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I Want No Paradise traces the roots of this belief: all memory is generated by traumas of varying force. Time and space are vital for memory to be current and poetry creates a space for an immediate memory (Middleton and Woods). The poems in my next book, I Want No Paradise, are a collection of  pasts kept alive through remembrance and listening. The poems in this collection speak of trauma and memory of alternate force, and suggest memory is elliptical and suspended in a time and space unknown by the narrator (Middleton and Woods). The poem is a bound internal representation of the world in our bodies. The poem is “a continual reference to experience,” and calls attention to itself as a “vehicle for meaning” (Mark Strand). Poetry reinforces my belief in reverence of all kinds; a kind of truth, regardless of the actual experience. “The truth on the page does not distinguish between the lived and unlived” (Mary Ruefle). I wanted to share a poem from the collection.

Carciofola (The Artichoke)

My grandmother’s hands drip olive oil and salt.
She begins to dip strips of codfish into beer batter,
and drapes the fish in the heated oil.

The food always tastes different here.  The way her hands cup
the fragile fish, how she spreads the egg yolk across its skin, so thin.
Everything is cared for.  Everything is in its place.

I try to listen to the smells; the years of preparing and tasting,
drinking the cellar wine.  I wonder if I will sense time and texture:
the way salt is spared in some dishes and how it is produced for others.

Tonight I watch her moving the wooden spoon with her fingers—
An expert, turning it in complete circles.  She picks up some sauce,
holds it to her lips, and breathes in and out.  More onion, she hums.

She will leave me with the cutting board, the mahogany table
in the dining room, her old world porcelain, leave me to unstring
the stuffed meats, scrape the seeds from a burst cantaloupe.

I will have to glaze the Christmas struffala with honey;
make the bread, at Easter, rise.  But I will know, somehow, what to do:
touch the skin of this world.  Peel it back.

By Loren Kleinman, from I Want No Paradise

Social media the prettiest girl at the marketing ball right now and every brand under the sun is queuing up for a dance. The reasons are clear: it’s relatively cheap and it’s really, really effective.

But the best thing about social media is that there are no bars to admission: you don’t need to hire a marketing agency, you don’t need to buy advertising space and everyone with an Internet connection can participate. I believe that even a hectically busy small business owner can achieve social media guru status. It’s all a question of engagement.
How do I become a social media guru?

The short answer: get involved. Post often and post about stuff that excites you. Chances are, if you’re revved up about something it’ll have a similar effect on at least a few other people.

Here’s the longer version:

Social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, FourSquare and Google+ are fantastic for targeted marketing. When people share, like or Tweet your posts they distribute them to a network of connected people with whom they share certain characteristics. These shared characteristics might very well include ones which made them one of your customers in the first place. For example, someone who’s had a good experience with your company might decide to follow you on Twitter. The next time you Tweet an offer they might re-Tweet it to their followers who are all much more likely to be a suitable customer (due to what they have in common with the original customer) than a person picked at random off the street.

In order to capitalize on this effect you have to be active on social media platforms on a regular basis. It’s no good Tweeting or posting a Facebook update once in a blue moon and expecting an uplift in website visitors or footfall in your shop or restaurant. Much of social media marketing is down to maximizing your chances of catching the eye of the right person at the right time – prompting them to react by further sharing your content or acting on the invitation/offer. Your chances are increased the more often you put something out there. As your network of followers/friends etc grows this catch-the-eye effect becomes more likely due to the law of big numbers.

So, all I have to do is post constantly?

Sorry: it’s a bit more nuanced than that. Constantly posting about nothing in particular will just turn off those followers you’ve been lucky enough to pick up.

The best thing is to be honest – post when you’re genuinely excited about something that you want to share.

But I run a small business – I don’t have time for this!

Yes, you do.

The most labor intensive part of the whole process is setting up your Twitter, Facebook, Google+ accounts. That will probably take a couple of hours if you do it right and add plenty of profile information (after all, you want people to know that it’s the real company, where you are, what your logo looks like, what your website address is etc). But you can spread this out into 20 minute chunks over several days if you really want to stick to the 20 minute rule (you’re so pedantic!)

