[stylist] FW: For all of you wonderful helpers, Virtual ribbon and hot keys

Sun Aug 10 19:09:28 UTC 2014

Bridgit,
I did contact the organization that provides my computer teacher, and found
it has nothing to do with D E S and I knew it was not Voc Rehab. It helps
people with independent living. When I described the problems, she said that
my teacher is the only teacher they  have for adaptive computer programs,
and indeed they are not qualified for the hard stuff. She was supposed to be
looking for someone who could work on both software and hardware problems,
but I have heard nothing and tomorrow it is five weeks since I have seen my
teacher.
I think I have chosen to bumble on with the helpful hints and strategies
from you folks, and simply to experiment, and manually shut down when it
crashes, and pray that it rebuilds itself after. I have an external hard
drive which I hope is saving everything, but I have a hard time coping
without using my  computer in the midst of deadlines.

Jackie
-----Original Message-----
From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Bridgit
Pollpeter via stylist
Sent: Tuesday, July 29, 2014 2:41 PM
To: 'Applebutter Hill'; 'Writer's Division Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [stylist] FW: For all of you wonderful helpers, Virtual ribbon
and hot keys

I did find out that JAWS 15 is the only version of JAWS that's
compatible with Windows 8. Not sure why, but it's unfortunate.

I agree with Donna that you should contact a superior with what the IT
person told you. That does not sound correct nor professional.

Bridgit

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Applebutter Hill via stylist
Sent: Tuesday, July 29, 2014 2:06 PM
To: 'Jackie Williams'; 'Writer's Division Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [stylist] FW: For all of you wonderful helpers,Virtual
ribbon and hot keys

Hi Jackie,
Actually, I did see this message before -- perhaps you sent it to me
individually. I did download Jaws 15 to my Windows 7 64 bit computer,
and I've been trying it out in demo mode. I'm seriously considering
buying it, as it works far better with MS Office 2010 than Jaws 12.

I'm sorry you are losing your help and transportation all at the same
time. Hopefully, your son's foot will heal up quickly and you will find
another helper for getting your poetry ready for submission. Still, all
of those wins! You are definitely doing something right.

I know several blind people who have assistants, and sometimes I think
about trying to hire someone to do some of the tedious things that take
up so much time, but I never get around to it. Of course, in the country
we have fewer choices to begin with.

You mentioned asking too many questions, and that some might not like
it. As a question-asking person, I understand the perspective, but there
just isn't any other way to get anywhere most of the time. If your
trainer from BVI feels that way, he shouldn't be working there. I still
think you should write to his superior with some of the nonsense he told
you. Cheers, Donna

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Jackie
Williams via stylist
Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2014 11:53 AM
To: 'Writer's Division Mailing List'
Subject: [stylist] FW: For all of you wonderful helpers,Virtual ribbon
and hot keys

I DON'T  think this message came through before. At least I did not see
it. Sorry for the delay. I am forwarding the one I  sent from my "sent"
section just in case.

-----Original Message-----
From: Jackie Williams [mailto:jackieleepoet at cox.net]
Sent: Wednesday, July 23, 2014 5:25 PM
To: 'Applebutter Hill'
Cc: 'Writer's Division Mailing List'
Subject: For all of you wonderful helpers, Virtual ribbon and hot keys

Donna, Robert, Barbara, Chris, Bridgit, and all, Yes, I made my deadline
yesterday of 21 poems off to the Minnesota Annual Contest. My aide
checked them and found just a few minor errors and did it within an
hour, and took care of the collating, and mailing requirements. I have
made a folder for all of the suggestions from you guys about my virtual
ribbon and possible hot keys. Since all are a bit different, it will
take me a little time to process this and try them out. I am so grateful
for the sincere interest, time given,  and the help. There is research
on what happens to writing time if one is active in answering all
e-mails if one is active in many facets of social media at the same
time. So I am doubly appreciative.  I have been caught in the same trap
if I do not remain a slave to checking e-mails every single day and
answering right away. So poetry contests throw me off. I have four more
I want to enter with deadlines all before Sept. 1. I am about to return
to no help for anything as my aide returns to her school job in a week,
and my transportation will come to a halt because my son is to have foot
surgery. The difficulty with poetry is that one may not have one little
error. I have gotten five awards last month, and two of them each had
141 entries. The second place awards meant that I had to be better than
139 other entries. A humbling experience. Butt a case where
perfectionism and knowing forms pays off. Donna, your comment about 32
bit and 62 bit rang a bell somewhere in my memory and I will get help
finding out what I have now in both computer and software. Somehow, I
thought a state qualified teacher was supposed to identify these things
for me instead of telling me to get my computer fixed and then call him.
I always ask many questions and it is possible that some people do not
appreciate this. Thanks again to all. Jackie

