We had a good weekend at a cattle show only about 50 miles from here. There was a show on Saturday, and a separate one on Sunday. They were both in the same place, but sponsored by different groups. That was nice because we could “go to” two shows while loading and unloading the cattle and equipment just once.

The weather was kind of cold and rainy, but the show itself was in a nice barn. Since I “don’t know how” to do much with the cattle, my main job is to sit in the stands and take pictures and provide moral support.

There is a lot of “waiting” at cattle shows. The cattle show in groups according to their breed and size, depending on the show and type of calves that are showing. The shows on Saturday and Sunday had approximately 50 total classes. Morgan showed in about 6 classes, Cody in 4 or 5. Obviously, there was plenty of time between the times they showed! This weekend I took along a pile of magazines I hadn’t gotten through. I have a habit of starting to read new magazines, then saving the rest until “later” . . . except some of the magazines were Christmas issues so it was a lot “later” before I got back to them!

When I go through my magazines, I tear out lots of articles, recipes, exercises I want to try, websites to check out, decorating ideas, and so on. Then I throw away the rest of the magazine. At the end of the weekend I had several magazines to throw away, and a pile of torn out pages to sort out. I have file folders labeled “exercises,” “websites to check out,” “stuff to put on blog/in newsletter,” etc. “Recipes” go in a pile of probably hundreds of them to be sorted out . . . (it’s on my to-do list for the week!)

The kids did well at the show. Morgan was the Champion Intermediate Showman(woman!) on Saturday and Reserve Champion on Sunday. She and several other friends her age are often in the top 4 or so kids in showmanship. They all get along and it’s a very friendly competition.

Cody is more into clipping the cattle and getting them ready to actually show. He helps quite a few other people get their animals ready too. His cattle did well at the show, and he had a fun time with his friends, too.

I saw several of my “cattle showing mom” friends, too! One family that usually brings cattle, didn’t, so the mom and I got to talk all afternoon on Saturday (she’s a mom who does “know how to help” get the cattle ready, so is usually doing that at shows). Her kids are roughly the same age as ours, and it’s always reassuring to talk with her and know my kids aren’t “the only ones” to face whatever teenage issue they’re facing . . . and I’m not “the only mom” who isn’t always sure what to do or think of the kids.

I got to spend some time with another cattle show mom/nurse on Sunday. She’s the Director of Nursing at a local hospital. I enjoy hearing about hospital nursing from several moms who are nurses, and whose kids show cattle.   

All in all, it was a really nice weekend, full of friends, lots of junk food, and family. As another show cattle mom e-mailed me today, “everyone seemed to play well together.”

I began teaching Lamaze classes in 1990. I knew that I enjoyed teaching, and absolutely loved teaching Lamaze classes! After I’d been teaching for several years, I came across a magazine called Childbirth Instructor. The magazine was written for people teaching any type of childbirth class.

As I was reading the magazine, I read a column called In the Classroom, which gave teaching tips and suggestions for situations an instructor might face while teaching. I immediately thought, “I could write this column!” After reading several back issues of the magazine (to get a better feel for what the editor wanted covered in that column), I started a list of topics I could write about.

As I looked back on several years of teaching many classes, I realized I’d developed my own techniques for teaching large classes, small classes, classes with non-traditional couples, and so on–perfect topics for In the Classroom.

I wrote a query letter, outlining the first article I wanted to write, and was thrilled to receive a positive reply in the mail several weeks later! (remember, this was in the early 1990s when e-mail wasn’t widely used . . . today, many magazines accept e-mail queries, drastically cutting down on time waiting for a response). I was just as thrilled to see that my payment would be $500! It was my first paying writing job and I was determined to do a great job.

It was an even bigger thrill (I know I’m overusing that word, but if you’ve been published, you know what I’m talking about . . . and if you have not been published yet I do hope you will have the experience in the future!) to receive a copy of the magazine in the mail (authors usually receive at least one copy of the magazine in which their article appears, free!) and see the article with my name on it!

Shortly after my first article appeared in Childbirth Instructor, I wrote another query letter, outlining the next article I wanted to write. That article, too, was accepted, and I ended up writing for the magazine for several years.

The message for my readers–read magazines related to your career, profession, job, or even hobby.  Because of your experience in the area, you’ll be very likely to have ideas for articles for that magazine and the experience to write those articles.

