I have fun painting. But I won’t ever get all artsy-fartsy on you and call myself an artiste.

It’s something I enjoy. I love playing with the colors. And I love having captured a moment in time – what I was feeling at the time I painted the piece.

So months before Miss T was born, I messed around with large canvas and decided I would paint her a field of flowers for her bedroom wall.

I hated it. Well, not outright hated…but I disliked it intensely. Not sure why. But I did.

So it sat in the garage and mocked me every time I walked by. I thought about messing around with it. I thought about completely painting over it and starting anew.

And then I was perusing my beloved Etsy and came across a cool idea of canvas + ribbon = hair goody holder

Loved the idea. Especially since I am accumulating more baby barrettes and headbands for Miss T.

So I took the once hated painting and my scraps of ribbon and mini clothespins…

And then I added Miss T’s budding collection. It’s turned out to be a painting I LOVE since it’s cute AND super useful.

I look at trash differently these days. I wonder what I can do to reuse, recycle, upcycle and all that eco-friendly stuff.

My current thing? Making flowers. Because flowers are pretty.

And why not have flowers that stay in bloom 24/7?

So I’ve been making these light cardboard flowers that take your typical recycling trash.

Who woulda thought that a Bud Light with Lime box could make some little lovelies like this –>

And, because my son strangely thinks that over-priced Smuckers Uncrustables PB&J sandwiches are somehow different and oh-so-better than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich made by yours truly, I had one of those boxes leftover and made these….

Lots of pretty found in things that I used to toss in the blue recycling bin without another thought.

You can easily make these yourself. Just get some paper punches at your craft store. I like to use a circle and then a slightly smaller flower punch. Then I hold them together with a small metal brad. They can be used to create a cute bouquet of flowers that never die (Just get some floral sticks, or popsicle sticks, etc. – just use a little imagination) or to embellish cards, gift wrap, scrapbook pages or journals.

Don’t want to make ‘em? I sell these in my GoFoInFa shop on Etsy.

What would you use these paper flowers for?

As a book ghostwriter, I get approached by many people who say, “I’ve always wanted to write a book.”

Sometimes, the person knows exactly what she would write about. What might be holding her back from actually writing the book is a whole ‘nother post in itself.

But what about those people who don’t know? They know they want to write a book – either for print or web distribution – but they don’t have the foggiest as to where to go from there.

Obviously, a ghostwriter can’t help you when you don’t have an idea. I can’t write what you don’t give me. And I need you to give me at least an idea.

But what I can do is help you spark that idea. I can talk to you about why you REALLY want to have a book. Because when you get down to the nitty-gritty, you can usually pull something out of a person and that’s when the ideas start to flow.

First off – think about if you want the book to be personal or professional.

Personal books may be something along the lines of a family story, your own battle with a medical issue, what you’ve learned over the years as a collector of thimbles…whatever. And EVERYONE has a personal story to tell. Okay, so some are more interesting than others, but still, everyone has at least one story inside of them.

Professional books are typically geared toward what you’ve learned in a given industry or profession. Perhaps you want to further your company’s brand. Or tell the world about your unique hiring process that guarantees finding top-notch employees.

Both books can make money. Note the “can.” Some personal books are so personal that they have a ultra tiny target audience. But then, you can have a great professional book with a non-existing marketing plan and make little to no money.

So…go back to the whole “I want to write a book” thing.

Why?

If it’s to make money, then you need to pick a topic (be it personal or professional) and an angle that can be a money-maker.

If it’s to have the sense of accomplishment that goes along with having a book and calling yourself an “author,” then you’ve got some leeway with whichever direction you decide to write on.

But I bet, whether you know it or not, you have a book lurking in there somewhere…

So is your book personal or professional? Or perhaps a little of both? Spill it!

A few weeks back I signed up as a “source” on Help A Report Out (HARO) and since then I’ve been getting emails that are really quite fascinating…

The whole idea behind HARO is that there are journalists out there looking for anything from an expert physicist to your average Joe. The journalists contact HARO and explain what they’re looking for. Then the request gets sent out to all the “sources” on the email list.

Are you a “source” or a journalist? Perhaps you’re both!

If you have a blog or write on any sort of level…depending on what you’re writing on, you just may need to find some people who can provide the expertise or first-hand knowledge of what you’re writing about.

And as a source, you may stumble upon a request to interview people who have just gone through the same exact predicament as you! So you contact the journalist, make your pitch as to why you can be of help and then go from there. The possible link love and publicity you can get off of something like that is what you’re hoping for here.

I haven’t seen anything yet that fits me personally as a source, but I have passed it along to some of my clients when I saw the need for experts in my clients’ respective niches. (yes, a little “thinking of you” marketing via email)

And I know I’ll be using it in the near future as a journalist – looking for people to interview on WAHMBizTips…when I do that, I’ll be sure to post about the experience from the journalist’s perspective.

So what are you waiting for? Go check it out…

Okay, kinda open for business. As I’ve mentioned before…I get a lot of business ideas. Some good, some great…some that are better off staying in the recesses of my brain.

But the whole work-at-home thing is very near and dear to my heart. I did it when my son was a baby. Had to stop when I went through a divorce. And now I’m back to it thanks to the awesome support of my husband. I LOVE LOVE LOVE working from home! I can’t say enough about it.

