Over the past few weeks I’ve been hard at work revising my latest manuscript, while revamping the www.tanyafreedman.com site. I’ve decided - with so much of your great help, my dear writing buddies and savvy websters - that I’ll create another separate website for my fiction, under a different name. It’s very exciting, but extremely time consuming. So I’m pacing myself. Here are a few blogs and links to articles that I’ve come across in my journey of discovery, regarding pen names also called pseudonyms. More in the next weeks. Feel free to forward this page to any of your friends. All the best, Tanya

http://www.likesbooks.com/273.html - A couple of my writing contacts (through Toronto Romance Writers: Claire Delacroix/Deb Cooke and Eve Silver were interviewed by AAR about pseudonyms back in 2007. I also really liked (at the end of the interview) the questions we should ask ourselves about pen names. 

Also this is from Claire Delacroix/Deb’s blog: These are a series of three posts on her blog about writing for two houses which addresses pseudonyms a bit :
http://www.delacroix.net/blog/?p=87
http://www.delacroix.net/blog/?p=86
http://www.delacroix.net/blog/?p=85

And another interesting link to an article I found helpful from many aspects - regarding the pros and cons of pseudonyms: A Rose By Any Other Name:

http://www.mbbp.com/resources/iptech/pseudonyms.html

So, I’m back with more energy and verve, and am curious about your comments on my new revamped website. Visit it now: www.tanyafreedman.com My difficulty has been trying to include information on both my published business book, Start & Run an Art Teaching Business, while concentrating fully on my full-time obsession on writing passionate women’s fiction. I would love to hear any of your comments that may help me improve my website-in-progress.

Here are some of my thoughts and questions as I divide my time in revising my latest manuscript, as well as enjoying the fun part of playing Goddess on redesigning my website:

- I understand that many writers waiting to have a publishing contract before committing to have a website regretted leaving it so long; because then they panicked about not being ready or even knowing what they wanted their ideal website to look like; what it should say about them, the author and their brand.

- I don’t want to create two separate websites - because of the effort and cost that entails. 

- What are your thoughts about including/sharing blurbs and even excerpts of any of my current works in progress? Some of my writing friends have successfully included these on theirs. I feel reticent about doing this, because I want my queries and partials to be fresh to the literary agents and editors I plan to approach.

- I’m happy to prepare an article about my particular love of international /cross cultural love stories, and share this. So let me know your opinions - the pros and cons.

- The time spent on creating my own website from templates vs having one customized: the cost is what dictates it for me, at this stage. I’d rather spend the time to design and update it myself, rather than spend the money on what admittedly could well showcase the brand and the author so much better. The other disadvantage in this is spending less time developing and improving the work, the actual manuscript. I do so enjoy this, though <g>.

- Any suggestions on the taglines (two separate ones for business book and the rest of the site)? I’m happy about the “Tales of Passion Without Borders” but have my reservations about the one on the business, which is a previous one.

So let me have any of your suggestions, leave comments and also email me.

Thanks,
Tanya Freedman
Writring Diva Blog

Having done some live TV shows with 7 or 8 minutes segments was helpful, and having heard some of Barry’s insightful questions in other interviews, I knew I was in good hands. But it was an hour long show! Sheesh! Or Oy vey! But as my friends know too well, I absolutely LOVE talking about myself and my accomplishments! Me modest, not yet!

The way I prepared for the show was to listen to a few of them, and also to send Barry a few specific links to my site where it’s ALL ABOUT ME, MYSELF and I! But I also knew he does his research thoroughly. The theme of his segment on the radio is  almost always of a spiritual nature, with a special interest and emphasis on the Jewish faith. So I was quite looking forward to the new experience of doing a live show. I prayed that all my speaking engagements and practice at Toastmasters will come in handy. And boy, did they!

I still waffled a bit, but I wasn’t going for perfection but for authenticity. From the many emails and phone calls from my Toastmaster friends, I succeeded in being true to myself and even in motivating and inspiring others, too.

If you’d like to listen to the radio show, see the link to my website below and I’d be grateful to hear from you. Send me any comments on anything, including your own experiences, and also on how I can improve - as always I know there’s always room for improvement. So I’ll go and practice speaking to myself some more….

Tanya’s Interview on FAITH fm on 23 March 2008

 So what did I learn about speaking on radio?

a) There’s a right time to talk about yourself and your products and services - interviews promoting you, are the perfect venue for that.

b) Stick to answering the questions and try and not go off on a tangent.

c) Do your home work about the interviewers, get to know about them, they’re interesting people, too.

d) Have some ideas about what you’d like to convey in the interview and keep it concise. 

e) Just do it; get practice by actually doing it and and go for it!

It’s hard to believe from the shy girl I’d been at nineteen that I’d be standing in front of any crowd and have the guts to evaluate a speaker, and win third place. But that’s what happened last night. Toastmasters is a not-for-profit organization with thousands of clubs across North America and the world. Any adult over the age of 18 can join (at a very small fee for the value one gets) a local club, practice their speaking skills, even meet like-minded souls and make great contacts. I’ve always enjoyed meeting people, I get recharged in big crowds, unlike my reserved Englishman of a husband, who feels drained after a party. At my GG Club I’ve learned so much about myself and the opportunities of expanding my business and social skills. I truly believe that networking is the heart of us all; personally, socially and for business.

So here I was wondering if I should rather stick to winning the small prizes and pats on the back in my weekly meetings, and not embarrass myself by entering a contest that was for the ‘real’, more experienced speakers. After all, even those who are gifted with the talent of entertaining and inspiring, and using their persuasive skills can sometimes have a brain freeze. Or a mental-pause moment! Then where would I be?

But I’ve always believed in the addage of “nothing ventured nothing gained”. To me this means constantly getting out of my comfort zone, even with my heart hammering away like it’s about to explode like a Valentine massacre mess within me. So I committed to participate in the contest. The Evaluation Contest is where a target speaker (a guest Toastmaster) delivers his or her speech, and we the contestants have 2.30 minutes to 3 minutes to give our impressions and how we felt the speaker could improve on the delivery and the speech content. The timing is crucial, as one of the important things we learn at Toastmasters is being punctual and keeping to the allocated time.  I believe this makes us more effective as speakers and businesspeople. One gets disqualified if going over 3.3o minutes. Pressure, pressure.

But I reminded myself that this was for fun, whether I placed first, second or third was inconsequential; the practicing of the learned skills among friends and like-minded fellow Toastmasters was the most important thing. And it was a great experience. It’s such a different perspective when standing in the front of the room, on the stage, than when one is sitting in the audience, giving silent, written evaluations.

So I’m encouraged to I jump in regularly, and take every possible opportunity to speak in front of people, and when I talk, I teach, I share and I learn…. constantly. So we’re ALL WINNERS!

So, are there any fellow Toastmasters or fellow public speakers out there who’d like to input your own opinions and share your experiences, good or bad, embarrassing or envigorating? Share with us on this blog! Be our guest and teach us!

See more about my love for public speaking in these two links:

http://www.tanyafreedman.com/publicspeaking/speechsamplesbytanya.html

http://www.tanyafreedman.com/publicspeaking/firstimpressions.html