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In our third and final article review of this series, Eliot Erfurt examines the cultural aspects that affect any successful marketing campaign. The review includes some rather humorous examples of what can happen when marketers fail to educate themselves about the cultural differences between the people of their own region and those of their target markets.

Article Reviewed:

Reese, S. (1998). Culture shock. Marketing Tools, 5 (4), 44-48.

Purpose of the article: Culture affects the buying behavior of consumers. If a business does not familiarize itself with the culture of a specific marketing group, advertising dollars and product sales may suffer. The article lists numerous examples of the adverse effects that may result if the culture of specific groups are ignored and also gives suggestions on how to avoid the pitfalls of ethnic marketing.

Summary: Culture is the system of shared beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and artifacts that the members of society use to cope with their world and with one another, and that are transmitted from generation to generation through learning. The author, Shelly Reese, begins the article with numerous and often humorous examples of what can happen if cultures clash in the marketplace. The author cites relevant facts to back up the assertion that culture cannot be ignored in today’s marketplace. Finally, a list of helpful suggestions on what and how to incorporate cultural differences into product design and advertising is given.

Excellent examples of cultural ignorance are listed in the article. Some of these include:

• The Coors slogan, “Turn it loose”, was unfortunately translated into Spanish as, “Suffer from diarrhea”.
• Pepsi’s slogan, “Come alive with the Pepsi Generation” translated into Chinese as, “Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave”.
• A horrible implication was made in Africa when Gerber sold its baby food with a picture of a beautiful baby on the jar. Since most Africans cannot read English, the usual practice for companies, unknown or ignored by Gerber, was that the contents (not the consumers) were shown on the front of the product.
• The brand name of the facial tissue “Puffs” means brothels in colloquial German! The product had been marketed before the mistake was discovered.
• The people at Parker pen assumed the Spanish word “embarazar” means “to embarrass”. Unfortunately, part of their pen ad, “It won’t leak in your pocket and embarrass you” became “It won’t leak in your pocket and make you pregnant.” The word “embarazar” means “to impregnate”.

As the world leans toward more free trade and accommodates an expansive global market, the necessity of incorporating culture into product decision making becomes clear. Even within the United States, the white population is becoming more fragmented. Reese explains, “…immigration from Europe has been on the rise. Between 1985 and 1995, more than 1.2 million European migrants settled in the U.S. That represents 14 percent of total immigration.” New immigrants offer a distinctly different target market as they acculturate into the mainstream American society. The minority populations in the United States will make up 50% of the total by the year 2050. Certainly, all Americans will continue to have many things in common, but the future points toward increasing growth from immigration and therefore more specific and numerous target markets.

Reese suggests some common sense, yet often overlooked, factors to consider before marketing a product. These timely ideas include:

• Never assume you know a population different from your own. Many times your assumption many be based on erroneous stereotyping.
• What works in one area of the market will not necessarily work in all places.
• Advertising in an ethnic market means more than simply translating your brochure or ad. The words, although translated correctly, may not connect with the cultural norms of the group. As the author explains, “Real target marketing demands the creation of messages that appeal to the specific sensitivities of an audience.”
• Even the colors used in an advertisement may carry significance. Koreans or Japanese would recognize the color red or gold as targeted for Chinese consumers – not for them.
• Cultural relevance, explains Reese, means understanding a group’s values and customs and is very different from cultural opportunism.
• Take the time to understand and learn what is important to a particular market. Brand names are not always enough.

Conclusion: The best ethnic marketing results from an understanding of what carries values within a culture. The business must make a commitment to the community and culture to establish a lasting relationship between themselves and the consumers.

Implications: The study of consumer behavior is a basic tenet of marketing strategy. It is used to promote the marketing approach and enhance the effectiveness of marketing strategy. Culture plays a vital role in consumer behavior particularly because of the increasing trend toward a global marketplace. The culture of specific consumer groups, therefore, has implications in brand image and branding, product positioning, marketing segmentation, new product development, pricing, choosing distributing channels, advertising, and promotion.

This second article in our series about consumer behavioral trends and marketing was written by Angela Cantu along with some much-needed copyediting by me in order to make it suitable for publication. It is a summary and analysis of some important statistical information on consumer behavior and marketing trends.

Articles Reviewed:

Gunter, M. & Smith, J. W. (2001, December 24). What Shoppers Want. Fortune Magazine. Retrieved March 1, 2002, from http://www.business2.com/articles/ mag/0,1640,36161,00.html

Princeton Survey Research Associates. (1999, March). Consumer Behaviors, Experiences, and Attitudes: A Comparison by Age Groups. Retrieved February 14, 2002, from http://research. aarp.org/consumer/d16907_ behavior_1.html.

Wirthlin Report. (1999 March). Buying Influences: Consider the Source. Retrieved February 14, 2002, from http://209.204.197.52/publicns/report/wr9903.htm.

Summary and Analysis:

What do consumers want when they are looking to purchase products? That is a question many executives ask themselves when trying produce advertisements for the public. While many marketers depend on research and economic studies, others turn to surveys by using information sources from within their company such as questionnaires or customer feedback information.

J. Walker Smith, president of Yankelovich Partners, one of America’s leading analysts in consumer trends, believes that many “came out of the nineties feeling prosperous, self-confident, and in control.” However, consumers now are at a point where especially the baby boomers need to feel a sense of satisfaction with products that are “nonmaterial and intangible”.

In order for consumers to feel a level of satisfaction when it comes to purchasing products, many Americans turn to five different forms of media. They are television news sources, newspapers, radio, Internet, and news magazines. In the Wirthlin Report, 58 percent of consumers turn to the television, 23 percent to the newspaper, 13 percent to the Internet, and only one percent to magazine articles. According to research done by the Wirthlin Report, they know that Americans are conscientious shoppers who like to comparison shop before spending their money.

Research done by their associates has found that when consumers are looking to purchase certain items, they turn to certain kinds of media. The television seems to have a major impact on consumers who are looking to purchase less expensive items such as medications or household items. The newspaper has an influence among consumers looking to purchase appliances or investment items such as stocks. In addition, magazine articles tend to influence larger purchases like computers or vehicles.

Along with the decision to purchase also comes the need for a certain level of education. In this regard, researchers say that television is a medium used by many who have little or no education while those who are “highly” educated turn to print media like magazine articles and newspaper advertisements. The Internet also seems to have an impact on large numbers of consumers who are turning to the web for customized items. Internet research allows consumers the flexibility to virtually create their items as they would like them. For instance with vehicles, the consumer can choose the color they want for the vehicle, decide on what options they want, and even have the choice of having it delivered to their homes. Similar options are available for computers.