-----Original Message-----
From: Applebutter Hill [mailto:applebutterhill at gmail.com]
Sent: Saturday, July 19, 2014 3:18 PM
To: 'Jackie Williams'
Subject: RE: [stylist] Authors & Marketing: Sensitive Introvert to
Shameless Hawker - Abandoning Erroneous Expectations

Hi Jackie,
Thank you so much for all of your observations and support. I'm sorry
you're having such trouble with Jaws. Sounds like your instructor might
have messed something up. If Jaws isn't reading the ribbons, the setting
for Virtual Ribbons in the Settings Center may have gotten unchecked. If
you want to check, go to the Jaws window, alt+f and right arrow to the
utility menu and down arrow to Settings Center. It opens on a search
field, so type in "virtual ribbon" and enter. Down arrow to the results
(I only had one), and it should say "Use virtual ribbon checkbox ...
Either checked or unchecked. If it's unchecked, use the spacebar to
check it, tab twice to OK and spacebar to confirm the change. If that's
not it, I'm at a loss.

Yes, the whole marketing thing is a major drain on my time and
creativity, and I appreciate you saying that you almost resent my having
to spend so much effort on it instead of just writing. That's the way it
is though and it's good to know that low percentages of success is the
norm in sales. I admit that I am not very good at deliberately setting
aside time to just write. That should be my challenge going forward. I'm
trying to blog once a week, so that's something, though it's still part
of the marketing formula.

I'm also glad you wrote in, because I was beginning to think the post
didn't go through. I guess there just isn't much interest on this list.
Best of luck with getting your poems together and dealing with all of
the technical stuff. Donna

-----Original Message-----
From: Jackie Williams [mailto:jackieleepoet at cox.net]
Sent: Saturday, July 19, 2014 4:02 PM
To: 'Applebutter Hill'; 'Writer's Division Mailing List'
Subject: RE: [stylist] Authors & Marketing: Sensitive Introvert to
Shameless Hawker - Abandoning Erroneous Expectations

Donna,
I opened the link in your e-mail and heard the entire website excluding
the cloud of music. I just get overwhelmed, and my computer has a
mini-crash whenever I do something unusual. I found your article most
fascinating and it was particularly interesting in the percentages of
people needing at least 8 prompts of one kind or another to read a
particular book, and other such research you presented. Every time I
read a posting of yours,  I find more things about your life, the books
and articles you have already written, and the hurdles you have
surmounted to get where you are. Although I am approaching page  200 in
Apple Butter Hill, I have had a series of setbacks  with my computer and
the lessons I was supposed to get from D E S, I have been trying to get
my entries ready for Minnesota, and JAWS simply does not work, or talk
for the ribbon commands, and my teacher changed everything just before
this happened. I took refuge in reading Catherine the Great which I
could not put down for 26 long hours. Now, I am just trying to keep up
with the list, and back at trying to get my poems ready with a seeing
aide, and again looking forward to finishing "The Heart of Apple Butter
Hill." I almost resent that you have to spend so much effort and time
marketing instead of just writing what you want to anew. All of your
efforts have benefited those of us who were not aware that now, no
matter which way we choose to publication, we will have to be involved
in the marketing. With my utmost gratitude and respect for your body of
work.

Jackie
-----Original Message-----
From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Apple
butter Hill via stylist
Sent: Monday, July 14, 2014 8:18 AM
To: 'Writer's Division Mailing List'
Subject: [stylist] Authors & Marketing: Sensitive Introvert to Shameless
Hawker - Abandoning Erroneous Expectations

Hi Friends,

I'm copying this post below just in case any of you are interested in
self-marketing. At the end of the post, there is a Sound Cloud player
with an accessible play button, but it doesn't translate to email. If
you want to hear "The Rules of the Game" or leave a comment using the
link to "Accessible Comment Form for Screen Reader Users," you will need
to go to this link:

http://donnawhill.com/2014/07/14/authors-marketing-sensitive-introvert-t
o-sh
ameless-hawker-abandoning-erroneous-expectations/

Enjoy,

Donna

***

Authors & Marketing: Sensitive Introvert to Shameless Hawker -
Abandoning Erroneous

So, you succumbed to that craziest of temptations and wrote a book. Now,
whether you are one of the "lucky" ones who landed a publishing contract
or you did it yourself, you're starting to realize that you're the one
who has to do the marketing. The problem is that marketing is totally
foreign to your innermost nature. There are lots of suggestions out
there about building an online presence, developing niche markets,
mastering SEO (search engine optimization) and snuggling up to industry
professionals, but how do you get to a place where you're at least
halfway comfortable doing that stuff?

