Time is *all* we've got, in final analysis, so it *must* be used wisely and profitably.

And, so it came to pass that She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed looked at me critically - but kindly - one day and said, "Dear, why don't you take a rest from ezine writing...tell your subscribers about all *really* good ezines that you read...that way, you won't leave them high and dry...and you'll have more time for finishing that book of yours. More time for kids...and me, too!" Sherry arched one eyebrow, but smiled...sweetly.

She had a point.

Soothingly, she continued, "You can *always* come back to it...some day...when things are not so busy, hmmm?"

Strike two for Sherry.

I had to admit - it made sense. It was a real struggle, but with a sigh, I sent off last edition, with all necessary information about ezines I valued highly. If my subscribers didn't sign up to them, well, at least they had information to act on, anytime they chose to.

I held onto subscriber list, naturally, and email them from time to time, with useful and pertinent information. None has asked to be removed from mailing list yet.

Now, however, I could devote more time to those other - but necessary - tasks. You know, other ones that are about making money: getting e-books ready, promoting affiliate programs, developing business strategies and like.

Don't get me wrong - ezines, of course, are also about making money, amongst other things. And, as Sherry said, one day, I may start another up, for I know there's one lurking inside me, somewhere - but not in online marketing per se.

I know there's a niche for us, out there...it's only a matter of time.

Although HTML newsletters are becoming more and more popular, I still opt for good, old-fashioned text format. If you want to offer HTML newsletters to your subscribers, that's cool. Give them option. But if they're using an older e-mail client that doesn't support HTML, you might as well delete your message before you send it, because they won't be able to read it.

I recommend formatting your e-mail newsletter as a text file. Do not use word processing functions, such as bullets, bold face and italics, because formatting is lost if your reader's e-mail software doesn't support rich text.

Instead of MS Word, I use a text editor called NoteTab Light to format my E-zine. It's a free download and works great because you can set your margins to 65 characters (or whatever you choose) and NoteTab Light does line breaks for you with a few keystrokes.

To download NoteTab Light, visit http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,24530,00.html

NoteTab Light is highly customizable. To change your user settings, click on View > Options >. Take a look at all of settings and configure to your liking. To configure column wrap, go to Documents, check "Wrap to Column" and put 65 in box. Then when you close out of there, click Document > Update Column Wrap, and, poof, your document will be correctly formatted at 65 character per line. (Note: You may need to make minor revisions to your layout, but it's easier than retyping.)

Once you have a format that meets your specifications, I recommend that you set up a template to use in NoteTab Light for future issues. It'll make your job much easier and quicker. I use templates for everything, including my e-mail newsletters.

For more information about e-publishing, visit following resources on Web:

Email Publishing Digest http://epdigest.com/

Ezine-Tips.com http://ezine-tips.com/