Lisa Angelettie

Bestselling Amazon Author

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August Article Ideas

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For some reason I think of August as a “lazy” month because it’s so hot (where I live) and because most therapists vacation in August. Better not have a mental health crisis in August! All the good therapists are on a cruise. So in the spirit of keeping you writing, and not just sitting by the pool this month, here’s a list of August article ideas you can use to generate content for your site(s), the directories, etc. Write about these month long observances.

American Artist Appreciation Month
Don’t the artists from other countries get all the glory? Here’s a great chance to write about HOT or new American artists. You can request an interview (which most artists will gladly give you to gain the exposure). You could write about art-related topics and tie them into your business. Example: the use of color in a piece or the absence of art progams in American schools. Use American artists work as examples in your pieces. (Show pictures but make sure to give proper credit to artist and owner of picture.) Affiliate article marketers can promote artist pics and replicas via affiliate programs such as art.com

Foot Health Month
Our feet are way more important then we give them credit for. They get us from point A to point B everyday, in uncomfortable shoes, with zero complaints:) It’s only fitting we give them a little love in August. You can write plenty of articles on foot health, foot massage, pedicures, trends in pedicures, reflexology, foot disorders, podiatry, better foot care, shoes, exercise and feet, sizing your shoes properly, and of course the list can go on and on. Just use a little imagination! Affiliate article marketers can promote foot care products, shoes, exercise programs that are low-impact on the feet, etc.

Home Business Month
Here’s a fantastic topic to write about, because most of us know first-hand what it is to start and run a home business. We’ve all seen the general articles on starting a home biz, so now is the chance to dig a littler deeper for those long-tail keyword phrases and write about sub niches within this market. You could go local: Example: Philadelphia Home Business Affiliate article marketers can promote a lot of great home business start-up programs, ebooks, products on Clickbank, books on Amazon, and any types of products which support a home business.

National Catfish Month
Recipes! Recipes! Recipes! Okay so what else? Where do catfish come from? Where are they caught? Farm raised vs. Wild caught. How to eliminate catfish odor when cooking. Affiliate article marketers can promote recipe books, fishing products like reels, bait, (this is a big hobby!), and how to be better fisherman books, etc.

National Golf Month
Are you kidding me? With Tiger Woods in the media all the time there is plenty of news related items you can write and comment on. You can of course talk about improving one’s golf game. Children and golf – building character. Best golf excursions. Better golfing tips. Golf and business networking. Affiliate article marketers can promote anything golf related from products like clubs, balls, gear to books and ebooks on building a better golf game.

National Inventors Month
Here’s a great topic. You could do a ton of interview articles on new inventors. Write articles on old patents expiring. Feature articles on best inventions in your niche. Example: Home business owners could do a feature on the history of computer inventions. It truly revolutionized how we do business. Affiliate article marketers can find new products to promote in this niche. Technically they are new inventions. Like the ones you see on “As seen on TV”. They have an affiliate program you could join to promote all the products you see on television.

National Water Quality Month
Is the water in your area okay to drink, shower in, cook with? Hey, I don’t know but maybe you could find out and write a bunch of localized articles on area water quality. Affiliate article marketers could absolutely promote water testing kits.

Writing Rituals

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There is a technique that most productive writers consciously use to get more writing done and that is called using writing rituals. This is an advanced article writing strategy that the pros use, but is an important enough strategy that even those of you just writing your first article should implement them in your daily routine.

So What Is A Writing Ritual?
A writing ritual is a repetitive but deliberate and conscious behavior that has a deeper meaning. You hopefully already perform some sort of writing rituals before you write something for the day.

Writing rituals are much different than writing habits. For instance, when I was younger I had a habit of always playing in my hair when I wrote. It was not conscious. It was not deliberate. And it sure didn’t help me write better. I think what it did was subconsciously soothe my anxiety when I got stuck writing under pressure (tests, deadlines, etc.)

As I grew older though, a ritual I developed was to always pour myself a icy glass of juice, water, or something right before I would sit down and write my first sentence. I developed this one out of working in the newspaper business. The ritual of pouring my drink, placing it on my coaster, to the right hand side of my computer before I sat down to write marked the beginning of my writing session. It means to me that I am ready to get down to business. Or that I’m going to at least write 250 words before I get up again.

