When Bloopers Go International

"Molly put on her Dolly Varden and went to the fair," writes the British author. The readers in England picture Molly dressed up in her elaborate, flower-decked hat. The American reader who lives near to the Northern Pacific, is bewildered, as he knows the Dolly Varden is a type of brightly spotted trout. Australian readers have just as big a problem, as the Dolly Varden for him is a doll-shaped cake. And in South Africa, it is a draped dressing-table.

In today's cyber world, any writing we post on the Internet or publish electronically, such as for Kindle, Nook, or any other form of e-Readers, immediately goes international. Even books that are only available in print are soon available through online stores such as Amazon.com, Barnes and Nobel.com, and many others. So even if the book is published in the States, it's highly unlikely that it will remain in that country.

My own book, Strength Renewed, Meditations for Your Journey through Breast Cancer, was written in South Africa, but published in the States. Yet by the time of its official launch date it was available across the word.

As authors, it's important we bear in mind our international readers with our choice of words. We need to be careful not to presume that our key words mean the same in all lands. Yet we may not be able to avoid the use of the word.

Let's look again at the example above referring to the Dolly Varden. Rather than just avoid the word, the English writer could say something like, “Look at that amazing hat,” she whispered. “I’m sure it’s a Dolly Varden.” The international readers understand no matter where they live.

Another example is the word, "wattle". To the English reader this is a type of fence; to the American it is the loose skin at the throat of a turkey. The South African frequently sees mud-and-wattle huts along the roadside; but for the Australian, wattle is the golden-yellow flower that is his country’s national emblem.

So the Australian could write, "She picked a few golden-yellow flowers from the wattle tree and added them to the arrangement." Readers will know what he means. The South African need only say "The old women sat in the doorway of their mud-and-wattle hut and discussed the events of the day." That's clear to everyone.

I read recently on a website of a student in Northern India who was asked, "What do you do?"

"Main chata hoon," he replied in Hindi, meaning to say, "I'm a student." He later discovered he had actually said, "I'm an umbrella." Chatra is a student; chata is an umbrella.

When my daughter was new to Venezuela, she was making her way through a crowd of people. She kept saying, in her newly acquired Spanish, "Excuse me," as she tried to pass people. In South Africa this would mean, "Please make way--I need to get through." She later learned she had been moving through the throng saying, "What's the matter? What's the matter?" to the surprised people.

If I, as a South African writer, send my heroine for a leisurely stroll along the pavement, this is good for her health. The pavement in South Africa and England is the paved area alongside the road, reserved for pedestrians. However sending her for a stroll along the pavement in America could have dire consequences as that's where the cars drive in the States.

I asked a group of writers to share with me some of the international bloomers they had heard of.

Ruth Ann Dell of South Africa shared this: When we visited friends in England, they were astonished when we talked about turning right at the robot. They couldn't see any robots on the road. We had a good laugh as we explained that back home in South Africa we called traffic lights robots.

Donald C. Bowman of Georgia, USA said: In Spanish, 'El ruedas facilmente.' means He tires easily. The problem is 'ruedas' are actually automobile tires.

Barbara Strohmenger in Germany shared this: A funny thing is the wrong use of "become" by Germans; the German "bekommen" means "to receive", but some think it means "to become" because it sounds similar; so they say "I become a gift" instead of "I receive a gift".

Karen Shaw Fanner, formally of Zimbabwe, now living in England says: In Africa  'just now' means 'in a while, at some point', 'when I get around to it.' In the UK 'just now' means 'immediately, right this minute.' How to really annoy people is to tell them you'll do it 'just now' and leave it an hour!

I nursed for many years in a paediatric ward in Krugersdorp, South Africa. Although as a Christian I don't believe in "luck", and I often prayed with parents when their little ones headed for surgery, I nevertheless fell into the practice of saying, "Good luck! I'll be praying."

If the patients were Afrikaans, I would translate this and say, "Geluk! Ek sal bid," which I thought was "Good luck! I'll be praying." One day a colleague overheard me, and with a wide grin asked me why I was congratulating the parents. Turns out that although "Geluk" sounds like "Good luck" it actually means, "Congratulations!" So I was sending the patients off with the words, "Congratulations! I'll be praying."

