BLOG.FRANSFINEEDITING.COM

We are all techno-dependents on this bus

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:59:36 GMT

Finally the storm was over and the lights came on in some Easthampton businesses. I was sitting in Shelburne Falls Coffee with a large Hazelnut, savoring the ecstasy of my first hot drink in days and the soothing sound of voices murmuring and orders being placed, as other locals slowly found their way to electricity heaven.

The other sound I slowly became aware of was the soft ambient tapping of computer keys. Everywhere around me, people were engrossed in catching up on their email, reading their Facebook pages, and working on their first assignments of the day, their Everything Bagels with Cream Cheese slowly languishing untouched beside them. The whispered conversation between an older couple and the young folks sitting at the table next to them was not, “What a horrible experience we just went through with that storm—how are you doing with it?” but rather a tentative, “Are you using the WiFi here to do that? Because in Southampton, our Charter service is still down….”

I have to admit, I would have liked to have had my Internet service back, and I kind of wished I had brought my virus-ridden laptop there, if only to read my Outlook calendar to make sure I wasn’t missing an appointment, but it just wasn’t my priority at that moment. I needed food, caffeine, physical warmth. And I wanted good old-fashioned overly loud conversations among complete strangers, the conversations that help us release pent-up anxiety and cope with the solutions to a crisis we had just all gone through together. Something like, “I cooked horrible chili on my gas grill for three days—what did you do?” or “I’m disgusting—the first shower is going to feel great!” or “Talk to Harry down the street—he’s good for hauling away those big tree limbs in your backyard.”

Perhaps we were all still shell-shocked, and quiet interaction with machines (and the solutions needed to gain that interaction) was the only thing most of us were capable of handling at that point in time. And the conversations may well have been taking place, but they did so online, and did not provide ease to the rest of us.

Jean and I got home, and our electricity had come on in the intervening time. What was the first thing I did? Go to my computer, of course, and try to boot it, feeling a sense of desperation when the four little lights on the left did not appear on my Cisco modem.

Whya Writer?

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 15:17:58 GMT

I had been thinking about starting a post on why business people hafta hire me as a writer. Afta all (sorry about the diction—I’m from Boston), we have all gone too (or is it to?) school and know howta write, right?

Then, before I could even begin scratching my head (yes, studies have shown that head scratching really does help the ideas to flow better), I found some great excuses to put off the task at hand and play with my neglected Twitter account instead. Neglected because I still can’t quite get the advantage of using Twitter (or as I call it, Twitta), and I thought maybe I’d find out if I at least tried to use it.

Lo, I found that some people in my absence had decided to “follow” me! Poor neglected beings. My last Twitta post (OK, OK, it’s a Tweet) was September 23, 2010.

So I jumped on again and decided to find some people of my own to follow. And then the magic of social media happened. Two hours later, I finally came up for air. I had found tweets by Liz Craig, a fellow writer and friend, and that led me to her fine blog which then led me to her beautifully written post on why people should hire a professional writer! My work’s done, baby!!!

Here’s the link to Liz’s excellent explanation of what a professional writer can do for you (which I could never top if I took a million years to scratch one out—thanks, Liz). And here’s to Twitta, which I guess does play a useful role in getting all of us to hook up with one anotha.

Fran Fahey, Fran's Fine Editing

Web Copy Redux

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 10:16:00 GMT

Got some helpful feedback on my web post, WWW.What the Heck?, which attempts to talk about what makes good copy for your website.

One person asked: How about some examples of good and bad web copy, Fran? OK—can do!

It just so happens that a few months ago, I made a presentation to another group on the same topic. Here are the two websites I used as my examples, with the URLs and other identifiers of the guilty held back (in case they are your first cousins). I’ll just share the first two paragraphs from their respective home pages. Take a look at them and compare each to my points about being brief, using informal language, and getting to the heart of what your client cares about.

Both websites are for companies doing home inspections. This one I don’t like—it uses we/you point of view, but it’s mostly about the company, not the client. On the site itself, you can’t even find this text until you’ve “paged down” twice past too many uninformative stock photos:

[name of company] provides comprehensive narrative home inspection reports on single family residences, multi-unit apartment buildings and commercial buildings. Our home inspection report findings are in compliance with [name of state’s organization] [acronym] Real Estate Inspectors Association) Standards of Practice.

