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This first appeared in the July 1997 issue of Cygneture, a publication of the Self-employed Writers & Artists Network, Inc. SWAN, Inc. is currently known as NJ Creatives Network.

WEBWORKS

Beyond the obvious value of having my material accessible on-line, It soon became clear that I also benefited from my association with and exposure to other SWAN members. Before I started this adventure, I knew many members by name, but I never had much involvement beyond helping out in a few trade shows, and [the dreaded] putting away the chairs at the end of the meetings. Now, I'm not sure if anyone in SWAN doesn’t know who I am and what I do.

Although I didn’t plan it this way, today ALL of my income is derived from website design, implementation, and hosting. It was fortuitous to have spent (literally) hundreds of hours developing the SWAN website. It is a great portfolio piece, and has resulted in business that more than justifies the investment in time I would have had to spend anyway learning what I did along the way. It is just that much harder to get clients to pay for it, or to spend the time when you need to produce, not self-educate.

Volunteering your time and effort for SWAN has benefits, real, substantial, verifiable, and justifiable. So, what are you waiting for? It is not going to unless you make it happen. Get yourself in gear, get your samples on the web, get involved. Do it NOW!

— Stan Cohen

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This first appeared in the May 1996 issue of Cygneture, a publication of the Self-employed Writers & Artists Network, Inc.

WHAT YOU MISSED

SWAN is now on the Internet

Is the Internet a valuable advertising/promotion medium that will convey the skills of SWAN members to a broader business community? Or is it simply the latest "hot" medium that members must use to stay current with the rest of the business world?

Over the next year, an effort led by vice president Patti Gandolfini will find out. The SWAN board has approved joining the World Wide Web. The name of the SWAN website is now: http://www.njcreatives.org

The site has been established and designed by Stan Cohen as SWAN webmaster. Included on the site will be membership and referral information, the Code of Performance, meeting information, Cygneture, etc.

Members will choose if they want a listing at the SWAN site. (New members will be added immediately.)

Under Phase II, members will be asked if they also want a portfolio page on the SWAN site, at an annual cost of $20 for four images, or $40 for 10. To convert text and graphics for these pages into digital information, Ted Thomas is organizing SWAN photographers to perform this service. Another group will design web pages for members. Costs for both services will be minimal.

Follow SWAN mailings and attend meetings for further updates.

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This first appeared in the July 1996 issue of Cygneture, a publication of the Self-employed Writers & Artists Network, Inc.

Words from the Webmaster

For SWAN members who are not versed in HTML but want a portfolio page on the Net, SWAN is providing this service. Stan Cohen, SWAN's webmaster, also spoke to members about what they need to provide in order to have a portfolio page in the SWAN website. He reminded members that clients want to see what they have, not just read it. Therefore, writers in particular should provide logos, covers, or mastheads to accompany text. Photographers have to make sure that they pick discernible images.

--Luisa Frey-Gaynor, writer

Website Update

All SWAN members now have their directory listing on the SWAN Internet site, reports webmaster Stan Cohen. But more need to take advantage, he said, of the ability to modify their listing and develop a portfolio page for the website. It is not too late to do so, he added. A summer mailing wll provide more details about how to submit material for your own page

The listing at the website is free for all members. A portfolio page for four items costs $20 annually for the space and $50 to scan and assemble the portfolio; a portfolio of 10 items costs $40 annually and $125 to scan and assemble the portfolio. See Ted Thomas for details.

To bring potential clients to its website this summer, SWAN will give search engines, like Yahoo or Webcrawler, key words (illustrator, designer, etc.). Then, to help such clients find the right SWAN artist, designer, etc. to match their needs, Cohen is devising a second list of key words (e.g, children's books, logos, line art, pharmaceutical, fashion, etc.). These key words will be drawn from the members' own listings.

Diane Berson has helped Cohen prepare information for the website.

How one writer set up his page

Here's how easy it was for me to create my home page on the new SWAN website. I selected four different types of writing , along with a magazine logo, cover, or illustration to go with each sample.

For scanning the graphics, I used the affordable services of webmaster Stan Cohen. Then I highlighted two or three lead paragraphs in text format to accompany the article headline and each of the four illustrations. Finally, for the website, I amplified my description from the SWAN Sourcebook to include my bio, scope of services, and diversity of clients.

Each of the four samples and the bio are icons on the opening panel of my SWAN home page. That's how easy it is. It's one of the best investments to make to maximize your membership in SWAN.

-Steve Traiman, writer

Members sample website...and like it

While many members think of signing up for their own page on the SWAN website, others have sampled the site as users. Here are some of the messages they have sent to webmaster Stan Cohen.

"Congratulations. It's easy to use and extremely professional."
-Jackie Wides, writer

"Great job! Now I just have to go out and buy a faster modem."
-Kathy Fairclough, writer

"It looks clean and moves fast, and is very intelligently organized."
-judywhite, photographer

"I love that SWAN is on the leading edge of technology."
-Jill Vitiello, writer

"I think this is a great tool, especially for those who can't make meetings. I've already communicated with members through this medium more than I've been able to do in the past three years."
-Drew DeGrado, photographer

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This first appeared in the November 1996 issue of Cygneture, a publication of the Self-employed Writers & Artists Network, Inc.

Who's afraid of the Internet?

"The web is just a communications tool, the means to an end," said board member Lynn Canzani who conducted the October meeting. Assisted by website designer and member Sandra Miller , she employed a laptop computer, modem, and projection screen to demonstrate the SWAN web site, the home pages of individual members, and how members can present their skills.

"The web represents the single biggest change in the way we do business since the computer was introduced," Canzani said. "Your clients use the web. It's as necessary for you as an answering machine."

The big advantage, she said, is that prospective clients can get work samples immediately, instead of waiting for members to send them by mail. The SWAN site is also registered with all search engines, and WebMaster Stan Cohen offers searchers key words from the member's own description. Thus, customers can search the web, find SWAN, and then identify the persons in SWAN who can meet their needs. 

Canzani also discussed Internet service providers, whose monthly fees range from $15 to $25, depending on the degree of service offered, and the advantages of keeping AOL or Compuserve as well.

David McCoy and Neil Nathanson assisted in putting the program together. SWAN WebMaster Stan Cohen worked with Lynn Canzani to develop the evenings' program content.

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