When you do write for a magazine for the first time, begin developing a positive relationship with that magazine; submit the article on time, according to specifications, and written to the very best of your ability. As well as writing an article, you’re developing a relationship with the people on staff at that magazine. When they know they can depend on you, they’ll be willing to hire you again and again!

Please e-mail me with any questions or comments you have about writing!

Have you ever read a magazine article and thought, “I could have written that article!”? Well, you probably CAN write that article, or another one that will be published.

Here are a few tips to get started.

As you read through your favorite magazines,  pay attention to the topics covered. Magazines do not want to publish many articles on exactly the same subject, so find a topic for which you have a unique view. For example, if you experienced a rare complication during your pregnancy, you probably are somewhat of an expert on that topic, and also have a personal view of the experience. 

If you have a unique way to save money, organize your home, or discipline your children, you have an article idea!

Many magazines publish “personal experience” stories–about getting out of debt, unusual medical problems, building a home, and so on.

As you read through your favorite magazines, jot down ideas for articles you could write.

Next, check out the requirements for writing for that particular magazine. With a little searching you can find writer’s guidelines on that magazine’s website. You can also refer to a comprehensive book, published yearly, called “Writer’s Market.” (The book is available in libraries, but if you decide to focus your career on writing for magazines, you’ll probably want to purchase your own copy.) This book contains information about thousands of magazines–requirements for writing for them, etc.

 Before you write an article for a magazine, most ask you to write a “query letter”–that is, a letter outlining the article you’d like to write. Writing a query letter allows the magazine to request anything particular they’d like in the article, and also saves you time–if the magazine is not interested in the article, you haven’t written the article for nothing. You can find more information about query letters in “Writer’s Market” and books about writing for magazines.

The process of writing for a magazine–research, writing a query letter, etc.–might seem overwhelming at first. “Breaking into” writing for a magazine can be a lot of work, over many months. But once you’ve had an article accepted, you’ll often be able to write for that magazine many times. I’ve written many articles for several magazines, and I’ll talk about them in future posts. As you begin, though, read every magazine with this question in the back of your head; What article could I write for this magazine?”

I attended Midland Lutheran College in Fremont, Nebraska. In 1989 I received my Bachelor’s of Science (BSN) Degree in Nursing. I loved college (with the passage of time I’ve forgotten some of the more . . . difficult . . . moments) and made many friends there, as well as getting a great education.

In 1991 or 1992 I came across a new nursing journal–a humorous magazine called The Journal of Nursing Jocularity. I don’t remember how I came upon the magazine anymore, but I remember laughing while reading the articles and immediately ordering all the back issues.

About that time I was assigned to take over doing the nursing schedule for the nursing home I was then working in. Little did I know the distress that schedule would cause . . . and little did I know my dream of becoming a published writer was about to start! After months of doing the schedule, I was able to see the humor in it as well as the distress, and was inspired to write an article titled Woes of Scheduling.

One of the biggest thrills in my life was receiving the letter stating my article had been accepted for publication! An even bigger thrill was receiving a copy of The Journal of Nursing Jocularity in the mail in early 1992, opening it to page 26, and seeing my article, with my name under the title!

I’m sure you won’t be surprised that I still have that magazine . . . I’ve been browsing through them for the last half hour or so . . . and the articles that were funny then are still funny. (Unfortunately the Journal of Nursing Jocularity is no longer being published.)

About a year later I wrote another article for the Journal of Nursing Jocularity. This one was titled Nursing School vs. Real Life Nursing and pointed out the contrasts between the ideal way of doing things, and the “real life” way of doing things in a hospital–any “real life” nurse will agree!

Several years later (after I was a more experienced nurse and had worked in several different areas of nursing), I wrote a final article for the Journal of Nursing Jocularity. This one was titled Things You Will Never Hear in a Hospital. Some of those things include:

• From the Charge Nurse: “You’ve been working a lot of overtime lately. Go home at noon today – but you’ll get paid for the full shift.” 
• From a doctor: “Please feel free to call me at any time about any of my patients.” “You nurses did a great job with my patient Mrs. Smith. I’d like to treat you all to supper Saturday night, at the steak house. I’ve made sure everyone who worked with Mrs. Smith has the evening off.”  
• From a patient: “The IV is in? I can’t believe it–I didn’t feel a thing!” “Can I make my own bed today? I’ve missed doing that.”