Your understanding of the home inspection findings is critical to our goal of providing the best customer service available. We encourage you to accompany the home inspector through the home inspection process to receive a complete consultation and valuable orientation to the home, property and its systems.

This one I like a lot better. You see this text the minute you open their home page. Same word count, has all the necessary keywords, makes similar points—but who would you rather hire?

[name of company] offers a one-stop shopping solution for your [name of city] home inspection needs. With us you can get a whole house inspection, termite, radon and any number of other services all from the same company!

It is a stressful time when you buy or sell a home. Knowing that you have had a fair, honest competent whole house inspection by an experienced independent third party inspector helps reduce the risk and makes the entire experience a happier one.

And here's something fun you can do with your own website, recommended to me recently by a client of mine. Evaluate the SEO of your site for free using websitegrader.com from HubSpot. The part I thought was really cool is Readability Level. This may vary based upon the clients you want to attract, but aim for the simplest level you can. My website? "Primary/secondary school" level.

Finally, if you are in the mood for reading more stuff, here's an article by Grace Smith that talks more about web design and the importance of good content. See #4 about content and #5 about clutter:

http://www.openforum.com/idea-hub/topics/technology/article/top-5-web-design-mistakes-small-businesses-make-grace-smith

Best of luck with your own website!

Fran Fahey, Fran's Fine Editing

Soft Cell

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 14:29:00 GMT

Although I have a website, a LinkedIn page, a Facebook personal page, a Facebook biz page, and a blog, I am still somewhat of a closet Luddite when it comes to certain technology. Last night was a good example of how it catches up with me.

I had been enjoying a sensual dream about my mother’s baked stuffed artichokes, soft hearts oozing with Pastene’s olive oil and generous chunks of garlic. I woke suddenly to the sound of Riley barking.

Boop!

That sound—kind of like an electronic sound, maybe. I raised my head up immediately and sniffed the air, while Riley continued to bark.

Boop!

Yes, it was a faint electronic sound occurring at a regular interval. Smoke alarm wearing out its battery? Better check.

I got up and started my patrol of our one-floor ranch. Jean came out of her nightly coma to mumble, “Let the dog out—it must be the bear in the back yard again,” and then went back to sleep.

Boop!

It became a game of hot/cold. As I wandered from room to room, the faint sound either got louder or faded. Just in case, I checked the basement also, but the heat went on and blotted out any other sound.

Boop!

Now I’m getting frustrated. I open the door to the room Riley sleeps in, and he comes bounding out and glues all 80 lbs. of himself to the rug beside Jean in the bedroom, which wakes her up again. “Whaaaahmmmm?”

“Go back to sleep; I’ve got it.”

Not really. My heart is jack-hammering and my hands are sweating.

Not wanting to wake Jean, I turn on only one light and creep through the house, trying not to bump into things or step on Max the cat, who is now spooked as well and following me everywhere.

Boop!

I check the computer closely, as it sometimes talks when it’s unhappy, but that’s not it. In the dark, my entire home is a field of fireflies, little lights winking and glowing on the phones, the clocks, the VCR, the TV, the modem, the stove, the coffee pot that still needs cleaning, the smoke alarms, the CO2 alarm . . .

Boop!

THERE IT IS—I am right next to the sound! I raise the living room shade and stare into a large round yellow light glaring at me from the street. My heart skitters to a stop. Max runs and hides under the futon.

OK, no, not a UFO . . . just the reflection in the window of the one light I turned on.

Silence.

Suddenly a series of soft musical notes plays. Right in front of me, from my pocketbook. The sexy Verizon melody of a cell phone shutting itself down.

I fish it out and see that the battery is dead and the beeping sound has stopped.

I’ve been a bad mother. I haven’t charged it for weeks. I haven’t even used it since last September when we moved here and didn’t have a phone. I bought it only for emergencies, not even using it for business purposes in case I got that all-important call from a client and hit a dead zone at the same time. But, I am afraid to shut it off, so it lives at the bottom of my pocketbook, feeding on lint. I check the messages once a month and find wrong numbers, text ads from car dealers, and an occasional (probably former) friend who forgot I don’t take incoming and left me a message by mistake. I hate it. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it.

I plugged the phone into its charger and patted it. “OK, you win this time,” I admitted. Maybe I’ll pay more attention to it in the future. Then again, probably not.

(Dedicated to my sister in law Julia, who still, bless her heart, has a rotary phone.)

