Broadland District Council last night pledged to launch a full criminal enquiry after Norwich Copywriter, Nigel Woollsey (89), was seen dancing at the Rivergardens last night.
Startled staff and guests were forced to endure his manic gyrations for several minutes before he was restrained. To add insult to injury it later emerged that Mr. Woollsey had only had a single pint of shandy before he embarked on his shameful display.
PC Norbert Lymph-Gland of Norfolk constabulary told reporters "Overweight yet incredibly talented men dancing will not be tolerated in any civilised society".
Riot police later broke up the event after an ugly brawl started over who ate the last piece of Quiche at the buffet. www.nigelwoollsey.co.uk
Saturday 11 December 2010
Thursday 5 August 2010
In Support of Broadland District Council's Business Training & Support
Hiya Folks.
Just a quick update today - below is a copy of an email I was inspired to send to HM Treasury in support of the wonderful services provided by Broadland District Council for start-up and established small businesses.
Following the advice of Kate Elliott of Active Marketing & Design I've also sent a copy to the local newspaper (The Eastern Daily Press).
Considering I knocked this up in about 20 minutes it doesn't look too shabby!
Dear Sirs,
I understand that you were recently contacted by a small business colleague of mine, Sally Porter, who wrote in support of the Broadland District Council business support team.
I whole heartedly endorse the very positive comments made by Sally regarding the excellent service and superb training courses supplied by BCTS. During the recent economic recession I was made redundant after 20 years employment with a large multinational company based in Norwich - with my prospects of finding alternative employment being poor I decided to set up my own small business but like so many people had no real idea of who to go to for help & advice.
Consequently, I enrolled on the Free 3 day 'Basics for business' course led by the superb Kate Wilde. This was a fantastic and informative workshop which more than provided me with the necessary basic information and encouragement to make a success of my new business.
Such was the positive impression that this course left on me that I have subsequently attended 3 more business courses at Broadland District Council: 'Marketing for small businesses' (with the brilliant Kate Elliott), 'Finance for small businesses' and 'Writing a dynamic press release' (with the equally brilliant Maria Veronese).
All have proven a remarkable benefit in helping to get my new business off the ground in what can only be described as the current challenging economic conditions.
If the continued recovery of the UK economy is so dependent on private enterprise, and small businesses in particular, then it is my honest belief that teams and services like this one at Broadland District Council must not be subject to cuts.
In fact I would strongly urge you to vigorously support and expand this vital service to small businesses and enterprise within Norfolk.
My heartfelt thanks to all at Broadland District Council Business Support team who are doing an excellent job.
Yours sincerely
Nigel Woollsey - Freelance Copywriter
Just a quick update today - below is a copy of an email I was inspired to send to HM Treasury in support of the wonderful services provided by Broadland District Council for start-up and established small businesses.
Following the advice of Kate Elliott of Active Marketing & Design I've also sent a copy to the local newspaper (The Eastern Daily Press).
Considering I knocked this up in about 20 minutes it doesn't look too shabby!
Dear Sirs,
I understand that you were recently contacted by a small business colleague of mine, Sally Porter, who wrote in support of the Broadland District Council business support team.
I whole heartedly endorse the very positive comments made by Sally regarding the excellent service and superb training courses supplied by BCTS. During the recent economic recession I was made redundant after 20 years employment with a large multinational company based in Norwich - with my prospects of finding alternative employment being poor I decided to set up my own small business but like so many people had no real idea of who to go to for help & advice.
Consequently, I enrolled on the Free 3 day 'Basics for business' course led by the superb Kate Wilde. This was a fantastic and informative workshop which more than provided me with the necessary basic information and encouragement to make a success of my new business.
Such was the positive impression that this course left on me that I have subsequently attended 3 more business courses at Broadland District Council: 'Marketing for small businesses' (with the brilliant Kate Elliott), 'Finance for small businesses' and 'Writing a dynamic press release' (with the equally brilliant Maria Veronese).
All have proven a remarkable benefit in helping to get my new business off the ground in what can only be described as the current challenging economic conditions.