So, writers, be careful of the words you use, especially if you're trying to use a snippet of foreign language to add flavour to your work. You might just be adding the wrong flavour.

OTHER READING: 
What in the World Do You Mean? expands some of the ideas above as well as giving a list of some of the words that have different meanings.

Different Cultures, Different Ethics shares a few major differences between some of the major cultures.

International Critique Partners. Some of the advantages and challenges of having International critique partners.

OVER TO YOU: How about you? Do you have an amusing story to share of the wrong word being used as a result of a different language or culture? If so, please comment below or email me your story. Perhaps I can include them in another post for us all to enjoy.

SHIRLEY CORDER lives a short walk from the seaside in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, with her husband Rob. She is author of Strength Renewed: Meditations for your Journey through Breast Cancer. Shirley is also contributing author to ten other books and has published hundreds of devotions and articles internationally. Thanks to her international critique group, she has avoided publishing most of her cultural bloopers.

Visit Shirley on her website to inspire and encourage writers, or on Rise and Soar, her website for encouraging those on the cancer journey. Follow her on Twitter or "like" her Author's page on Facebook.

Cartoon dog: Image courtesy of Grant Cochrane / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Combining Writing with Other Passions

Writing is part of my life but I am finding although I want to make money at it, sometimes the monetary part of the equation takes the fun out of the pure act of writing what comes to my heart. I also am finding that if I combine the writing with other passions ( for me the love of fabric, quilting, and kids) I am able to create with words and the money will come.

Does it make sense? Maybe not to six figure authors which of course I am not, yet. But in reality words are part of every hobby, craft, conversation, or story I create. Why can't the money follow?

Do I still need to market? Of course marketing takes a major role in any product I am producing. I am creating stories to go along with the fabric packs from our little Nashville fabric shop. The story is a part of the product and becomes a marketing tool. for the fabric, the shop, and the town. And the story can become part of a bigger product outside of the shop which is also on my planning board for the future.

The lesson here is that life brings with it changes, changes in your interests, changes in what you are passionate about, and changes in life style. Use those changes to create more with your writing rather than less, to increase products for your niche market and to step outside the box and create products in a new niche or genre.

I keep these tips in mind when following my passions.

1. I continue to keep to three major writing goals because it will help  to focus my new passions. My writing and creating now will be focused on  new major goals.
2. I won't be afraid to let go of past projects that are not performing. Take what I have learned from those ideas and put them to use in my new projects is difficult but worth it. It may be that at some point those projects may have a place again or maybe not, but it is okay to move on.
3.Never give up. Just because I have relocated, changed my line of products, or found a new and wonderful genre, I can be even more successful with all my knowledge. ( and so can you )
4. Follow my heart. My writing will show it when I am writing and creating what I love. ( Do you see yourself here)

As a newbie so to speak in the writing and publishing world I can say that it is fun and exciting to write and create. By following what I love and researching  new markets I avoid the discouragement new writers often encounter with the publishing aspect of writing because I am always finding new ideas to work on while those I have submitted find their way to editors.

What is your passion and how do you channel that into both writing and the monetary reward that comes with those words?


Terri Forehand is the author of The Cancer Prayer Book and the soon to be released children's book, The ABC's of Cancer According to Lilly Isabella Lane by Inkspotter Publishing. She writes from her rural home in Nashville Indiana where she and her husband have also opened a small quilt shop. Follow her at http://www.terriforehand.webnode.com , http://www.primitive-spirit.com  or at her blog at http://terri-forehand.blogspot.com . 

Targeting Specific Readers Part One: The marketing conundrum…

Targeting Specific Readers Part One of Three: The marketing conundrum…

Guest post by Steve Moore

In these DIY times, some writers choose to self-publish.  Others still prefer the traditional paradigm. One other (so far), Hugh Howey, author of the Wool SF series, has managed to do both, and keep digital rights separate from paper rights. No matter the choice, PR and marketing for your book these days is in the writer’s hands unless he happens to be an established bestselling author.

I have become a self-publishing or indie author by default, following the yellow brick road from agents to POD to eBooks. I’m content now about where I am except for my number of readers.  In this Land of Oz called digital publishing, you’d think the internet would allow me so many opportunities to acquire readership that I’d have thousands of readers.

