WRITER'S TWO-DAY CONFERENCE OUTLINE

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO CONTACT PHILLIPS ABOUT A ONE- OR TWO-DAY CONFERENCE, E-MAIL HIM AT NIGHTHAWKPUB@MINDSPRING.COM TO SET UP AN APPOINTMENT.

1) WHO IS JOHN E. PHILLIPS AND HOW CAN HE HELP ME EARN MONEY AS A WRITER?

In 1999, John E. Phillips had over 381 articles published using the Michelangelo technique.

John E. Phillips is a freelance writer (over 4,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 10,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant and book author with an overview of the outdoors.

Phillips has been a contributor to many national magazines, has been affiliated with 27-radio stations across Alabama serving as their outdoor editor and has written a weekly syndicated column, "Alabama Outdoors," for 38-Alabama newspapers for more than 13 years. Phillips has been the Outdoor Editor for the "Birmingham Post-Herald" for 17 years.

The author of 19 books on the outdoors, Phillips is a member of the Outdoor Writer's Association of America (OWAA), the Southeastern Outdoors Press Association (SEOPA), the Outdoors Photographic League and the Alabama Press Association. Phillips also is the owner of Night Hawk Publications, a marketing and publishing firm, and president of Creative Concepts, an outdoor consulting group.

Phillips also conducts seminars across the nation at colleges in freelance writing, photography and outdoor education besides teaching courses in how to sell what you write to writers' groups. Phillips received his photography training as a still-lab photo specialist for six years in the Air Force. He was the chief photographer for Mannequins, Inc., a Birmingham modeling agency, for 11 years.

While serving as 2nd Vice President of the Alabama Wildlife Federation, Phillips was in charge of all press releases for the organization as well as serving as Chairman of Alabama's Big Buck Contest, which he founded 25 years ago. He also was president of the Alabama Sportsman's Association for three years.

Phillips is the recipient of a Certificate of Merit from the Governor of Alabama and the Department of Conservation for his work in the outdoor field. Phillips is vitally interested in the outdoors and travels the nation collecting personalities, stories and how-to information for his articles and features.

EDUCATION: B.S. degree from the University of West Alabama with a physical education major and a history minor.

EXPERIENCE: 10 years parttime and fulltime physical director for YMCAs and 26 years as a freelance writer, photographer, broadcaster, editor, book author and lecturer. Currently, Phillips is editor of Alabama Whitetail and Bass, a field editor for Game and Fish Publications and Vulcan Publications, the editor-at-large for Harris Publications' outdoor magazines and the Alabama/Florida Panhandle editor for Saltwater Sportsman Magazine.

WRITING AWARDS:

• Runnerup - Best Outdoor Magazine Feature - 1981 - SEOPA
• Certificate of Merit - Awarded by Alabama's Governor for writings on conservation
• Most Outstanding Sports Writer in Southeast - 1983 & 1984
• Best Outdoor Feature in Alabama, 1987 - Alabama Sportswriters' Association
• 3rd Place - Best Book of the Year - 1989 - SEOPA

2) THE TEN SECRETS OF BECOMING A SUCCESSFUL SELLING WRITER

1. Make a 5-year commitment
2. Don't use your own knowledge
3. Learn to write a selling query
4. Keep 35 queries out at all times
5. Keep 100 queries out for full time freelance work
6. Use writing as an educational tool
7. Learn to identify and fight fear of rejection
8. Learn to write anywhere, any time
9. Always overprogram yourself to do more
10. Master the camera

3) TEN SECRETS FOR SELLING ARTICLES

1. Choose $125 or less markets
2. Use authorities and statistics
3. Analyze a magazine
4. Query, query, query
5. Have 3 markets for each story
6. Know what to send or not send in a photo package
7. Understand what to do when you get an assignment
8. Write first paragraph of query in a way to insure you get the assignment
9. Use professional letterhead
10. Request writer's guidelines

4) THIRTEEN SECRETS TO GETTING STORY IDEAS

1. Information you want to know
2. Newspapers
3. World's greatest people
4. Magazines
5. Interviews -- one article leads to another
6. TV
7. Hobbies
8. Problems
9. Your feature
10. Family needs
11. Financial needs
12. Pets
13. Business

5) TEN REASONS WRITERS FAIL AND HOW TO OVERCOME THEM

6) UNDERSTANDING THE EMOTIONS OF A WRITER AND HOW TO DEAL WITH THEM

1. Fear of rejection
2. Fear of "Can I do this?"
3. Fear of editors
4. My work is my baby
5. Pains of editing
6. Dealing with financial insecurity
7. Finding a mentor and why you need one
8. Knowing why you have to fail to succeed
9. What is writer's block and how to deal with it
10. How writer's groups hurt and help

7) YOU'VE GOT AN ASSIGNMENT, NOW WHAT?

1. Put something on paper
2. Start with an attention-grabbing lead
3. Decide what is most important
4. Use subheads
5. Use bullets
6. Send the word count an editor requests
7. Read the story out loud
8. Don't overuse words
9. Spell check, and look at the articles readability
10. Don't overedit -- set deadlines and get it in the mail

8) TEN SECRETS TO DEVELOPING A PROFESSIONAL MANUSCRIPT

1. First page set-up
2. Second page set-up
3. The folder
4. The business card
5. The photos
6. The cutlines
7. Introductory letter
8. Packaging
9. Mailing
10. Record keeping
11. Sidebars

9) TEN ITEMS YOU NEED TO BE A WRITER

1. Desktop vs. laptop computers
2. Camera
3. Film
4. Research books
5. Office hours
6. Types of files
7. Logbook for logging stories and pay
8. Writer's Market, Bacon's Magazine Directory
9. Monthly and Yearly Schedule of writing assignments
10. Fax and copy machines, cellular phones, etc.

10) EDITOR-WRITER RELATIONSHIP

1. Who are they?
2. What are they?
3. How to start a relationship
4. Be a go-to writer
5. Treat them like people
6. Query or call
7. Learn seasonal patterns of assignments
8. Use his/her style, not your own
9. What to do when editors change
10. How to punish an editor
11. Editor's are not always right

11) TEN SECRETS ON WHEN TO WRITE WHAT

1. Your first writing assignment
2. Magazine articles and deadlines
3. Seasonal material
4. Next year's articles
5. Queries -- query quotient
6. Columns
7. Laundry list query
8. To find out about story acceptance or pay
9. Your book
10. Life story
11. Sidebars

12) TEN SECRETS TO THE WRITER'S LIFE

1. Working with manufacturers
2. Free trips -- How to get them
3. Your cost per story
4. Photo files -- A secret goldmine
5. Regular money vs. big checks
6. Relationships with other writers
7. When to get help
8. Where and how to get help
9. What your writing should be to you
10. How to make $1 million as a freelance writer

13) TEN SECRETS TO WRITING FOR FREE -- YES, YOU SHOULD

1. Getting started
2. Thank you notes
3. Just thought you might want to see
4. Building a portfolio
5. When it matters to you, letters to the editor
6. Letters of encouragement
7. A start up magazine or newspaper
8. To help a friend
9. Extra sidebars
10. A book for your children