If the continued recovery of the UK economy is so dependent on private enterprise, and small businesses in particular, then it is my honest belief that teams and services like this one at Broadland District Council must not be subject to cuts.
In fact I would strongly urge you to vigorously support and expand this vital service to small businesses and enterprise within Norfolk.
My heartfelt thanks to all at Broadland District Council Business Support team who are doing an excellent job.
Yours sincerely
Nigel Woollsey - Freelance Copywriter
Wednesday 9 June 2010
Time - there's just never enough of it
The road to Hell, they say, is paved with good intentions.
I start every working day by mentally organising what I need to be doing with my time - including ascribing a 'priority level' to each task. Impressively this is usually all done in the shower (steady ladies!) while I absently listen to the radio. Over the sound of the water I can often also hear the shouting, screaming, laughter, chuckling and singing that normally accompanies my two children being herded into their clothes by my wife.
Very often I'll transfer this mental 'To Do' list onto paper before I start work - it makes me feel good. It makes me feel 'organised' and 'efficient' - which is good.
By 10.00am my orderly, planned and regimented day has gone straight to Hell in a handcart.
My day, it seems, is very much an example of the second law of thermodynamics: Entropy increases. Entropy in this case being the tendency of all ordered things to revert to a state of chaos.
In a similar vein it's just astounding how long it takes to get a small business off the ground. You start off thinking that you'll be up and running within a couple of days. You just need to get a few things, make a phone call or two and boom, you'll be in business.
Not so - no siree.
There's branding, there's business stationary, there's finance, buying equipment, regulations to meet, legal requirements, advertising, marketing strategies, profit & loss forecasts, networking, meetings, blogs, business planning, premises, insurance... The list goes on and on and on.
It can be a little disheartening. At worst it can make you wonder why on Earth you started this whole thing in the first place when you could have easily got another job doing precisely the thing that you hated before you decided to start your own business.
But in the end you know it's going to worth it - so you keep going. Past the limits you thought you could never exceed; doing things that once would have seemed impossible.
So this whole thing boils down to two pieces of advice to bear in mind when you start your own business. Just two. Keep them in mind and it might save you a lot of headaches &/or heartaches:
1) It ALWAYS takes much longer than you think
2) It ALWAYS takes a lot more money than you thought.
But, I also learnt 2 things from the lovely bunch of guys I met last night, each one struggling to set up a successful enterprise just after the deepest recession in over 70 years:
1) You are not alone.
2) Sometimes other people have a lot more faith in you than you do in yourself.
But I do wish I had more time :-)
I start every working day by mentally organising what I need to be doing with my time - including ascribing a 'priority level' to each task. Impressively this is usually all done in the shower (steady ladies!) while I absently listen to the radio. Over the sound of the water I can often also hear the shouting, screaming, laughter, chuckling and singing that normally accompanies my two children being herded into their clothes by my wife.
Very often I'll transfer this mental 'To Do' list onto paper before I start work - it makes me feel good. It makes me feel 'organised' and 'efficient' - which is good.
By 10.00am my orderly, planned and regimented day has gone straight to Hell in a handcart.
My day, it seems, is very much an example of the second law of thermodynamics: Entropy increases. Entropy in this case being the tendency of all ordered things to revert to a state of chaos.
In a similar vein it's just astounding how long it takes to get a small business off the ground. You start off thinking that you'll be up and running within a couple of days. You just need to get a few things, make a phone call or two and boom, you'll be in business.
Not so - no siree.
There's branding, there's business stationary, there's finance, buying equipment, regulations to meet, legal requirements, advertising, marketing strategies, profit & loss forecasts, networking, meetings, blogs, business planning, premises, insurance... The list goes on and on and on.
It can be a little disheartening. At worst it can make you wonder why on Earth you started this whole thing in the first place when you could have easily got another job doing precisely the thing that you hated before you decided to start your own business.
But in the end you know it's going to worth it - so you keep going. Past the limits you thought you could never exceed; doing things that once would have seemed impossible.