When consumers are deciding to purchase items, the question of how credible the companies are comes into play. Consumers turn to a variety of sources when it comes to determining how credible the product’s brand is. Some of those sources are consumer reports, friends, radio news, network television, news articles, and the Internet. Everyone is different and depending on your level of education, one has the right to determine what sources are believable, somewhat believable, or not believable at all.

Another study done by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) closely relates to the information sources chosen by consumers, and that is also their level of vulnerability. Their research found that a large number of consumers are vulnerable to advertisements that are fraudulent or deceptive.

Many reasons contribute to consumers who are taken advantage of by deceptive advertising or fraudulent claims. These include factors such as what level they conduct their business, what behavioral patterns they have, their attitudes, and their level of education. The AARP study was conducted with participants from the older group aged 65 years or more and the group of younger consumers aged 18 to 64. They analyzed the group with the vulnerability index, the lowest score being zero for low vulnerability and the highest score being 29 for a high vulnerability, and they found that the older consumers were more affected by deceptive advertisements.

In one survey, the AARP found 21 percent of those aged 75 or older and 11 percent of those aged 65 to 74 had a high vulnerability index. In addition, those with a low vulnerability index were only 5 percent of those aged 75 or older and almost zero with those who were 65 and under.

As marketers begin trying to appeal to their audience, they also have to take into consideration whether or not consumers will be satisfied with their products. The AARP found that 82 percent of consumers in their survey were not satisfied with their purchases in at least one instance. Meanwhile, researchers found that the younger consumers had more complaints and were more adamant in doing something about the problem versus those over 65.

Advertisers have found it nearly impossible to appeal to everyone since Americans are very diverse in their expectations of brands and products. Most advertisers now turn to a variety of information sources to determine whether their products are successful. Once marketers have received feedback on their products, they begin to market them to the appropriate audience.

This is the first of a series of three article reviews related to various aspects of marketing and consumer behavior. In our first installment, Marilyn Knox presents an analysis of older consumers from the “baby boomer” generation and gives reasons why this market cannot be ignored.

Article Reviewed:

Abdel-Ghany, M. & Sharpe, D. L. (1997). Consumption patterns among young-old and old-old. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 31 (1), 90+

Purpose of article: On January 1, 1996 the first of the babies born during the Baby Boom turned 50. Maturing consumers are the biggest spenders. They are the wealthiest, best educated and most sophisticated purchasers. Baby Boomers are forming the most extraordinary middle-aged generation of all time – one that presents the most complex set of challenges to product and service providers and marketers in the history of modern marketing.

Summary of article: For several decades, the study of advertising and marketing has taken a historical approach. We have studied what has worked in the past. Unfortunately, this past does not resemble the immediate future. The youth-dominated markets of the past 30 years are slowly but surely being replaced by an America that has never been old before. To plan for tomorrow’s maturing marketplace using standards developed and tested in yesterday’s objective, youth oriented markets is as dangerous as driving using only the rear view mirror.

Conclusion: Marketers will be required to develop relationships with consumers that allow a marketer to “go with the flow” of consumers’ free will choices. This converts the often-heard slogan “customer driven” into today’s reality. New science has caused scientists to adopt new assumptions about the behavior of matter and energy as well as new investigative techniques. New marketing will likewise cause researchers and marketers to make equivalent changes to their thinking regarding consumer behavior.

Implications: The message for marketers is that the tidal wave of Boomers turning 50 will only intensify the trend toward youthfulness among the mature population. Boomers have changed every stage of life they have lived through so far, so they are likely to create a second middle-aged market, thus altering the very nature of maturing consumer markets. Understanding what distinguishes baby boomers as a group from the present mature population will be the key to planning for successful marketing to the maturing consumers’ population in the coming decades.

This essay is a review of an article written by B. Zorina Khan in Journal of Economic History (55:1), 58-97. The title of the original article is “Property Rights and Patent Litigation in Early Nineteenth-Century America”.

For as long as I can remember, I have been interested in inventions. I have thought about many things, from designing a hat for babies to wear when they first begin walking to how to make a computer think using something other than the binary system. In the textbook, America by Tindall and Shi, the authors describe the last quarter of the 19th century as one of great inventions, big business, and industrial growth (675-706). Certainly, the whole question of what caused the industrial revolution is very fascinating, especially since current events describe Afghanistan as a place where there is no electricity, food, water, roads, or industrial development – why here and not there? In Chapter 19 of America, as evidence of growth, the authors point out that the U.S. Patent Office registered 234,956 inventions in the 1890’s, compared to only 276 in the 1790’s (Tindall and Shi 652). I have limited my topic to the question of whether the patent office encouraged the growth of technology in the last quarter of the 19th century as described in the article by B. Zorina Khan entitled, “Property Rights and Patent Litigation in Early Nineteenth-Century America” (58-97).

The argument made by Khan in her article is that the existence of the patent office, patent law, and the judicial system encouraged technological change and stimulated growth in the late 1800’s. In order to prove her assumption, the author examined all of the 795 patent cases from 1790 to 1860 (61). Khan attempts to answer other researchers who contend that patents were of little use during the beginning of the industrialization period because: 1) patents were unenforceable and easily copied, 2) some inventions did not qualify for a patent, and 3) the legal system of the times was “anti-patent”. These scholars question whether the patent office encouraged growth. They also doubt whether money or market forces have a substantial effect on the level of inventiveness (59).

Khan makes several good points. If patents were of little value, as others have suggested, people would have relied on other methods to protect their property rights. Yet, the majority of all of the important inventions of the time were patented. In addition, many investors of the 19th century bought into the creative ideas of others in the hopes of making a profit (Khan 60). The investments of early venture capitalists demonstrate the relationship between inventions and profit.

A major contention made by the author to counter the argument that the courts were not responsive to inventors involved the examination of all 795 patent cases from 1790 to 1860. Few cases (of any kind) were brought before the federal courts during this time period and, of all the patent cases, most were settled out of court (Khan 61, 63, 80, 88-89). Many of the cases that did make it to court, were argued because of market strategy, not enforcement of property rights (67). Most court cases reflected an attempt to extend an existing patent, rather than a question of enforcement. Most surprising of all, only 76 patents accounted for 585 of the 795 total cases (70). These facts bolster the author’s claims because if dissatisfaction with the court actually did exist and enforcement problems were an issue, more and different types of claims would have been filed with the courts.