The Writer's Mindset

Whether we're embroiled in research or lost in our private worlds
conjuring up scenes and scenarios, the writer is motivated by a few
simple principles, and truth is at the bottom of each of them. We stare
into our characters, and using our accumulated understanding of
humanity's flaws and foibles, we fashion plots and conversations that
shed some light on something that matters to us.

When we're done, we want to show off our baby and have people coo about
how beautiful it is. We've put so much of ourselves into our work that
it takes a monumental effort to steel ourselves for criticism of even
the most benign nature.

But, steel ourselves we must -- and not merely to function in the role
of hearing out our critics. The truth is that getting the public to read
our work is no easy task, and there has probably been little in our
lives to prepare us for the realities of marketing. Some writers will
feel like they're pimping out their child. Others will be easily
discouraged by the lack of enthusiasm from a public that doesn't seem to
care.

A Head's-Up

Here I am giving you advice, but who am I? Is my advice worth taking?
First, I'm not a successful novelist -- not yet anyway. My book's been
out a year, and for the first six months, I couldn't lift a finger to
promote it. My husband was feeling terrible when The Heart of
Applebutter Hill came out as an eBook, and mere weeks after the print
edition hit the market, he was in a full-blown crisis of extreme and
unmanageable pain.

I was in fulltime research and advocacy mode. Six months later after a
myriad of complications and medical snafus, he was diagnosed and treated
for Neuro-Lyme disease (Lyme of the central nervous system). He has
permanent nerve damage. As of late November, I was able to start
spending some time promoting the book.

I don't have an issue with doing my own marketing. I had a head start.
Most of my career was spent as a singer-songwriter and recording artist.
No booking agent wanted to take a chance on a blind woman, so early on I
started doing my own booking and PR. I learned from my mistakes while
working as a street performer in Philadelphia's Suburban Station, a
center-city commuter train and subway hub. When they didn't want to
assign a writer to cover my happenings, the Philadelphia Inquirer and
other papers often published my press releases -- without any changes.
That's still happening and I'm still grinning about it.

I also learned about motivation and sales from tape recorded programs
from Nightingale Conant. The actual statistics may have changed, but the
principles are the same. People don't generally buy something after
hearing about it for the first time. The rule of thumb in the '80s was
that it took eight times for the average buyer to respond to an
unsolicited pitch. Sales is a matter of high volume and low percentages.

Failing Your way to Success

Most of us have at least twelve years of experience with schools, and
we're used to the idea of success (aka grades) having something to do
with percentages. To get an A, you probably needed 90%, and if you had
less than 60%, you failed.

There are many things that require accuracy that borders on one hundred
percent. It's not acceptable, for instance, for a surgeon to take out
90% of a cancerous tumor. Fittings for machinery have to come within
tiny fractions of being perfect. To bring it closer to home, a book that
has only 95% of its words spelled correctly isn't considered  to be
properly edited or well-written.

With all of this totally reasonable obsession with perfection, it is
understandable that writers are flummoxed by the results they get from
everything from letters to their friends and families to paid
advertisements. Coping with the realities of marketing requires that we
abandon our preconceived and thoroughly vetted expectations about
success.

An Example & a Suggestion

When I started thinking about doing school assemblies, I wrote letters
to the headmasters of twenty-five private schools in the Philadelphia
area. 5 of them hired me. Five is 20%. This was a targeted solicitation,
so we'd expect higher percentages than something random, but 20% is
still high. For random solicitations, I learned that even 5% was rare
and cause for elation.

I built on that initial success by obtaining reference letters and
including them in mailings to every school in the area. Now that I'm
promoting my novel The Heart of Applebutter Hill, I use the same basic
formula -- cast a wide net, rejoyce in small percentages, and use what
you catch to create your next net.

So, take heart, recalibrate your expectations and power up with a shot
of wisdom from "The Rules of the Game," a little song from <i>The Last
Straw</i> that I wrote to nudge myself onward and upward.

-- The Heart of Applebutter Hill - a novel on a mission:

http://DonnaWHill.com <http://donnawhill.com/>

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