Canadian Mom Writer

2006-05-16T13:14:00.000-04:00

How to create a Copywriter's Portfolio before you get paying clients.

Give it Away!

That's right, offer your services for free! If you don't have any published pieces, now is the time to start contacting local organizations and asking them if they need any writing help, and if they would allow you to put the document on your website portfolio as well as your actual portfolio. I have written some articles for friends in a pinch, who were more than happy to allow me to use the finished piece in my portfolio. I also got a great start from volunteering my services at my local YMCA. They were looking to put a weekly column in the local paper, I showed up on their doorstep, it was a win-win situation all around.

I also asked the people I provided pro bono work to if they would mind contributing a written testimonial that I could use on my website, and they were more than happy to oblige. Like a good reference on your resume, what people say about you does effect what others think about your services.

So where can you find these pro bono jobs? Anywhere! Now is the time to start networking, telling people what you do, and what the role of a copywriter is as most people don't understand exactly what we do. If you are currently employed, ask to work on the next print ad or other written materials. If your children are involved with extracurricular activities, ask their instructors if they would like a profile written up about them for the local paper. Look around for volunteer work with festivals, non-profits or the like, they are usually very happy to have someone volunteer this kind of service.

But don't forget to ask them if it is alright to use the material in your portfolio, never just assume. In no time at all you will have a few decent samples in your hands to show to the paying clients.

2006-04-19T22:12:00.000-04:00

New Direction

I've been somewhat neglectful of my blog over the past few weeks. I've been thinking of changing the direction, of posting content that is related to starting a home based business. As some of you may know, I am a work at home mom that has decided to delve into the lucrative area of freelance copywriting. If you don't know what a copywriter is, then you need to go to my site right now.

A copywriter uses words to sell products. My BA in English is finally paying off! Of course, being self employed means a lot of hard work. The past year has been spent researching, learning, making contacts, building my portfolio, building an online presence via my website, and also getting my portfolio up and running. I have taken on some volunteer positions as I know this is the best and fastest way to build my portfolio before I have actual paying clients. I have written an article at Ezine Articles, and have more in the works. I have collected testimonials in lieu of payment from the non-profit work I have done recently. My website is nearly completed now, and the word is getting out about what I do.

The other side of starting a freelance business from home, is of course working with small children running around. For those of you that are regular readers (all 2 of you!) you will know that I have 3 children, and only 1 is in school full time. That makes for some keen multitasking on my part. Motherhood is quite the adventure. Add a work from home/self employed situation to the mix and you've got the poster child (or woman, in this case) for adult-onset ADD. But, I wouldn't change it for the world. I've examined my options and there is nothing else right now that I'd rather be doing.

So, I hope you will come back and see how I'm doing from time to time as I establish myself as a freelance copywriter. Who knows, maybe you'll even know someone who knows someone who could use a proofreader, editor, writer, marketing guru, word geek....

2006-03-28T10:55:00.000-05:00

Kids + Vomit= One tired Mom

Why do kids always throw up in the middle of the night? They can't wait for morning, or throw up during normal hours. No, they must start puking when we're either a. 'busy', or b. deep into REM sleep dreaming about Colin Farrell. *sigh*

Such has been my life over the past weekend, first the oldest came down with this stomach bug that caused 8 kids to be absent from school on Friday. Thankfully she is old enough now that she can aim for the bucket and doesn't cry for me everytime. Love that. Sunday night at midnight the middle child came down with it. After setting her up with a bucket and towels, she was ok fending for herself. But as every mom knows, you wake up with each retch you hear. Yesterday morning I succumbed to the wicked ailment and spent the day on the couch, not caring if the toddler tore the place apart. Oh, and the toddler? He started throwing up at 1am this morning, and continued throwing up every half hour until I crawled back into bed at 6am for an hour and 10 minute power nap.... So 4 down and one to go.... I'm half expecting hubby to come home early and spend the rest of the day in bed, if not today then definately by tomorrow.

There should be some kind of law against kids throwing up in the middle of the night. Who's with me?

2006-03-25T20:07:00.000-05:00

Website Up and Running Again!

Thanks to a nasty virus that caused a reformat of my laptop, and the fact that changing host providers is NEVER as easy as they say it will be, my website was offline for a couple of weeks. Thankfully I have now got it up and running again, and just about finished. I still need to insert some published works into my portfolio, but all the links work and I think I've ironed out any other kinks that may interfere with the overall look of it. I'm open to any comments, suggestions, etc so please check it out www.carolmcleod.net

Many thanks to those who have already given their feedback!

Carol

2006-02-27T10:37:00.000-05:00

I’ve seen the future, and it’s not pretty…

Yesterday my oldest daughter had her 8th birthday party with nine of her closest gal pals. Seven of these girls are in her class at school, and what FUN it was to have them all in one place at the same time! Ah, no, it wasn’t that bad, just a little scary when you think that a few years ago I was changing diapers and nursing this little being, and then all of a sudden she’s talking about loving this poor, poor boy in her class ( I say poor because as soon as Daddy finds out, he’ll be a goner). And thanks to the powers of technology in the form of a karaoke video camera, we have it all on videotape. I sat here in utter amazement as my daughter and her friends had no fear about saying who they had a crush on. A crush, for pete’s sake. When I was that age boys elicited two emotions in my friends and I – fear and disgust. I remember I was 12 when I had my first crush. Now I get to see it all again through my daughter’s eyes, albeit a little earlier. At this rate by the time she’s 12 she’ll already be engaged to be married… Scary, isn’t it? What’s even scarier is the fact that the objects of their affections have no clue what’s going on, or if they do understand what’s happening to the cute little girls around them, they run screaming in the opposite direction. Welcome to the complex world of human sexuality girls, it doesn’t get much better than this….

