I don't mean to be a stickler when it comes to legalities with writing, but I think it's important that there begins to be an understanding about what copyright means.  

Many writers will probably come back to you with the particular problem of copyright and the concept of what is legal to copy and what is not.  Okay, so do business people that want a specific idea or concept expressed in their own language.  

I can tell you endless examples of clients who have come up to me wanting "re-writes."  Read these articles and re-write them for me.  Read this book and re-write it for me.  In their mind, this entails new and unique content, which means it belongs to them and not the initial person who wrote it.  With this, they have justified this - I'm just "researching" the idea through this other person, and am using it to write my own materials.  

Wrong!

Seriously - this is the worst justification I have ever heard.  Not only is it plain and simple stupid, but it is also not true.  However, I realize... maybe someone doesn't know what copyright means. 

When you are talking about copyright, you aren't talking about words that can be re-written into your own words.  No.  Copyright is the ownership of intellectual property.  

If I have intellectual property, it isn't just the words that are important.  It is the IDEA behind the words.  My idea behind something that makes up this blog, for example, can't be read and re-written so someone else can have the same idea.  As soon as I post this, it belongs to me.  If someone takes it and re-writes it to use as their own, even with keeping the same title (which I see a lot), it still belongs to me because it's my idea, my words and my expression.  

So, here's where the confusion comes in.  Let's say that I'm writing a scientific report, but I don't know anything about it.  Okay - the information has to come from somewhere, right?  

But not just from one place, and not as a re-write.  That's the difference. 

If I'm writing something, I research 3 - 5 different places, then I write what I know from it.  In instances where I take information from it, I footnote it to give credit where it is due.  I keep my own ideas, my own atmosphere to the writing and I use my own intellect. I don't just take one person's whatever it is and then claim it as my own ideas.  Information is simply information.   But intellectual property belongs to the person who wrote the information. 

And on that, anyone who is re-writing things and not coming up with their own ideas... you shouldn't be thinking about writing anything at all.  If you don't have enough intellect of your own to come up with your own thoughts... well... then what are you claiming to be an expert about?

All right, with that said... I think it's time to wisen up and start offering what is truly unique about each and every one of our businesses.... not someone elses.  If anyone wants some good help with their writing, you know where to find me.

So, every writer has their tips, tricks, revisions and edits that they go through in order to create the little masterpieces.  However, in some of the strangest places, you can find the greatest tools of inspiration for writing even better.  

My suggestion for everyone who wants to write really well is to go out and buy Popsicles.  Of course, you have to get a certain brand.  The original popsicle brand is what I recommend for everyone.  

Not only does this give you a great summer snack, but once you are finished with the Popsicle, you get an extra treat of a joke.  

I summarize the process of eating a Popsicle the same as I would summarize writing.  With every lick, you have to work up to the punch line.  The climax is finding the answer, (which you usually find first), then finding the question.  

Oh, but there is more than that.  The jokes that are made are obviously written by a wanna be writer.  I totally admire them for finding the puns, the things in writing and the little jokes that completely make a Popsicle complete.  

So, if you want to be a really good writer, I suggest... go eat a Popsicle.  

Want some help with your writing?  Contact Orion Information Services at www.orion-services.biz. 

You all know how the saying goes... the right words are more powerful than a sword.  In the world of politics, it's how wars and peace is made.  It's how decisions are pulled through.  In a social world, it defines who someone is and what they do.  

In the world of business, it is the words that define who you are and what you offer.  I know, everyone thinks it is the logo and the colors and the location.  I'm here to tell you, those are all just builds up towards what you are going to say or write.  

The power of words in a business, when you get down to the mechanics of it, is whether you are going to fail or succeed.  And, it's going to define your mentality.  

Let's use this well - known example.  Let's say that I decide to go shopping.  I have the choice of two areas.  "Marie's Boutique" or "Wal - Mart."  Now, if you don't know anything about the two, which do you think is going to have more well built things.  In those two words alone, you have a complete definition of exactly what is carried in the store.  Now you have your power of words.  

I know, it moves beyond the names and into the sales copy, slogans and other areas of business.  But even with this, it is the words over and over again that define it.  Okay, here's a couple more examples.  Take these two sentences:

"The business is working on a rehabilitation program in order to help the economy."

"The business is working on a revitalization strategy in order to boost the economic standards."

Which business do you want to support?  Me, personally, I don't want to help a rehabilitation program.  But, I'm all about vitality.  

Even though it seems small... in the world of psychological thinking... it is HUGE.  So, before you just throw anything out there about what you want to say about your business, make sure that you are saying the right words.  

Want some word wisdom?  Contact Orion Information Services at info@orion-services.biz or visit our website at www.orion-services.biz.  

Here's to reaching the stars!

I don't care how pretty your logo is, how much you market and advertise or 'who you know in the business.'  The impression that you leave towards others is based on one thing - what you say.  

If you are working towards building the right business impressions, start with the words that click and show who you really are.  One false word could turn a potential customer off and have them running another way - meaning your competitor.  