In examining the patent cases, the author also notes that the outcomes of the cases were consistent across the country (Khan 86). This, too, argues in the author’s favor. Other researchers contend that judges were anti-patent prior to 1836, then, later, became more liberal and patent friendly. Khan, however, counters this claim by explaining the 1836 changes in patent law as the reason for a change in both the number and results of patent cases after that date (62-63). The Commissioner of Patent became responsible for infringement disputes so the type of cases heard by the court system changed. The consistency and non-arbitrariness of the courts also is evident because judges relied on earlier cases to help in later decisions (64).

As evidence for her claim that patent law encouraged technological growth, Khan also uses the number of patent cases filed per capita, the sales of patent rights, and the practice of inventors advertising pending patents (93). Clearly, these would not occur unless patents were enforceable and encouraged growth. As the population grew in urban areas and markets expanded, patent filings increased. Inventors and investors profited from the sale of inventions.
The fact the inventors advertised that their patents were pending is evidence that patents were, indeed, valuable (93).

Khan’s article presents evidence that the patent office encouraged industrial growth and effectively counters those that question the effectiveness of the early patent office. However, as she admits, only one piece of the picture was examined. A more persuasive argument might include a comparison of growth versus patents in other countries with that in the United States. Additionally, an examination of this period of growth might be compared with other periods in the history of the United States. She also did not mention the possible effects of rural to urban transition, transportation advances, western settlement, and increased immigration on the surge of inventions.

Khan’s article and the question of patents in general are very relevant to our history course. The text should have said more about this topic and the lecture should question the role of the patent office during the time of the industrial revolution. If, as Khan suggests, the patent office had some responsibility for the unparalleled growth of the late 19th century, the topic deserves some mention in order to receive a fuller picture of the times.

Works Cited

Khan, B. Zorina. “Property Rights and Patent Litigation in Early Nineteenth-Century America.” Journal of Economic History 55:1 (1995): 58-97.

Tindall, George Brown, and David E. Shi. America: A Narrative History. Brief 5th ed., New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2000.

Daniel Goleman brought wide popular recognition to the concept of emotional intelligence in his best-selling book of the same name. This book is divided into five parts: the emotional brain, the nature of emotional intelligence, emotional intelligence applied, windows of opportunity, and emotional literacy. Goleman states that humans have two minds, one that is an emotional mind and the other a rational mind. According to the author, “All emotions, in essence, are impulses to act, the instant plans for handling life that evolution has instilled in us” (Goleman 1995).

In one section of his book, Goleman tells of a sophomore in high school who was a straight-A student fixated on getting into Harvard Medical School. His physics teacher gave him an 80 on a quiz and the student feared that this grade would put his dream in jeopardy. The student brought a butcher knife to school and stabbed his teacher after an emotional confrontation. The court found him innocent, ruling that he was mentally insane at during the accident (Goleman 1995). “The question is, how could someone of such obvious intelligence do something so irrational — so downright dumb? The answer: Academic intelligence has little to do with emotional life” (Goleman 1995). A high IQ can contribute about 20 percent to the factors that determine success.

Emotional Intelligence is defined by five main abilities: Knowing one’s emotions (self-awareness), managing emotions, motivating oneself, recognizing emotions of others (empathy), and handling relationships. Goleman states, “People who excel in these skills do well at anything that relies on interacting smoothly with others; they are social stars” (43-44). All these skills can be developed. Emotional wisdom and maturity can be acquired and enhanced. Goleman’s book summarizes and analyzes the research on how a person’s emotional “intelligence” contributes to functioning well in our society. The theory of emotional intelligence has spread into schools and the business community. Practical application of this popular theory has become the basis for many training and counseling sessions.

So, what are some practical applications of emotional intelligence in the workplace? On some of the findings, emotional intelligence (EI) is utilized in the success of meeting planning in the industries. A small research study was conducted by a Dr. J.P. Pawliw-Fry (Canada-based expert in EI and co-director of the Institute for Health and Human Potential) with meeting planners in the first quarter of 2000. He quotes that, “emotional quotient, or EQ, is responsible for 68% of the success of high-performing planners” [and] tech skills 22%, and IQ only 8%.

Emotional Intelligence can be further defined into five major categories: self-awareness, self-management, self-motivation, empathy, and social skills (Goleman, 1995). “What’s your problem?” Athena Miller, president of Gilbert, Arizona-based Human Dimensions, works with managers and their teams in recognizing their self-awareness. Apparently, these teams spend most of their time fighting, distrusting, and “back-stabbing” each other. People need to express their emotions and feelings with each other and be aware of how they interact with others.

Another example of self-awareness, a personal competency, was found at the Center for Organizational Excellence in Fairfax Station, Virginia. The president, Dr. Joseph Mancusi, says that “planners with such aptitude are able to cope with the tremendous chaos and change inherent to conventions and meetings” and that to assure us that EI, unlike IQ, can be learned and developed (Meany, 2000).

Self-management and self-motivation, sometimes referred to as “Get them under control” is being able to manage your emotions and impulses – to delay your gratification, as well as to persevere in the face of setbacks and failures (Goleman, 1995). After self-awareness you can begin self-management and create walls or “blocks” that will prevent your usual or natural reaction. Once you can take control of your own emotions and get past the obstacles, you can then “orchestrate the actions of others.”

This seems to hold true in San Francisco-based Q-Metrics, where Esther Orioli, president and CEO, says, “your first reaction is fear or inadequacy.” A vice president of sales force performance at PlanSoft Corporation in Ohio, Mike Kunkle, stresses the importance of controlling one’s emotions. In one particular instance Kunkle and his colleagues were barraged by a team member who kept making sarcastic remarks. Kunkle didn’t waste time in arguing or responding to each remark and in the end the meeting actually was pretty productive because he didn’t let the “comments derail the conversation.” (Meany, 2000).

Empathy and social skills, “Skills that matter” are your two social competencies that sense how others are feeling and being able to handle those emotions of others. In one particular case, Jeannie Coyle, who is now a special educations teacher, was formerly with Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association in Washington D.C., where she was an exhibit manager. On one rather already rough day, she and her exhibitors were prepping for a meeting hall. They had to first wait out twelve hours for another group to finish and because they waited that long Coyle and her team were in there all night. To ward off irritated and exhausted exhibitors she ordered lots of room service and committed herself to stay with them all night until 5:00 a.m. (Meany, 2000). I think this demonstrates a high emotional intelligence in the field of empathy and social skills; she demonstrated that she understood, cared, and most importantly did something about it.

There are many other examples of emotional intelligence in practice not only in industries, but now perhaps in curriculums in college for college students. One case reveals EI being taught to future leaders for business graduates. At some business schools EI is taught through stages or phases as Cherniss and Goleman (1995) put it. “There would be four stages:

1. Stage 1: Students deny that they have any need for change.
2. Stage 2: Students see the need to improve but are not sure that anything can be done or they delay action.
3. Stage 3: Students recognize the problem and understand that there are alternative ways of dealing with it, but have not worked out a plan.
4. Stage 4: Students have a plan and put it into action.”