2006-02-13T15:35:00.000-05:00

Four Things

I've noticed on my wanderings that a lot of bloggers are doing this. So I thought I'd follow suit, and seeing as I don't really have anything worthwhile to share today, why not. And it never hurts to know me a little better.

4 jobs you have had in your life
McDonald’s (My first real job)
Pizza Restaurant Manager
Front Desk Clerk at a hotel
Freelance Writer

4 Movies You Could Watch Over and Over
Lord of the Rings trilogy
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (The new version)
Monty Python’s Quest for the Holy Grail
X-Men/ Van Helsing (OK, I know it said 4 movies…but I can’t decide between Hugh Jackman all angry and misunderstood in a wifebeater or Hugh Jackman all angry and Long Haired as a vampire slayer. Sue me.)

4 Places You Have Lived
Finglas, Dublin, Ireland
Elliot Lake, Ontario
London, Ontario
St Marys, Ontario

4 TV Shows You Love To Watch
Nip/Tuck(mostly for the eye candy...)
Six Feet Under
CSI NY
ER

4 Places You Have Been On Vacation
New York, NY
Dublin, Ireland
France (various places-as a kid my parents took us camping in France, so they could spend more on wine)
Camp Waubashene, Ontario

4 Websites You Visit Daily
www.google.ca
www.momsalon.com
www.carolmcleod.net
www.anndouglas.blogspot.com

4 Of Your Favorite Foods
Chocolate
French Fries
Greek Salad
Brushetta

4 Places You Would Rather Be Right Now
Anywhere warm and sunny
Other than that, I am where I want to be right now!

2006-02-12T17:16:00.000-05:00

My child is secretly plotting to overthrow me…

Trying to recreate genius here….it’s going to be hard after it’s been 3 days since I wrote the original post in blogger and then lost the fricking thing…bastards…

But, I can try again. Here goes.

Last week was one of those weeks where, as a parent, you feel like running away from it all, from the sleepless nights, the dirty laundry that is never finished, the constant 1 step forward, 2 steps back approach to housecleaning, not to mention your evil spawn that is secretly plotting your demise.

Here’s how it happened. The son gave us a particularly tough night on Tuesday, it was as though he was hyped up on caffeine, you know he wanted to sleep, but he just kept thrashing around and waking himself up, and then refusing to go back to sleep. Finally, somewhere around 5am, the little blighter finally gave up and surrendered to some much needed shut eye, both of us bleary eyed and lying on the couch so that Daddy could at least get his rest (I've got to get up in an hour..boo-hoo).

Fast forward to the next day, after only 4 hours of sleep I wasn’t in that good of a mood, so decided to take the day off from any chores that involved me getting off the couch. Pretty hard to do when you have a very active 16 month old who likes to wear you down by throwing cheerios and dirt from the only remaining houseplant on the floor – repeatedly. And nap time was pretty much thrown to the wind as he didn’t wake up till 10:30. His babblings started to sound like Stewie Griffin…”Yes, yes…your anguish sustains me”, or maybe it was just the sleep deprivation talking. I was heading into the living room when I suddenly found myself airborne thanks to the strategically placed copy of Maclean’s left on the floor by ‘someone’. Luckily, the soft part of the armchair broke my fall and my face bounced off the cushion, remarkable as the coffe table was mere inches away. My right hip didn’t fare so well, I felt severe pain when I went down and realized when I was eventually able to get up, that I had landed on a plastic glass and broken it to pieces.

Perhaps the scariest part of this whole experience was when I was lying on the floor trying to stop myself from screaming “I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up!” I felt these little fingers softly patting my head. And I swear, what I heard was “There, there, Mommy, I see I didn’t factor in the distance you would fall against the angle in which your head would hit the coffee table…but next time, my sweet….next time….Buwahahaha”…

Paranoid? Perhaps…but you try dealing with a relentless toddler after no REM sleep for 2 days.

2006-02-10T14:38:00.000-05:00

WTF?

My brilliant, witty post about parenting is lost, lost I say! Damn it all... I have learned now to blog in Word first and then copy it here, not vice versa, as sometimes the fricking SERVER goes and you lose EVERYTHING!!!! BLEARGH!!!!

Sigh....now I have to go and try to recreate genius...a hard task to do... Thanks a lot blogger...

2006-02-01T10:05:00.000-05:00

On Emigrating.

17 years ago today, I stepped off the plane onto Canadian soil for the first time. 17 years ago I said goodbye to the familiar, to family and friends and my life up to that point. I remember it like it was yesterday, the whole day burned into my memory for ever, the excitement mixed with fear and dread. I was almost 16 then, already worldly in my eyes, but in hindsight just a child. I have now passed the halfway point, and have been in Canada longer than the country of my birth. I feel sad about this, as though the Irish part of me is slowly slipping away and there is nothing I can do to stop it. In 17 years the ties have slowly been unraveling, first losing contact with friends, then the inevitable passing of loved ones - one of my worst fears when I left so long ago, the handwritten letters come less and less, even more so now with the accessibility of email. It’s something every immigrant must go through, and has gone through. I’ve never felt like I’ve truly belonged in this country, although I really haven’t felt like I’ve truly belonged anywhere in my life. However, now that I have my own family and home, that feeling is diminishing. There is nothing like the feeling of disconnection to make you yearn for your current home. I went on two trips without my husband and kids last year, and I’ve never wanted to be home more than when I was away from them. We’re never happy, always looking over the fence to see if the grass is indeed greener over there, testing it out for a bit before we make the final leap, and then still we hold onto what we had before, never allowing ourselves to truly enjoy the experience. I will always have that yearning for home, for places that we can go back to only in memory, but it’s not about just me any more, is it? I have a family now, a home and memories to build for them, where they will hopefully look back on in fondness some day. I found this quote today on quoteworld.org, and it sums up my experience in a nutshell.

