Part 3 : Newsletters, "Boogie" style

Let's look at your newsletters. Both Almost a Newsletter and Nutty Net Tutor are notable for their individual style - is that something you set out to do deliberately?
Well, yes and no. I didn't make an intentional plan and plot out exactly what my "style" was going to be, I just planned on being myself. I think success comes faster to those who are true to who they are... and who I am is a goofy, off-the-wall kind of guy with a small talent for words and graphics.

I did plan on having them be unique, and in ways that made it fun for me to write. When I set out to intentionally take my site from hobby to full time, I didn't want it to become just another job, so I made sure I built some fun for me into it.

You've been going a while now, so there's a lot of pressure to be consistently funny, interesting or wacky - does that ever get to be a chore? Where the heck do you keep getting the inspiration and ideas?
Boogie Jack's has been around since early 1997. I tell everyone I got this way because my older sister Sue dropped me on my head a lot when I was little. Come to think of it, I got kicked in the head by a horse too. I don't recommend that.

Really, it's just a matter of being observant. There are all kinds of things that happen in daily life that you can draw inspiration from. The trick is remembering them long enough to get it down in words. I've forgotten better stories than I'll ever write. Um...wait, I didn't mean to say that. Seriously though, inspiration is everywhere, you just have to be open to it.

Why produce the newsletters in the first place - what are the benefits?
The benefits are many.

1. If you're honest, you build relationships with your readers and they learn to trust you. Trust is essential to making friends and sales.
2. Your readers will offer you valuable feedback you can use to improve your website.
3. With high quality, unique content you establish yourself as an expert in your field and people will seek you out. My book deal came about, in part, because of my ezine success. The publisher was impressed with the subscriber numbers and with my website, but when Almost A Newsletter was named one of the Top 3 ezines on the Internet by Writers Digest Magazine, that was the icing on the cake. The next thing I know I got a call asking if I'd be interested in writing a book on web design.
4. You can sell advertising space to generate income from it.
5. People ask to reprint your articles, so you can get publicity without even trying.
6. It brings traffic back again and again and brings in new traffic when people forward issues to their friends and family.
7. You can trade ads with other ezines for even more publicity.
8. It opens up new linking opportunities only available to ezine publishers - more publicity (do you get the feeling publicity is important?).
9. It opens up networking opportunities where you can work with others for mutual benefit.

There are other reasons as well. From simple things like, it feels good to know others want to read what you have to say, to something overlooked by many, but still important - you make friends you'd have otherwise never made. Whether offline or online, you can't have too many friends.

Finally, Dennis, many issues feature quotes and wise words. Got one for our readers to take away and dwell on as they build their own websites and web businesses?
Oh sure...you ask questions to distract me and then you want me to say something smart! Pretty sneaky, Mark. How about...

Every decision you've made in the past brought you to where you are today. Every decision you make today affects the choices you'll have later. For a better future, make the right choices today. You're never too old and it's never too late. Find your dreams, and then take steps to make them come true. Take it one step at a time, one day at a time, and never give up. Your day in the sun will come.

It's either that one, or...eat a worm for breakfast and nothing worse will happen all day.