Through these stages tailored to college students, professors can map the EI structure and lead students from stage one to stage four increasing the students morale, motivation, and perseverance (Tucker, Sojka, Barone, & McCarthy, 2000).

Evaluation

I thought the articles were very interesting and closely related to the text, however, the text contains only a paragraph on emotional intelligence. After reading these articles and doing my own extended research, I find that I wish we spent more time on emotional intelligence. I feel that this particular topic would be 90% of OB – organizational behavior and how to be successful managers.

I agreed with most of the comments and summaries in the articles, with the exception of a few. To name one example of disagreement, with my “working knowledge” of EI, the article on You’re Smarter Than You Think, under “Get Them Under Control” Meany expounds Mike Kunkle’s experience with warding off “snide remarks”, continuing with his speech, and being able to maintain a productive meeting, she says is not the works of EI. However, I say otherwise. Kunkle clearly demonstrated self-management and self-motivation. To reiterate, he controlled his emotions by not letting the “passive-aggressive” member to get to him and utilized self-motivation in terms of his perseverance to continue the meeting and, in turn, had a productive meeting. These two values are a part of personal competencies outlined by Goleman and Kunkle demonstrated a high emotional intelligence.

References

Goleman, Daniel (1995). Emotional intelligence. NewYork: Bantam Books.

Meany, R. (2000). You’re smarter than you think. Successful Meetings, 49 (12), 52-56.

Tucker, M. L., Sojka, J. Z., Barone, F. J., & McCarthy, A. M. (2000). Training tomorrow’s leaders: Enhancing the emotional intelligence of business. Journal of Education for Business, 75 (6), 331-338.

This article by Sarah Tenney is a review of the book Bringing the State Back In, edited by Peter B. Evans, Dietrich Rueschemeyer, and Theda Skocpol, published by Cambridge University Press in 1985.

In this edited volume, the authors put forward a convincing case on the need to take into account the role of states in comparative politics. They note that in the decades preceding the publication of Bring the State Back In, there was a tendency among scholars to take the Neo-Marxist approach of focusing on political phenomena as the consequences of individual, group, or class behavior. Through a variety of individual case studies, the authors show that the state should not be seen as merely an arena for struggle among contending economic interests, classes, or societal groups, but as an actor in its own right. They use the country studies compiled in this book to show that states have varying levels of autonomy and abilities to influence economic developments and social cleavages. In this respect, they demonstrate that the relationship between states and other domestic and international actors should be seen as reciprocal.

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Although I had always suspected that the bottled water craze was mostly marketing hype, John Stossel’s study of bottled water vs. tap back in 2005 revealed that many Americans are even more clueless on this issue than I had previously thought. Meanwhile, this article by Jan Harper approaches the issue from a different angle. In this piece, the author raises concerns that the bottled water companies, in their attempts to satisfy the rampant consumerism of the clueless masses, may be contributing to water shortages or other environmental problems in underdeveloped countries. Admittedly, I haven’t fully researched this particular aspect of the bottled water issue, so if any of you have additional information that is relevant to this particular topic, please add this to the comment section below.

Sales of bottled water are steadily rising and have been for the past five years, according to Washington based NGO (Non-Governmental Organizations). This is good news for business, but not so helpful for third world countries where safe drinking water is less than plentiful and drought is a constant threat.

Just one third of the money spent on bottled water in Western countries with adequate drinking water supplies would double the availability of clean, safe, drinking water in these countries.

The problem is further compounded by all the energy needed to bottle, extract and transport this water to the end user. Water bottled in some developing countries is being extracted at such a rate that it is affecting the water supply locally. There has recently been discussion on this in the Southern Indian state of Kerala where the water in the underlying rock is being extracted faster than it can replenish itself.

The problem with the aquifer in Kerala has been exacerbated by the Coca-Cola company which takes large amounts of water for the manufacture of Coke and bottled water. Local farmers reported a problem with brackish spring water which was affecting their crops. It is thought that cracks in the bedrock have allowed fertilizers to seep through and contaminate the water. A compromise has been reached on this but similar problems exist in other areas of the world.

Worries have been voiced over the depletion of underground water reserves in the Great Lakes region of the United States and the growing bottled water industry has been blamed for this.

Nestle, the world’s largest seller of bottled water, announced last year that it had designs on the underground water supply around Orwell, Oswego County. The region’s deep springs are a very lucrative and valuable resource so Nestle is not without competition. Environmentalists are battling against the project, but even their warning that bottled water uses up fossil fuels and adds to global warming seems to make no difference.

Bottled water is a luxury in parts of the world where there is a readily available supply of safe drinking water, but it is not a solution in areas with inadequate supplies. The only effective solution in the latter case is to provide renewable sources of supply and cut down on the environmental pollution factors that accentuate global warming and affect climate in these areas.

In addition to the more obvious benefits like not having to commute to classes, with good professors and management online college courses can help prospective students in other ways that may not be readily apparent. In this article titled “Dream A Little Dream”, Heather Long recounts her experiences with a particularly helpful instructor who not only assisted with the coursework, but motivated the author to rediscover her passion for writing and eventually turn it into a rewarding career.

I returned to college at the age of 28. I was ready to get my degree finally, eight years after having to leave school to care for my ailing grandmother. I attended part time at a local community college and following the birth of my daughter, discovered this brilliant feature the college offered: I could take classes online.

The situation was ideal, especially with an infant daughter to care for and no readily handy babysitters to cover for me should I need to attend physical, on-site classes. I’ve always been willing to try something, even when I was filled with trepidation, so I signed up for my first class which was a Humanities study on the History of the Trojan War and its metamorphosis through literature and film.

To my absolute delight I found an instructor who not only understood the needs of students learning in an online atmosphere, but promoted communication as her number one method of teaching. She responded to emails promptly with explanations for any questions I had and in depth analysis of work submitted.

Her name is Diane Thompson and she was more than willing to work with me when I got behind because my daughter got sick and was always ready with a kind word and encouragement. I completed the Troy class, having thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience. I was still working towards my degree and I was delighted to find out that Diane taught another class that I would need to take.

I signed up for the course immediately. The same generosity of spirit and encouragement existed in this course as it did in the last. Not only did she critique the work I submitted, but pointed me towards sources that could help me improve it. One of the first assignments I was required to write for the class was an essay about overcoming a personal problem. Her guidelines required that the student feel comfortable sharing this information because the essay would be posted for other students to read as well.