You more than likely have a smart phone from which you can access Twitter, FB and the rest. Why not set a reminder at regularly spaced intervals, say four times a day, to do some social media updating? Some of these reminders will end up being ignored, or you won’t feel like you have anything to share at the time – but it will keep reminding you and getting you in the habit of thinking about it. You’ll end up engaging with social media at least once a day – the absolute minimum if you’re to achive guru status.

You should also set a reminder to check the social media platforms for what people are saying about you. Search for your brand name and get instant feedback about people’s customer service experiences, their opinion of your marketing etc. Respond professionally, courteously and above all helpfully and you’ll soon pick up a new friend or two. Those new friends will have friends and so on…

Pretty soon you’ll get the social media bug – when someone likes or re-Tweets your stuff and you know your marketing message is propagating out into cyberspace (we still say that right?) you’ll want it to grow and grow.

Okay, I’m enthused. What next?

The actual posting only takes up about half of twenty minutes. What should you be spending the rest of the time on?

My answer: musing.

Yep, have a good old think. (In the marketing industry we call this strategizing) You can do this over your porridge in the morning, in the shower, the car or while you’re doing boring repetitive tasks of which most businesses seem to have one or two.

This is what you should be thinking about: Who are my customers and why do they like my company? What can I do to make them tell their (online) friends about me? What do they care about? What information do I have that I can share with them? How can I make their lives easier; their days brighter; their romantic endeavors more satisfying?

Maybe not that last one… but don’t be afraid to think outside the box: in fact, out of the ordinary stuff tends to be more likely to catch on. A cafe I visited recently was giving away free cups of coffee to anyone who checked into FourSquare while inside. You might think a cafe giving away free coffee is business suicide but if each of the people who took up the offer spread the message to 50 friends (who are likely to be local remember) that’s a pretty good return on (I’m guessing) 30p’s worth of coffee grounds, hot water and milk.

So think about what your business can do to get people Tweeting, Liking and +1-ing about you. You’re probably an expert on your business sector so don’t be afraid to share your knowledge with the world – people appreciate an expert, love to learn and love to share knowledge. Then stick it out there the next time you get a reminder and watch your social media influence slowly grow.

It does require patience and discipline, but, considering the outlay, the returns are practically infinite.

Jamie Griffiths writes for Approved Index, the UK’s leading B2B marketplace and directory.

Recently, I was criticised for a piece of writing which was described as ‘overly poetic’. Not by my editor or by a critic, but by another a writer who had, in all fairness, done me the favour of agreeing to beta read a short story. While I take all advice onboard, I do reserve the right to decline to follow advice. In fact, it’s a necessity where you get conflicting advice, as was the case here.

Let’s consider…. Is ‘overly poetic’ a fair criticism to make? Perhaps if your prose sounds like Chaucer or Shakespeare, but this was a long way short. Other readers described the piece as ‘beautiful’.

In my opinion, ‘poetic’ or ‘lyrical’ is a valid part of some writers’ voice. I don’t always write this way, but for atmospheric pieces definitely – it’s part of setting the mood, and this particular piece is both dark and heart-breakingly poignant.

In fact, some of the techniques I used in that piece are not strictly poetry; they are Greek rhetorical devices.

What is rhetoric? We hear it all the time, usually in the phrase ‘it was a rhetorical question’ but what is rhetoric, actually?

It’s the manipulation of words. Placing words to give them maximum impact. Turning prose to art.

Many writers use these, knowingly or unknowingly, or if they aren’t using them, they are probably almost using them, by which I mean if they knew how they worked they’d see the places in their writing where these devices are struggling to emerge.

These devices are used not only by writers, but by politicians – and they’re used because they work. Whatever else you want to say about politicians, it’s generally true that what they’re saying is dangerously persuasive. Like quicksand. You know it’s going to suck you in, and the harder you struggle against it, the quicker you get pulled down. And there’s a reason for this.

