Dear Fellow Writer,
In this issue:- WRITING TIP: Presume or Assume
- Tell us what YOU want - Sydney Writers' Centre survey
- Congratulations to students Lisa Yates and
Rebecca Olsen - Travel and writing - how you can make money doing both
- How writing well can help your business
- Webpick: World Wide Words
I’m so excited by the results of our students at the Sydney Writers’ Centre. One of my mentoring students has had her article accepted by The Sun-Herald’s travel section (hooray!) and our online courses are going from strength to strength.
We have students from the US, Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea, France and, of course, all over Australia.
Visit here to find out more about our online courses.
WRITING TIP: Presume or Assume
Here's another tricky one from the world of seemingly interchangeable words
- when should you use 'presume' and when 'assume'? The two words are
very similar in meaning, but there is a clear difference between them
that can help you to use the right word.To presume is to 'suppose that something is probably the case', but with some probability that you are correct.
has qualifications in computer science.
If you assume something is so, then you accept it 'as true without proof'.
For example: We assume the Apple store will sell pink iPods.
Tell us what YOU want
Are you interested in writing fantasy fiction or plays? Would you like us to hold more daytime courses? What do you think of the newsletter? This is your chance to let us know.In order to best serve you and provide you with help to reach your writing goals, we'd love to hear from you.
We would be so grateful if you could complete our survey - it really will take only a minute and it will help us to provide you with what you want!
Click here to go to the survey or copy and paste this url into your browser:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=e3t3xfR_2fwgKJiQwOfRnRqQ_3d_3d
Congratulations
We received some very exciting news this week from Lisa Yates. She completed our Feature Writing course in February this year and has just been published in the Medical Observer. This is not just a one off - Lisa will be writing a weekly column with dietary tips for readers. She is also published regularly in The Healthy Food Guide magazine.Congratulations Lisa! We look forward to reading more of your articles in the future.
Also some great news from Rebecca Olsen in the online Feature Writing course who has had her 800 word feature on photography accepted into Indigo magazine - and the course only just finished!
Congratulations Rebecca!
Travel and writing - how you can do both
It’s no wonder travel writing is so popular. How can you go wrong combining your holidays with your love of writing? But just because its fun, doesn't mean you don’t also need to work hard. The Travel Writing Portal is devoted to travel writing and has lots of handy articles from travel writers, interviews and book reviews. It’s a great resource whether you’re just starting out or already have some experience writing travel stories. Visit www.transitionsabroad.com.For something a little closer to home, why not come along to our Travel Writing seminar with Geoff Bartlett? Geoff is an experienced travel writer and photographer focusing mainly on the islands of the South Pacific and Asia. During the seminar he will cover:
- publishing opportunities (newspapers, magazines, electronic publishing, travel literature, guidebooks, other avenues)
- types of travel stories (service stories, destination stories, personal essays)
- some straight talk about earnings
- getting published and making contacts
- writing for travel guidebooks
- and more.
Seminar: Travel Writing with Geoff Bartlett
When: Thursday 30 April 2009 (2 hour evening seminar)
Time: 6.30pm - 8.30pm
Cost: $75
Click here for more information or to enrol online.
When should you use the semi-colon?
The semi-colon is often misused when we write. Sometimes, people use it like a comma. But you need to be careful with how you use your semi-colons.The semi-colon separates parallel expressions within a sentence and, when used like this, can always be replaced by a full stop.
Peter went to the supermarket; he bought a banana.
They are also used to separate a series of items if some items already contain commas.
Moneywise Corporation has offices in five US cities: New York, New York; Portland, Oregon; Seattle, Washington; Miami, Florida; and San Francisco, California.
If you need to turn unwieldy prose into concise communication at work, you need to know much more than just how to use a semi-colon. That’s where our Editing Essentials workshop comes in.
Seminar: Editing Essentials with Katrina Lobley
When: Tuesday 21 April 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.00am - 5.00pm
Cost: $345
Click here for more information or to enroll online.