"When you finally go back to your old hometown, you find it wasn't the old home you missed but your childhood."
Sam Ewing

Here's to 17 years in Canada, and many more. This is where I call home these days, it's no palace, but it's home to me and my family, and that's what counts.

2006-01-31T09:50:00.000-05:00

Farewell to Fertility

In 2 days I am going in for a 'gyny' procedure. We have 3 children now, 2 girls and a boy, and we feel that our family is complete. I had hoped that the Mr would step up to the plate, but constant nagging from me since our son was born 16 months ago has yielded nothing, only a 'I'm not ready'.... Something about the words 'scalpel' and 'boys' in the same sentence that makes him weak at the knees. I've resigned myself to the fact that it would have to be me that did something definite, or I'd be hitting menopause by the time he'd be ready. So, for future reference, I'd like to point out the fact that not only have I brought 3 children into the world, but I've also gone through 27 months of pregnancy - that's 2 years and 3 months of having a human growing inside you, a combined total of about 40 hours of labour, (a normal work week for most people) 2 epidurals and 1 caesarian with all the stitches and FUN that goes along with that, and 1 totally natural, totally drug free birth that was the most amazing experience of my life and one that solidified the belief that if my body can expel an 8lb 7oz human out of it in 17 minutes, then it can do ANYTHING.

And then somewhere during the first year of my son's life, after battling Post Partum Depression, major sleep deprivation and the complete loss of focus that beleaguers all mothers, I decided that this was it, I wasn't going through this again. We had our perfect family, our beautiful daughters and the much sought-after BOY; it was time to focus on enjoying them and reconnecting with ourselves, and myself. I've spent the last 8 years having babies and loving every minute of it, well, almost every minute! Now it's time for me to focus on my career, on my writing, on watching my children grow up. So am I nervous about this impending surgery? Not a bit, I'm actually looking forward to it. Now if only there was a way to get rid of Aunt Flo...

2006-01-16T19:10:00.000-05:00

What's in a name?

I've never had so much difficulty in thinking up names for things.... Even naming my children wasn't this hard. I am trying to think up possible names for a parenting column I may be writing on a regular basis. All of the names that I've come up with so far seem to have been taken. I've brainstormed every derivative of the word 'Mother' I can think of, and am now thinking of some catchy phrase instead. Help! I need inspiration! Is this why it's taken me so long to get these sample articles off to the editor, I just can't for the life of me think of a catchy, yet poignant original name. Good grief, this hurts....

2006-01-11T07:07:00.000-05:00

Disney Princesses, Feminism, and what are we teaching our daughters?

My younger daughter turned 6 this past Sunday. She has been a Cinderella nut for ages, so this Christmas she received lots of Princess stuff. For her birthday, she wanted a Princess party, so a dozen or so little princesses descended on my house on Saturday. Halfway through the party, she said her dress made her itchy and she took it off. I was a bit upset when taking the group photo and the birthday girl was wearing pants and a t-shirt, but whatever. I even made her a Castle cake, which didn't turn out quite the way I expected, the cake was too flaky and wouldn't hold the icing, not to mention the fact that I ran out of frosting....

The recently sieged Castle Cake....
But did she notice? Not a bit. She was more interested in putting sprinkles and 2 little princess figurines on it than noticing that the castle looked like it had been pillaged and plundered.

So fast forward to the next day, her actual birthday. We gave her a Cinderella carriage complete with a resplendent Prince Charming. This is the first male doll she has owned, and leave it to the girls to pull his pants down to see his bum and see if he had a penis. Finally, payback for Daddy looking at Barbies, Bratz, and Disney Princesses in such a manner. I can hardly reprimand them for being curious, can I? Later that night I came across Cinderella and her trusty steed on the couch. This is what it looked like;

Cinderelly a go-go

Apparently whenever she put Cinderella in the carriage with Prince Charming, her dress would keep the door open. So leave it to my resourceful, smart child to remover her cumbersome dress and leave her in the carriage in her underwear! Like my daughter, Cinderella's dress became too much of a bother. Pretty for a while, but not very comfortable. Looks like at this point that she finally ditched the man too, happy to ride naked, carefree and upside down. Isn't that what every little girl truly dreams of anyway?!

2006-01-03T23:27:00.000-05:00

First Post of the New Year!

After a somewhat crazy holiday, we are starting to get back into the regular routine; hubby goes back to work tomorrow, girls go back to school next Monday, brothers have gone back to their lives in Toronto and New York.

Now it is time for me to determine what I want out of 2006. Here are my goals for the upcoming year.

1. Get my Freelance Writing business off the ground! I will get clients, and I will be able to make this work.

2. Write More. Work on my book as much as possible.

3. Network/market my business as much as possible.

4. Get in shape and lose weight. I've joined the Y, and am slowly getting into the routine of going to the gym regularly. I am also writing their weekly article in our local paper so it is a win-win situation. I played squash tonight for the first time with the racquet I got for Christmas. I loved it, but I know I'll be hurting tomorrow.

5. Get Organized. Hah! Had to throw that one in here. Wouldn't be New Year's without it.

2005-12-22T21:53:00.000-05:00

I gave my baby a Mullett....