What’s The Point Of Writing Rituals?
The point of using rituals in your writing is to basically allow yourself to become more creative and productive. They increase productivity and help banish writer’s block. If you establish good rituals in your daily life – you will be amazed at how much more content you can produce. Content that you actually are proud of:)

Examples of Writing Rituals
You can come up with so many different ideas for writing rituals. There is no steadfast rule. It just needs to be deliberate, conscious, and something that really means something to you, like:

1. Sharpening your favorite pencil before you begin.

2. Clearing your desk before you start.

3. Working at the same time every day.

4. Checking your favorite 3 news sites for story ideas before you write.

5. Not moving onto anything else in your business until you’ve written 250 words.

6. Setting a timer so that you can write for a specific amount of time everyday.

Whatever rituals you decide to incorporate in your daily routine, know that once you establish just a few positive ones and stick to them – you should see your output increase and your creativity soar.

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Problogger 7 Links Challenge

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One of my favorite websites is Darren Rowse’s Probloger, and on it he has issued a challenge (#7Links) to folks who blog. In the post, we have to include links to 7 different blog articles that meet a particular criteria. The idea for it is that it’s fun to do, it allows us to link to other articles on our sites and keep people reading, and we also link to other folks who we like which is nice for them and good article marketing seo for us too.

If you own a blog and have written a few articles or more on it, I invite you to take the challenge as well. Well here are my answers…

Your first post: http://lisaangelettieblog.com/watch-where-you-blog/

This is a great exercise in reflection because I just noticed by writing this article that this month celebrates this blog’s 3rd year anniversary! Wow time flies. This first post I made was one I wrote after first starting out on WordPress.com instead of my own self-hosted blog. It was a mistake because there are just too many restrictions on WordPress.com when running a commercial site. So I switched to Blogger, which was fine for a while, until it wasn’t:)

A post you enjoyed writing the most: http://lisaangelettieblog.com/article-marketing-seo-welcome-to-better-google-rankings/

As my site has grown and my writing on it has evolved, I have really enjoyed writing about article marketing seo. Probably because I think it is SO important. I pick a keyword I want to rank for in my niche, I write articles to target those keywords, and I usually always rank in the Top 10 results for them. So this was the first post in a series that I wrote about how to write better, search engine optimized, articles. I could really continue on with this series. I think I’ll get back to it this week:)

A post which had a great discussion: http://lisaangelettieblog.com/what-time-should-i-post-to-twitter/

Sometimes it’s the articles you don’t over-think that get a lot of response with readers. Folks really wanted to know when was an optimal time to post to Twitter. While people commented on my blog, there was a continued conversation about it over on Twitter as well.

A post on someone else’s blog that you wish you’d written: http://www.marlonsnews.com/top-10-things-that-worked-for-me-in-2009-and-3-that-didnt/

There were many articles that could have fallen under this criteria, but I picked this one by Marlon Sanders because of it’s transparency. The fact that someone I pretty much know is doing well online after all these years, talked about what worked for him in the previous year and what didn’t, gave me more advice and direction than what I’ve paid some coaches in the past. I’m working to do that for my community. Be more helpful and transparent.

Your most helpful post: http://lisaangelettieblog.com/bare-or-bear-a-grammar-lesson/

Based on my Google Analytics and my readers comments, many people like my mini grammar lessons. I can’t remember if this was the first one I wrote, but it is my most popular to date and one of the highest visited articles on my site.

A post with a title that you are proud of: Writing Articles: How To Write A Killer Opinion Article

I write ALL of my article titles with a combination of user readability + good keyword usage, and I think this title is a good combination of both. So having said that I was really happy with the results that this title gave me. I was able to tap into a writing market on the web which I normally do not access easily.

A post that you wish more people had read: http://lisaangelettieblog.com/why-new-coaches-should-write-articles/

I’m a  coach and also worked as a psychotherapist. I know first hand the power of article marketing for this demographic. I wish a lot more coaches or coaching trainees had read this article.

*If you take the challenge, please post the link to your results in the comment section below so we can all take a look:)

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Article Writing: How To Create An Ideal Writing Workspace

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woman cooling offIt is quite unusual for me to not have completed any article writing on my own blog for days like I have this week. My only excuse – I am so HOT! We are having a heat wave over here on the East Coast of the United States – especially in my area (PA, NY, NJ). When I relocated to Pennsylvania, I bought a big ‘ole 8 bedroom colonial. No central air. I thought I would be fine, because while it does get hot in the summers here, it usually doesn’t get this hot for this long.

