http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/business/management/the-crucial-function-of-computer-file-shredders--.html http://www.articletrader.com/business/management/the-crucial-function-of-computer-file-shredders--.html Sat, 29 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Many people mistakenly think that computer files can be easily deleted from the computer’s hard drive. They believe that a file is permanently gone once it is put in the trash or recycling bin and the bin is emptied, but the truth is that the files are still on the computer; they are just slightly more difficult to access. Recovery software is available that can bring back previously deleted files. People must use special software to permanently remove files for the computer’s hard drive.

There are many reasons to use file shredders. They can erase confidential information so that others will not be able to view it. File shredders can delete the entire hard drive, including all files, folders, and previously deleted material. File shredders can also delete emails and all history of online activity.

People may need to regularly delete sensitive material from their computers. Doctors, lawyers, and psychologists need to be especially careful about maintaining their clients’ confidentiality. Businesspeople need to keep certain trade secrets and business plans secret from their competitors. Also, any financial records, credit card numbers, and bank account information should be protected as well. File shredders can be easily used to permanently delete all of this material. With most file shredders, all it takes is a simple drag and click to permanently remove files.

It is a good idea to erase the entire hard drive of a computer before disposing of it. If another person obtains the computer, they can access anything that the previous owner had on it if the hard drive is not erased. Financial records, credit card numbers, personal information, and histories of website visits will all be out in the open for the new owner to view. File shredders can prevent this from happening.

File shredders are valuable for all computer users. Anyone who ever purchased anything over the Internet, written a personal letter to someone, or stored confidential business information on their computer would be well advised to use a file shredder.


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Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/finance/loans/getting-a-small-business-loan.html http://www.articletrader.com/finance/loans/getting-a-small-business-loan.html Sat, 29 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Contrary to the belief that bankers actually look for reasons to turn down prospective clients in need of a loan, they are in the business to lend money. This means that every time a banker is sitting in front of a potential client, they are hoping to make the deal work just as much, if not more than the client wants it to work.

A bank’s primary role in the small business lending area is funding growth. An example of this would be to finance the expansion of small business with a proven track record. Most banks can offer a wide variety of loan packages designed to finance expansion of an already existing small business.

Below are a few examples bank loan packages :

1. Asset Based Financing. Asset Based Financing is a general term describing a transaction whereby a lender accepts collateral and assets of a company in exchange for a loan. Most asset based loans are collateral against other accounts receivable, inventory, or equipment. Accounts receivable is the most favored of the three because it can be converted into cash quickly. Banks will only advance funds on a percentage of receivable or inventory, typically being around 75% of the receivable and 50% inventory.

2. Line of Credit. A line of credit involves the bank’s setting aside designated funds for the business to draw against for the cash it needs. As the line of credit is used, the credit line is reduced and when payments are made the line is replenished. One major advantage of a line of credit is that no interest is accrued unless the funds are actually used.

3. Floor Planning. Floor Planning is another form of asset based lending in which the borrower’s inventory is used as collateral for the loan. Car dealerships are a prime example of a business that often uses floor planning as their primary financial tool.



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Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/business/advertising/advertising-using-ppc-search-engines.html http://www.articletrader.com/business/advertising/advertising-using-ppc-search-engines.html Sat, 29 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Enterprising people know all the benefits of optimizing their online advertising, and because of this fact the ‘pay-per-click’ (PPC) technique has been developed to meet the need. PPC is certainly at the cutting edge of Internet advertising today, because you ‘bid’ or budget on the exact amount you want to put into your advertising campaign, giving you the choice to state just how much you’ll pay each time someone clicks on your ad.

For instance, if you bid five cents a click, that’s how little you’ll pay for your advertising - and you’ll only have to pay that five cents each time a consumer clicks on your ad! Budget marketing via pay-per-click search engines should encompass the following integral steps of creating, optimizing and managing your advertising campaign or ‘sponsored search’ on the most widely used search engines including Google, Yahoo, MSN, Earthlink, American Online, Ask Jeeves and CNN.com - just to name a famous few!