Tonight I inadvertantly cost myself and my husband thousands of dollars in therapy for our son when I accidentally gave him a mullett during his first haircut...

I really didn't mean to, the idea was to just trim the top so that it stayed out of his eyes, and leave the rest of his beautiful blond baby curls till another day, but have you ever tried cutting the hair of a wriggly 15 month old? I had to get him to sit in Dad's lap with a towel around him to catch the hair. He didn't like me pulling his hair, and kept turning his head to the side and looking up at me. Needless to say he got a mouthful of hair a few times, and started crying. Dad started yelling at me to hurry up so I finished as quickly as I could. The girls rescued a lock of hair from the floor to keep as I spat the stray hair out of my mouth.

Once his hair dried, I looked in horror at what I'd done.... Short at the top and front and then these lovely golden curls cascading around his ears and neck. Eeek.. I didn't get a picture of it tonight, but I will have to get one tomorrow. Looks like the rest of the baby curls will have to come off tomorrow...sigh.... If he'll stay still...

2005-12-21T09:37:00.000-05:00

I spent yesterday with my two little brothers. Not that they are little anymore, at 25 and 22 they are independant men, living on their own with their own lives. One lives in Manhattan and is pursuing a career in Musical Theatre, the other is at York University and will eventually be making scads of money in the tech field. You can view his blog here; http://www.concisecoding.blogspot.com

I am very proud of my brothers, even though they are much younger than me, they inspire me to follow my own dreams. When we were younger, it was always my job to watch over them, to make sure they didn't get into trouble or get run over or worse. I used to hate hanging out with my friends and having to keep an eye on a little gurrier or two, it really cramped my style! Now the tables have turned and they watch over me, like in New York when I could hardly walk after our weekend of sightseeing. I am the little sister now.

Christmas this year will be extra special, with them living away from home now and not being able to get home much, the time we spend together is quality. It won't be like this for much longer, as they are getting to the stage in their lives when girlfriends become more serious, they develop their own extended families through in-laws, and their lives and careers take them further away from the home base. My mother mentioned yesterday that she wanted to get a family picture of the 9 of us this year, I think deep down she knows that this may be the last Christmas that we will be able to do that.

But enough of that or I will get all misty eyed. We are constantly developing new Christmas traditions, and now I have to think about my children's view of the holidays, their memories are still being made, and I know I want them to have the same wonderful holiday memories that I have. Most of my memories as a child involve family, the presents fade into memory, but it's how we spend the time and who with, that remains in our memories many years from now.

2005-12-18T22:24:00.000-05:00

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

Sorry to use this overused cliche, but this damn weather is starting to get to me. I know, we're in Canada, eh, so get used to it. I've been here for almost 17 years, I don't think I'll ever get used to it. It makes for hairy-scary driving, especially as we live in the country and all of the snow in the area seems to accumulate on our road.

Sure, it's nice this time of year, but crappy roads mixed with half crazed last minute Christmas shoppers is not a nice combination. I went to Walmart last night, the one place I try to stay clear of this time of year, but I am a sucker for punishment. I swear they pump in some kind of mood altering chemical in the heater when you walk through the front door. It means that everyone you encounter in the store will be in a hurry, will stop in the middle of a busy aisle so that you ram into the back of them, and will stand in front of the one item that you want. I made the mistake of entering the toy department last night, along with 64 million other people. They really need to make the aisles bigger in this one department.

But enough of that. I am almost done my shopping, and now comes the crazy week where the house has to be cleaned, the girl's room has to be cleaned (dreading that), the xmas cards still have to be mailed out (stupid printer....) and hopefully the 2 gifts that are coming via mail will get here on time.

On the up side, I am going to Toronto on Tuesday with my brother to pick up our little brother at York. We are then going shopping at Yorkdale. It will be nice to spend time with the bros, especially now that they live so far away.

Today is my husband's birthday, he seemed to have a good day doing nothing!

Grumpy baby ready for bed now so must be off.

2005-12-17T23:25:00.000-05:00

Argh! Enough with the lousy spelling, people!

OK. So tonight I'm surfing through some copywriting blogs when I come across a request on a message board to give testimonials about a beta web site, the reward being a free 5,000 page training book, or something like that. I think, sure, I'll give it a look, not like I'm having any amazing breakthroughs on my book or anything. I couldn't understand the headline, it was that disorienting. Then mistake after mistake in the copy of the website. I check out the sample chapters.... I can't imagine wanting to plow through 1,200 pages of this stuff. Spelling errors rampant throughout the page. I can't stand to read any more so I close off the page. I think of emailing the guy to let him know my feelings, but decide not to as I've been told by a certain family member (yeah, you know who you are,) that I am too "HARSH"...

You know, if you're going to talk the talk and call yourself a copywriter, then you'd better walk the walk. How is it this guy is doing so well for himself, and here I am trying to figure out ways to justify writing off business expenses for the year when I haven't actually made any money? The bitter irony of it all..

The line from a Pink Floyd song just popped into my head, "How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat?" Do you think that people like, oh, say Bill Gates or Oprah would have the credibility that they have today if they'd published sloppy copy on their websites through the years? There's a reason we have proofreaders and editors in this world, like a good publicist they're there to make you look better, even if you can't spell or don't know the difference between the words your and you're.

I'll admit it; I am a spelling snob. However, in the business world, credibility and trust are huge. If I can't take you seriously from the content on your website, then how am I going to take your product seriously and actually purchase it? Sloppy copy is a sales killer, don't let it take down your business.