—————

These articles are examples of writing what I knew–and in the case of the scheduling article, something positive coming out of a very difficult time in my brand new career (there were other circumstances besides the schedule that made it so difficult!).

Most professions have journals/magazines or newsletters for people who are a part of that profession. Even if the main purpose of the journals is to provide information, most of the magazines have an area for jokes or funny articles. Look at your career.  What is funny about it? What funny people or situations have you been involved in? Research magazines and newsletters related to your profession, and see if your experience would fit. Maybe it will be the first step in seeing your name in print!

Rule number one of writing is to write what you know, through personal experiences. Of course you can learn about something new, and many things you know and write about will require some additional research. But the basic rule is to write what you know.

Why should you write about something you know about? First of all, something you know is something you’re interested in, perhaps even passionate about. Even if your experience was difficult–your daughter had trouble adjusting to a new school, or you struggled with a serious illness, for example–it’s something you know about from personal experience. Your writing will reflect your passion for and personal experience with whatever you’re writing about.

When you write what you know, your research will be much easier than if you write about something you know nothing about. You’ll have personal connections, or know someone who can connect you with people or information you know. You’ll know of websites, books, and magazines that will give you information and be places to publish your articles or publicize your book. Your book or article will be much easier to outline and put together, and you’ll also have a built in market for what you write.

Writing about what you know about is FUN! When you want to share your experiences to help or entertain other people, it’s fun and easy! Well . . . that’s a stretch . . . it’s not “easy” to write . . . but it’s a lot more fun to go through the process when it’s a topic you enjoy.

OK–enough talking about it! Through the next few blog entries I’m going to give you some examples of the writing I’ve done, about very diverse topics. The entries will give you examples of “write what you know” by showing you how I wrote about what I know about. I hope that by sharing my experiences with you, you’ll think about your own opportunities to write what you know.  

One of the basic rules of writing (and everyday etiquette, for that matter) is to have the correct name and spelling of that name, of the person you’re writing to. This applies whether you’re writing a thank-you note, query letter (which is a letter outlining an article you’d like to write), sending a book with a review request, or any other type of communication.

That’s what I was working on today–sending out copies of What Should I Say? The Right (and Wrong!) Words and Deeds for Life’s Sticky, Tricky, Uncomfortable Situations, for possible review in newspapers.

I know the importance of addressing the review package (book, review request letter, sample review, review slip, etc.) to the correct person, and it’s not always easy to figure out who that person is from the masthead (the list of who works at the paper in what capacity). But I was pressed for time–making dinner, doing laundry, and so on, so was tempted to take shortcuts.

For one paper, it seemed obvious who the reviewer was; he had written several reviews in the last few weeks. However, I made the call to the paper, just to be sure . . . and I was asked to send it to someone different (sometimes one person recieves all the review requests, and then distributes them individually to the staff member most qualified to review each book).

I also wanted to send What Should I Say for possible review to a Lutheran newsletter which had given my last book, Home is Where the Mom Is; A Christian Mom’s Guide to Caring for Herself, Her Family, and Her Home, a good review. I went to the website for that newsletter and saw that the person to whom I’d sent Home is Where the Mom Is was still listed, so figured I should send it to that person again.

It was just a few minutes before 5:00, when the office would close. It was time for me to check supper, but I wanted to get the last review request letter printed out. Again, I was tempted to just go with the name I “knew” was right . . . but something told me to make that phone call again.

And yep, it happened again . . . the person to whom I was to send the review package wasn’t even listed on the website! Obviously, the site hadn’t been updated after some staffing changes had been made. The first name was a common one; something told me to ask how it was spelled, and it was spelled in one of the unusual ways (thank goodness for that little push from the Holy Spirit!).

As an additional bonus, the lady who answered my questions was very polite and interested in me and my books; our conversation was short but it made my day to talk to such a helpful and cheerful person.

The take away lesson here? No matter what stage of your writing career you’re in, and no matter what you’re doing, make absolutely sure you’re addressing it to the right person. One short, simple phone call (even if if it’s not so short and simple and you have to go through the voice mail maze for a few minutes) can make the difference between making a good first impression and a bad one . . . and getting your letter or book package to the right person . . . or the wrong one.