The most widely touted benefit of budget marketing via pay-per-click search engines is that it delivers your product information and your web site to the very consumers online who are searching for such products, be it business, science or technology-related, trips and travel, car buying, entertainment ideas or wedding planning! Your business specifically reaches those already interested in knowing more, and enthusiasts of budget marketing via pay-per-click search engines will tell you that no other advertising medium can give you that kind of bang for your advertising buck.

Other pluses of budgeting via PPC are that your ad can be targeted to regions you specify, whether you want the entire world to know, or just focus on your local area at the moment. Your ad can also be tracked towards search engines that receive the highest amount of keywords specific to the product or service on your website. Whether you have a home based business or you’ve just been appointed Director of a countrywide multi-national, your business will benefit from budget marketing via pay-per-click search engines. Seek out


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Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/business/small-business/affiliate-strategies-of-pay-per-click-advertising-networks.html http://www.articletrader.com/business/small-business/affiliate-strategies-of-pay-per-click-advertising-networks.html Sat, 29 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500
An often misunderstood reality of Pay-Per-Click advertising is that many times you can't determine where you ad will be displayed once you sign-up with one of the PPC Search Engines. In the incestuous world of online advertising, companies are often simultaneously competitors and partners. This is never truer than in the case of Search Engine Advertising.

Even The Big Guys Do It:

If the Pay-Per-Click program you're using is from one of the major brands that has its own consumer search destination site (Google, Yahoo, Lycos etc,) it's a little easier to tell where your ads will show up. However, even if you're working with the major players, your ads won't be limited to the Search Engine you signed up with. For example, Google has agreements with Lycos, Ask Jeeves, AOL, and other lesser known brands, to display ads from the Google AdWords program. Yahoo has relationships with MSN, and CNN.Com to display ads from its Overture Pay Per Click Program. Lycos owns HotBot.Com and has partnered with affiliates outside its network to increase the distribution of ads from the Lycos AdBuyer Pay Per Click program.

Distribution Strategies Of Smaller Search Engines:

Once you go beyond the major Pay Per Click Advertising programs it becomes increasingly difficult to know where your ads will appear. Most of the second tier Search Engines relies exclusively on networks of unknown sites for their distribution. FindWhat.Com, Kanoodle, Enhance and Search 123 don't operate sites that consumers use to search the web. Because of this they have developed relationships with thousands of smaller sites to display ads from customers who sign up for their Pay Per Click programs.

Affiliate Traffic Isn't Necessarily Bad:

Just because a Pay Per Click Advertising program doesn't have its own search site to drive traffic doesn't necessarily mean that the traffic is of lesser quality. Like everything else when it comes to a successful PPC Advertising campaign, the key is to track and analyze results on a daily basis. Set-up independent tracking URL's for each PPC Search Engine you are working with, or use a third party tracking tool like Atlas One Point to track how many clicks you're getting from each Search Engine, and how much of the traffic is converting into sales.

Can You Cherry Pick Affiliates?

As a rule, most Search Engines won't divulge the list of affiliates they are working with to display your ads. Even if you are able to determine which affiliate sites are converting better for you than others, the Search Engines generally won't allow you to cherry pick which affiliates will display your ad. However, some Pay Per Click Search Engines like Google allow you to opt out of their affiliate network.

Conclusion:

Driving traffic by displaying ads across a network of affiliate sites is a fact of life for Pay Per Click Search Engines. It's not necessarily bad, but it is something you need to be aware of as you analyze which PPC Search Engines to use, and which ones perform. By displaying your ad on affiliate sites your marketing message is put in front of more people who are looking for the products you sell. The downside is once you move beyond the big brands and venture into the vast mysterious world of affiliate networks, there is a chance the quality of your traffic will decline. As long as you monitor your traffic sources for volume, and conversions, and adjust your campaigns accordingly you should be able to benefit from the increased distribution affiliates provide, while maintaining the profitability metrics for your Pay Per Click Advertising campaign.