When other moms ask me how I do it, and how they can work from home and either 1) make a living from it, 2) make enough to help out or 3) just make some extra moola – I love to talk about my experience and what opportunities are out there, blah blah blah (really, I could go on and on about the whole work-at-home thing). I love to help out others and if working from home is what they want to do, I’m more than happy to help point them in the right direction, give them feedback, brainstorm and strategize.

So…WAHMBizTips.com is all about – you guessed it – work-at-home business tips. But oh so much more.

There will be WAHM interviews. Reviews of WAHM sites and WAHM products. Discussion of types of WAHM businesses. Dissection of WAHM jobs. I’ll even cover some other WAHM issues such as parenting (aka working with little ones underfoot), health (yes, you need to take care of yourself!!) and WAHM guest posts.

Are you excited?? (okay, pretend if you have to…just go with the flow and nod your head). Because I am!!!

Yay! 72HourBrainstorm is now live!

Because I am a business and marketing junkie and talk about it during “normal” everyday conversation with family and friends, it hit me upside the head that we were always coming up with cool ideas. Tag lines, business names, you name it.

Over the next couple of weeks and a few more conversations with some colleagues, 72HourBrainstorm was conceived. Marketing ideas (business names, ad and business slogans) and materials (sales letters and press releases) with a turnaround time of 72 hours or less. And, just to keep things even more simple – for $72 each!

Check it out for yourself. Visit 72HourBrainstorm and let me know what you think.

For a limited time, you can get 3 FREE ad or biz slogans! Seriously – FREE! All I’m looking for in return is a testimonial! You get 3 FREE original slogans for your business and I get a testimonial for the website…and we’re all happy!

In the spirit of the whole networking thing, I’ve joined a few sites in order to rub cyber elbows with fellow entrepreneurs, writers, business owners…you name it!

Want to join me? Send me an invite or add me as a friend…I promise I won’t bite! Here are the links were you can find me:

Twitter

Facebook

LinkedIn

I have been active on the forums at WAHM.com for a few years…especially the Real Estate board. But recently, I also joined the following forums which, if you don’t already visit, you may find fairly useful yourself!

Digital Point

Warrior Forum

I’ve been thinking about deadlines a lot. As a writer, I typically have a lot of deadlines. And I always meet them. I’ve never disappointed a client (or myself) by being late. In fact, I’m pretty conservative with my turnaround time because I want to make sure I have a buffer in case some emergency pops up. You just never know…

But for my own projects…my deadlines seem to come and go. It’s pitiful!

So what I’ve done is impose on myself the idea that every single day is the day before vacation. Whether you work for yourself or you work for “the man,” you know the crazy dash to get stuff done before you head out the door to go on vacation. Somehow, you manage to scramble around and get countless things done in an insane timeframe that you would never think possible. And of course it is possible. It’s just not the norm for day-to-day work.

So here at Casa McAllister, every day is the day before I go off on vacation. Of course, I really would love to head off to some tropical destination. But until that time comes, I can pretend. I’m a writer, for heaven’s sake. I’ve got imagination to spare!

So instead of really cool vacations, the next best thing? Really cool contests! If you haven’t come across the Freelance Folder, you should check it out. I take a look several times a week to see what kind of tips they come up with. And right now, they are kind enough to be running a contest. Check it out and enter! You never know, it could be your lucky day!!

I don’t know about you but there are times when I think the idea factory is all dried up. Creativity has flown the coop. The imagination is on a train ride to nowheresville.

And then something cool hits you square in the face and it’s like: Hell yeah!! Bring it, baby!

I’ve been writing for years. And I’ve been involved in business for years. (When your dad owns a business and you start working there at 14, you get sucked in. Family business can consume you for good and for bad.) So business ideas, marketing campaigns, writing anything from sales copy to books…it’s like second nature to me.

But sometimes when things are more close to home…my own projects…it’s easy for things to get clouded. Heck, they take a backseat to my clients’ projects all the time. So it shouldn’t be too surprising that at times it’s harder for the thoughts to flow when it comes to my own stuff.

In the previous post I mentioned the changes a-happenin’. And they are! My awesome web guy Vince has already made a bunch of changes for me. And on my biz sites page you can see the run-down of what’s currently on my plate in one form or another.

But today I got a flash of something else to add to that and I’m itching to get started.

YAY! The idea machine is crankin’!!!

Did you know July is National Anti-Boredom Month?

Uh, yeah…I just stumbled across that shocking and most exciting bit of news myself.

I haven’t been bored for quite some time. I have too much on my plate to have a moment to get bored!

But I’ve noticed my 4 year old just picked up the “I’m bored” bug. How the hell he came across that little golden phrase I have no idea. I’m pretty sure my mom (who watches him while I work) doesn’t say it. And I’m pretty sure his dad (who is a busy author, speaker, credit expert workaholic) doesn’t ever say, “I’m bored.” So where the kid picked it up is beyond me.

But…it made me think. And google. I found Anti-Boredom e-cards. And some Anti-Boredom tips.

How do I think people should tackle Anti-Boredom month? For those business owners out there, I say: check out your marketing material! Change it up! Add some spice. Make it “non-boring!”

I know that this month I will be making some changes to this site. And also to my business site.

Look at your site. Look at your print material. What could use a little oomph? You don’t want your targets to be bored, do you? Embrace Anti-Boredom Month and get a little somethin’-somethin’ going on with your materials!