Note that I focus on readers. Publishing companies focus on sales; I focus on readers. If reader A reads one of my books and then passes it on to reader B, I’m happy with my two new readers, even though it’s just one sale. (I’m not particularly concerned about piracy for that reason—but that’s another topic.) I’ve priced my ebooks so the temptation to do that is minimal (ebook pricing is yet another topic).  Nonetheless, even if I count readers in that way (in practice, by some multiplicative factor of sales), it’s hard to realize name recognition.  The internet is so big and digital publishing so liberating that bobbing up above the average sea level of competition to become known to a good number of readers is more difficult with each passing day.

About six months ago, I started thinking about targeting specific readers, using my small budget for PR and marketing. If you’re a non-fiction writer of niche books (self-help, construction projects, hobbies, etc.), you have a well defined audience and are probably already doing this. That’s what “niche books” means, after all. For authors of fiction (me), you have a genre (mine is sci-fi thriller), but the demographic distribution (sexes, ages, and locations) associated with your genre is not well defined. For example, I targeted my young adult (YA) sci-fi thriller to young adults, obviously. I’ve been surprised at how many adults liked it too, so much so that I now describe that eBook as “for young adults and adults young-at-heart.”

If a reader happens on my website (this process is not completely random, because of Google and other search engines), she will see at the beginning: “Welcome! Bienvenidos! Readers wanted…. Do you like science fiction? Androids, aliens, clones, mutants, and artificial intelligence? Thrillers and suspense? Mysteries? Detectives fighting crime, counter terrorism, and conspiracies? Fast-paced action and strange plot twists?  Steve’s fiction offers a special treat for readers since it often cuts across all these genres. Take a tour of this website and make yourself comfortable with his storytelling. Take stock of the other information that is available. Readers are most welcome.  It’s all yours to enjoy.”

Besides all those wonderful “key words” the Google bots love, let me point out a few things that just didn’t come to me in an epiphany—I had to put some sweat of my brow into developing them.  First, “Bienvenidos!”  I’m bilingual and my website has a Spanish influence—I’ve even written a few reviews in Spanish because I read fiction written in Spanish.  More importantly, I’m trying to convey the international nature of the settings used in my fiction, from my old haunts in the Boston area, to my new haunts in the tri-state area (Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey), to countries around the world, and to the solar system and beyond.

“Readers wanted…” and “…make yourself comfortable with his storytelling” emphasize what I’m about: I want to entertain you with my storytelling.  There’s a “Buy Now” button on that first page and some prices listed, but, as readers know, those Amazon book pages allow you to peek inside the book without buying.  I’m not twisting arms, and, because I don’t know exactly what might interest you in the book, the peeks serve as personalized excerpts for the potential reader.

The rest of that first paragraph defines my genres.  Having a website like this is part of building an author’s platform.  It targets a specific audience, but it depends on that audience finding the website.  I’ve been worried since the release of my first book about how to (1) drive potential readers to that website, and (2) not annoy people who won’t be interested.  One reader’s spam is another reader’s interesting book release, after all.  While discussing this with other authors, it’s become clear that I’m not unique in having this double-barreled shotgun of a problem.

My first experience with book promotion and advertising as an author was to purchase a marketing package to promote my first book.  While this was POD, any author working with a traditional publisher has the same desires and could suffer the same learning experience: that first marketing package blanketed the whole information and media universe.  In other words, it was indiscriminate spam.  I probably made many more enemies than friends (or readers) with that marketing effort, something I regret, because I’m not really in this to make tons of money.  My goal is just to entertain, remember.

So, for many years, I’ve been thinking about how to go about PR and marketing in a better way.  After my first experience, I’m reluctant to hire someone.  My budget is limited.  I can’t and won’t pay for PR and marketing that is nothing more than spamming the world.  I’ve been trying many different DIY projects.  They vary from the simple (putting a business card in every bill I return by snail mail—they’re paying for the postage) to the elaborate (creating a website and Facebook fan page).  In the next installment, I will focus on a new tactic: Targeting specific audiences on my own, using my knowledge of the readers.