Fran Fahey, Fran’s Fine Editing

Editors Can't Get No [Any] Respect . . .

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 16:19:00 GMT

It’s unbelievable the things people say to me when they find out I'm an editor.

“Oh, really,” and she walks away before she can be caught making a grammatical error in her next sentence. Or, “Here’s a copy of my newsletter for you to read, as long as you promise not to EDIT it,” he writes.

It all makes me feel lonely, depersonalized, and unappreciated.

Folks, I’m really not that bad. And I like people. I think of them as flesh and blood, not just a bundle of words and thoughts that must be placed into some kind of order.

I don’t care how well you speak, or how badly you write. I’ll listen intently to what you have to say and read your writing with great interest, because I want to get to know you. And I’ll gladly provide suggestions, but only when I’m invited to do so—and preferably for money.

So, please think of this, the next time you meet an editor. Don’t be afraid. Look into her eyes, smile, and shake her hand. Say something like, “Oh, excellent! Do you like Bob Dylan?”

Fran Fahey, Fran's Fine Editing

Writer's Block Unblocked

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 15:15:00 GMT

Ever have to write something, and find yourself putting it off, until it’s too late to do it at all? Ever get the sweats looking at a blank screen, then say to yourself, “Hmmm, where’s that sewing project I’ve been meaning to do for the last six months, I need to get it done NOW”? Don’t worry, you are not alone. Every author, no matter how experienced, faces writer’s block from time to time.

The more you write, the easier it gets, like any other practical skill. The trick I follow when I’m challenged by a topic is to just sit down at my computer and start writing what I know about the topic, even if it sounds weird. It physically and mentally loosens me up, like a warm-up exercise. I also find that it captures what I really feel about the topic, and it helps me get excited about it.

Then I research online what don’t know about the topic and add to the piece. Before I know it, I have several pages filled with stuff, which I then edit down to a reasonable amount of stuff (and then let my wife Jean edit the stuff into much Finer-sounding stuff, which she likes to do for fun sometimes). It may be a little backward, but it works for me.

Another technique I follow is to break the writing task into small pieces, just doing a little at a time. Then, I take my dog Riley out for a walk to clear my brain in between those small pieces. Amazing what I think of when I return from the exercise of letting Riley drag me around the block with him.

Don’t try to proofread what you are writing as you type, or it will interrupt your flow. Edit at the end of your task instead, when you can take a step back and look at the whole piece. I find if I am writing a letter of complaint to someone, the distance lets me come back to it and edit out the nasty tone—this way, the person might actually respond to my request for help, instead of filing me in the “oval” file. If you need some proofreading tips, see my post on “Proofreading: Feel the Pain.”

Good luck, and I look forward to reading some of your own ideas for unblocking writer’s block.

Fran Fahey, Fran’s Fine Editing

Singin' the Email Blues

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 16:35:00 GMT

Please allow me a few moments to rant about proper email usage. I have written in the past about it, but apparently nobody read my emails.

I have burrowed into my (admittedly disorganized, non-foldered) email list in the past to try to find a particular one, only to see that it didn't have a subject line, which is why I couldn't find it, or it doesn't have the person's current phone number on it, so I have to go elsewhere to find him, and then I find that another email didn't answer all of my questions, so I have to email her again.

Not that I haven't been guilty of hitting the "send" button too soon, before double-checking that the attachment was there. At least it doesn't happen as often now as it did when I first started sending them as attachments 25 years ago (oops, did I just tell you my age? Please disregard).

Val Nelson is a good writer, a good coach, and a good mentor from one of my women's groups. Take her "E-tiquette Quiz" on email usage and tell me how you do. While you are there, read some of her other helpful tips on blogging and email marketing, too.

Copyright Fran Fahey, Fran's Fine Editing

Livin' Large at the Library

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 20:10:00 GMT

When’s the last time you went to your local library? Do you know what they can do for you?

About a year ago, I almost cried when I read about the possible closing of many of the Boston Public Library branches due to shortage of funding. Thank goodness it has not come to pass, so far. Brian McGrory, one of my favorite Globe writers, captured my feelings perfectly in his 2/26/10 article, Treasure Islands at Risk .

After you read Brian’s article, do you still say to yourself, “Who cares?” Well, I care. Let me tell you why.