I thought about the assignment long and hard, finally deciding to write about an addiction I developed to online games. I discussed the history of the problem, when I became aware of the problem and how I worked to relieve myself of the problem. It was a difficult essay to write because it exposed a flaw I felt very badly about within myself.

Diane’s comments were a profound relief after I turned in the essay. She found it thought provoking and completely understandable from the viewpoints I presented. She felt that I addressed the issue as best I could without overtly feeling sorry for myself or trying to paint a false picture. We’d exchanged a couple of emails over the content and where it might be improved stylistically when Diane dropped a bombshell on me.

She suggested that I try to sell the essay to a magazine or online publication. She felt it spoke a great deal to the common person and put a growing problem in a light where it might be better understood. I was flabbergasted. I freely admit to staring at her email and while deeply pleased by her faith in me, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do.

All my life, I have been a writer. I love to write. I’ve written reams of information on countless subjects and dozens of short stories. I’d always put the idea of being a professional “Writer” off in the category of someday, a someday when I might have more time to “devote” to my art. I wrote as much back to Diane and she wrote back and encouraged me to try anyway. It might not sell, but then again it might. No one said I needed to make fifty thousand dollars on a first sale.

What could it hurt?

I can honestly say that because of this wonderful encouragement this teacher took the time to devote to me, I’ve begun to firmly establish myself as a freelance writer. I’m more than halfway through a novel. I’ve taken writing courses and found online writing groups. I’ve found support and friends who are experiencing similar problems while they tackle a challenging new career and I’ve never been happier about a choice than I am about the one to take the risk and try to submit that piece.

The piece itself, to this date, has never sold, but it has led me into a bright and beautiful new world. For helping me to realize that my dream, I have to thank Diane Thompson. Diane is a brilliant instructor who shares her encouragement, understanding and intelligence with her students at the Northern Virginia Community Colleges.

This book review by Philip Spires describes a notably well-written and humorous first novel called The Debt to Pleasure and authored by John Lanchester. Upon further researching the book, I noticed that if you go to Google book search and perform a standard query on the book’s title and author, you can access a revealing preview of this novel and actually read most of its text.

Presumably in the interest of not giving away the whole thing, not all pages are included, but there is certainly enough readable content for you to get a good idea of the book’s subject and writing style. I read through the first seven pages, which comprised a very descriptive account of the main character’s experience with being served the infamous dish of shepherd’s pie at an English boarding school. Overall, it looks like a book that I could recommend, especially if you share my interest in cooking and food-related topics.

One of my greatest pleasures is eating, so I must cook. I savour, therefore I cook. I like tasty food made with fresh ingredients that address all four of our tastes – salt, sour, sweet and bitter – to create a complementary whole. Of course, there is now the fifth taste, unami, the expanding universe within soy sauce, that can amplify other inputs. I have just made an English pie, with chicken, mushrooms, a little diced bacon, seasoning and fresh herbs. It was moistened with stock and an egg before being baked in my own short-crust. Fresh gravy and vegetables alongside is all it will need. It thus has sweet, salt and bitter, but lacks sourness. A squeeze of lemon on the vegetables will compensate.

For the expansion, take one novel closely related to cooking and read. Do try the recipes, but proceed with care. Cook things right through before committing to taste. John Lanchester’s The Debt to Pleasure is my recommendation. It’s a highly original, highly informative cookbook written by one Tarquin Winot, an expert in the field.

In one of the most original books I have ever read, John Lanchester creates a real anti-hero. Too often the concept is ironed onto a character who is just a naughty boy doing naughty, often repulsive things, the concept of “hero” being often ignored. Tarquin Winot, the anti-hero of The Debt to Pleasure, is a brilliant and learned cook. He is also highly creative, using ingredients that only those who might cook with a purpose would choose to use. He is also something of a psychopath, perhaps. That is for you to judge. But he has survived to write his cookbook and apparently savours his retirement, courtesy of those he has fed.

The Debt to Pleasure is a superb novel. Tarquin’s narrative draws the reader, perhaps unsuspecting, into his world, evoking an empathy with and for the character. That we have as yet only partially got to know this brilliant cook only becomes apparent as we proceed through his life, a life he has peppered with his personal peccadilloes. But above all, Tarquin Winot is both a planner and a perfectionist. His culinary creations are thought through, drafted like dramas to provoke particular responses, to achieve pre-meditated ends. They are also successful, appreciated by those who consume his concoctions, and eventually they succeed in precisely the way that he plans and executes.

Throughout, John Lanchester’s prose is a delight, as stimulating to the mind as his character’s creations might be to the palate. Florid and extravagant it might be at times, perhaps too much butter and cream for some diets. But The Debt to Pleasure is a satisfying, surprising and eventually fulfilling read. Tarquin fulfils both aspects of the anti-hero and ultimately we are left to grapple with the nature of self-obsession and selfishness.

As you can see from the date, this is February 29, a “leap day” that will not occur for another four years. Keeping this in mind, I figured that I might as well do an educational post on this topic, especially after a quick Wordtracker scan revealed that a surprising number of you are searching for leap year-related information. Therefore, I will address some of the most common questions and provide you with specific answers that I have obtained from my research.

Why do we have leap years?

The reason for leap years is to keep our current calendar in alignment with the astronomical solar years, which occur every time the Earth makes a full revolution around the sun. Specifically, the actual solar year is 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds long, or 365.2423 days in decimal terms. It is calculated by taking the average time that it takes for the Earth to move from one vernal (spring) equinox to the next, thus completing one full orbit of the sun.

What is the history of leap year? How did we come up with the current system?

By 46 BC, the Romans, who had devised an ancient calendar that roughly kept pace with the changing seasons, figured out that they could not simply make each year 365 days long because the extra fraction of a day would cause the calendar to be quite inaccurate after a few decades. Borrowing the original idea from the Egyptians, they were able to compensate for most of this difference by adopting the Julian calendar (named after Julius Caesar), which inserted an extra “leap day” in February every four years. This became the standard calendar for most of Western civilization for the next 1500+ years.

However, this practice of simply adding in the leap day every four years, effectively making the calendar year 365.25 days long, still allowed for a small rounding error to creep in, thus causing a noticeable inaccuracy after several centuries had passed. This led to the adoption of the Gregorian calendar in 1582 (some countries did not make the switch until 1712 or 1752), which introduced a slight twist to the usual leap year rules. For every 100 years, leap days were removed, except for years that were divisible by 400. This meant that 1600 was still a leap year, but 1700, 1800, and 1900 were not.