Here are the five I like most and how you can use them to add an extra flourish to your writing. I’ve provided two examples, one written by someone else, and one of my own. I don’t suggest mine are good examples, necessarily, because thinking of these on the spot can be difficult, but they are examples from fiction writing.

Alliteration – We all know this one, or should. It’s the simple repetition of a sound at the beginning of grouped words. They are usually consecutive, and if separated, usually only by short, single words. Alliteration creates a musical sound that works well in descriptive passages.

Example 1: “I’ll kill him though,” he said. “In all his greatness and his glory.” – Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway

Example 2: The first shaft of sunlight had not yet broken the horizon, leaving the soft susurration of waves in darkness and the shifting sand of the beach a pale smudge beneath her feet.

Epistrophe – The repetition of a word or several words at the end of consecutive sentences (or phrases). It is an emphatic device, used to make a point and drive it home or emphasise something of importance.

Example 1: When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child. —  The Apostle Paul, in the Bible, 1 Cor 13:11 (King James Translation)

Example 2: The angel wept. The stones wept. The sky wept.

Anaphora - The partner of epistrophe, anaphora instead repeats a word or words at the beginning of a sentence. Also an emphatic device, it drums up emotion rather than hammering home a point.

Example 1: Mad world! Mad kings! Mad composition!  — William Shakespeare, King John

Example 2: She didn’t know if he would be fine. She didn’t know if she would be fine. She didn’t know if anything would ever be fine again.

Mesodiplosis – Like anaphora, this one has a hammering effect but the repeated words appear in the middle of successive sentences or phrases.

Example 1: “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed.” From the Second Epistle to the Corinthians.

Example 2: ‘I opened myself to you, revealed the dark and broken parts of myself to you, and then I gave myself to you, something I’d never done before.’

Anadiplosis – The use of a word at the end of the last sentence or phrase and then re-using it immediately at the beginning of the next sentence of phrase.  As soon as I read a proper explanation of this, I knew there was one in Star Wars. Can you think of it? If not, I’ve put it here as an example because I’m sure nearly everyone will be familiar with it!

Example 1: “Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” — Yoda, Star Wars

Example 2: You had to be hard as nails and more ruthless than the men. You didn’t dare bluff; you made threats. Threats that, if unheeded, were followed by messy examples. Examples that built a reputation on blood and death and then you protected it. Protected it to protect yourself.

Notice how many of these involve repetition of words? Usually we are encouraged to avoid repetitious words in prose, but as they say, there is an exception to every rule. Where used properly the repetition adds emphasis and meaning rather than sounding amateurish. The key word is properly; these aren’t meant to be dashed off thoughtlessly. They need careful consideration. You might find one struggling to come out of a thoughtlessly dashed off first draft, but rarely will you find one fully-formed.

With careful pruning and polishing, though, you can find the right places to use rhetorical devices for maximum impact, turning your prose into art and, even, sometimes poetry.

Caution: use your rhetorical devices sparingly! A little spice goes a long way.

Ciara is a writer of high fantasy. She has been reading fantasy since she was 9 and writing it since she was 11. Born argumentative and recognising the long road to make money out of writing, Ciara wisely invested her natural inclinations in a career in law. Follow Ciara on Twitter @CiaraBallintyne or visit her at www.ciaraballintyne.com

I think there are a lot of people who are scared to put what they feel down on paper. In fact I know there are. I used to be one of them. There are so many things that hold writers back from saying what they should be saying to their audiences. Fear of exposure can be crippling to the point of anxiety, or even worse: non-action. The book is postponed until someone passes away.  We worry about what they would think. The poems are kept locked in a drawer because they are about something sexual. We are not ready to reveal our truths. The article is never submitted because people will talk. We are afraid of bad publicity. Yep, I know all about that stuff, and guess what: it is only fear and you can beat it. I would not be telling you this unless I did it myself.

Over a period of ten years, I wrote fervently in a black and white composition book…make that shelves of them. Everything I encountered was inspiration for a poem, a song, an angst-filled rant, a short story or just notes that would be revisited later. Through a plethora of retail jobs I thought about how I felt as if I was controlled by managers who made me fold clothing and space items on shelves just so. I felt this pressure all the more while simultaneously putting myself through school. Two degrees later, and suddenly thirty, I looked back and wondered what I was afraid of. What did I have to show for all my denim folding and cocktail mixing?