As someone who’s experienced my own funding shortage, I have used my local libraries for my pleasure reading and for work. I love the homey feel of each small library, the smell of polished wood and aging books, and the idiosyncracies of each employee, many of who have become my friends over time. There’s nothing quite like having someone look up from what she is doing and smile when I come in the door, ask what she can do to help me—and it’s not home, where my wife Jean has to welcome me, and I’m not buying anything from her, either . . . well, except for the time we accidentally dumped the latest Stephen King into the washing machine and we had to pay for a replacement copy.

When I walk into the Emily Williston Library, I read the bulletin board, which tells me about the local CSA farm I can join to get my organic veggies, and the writers’ group that meets each week. I love to read the titles of books and flip through them (begone, Kindle, until I can no longer see the words!). Hard covers, soft covers, old ones falling apart, new ones that haven’t yet been opened. I can order a book online from any library in our system, and have it appear in my own library as if it flew there on a magic carpet, reserved just for me. I even go there to get help with research from human beings, if my Internet searches fail me.

I haven’t even mentioned all of the other things libraries offer: Wi-Fi, CDs, DVDs, museum passes, kids’ programs, meeting space. All free.

I’ve tried to show my thanks to each library for being there for me. I’ve given small donations to the Friends of each library, and gave up most of my own books to them to sell at their book sales to raise money. It’s not much, but it’s better than thinking about never having a library to go to.

Fran Fahey, Fran’s Fine Editing

WWW.What the Heck?

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 20:09:00 GMT

Have you looked at your business web site lately? Maybe you’d better. As a matter of fact, pull it up right now and look at it as you read this.

How well does your web copy communicate what you want it to say? As Dr. Phil would say, “How’s it working for ya?”

What I do most often is write web copy for my clients. Web copy is different from the copy you’ll see in other types of marketing vehicles. We web surfers, well, we just don’t have the time to read a full sentence. So, you have only a few seconds to grab people’s attention and make your case, before they go on to the next site.

Readers will ditch your site right away if they are:

bored by your presentation,
confused by what you are trying to say, or
overwhelmed by all the stuff you throw at them.

So, make sure your site is written for your customers, not for your own entertainment. Here are some quick tips, supported by my gurus in web content, like Robert W. Bly.

Be personal. Use “I” and “you.” The web is a conversation between two people: the potential customer and you. Let them know what you can do for them—don’t lecture at them, or use all your space just describing yourself.

Be organized and brief. Don’t use long paragraphs, or try to fit too much on one page. Break your text into short paragraphs of no more than 2-3 sentences, and use lots of bulleted lists (like this one) to make your page easy to scan.

Use headlines and questions that immediately get at the heart of what your customers need.

Use only enough photos, videos and animation to educate your customer and make your case. Too many of these, while fun and attractive, can be a distraction

Close your “sale” with an easy way for people to get in touch, using a clearly visible phone number, address, email, contact or order forms, etc.

If your site doesn’t pass the test, then get help from a web designer or copywriter. We're here to make you look great!

Fran Fahey, Fran’s Fine Editing

The Penguins Go to the Bronx Zoo

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 20:07:00 GMT

So the joke goes something like this, with a few embellishments:

Mr. Brown was traveling through Kansas and met a guy selling penguins at $2.00 each. “What a great deal,” he thinks. He calls the Bronx Zoo, who tells him that they’ll buy as many penguins as he can sell them at $90.00 each, so he buys 129 of them to bring to New York.

Around Hackensack, NJ, Mr. Brown’s car breaks down. While he’s waiting for AAA, a Good Samaritan stops to help him, and Mr. Brown says, “Would you take these penguins to the Bronx Zoo?” The guy agrees to help, loads all 129 penguins into his car, and takes off.

In the Bronx, Mr. Brown gets into a major bumper-to-bumper traffic jam. As he creeps closer to the zoo, he sees people lined up along the sides of the street, pointing and laughing. As he pulls up to the zoo, he sees the guy who helped him walking along the sidewalk, trailed by a line of penguins holding balloons. “What the heck?” he says to the guy. “I asked you to take them to the zoo!”

“Sure, I did,” the guy said. “But I had a little money left over, so I’m taking them to the movies!”

Moral of the story? Be careful how you word things. You just may get exactly what you ask for.

Fran Fahey, Fran’s Fine Editing

Proofreading: Feel the Pain

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 15:28:00 GMT

If you are a business owner, you write every day. Emails, notes, newsletters, articles, blog posts, Facebook updates, you name it, you’ve gotta write it. And as far as writing correctly, you either chew your nails over “its” versus “it’s”, or you don’t—you write what you think is right and hope the reader will forgive you if it isn’t.