Copywriter for Hire
www.carolmcleod.net

2005-12-16T09:11:00.000-05:00

Some Pictures of Dublin

Here are some pictures of Dublin that I took this summer, so that you can get an idea of the novel's setting. Granted, it's set in the past...but I don't think Dublin has changed all that much over the years. The First picture above is of the Halfpenny Bridge.

This next picture is taken on the Halfpenny Bridge looking east to O'Connell Bridge. I suppose I should mention that the river underneath is the River Liffey, and it is always written that way, never the Liffey River. Still not quite sure why that is, any Dubliners out there know the answer? Maybe because the gaelic translation, Abhainn na Life, puts the word 'river' in front of the noun.

This picture is of the North side entrance to the Halfpenny Bridge. This hopefully will give a better visual image when reading my last post.

2005-12-15T19:56:00.000-05:00

A Chapter from my book, Dubh Linn

Aisling first realized where she was when she saw her father Sean, walking across the bridge. She was almost ready to run to him, when something about him set her on edge. He looked younger, no signs of grey hair yet peeking out from under his hat, his face was less lined than she remembered, and his walk, his gait was as though he was on his way to the firing squad. He looked confused, miserable, and ready to burst into tears. Aisling couldn’t run up to him looking like this, plus she had a funny feeling something bigger was going on. Like Sean wasn’t the one she was supposed to be looking at.

Just then Aisling saw her. The black hair and blue eyes noticeable even from this distance. The woman came out of an alleyway so fast she nearly dropped the load she was carrying when she bumped into Sean. The two collided and the woman teetered off balance, catching herself and her washing basket against the wall of a shop. Sean bent to pick up his hat, and offered his apologies to the woman, who quickly mumbled something and rushed off. Sean didn’t think anymore of it as the two parted company, Sean heading to O’Connell Bridge, the woman hurrying towards the halfpenny bridge. Aisling staggered to control herself as she just realized what had happened. They had touched, even just for a brief moment.

She shrank back into the doorway as the woman came closer, noticing how much younger she looked also, and how pale her skin was, as if death itself were following her close behind. When the woman walked past her, unawares of who was watching her, Aisling felt the strangest sensation, what she would later describe as if she had received all the knowledge in the world in just one moment. She had been here before; she knew it deep in her heart. But how? And where? Her heart started to race and adrenalin filled her body. Something huge was going on, and she was privy to it amongst all these unsuspecting people.

The woman disappeared from her sight, but she searched frantically on O’Connell Bridge for Sean. There he was, dejectedly looking in the river, his hands tucked into his pockets, and his shoulders slouched. What had happened to him? Just then she heard a couple of passers-by talking. “Terrible day, this is. Poor Mick, done in and here’s the rest of us to pick up the pieces”. The man who said this had stopped to buy a newspaper from a boy on the Street. Aisling inched her way over to the boy, trying to read the headlines in the afternoon paper. She didn’t have to, however, as the Paper boy let out a hair raising shout to the crowds; “Michael Collins Dead! Read all about it”. This was it, the day she was born, the day of such happiness and sorrow for her father. No wonder he looked so awful.

Then there was a commotion on the bridge and down by the quays as people started shouting and pointing. Had someone fallen in? Or worse, jumped? She frantically searched the heads of the people on O’Connell Bridge to find her father, and there he was. What was he doing? Undressing? He had handed his hat and overcoat to a woman beside him, and now he was climbing onto the cement railing. No! Forgetting about being seen, Aisling ran across the road to the wall, where she blended in with the other onlookers who were pointing and shouting at something in the river. Her gaze fell off Sean for a second as she looked in the direction of their pointed fingers, and then she heard the splash. She lost what they were looking at for a moment as her attention once again focused on Sean. He had jumped into the Liffey? No! “Daddy! NO!”

Well? I'd appreciate any and all comments on this. Just a teaser....

2005-12-13T09:28:00.000-05:00

E-Books and Editing: A Lost Art?

I've been subscribing to newsletter services like crazy lately, call it a quest for more business knowledge while I try to build my online 'empire'.. I've also come across a lot of e-books, one I actually bought, the others came as free gifts for signing on to newsletters.

I must say this. As a freelance copywriter, many of the e-books I've read have to do with copywriting, or blogging, or making money online. These books are designed by professionals, written by professionals, and (one would think) edited by professionals. Why is it then, that I've found frequent spelling mistakes and shoddy grammar in these e-books? One of the reasons I went into this business was because I hated seeing written material for companies with blatant errors in them. It just makes me lose trust in someone or a company when I see this. If they aren't going to spend the time making sure their image is as polished as it can be, then how are they going to deal with me as a customer?

For example, I used to work Front Desk in a Hotel. There was a large sign outside by the road that they used to advertise specials in the Hotel and Restaurant. The sign was changed daily to reflect new menu items and so on. The owner of the hotel came storming in one day, furious with whoever had changed the sign. She wasn't happy with the person who put "Visit our Dinning Room" on the board. Needless to say, that person was not allowed to put the sign out unless it had been checked by someone who could spell....

It all boils down to respect. I lose respect when I can't trust someone to follow through on their promises. It really leaves a bad taste in my mouth when I read something by a fellow wordsmith, only to have it littered with bad spelling and poor English. Is the quick turnaround for making money off these things too tempting now, that all the writers forget to read through before they hit the 'publish' button?

I would think that if I were to write an e-book, and have it circulating the internet as an example of my work, with possibly hundreds of copies being downloaded each week, that I would want to put forth the best representation of myself that I could possibly muster up.

But that's just me...

If you are writing an e-book and would like it proofread by a professional with years of experience, you know what you have to do.

Visit my site for more information
www.carolmcleod.net

2005-12-11T20:46:00.000-05:00

My Feelings on The Chronicles of Narnia Movie.