This latest refinement to the chronological system greatly reduced (but did not completely eliminate) the difference between the astronomical and calendar year lengths, making the current calendar sufficiently accurate for modern practical purposes. Theoretically, the calendar may need to be adjusted again after another 8,000 years or so, but by this time other astronomical factors such as tidal acceleration and precession of the equinoxes come into play, making it almost impossible to predict at this point whether or exactly how much of an adjustment may be needed.

What is the leap year calculation? How do I calculate the rules for leap year?

The rule for determining leap years is simply this: every year that is divisible by four is a leap year, except those that are divisible by 100 but not 400. For practical purposes going forward, this means that leap years will occur every four years from now (2012, 2016, 2020, etc.) until we reach 2100, which will NOT be a leap year. However, because of the limitations of human life spans, it is unlikely that anyone reading this today will live long enough for this to be a concern. But if you do manage to survive until the end of the 21st century, just remember that February 2100 will only have 28 days.

Was 2000 a leap year?

Yes, because it is divisible by 400.

Was 2004 a leap year?

Yes - it is divisible by four and does not qualify for the exception.

Is 2006 a leap year?

No, because it is not divisible by four.

Is 2008 a leap year?

Yes, for the same reasons as 2004. In fact, today is the leap day (February 29), which is why I’m writing this article!

When is the next leap year?

After today, it’s 2012. It will continue to occur every four years thereafter until we reach 2100, by which time you’ll probably be too old to care about it anyway.

What are some other bits of leap year trivia?

1. The first calendar that made a provision for leap year occurring every four years was introduced by King Ptolemy III of Egypt in 238 BC.
2. In 1582 AD, the countries of Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Poland were the first to switch over from the Julian to Gregorian calendars, and did so by dropping 10 days from October of that year.
3. Great Britain (including the American colonies at that time) did not switch to the Gregorian calendar until 1752, by which time they had to drop 11 days out of October to bring the calendar into sync with the astronomical year.
4. Sweden, intending to switch to the Gregorian calendar in 1700, did not have a leap day for this year, which was correct according to the new rules. However, they somehow forgot to observe the leap days in 1704 and 1708, which put them out of sync with both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. In order to correct this mistake, they had a “double leap day” in 1712, thus creating the unique day of February 30 and effectively putting them back on the Julian calendar.

   The Swedes eventually completed the transition to the Gregorian calendar in 1753 by dropping 10 days out of February, going directly from February 17 to March 1. Interestingly, some of them actually opposed this reform of the calendar because they believed that they were losing 10 days from their life spans and would therefore die sooner. It is not known whether the relatively high presence of blondes found in Sweden had anything to do with this unusual sequence of events.

5. The Iranian (Persian) calendar, which is used today by Iran and Afghanistan, generally follows the practice of inserting a leap day every four years as the Julian calendar does, except that every 33 years (approximately), they make the necessary correction by allowing a five-year interval between leap years. Interestingly, this calendar system is actually more accurate than the Gregorian one because it is based on the actual observations of the vernal equinox from Tehran, and adjustments in the leap year time intervals are done accordingly.
6. One oft-cited tradition regarding leap year is that women in the Middle Ages were allowed to propose marriage on February 29 (normally tradition dictated that women had to wait for the man to propose), every four years, leading to an occasional rush of females attempting to seduce males. Supposedly this tradition was started back in the 5th century by St. Patrick and St. Bridget in Ireland, but some historians dispute the validity of this, stating that there are no known mentions of this tradition until the 19th century.

   OH NOES!!11! I was born on February 29 - does this mean that I only get to celebrate my birthday once every four years?! This doesn’t seem fair…

   People who were actually born on the leap day can still celebrate their birthdays every year because it is not the date that you’re supposed to be celebrating, but simply the fact that you’re one year older. Therefore, you have a choice between having it on February 28 or March 1. Some people observe their birthdays on February 28 according to the reasoning that they were born on the last day of February regardless, so that is when they should celebrate. Personally, I would celebrate it on March 1 in common years (that is, non-leap years) because that is the date that would be February 29 if all years were leap years.

   Unfortunately, being born on a leap day does not grant you special powers such as a reduced rate of aging or a four-fold increase in your life span. Unless, of course, you are a character in a role playing game (RPG), in which case provisions for such powers may be implemented by your game’s programmer.

   ---

   Source Links: TimeandDate.com, InfoPlease.com, Inventors.About.com.

With the recent rise of both crude oil and gasoline (petrol) prices, there has been an increasing amount of interest in how crude oil is used to make gasoline. In this article, I will explain the basic refining process and point you to other sources where you can find more detailed information on this topic.

Crude oil, otherwise known as petroleum, is a fossil fuel that is extracted from the ground and refined to make a wide variety of products ranging from liquids like cleaning solvents and motor fuels to solids such as asphalt and plastics. The proportion of crude oil that is ultimately converted into gasoline varies according to region and the type of refinery. In the United States, where demand for gasoline is remarkably high, this proportion is around 50 percent while in other areas of the world such as Europe and Asia, this amount is somewhat less. However, refineries in these regions produce proportionately higher percentages of diesel oil, heating oil, and heavy fuel oil. A good estimate of the exact breakdown of petroleum products by percentage of crude oil in the United States can be found at the California Energy Commission.

In order to make gasoline (and all of the other petroleum products), crude oil is sent to a refinery and put through a process called fractional distillation, which is the same basic method that is used to make stronger alcoholic beverages such as vodka, whiskey, and rum. The crude oil is first heated in a boiler by superheated steam, which effectively vaporizes most of it before being transferred to a distillation column. This column is a tall, cylindrical tower that contains many trays and plates on which the vaporized oil is allowed to condense as it rises and cools. The heavier components of oil which contain longer hydrocarbon chains and have higher boiling points will condense first near the bottom of the column, while the lighter components will rise further and condense into liquids near the top.

Most of these separated components are processed further before being made into finished products and shipped to market. For example, some of the heavier hydrocarbons can be “cracked” by intense heat, high pressures, and various chemical catalysts to produce additional gasoline as well as other fuels such as kerosene and diesel. Other oil byproducts serve as precursors to plastics or other solid goods, and some are also made into lubricants such as Vaseline. After the secondary cracking processes are completed, one of the final products that is left over as a residue is called coke (not to be confused with the beverage Coca-Cola), a substance that is almost pure carbon and is used in steel production and for other metallurgical purposes. In the 19th century, coke was also used as a fuel for locomotive engines.