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Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/writing/the-paradox-of-sarah-kane.html http://www.articletrader.com/writing/the-paradox-of-sarah-kane.html Fri, 28 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500 She was born in Essex, England, on 3rd February 1971. Her parents were both journalists and devout evangelists - religion played an important part in their everyday lives. Her father became the area manager of the Daily Mirror for East Anglia, while her mother gave up work to care for Sarah and her brother. By all accounts, Kane was an intelligent child who enjoyed learning, supported Manchester United F.C. and openly discussed God. However, in later years, when she had lost her faith, she described her juvenile beliefs as ‘the full spirit-filled, born-again lunacy’.
As a teenager, she became involved with local drama groups and directed Chekhov and Shakespeare while still in school - playing truant at one point to be an assistant director in a production at Soho Polytechnic. After taking her A-levels, she went on to Bristol University to take a degree in drama, with all intentions of becoming an actress. She seemed at home in the theatre and was immensely popular with fellow students, enjoying their company to the full and indulging in a typically wild social life. She went clubbing, enjoyed affairs with women and became a great admirer of Howard Barker's Jacobean dramas (once acting in his play, “Victory”) - empathizing with his dark views on life and love.
Sarah stood out as a talented actress and director, but somewhere down the line, she began to lose heart with her anticipated vocation and started writing instead. The first substantial work she produced was “Sick”, a series of three monologues that were performed to a pub crowd in Edinburgh. The pieces concerned rape, eating disorders and sexual identity, and her first person delivery was said to be "raw" and "unsettling".
She graduated with a first from Bristol and went straight to Birmingham University to join David Edgar's MA playwriting course, which she disliked but completed for the sake of her mother. Secretly she started writing “Blasted”, a complex play about violence from the perspective of both victim and perpetrator. When it was first performed at the students' end-of-year show it was watched by Mel Kenyon, who was completely "awe-struck" and later found it difficult to get the play out of her mind. She wrote to Kane and they subsequently met up in London, where Kane agreed to Kenyon becoming her agent.
“Blasted” is about a middle-aged tabloid journalist who appears to be dying and invites an unsuspecting retarded child into his Leeds hotel room, assuring her that he simply needs a little comfort during his final hours. Once trapped he proceeds to rape, debase and ridicule her before an armed soldier suddenly bursts in and wreaks appalling havoc, turning the scene into a Bosnian battlefield. The play opened in January 1995 at the Royal Court Upstairs, becoming the theatres most controversial work in over thirty years. British newspaper critics were in their element, describing it as "a disgusting feast of filth", a work "devoid of intellectual and artistic merit" and like "having your whole head held in a bucket of offal". However, established dramatists such as Harold Pinter turned on the reviewers, telling them they were "out of their depth" and that “Blasted” was simply too complex for them.
Although upset by the slating, Kane went on to write four more plays in as many years. “Cleansed” was about love, death and drug addiction in a concentration camp and, like much of her work, was closely fashioned on real-life incidents. Whereas “Crave”, written under the pseudonym of Marie Kelvedon, was about four warring factions of one individual's consciousness and was generally received as her most mature play up to that point. She also wrote the terrifying “Phaedra's Love” and “Skin”, a short film for Britain’s Channel 4. Throughout this period, she travelled around Europe, leading theatre workshops by day and writing at night - becoming quite a celebrity in France and Germany.
While there is little doubt that Kane was an incredibly likeable, original and kind human being, depression was never far from the surface and she was at times unable to cope with the intensity of her emotions after completing “Crave”. She admitted herself to the Maudsley Hospital in south London for a time but recovered sufficiently to enjoy her play's critical triumph - which was compared by some to T.S. Eliot's “The Wasteland”. Unfortunately, her happiness was short-lived and the depression returned. In January 1999, after completing “4.48 Psychosis” (so called because it's the time of morning when people are most likely to kill themselves), she swallowed 150 anti-depressants and 50 sleeping pills. She survived because her flat-mate found her in time and rushed her to King's College Hospital in London. Two days later she was left alone for 90 minutes and was later discovered hanging from her shoelaces in a nearby toilet. She was 28 years old.


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Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/small-business-debt-collection-letter-writing.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/small-business-debt-collection-letter-writing.html Tue, 25 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500
I have a confession: I'm a business writer who's let clients get away with not paying me--a huge sign of failure of my writing abilities. You see, I never learned one of the most important writing skills for any self-employed person or small business owner: how to write a debt collection letter.