In my teens and twenties I loved to go out. I thought about being a night-life writer because words seemed to flow out of thumping speakers in a descriptive manner that kept me grabbing cocktail napkins and coasters to scrawl poetry on. I didn’t pursue a writing position because I was scared I wasn’t good enough. I mean really I was writing on napkins…but so was J.K. Rowling if I recall her story correctly.

Even before I exploded onto the NYC club scene in what I referred to as a state of heightened inspiration, I was hanging out in Washington Square Park people watching and jotting down thoughts on life, love, loss and anything that graced my ever lurking stares. And the stuff I was jotting down for my eyes only? I must admit, it was some of the best jotting I ever did. But I thought way too much about what other people would think and therefore tucked my notebooks on the shelf between assigned reading and a healthy collection of beat poetry, tragic memoir and Plath leading the pack on poetry.

When the eleven year experience that was working full time and getting school wrapped up was coming to a close I developed severe anxiety. Yes there were many personal things happening that added to the condition. My transportation went kaput, my job was less than secure, my first love died in a horrible accident, and I had one of those professors that I strive never to become: think “My book is the text and therefore it is the way the truth and the light of this course.” I felt constantly trapped and angry that life happened to me and was out of my control.

This all led to more partying, less writing and a bunch of student loans and credit card debt as I doubted everything about myself, but doubted my writing the most. We all hear that we are our own worst enemies, but man did I terrorize myself. I thought my work was utter crap. Everything I got an A on in school made me think that I was just good at writing papers and that’s it. All the comments in my margins telling me I was a feminist version of Raymond Carver and suggesting I enter contests for short stories and poetry…must have been because the rest of the class wasn’t that good. Someone had to get praised didn’t they?

OK so I look at all the things I just said about my writing in the exact way that you do. Absurd result of insecurity is a phrase that comes readily to mind. How about: I wrote, I doubted, I hid every word. That about sums up my early writing experience. And I share it often. Distributing these words as widely as possible makes me feel wonderful. Not only do I see the folly in all this, but I have overcome it in a way reminiscent of a pilgrimage or facial reconstructive surgery or walking down the street wearing nothing but an ascot and platform Mary-Janes and feeling fine about it. Embracing my work was life changing.

So what made me do it? Realizing that I was all of a sudden thirty years old, and had barely seen my name in print when all I have ever wanted to be was a writer scared the shit out of me. I was an editor and professor and my list of publications was really, really small. So one day on a long commute home I resolved that I would put myself first. Did I do so immediately? Of course not! I procrastinated my ass off! But eventually I saw that there were chances I had to take in order to succeed.

After working in publishing and seeing some awful stuff get picked up by major imprints, and simultaneously seeing rejections of amazing material on a daily basis, I started thinking maybe…just maybe I could do it myself. Teaching writing gave me the perspective that I needed for my own work. For example every time I told someone not to be afraid of a pen I thought, “Why am I so scared of mine?” And suddenly a light bulb went on. I wasn’t scared anymore.

Beginning with small presses and websites that I thought were a fit, I submitted some of my work: a poem here, a story there, a scholarly article for good measure. Lo and behold it worked, and I began to grow as a person, as a writer, and as someone who knows that the world needs to hear what I have to say. The best part of it all? If the world didn’t want to hear it, they didn’t have to read it, and at least I was finally getting it all on paper in some semblance of order.

Blogging was a breakthrough for me. I built up a site and didn’t share it until I was ready. Pitching a website I thought looked fun was a lot less stressful than pitching a magazine that requires clips and a history of work. The best advice I got and love to share? Start small and you will see big results. So if you feel like you may be stuck, get unstuck just like you were taught. I literally wrote it: “I’m Stuck I’m Stuck I’m Stuck” until the stream of consciousness was flowing and the words hit the page. My world opened up and I felt free. Finding my writer’s voice was the best thing that ever happened to me.

Are you ready to find yours?