So it made me think, unknowingly I have created a less than ideal writing condition for myself — which is a little “crazy” when this is my livelihood. Next thing I knew, I looked up and the week was almost over. So how about you? Have you created an ideal writing workspace? Or have you sabotaged yourself?

1. Is the temperature in the room you write in ideal depending on the season? (I put a small air conditioner in my office now:)

2. Is your writing area clean? (Uh, that’s a work in progress:)

3. Are there distractions when you attempt to write articles? TV. Kids. Etc. (I do have a TV in my office, but watching the news often helps me generate article ideas)

4. Do you have things within arms reach in your writing area such as a cool or hot drink, tissues, telephone, writing pad, pen/sharpie/sticky notes, etc. (If you have to get up all the time for little things you can lose focus easily)

5. Is your seating comfortable? Are you working from a desk or comfortable kitchen table? Or are you sunk low on a couch? Remember that you can create or aggravate carpal tunnel symptoms if you are not seated correctly and your hands and wrists are typing at an incorrect angle. If your back is aching because you use an old folding chair from 20 years ago, you may want to consider upgrading to a better chair. You cannot possibly be creative if you sitting for short periods of time is too uncomfortable.

6. Does your computer and internet work well? If you are still using dial-up, you cannot possibly be effectively submitting and/or publishing articles on the web. It’s just too slow. Also, while I know that computers are not cheap, if you are working on a seriously outdated, slow, unreliable computer, you will be frustrated and produce less. If you are going to treat your business as a real business and not a hobby, it is essential that you have a reliable and updated computer.

7. Add touches of motivation and inspiration. In my workspace I must have a scented candle, a big plant, pictures of my family, and any awards or certificates etc. that I have earned. Now that’s my home office. But if you are in a smaller space or your kitchen etc., then think about what inspirational elements you could temporarily add when writing.

Top Ten Most Misspelled Words

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Here’s a list of the top ten most often misspelled words. Pay attention though, because these are words that spellcheck can miss based on the context in which we use the word, or because a few of the words are homophones (words that sound the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings) and we use them incorrectly in the sentence.

  1. Their
  2. Too
  3. There
  4. They
  5. Then
  6. Until
  7. Our
  8. Ask
  9. Off
  10. Through

Here’s a one-page PDF of this list in case you want to tape it up in front of your desk, computer, etc. area. Click To Download ===> Top 10 Misspelled Words

Can you share some words that you commonly misspell? I’ll go first. I always misspell SEPERATE. In the US anyway, we only acknowledge this spelling: SEPARATE.

Resource I like: English Grammar For Dummies

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Affect Vs. Effect: A Grammar Lesson

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Effect vs. Affect

This is not one of my bigger grammar blunders, BUT I just saw some recent online grammar statistics that suggest that this is one of the most common grammar errors that people make when writing. So the big grammar lesson for the day: Is it Affect or Effect?

If you’ve been through the U.S. school system, you have learned at some point that there are dozens of grammatical rules BUT there are also a lot of grammatical exceptions. Almost every rule has one – an exception that is. And this grammar lesson is no different, but for once, I’m saying 99% of the time if you follow the basic rules for effect versus affect – you will get it “write” every time:)

AFFECT
Affect with an A is typically used as a VERB.
Definitions: have an effect on. make a difference to. move emotionally. attack or infect (with an illness).

Example: “That delicious chocolate martini affected the way I felt in the morning!”
Example: “Did it affect you when he asked for the engagement ring back?”

*Okay here is an exception. Many psychologists use “affect” as a noun to describe a client’s emotion, desire, or influencing behavior. But if you aren’t in the mental health biz, you’ll probably never use it in this way.

EFFECT
Effect with an E is typically used as a NOUN.
Definitions: a change that is the result or consequence of an action or other cause. use to refer to the state of being or becoming operative. a physical phenomena. an impression produced in the mind of a person. (effects) the lighting, sound or scenery used in a play, movie, or broadcast. personal belongings.

Example: “I love the effect that the delicious chocolate martini gave me after I drank it.”
Example: “I think he was going for a dramatic effect when he asked for the ring back in the supermarket!”

*Another exception? Yep. This is how you could use effect as a verb.
Definition: (often be effected) cause something to happen; bring about

Example: Budget cuts that were quietly effected over four years.

Again – most people don’t really use effect in this way, so don’t stress over it. You will probably most often use affect as a verb and effect as a noun.

