FACTS AND MORE FACTS

As a journalist I depend on others to fill in facts and figures; fiction is so much easier, it just has to SOUND right! (just kidding)

 

That's why I will often send queries to actual, formal Press Offices, because I want to know that what I am writing is accurate. I don't know why but especially in the more recent years I find that Press Offices don't always bother to return a response. I would even appreciate a "Sorry, we can't release that information…" or "We don't have the answers you are looking for…". It's frustrating to wait on an article simply because the experts you went to have decided to remain quiet.

 

Yeah, I am complaining. With all of the misinformation that gets spread around lately, I really would like to know that what I am typing at least borders on the truth. I never quote a particular source unless I receive permission to do so — so there shouldn't be a reason to be afraid to answer. I just want to be sure that if I am, let's say, giving a step-by-step of auto repair, that I am actually getting it right. (I would hate to refer to "the thig-a-ma-jig" just to find out that the car doesn't even have one!)

 

We all, myself included, have complained about journalists who can't seem to get their facts straight. Well maybe this is part of the problem, the folks we turn to for information are not at all forthcoming. Now I won't tell exactly which sources haven't bothered to respond, but I will say that at least some of them actually have the words "PRESS OFFICE" in their titles. It would seem to me that if a reporter needs information, a Press Office should be a good place to start.

 

Okay, enough complaining… I have to start writing an article on very little confirmed information. I will do my best to research other sources and will strategically use terms such as "it appears to be" or "a few sources intimated that it was". I will do my best to inform as honestly as possible.

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#MondayBlogs ~ Social Networks

It seems like there are a lot of folks today that are ANTI-Social Networking. I can understand that if you are limiting yourself to the computer screen and ignoring family and friends in REAL TIME… but what about the people who aren’t surrounded by others like shut-ins, or the folks who live quite a distance from family and just want to stay in touch? I am sure there are a dozen more (at least) valid reasons to LIKE FaceBook, Twitter, Google-plus, Pinterest, Instagram and other such networking opportunities. And don’t ignore the targeted forums like Growing Bolder, LinkedIn, Emergency Service chat-rooms, and chronic illness sites.

I spend a lot of time on sites like FaceBook and Twitter and visit several others frequently; for me a lot of that time has to do with my career as a writer (both author and journalist). I network with others for information, promotion, learning more about my craft, and (because I work from a home-based office) for a pseudo-office water cooler experience. As a journalist I do research on a wide variety of topics and once I query a few search terms I never know where the results will lead me. As an author I use the internet, including blogs and email, to connect with readers. But most of all, I love the fact that social media has given me a chance to re-connect with childhood friends and school alumni even if we are no longer around the corner from each other. And I can stay in touch with long distance family on a more frequent basis than our busy schedules permit via phone or handwritten letters.

There are ways to limit who sees your posts so that the relatively personal family stuff isn’t shared worldwide for everyone, of course marked private or not you should never post the really, really intimate details online. Since I want my online presence to be an “open book” )please excuse the pun from this author), I maintain two FaceBook accounts: one is for personal use and one is for anything related to my writing and my readers. During the average day I flip back and forth between my actual work (research, writing, business records, etc.) and then spend some time checking up on friends and family online.

I notice a lot of people alternately take time off from online, surprisingly most of these people are indeed missed when they are gone. Sometimes I have to wonder if they realize that they have become vital presences in other people’s lives. I have some friends and family that have come off of FaceBook entirely and they are truly missed — while I do have real-time dealing with them, there are times I just want to send them a post, pass along a meme or just send them a smile.

If you are online please feel free to some check out my sites, like me on FaceBook, follow me on Twitter and Google-plus and say HI. Thanks!

FaceBook   https://www.facebook.com/AuthorChelleCordero

Twitter   https://twitter.com/ChelleCordero

Google+   https://plus.google.com/u/0/+ChelleCordero/posts

Gotta' Love the Business

Like many authors, I have “another job” – however my other job is also as a writer going by the name of Chelle Cordero. I’m a freelance journalist and I have a few regular clients. Aside from having more income opportunities in a career I love, working on a variety of projects in any given week is also a terrific way to beat writer’s block; when I am stuck on what word to write next I merely switch projects and the creative juices start flowing freely again. Such is the writer’s life.

As a novelist I write romantic suspense, a few novels centered around EMS mystery and most recently paranormal suspense. As a journalist I write about little black dresses, home furnishings and repairs, gardening, auto dealerships and finances – and a few more topics. I also write a monthly column about New York State Emergency Medical Services issues for a trade paper. These are my fairly regular gigs. On occasion when I get lucky I manage to get an assignment for a random publication as well. All these topics can get pretty confusing when I jump between topics, but it also presents lots of strange events which get written into my fiction.

I won’t deny that I love seeing my byline, it’s an ego thing. I also love to see my name on the spine of a book or at least listed next to a title at an online book retailer. Every so often I get a random phone call from a distant friend or an email from a reader asking if it’s the same Chelle Cordero that writes spicy novels and articles about senior dating and green living; I write for a syndicated service that provides special supplements to newspapers throughout North America so I never know where my articles will pop up.

In addition to the myriad of topics that I enjoy researching, I have the privilege to work with some pretty great editors and the chance to hone my style for each publication. By now I am sure you have heard the heaps of praise I have for my managing editor at Vanilla Heart Publishing where most of my fiction comes from; I also have huge respect for the other editors I’ve been lucky enough to work with. It’s no wonder I love my career.

I would love to hear from you whenever you read something I’ve written - like I said, it’s an ego thing. For a complete list of my books, take a look here, for a complete list of my writing credits go here. And to see samples of my books or some samples of my articles. 

(P.S.: I sure won’t mind if you let my editors know how terrific a writer you think I am...)