Yet, three principles prevail no matter what your association to meaning of writer appears. They are PDA, for short. No, not PDA you carry around in your pocket. But PDA a writer needs to carry around in heart.

P=patience D=discipline A=action

The patience to allow our writing to mature with practice. To push just enough to keep us uncomfortable yet still allow us to keep trying.

The discipline to sit still long enough to get it started and completed. The discipline to keep picking up pen, putting another sheet of paper in printer, or buying new keyboards because last one certain keys just plain gave out.

Action to keep vision and dream alive for one more time, one more word, one more story, one more meaning.

Remember, next time you want to write more or write better. Don't pull out your PDA from your pocket, but pull out ones that really count from your heart. The ones that truly affect your ass(ets), patience, discipline, and creative action.

5. Follow media. What's media talking about these days (besides California election & Ben-lo)? Keep track of media buzz--what they're paying attention to and what they're writing about. Delve beyond front page of your paper to second or third page and see what's filling pages. If you can get your hands on out-of-state papers, do a comparative review. Do you see a trend in coverage? Is there something that seems to be getting more buzz even if it's on page six?

6. Talk, teach, listen. One of best ways I've found to get in touch with my audience was to teach a class and do speaking engagements. When I was putting together my book, Get Published Today, I found that classes I taught provided valuable information for creating a great book because they put me directly in touch with my audience!

7. Timing is everything. When do you plan to release your tome? Are you releasing around a holiday or anniversary? Could you take advantage of any upcoming event and/or holiday for your book launch?

Penny C. Sansevieri The Cliffhanger was published in June of 2000. After a strategic marketing campaign it quickly climbed ranks at Amazon.com to #1 best selling book in San Diego. Her most recent book: No More Rejections. Get Published Today! was released in July of 2002 to rave reviews. Penny is a book marketing and media relations specialist. She also coaches authors on projects, manuscripts and marketing plans and instructs a variety of coursing on publishing and promotion. To learn more about her books or her promotional services, you can visit her web site at www.booksbypen.com. To subscribe to her free ezine, send a blank email to: mailto:subscribe@booksbypen.com Copyright  2004 Penny C. Sansevieri