This morning I finished the last two chapters of The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe with the girls. We then went this afternoon to see the movie. I can honestly say that I was impressed. For a relatively short book, I was pleased that the little plot add-ins worked with the rest of the story. For instance, the opening scenes aren't in the book, but it sets up the tension between the siblings. Also, in this day and age not many North American kids are aware that 60 years ago there was this huge event called World War 2, and many of London's children were billeted off to country homes to escape the Blitz. I had to explain this to my daughter when we were reading the book to her questions of "Where's their mom and dad?".

The children that were picked to play the lead roles were incredibly likeable, right down to the freckles on their face and the matching moles on the earlobes of Susan and Edmund. The actress who played Lucy should be nominated for an award.

Having just read the book, a lot of it was still fresh in my mind, and though I did pick up on some different things, they didn't really have that much of a negative effect. Unlike the LOTR trilogy, where they had no choice but to cut out so much of the book, this book seems to have adapted well to a screenplay.

Watching the news on Friday night, I was surprised to see that they were making such a big deal about the Christian elements of the story. For pete's sake people, last month the 4th Harry Potter movie came out, a series that gets more sinister with each book, and you're complaining about the overt Christian symbolism in this movie? Give me a break. There will be those who will say, it's just a story, no big deal. But you'd have to be living in a very dark void not to pick up on at least some of the references.

The soundtrack worked very well too, that haunting Enya-like instrumental music that gives you chills. I also felt that like LOTR, there was the attempt to make this a uniquely 'British' story, right down to some of the mythological creatures, the big old house in the country, and the folksy feel to some of the music. All in all I really enjoyed it, if you're thinking of taking the kids to a movie this holiday, Narnia should be on the top of your list.

2005-12-09T20:31:00.000-05:00

Writing or Housework, which will win?

For those of you that may not know, I am a work at home mother of 3 kids under the age of 8. I am constantly struggling to find ways to get more writing done while the kids are underfoot, but, granted, the muse doesn't always strike when I need her to.

I've found lately that my writing progress can be measured by how clean my house is. When my house is spotlessly clean (Ha!) I'm usually going through a very dry spell and not much writing is being done. Thankfully, that hasn't been the case lately. I know it drives my husband insane when he gets home after a long busy day at work to find all manner of toys on the ground, the dishes not done and loads of laundry left on the bed 'in medias res'... But, in my defense, it is usually because I have been on a creative roll.

The baby is 15 months old now and amidst my efforts to turn him into a obsessive compulsive neat freak, he seems to be going the way of his slobbish older sisters. Can I not have at least one kid who will clean up after this family?

I know people who will not sit down unless the dishes are done, the floor is swept and the house is spotless as if they are expecting a visit from the Queen. I don't possess this clean gene. Is it because I'm creative? I like to think that I have better things to do than clean, after all, the toys are just going to get dumped on the floor again, so what's the point of spending my energy picking them up 10 times a day when I can channel that energy into writing?

Once I start bringing some decent money in, a cleaner will be on the top of my list, because writing will always win, or eBay.

2005-12-07T19:08:00.000-05:00

Waiting with Anticipation for Narnia

I've been reading The Lion, the witch, and the wardrobe to my girls every night for the past week or so. We are on Chapter 11 tonight, and I am amazed at how well they will lie on their beds and listen. Lately we've been all clamouring onto one bed and reading while lying down....dangerous as I am liable not to get up from that position. The girls love it. I don't know why I didn't read it to them sooner, instead of waiting for the impending Hollywood movie version. I don't want them to grow up to be the type of person that watches the movie before reading the book, or worse still, being the type of person that foregoes the book altogether.

I bought the boxed set about 3 years ago now, and have read the first 2 books of the series...I know..but in the meantime, in my defense, the LOTR trilogy came out and I had to read the books before seeing the movies. Since then life, and 3 kids have gotten in the way of finishing the series.

The trailer for the movie version looks incredible, I hope it does the book justice. I remember seeing the BBC version as a teen, and then we borrowed it from the library 2 years ago.

Having said all this, I was hoping to go see the movie this weekend as a family.... but it looks like I'll have to do some more arm twisting on my husband's part. The promise of swords and battles may work on him yet.... I'm interested in what others have to say about the movie version, please leave me your comments!

2005-12-05T15:17:00.000-05:00

7 ways to get work done with your kids around.

1. Invest in a laptop: My productivity has increased dramatically since I got my laptop. However, I am looking at getting my son his own mini computer as he has developed a bad case of ‘laptop’ envy. I like that I can write anytime of the day, without having to run into the office every time I want to check my e-mail or work on my website.

2. Use those pockets of time wisely: Nobody needs to tell you what to do while the baby naps, but what about when he’s playing quietly in the living room, or when the older siblings are there to entertain him?

3. Go low-tech: Leave notebooks and pens within reach throughout your house. Just make sure to put them up somewhere high so that the toddler doesn’t rip all the pages out or end up with a self-inflicted moustache. And make sure that the older children know these are YOUR notebooks otherwise they will be moved, stolen, coloured in etc.

4. Get a Portable Office: I implemented this idea so long ago that my office-in- a- basket has become a part of the furniture in the living room. The baby doesn’t touch it, which is good as it’s on ground level. I have a large 2 foot by 1 foot wicker lined basket (the kind you can pick up anywhere) filled with current writing magazines, binders and file folders containing articles I’m working on, and library books, cds, pens, etc.