Read more about Keri English and LK Writers.

I wanted to take a moment to let you know of a very important cause I am donating too. Indies Unite for Joshua is a worldwide group of independent authors, publishers, filmmakers, and artists rallying to support a fellow writer. I hope you will stay tuned for this video series (below), which will introduce the primary donors. LK will be posting each video in the series in order to build support and donations. We hope that you will help Joshua. There is nothing left to do, but help each other.

Who are we and what’s the cause?

Joshua is the 21-year old son of author, Maxwell Cynn. Max writes speculative fiction, science fiction, and romance. His son has been diagnosed with Acute T-cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia. The cancer has invaded every part of his body: brain; spleen; liver; lymph nodes; and he has a mass in his chest. Joshua has had to suspend his studies while undergoing aggressive chemotherapy and will not be able to graduate this semester. With three-and-a-half years of a 4.0 GPA toward a degree in philosophy, his peers and professors consider him brilliant, as of course, does his father. Joshua would have been the first person in Max’s family to graduate college.

Who is contributing to the campaign? Check out one of the Indies Unite for Joshua contributors below: Al Boudreau.

How much are we raising?

$10,000 will pay for just some of the medical expenses not covered by insurance. It is a long road to recovery, and your donations will reduce the cost of prolonged cancer treatment.  We don’t believe in taking and not giving back, so we’re offering some amazing perks for your donations. It’s our way of saying “Thank you” for your support of Max, Joshua, and his family, as well as bringing visibility to a horrible disease.

Want to learn more? Click on the image below.

Please make donations at IndieGoGo http://bit.ly/wSy1y5 until May 30, 2012
Indies Unite for Joshua is a worldwide fundraiser for Maxwell Cynn’s son who’s fighting leukemia
Contact Maxwell Cynn at http://maxwellcynn.com/
Eden’s website http://www.edenbaylee.com
Twitter https://twitter.com/edenbaylee
JB Graphics http://www.john-beadle.com
Twitter https://twitter.com/jbgraphix

In the current economy it is important for all small business owners to manage dwindling budgets while keeping their marketing efforts as effective as ever. Here are top 10 marketing tips for a small business we found online absolutely free:

1. Advertise like a small business. Big corporations invest millions of pounds to see long-term results. As a small business you need results now so making sure each advertising effort contains an offer, discount or call-to-action that can be capitalized on immediately should be your priority.
2. Use social media for low-cost marketing that pays off. Building successful profiles on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn doesn’t cost you anything but can potentially catapult a small business to success.
3. Thank new subscribers. Acknowledging how important each new ‘follow’ and ‘Like’ is for you with a ‘thank you’ can entice new clients. People love to buy from approachable businesses so coming up with special offers to reward your social media fans can be a good idea.
4. Be flexible. If Pinterest is hottest at the moment, invest some time into making an impact on that platform. Learn to be versatile.
5. Study the marketing efforts of competitors and do something out-of-the-box. If your competitors are only using Internet marketing, go for the old school direct marketing. A strategically timed postcard with a coupon can bring in new clients.
6. Customize your approach. Customers love to buy from businesses that are ‘just like me’ – use this to win them over. If you are using email marketing personalize each email with a picture of you at work (if you are a family business do include family members and work settings) and a customized message that always includes your appreciation of each individual customer.
7. Encourage positive word-of-mouth. Distrust for bombastic media campaigns is strong and people believe their friends’ recommendations much more than empty promises. Find ways to reward existing customers who recommend your product or service.
8. Set up joint promotions. If you know another small business that can team up with you, it is a good idea to promote that business in exchange for their publicizing your products and services.
9. Diversify your marketing efforts. You know your potential clients well so target platforms where they are most likely to find your ad – online, in the paper or on the radio. Don’t despair if your budget isn’t enough for telemarketing – it’s better to place smaller ads in the paper or start an affordable SMS campaign than stick with a single approach.
10. Be consistent. Don’t give up and keep working – tomorrow you may go viral!

You can find more marketing tips online absolutely free but it’s worth spending on premium content for cutting edge advice.