Success is a seductive word. It leads you to think there’s something more that must be achieved - some unobtained happiness that waits for your arrival. You strive and look forward, then pout when things don’t progress as quickly as desired. Is writing really that hard?

Do you think success means you must get published and paid? Or is success something that happens every day just because you managed to spend fifteen minutes writing?

Perhaps success comes with the completion of a goal. If you’ve always wanted to write an e-book, you’d be thrilled at the moment your first one was completed. Successful writers know that joy comes from a job well done.

Success could be staring you in the face right now. Perhaps the self-awareness of knowing you’re a writer is the greatest success of all. To know you’re meant to write, to set words on paper, to share thoughts in writing, is a conscious understanding of your literary talent. You know that writing is for you and you’re for it.

Whatever makes you feel successful, I believe that for you today. I believe you’ll attain your goals, develop your writing skills, and find joy in the work you do. I believe, and with my believing comes absolute certainty that the path you’re taking is the right one for you.

Know joy in the way you walk, for it is your unique journey through life.

I’m amazed, thrilled, and relieved that my Muse Online Writers Conference workshop is being well-received. I’ve got just enough participants there to keep me busy without feeling desperately overwhelmed.

Indeed, Creating an Impressive Writing Website is something that most writers are intensely interested in these days. We need that web-presence not only for marketing, but for training ourselves to be comfortable in the public eye. Yes, we writers tend to be reclusive, but selling our writing isn’t compatible with the hermit lifestyle.

There are seven sections to the workshop, and I’m posting one section each day of this conference.

1. How to make your site look professional
2. Learning from other sites
3. The joy of learning HTML and other cool web programming languages
4. Parts of a web document
5. Shortcuts that make site maintenance easier
6. Blogging tips
7. Search engine optimization (SEO)

My goal is that at the end of this workshop participants will feel more comfortable with the idea of creating their sites using plain HTML and a text editor, or a WYSIWYG program if they prefer it, and will have new resources and ideas for creating their own excellent and impressive websites. One of my teaching tools this year is a page of links to other writers’ sites… you’re welcome to check it out: Websites for Writers.

I have been designing websites for about twelve years now and for five years owned a web design business, Klamath Design. I’ve now converted my old web design site into a blog for telling people how to start their own web design business. I also have a separate Squidoo lens on this topic: How to Start a Web Design Business.

For those who weren’t able to be part of the conference… and for those I am meeting there, I just started a new message board for writers with websites: Write Web Now.

A year ago I volunteered to present a Muse Online Writer’s Conference workshop. My workshop is for helping writers create websites. I’ve never done anything like this before in my entire life, although I’m in my mid-fifties, and I was very apprehensive about the whole thing all year long.

As it turns out, I’m having a great time interacting with people in my section of the message board. I’ve prepared short conversation-starter postings to begin each day’s thread. Though some of the workshop presenters posted long, in-depth lessons, I’ve opted to keep mine very short (less than 500 words) because I know what an information-overload Muse Conference attendees can experience. I want to help and inspire without loading writers down with too much information all at once.

On Monday the topic was How to Make Your Site Look Professional, and today’s topic was Learning From Other Sites. Now, I’ve got to get back in there… I have a lot of author websites to critique!

In case you missed your chance to register this year, put this on your calendar for August of next year. That’s when the next registration should start. The conference, in October, lasts only a week.

My workshop ‘handout’ information is on the web: Creating An Impressive Writing Website.

Today, October 8, is Cephalopod Awareness Day. Really!

In honor of this auspicious occasion, I’m going public with my joy at being named a Giant Squid.

Over a year ago I started making lenses at Squidoo.Com - a web 2.0 site where people can make pages (called lenses) on any topic using convenient modules built into the pagemaker.

One of my first Squidoo lenses was Tips on Writing Middle Grade Novels. It has done quite well and brings in a lot of web traffic weekly. Some of my other writing-related Squidoo lenses are Creating and Using Your Writer’s Notebook and Books For Writers.

The site sponsors special clubs for people who work hard to excel at lensmaking, and I made it my goal to get into the Giant Squid club - for lensmasters who have made at least fifty quality lenses. As of yesterday, I’m IN!

What does this qualify me for? Well, I didn’t mention it until now, but the site does pay a bit for each lens. There’s more money involved if a lens is particularly popular. Being a Giant Squid with over fifty quality lenses qualifies me for a small boost in lensrank. This month I received the money earned in August: $61.61… not bad. But there are many other lensmasters who earn quite a bit more. Several earn over $1000 per month for the lenses they’ve made. Enough to pay rent or a house payment!

Now that I’ve made it to Giant Squid status, my plan is to promote each of my fifty lenses and optimize them for better SEO (search engine optimization). I’ll also be making fifty more lenses, and will aim for the Giant Squid 100 Club. I’m also planning to mentor a few Giant Squid hopefuls by doing critiques on their lenses.

My Squidoo lenses reflect my many interests, but of course writing and reading are major pursuits. I’ve created a lens to provide links to all my book and writing lenses: Literary Arts Lenses by LindaJM.

The advantages of Squidoo membership to authors are obvious. This is a congenial community where authors can share their insights on writing, or showcase their own books and writing life. Squidoo lenses complement blogs and can direct site visitors your way. If you’re interested in joining, please use my link. When you earn your first $15.00 (not hard to do) we’ll each get a small bonus payment.