Interview With Terry's Client Brenda Nixon

Today we're going to interview Brenda Nixon, client and author of the Birth to Five Book:

Brenda, your The Birth to Five Book is doing very well in the market and we’ve presently marketing your discipline book tentatively titled "Difficult to Discipline?-success strategies for getting your kid to mind." I know your primary focus is on speaking and promotion, but what are you working on next?

Thanks for your comments and observations about The Birth to Five Book. As a mom, conference speaker, freelance writer, author, and media guest expert on parenting, I'm always working on something, Terry. This week, I've prepared my Speaking Agreement and vitae for an Iowa hospital event, written my Discipline Tip sent to subscribers, written a blog entry for my co-authored "A Scrapbook of Christmas" Firsts, finalized plans to be a writers conference keynote, and submitted four stories to book compilations plus worked on my internet presence and networking through facebook and twitter. All that was besides getting my college-age daughter ready to return for her senior year and helping my other daughter who is desperately looking for a RN job. And I still feel behind . . . What's on the horizon for my writing career? I hope to continue promoting and see strong sales with my parenting title and get more book proposals written.

You’ve been really active doing interviews and programs and all types of promotion, what are you presenting programs on and to whom? How can people find out more about the programs you offer?

Quick answer: go to the "Where's Brenda?" page at http://www.brendanixon.com/. Most of my speaking and interviews are listed. If people want to find out more about my parenting topics or my education and experience they can find it on my website.

What is the best writing advice you have ever received? The worst?

Oh my, probably the best - and most often quoted - advice is to connect with other writers. The writing life can be lonely; if you want to remain fresh, enthused, and improve, you must connect with other industry professionals through online writers groups, critique groups, and at writers conferences. Hmm, I don't know if I recognize the worst writing advice. I've received bad reviews, bad rejections and bad treatment from others but can't say there's any advice on how to write that is off the chart.

What would you like to use this opportunity to say to people?

Write about what you know! If you know about child development and parenting and God has given you the gift of encouragement, then write from that vein. If you know airplanes and are a seasoned pilot, then write about that. Your passion and experience qualifies you to write on a given topic; going to writers conferences and improving your wordsmith skills will help get your work published. You'll hear other professionals tell you to stretch - get out of your comfort zone - and that is good advice when you're an experienced writer. But to begin your career, write fromyour heart's passion. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings wrote many works; some accepted and many rejected. But after she moved to a rural Florida hamlet where she experienced a strong passion for the land and the people, she wrote her best works: Cross Creek and The Yearling.

Thank you Brenda,

Terry