Debt collection letters--an overview

"Debt collection letter" in the singular may be an oxymoron, since unfortunately, one is rarely enough. You should have a series of letters to send to deadbeat clients, each one becoming a little more insistent. Here are some ideas for a five-letter series.

1. Don’t make your first letter look like a collection letter at all. Make it a friendly note. You’re more likely to get money from someone who thinks of you as a partner than a dun.

2. If that first letter doesn’t get a response--and usually it won’t--send another the next week that’s more urgent and directly asks for the money. Express your concern that you have not been able to contact the client. Ask if he or she is all right, and if he or she is having any trouble paying.

3. The next week, if you still have not gotten a response, send a letter referring to the payment terms in the agreement you and the client originally made (you did have some kind of written agreement, even if it was just on the back of your invoice, right?). Mention the effect this nonpayment is having on your cash flow, and that your business’s cash flow is just as important as theirs.

4. Still no response by the next week? State plainly that you are asking for the money for the final time before referring it to collections. Include a copy of the entire agreement between you and the client.

5. If you still have not heard back from the client, and are confident that you do not simply have a problem with their contact information, call a collection agency—in fact, you may have wanted to have gotten a collection agency from step one (more on that below).

More Tips for Successful Debt Collections

Tip: Don’t wait to start asking for your money.

If it’s been a week since the payment deadline passed, it’s been a week too long. Send out that first “reminder” letter today. Don’t hesitate to send these letters as little as a week apart from each other. The longer your bill goes unpaid, the less likely it is you will ever see that money again.

Tip: If you’ve been sending email, try sending paper.

For whatever reason, there are people who take a paper letter more seriously. There’s also the real chance that your emails really are not getting through reliably, or are ending up at the bottom of an overflowing Inbox.

If you do send email, make sure it’s digitally signed. A digital signature proves that you sent the email to the specific recipient. In fact, you might want to make sure all your emails to clients and prospects are digitally signed, to have solid documentation of everything you said, and everything they owe.

Unlike with regular emails, the date, time, “to” and “from” fields can’t be forged, so the email has legal standing, even more than certified mail. While web-based email programs cannot send digitally signed email, there are third-party services that will let you send hundreds of digitally signed emails from a desktop email program for only a few dollars a month.

Tip: Follow up your debt collection letter with a telephone call.

As any collection agency will tell you, telephone calls are useful if your debtor has ignored the collection letters. But with caller ID, Caller Blocking and voice mail - if people don't want to take your calls it is hard to reach them. This technique could be especially effective in the case of someone with whom you know will answer their own phone.

Of course, your writing skills won’t go to waste: you need to make sure you have scripted what you want to say. You should take the same attitude and touch on the same points as your letter. Whatever you do, don’t let yourself get sidetracked, and don’t be embarrassed. They’re the ones who are putting you out.

Don’t know your deadbeat’s telephone number? Try looking up the “Whois” record of the business’s website, which usually has the owner’s telephone number.

Does all this sound like too much work?

If you’d rather be writing proposals than collection letters, there are small business collection agencies that will take on debts for as little as $20 each. After all, your client had enough sense to go to you rather than doing your specialty themselves. Shouldn’t you have as much sense when it comes to your debt collection letters?


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Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/food/cooking/get-in-the-spirits-for-holiday-celebrations.html http://www.articletrader.com/food/cooking/get-in-the-spirits-for-holiday-celebrations.html Sat, 22 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Some Like it Hot

On a cold winter day, there are few things better than a steaming mug of coffee, hot chocolate or mulled cider served with chestnuts or biscotti besides a roaring fire. Put some “fire” in the mug by adding one ounce (approximately a shot) of Vecchia Romagna Brandy and garnish with whipped cream. Brandy mixes exceptionally well with warm beverages (especially coffee) and adds a sweet, yet slightly spicy, bite to the drink. Vecchia Romagna, which is one of the oldest Brandy distillers in Italy, imports four sophisticated Brandies: Etichetta Nera or “Black Label,” which retails for a very affordable $26.99, and three high-end vintage Riservas (10, 15 and 35 years old) that range from $40 to $200. Vecchia Romagna Brandies are also available in attractive gift boxes that make great gifts for “dads and grads.”