How writing well can help your business
These
may be challenging times, but it’s important for all businesses to
understand the value of good writing. When you write well at work you
make it easier for people to understand you. You’ll notice immediately
how good writing will benefit emails, letters, reports and even marketing
material. This practical seminar will help you produce more polished writing. The course is presented by Mel Wilkinson who will give you the golden rules on writing well at work, and will also cover:
- how to structure reports and proposals
- the fundamentals of persuasive writing
- tips and rules for stress-free writing
- how to gain the reader's attention
- the 8 step plan to write winning proposals
- and more.
Mel Wilkinson
is an experienced corporate writer and former guest lecturer at the
Financial Services Institute of Australia. Mel runs a corporate writing
agency and specialises in writing, editing and proofreading corporate
collateral such as tender documents, annual reports, brochures, website
content, newsletters, newspaper editorial, advertising copy, adviser
and employee communication and sector reports.
Seminar: Professional Business Writing with Mel Wilkinson
When: Tuesday 28 April 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.00am - 5.00pm
Cost: $395
Click here for more information or to enroll online.
WEBPICK: World Wide Words
This is an interesting site for all you linguists and word fanatics
out there. Michael Quinion is a former BBC radio studio manager and
curator of the Cider Museum in Hereford. He now devotes most of his
time to World Wide Words and assisting the Oxford English Dictionary with citations and definitions for new words. The site has a nice blend of articles, questions and answers, and discussion. In the "Topical Words" section, Quinion chooses random, yet topical words from English newspapers and discusses them.
For example: Lasagne - topical because English scientists claimed they could prove it actually originated in the UK.
"Surprise
Me!" also comes up with some interesting results - the first article to
come up for me was on the word 'Boffin', prompted by an article in The Sydney Morning Herald.
The writing can be a bit dry at times but sometimes words are so interesting you can't help but read about them!
Check it out here: http://www.worldwidewords.org/index.htm
Business and Careers Institute in Milsons Point
Remember to check out our sister training organisation - the Business and Careers Institute - which we've just opened in Milsons Point. Thanks to those of you who have already enrolled in some of the courses! You'll find the same high quality of courses and presenters here.
As you know, I'm a big believer that technology can help you achieve more in less time. If you want to get the most out of everyday software like Word, Excel and Outlook, these fun and interactive courses will help you become a pro-user in just one day.
You can check it out here. I'd love to know what you think!
www.bcinstitute.com.au
Other upcoming courses
Seminar: Writing for the Web with Grant Doyle - FULL
When: Monday 30 March 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.30am - 4.00pm
Cost: $325
Course: Online Creative Writing with Pamela Freeman / Cathie Tasker
When: Week beginning Monday 6 April 2009 for five weeks
Time: Whenever suits you
Cost: $395
Course: Online Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers with Valerie Khoo
When: Week beginning Monday 6 April 2009 for five weeks
Time: Whenever suits you
Cost: $395
Course: Editing Essentials with Katrina Lobley
When: Tuesday 21 April 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.30am - 4.30pm
Cost: $345
Course: Feature writing for magazines and newspapers with Pamela Wilson
When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 21 April 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Seminar: Professional Business Writing with Mel Wilkinson
When: Tuesday 28 April 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.00am - 5.00pm
Cost: $395
Seminar: How to get your book published with Geoff Bartlett
When: Tuesday 28 April 2009 (one-evening seminar)
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $75
Seminar: Travel Writing with Geoff Bartlett
When: Thursday 30 April 2009 (one-evening seminar)
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $75
Course: Feature Writing Stage 2 with Judy Skatssoon
When: Every Monday starting Monday 4 May 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Seminar: Grammar and Punctuation Essentials with Deb Doyle
When: Tuesday 5 May 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.00am - 5.00pm
Cost: $395
Course: Creative Writing Stage 2 with Judith Ridge
When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 6 May 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 with Kate Forsyth - NEW DATE!
When: Every Thursday starting Thursday 7 May 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Seminar: Writing for the Web with Grant Doyle
When: Friday 8 May 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.30am - 4.00pm
Cost: $325
Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 with Pamela Freeman - FULL
When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 12 May 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Seminar: Self-publishing - How to do it with Geoff Bartlett
When: Thursday 11 June 2009 (one-evening seminar)
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $75
Course: Hook Your Reader with Maree Giles
When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 17 June 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
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Wishing you much writing success,
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