5. Prioritize daily and weekly: Take a few minutes each day and at the beginning of the week to make a list of all that you have to do. Motherhood is an all-consuming job, and working at home means that we have to be that much more organized. I say this even though I still have a LOTR calendar from 2004 hanging in my kitchen…Until I get a new calendar entirely devoted to Aragorn, it’s staying on October 2004.

6. Share childcare with a neighbour/friend. If you can’t afford to get a regular babysitter while you work, consider trading childcare time with a neighbour. I am lucky to have a neighbour close by (I live in the country) who will watch my son for a couple of hours a week. I find that I can get writing done with him around, but when it comes down to crunch time, I like to give my work the undivided attention it deserves.

7. Get a MP3 player with Voice recording feature: They’ve come out with a device that plays music while you’re at the gym and doubles as a voice recorder? Brilliant!

2005-11-30T22:33:00.000-05:00

Ponderings on recent trip to Ireland

1. This is not the country of my childhood anymore. The modern Dublin is losing it's uniqueness. Is this a result of 'selling out', of becoming more European? The history is still there and always will be, but there is something about the present state of things that has me a little on edge. I noticed that some areas are now well built up, take the Ballymun flats for instance, the first huge change I noticed when coming out of the airport. The eyesore on the horizon that welcomed me home all these years is now gone, replaced by modern office blocks and new condos. Yet turn a corner and the poverty and despair are still plain to see in the remaining smaller flats left behind to be demolished another day.

Having said that, I noticed other areas that have been redeveloped in the 16 years I've been out of Ireland that are now falling into decay. Finglas village for example. I didn't feel safe walking down to the village myself, and I was dismayed to see Superquinn going under, fallen victim to the influx of English stores. Don't even get me started on my Bewleys' experience.....

2. On the up side (depends which side you're on, I guess) I did notice that Dubliners have a lot more money these days. Jobs are easy to come by, pay is good and the economy is booming. Everyone and their little brother have cell phones (or mobiles) and I had huge trouble trying to find a payphone on a number of occasions, not to mention the outrageous amount of money I pumped into it to make a 2 minute phone call. The downside to this 'nouveau riche' is that everyone is trying harder than ever to keep up with the Joneses. House prices are ridiculous and banks are more than willing to give out 100% mortgages to young people eager for a bite of real estate. Materialism was a term I was never aware of as a teenager, it wasn't until I came to Canada that I saw it rear it's ugly head. Now it's alive and well in Ireland, which it probably always was, just that I notice it more now. The class distinctions are ever more apparent.

3. And now to say something good or my family will never want me back again! I guess I am glad to see the country pull itself up like this, the people are more educated and better paid than ever before. There are many students from other countries working there. It is cosmopolitan, a major European centre of history and culture. Dublin Castle, a place that holds a ton of significance to me, has seen a revival. The Dubhlinn Gardens, the centre of it all, have been redesigned with 4 contemplative gardens in each corner. However a new office block has gone up to the south of the castle, finally, after the developers came across some viking graves that halted construction for a while.

However, my Dublin will always be the same underneath it all, the sense of being home, of truly 'belonging' somewhere will always be there to greet me when I get off the plane and the guy who looks at my passport says in a flat Dublin accent; "Welcome Home".

2005-11-22T21:55:00.000-05:00

My son has Laptop envy.

Ever since he was 7 months old, my son has had to compete with the new 'baby' around here...yes, I consider my laptop to be a huge part of me, in fact, I may even go so far as to call it my 4th child..... I cannot remember what life was like before my laptop, I used to have an office here in my house, now the desktop is gathering dust and the office has become a repository for 'everything that can't make it upstairs because I'm too lazy'. My productivity has increased dramatically, as now I can reach for the laptop whenever inspiration strikes (usually in the form of something to look up on Ebay) instead of having to go and draw paintings of cows on my office wall. Speaking of pens, I don't remember the last time I had one in my possession that has stayed by me for longer than 2 seconds. *Sigh*, such is life with a little one. Which leads me to my next 'thought''.

Working with a baby underfoot

I'd like to represent mothers of young children to a future think tank of laptop computer designers. I think we as a demographic would have some pretty interesting ideas for these people. Come to think of it, do any mothers work in the design area of Microsoft? If so, come on ladies, we're waiting!

Here goes:
1. Must have smudge proof screen to prevent sticky fingerprints, and a very durable screen when said sticky fingers go pointing at the 'baby' on the wallpaper.

2. Must have a mini "Mommy and Me" tandem laptop designed to keep toddlers interested with moveable joysticks, flashing lights and sounds, and clicky buttons just like the real thing. This younger model can be sold as an added feature and must be portable, waterproof, breakproof, and pretty well perfect.

3. Must have detachable side 'blinders' for moms when they want some privacy and someone else is watching the kids (doesn't happen very often) and when we need to FOCUS on what is on the screen before us.

4. Must be small enough to allow a toddler to fall asleep in your arms while you can still balance the laptop on your knees, and be durable enough in the likely event that it falls off your knees when you try to put the kid down for a nap.

5. Must have voice recognition software built in for when we are nursing or otherwise tied up with a child in our arms, as most of us can't type with our toes. Although there are those out there who have tried, I am sure.

6. Must have strong password controlled adaptor plugs to prevent little fingers from pulling them out. Again, no flashing or pretty lights to get their attention.

7. Waterproof, dent resistant work pad for when those sippy cups decide to leak

8. Must have an alarm defence system built in, so that whenever said toddler decides to bang his hands on the closed laptop, or throw his little dinky cars at it, it will emit harsh piercing beeps. Alarm system can be operated by remote control by mother if desired. This must-have add-on could also be useful for when hubby decides to take your laptop and mess it up...I mean, play with it.