A more detailed explanation of the process of refining crude oil into gasoline can be found at Science.HowStuffWorks.com. Another notable content-rich resource that I ran across is the Carbon page at Mysite.du.edu. Although comprised almost entirely of wall-to-wall text, it contains a wealth of information about the various forms of carbon and their production, including petroleum, coal, diamonds, graphite, and more.

Meanwhile, if you’re looking to save money on gasoline because of the currently high costs, you can look into solutions such as adapting your vehicle’s engine to use fuel more efficiently.

Today I managed to find an unusually long article by Kathleen Notestein in the form of a book review posted at Constant Content. The subject of the review is Temple of the Golden Pavilion by Yukio Mishima, a classical Japanese novel based on the burning of the Kinkaku-ji reliquary in Kyoto by a Buddhist acolyte in 1950. The story ends up being mostly a psychological study of the infamous arsonist, who was believed to have suffered from schizophrenia and eventually died in 1956.

Occasionally, I think we all need to be challenged; to be forced to exercise our minds in ways beyond the everyday and to take a critical look at the core assumptions that govern our lives. Without this type of challenge, we run the risk of falling into a complacency both intellectual and ethical/moral which is a kind of general anesthetic for the soul. It’s a trap I’ve fallen into more times than I can count in the past few years, and which scares me to death. The prospect of turning into the kind of small town drone who never thinks about anything more deeply than the kind of glib letter-to-the-editor writing pseudo-politics and philosophy is terrifying. So, whenever something comes along which forces me back out of the trap of intellectual inertia, I value it immeasurably. Reading the book Temple of the Golden Pavilion by Yukio Mishima dragged me out of my thought-coma by my hair.

At first, I had a hard time getting into the book, and it took me longer to read it than most novels. I think it was both because it was asking me to read slowly and think things through, and also because I found the main character so distasteful. He’s not a particularly likeable fellow, and it’s always harder for me to wrap myself up in stories where I don’t empathize with the narrator/main character. Don’t get me wrong, at the beginning of the book I wanted to empathize with Mizoguchi, and certain statements he made about feeling different and isolated were things to which I could relate. I could even relate to his longing for perfect beauty and transcendence. It was his attitude which made him less than sympathetic.

Now that I’ve gone back and read the introduction to the book, I realize that one of the things “scholars” concentrate on in the text is Mizoguchi’s “pathology”. That is, they analyze the symptoms of psychological problems which he exhibits and attempt to analyze those mental disorders so as to explain his final break-down. But as complex as his psychology might be, I don’t think that anything as complex as his “pathology” was fueling my inability to fully empathize with him. It was much shallower on my part - I tend not to like people with grandiose ideas of their own importance or superiority and a sense of false modesty. I’m much more drawn to people who have a healthy dose of self-deprecation.

Mizoguchi continually remarked on his faults, but it was obvious that he did not believe his own self-criticisms. His contempt for everyone else in the world was glaring and incredibly unattractive. He reminded me of the geeky kid your heart goes out to in high school and who you try to befriend, only to be rudely rebuffed. Eventually, you realize that he’s a loner not because other kids are cruel and he’s misunderstood, but because he’s just an ass.

The one relationship that didn’t seem completely tainted by this attitude was Mizoguchi’s relationship with his father, but as the chapters progressed, even that deteriorated. By the point at which his father died I think Mizoguchi found even his father lacking and beneath him.

And yet, despite this rather intense dislike for Mizoguchi, the book kept putting compelling ideas and questions into his mouth which drew me in. I found myself wondering if this rather horrid main character couldn’t be redeemed. Reading his thoughts was, for me, rather like reading Camille Paglia. For the most part I find that her books and philosophy are irritating and somewhat facile, but once in a while she says something so shockingly true that I start to wonder how much of the crap is real and how much is a contrived image. How can someone so shallow come up with such blindingly clear ideas in the midst of all the trash which flows from her mouth (or pen)? This is, of course, a question that occurs with regularity in first-person narratives: How much of what the narrator says is one supposed to believe, and how much does the author believe?

It’s the classic problem of Catcher In the Rye. When you read it at age 13 as a disaffected youth, you think Holden is the smartest, most insightful guy ever to have lived. You believe his pronouncements about phonies and the world whole-heartedly. But then you live some, grow up a bit and re-read the book as an adult and think that at least half of what Holden says is self-indulgent schlock and juvenile rationalization. In fact, the very things that you most fervently agreed with as an adolescent are the very things that now seem infantile and possibly even self-destructive.

So, the reader has to ask what Salinger believed and what he intended the reader to get out of it. Did he actually intend Holden to be speaking truth to power, or is there a good dose of irony in the book and Holden isn’t so much a hero as an anti-hero? Or is he neither, but simply an accurate portrayal of a disturbed young man? It’s the same with Mishima. I found myself wondering how much of his theories of beauty and life Mishima wanted the reader to see as true and valid, and how much of them are symptoms of Mizoguchi’s disturbed personality.

I don’t think there are any easy answers to those questions because I think the author’s perspective shifts throughout the book. In the beginning, it seems that some of Mizoguchi’s views on the Golden Temple as an idea of perfect beauty which transcends the actual structure are meant to be seen as valid. But as the book progresses and Mizoguchi begins to think that beauty actually inhibits him from living and feeling, I think the reader is supposed to see that something in Mizoguchi has twisted so that his logic is skewed. But is that true or am I merely projecting my values onto the author? Do I agree with the critics who see Mizoguchi’s logic as a pathological symptom only because of my personal beliefs about beauty, or because that’s what the author intended? And does such a distinction even matter?

Read the rest of this entry »

Even if you fancy yourself an excellent freelance writer, it will be difficult to make money from your work if you cannot find a market for it. This article by April Aragam guides us through four planning stages that we can use to find writing markets that will pay us enough to make our efforts worth the time.

After writing a piece that is edited, polished and ready for submission, the next most important thing you have to do is submit it to the best possible market for that piece. Choosing the perfect market to submit your story, article, filler or poem will raise your chances of acceptance ten fold.

1. Before you write

So, you have a fabulous idea for an article. You want jump right on the computer and get writing it, but before you do make sure that you have a place to send it. If going through your market listings brings up nothing, you have one of two choices. One, don’t write the article at all. Or two, do more research and find an appropriate market. Since your article might not be accepted at the first place, you may want to find two or three.

2. Create a market binder

When most of us create a market binder or folder on the computer we fill it with markets that appeal to us. That makes sense, but it can also be a hindrance to writers since we don’t know what we might be writing in 3 months, 6 months, or a year. How many times have you remembered seeing a market listing you saw and can’t remember exactly what it was? And now you need it! For this very reason, I suggest putting all markets you find into your binder. If you’d rather not add them to your regular listings, create a tab at the back entitled “miscellaneous”.

