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Phebe Durand

Expert Guru
A former photojournalist who became addicted to the use of technology, I now use technology to help others learn. Obsessive and curious by nature, I can't stop there. I loves things as diverse as nature and herblore to clean html... and with bachelor degrees in both Broadcast Communications and Graphic & Web Design, you can bet that I like to talk all about it. Currently, I work as a freelance writer with several publications and operate a couple of websites that focus on technology use - mostly Adobe Photoshop. My passion, though, is for writing. First published at the age of 11, I am addicted to seeing my name in print and love helping others experience that same thrill.




5 Tips from Phebe Durand

Writer's Rights 101

"Buys first-time rights." This small phrase appears in the submission guidelines for most magazines, e-zines, and other print publishers. It's not the only phrase you'll find. There is a huge variety in the "rights" a publisher might buy. It can all be very confusing.

Let's clear one thing up right now: rights are about how a publisher can use your work. It isn't the same thing as payment or purchase. Rights are not about copyright, either. The copyright to your writing always - always - remains yours.

*First Rights: The right to publish your work for the first time. Can be sold only once.
*Exclusive Rights: The right to publish your work without anyone else publishing it - for a set amount of time.
*One-Time Rights: The right to publish your work once, period.
*Perpetual Rights: The right to publish your work indefinitely.
*Subsidiary Rights: The right to do anything with your work other than publish it as a book. Unless you sell these to a publisher, you own rights to your work as a movie, audiotape, etc.

Article Promotion Basics

Having readers is a writer's bread and butter. If we don't have an audience, who are we writing to - and what are we being paid for? This is important to all writers, but most important for people who write online. The question is simple: How to promote articles ... without shelling out cash. After all, we're trying to earn some money, not spend it before we get it.

The thing to remember is that writing online articles is essentially creating content for a website. Promotion strategies that work for websites come into play here. Problem is, most writers aren't web designers and don't have a clue what to do. Here's what you need to know:

*Use Keywords: Keywords are all-important to search engine rankings, and search results are the way you're going to get 75-90% of your readers. Use keywords in your title and in the first sentence of your first paragraph.
*Utilize Directories: There are dozens of specialized directories willing to list your link - but you have to contact them to get your link listed. Start with the directories you visit most.
*Go Multi-media: Think beyond the digital market. Your letterhead, business cards, and (along digital lines) the signature in your email or on forums can all be used to promote your articles.
*Make Friends: Visit forums and blogs, and make your friendly self known. Don't try cramming your articles down anyone's throat, though - let your signatures carry the article promotion for you.

How to Write Professional Crochet Patterns

Crochet is a big business, and avid crocheters are always looking for something new to inspire their creativity. This is good news, since it means there's a constant market for patterns and they take just a few steps to do well.

1. Compile the following in a word document: What materials (amount, size, and type) are needed, size of hook used, directions to special stitches you've used, and photos of the finished product(s).
2. Draft Instructions: Jot down the instructions (round by round or row by row) on a piece of paper as you create your model.
3. Polish Instructions: After you create a model or ten and are satisfied that everything is correct, type the instructions up in the same document you typed materials in.
4. Test It: Have a trusted crocheting peer try your printed, polished pattern out. Is it easy to follow? Do the instructions make sense? Does the product turn out reasonably identical to your model?
5. Make Adjustments: You'll have to make adjustments. It's a fact of crochet pattern-writing life.

Once everything's as perfectly clear and correct as can be, dig out one of your crochet pattern books and use their published pattern as a guide to format your pattern professionally. Gorgeous!

What Price to Put on Crochet Items

So you've got some gorgeous items done in crochet that you want to sell at a craft fair or on eBay. How do you decide what to charge? You can choose to price your items on a by-the-hour basis, or by-the-materials. Either way, here's how it works:

*By-the-hour: Decide what your first hour of work is worth. Most crafters choose $15 for the first hour. Use 1/3 of that cost for each additional hour - $5 if you charge $15 for the first. Only work in whole hours. If you spend 1 1/2 hours on a project, charge a full $20 for the product.

*By-the-Materials: When you purchase materials for a specific project, keep all your receipts. Yarn, notions, and hooks get figured into the equation. Whatever you spend on materials, double the amount. This is the price of your crotchet item.

Craft Fair Crochet Best-Sellers

Gearing up for summer Lazy-Days fairs? Or the holidays craft shows? It can be a hit-and-miss game to predict what the customers are actually looking for, but these crochet items are always best-sellers at the local craft fairs:

*Fun-fur scarves (the skinny ones that girls like to accessorize with)
*Felted purses
*Bookmarkers (especially the lacy thread crochet ones)
*Cell phone cozies and iPod Cases
*Lapghans
*Mitten & Hat Sets
*Fingerless Gloves
*Baby Clothes
*Dishcloths

The trick is simple: Stick with something small, that doesn't cost a lot to make, and you're going to have a hit. Craft fair-goers are impulse-buyers, and they're more likely to spend a lot of money on a bunch of little things than a lot of money on one big, expensive thing.





 
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