Online Writing Contest - Competition Tips - How to Win Every Contest You Enter

So you've stumbled across an online writing competition / contest, or perhaps your favourite brand of cereal is offering you a chance to win a holiday around the world. All you have to do is tell them in 25 words or less why you want it. And you want to win, right?

Well believe it or not there are a small number of easy steps you can take to dramatically increase the odds in your favor. And here they are, free of charge just because I'm such a nice guy...

No Sob Stories!

Online Writing Contest - Competition Tips - How to Win Every Contest You Enter

This tip goes first on the list, because it is the most important. For some reason the first thing that seems to come to people's minds with these contests and competitions is "how can I get them to pity me?" It sounds like a great plan as an entrant, but speaking from personal experience as a judge in these contests, I can tell you that it's a complete turnoff.

Nonetheless people will try ever trick in the book...

We can't pay the rent... our house burnt down... everybody in my family has cancer... I need 16 operations so that my dog stops being depressed and I can have my leg re-attached then pay the rent and burn the house down... well you get the point.

Let me make it very clear - this tactic does not work, even if you are telling the truth, because:

1. Judges can't verify your claims, so anyone can make up any story they like.

2. After a while these entries become so numerous and laborious that they don't stand out.

All that you will do is send the judge into a depression spiral. More to the point, you will end up highlighting your competitors' entries because theirs are more enjoyable to read.

Be Creative and Make it Fun to Read

Depending on the number of entrants, judges can often have a lot of text to read. As their head slumps closer and closer to the desk and the coffee starts to wear off, your entry is going to need to have something special about it to get noticed. The best thing you can do is get creative. And I mean really thinking outside of the box (if you are thinking poetry right now, you are not thinking hard enough).

My advice to you here is simple. If you come up with something different and make it really stand out, and MAKE IT FUNNY, you will win. When I hear a fellow judge burst out into laughter at his or her desk, 9 times out of 10 he or she is reading the winner. I can usually even tell which entry they are reading because I had the same reaction when I first read it.

If you can manufacture a reaction like this, chances are you are on a winner. I suggest using your friends and family as test dummies here. If they end up in a ball rolling around the floor you've done your job. If the best you get is "not bad", "(chuckle) very good" or even "looks good to me", then you need to go back to the drawing board.

Now that's not to say every winner will be comical or humorous, but your entry needs to stand out as somehow being impressive or interesting.

Stick to the Rules and Stay on Topic

If I had a penny for every time a "words or less" entry broke the rules, I would currently be Bahamas and you would be on your own with this one. Take the time to read the rules, terms and conditions before entering. And if you are provided with a quick-start guide to entering a competition, read it over at least 3 times and make sure you take the advice onboard.

In general, you should always:

· Stay within the word limit

· Write in direct response to the competition's question or topic (really important!)

· Avoid coarse language

· Submit your entry in the language requested

Short, Sharp, Shiny

Just because you are allowed to use 25 words doesn't mean you should. If your entry says what you want it to say, don't fill up the rest of your word limit by repeating yourself or adding useless details. All you end up doing is diluting your message.

Polish It!

So it took you 5 minutes (or maybe 2 days) to create your entry. Would another 5 minutes of proofreading kill you? No, of course not, but it will definitely help you win. Check your grammar, check your punctuation, check your capitalization and check your spelling. Presentation makes your entry easier to read, and will greatly improve your chances.

Submit It

It sounds obvious, doesn't it? But how many times have you seen a competition you would like to enter, only to let the due date slip by? As the saying goes, you've got to be in it to win it. And if you use the advice I've just given you, your chances of coming out on top will greatly improve.

So what are you waiting for?

Online Writing Contest - Competition Tips - How to Win Every Contest You Enter
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Michael Dorian is the founder of Wish and Vote, the world's easiest online writing competition/contest [http://www.wishandvote.com].

Sample Performance Appraisal

A performance appraisal carried out for professional and administrative personnel and a confidential employee performance appraisal contains the names and job titles of employees and the department for which they work. It also states the names of the appraisers and their job titles. Performance appraisal sheets are normally divided into three main topics that are, evaluation or job performance area, ratings, and comments. The evaluation area comprises of various factors. These factors include job knowledge, professional competence, and managerial ability. Apart from these, productivity, quality of work, problem solving ability, communication, and initiative are also areas that need evaluation. Factors such as attitude and cooperation, personal leadership, adaptability, and self-improvement also cannot be ignored while evaluation.