Love that Lemon

What is it that bartenders and desert chefs have in common these days? The answer is a delightful liqueur known as Lemoncillo (also spelled Limoncello). Perfect for cocktails and confections, Lemoncillo is a luscious spirit made from lemon zest infused with alcohol. It has gained in fame due to its versatility and perfectly balanced sweet/tart flavor. One Italian company, Giori, produces a Lemoncillo that has earned praise from epicurean experts and can be used equally well in Cosmo Volcanoes as it can in lemon meringue. Giori also offers a one-of-a-kind Lemoncillo “Cream” liqueur that serves well in espresso or drizzled over brownies as a glaze. Giori Lemoncillo and Lemoncillo Cream both retail at $18.99 for a 750-ml bottle.

Feel the Chill

Cocktails are a sure-fire hit for holiday parties, and no cocktail party is complete without vodka. Vodka (especially the unflavored, premium kind) is ideal for cocktails because true, quality vodka has a faint, icy aroma and a smooth, dry, almost neutral taste that inherits the character and flavor of a mixer. So, everything from chic Cosmopolitans, Martinis and Vodka Mimosas, to standards like White Russians, Gimlets and Screwdrivers can be made from the same bottle. One exceptional example is Kutskova: a Russian-made, five-times filtered, double distilled, super-premium vodka. Kutskova, which retails in the $25 range, has received rave reviews as well as gold medals from the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and Tastings International Review of Spirits, for its pure, crisp flavor and cool, soft aftertaste.

Something Different

If you’re looking for a truly unique gift for a liqueur connoisseur, look for a delightful cordial called Amaro Montenegro. For those of you not familiar with Amaro Montenegro, it is an herbal liqueur that has a sweet taste and slightly bitter finish and is usually served before or after a meal. Bartenders and barristas across Europe have been using Amaro for years as an ingredient in everything from cocktails to coffees, and it is now beginning to gain popularity here in America. With vibrant flavors of spice, molasses, clove and orange peel, Amaro Montenegro was recently given outstanding ratings by the “Spirit Journal,” “Wine Spectator” and “Wine Enthusiast.” It serves best straight when chilled or at room temperature poured over ice cream. For the holidays, Amaro Montenegro is available as a gift set that comes with a special Amaro glass and retails for $21.99.

Get Cozy

Possibly the most cherished thing about the holidays is that it brings people together. With close friends and family traveling from everywhere for a visit, you may find yourself playing host to an intimate get together. Whether served on the rocks, mixed in a cocktail, with champagne, or warm in a snifter with a cigar, what could be better than a rich, velvety, aromatic Cognac? Produced from among the finest vineyards in the Grande Champagne region of France, Croizet Cognacs have received praise at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition for their incredible flavor and smoothness. And, with the VS retailing at $19.99, VSOP at $29.99, XO at $74.99 and XO Gold at $99.99, Croizet’s line of quality cognacs are exceptional values compared to other, better known brands. Additionally, the VSOP, XO and XO Gold are presented in attractive individual boxes perfect for holiday gift giving, and the XO Gold is presented in a festive gold bottle.

Wrap it Up

This time of the year can be pretty hectic with trips to the mall, travel plans, preparing the house for guests, cooking feasts and more. But, no matter what holiday you’re celebrating this season, or whether you’re hosting a get-together for two or two hundred, these holiday spirits can fit into just about any occasion. So, may your days be merry and bright, and remember to drink responsibly.