We have the tradition of enjoying a corned-beef supper on St. Patrick’s Day, at least every other year. We just got done with our traditional dinner this year, and everyone loved it! It was nice to have a dinner together, chatting about sheep, the weather, school, and other everyday family topics.

The menu included corned beef (of course), cabbage, broccoli, browned potatoes, and garlic-parmesan cheese scones. The recipes were all simple, and everyone loved it! (Except for the cabbage . . . it’s traditional, but not very yummy, at least not how I made it . . . )

Have you ever made a corned beef dinner? It’s easy and fun! Corned beef is a fairly cheap cut of meat, so I got an extra one to put in the freezer. I’ll cook it when we’re hungry for something different.

I think I have at least some writing genes in my blood.

My great-grandfather on my mom’s side was a founding father of the town of Algonquin, Illinois. I remember talking to him when I was young, and reading some of the things he had written. After he died I recieved a copy of the history he had written about Algonquin.

My grandfather (my mom’s dad) was a teacher for many years. Teaching and writing have a lot in common, because often writing is a form of teaching. One of my uncles is a sports writer in Minnesota.

My dad is a retired teacher and pastor; obviously, being a pastor includes a lot of writing!

Whether or not there is a writing gene, it’s just as, or even more important, that I got encouragement at every turn! A teacher in high school appreciated my writing and dreams of writing . . . I remember him telling me that some of the things I did in my style of writing might not be appreciated in high school or college writing but in “real life” would be just fine (thanks, Mr. Metcalfe!).

My mom and dad always gave me the impression that I could do whatever I wanted to, and encouraged me to strive to reach my dreams. My grandparents were, and are, the same way–asking questions about what I’m doing, being proud of my accomplishments, and encouraging me in doing what I want to do.

Countless other people encouraged me through the years, and thanks to all of them! When you offer words of encouragement to anyone, no matter what their dreams, their desires, no matter what they’re working toward, you are a part of making their dream come true.  

I’ve always known I wanted to be a writer. The first time I can remember actually “writing” is when I was in about 4th grade. I used a number 2 yellow pencil and wide-ruled spiral notebook. This was in the mid to late 1970’s, and talk of nuclear bombs, nuclear “winter” and “the day after” was in the news almost every day. My novel was about a girl and her friends preparing for life “after” the bomb.

I don’t think I finished that novel . . . if I did, I don’t remember how it ended! But I loved the process of writing . . . the words flowing out . . . looking at those pages filled with my childish script . . . I didn’t know how to outline my book, didn’t know anything about character development or plot tracking . . . but I found joy in doing the actual writing. And that was my beginning!

I don’t remember writing much between my first “novel” and about 1990. The intervening years included high school, college (I’m an RN, and also have my BSN), work, marriage, and children, born in 1991 and 1993.

After my children were born I worked outside our home only very part time and for long periods of time, not at all. It was then that I began pursuing my dream of writing again.

I’ve decided to narrow the focus of this blog and make it more helpful for my readers. When I give presentations and talk with people about what I do, they often share their dreams of writing, with me.  I find joy and fulfilment in writing and publishing, and I want other people to experience that same fulfilment when they accomplish their own dreams of writing. 

My ultimate goal is to make writing and publishing my full-time “job,” and this blog will document that. Along with that goal, I will share my own experiences and hints and motivation for readers, so they can outline, work on, and accomplish their own dreams of writing.

I know I enjoy reading blogs about people doing things I will never do–climb a mountain, work as a nurse in an NICU (neonatal intensive care unit), live in Washington DC–so I hope that even if you don’t dream of being a writer, you’ll enjoy reading about my quest to do that full-time.

I’m sure I’ll still write about my family and life in the country . . . those topics are often the inspiration for my writing! If you read this blog in part to find out what my family and I are up to, you’ll still be able to do that.

Wherever you live, whatever you do, whatever your dreams, I hope you’ll enjoy the new focus to my blog.

If you have any suggestions, topics you’d like me to cover, or suggestions, please e-mail me at shelly@shellyburke.net, or leave a comment on the blog (I have to approve any comments before they actually appear on the blog, but try to do so within 24 hours of your leaving a comment).