Steve Moore
http://stevenmmoore.com

For Part 2 of this 3 Part series go to:
http://www.writersonthemove.com/2013/05/targeting-specific-audiences-part-two.html

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MORE ON BOOK MARKETING

Being Social can Bring Extra Promotion
Kindle Select – What Works and What Doesn’t

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The Race

Years ago I would run. More than twenty miles a week on average. But that was years ago. My daughters, who are now about the age I was back then, decided we should create a team and run some fun 5K's for good causes. Great idea, except did I mention I used to run and it was a long time ago?

We ran our first race in March. As an older runner, I made the decision I didn't care about time at all, only finishing the race running. It wasn't the kind of race I had envisioned. For one, the race was at night. The only lights came from glow-in-the-dark bracelets and necklaces. The route went from pavement to gravel to rutted dirt track and then back again. We ran around a body of water. The path tilted. All the while, colored water was sprayed at us at intervals.

Early on I saw an older woman fall. I slowed my pace. I saw there were obstacles that had fallen onto the path. I became afraid and slowed even more. A rock jammed into the heel of my shoe and I had to stop to remove it. 

I had lost sight of my goal - running the race. I lost my ability to keep pace - my daughters were well in front of me. I felt alone. I felt like a failure. I gave up. I walked.

Why would anyone endure such a thing and call it fun?

Probably for the same reason writers write.

Writers face challenges too. They write alone. They face obstacles - family members who don't understand they are working and not just entertaining themselves with a hobby. They fend off callers and the internet. They set goals and then, all too often, give up when they can't attain them immediately. Writing is hard, but it is also incredibly rewarding as long as you don't give up the "race." 

That evening in March it took me a while. I had to do a lot of self talk. Finally I got my head back into the game, as they say. Okay, I wouldn't run the entire race, but I could still run part of it. I found a pace that was comfortable, where I didn't worry about tripping and falling. I kept my head down and ran. It wasn't easy, but each step took me one closer to the finish line.

Writing isn't easy. Keep your head down. Work to remove your obstacles. Don't beat yourself up when you don't achieve the goals you set for yourself right away, instead celebrate your successes. After all, a novel or story is written one word at a time. Find your own pace and finish your race.

_______________________________________

D. Jean Quarles is a writer of Women's Fiction and a co-author of a Young Adult Science Fiction Series. Her latest book, Flight from the Water Planet, Book 1 of The Exodus Series was written with coauthor, Austine Etcheverry.

D. Jean loves to tell stories of personal growth – where success has nothing to do with money or fame, but of living life to the fullest. She is also the author of the novels: Rocky's Mountains, Fire in the Hole and, Perception. The Mermaid, an award winning short story was published in the anthology, Tales from a Sweltering City.  

She is a wife, mother, grandmother and business coach. In her free time . . . ha! ha! ha! Anyway, you can find more about D. Jean Quarles, her writing and her books at her website at www.djeanquarles.com

You can also follower her at www.djeanquarles.blogspot.com or on Facebook

GRAB YOUR STORY BY THE HORNS

GRAB YOUR STORY BY THE HORNS

Guest Post by Gordon Rothwell

I think most writers have hazy, unformed ideas kicking around in the shadowy recess of their brains. And it’s almost impossible to tell when they might pop out. Or if they ever will.

When I was an advertising copywriter in San Francisco years ago I was always working on print campaigns that demanded catchy headlines. Often, I’d be wracking my poor brain for weeks without success. Then, as I stood under a hot shower head with the water pounding the back of my neck, out popped the winning headline! I also kept a notepad and pen handy beside my bed, just in case my subconscious came up with a brilliant idea while I was catching some zzzz’s.

But there are other more complex ideas that need a long gestation period before they’re ready to make an appearance in the outside world. Take my bullfight story, The Seventh Bull, for example. It took over 70 years before it saw the light of day.

I guess it all began way back in 1940 when I was just a boy sitting in a darkened Seattle movie house watching wide-eyed as Tyrone Power, in a glittering suit of lights, faced an angry thousand-pound bull in Blood and Sand. I was captivated by the pageantry, colorful costuming and spectacle of the sport.