On the House

Finally, here are some holiday beverage recipes to help get you going:

CAFÉ CORRECTO

- Build in coffee mug

- 1 part Vecchia Romagna Brandy

- 3 parts hot coffee

- Top with whipped cream

- Dust with cocoa powder

*****

BREZZA ESTIVA

- Build drink in glass with ice

- 1 part Amaro Montenegro

- 3 parts tonic or ginger ale

- Serve with a stir stick

*****

COSMO VOLANO

- 2 parts Giori Lemoncillo

- 2 parts Kutskova Vodka

- Squeeze of fresh lemon juice

- Splash of cranberry juice

- Shake with ice

- Strain into glass

- Garnish with lemon wedge

*****

VODKA MIMOSA

- 1 part Kutskova Vodka

- 1 part Champagne

- 2 parts orange juice

- Serve in chilled Champagne glass

*****

AMARO MUDSLIDE

- 1 part Amaro Montenegro

- 3 parts vanilla ice cream

- Blend

- Spoon into glass

- Top with whipped cream

*****

GRAND CHAMPAGNE

- Build in Champagne glass

- 1 part Croizet VSOP Cognac

- 3 parts Champagne

- 1 Maraschino cherry

- Garnish with orange wheel

*****

CAFÉ CILLO

- Build in coffee mug

- 1 part Giori Lemoncillo Cream

- 2 parts espresso

- 1 part steamed milk

- Dust with nutmeg

- Garnish with lemon wedge

Courtesy of ARA Content.


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Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/writing/essay-reveals-a-writer-in-you.html http://www.articletrader.com/writing/essay-reveals-a-writer-in-you.html Sat, 22 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Some tutors assign their own topics and very often they might be too abstract. Others offer the choice of the topic to the students, mentioning the necessary type of the essay (e.g. comparison/contrast essay comparison/contrast essay). In either case don’t despair! Your tutor wants you to demonstrate your abilities in thinking and your skills in committing them to paper. Impress him, because you can. Though essay excludes plagiarism, you can’t do with referring to useful literature. Read a lot, read diverse literature… Then you will put down all the sources into your reference list.

It is a good thing to discuss your topic with someone. An ideal variant is your tutor, because he will give you useful advice and will clarify his own opinion on the subject. If he is not available, discuss your issue with a person you respect. The essay answers the question WHY? (E.g. a persuasive essay answers the question WHY do I have such an opinion on the point?). In other words, essay can be defined as some kind of a letter to your imaginary friend (your perspective reader) who asked you the question “WHY?”. So, the first section of your “letter” is - introduction. Here you inform the reader about the essence of the problem and prepare him for the course of the discussion.

Then you continue your discourse in supporting paragraphs. Your aim is to gain the reader over and to capture his imagination. How can you do it? Examples: A lot of sound, pertinent examples make a convincing and effective essay. Especially rich in the examples must be expository essays which aim at explaining something to the audience. Last sentences of the essay make up a conclusion. It is your final word with the reader. So, use it efficiently and make a strong notable conclusion. Though essay is not the easiest task, but if you give a conscious approach to it, if you treat it with spirit, then your essay will help you to win the tutor’s respect. And what is more important you will believe that you are creative and inventive!


