A Remodeling Proposal

My article about the new technology in tiles has been published online at Oregon Home at http://www.oregonhomemagazine.com/home-style/744-a-remodeling-proposal

I Have A New Service

You have a blog, but haven't posted any information in a while. You have a blog, but it's hard to find the time to post regularly. Hi! I'm Mike Landfair and I'm a professional blogger. I realize to generate traffic that supplements your marketing efforts, takes posting regularly. I currently post regularly to five blogs and have built a blog from scratch at "Home Accents Today" that received 10,000 to 12,000 visits a month.

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My Mission Statement

Day Thirteen:

I have reviewed the twelve days of writing and copied passages into Word.  It seems that Financial Independence is a key as is acceptance.  Doesn't every writer want to be accepted?  Acceptance struck a chord and I looked up page 449 in the AA Bigbook:

For me, serenity began when I learned to distinguish between those things that I could change and those I could not. When I admitted that there were people, places, things, and situations over which I was totally powerless, those things began to lose their power over me. I learned that everyone has the right to make their own mistakes, and learn from them, without my interference, judgement, or assistance!

The key to my serenity is acceptance. But "acceptance" does not mean that I have to like it, condone it, or even ignore it. What it does mean is I am powerless to do anything about it... and I have to accept that fact.

I spent years trying to change things in my life over which I was powerless, but did not know it. I threatened, scolded, manipulated, coerced, pleaded, begged, pouted, bribed and generally tried everything I could to make the situation better -- only watch as things always got progressively worse.

I think initially I wanted to convince, change people's minds, but acceptance makes clear that I'm powerless over the opinions of others.  If that was my goal initially, it could get pretty frustrating.  Better to write for the joy of writing and let the writing find its readers, readers who will build a community.


The goal of Dave Trottier's Book 1 is to come up with a mission statement that is a reflection of my vision and passion.  So here it is:

I write to experience the joy of writing and connect with my readers. I get paid handsomely for my efforts.  I write stories that will entertain and influence my readers in an ethical way. I am a persistent writer who has learned that procrastination has few rewards.

Me As A Writer

Day Twelve:

Five Adjectives that describe me as a writer:
Curious
Observant
Reflects the common man
Political
Thoughtful
Tenacious
Loves words

Five Adjectives that describe my writing:
Clever
Humorous
Questioning
Poetic
Moral  - basic values

Next: My creative vision

Attitudes And Values.

Day Eleven

The following statements are my attitudes and values concerning writing:

• I like to express my feelings and ideas.  I enjoy the creative feeling.
• I like to empower people with useful information.
• I like to persuade people to take some action or to think differently.
• I like to inspire people.
• I Like to entertain people.
• I like to help people to develop their abilities.
• I love words and enjoy crafting readable sentences and paragraphs.
• I like to tell stories.
• I like seeing my name in print.
• Writing should communicate some kind of message.
• Writing feeds off and explains the culture war.
• Writing forces me to know myself better.

If I prioritize  the list it would look like this:

1. I like to express my feelings and ideas.  I enjoy the creative feeling.
2. I like seeing my name in print.
3. I love words and enjoy crafting readable sentences and paragraphs
4. I like to tell stories.
5. I Like to entertain people and know myself better.
6. I like to empower people with useful information.
7. I like to persuade people to take some action or to think differently.
8. I feel compelled to write about what is happening in our culture.

Most people like to write what they read.  Here's what I read:

• Tom Clancy types- an insight into current political thinking
• Fiction - I enjoy the creativity and the well written sentences and character studies
• Non-fiction - some insight into science, government economic policies, stock market and investing
• Crime novels - I love the intricate plots of the whodunnit
• Sci Fi - if it is not too weird.  I like stuff that is a glimpse into the future or poses a new paradigm
• Stephen King types - I love his conversations
• Some poetry because it requires one to strip out the excess

Next: Describe me the writer.

Three Types Of Writing

Day Ten:

Dave Trottier in "The Freelance Writer's Bible" describes the three categories of writing as:

1. Commercial Writing - anything you write for business or an institution.  It pays the best money, BUT there is no byline
2. Traditional Writing - what we normally think of as writing; novels, magazine articles, stories, screenplays, etc.  Pay is less than Commercial Writing unless you get fame and fortune.
3. Entrepreneurial Writing - includes self-publishing. Rewards can be significant, but may require capital outlays.

Based on my values and goals Traditional Writing appeals to me and it aligns with what I want out of writing.

Tomorrow: My writing attitudes and values.

Values and Priorities

Day Nine:

Of the ten values what are five are most important and in what order?

1. financial independence
2. knowledge, wisdom
3. acceptance
4. education
5. recognition
6. Joy
7. health
8. friendship
9. serenity
10. my wife's love
11. sobriety

Of those ten the top five and the ones I am most passionate about are:

1. sobriety
2. my wife's love
3. financial independence
4. health
5. Joy

What do I want from writing Part 1?
Doing what I love and getting paid for it. That's the simple answer. I read a lot from a variety of sources and want to share that information.  Some of the information is self-help, some good advice, some weird, some just self protection or survival.

This country used to have just three TV channels and we shared a common experience when we watched.  The next morning we were all sharing about the night before's program.  We all saw the Beattles on Ed Sullivan or all saw JFK murdered.  The best example of that focus was the continuing coverage of 9/11.

Today the audience is splintered and on the internet we only tune in to news sources we agree with.  Thus we become polarized.  I'm trying to bridge that gap by encouraging my readers to share information and talk about it.  Hopefully, change minds.

Financial independence is important.  I want to make money writing and I want to write from a warm climate with my feet in the sand.  I want to share about my travels and travails and feel the joy I get when people read what I write.

What do I want from writing Part 2?
What are my top five benefits of writing for me?

1. A "community" focus on my writing
2. Getting paid for writing
3. Financial independence
4. Expressing my joy by writing
5. Influencing others in a ethical way

Tomorrow: Three categories of writing.