Based on the appraisals, professional and administrative personnel can be rated as outstanding, excellent, acceptable, marginal, or deficient. The comments section contains improvements, suggestions, goals to be achieved, potential of employees, etc. Performance appraisals show the overall effectiveness of employees in their job performance, that is, it is a summary of all comments. Plans for professional growth is a section that supervisors and employees should develop cooperatively. This section includes additional responsibilities, management opportunities, special courses, committee assignments, etc. While evaluation, it is advisable to give examples of strengths and weaknesses of the employees as and when possible.

Confidential employee performance appraisals also contain other job requirements such as focusing on specific needs of business or needs for individual improvement, public contact, ability to stay within cost guidelines, etc. They also give a performance summary, which shows the employee's outstanding and strongest points, employee's shortcomings and weaknesses, and specific accomplishments and changes since last performance review. They also help in deciding goals for improvement, that is how the employee can be more effective and what additional training can be helpful.

Sample Performance Appraisal

Performance appraisals also have an employee feedback section. This section contains the employee's most important accomplishments on the job, weakest job performance areas, areas in need of improvement, and other work concerns they would like to discuss. It also provides the date scheduled for the next review and the areas targeted for improvement.

Sample Performance Appraisal
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Performance Appraisals provides detailed information on How to Write a Performance Appraisal, Job Performance Appraisals, Performance Appraisal Software, Performance Appraisal Systems and more. Performance Appraisals is affiliated with Manufacturing Performance Management.

The Writing Format - The Heart of a Policies and Procedures System

The writing format is a critical component of any successful policies and procedures system. And more importantly, the writing format must be consistently applied across both policies and procedures and must lay out content in an easy-to-read and understand format. Using the adage, "Practice makes perfect" applies in this situation. Practice does not make perfect unless it is correct practice. Given the same logic, the writing format is not acceptable unless it meets all the criteria of being a successful and effective writing format.

A "writing format" is a structure or outline format for presenting policies and procedures in a logical order that is easily understood by readers. The writing format lays out the content of any policy or procedure document and presents a logical reading sequence. The section-formatted structure can assure consistency among policy and procedure documents.

The ideal writing format is when there is no distinction made between a policy and procedure document. As the reader might guess, this would solve many problems and make publication, communication, and training easier. How is this done? Write a single document, e.g., travel expense report or purchase requisition, and don't name it as a policy or a procedure document. Rather, use a writing format that contains a policy statement as one of the pre-defined, core sections; now, the guidelines of the document are directed by the embedded policy statement. The readers are pleased with this solution because now they don't have to refer to separate policy and procedure manuals for similar content. In the examples below, the policy statement is the third section of the preferred "pre-defined sections" writing format.

The Writing Format - The Heart of a Policies and Procedures System

There are three popular writing format styles, one of which stands apart from the others: (1) pre-defined sections; (2) free-flowing role structure or Playscript; and (3) free-flowing writing. The third writing format, free-flowing writing, is really no format at all. And unfortunately, many companies today use this "free-flowing writing" format (probably due the lack of knowing that a writing format template might exist). In this format, the content is written in a random, inconsistent manner. The reader is never certain about the starting or ending point of the policy or procedure document. This method is often referred to as the "Paragraph-style" of writing and generally leaves the reader guessing the purpose and importance of the policy or procedure document. This is NOT the behavior the policy and procedures writer wants from the reader.

The second writing format, the "free flowing role structure," is often referred to as "Playscript." Literally, "Playscript" refers to dialogue, a dramatic composition, or a screenplay. Policy and procedure writers use the "role" method adapted from the Playscript format where the role is stated in the first column and the action is stated in the second column of a two-column layout. The proponents of this format argue that the reader doesn't need to know everything about the "who, why, what, where, and how" of every policy or procedure document. The opponents argue that the Playscript method is cumbersome and leaves the reader clueless as to the intent of the policy or procedure document. This is simply not a good format for documenting business processes.

The first writing format, "Pre-Defined Sections" is the easiest writing format for the reader to understand because the format consists of pre-defined, pre-approved sections that are used in every policy or procedure written and published. Consistency is quickly achieved. The seven core sections of the "Pre-Defined Writing Format" are Purpose, Scope, Policy, Definitions, Responsibilities, Procedures, and Revision History. Content, properly added into these sections, provide the "who, what, why, where, and how" of business processes and help to make up the substance of policies and procedures alike. Depending on the industry, the policy and procedures writer might add sections, e.g., background, references, or disciplinary actions for non-compliance.

