tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39229391551648030272011-11-27T17:14:49.458-06:00Thoughts on Writing and LivingDiana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.comBlogger171100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-41891741293141600782009-02-05T13:07:00.016-06:002009-02-05T13:28:55.769-06:00

So far, this year's theme for me has been communication. I'm not exactly sure why. We freelancers communicate all the time--it's pretty much all we do. It just seems to me that there is more to say on the topic, though, maybe even enough to last a year. Sometimes it seems that with all the talking and writing we do, we aren't really communicating much.I'm honored to have received my first guest

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-17769043827889467052009-01-21T08:57:00.004-06:002009-01-21T09:10:52.934-06:00

There is one thing I actually heard Pastor Morris Venden say on my wedding day, as I stood before him with my handsome groom by my side and stars in my eyes: “The key to a successful marriage is communication. I’ve found this advice to be as sound for relationships with my colleagues, friends, and children, as it has been for my relationship with my husband. And writers are all about

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-19707526659853156002009-01-07T14:37:00.008-06:002009-01-09T11:34:40.112-06:00

I guess it's a sign of the economic times, but a lot of freelancers seem to be talking about getting burned by publishers. Susan Johnston at the Urban Muse posted a couple of pieces along these lines after she got burned last year. Then today I read an article by Jenny Cromie at The Golden Pencil about the same problem. That's all fine and dandy, but I always assumed these freelancers were

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-14684701538228325292009-01-05T20:52:00.003-06:002009-01-05T21:17:32.666-06:00

Last night as I was driving home from work I was talking with my mother. She asked how the kids were and related to me a comment made to a friend of hers by his grandson. The little boy said, "Grandpa, I like to come to your house because you listen to me." "I hope we listen to our kids," my mom said. "Do we listen to our kids?"It's funny she should ask that. Last weekend my son was watching the

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-52711338275705543032008-10-20T10:46:00.005-05:002008-10-20T11:00:22.455-05:00

I read an article over at Freelance Parent about how freelancers have so much random information stored in their brains. This is so true. In fact I was just thinking the other day about how I know more than I ever really thought possible about some things. My list includes:How to start an Ebay businessHow to take care of aging relativesHow to start a Face Painting businessWorking as a stewardess

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-35890945290344855072008-09-08T09:00:00.006-05:002008-09-08T09:42:50.631-05:00

I have a list of article submissions and queries I try to accomplish on a regular basis. These are jobs that get pushed to the back burner for when I have a moment of time to work on them. As a general rule of thumb, I try to work on one a week. Last week I had a submission I wanted to get in on an article I'd had sitting around for a long time; however, I'd need to cut over 200 words to get it

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-60309553019040645532008-09-04T11:34:00.007-05:002008-09-04T11:53:45.129-05:00

In her article titled "Find a Job you Love, and You'll Never Work Another Day in Your Life" on the Writers in the Sky blog, Taryn Simpson writes about the growing popularity of Newsletters. I couldn't agree more. It seems everyone is into newsletters these days, including Susan Johnston over at The Urban Muse.I'm on the Marketing Committee at my children's school with several people who happen

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-35635567173242725872008-09-02T11:23:00.009-05:002008-09-02T13:15:45.431-05:00

I recently received an advertisement in my email inbox from a famous makeup company with a very French name. The header said:Are you a Perfectionist or an Idealist?This particluar company has a line of facial products that fall under each title. Now, I'm sure this was not the intent of the marketing gurus at French Cosmetic Company, but I immediately thought about how this applies to writing (

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-9737662267018645522008-08-28T08:35:00.009-05:002008-08-28T10:50:57.952-05:00

It's been two months since I started writing and marketing my writing in an intentional way. That may be a very short period of time; however, it has been plenty of time to make plenty of mistakes. So I decided it was time to create a Top 3 List.1. Read Less and Write MoreOne of the first things I did as a new freelancer was subscribe to every blog on writing and freelancing I could find that

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-82894275564116463662008-08-08T11:34:00.004-05:002008-08-08T11:41:27.771-05:00

If you're interested in the project management world, you can find my new article discussing Goldratt's Theory of Constraints here.

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-46969240194389725682008-07-30T14:47:00.004-05:002008-07-30T14:50:01.085-05:00

My article on www.brighthub.com was published today. You can find it here:Top 5 Questions to Ask Before you Hire a Project Manager

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-37831321117279669952008-07-17T10:38:00.021-05:002008-07-17T10:58:54.201-05:00

Let me preface by saying that if you don't believe in the general concept of the existence of good and evil in this world, then this post is not for you. These thoughts are based on the assumption that good and evil are a real part of our day to day life.No matter what form of Faith they may embrace, most parents teach their children that good and evil are black and white--one existing over here,

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-23421186018107088342008-07-16T12:19:00.007-05:002008-07-16T13:47:31.753-05:00

I happen to be a member of my children's elementary school board. Near the end of last year, some parents wanted to make some changes to the uniform policy. So, like any good board, we asked them to form a committee and look into it. They presented their findings to the board, and (after several meetings, several emails, and much discussion) we came up with a policy we decided to vote into active

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-76728024578300324652008-07-14T18:17:00.008-05:002008-07-15T16:29:45.950-05:00

Tell people they "look pretty" more often. My kids tell me this all the time, and it always causes me to stop and smile. It really brightens my day. I was thinking about this, and it seemed wasteful to me to see something pretty and not mention it to someone. It seems such a simple thing one can do to make an enormous difference in someone's day, so I've been trying to do this. The other day I

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-43664190457724724992008-07-14T16:31:00.007-05:002008-07-14T17:20:51.889-05:00

When I was in the 10th grade I took a couple of college preparatory courses to become familiar with the ways of college and earn a few credits. One of the courses I took was Interpersonal Communications, a course in which one became familiar with herself, as well as learning to verbally communicate effectively with others, which was very popular in 1979.One night the professor had an assignment

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-80196309902545672922008-07-10T13:57:00.004-05:002008-07-10T14:49:54.799-05:00

We just returned from three days at Pamela’s lake house in Georgia. Pamela is my husband’s cousin, fondly referred to by my children as “Aunt Pammie.” We take a trip to Aunt Pammie’s every year, so we can catch up and she can see the kids. She recently became engaged to a man who owns a house on the lake, and she still has her home nearby, so whenever we visit she gives us the run of her place.

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3922939155164803027.post-22297189421752498882008-07-09T17:08:00.006-05:002008-08-18T10:04:13.142-05:00

Miss Austen RegretsI've been talking for weeks with a friend about Masterpiece's presentation of The Complete Austen, and we were talking on Monday about A Room with a View. He asked me why I liked these stories so much about free-thinking women in repressive societies and if it was a reflection on what I thought to be a repressive modern society.I think what he was ultimately asking is if my

Diana Hardinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10917262836509024219noreply@blogger.com0