So this whole thing boils down to two pieces of advice to bear in mind when you start your own business. Just two. Keep them in mind and it might save you a lot of headaches &/or heartaches:
1) It ALWAYS takes much longer than you think
2) It ALWAYS takes a lot more money than you thought.
But, I also learnt 2 things from the lovely bunch of guys I met last night, each one struggling to set up a successful enterprise just after the deepest recession in over 70 years:
1) You are not alone.
2) Sometimes other people have a lot more faith in you than you do in yourself.
But I do wish I had more time :-)
Sunday 23 May 2010
Cardinal's Corner goes all corporate
Well, it's been a really exciting couple of months - despite succeeding beyond my wildest dreams & being published in several UK magazines it's been very apparent that I need to approach this whole Freelance writing business in a bit more of a 'business-like manner' - after much thought and some advice from some very wise friends I'm currently expanding into *drum roll & fanfare*: Copywriting!
I can hear the deafening silence from here...OK, for a start Copywriting has nothing to do with Copyright - it's basically all about writing for businesses: from the sole trader through to the small company all the way up to huge multinationals. So what do copywriters...well...write? Good question:
Copywriters supply a range of services to companies - either direct or through marketing agencies. Amongst other things copywriters supply the words and persuasive writing for advertisements, informercials, commercials, brochures and sales letters - It's quite startling to think that every single piece of advertising mail that drops through your letterbox has been penned by a copywriter somewhere.
In addition to this Copywriters also write Press releases, content for websites, job advertisements, TV & radio advertisement scripts, newsletters, corporate magazines, etc. etc. etc - In fact virtually anything written that a company will put it's name to!
You would not believe how much time and effort setting up a new business takes - OK, maybe you would if you've done it yourself! And that's not to mention the actual work itself - I think I've worked harder and longer than I EVER did in the 20 years I worked for a company myself - but it's been really fantastic! Fun, enjoyable, facinating, exciting and totally satisfying :-) And the networking! Oh, the networking with other people in business has been great - so interesting to hear about what other people are passionate about - because to succeed in business you absolutely need to be passionate about that idea if you want to turn your dream into reality! I've met some brilliant and very inspirational people.
So, it's out with the old and in with the new! Hence the change of style for the old Cardinal's Corner! The colour scheme is temporary for the moment whilst my excellent friend (and exceedingly talented friend Sam) sorts out my new branding and website. Ms. Douglass is an inspiration and an exceedingly good Graphic Designer - if you're in need of one you can't go wrong to visit her business website: http://www.peachplumcreative.co.uk/
Anyhoo (a lovely expression I've picked up from a few stateside pals) sorry if this has been less of the inspired wackiness and insane ramblings you're used to - no doubt the "tenuous grip on reality stuff" will return in time but for the moment I wanted to kick off with a proper update.
Keep tuned for more regular (and shorter!) blogs in the future - and links to my *NEW* website! Please also visit my business page on Facebook for my sample portfolio (and occasional insanity): http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Norwich-United-Kingdom-NR13/Nigel-Woollsey-Freelance-Writer-Copywriter/111120825598170?v=wall
Now, I must be off as I have a few jobs to do before I can relax and enjoy the beautiful day outside - Even that's amazing: Me, working on a Sunday! I never knew a career could be so much fun :-)
I can hear the deafening silence from here...OK, for a start Copywriting has nothing to do with Copyright - it's basically all about writing for businesses: from the sole trader through to the small company all the way up to huge multinationals. So what do copywriters...well...write? Good question:
Copywriters supply a range of services to companies - either direct or through marketing agencies. Amongst other things copywriters supply the words and persuasive writing for advertisements, informercials, commercials, brochures and sales letters - It's quite startling to think that every single piece of advertising mail that drops through your letterbox has been penned by a copywriter somewhere.
In addition to this Copywriters also write Press releases, content for websites, job advertisements, TV & radio advertisement scripts, newsletters, corporate magazines, etc. etc. etc - In fact virtually anything written that a company will put it's name to!