9. The person who invented my laptop didn't account for the fact that there may be a very small child sharing my lap, and seeing as very small children are attracted to coloured lights and buttons, then why put 2 of them right out in the open for little hands to find and press and repeatedly knock me off the wireless?

2005-11-16T13:02:00.000-05:00

Dr Ferber's new statement proves what Moms have always known....

I watched the news last night with a mix of dismay and disgust. Dr Ferber, one of the leading experts on children's sleeping issues, is now saying that his method may not be as effective as he once thought. Now, for those of you not familiar with "Ferberizing", just watch Meet the Parents 2. After having 3 children of my own, and going through the myriad nighttime battles, I have heard many comments from people about how I should 'train' my child to go to sleep. Usually it's older people, so people that would have been new parents in the 80's when his book came out. Most people of this generation will swear by the 'let them cry it out' method, and are quick to pass judgement on my current style of 'ahem' sleep training.

My first daughter slept through the night at about 4 months, and then from 7 months until almost 2 years, she had night wakings. At the later stage I was at my wits end, pregnant with baby #2 and getting up frequently during the night to use the bathroom anyway. I remember one particular harrowing night when I almost screamed at my husband; "Am I ever going to get a night's sleep before this baby comes?" Thankfully, daughter #2 was the best sleeper, from 5 weeks on she slept through the night, and only woke up if she wasn't feeling well. She also had help in the form of a digit on her left hand. Now, at almost 6 years of age, she still sucks that poor thumb. Our dentist asked her to stop by Christmas.... I foresee orthodontics in her future, damn it all.

So I guess what I'm saying is, you're damned if you do get to sleep, as a parent, and then you're also damned if you don't. Our, or I should say My (he has to work in the morning and doesn't have boobs) nights of blissful sleep after daughter #2 has come at a price.

Fast Forward to baby #3, the Boy. We thought this time around that we knew all the tricks, that our form of 'laissez-faire' parenting would work with this laid back little boy. But this little blighter knew what he wanted from the beginning. Mommy. He slept with us for the better part of his first year, and then as I was going away for a week I had to wean him and try to get him to sleep in his crib all at once. We gave up on the letting him cry, my husband chickening out before me. I stumbled into his room one night with him screaming with the indignance of it all, and when I picked him up and took him into bed with us, the little fart actually clapped and smiled in all his baby glory. "I WON!!!"

So, in response to the Ferber topic, I think that mothers and fathers should listen to their instincts. If you have a will of iron and can stand listening to those cries, then go for it. We prefer to spare the rod and spoil the child, they aren't babies for long, after all. And years from now I will remember the feel of my son next to me, lulled to sleep by the rhythm of my breathing, and not the countless nights he woke me up.

2005-11-14T22:44:00.000-05:00

Late at night now, so just some ramblings before I go to bed. I am trying to work on getting my website up and running, but it's so hard to promote yourself, you know? I have no problem promoting other people's work and business, but when it comes to myself, yeah... Funny occupation I've chosen if I can't even coax the word fairy to come out and inspire me. So much for self promotion.

I am knee deep in editing right now, and today I printed off what I needed to edit so that I could present it to my husband and ask, "What do you think?". But thankfully this month's edition of Writer's Digest arrived in the mail before I cornered him. Inside was an article about choosing the first reader of your work, it's like it was written for me. The author, Kevin Alexander, brought up an interesting point about getting our significant others to edit our work; "They love you, so they don't want to tell you that most of your work is terrible", or "they love you, so they think all of your work is good". I feel like I'm trying to pull teeth when I ask my husband to read something I've written. Most of the time, if the Simpson's are on tv, then he's not even listening to me. He groans now when I ask him to read something, so I've stopped. I married a non-reader!! Other than the LOTR trilogy and the odd Maxim magazine, I don't think I've seen him read much in the 12 years we've been together.

Thankfully I have one single friend who has offered to give her two cents on my work.... What would I do without her? Why is it so hard to get an honest opinion around here??!!

The Power of Words

2005-11-13T21:11:00.000-05:00

Today my daughter was playing with the words (like Magnetic Poetry only homemade) I had created for my writing class, and it amazed me what she came up with. This from a 7 1/2 year old!

A pregnant red cloud is never hot
Woman always imagine feeling like silhouettes forever
His fat swear creates a fluid perfume
His sweat may be ugly he said very loud
It's the loom midnight fluid day
That world occasion on shadow is gone free to despair
Picture yesterday feeling open with lots of questions
Please scream mother, that new star shadow is free!
Never ever despair ugly pregnant skies
My beautiful paper presence never ever go flying free

Last week she made a list of her own words, cut them out and took them to class the next day. Her teacher was very impressed with this little exercise, I guess she had the class try to come up with parts of a sentence (hey, grammar was never this fun when I was in school) and after a while they just gave up and just made nonsense sentences. What excited me about this little exercise is that it was meant for adults, and here I have a 2nd grader getting her classmates excited about words and poetry, and creating something. How cool is that?

I was feeling sorry for myself last week, here I had spent the better part of the afternoon printing and cutting out words that I had just brainstormed that morning to use in my creative writing class that I was teaching at our local senior's centre. I ended up canceling the class due to low enrolment, kicking myself for 'wasting' my time cutting up these stupid words when no one was going to see them. What I didn't account for was the creativity of a 7 year old. I have now challenged her to come up with a second verse, better than the first, for her weird and wonderful poem.

Here is what I came up with.

You know that young woman
Silhouette too surreal
Raw masterpiece it soon will break
Too rigid waste away
Never Free
We scream at the world.