Rule of Thumb #1: Never say what 'just comes to your head.'  I know it may seem funny, but practice saying what you want to say without a customer there.  That way, you can find the right things to say when they are there.  Nothing is easier than getting a potential client running the other way because you said something wrong.  It's not something you want to learn when you are on the spot.  

Rule of Thumb #2: Know the keywords that click within your industry.  Yep - there are click words.  For example, if you are in technology, your click word is 'turn key solutions.'  It grabs the right type of people towards you.  If you are in health, your key words are going to be things like 'looking better, feeling younger.'  They are cliche words that work on the psychology of someone every time.  

Rule of Thumb #3: Check your writing flow as well as your speaking flow.  You want to make sure that you have a well rounded set of words that represent you from every side.  This goes from your slogan to your sales copy to your articles to what you tell someone.  Don't miss a beat when it comes to being a wordsmith.  

The end result?  More customers, better impressions and overall results that will do what I love to help businesses with... shoot to the stars!

Want help with crafting your words?  Contact Orion Information Services at info@orion-services.biz or visit our website at www.orion-services.biz. 

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about writing and what it means to really write.  I have a lot of clients show up that are interested in the basics.  By that, I mean getting the information out, keeping with the rules and having a formulaic perspective and approach.  In fact, I had someone send me suggestions for my website that got thrown off with the little bit of creativity that I did use.

I completely value "professional and informational" writing, and if it is called for, I'll do it.  However, as I move along, I keep getting this creative itch to do something a little different.  Something.... beyond the rules.  

One of the aggravations that have been hitting me is the formula of writing that's appearing.  Not just in businesses, but also in fiction, novels, plays, even poetry.  A sense of having to write a certain way has taken over the desire to want to write in a new way.  

When I look at it, I realize that the classics, mainstays and literary memories and treasures aren't found in the formula.  It's found in knowing the formulas, such as character development or plot... then breaking it.  It's about taking those basics and turning it into elastic, which allows it to twist and stretch and move in a slightly different way. 

This is the magic that comes with writing - the capability to do something more, or different - to stretch what is already done or known and to move up a level with the words that are being given.  It's more than telling a story.  It's how that story is crafted and told and what it means.

If you want a great example of what I'm talking about, I recommend Carole Meso's "Break Every Rule."  There's a sample of taking essays and twisting the craft of it into something completely innovative and new.

Writing, let's say good and innovative writing, isn't just about getting the words on paper, or on the Internet, as the case is now.  It's how it's approached, the perspective it takes, the way in which the words shape the story and how it allows one to think.  

And that, is more than writing.  It's a masterpiece.  

Interested in having something written for you?  Contact Brooke at info@orion-services.biz or visit my website at www.orion-services.biz. 

For professionals and amateurs alike, there always seems to be some sort of mysterious process that goes into writing.  It's not one that is just about what type of thing you are writing, how it is being done or what takes place when it is in print.  

The process of writing is more than just putting words together.  It's not like the term papers where anything goes (sorry teachers, but you know that you let kids slack a little sometimes).  What I'm talking about is professional writing, where it takes a new level of effort in order to get it to work correctly and to be tweaked exactly right.  That's the difference between really letting your customers in the front door or just keeping them at a distance.  That's what the process of writing means.  

At a very basic level, you have the writing inspiration.  It's probably hit each and every one of us at some point - to write a book about our lives or our dogs or something that we can't get out of our head that is coming from somewhere.  I get into that frame of mind so much that most of the time, the inspiration is usually a simple phrase that I can't get out of my head.  

My suggestion after that point is to go for it.  There is nothing like making a mess out of words, tearing them apart and putting them together.  It's fun, beautiful and nothing beats it.  

That's when the when happens - after the writing's done.  The real process begins.  

That's right, I'm talking about editing.  However, unlike most think, editing is more than flipping around a couple of words, changing information and saying it's not quite right.  The process, craft and art of editing is truly getting into the meaning of what needs to be said and what the atmosphere of the piece is.  It's thinking about what the writing needs to be, and making the changes later.  I emphasize thinking because it takes more than a first reaction to really figure out what works and what doesn't.

Along those lines, here's a great story.  I heard of a client who went to a writer and asked to edit some things that had been written before.  The very next sentence from the client was that they actually hadn't read the piece yet.  I think it's funny, because the art of editing can't work unless there is a certain level of understanding of what the writing is really about.  The client talked to the writer for over a half an hour, but no changes could be made to the writing, because everything was contradicted or actually had been done. What was needed was to step back, think and really figure out how to craft the whole thing together.

Editing is reaching perfection in writing and making sure that the communication is absolutely clear.  If you have another writer for you, this is really the time to show that you understand and respect the inspiration that has been reached and work constructively in the tweaking process.  I always ask my customers to take a good week to really look over the piece, reflect over it and see what is needed.  The inspiration and major footwork should be done from the beginning.  Now, it's time to see how exactly the words will help you shine.

In fact, I will even move to say that editing is the real inspiration of any good piece of writing.  The persistence to reach the best state of perfection is definitely something that can only come from a place of honesty, integrity and vision about what words mean to you and what is being represented.

So, what are you doing after the writing's done?  Are you allowing yourself to be inspired?