A policy and procedure system without a consistently designed, and applied, writing format is probably broken, obsolete, or ignored by its readers. The writing format includes the mechanism for capturing ideas, workflows, solutions, forms, and any supplemental information about business processes, in one place. An effective writing format template contains the same core sections each and every time; there is never a deviation.

The Writing Format - The Heart of a Policies and Procedures System
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Writing a Newspaper Article - What to Include

Have you ever wanted to write for your local paper? Seeing your byline, or name, in an article is definitely something to be proud of. Though many people might be intimidated with writing a newspaper article, it is actually fairly simple, as long as you follow some general rules in writing.

What are the things included in a newspaper article? There are certain things that a writer must be aware of, in order to write the article well; effectively reaching out to the readers. Keep in mind that a newspaper article should be entertaining and yet must also be able to educate the readers.

The first part of the article should already capture the readers right away. You must be able to present the main details of the story-including the five W's: who, what, when, where, and why, as well as how. This should immediately convey to the readers what the whole article will be about. This part is called the "lead."

Writing a Newspaper Article - What to Include

You should be able to give enough background information to your readers; try to know who your audience will be, and what they know about the news you are presenting. A writer should never assume that the audience already has some knowledge about what he or she will be talking about. A brief background of the topic will usually suffice.

Because newspaper articles present facts, it should be done in a straightforward manner, free from biases. A writer must always have a critical as well as an objective eye. A writer's sources for the facts should be clearly stated in the article and properly documented.

Your writing should also be direct to the point, without frills and avoiding flowery words. The article should be able to present things clearly and directly, though not in a dry manner. After presenting the main information about the article, the writer must follow the pyramid format, where information is presented from the most important down to the least, so that the readers will get the most vital part of the news right away. This, then, should draw the reader into reading the rest of the article.

Sometimes, using direct quotes may help the writer convey his message to the audience better. When interviewing people, a writer may want to incorporate a line or two into his or her article. This can be a great help to the writer, as this will give the story more depth and feel. Sometimes, what an interviewee says also encapsulates the main gist of the news item, so quoting him or her will greatly aid in writing. However, using quotations too often will have the opposite effect-it will result in an article which seems as if the writer did not research or think thoroughly about; simply putting in others' thoughts and opinions. Learn how to use them well, but do not use them liberally.

After writing a newspaper article, you should check it for some errors. Make sure that everything is grammatically correct, and that there are no misspelled words. No one wants to read an article that is filled with errors, be it technical or factual. So make sure that you always edit your work before submitting or publishing it.

Writing a Newspaper Article - What to Include
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Short Story Writing: Article 10: Characters

Characters

The centre of interest in almost all short stories is the dynamic interaction between characters; what people do and say to each other, how they affect and influence each other, and the effects of their actions on each other. This is what the whole business is really about, and we should keep our interacting characters in the spotlight all the time. Other elements, such as descriptive passages are embellishments. We do not have time to stop and 'look at the scenery', so to speak, unless it is important to the plot that the central character stops and looks at the scenery.

A character is a representation of a person, and the best character portrayals, like the best portraits, are those that prompt the reader to see the whole person in his imagination.

Short Story Writing: Article 10: Characters

The way to do this is not to ply the reader with all the details you can think of with the intention of transferring the image you have in your mind to his, but to show one or two salient points and let the reader's imagination do the rest.

There is never any need to describe a character just for the sake of it. Like everything else in the story characterisation is only relevant insofar as it contributes to the plot, and should be done through action. Let the characters reveal themselves as they act and speak, just as people reveal themselves in life, and only mention details of their physical appearance when it is pertinent to the story that the central character is noticing that particular feature at that particular time.

Your initial conception of the story will include a rough idea of the characters needed and the role they are to play, and they should develop as you work on the story as a whole. Some writers talk of characters coming alive and taking over the story, and this is fine as long as what they do strengthens your original theme or introduces a better one. But generally speaking in a short story characters are glimpsed rather than seen in the round, and if you find the characters growing out of proportion you might well be thinking of a novel.

It is inevitable that characters are going to be based to some extent on ourselves, people we know, or people have met, and we can combine features of several people to create a unique composite. In fact we can rely on our subconscious to do this for us. The important thing is that our characters should be real people for us, and not just names attached to a set of attitudes. If a character is real for us then there is a good chance he will be real for the reader too.