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Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/writing/public-speaking/hooks-lines-and-sinkers.html http://www.articletrader.com/writing/public-speaking/hooks-lines-and-sinkers.html Sat, 22 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500 Perhaps you didn't quite go that far, but hopefully you were puzzled or curious enough to wonder what on earth those three angling associated words have to do with writing. The answer of course is nothing at all if you are thinking of metal barbs, yards of tangled nylon and blobs of lead weights.
Think, however, of the good opening lines used to begin most successful short stories, novels and articles then the "hook" in our title takes on a whole new range of meanings and equates very well with the world of creative writing.
What most beginners fail to understand when they first begin writing, and this applies as much to articles as it does to short stories and novels, is that when they submit their work to an editor, competition judge or publisher there is only a brief moment to impress which is why a lot of attention needs to be paid to that first opening sentence.
Hooking your reader with a good beginning isn't a guarantee to success, but it will serve to focus attention and make the judge, publisher or editor take more notice of the rest of the article, story etc. If nothing else, it presses an subconscious alert button in the reader's mind that marks up the writer as a professional who knows his or her craft.
This in turn builds expectation and again focuses attention. As long as the rest of the piece lives up to its early promise, you can be sure that your effort will at the very least receive close inspection and hopefully much more!
So, just how do you come up with a good hook? It would be nice if I could say that there was some magic formula available but unfortunately I haven't found it even if it does exist! Still there are several things that you can do to get things moving.
First of all don't sit staring at your screen trying to think of a good opening line when you have a mind boiling with ideas struggling to spread themselves over the page! All this will do is make you tense up with frustration and dam your creativity.
Instead, start hitting the keys and slap those ideas across the screen! Once you have the basic outline down then you can start the editing process, including the opening sentence. If at this stage you are still stuck, try leaving the work for a few days, there's a good chance you'll come up with something when you're mind is focused on something else and the first flush of enthusiasm has cleared from your brain.
Analogy, such as I've used to the fishing world, often provides a good hook. In the case of this article I used it in the title but hooks are used just as often or more so in the opening sentence. My actual opening "hook" made use of a question, which again is a very good way to start, as questions by their very nature demand a response from the reader, even if it is only to read to the end of the sentence!
I took this a step further by demanding physical action, "hands up", which of course is a ridiculous thing to expect a reader to do when there is no way of knowing whether they have complied or not! It is this stupidity that hopefully grabs attention and carries on from where the title left off. PR writers are well aware of this process and often mis-spell words to create a similar effect .
Quotations and deliberate mis-quotations also make good hooks either from songs, proverbs or other literary works, but also try putting together unusual combinations of words.
For instance, you wouldn't think that brussel sprouts could possibly have any effect on good or evil and I'm sure they haven't! One of my son's however has different ideas and his annual grumble during our recent Christmas meal gave me a marvelous opening line, or hook, for what will be a festive article taking a close look at this, in my opinion, much maligned vegetable!
What was it? Oh yes, when faced with a heap of those shiny green gems he muttered murderously, "If it wasn't for brussel sprouts there'd be no evil in the world ..." now is that a hook or what?
Which brings me on to another point? Hooks, I've found seem to have a power in their own right and often serve as a catalyst to the story or article itself which is why you should be on the alert for when they occur.
The brussel sprout incident is a prime example. Writing in any shape or form was the furthest thing from my mind, but the startled looks and laughter from the rest of the family were enough to confirm what I'd immediately thought, here was a hook begging for exploitation and with a enough power of its own to begin generating several lines of thought.
Being aware of hooks and the power they have on the reader is something every writer has to get to grips with if they want to achieve success so it is a good idea to train yourself to both generate hooks and be on the alert for them by listening to what other people say.
Having a small notebook handy makes a lot of sense, but reading what other people have done before you will also pay dividends. Try this quiz of opening lines to famous novels. It's not easy, but don't worry about your score, the real benefit of the quiz is seeing what worked for the author.
1. The scent of slaughter, some believe, can linger in a place for years.
2. When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventh birthday ...
3. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth ...
4. Scarlett O'Hara was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it when caught by her charm as the Tarleton twins were.
5. The stranger came early in February one wintry day, through a biting wind and a driving snow ...
6. "The marvelous thing is that it's painless," he said. "That's how you know when it starts."
7. Last night I dreamed of Mandalay ...
8. A wide plain, where the broadening Floss hurries on between its green banks to the sea, and the loving tide rushing to meet it ...
9. Mr. Jones, of the Manor Farm, had locked the hen-house for the night, but was too drunk to remember to shut the pop-holes.
10. "Tom!"
Well, what did you think? Some were definitely intriguing but others in my opinion left a lot to be desired which just goes to show that the proof of the pudding is in the eat... er reading so don't fall into the trap of thinking that the beginning is the be all and end all!
Oh and before you ask, I haven't forgotten the lines and sinkers either, call those plots and twist endings and to find out more sign up for the WriteLink Short Story Writing Workshop, it's free! www.writebytes.co.uk
ANSWERS:
1. The Loop by Nicholas Evans
2. The Lord of the Rings by J R R Tolkein
3. The Bible
4. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
5. The Invisible Man by H G Wells
6. The Snows of Kilimanjaro by Ernest Hemingway
7. Rebecca by Daphne De Maurier
8. The Mill on the Floss by George Elliot
9. Animal Farm by George Orwell
10. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain




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