Through the ensuing years, I became a huge fan of the bullfight. I read everything I could find, especially the writings of Ernest Hemingway. I collected cardboard boxes and filled them to the brim with magazine tear sheets and hardback books and paperbacks on bullfighting.

Eventually, as a young adult I saw my first corrida in person in Barcelona, Spain.  That was quite a thrill. But the event that stuck in my mind was another bullfight I attended in the 1960’s in Tijuana, Mexico. I went south of the border from Los Angeles with a group of friends. We wanted to see Antonio Ordoñez, the Number One Matador in the world at that time, in his first appearance outside of Spain. Ordoñez had been featured in a three-part article by Ernest Hemingway in LIFE magazine. Papa’s write up told of an historic mano-a-mano duel between Ordoñez and Luis Dominguin, a darling of the world press and Ava Gardner’s beau.

That entire experience in Tijuana was absolutely surreal. Especially the wild partying at a famous motel after the bullfight. While a strolling mariachi band trumpeted out hot songs equally hot young senoritas clad in tight leather outfits and flat-brimmed sombreros clapped their hands and wriggled their behinds to the delight of a large gathering of Hollywood stars and starlets. Much of what I saw and heard that weekend crept into a corner of my brain and began to percolate.

A half-century later my Seventh Bull tale showed its face to the world when  purchased by MuseItUp Publishing a few months ago. My bullfight story had been growing inside my brain for over 50 years.

If a story is worth developing, you have to dig deep. And find it.

Yank it out by the horns if you have to.

You’re not a Spanish rancher raising high-spirited Miura and Vistahermosa bulls for the arena. You are a breeder of ideas. And if you nurture yours, one day it will come charging out of the chute, past the Gate of Frights, and into the literary arena to give a memorable performance that will have fans cheering: “Ole΄! Ole΄!” and critics raving.

Come on. Grab those horns! And watch what happens!

Gordon Rothwell was born in Seattle and got a BA in Journalism from the University of Washington. As an advertising copywriter—one of the original Mad Men— he wrote material for over 100 major firms in California, including PR for the Apollo lunar space program. He received numerous awards including a CLIO (the Oscar of advertising). He’s also a sportswriter and screenwriter, and many of his screenplays have won and been finalists in the Motion Picture Academy's Nicholl, Acclaim, Chesterfield, Hollywood Symposium, and FADE IN competitions. He’s published articles and stories in numerous men's magazines as well as youth-oriented publications like BOY’S LIFE. He enjoys the fanciful and macabre on screen and in books. Gordon now lives in the shadow of Mt. Shasta, surrounded by a loving family and one sweet pit bull named “Dreamer.”  Mr. Rothwell’s blog address is http://olddognewtricksblog.wordpress.com  And, he can be contacted as “Gordon_Rothwell” on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

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MORE ON WRITING

Writing and The Ugly Peach Tree
What do Editors Look For?
Critiques are Essential

Get Started Writing: More Than a Dozen Ways to Build, Maintain, and Even Increase Your Momentum as a Freelance Writer

by Suzanne Lieurance, the Working Writer's Coach

Whether you’re just starting your freelance writing career or you’re wanting to take it to new levels, you need to create momentum and maintain that momentum if you hope to build your business. Here are more than a dozen ways for doing that.

1. Write no more than 3 major long term writing goals on a sheet of paper, and put that paper somewhere where you will see it every day. Read your goals every morning before you start work for the day.

2. Develop your weekly action plan (also called a marketing plan) every Sunday night. Don’t give up on this. Make sure you create your action plan every week and stick to the plan as well as you can each week.

3. Expand your network - think of ways to help promote others as you continue to promote yourself.

4. When you face an obstacle or challenge, think “outside the box” to come up with a way around this obstacle or a way to meet this challenge. Don’t be stopped by the first little obstacle or problem that crops up.

5. Start every day with positive thoughts and maintain these thoughts. Let go of any self-limiting thoughts, feelings, or actions. Just BELIEVE that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to doing even if you aren’t sure HOW you will do that. You’ll figure out HOW as you go along.

6. Be confident when you tell people you are a writer. Create a tagline that tells them exactly what you do. For example, your tagline say, “Freelance Writer, Author, and Speaker.”