You might think that it’s easy as an editor to proof my own stuff, but no. It’s even more painful, because I check everything I write thoroughly and still make mistakes. I’m here to tell you, though, how important it is to make sure everything you write is as accurate as possible, because it all reflects on you as a business person.

I have seen much in my years of editing for businesses. Believe it or not, I have seen people misspell their own company name, which to an editor is like fingernails on a chalkboard! So here’s my advice.

Don’t trust that computer program. Forget spell check and grammar check; you won’t like it when they turn “publick” into “pubic” after you’ve sent out that nasty letter to your local library. Do the work. Use Merriam Webster for spelling and a free online writing guide like Paradigm .

Check for more than spelling and grammar. Check font for consistent size; check headings (a typical place for errors); check your phone number, email address and company name. Proof also for clarity and tone.

Read it over. Don’t ever, ever, ever send anything out without reading it carefully first. The simplest email can turn off a customer if it’s full of errors, an attachment is missing, or you sound angry when you really aren’t.

Let it sit. The best thing you can do, if you have 24 hours, is to let it sit and read it again tomorrow. Pretend it’s wine and let it ferment (all right, a really cheap wine). You won’t believe what you find if you read it with fresh eyes.

Get help. If you aren’t good at writing, get help—have a trusted friend proof it, or pay someone to do it for you. We’re fast, we’re reasonable, and we’ll help you look marvelous. Good luck!

Fran Fahey, Fran’s Fine Editing

Home Offices are for Wimps—Not!

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 18:26:00 GMT

Ah, the joys of a home-based business. Not having to change out of your jammies to begin writing. Being able to just leave to do an errand whenever you want. Roz Chast’s cartoon in the 12/6/10 New Yorker, called “The Freelance Life”, uses the punch line “Honey, I’m STILL HOME!” Great life, huh . . . oh, really?

I’ve worked from a home office for over 20 years. It’s not for the faint-hearted. Witness the bored cat who takes a leisurely stroll over your computer keys; the unfinished projects lying around the house that call out faintly to be completed; the realization that you’ve just spent the last seven hours tapping away without a break. It’s a challenge even for the most self-disciplined among us to work at home successfully.

So, I offer a few tips for those of you who are in my situation and haven’t been doing this for your whole lives yet.

Change out of your jammies. Pretend you are really going to work. I’ve found that if I don’t put on at least my lined jeans, a corduroy shirt, and regular shoes, I just don’t take it seriously enough and give it my all. Establish a clear boundary between your leisure time and your work day.

Find a good schedule and stick to it. Decide when you are most productive during the day, set up a schedule and try to work those hours each day. Schedule lunch, breaks, and close of business, so that you don’t forget to eat, go to the bathroom regularly, and stop working. Resist the temptation to log in again after work hours. Don’t let working at home interfere with your physical or mental health.

Treat your home office like it’s really an office. Even if you don’t have a separate room for an office, use a desk and file cabinet, not a corner of your kitchen table. Not that my own office is perfect, but I can find everything I need right away and my invoices are always up to date. I go to my office to work, and I leave when I’m done; the physical separation between work and play allows me to have the energy to enjoy and succeed at both.

If you have the additional challenge of providing child care while working at home, please share your ideas on how you run your home office. I wish all of you the best in managing your home-based businesses and achieving your dreams.

Fran Fahey, Fran's Fine Editing

Welcome, Everyone!

fran@fransfineediting.com (Fran Fahey) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 18:05:00 GMT

I finally decided to start that blog everyone's been asking me to write. You know, if you're a writer, then you must be able to write a blog.

My dog Riley and cat Max have even been hassling me about it. They lie around my office and stare at me with their shiny humanlike eyes. C'mon, Fran! You walk us and feed us every day.You must have something helpful to say to people!

Okay, I can do this.

So, for what it's worth, here it is. A blog about what it's like to run a small business. A blog about the agony and ecstasy of trying to write well. A blog that brings you in touch with my other business partners, who are all coping with the same challenges you are--just trying to be better at what you do. And a blog about whatever it is that all of you out there would like to hear more about.

Yep, here goes--and I hope to hear from you!

Fran Fahey, Fran's Fine Editing

Copyright Fran Fahey, Fran's Fine Editing