Check out some of my other grammar tips before you write that next article!

Resource I like: English Grammar For Dummies

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Article Ideas: How To Write A Real Life Success Story Article

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One of the biggest obstacles with article writing and article marketing is the level at which some people can produce new and fresh content. I know that many of us have sat many an hour staring at our blank computer screens wondering where the inspiration was going to bubble up from!

Yet I believe that many of us creative authors, speakers, coaches, and other solopreneur types get stuck because we tend to fall in the habit of over-intellectualizing our writing. It’s not that deep ‘yall! In fact, I have a great article generation tip that has probably been in front of you the whole time and you just never thought to write it down.

Do you have coaching clients? How about even one? Do you have customers who have said “thank you!” If you do, even if you have just one, you have a great article idea. Writing an article about a customer or client success story is a real easy article for you to write for several reasons:

1. You know the story already. You have lived it in real life. You know what you did for the customer or client, how their business or lives benefited from what you do, and the end result. So there is no research involved or worrying about how to explain the information. This is real easy – just tell what happened.

2. You can use a lot of direct quotes in your success story which helps the article read almost like a 400 word testimonial! So these type of articles pack a wallop of benefits for you and your business. This is an example of an article idea that can truly send you “qualified” prospects back to your site and sets you up as an automatic authority.

3. People love success stories. Have you ever bought one of those woman’s health related magazines simply for the fact that you wanted to read the exercise success stories? How about that yearly issue of a couple of the main trade magazines that feature real-life weight loss success stories?

You know why they feature those every year? Because people gobble them up at the supermarket. We love REAL LIFE success stories, because if someone else was able to do it then we become really inspired that we can succeed as well. It’s all about how they relate to the person being featured.

So How Do I Write A Good Real-Life Success Story Article?

===> Click To Read The Rest

Article Marketing: 3 Tips For Getting Past Writer’s Block

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I was working with one of my coaching clients today and it was time for me to check on her article writing progress. With her permission (name withheld), I have included a portion of our recent session…

Coach Lisa: “So when I checked in with you two weeks ago, you work working on adding an article to your blog. I see that you haven’t written or published anything yet. So that’s about 30 days with no new content on your site. The search engines are not going to like that:)”

The Client: “I know. I know. Actually I have started writing about four different articles, but I can’t finish any of them.”

Coach Lisa: “Why do you think that is?”

The Client: “Well they aren’t profound enough. I don’t have anything interesting to say.”

This is where a lot of writers get stuck. Especially if you have a perfectionist personality. Trying to write the PERFECT article is what can essentially cripple you from ever getting your writing out there. Without publishing your writing – your message isn’t out there and of course that means no new clients, customers, and/or traffic.

So it’s important that you understand a couple of things to get past this perfectionist thing:

1. You are more of an expert than you believe that you are. While you may have a 100 or more competitors, there are literally millions of people out there who have no idea about your niche. They are starting from ground zero. So even the simplest article on what you do, how you do it, frequently asked questions, how-to questions answered will seem very profound to the newbies in your marketplace. So you have a lot of articles in you — you just have to step outside of the “niche bubble” you are living in and realize that not everyone knows all about your topic the way that you do.

2. People crave solutions. If you can write an article that answers a question or solves a problem then you could misspell words, you could use horrible grammar, and you could possibly even in type in all capitals (okay I’m exaggerating), but you understand what I’m saying. At the end of the day, people just want answers and the aren’t as concerned in how those solutions are packaged. In fact, the simpler the better.

3. There is plenty of time to grow. There are naturally talented singers, actors, musicians, painters, etc. AND then there are those you can learn those things through steps, a method, a process AND time. So you have  plenty of time to grow into a really good article marketer. What you lack in natural talent, you can learn as you go. All of us article marketers can easily tell which articles we started with versus the more current ones. You will learn to write faster, produce more, and how to pick article topics that folks in your niche want to read — and of course you can speed this process up when you use a method or a system to learn how to master the core elements of article writing and marketing.

*One Last Tip
This is a writing tip that I have used since I was about 13 years old. I just write. Let my ideas flow. Get the thoughts out. And I do NOT read it over until I’ve let all of those thoughts out. After I’m about 3/4 finished with the article, I read it. Fix typos and cut out the fluff. Then I finish with my closing tip, thought, or paragraph. This isn’t the only way to do it – but it’s how I do it and it helps me get an article finished without scrutinizing every sentence along the way.

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