to hear their screenplay aloud. Each writer will be asked to read the material in advance of the workshop to maximize the constructive input each participant receives.

The intimate, focused interaction with fellow writers in the workshop will provide all with a greater understanding of the work that lies ahead on their screenplay, and more importantly, a detailed sense of how they might develop as writers themselves.

Seattle

First Ten Pages Workshop (limit 12 writers)
Saturday, August 14th, 9:00am - 6:00pm
Freehold Theatre
2222 Second Avenue, Suite 200
Seattle, WA 98121
Fee $95
Audit $45

Portland

Full Script Workshop (limit 6 writers)
Sunday, August 15th, 9:00am - 6:00pm
ThinkTANK
Jupiter Hotel
800 E. Burnside
Portland, Oregon 97214
Fee $225
Audit $45

Blog as a Platform to a Book

Hi,

I'm probably nuts, but I've started another blog, www.dianemettler.com.

I've always been a multi-tasker, and this new blog about taking our six acres from raw land to landscaped and revenue generating fits the bill.

I plan to blog daily for two years (heck, if I can stair machine daily for 20 years, this should be a piece of cake). It will, hopefully, in the end:

• be a record of our progress

• hone my writing skills

• elicit much-needed gardening advice and

• work as a outline for a book, and

• if popular, work as a platform for the book.

Start to Finish

I enjoy gardening and I enjoy writing, and I've been trying to figure out how to put the two together. It seemed like every garden book I could think of already exists. Or, if I came up with a new one publishers would like me to be an expert in that particular field with a well-developed platform.

Who am I to argue with a publisher? I'm going to become an expert of sorts over the next 2 years — at least at creating a yard from scratch — and develop a platform.

I'm already jazzed about it. Curious to hear what you think.