7. Attend at least one writers’ conference, course, or workshop every year - more often if you can afford it. Get to know the people in charge. Volunteer to help out at the event.

8. Get business cards made, then pass out your business card everywhere you go. Leave cards on the bulletin boards in coffee shops, book stores, grocery stories. Leave your card in the bowls at restaurants to win a free meal. Make sure you have plenty of cards with you at all times. Give your card to friends and tell them to give the cards to people they may know who need a writer.

9. Create your own e-books, special reports, workshops and teleclasses to sell, then work with other writers who can help you promote them.

10. Write articles for article directories on a regular basis - at least one article written and submitted every week.

11. Write a press release about some new aspect of your business every 6 weeks and send it to local publications and have it distributed online. There are many free online distribution services available.

12. Continue to grow your mailing list any way you can. Read articles about growing your mailing list at ezinearticles.com. You’ll get plenty of suggestions in these articles. Get creative and think of new ways to add to your mailing list.

13. Visit blogs of other well-known writers in your field and leave a meaningful comment, along with your name and URL. Develop an online relationship with these people. It will help you acquire more readers.

14. Be sure you belong to at least a few listservs for writers. Then stop lurking! Become active! Get to know the other writers on these listservs by leaving comments, asking and answering questions, and by providing information about jobs, publishers, editors, etc. whenever you can.

15. Join at least one or two professional organizations for writers. Take part in their events. Volunteer to be a group leader or organizer.

Follow some or all of these 15 suggestions and you're sure to keep moving forward with your freelance writing career!

Suzanne Lieurance is an author, freelance writer, writing coach, speaker and workshop presenter. She is a former classroom teacher and was an instructor for the Institute of Children's Literature for over 8 years.

Lieurance now lives and writes by the sea in Jensen Beach, Florida. She offers The Morning Nudge free every weekday morning to writers who need a little inspiration and motivation to get their writing done.

Your Website Images - Be Careful What You Delete

If you're like me, you upload images as needed for your posts, like the one to the left here.

Once uploaded, those images sit in your Blogger Images File. If you use WordPress, it's the same thing - you upload the images and they're saved in your Media File.

This is all great. You have the images saved on site to be used again if needed, as part of your online marketing strategy.

BUT . . .

Yesterday, I decided to tweak my Google+ account. I edited my work information, changed the header (more on that below) and I deleted some of the albums cluttering up the Photos File.

This would seem like a good thing, right?

Not so much.

What happens is, as you upload images to your Blogger site they're saved in your Google+ account in Photos. Google creates a name for the album it creates of your site's images.

This is where haste makes waste comes a knockin' on the door. I knew some of the albums were connected to my Blogger sites, but it wasn't a thought in my head, as I deleted the album for this site.

SO . . .

The BAD thing that happens when you delete images or an entire album related to your Blogger site is those images are no longer available for your site. Where you added an image (that you just deleted) to a post a year ago or yesterday, it's no longer there. It's GONE.

The images you thoughtfully added to your posts from your Blogger Images File are GONE. In their place are grey circles.

SO, BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO DELETE YOUR IMAGES, BE SURE YOU HAVEN'T USED THEM IN YOUR POSTS!

Now, when you see a post with a grey circle in place of an image, you'll know why.

The Google+ Header

Google+ now has a bigger header and I created three different headers for my account. The dimensions specified are 480X270 and I made them to the correct size. I uploaded the first one and it appeared blurry, so I created a completely new one, uploaded that one, and it too was blurry. I repeated the process with a new third header and sure enough it was also too blurry to use.

Since this didn't work out I had to use one of Google's header designs and I'm not thrilled about it. A header should be site/genre relevant. While the image is beautiful, it has nothing to do with my work. I also don't like the new bigger header - it just takes up way too much website real estate space.

Here's what it looks like now:

I guess I'll ask the woman I use at Fiverr to create a header for me to see if her's will work correctly.

Happy marketing,


Karen Cioffi
Award-Winning Author, Freelance/Ghostwriter
Author-Writer Online Platform Instructor

Create and Build Your Author/Writer Online Platform


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P.S.2 If we're not already connected on GooglePlus, please add me to your circles - I'll add you to mine: https://plus.google.com/107054879622971281466/posts

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