Author Archives: Laurie Boris

About Laurie Boris

Laurie Boris is Associate Editor of Indies Unlimited as well as a freelance writer, editor, proofreader, and former graphic designer. Her first novel, The Joke’s on Me, was published through small press 4RV Publishing, LLC in 2011. Her second, Drawing Breath, is now available. She lives in New York’s lovely Hudson Valley with her very patient husband, Paul Blumstein, a commercial illustrator. Learn more about Laurie at her blog and her Amazon author page.

Getting it Right: The-Not-Always-So-Glamorous World of Advertising

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Okay, I’ll admit it: I’m not perfect. I made a horticultural error in my first novel, which a reviewer and gardening enthusiast was kind enough to point out to me privately. Now I’m extra-careful about getting it right. And we want to help you get it right.

So let’s talk about the wonderful world of ad agencies.

I was seduced into the advertising business by certain popular entertainment that shall remain nameless. It sounded like the career would be creative, fun, glamorous, and judging by the lifestyles of those in that popular entertainment, extremely lucrative.

As Humphrey Bogart says in Casablanca, I was misinformed. Continue reading →

One Writer’s New Year’s Resolutions

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Lose twenty pounds? Drink less coffee? Save more money? Piffle. Those common New Year’s resolutions are for amateurs. I need that caffeine. Plus, Weight Watchers still has a restraining order against me for taking off a little too much clothing before getting on the scale. SO, as a writer and editor, here’s what I’ll be tackling in 2013. Continue reading →

Are You Ready For Boomer Lit?

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I’ve been reluctant to admit this in the past, but I am a Baby Boomer. Yes, I was born at the bitter end of the post-WWII American baby boom. Some have called my cohorts and I the world’s greatest gift to the Gross National Product, but some have tagged us as the most overindulged and narcissistic generation in the country’s history. (This from a country responsible for Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.) Continue reading →

You’re a WHAT?

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I am proud to call myself a self-published author.

To me, it rings of all the other “self” words I’ve been raised since childhood by independently minded parents to admire: self-determined, self-aware, self-starter, self-employed, self-made, self-centered, self-abusive…wait. Not that last two as much.

So why did this recent situation cause me to cringe? I’m at lunch with a colleague, a totally darling woman, and one of her friends joins us. Colleague introduces me to her friend as a “self-published” author. Seriously, I can hear the air quotes in her voice.

Wow. Suddenly I felt about six inches high. Continue reading →

Product Placement in Books?

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Even the casual TV or movie watcher may have noticed a recent barrage of product placement. Action heroes drive particular brands of black SUVs while the camera focuses lovingly on their nameplates. Cranky reality show judges sip from bottles labeled with the prominently displayed names of popular carbonated beverages, although what they’re actually drinking is anybody’s guess.

It’s all about the bucks, bucko. Production costs for movies and television shows are climbing so high that pretty much anywhere a set dresser can smack a well-heeled company’s logo, it sticks. Publishers, too, are feeling the painful pinch, and are always looking for the next way to cash in. Continue reading →

What Football and Marriage Taught Me About Writing

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Jets QB Mark Sanchez, photo courtesy of FoxSports.com.

Recently, I had a chance to scarf up a couple of pretty decent tickets to an NFL game. (American football, yes, I know, stop laughing, you silly round-ball kickers.) The New York Jets were playing the New England Patriots. I am a casual watcher of both teams, mainly when they’re winning, but my husband has been a die-hard Jets fan for most of his life.

Granted, the game was on Thanksgiving and I’d already made plans with my family, but as my office mate took a pass on the opportunity then subsequently offered it to me, this stream of thoughts flowed through my head: Continue reading →

The Basics of Beta Readers

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Photo courtesy of Eliza Stryder @ Photobucket

I see you out there, your fingers aching with that sweet, sweet pain of finishing a novel. You have a sense that someone should look at it before you publish. The neighbor’s babysitter, perhaps, because she has a degree in English? Okay, it’s in English muffins, but that’s close enough, right? Or maybe someone said you should have a beta reader. What’s that, some kind of telepathic fighting fish? Um…no. Continue reading →

This is Your Brain on Writing

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I used to write first drafts longhand. Yes, with my actual hands using a device they once called a “pen,” which is not the same as that stylus-thing you use at the bank or on your MaxiPad. And paper: lots of paper in lots of marble composition notebooks, at least fifty of which are currently on a shelf in my closet. Many trees died for my filthy habit. But I was not ashamed because they were bad trees, bad, misbehaving trees that jumped into traffic and collided with people’s cars. Bad, naughty trees.

Continue reading →