3. Magazine research

This can be quite a task. Luckily, you don’t need to subscribe to every magazine to get a feel for them. Your first and cheapest option is to check out your local library. They have a great selection of magazines and if they don’t have the exact one you’re looking for, ask the librarian if another branch does. You can either go to other libraries or request the magazines be sent to your location. Always find the most recent issue of the magazine so that you know exactly the types of pieces they are publishing.

Another option is to buy magazines that you’re very interested in writing for. This was you always have it on hand to refer to. Another alternative that comes in handy if you cannot find a magazine at all is to request a sample copy. You can do this when you request their guidelines. Double check the listing or website to find out if the sample copy is free or comes for a small fee.

4. Pick The Market

If your goal is to be published (and it probably is) you want to aim for the market in which you’re most likely to be published. If you are fairly new to the writing business, with few or no clips, you don’t want to start out submitting to a high-end magazine. Your chances of getting published there are very slim. This doesn’t mean that you have to write for free to get clips. There is a very large middle ground in which markets pay little to medium and even high amounts. As time goes on you can work yourself up to those glossy magazines. Your goal, always, is to choose markets that are realistic for where you are in your career as well as choosing markets that publish the type of work you are planning to submit.

Taking these ideas into consideration is sure to increase your chances of publication.

Today I received a rare email from Constant Content notifying us of recently implemented site improvements. These include enhanced ability to make private requests to authors, a better messaging system for communications between authors and customers, and the addition of a new “Premium Articles” section that allows the site to showcase articles of exceptionally good quality.

Constant Content has been an excellent source of articles that have helped to alleviate the writing chores inherent in maintaining an information-based site such as this one. What I really like about them is that you can quickly purchase pre-written articles “on the fly” without having to go through the process of contracting with a freelance writer, negotiating prices, setting bids, or worrying about receiving useless garbage content. The site’s editors do a good job of screening all author submissions and making sure that any articles that are accepted for potential sale are well-written, free of obvious English usage errors, and adhere to standard format guidelines for web publication.

Back in the Karlonian “Dark Ages” before I discovered blogging or realized the advantages of having my own site, I was fortunate enough to discover Constant Content while the site was still in its early stages and readily accepting article submissions so that they could attract regular customers and traffic. At that time, I was considering the idea of making a career out of freelance writing, so upon discovering that there was a new market which would allow me to sell articles directly and relatively quickly, I submitted a few of my previously written but then-unpublished essays. After the site approved them, I was able to sell several copies and eventually racked up about $130 in earnings. Even though I have not written any new pieces for them recently due to my current webmaster duties, my articles are still available on my author profile page.

If you want to sign up as an author and make money from selling your writing, you can do so here. After you have registered as an author, you can also earn affiliate commissions by referring other authors to Constant Content. Specifically, you can earn 5% of any sales made by authors who have been referred to the site through your affiliate link. Meanwhile, you can read the latest CC email update below:

We have made some recent improvements to Constant Content and would like to invite you to check them out!

Private Request System Improvements

Because our Private Request service is so popular, we have updated it to give you better results. No longer will content submitted for your Private Requests be visible to all purchasers. Instead, content submitted to you will only be able to be purchased by you. No other buyer will be able to touch this content unless you have decided not to purchase it.

Request System Improvements

As for the Request system overall, you will now have the ability to upload files for author rewrite or correction, view your most recent messages from writers, view messages in a more organized manner with messages from the same author grouped together, and generally communicate with authors with greater ease. This means better turn-around time and smoother transactions.

Premium Content

In addition, we have added a Premium Articles section which showcases the best articles our writers have to offer. These articles offer in-depth coverage of topics and display writers\’ exceptional writing skills. Browse these articles for immediate purchase, or find an article that you like and commission that writer to develop content according to your specific needs!

Don’t forget about all of the other great services and features Constant Content has to offer. Constant Content:

1. Maintains a community of over 10,000 writers with different styles and expertise
2. Checks all articles for grammar, spelling, and quality
3. Checks all articles for originality and plagiarism
4. Does not allow articles posted on Constant Content to be indexed by search engines (to ensure originality)
5. Uses Private and Public Request systems that allows you to communicate directly with the entire community of writers or with specific writers of your choosing
6. Offers different license options depending upon your needs

Never sort through bids, writing samples, or resumes. Simply send a request for content and writers will produce articles according to your specifications. You can specify subject, word count, budget, keywords to be included, or particular slants you would like taken on a subject.

Writers typically respond to requests within a very short amount of time, and you will be able to start selecting articles from the submitted content within a matter of days - after editors have examined them for quality and originality.

To browse our ever-growing database of exceptional content, or to put in a request for content, visit www.constant-content.com.

If you are a freelance writer who has experienced some initial successes in writing and selling your articles, you may want to consider increasing your profits and taking your career to the next level. This article by April Aragam suggests six things that you can do to increase your chances of generating more income from your writing.

Maybe you began freelancing 6 months ago or 3 years ago. However long it has been, maybe it’s time to take your writing to the next level. Here are some ideas you can use to keep your career moving forward:

1. Submit to higher paying markets

When you first started sending out your work, to build up your clips, you had no problem submitting to markets that paid just a few cents a word. Once you do have those clips to show as examples of your work and experience, you should start aiming for higher paying markets. You don’t have to jump from 3 cents per word to $1 per word, but little by little you can gradually increase your pay rate.

2. Don’t be shy

Sometimes you just have to email an editor and ask if she is looking for anything specific or to introduce yourself and your writing. You can certainly open yourself up to a lot of opportunities this way.

3. Write longer pieces

You might be comfortable writing fillers and other pieces under 1,000 words, but to make more money and get more assignments, you also want to write the occasional longer piece. If you find it too difficult or too much pressure to go from writing 700 words to 1,000 words, start small by increasing your goal 100 words at a time.

4. Learn to ask for more money

Just because guidelines specify an amount paid per word or per article, it’s not set in stone. Especially if you’ve worked for an editor a number of times you should feel free to ask for more money. The worst that can happen is you’re told it can’t be done. But if you don’t ask, you’ll never know.

5. Retain more rights

Different magazines want to retain different rights. Get to know what all of the different rights mean to you. For example, if you sell all rights to your article, that means once you sell it, it’s out of your hands and you will not be able to sell it anywhere else. On the other hand, if you sell first rights, you can sell that article again later to another magazine as a reprint. Don’t be afraid to ask to keep more rights with you.

6. Sell reprints

If you hold the rights to them, don’t forget to send pieces out as reprints. A little bit of extra money for a bit of extra work isn’t a bad deal.