Professional publishing vs. independent publishing

I am in the process of writing a book that I have been researching now for two years. I had dreamed of completing it by now, but that was an unrealistic goal for a full time student and part time worker. So the book remains written in my mind, but I am determined to take this novel from a dream to a reality. I have researched popular publishers in an effort to better prepare myself for publishing my story, and all seem overwhelming. When Tom mentioned instant publication through Amazon I became extremely excited. My story is one that won't be written for fame or money but for myself, so publishing one copy would be as big a success as publishing a thousand copies for me! Of course, I would be very proud if other people were to enjoy my story, but that is not my main goal. The dilemma I face is if I publish an unedited version of my story, will that hinder the possibility of someone else fully enjoying what I have written? Tom discussed the benefits of editing and the trials of it as well, that an author must be fully capable of handling critique and working with an editor. This seems easier said than done. I would want to have my manuscript professionally edited before publication, but for a story I intend on investing years on, will I be able to handle making significant changes to my story for the sake of selling my story? As I mentioned earlier, I am writing this story as a personal goal, and not for the profits it might create. Tom's lecture has left me with alternative options for publishing, and now I must decide (when the time comes) whether to take the easy way out and Amazon publish or seek professional help to make my dream a reality.

Die Commercials Die!

Was there ever a time when advertisements did not exist? And what does one consider an advertisment in the first place? Is it the "Sale" sign next to that gallon of milk you bought the other day? Or is it the coupons you recieve every sunday in the paper? Once upon a time I'm sure that was a companys dominant form of advertisement, but in an era of globalization and instant communication are these simpler, less in you face, forms of communication practical anymore?

In The Persuaders it is mentioned that Americans are becoming immune to advertisements. Tivo is allowing us to fast forward through commercials, and we have been so exposed to advertisements in almost every aspect of our lives they've become a background setting rather than center stage. The Persuaders went as far as to suggest American's stop advertising because they are not bringing in enough revenue. The problem with that is that company's are afraid to stop advertising because they will quickly be forgotton about. So we are at a point where a vicious cycle swallows billions of dollars, company's advertist more to stay in the game and less people respond to the advertisement because it's "just another ad."

As much as I want to live in a world where one hour of tv time doesn't consist of 20 minutes of commercials, driving past bright flashy moving billboards doesnt almost send me careening off the freeway, and I can watch my favorite tv show without wondering if the nike shoes every character is wearing is not a coincidence, I realize this is unlikely. I want to be that person who stands up against advertising, end this insanity that is becoming American culture! Unfortunately, as much as I hate being bombarded with advertisements I am a business major and will need to market my business in the future if I want it to stay alive. I just have to be careful not to get sucked into the world of advertising.

Professional Texting- Timing is Everything

I work in a restaurant with nine people in my department. It is a part time job and schedule flexibility is an excellent perk for college students. Everyone in my department has the freedom to trade shifts with one another, and this is primarily accomplished via the phone. We all have eachother's cell phone numbers and when we need a shift covered we typically send out a mass text to all employees in our department explaining which shift needs covering. Whoever texts that individual back first asking for their shift gets it. This mass texting can be helpful, but it has also proven to cause some work related issues.

When considering texting as a form of professional communication I have to consider all the reasons why this communication method can be considered professional. The text messages I recieve are work related, they are typically worded in a professional manner, and what sometimes occurs regarding the text messages has proven to cause some workplace conflict- depending on factors such as wording, timing, and frequency. A majority of students in this class have cell phone and texting abilities, and most of us have our phones near us at all times. Many of us have undoubtably experienced the 2 am text or phone call waking us up, and I doubt anyone truly enjoys being woken up by this, especially if its a text from a coworker asking you to cover a shift.

The recent professional communication I've had regards a situation similar to the one described above. When I recieve a text after midnight by a coworker asking me to cover a shift the following day, then again shortly after 6 AM because I haven't responded to the 1 AM text, my blood boils a bit. So naturally I respond "no I will not cover your shift, please do not text me during these hours of the day because I am sleeping." To me, this is a lot nicer than the "text me again and I will smash your phone into pieces" text I wanted to send. I recieve a text back (at about 8 AM when I am also usually sleeping) saying "I have you in a group contact and send a mass text to everyone in that group, it's too much work to text everyone individually, if you have a problem with it put your phone on silent, for real, like its not even a big deal." Ironically at this point I just laugh to myself at the absurdity of this person and drop it. However, when I am at work with this person there is obvious tension between us due to this texting ordeal.

Now that we are in a new age where texting has been incorporated into our work life I feel it is important for people to understand texting etiquette. The problem I have with these text messages wasn't what was said (initially atleast!), but the timing at which I recieved them. We have spent this class learning about what statements create underlying tones in professional writing, how to use ethos, pathos, and logos to convey messages to target audiences, etc., but what about the appropriate time to send messages using certain mediums? Email typically doesn't cause conflict depending on the time it arrives nor do letters. But what about phones?

We must consider texting as a form of professional communication and depending on what job you have, the timing of when we send these texts must be considered for it does have a negative affect on people, regardless of how well written the text is.