The article on point of view shows that the whole story is seen through a character - the central character. We therefore need a dual approach to character in a short story, we need to be the central character, and to see the others from the outside, as he/she would see them. In effect we need to adopt the personality of the central character while writing the story in much the same way an actor adopts the personality of the character he is playing on stage. We need to think as the character would think, feel what he would feel, and perceive what he would perceive. We can, of course, make the central character as similar or dissimilar to our real selves as we like.

Names

It is a good idea to make your characters' names sound and look completely different from one another. If a story has characters named, for example, John, Jean, Jan, and Jenny a reader can lose track of which character is which. Select names which sound very different, and look different on the page. If you are stuck for names it can be helpful to browse through 'name your baby' books or web sites about names.

Copyright: Ian Mackean

http://www.literature-study-online.com/creativewriting/

Short Story Writing: Article 10: Characters
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Ian Mackean runs the sites http://www.literature-study-online.com, where his site on Short Story Writing can be found, and http://www.booksmadeintomovies.com. He was a short story and novel writing tutor for many years, and had many of his own stories published in literary magazines. He is the editor of The Essentials of Literature in English post-1914, ISBN 0340882689, which was published by Hodder Arnold in 2005. When not writing about literature or short story writing he is a keen amateur photographer, and has made a site of his photography at http://www.photo-zen.com

Writing Lesson Plan - A Children's Writing Lesson Plan For Beginners

Since many aspiring children's book writers are also teachers, it might be a good idea to offer some advice in a familiar format -- a writing lesson plan. We'll develop this plan step-by-step.

LESSON ONE:

Let's start our adventure with a look at the categories of children's books:

Writing Lesson Plan - A Children's Writing Lesson Plan For Beginners

* Picture books -- In its broadest definition, a picture book is a book in which the illustrations play a significant role in telling the story. Under this umbrella are several types of books:

1. Baby Books -- For infants and young toddlers, these books are generally lullabies, nursery rhymes, fingerplays, or wordless books. The length and format varies with the content.

2. Toddler books -- Very simple stories for ages 1-3 (under 300 words) familiar to a child's everyday life, or concept books (teaching colors, numbers, shapes, etc.) Books are short (12 pages is average) and the format can be board books (sturdy paper-over board construction), pop-ups, lift-the flaps or novelty books (books that make sounds, have different textures, etc.) See the "Max" series of board books by Rosemary Wells (Dial).

3. Picture books -- Traditionally, picture books (also called "picture story books") are 32-page books for ages 4-8 (this age may vary slightly by publisher). Manuscripts are up to 1500 words, with 1000 words being the average length. Plots are simple (no sub-plots or complicated twists) with one main character who embodies the child's emotions, concerns and viewpoint. The illustrations (on every page or every other page) play as great a role as the text in telling the story. Occasionally a picture book will exceed 1500 words; this is usually geared toward the upper end of the age spectrum. Picture books cover a wide range of topics and styles. The list of Caldecott Medal winners, available from your library, is a good place to start your research. Nonfiction in the picture book format can go up to age 10, 48 pages in length, or up to about 2000 words of text.

4. Early picture books -- A term for picture books geared toward the lower end of the 4-8 age range. These stories are simple and contain under 1000 words. Many early picture books have been reprinted in the board book format, thus widening the audience. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle (Philomel) is an example.

As we continue our writing lesson plan, we step up to a slighty older age group:

* Easy readers -- Also called "easy-to-read", these books are for children just starting to read on their own (age 6-8). They have color illustrations on every page like a picture book, but the format is more "grown-up" -- smaller trim size, sometimes broken into short chapters. The length varies greatly by publisher; the books can be 32-64 pages long, with 200-1500 words of text, occasionally going up to 2000 words. The stories are told mainly through action and dialogue, in grammatically simple sentences (one idea per sentence). Books average 2-5 sentences per page. See the "Amelia Bedelia" books by Peggy Parish or other "I Can Read" books published by Harper Trophy.

* Transition books -- Sometimes called "early chapter books" for ages 6-9, they bridge the gap between easy readers and chapter books. Written like easy readers in style, transition books are longer (manuscripts are about 30 pages long, broken into 2-3 page chapters), books have a smaller trim size with black-and-white illustrations every few pages. See "The Kids of the Polk Street School" series by Patricia Reilly Giff (Dell) or the "Stepping Stone Books" published by Random House.

