I unsubscribed to ezines that had nothing but ads. That gave me feeling that I was in control. But, my friends, we know how false that feeling is. I was still hooked on good ones.

To make matters worse, I started earning an income working at home. I'm just minding my own business. Reading ezines; learning from ezines; applying what I'm learning. Money starts coming in. You think you have your life planned and something like this happens. I don't know what to tell you. I never saw it coming.

My friends say I've changed. I'm more self- confident; I'm happier; I'm more positive about life. They just don't understand and I can't tell them my secret.

I thought I could control problem by shutting down my computer. I realize now that I was just in denial. Before long I was sneaking into office. I'd tell myself, "Just one ezine. I'll just read one." An hour later, dinner hadn't been cooked and litter box hadn't been cleaned. I was off and running. Lost in world of ezines. With trembling fingers, I would turn off computer. But I knew truth; I wanted more.

I don't know what answer is. Just when you think you're in control, you find another ezine to subscribe to. Even if you're particular about what you read and don't like cheap stuff, there's always one more good ezine out there calling your name.

Well, that's my story. Thanks for letting me share. I won't tell you I'll ever be cured. The truth of matter is I don't want to be cured. I'll just have to take it one ezine at a time.

Some advocate use of "Notepad" or "Wordpad", which in most cases is a mistake. If you are going to do any serious writing, and/or publishing, you must have a decent word processor such as "Microsoft Word" or "Wordperfect", which will not only point out spelling errors, but also grammatical blunders.

Others say you don't have to generate income from your publication. More Bunk! Unless it is a labor of love, in order to keep your interest at level it must be, you have to have a reason for doing so. The newsletter must either drive people toward becoming a potential customer, or generate income through sale of ad space - preferably both.

A common mistake is sending two emails per issue. One is purely content, and other is an ad sheet. While ezine advertising is an extremely effective way for advertisers to get their message out, an ad sheet is not advisable. People may read content portion, and never even open ad sheet. Others have an ad section where all ads are displayed in one place, which also gets skipped over. Neither method is a good way to present ads, especially for advertisers.

An effective way to present your advertisers offers, is to intermix them with content. But remember, if it is a bad ad, it won't be acted on regardless of which method is used, so you must be prepared to help with content of ads. If you accept a one time ad, it is a waste of your time and advertisers dollars. It is a proven fact that it takes 5 to 7 exposures before an advertiser can expect results.

Is publishing a Newsletter or Ezine a good way to help you toward road to success in your online business? It sure is! But unless you can give it time and effort required, you should consider other ways to make your business grow. Why not search out established publications that are geared to your target market, and place ads with them. Sure, it might cost a few bucks, but isn't your time worth something? Most people can scrape together price of an ad, but you can never replace lost time.