* Chapter books -- For ages 7-10, these books are 45-60 manuscript pages long, broken into 3-4 page chapters. Stories are meatier than transition books, though still contain a lot of action. The sentences can be a bit more complex, but paragraphs are still short (2-4 sentences is average). Chapters often end in the middle of a scene to keep the reader turning the pages. Look at the "Herbie Jones" books by Suzy Kline (Puffin) and the "Ramona" books by Beverly Cleary (Morrow).

* Middle grade -- This is the golden age of reading for many children, ages 8-12. Manuscripts suddenly get longer (100-150 pages), stories more complex (sub-plots involving secondary characters are woven through the story) and themes more sophisticated. Kids get hooked on characters at this age, which explains the popularity of series with 20 or more books involving the same cast. Fiction genres range from contemporary to historical to science fiction/fantasy; nonfiction includes biographies, science, history and multicultural topics. Check out some middle grade novels from the list of Newberry Medal winners at your library to get you started.

Our final stop for this writing lesson plan is one of the hottest areas of publishing:

* Young adult -- For ages 12 and up, these manuscripts are 130 to about 200 pages long. Plots can be complex with several major characters, though one character should emerge as the focus of the book. Themes should be relevant to the problems and struggles of today's teenagers, regardless of the genre. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton defined young adult when it was first published in 1967; the Newbery Medal award list also contains many worthy titles. A new age category (10-14) is emerging, especially with young adult nonfiction. These books are slightly shorter than the 12 and up category, and topics (both fiction and nonfiction) are appropriate for children who have outgrown middle grade but aren't yet ready for the themes (fiction) or who aren't studying the subjects (nonfiction) of high school readers.

Back with Step 2 of our writing lesson plan soon! In the meantime, visit http://cbiclubhouse.com to learn about the right way to write stories and submit them to children's book publishers.

Writing Lesson Plan - A Children's Writing Lesson Plan For Beginners
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Laura Backes is the Publisher of Children's Book Insider, the Newsletter for Children's Book Writers. Want to learn how to become a successful children's book author? Come hang with the Fightin' Bookworms at http://cbiclubhouse.com Whether is writing picture books, chapter books, young adult novels, finding children's book publishers -- or anything else -- you'll find all the answers at the CBI Clubhouse!

Writing an RFP (Request for Proposal)

A while back, a potential client provided me with some general details of the writing work he wanted me to do for his company. Then he asked me to send him a proposal.

Proposal?! I panicked as I tried to confirm with him what he meant by that since I had never done one before, at least not as a freelancer.

I must've not really wanted to pursue this opportunity since I didn't bother to do research or follow up with the company after submitting a contract instead of a proposal. A little time passed, I came across an article on writing RFPs (Request for Proposal). Ding! The light bulb went on. This guy verbally gave me his RFP and wanted a written response.

Writing an RFP (Request for Proposal)

When a company needs a project to be completed by a contractor or outside source, they write a RFP. This is a formal document describing the project, how the contract companies should respond, how the proposals will be reviewed, and contact information. Often, the company documents the submission guidelines to make it easier for them to compare responses. There are no specific standards or guidelines for creating the RFP, but government agencies usually strict standards they follow when conducting the proposal process.

Outside companies read the RFP and write a proposal (a bid) explaining how they can best provide and meet those needs. When writing the proposal, the company should closely follow the guidelines established in the RFP to avoid being removed from consideration for the potential project.

A typical proposal contains:

Executive summary - summary of the entire proposal Statement of need - why project is necessary Project description - How project will be implemented and evaluated Organization information Project schedule Budget Conclusion

My situation was an informal version of all this. The client gave me a high level overview of what I might do for him. If I knew then what I know now, I would've written up a description of the client's needs and how I would complete the work in meeting those needs.

Small businesses would likely do a proposal in between the one I got and the complex government required ones. Most small businesses will be prompted to write a proposal when approaching a client. The client may ask you to submit a proposal outlining what you can do for them. In this case, write a proposal including the elements of a typical proposal and keep it short and to the point especially if the client is not a large company.

There are examples of RFPs and responses peppered throughout the Web, but which one you can learn from depends on the type of work involved. A proposal can be two pages or as big as a book. Rely on your favorite search engine and do the research to create an unbeatable proposal.

Writing an RFP (Request for Proposal)
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Meryl K. Evans, Content Maven, is Editor-in-Chief of eNewsletter Journal and The Remediator Security Digest. She's a slave to a MarketingProfs weekly column and a Web design reference guide at InformIT. She is the author of the popular e-report, How to Start a Business Blog and Build Traffic. Visit her site at http://www.meryl.net/blog/ for free newsletters, articles, and tips.