You would not believe how much time and effort setting up a new business takes - OK, maybe you would if you've done it yourself! And that's not to mention the actual work itself - I think I've worked harder and longer than I EVER did in the 20 years I worked for a company myself - but it's been really fantastic! Fun, enjoyable, facinating, exciting and totally satisfying :-) And the networking! Oh, the networking with other people in business has been great - so interesting to hear about what other people are passionate about - because to succeed in business you absolutely need to be passionate about that idea if you want to turn your dream into reality! I've met some brilliant and very inspirational people.
So, it's out with the old and in with the new! Hence the change of style for the old Cardinal's Corner! The colour scheme is temporary for the moment whilst my excellent friend (and exceedingly talented friend Sam) sorts out my new branding and website. Ms. Douglass is an inspiration and an exceedingly good Graphic Designer - if you're in need of one you can't go wrong to visit her business website: http://www.peachplumcreative.co.uk/
Anyhoo (a lovely expression I've picked up from a few stateside pals) sorry if this has been less of the inspired wackiness and insane ramblings you're used to - no doubt the "tenuous grip on reality stuff" will return in time but for the moment I wanted to kick off with a proper update.
Keep tuned for more regular (and shorter!) blogs in the future - and links to my *NEW* website! Please also visit my business page on Facebook for my sample portfolio (and occasional insanity): http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Norwich-United-Kingdom-NR13/Nigel-Woollsey-Freelance-Writer-Copywriter/111120825598170?v=wall
Now, I must be off as I have a few jobs to do before I can relax and enjoy the beautiful day outside - Even that's amazing: Me, working on a Sunday! I never knew a career could be so much fun :-)
Monday 22 February 2010
Hello - I must be going
Howdy folks - yes, I know what you're thinking: 2 posts in the same month ?? Business must be slack, but no - I've just been inspired to update my blog after posting my new 'official' profile picture (I wouldn't go so far as to say publicity picture as that implies that people actually know who the Hell I am - which, to be frank, is unlikely at this stage of my new career!).
I am indebted to my fab brother-in-law, Martin, for his professional camera skills. Although I must confess to being slightly disappointed that he couldn't photoshop my image to look rather more like Daniel Craig and rather less like Christopher Biggins... (for my stateside friends put Christopher Biggins into Google and laugh uncontrollably at the images)- still, you can't make a silk purse out a pig's ear, as they say :-)
On the writing front it's been a mixed month so far - I've had another article accepted by Paranormal magazine, so that's er...3 now in total they've accepted with a further (counts on fingers) 3 that I'm waiting to hear back from them about - let me tell you that NOTHING moves quickly in the publishing industry!!
I also received a nice cheque for £25 at the weekend from Bauer publishing - it took me about 2 hours to actually remember what it was for - a letter that I didn't even know they'd printed in Spirit & Destiny magazine so nothing huge but it was a nice surprise on a Saturday morning! :-)
I'm currently working on another couple of related SETI (Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence) features but had terrible writer's block all last week - hoping this week will prove better (and if the truth be told I'm using this as a little 'warming' up exercise !)
By the way - a couple of people have told me that they couldn't get hold of Paranormal magazine at their newsagents? Sorry to hear that but this month's article was only small (but perfectly formed - ha ha)- the one in the upcoming issue is much larger and much more worth the price of the magazine! It's certainly stocked in larger newsagents and places like W H Smith or Jarrolds in Norwich - should anyone actually wish to see my insane ramblings... ;-)
Right - must get back to the grindstone - Supermarkets and utility companies do unfortunately seem to insist on something called money in exchange for their goods and services... A strange system if you ask me. They showed no interest at all when I offerred them a dead badger to trade last month - it's a hard world! Best wishes to all
I am indebted to my fab brother-in-law, Martin, for his professional camera skills. Although I must confess to being slightly disappointed that he couldn't photoshop my image to look rather more like Daniel Craig and rather less like Christopher Biggins... (for my stateside friends put Christopher Biggins into Google and laugh uncontrollably at the images)- still, you can't make a silk purse out a pig's ear, as they say :-)
On the writing front it's been a mixed month so far - I've had another article accepted by Paranormal magazine, so that's er...3 now in total they've accepted with a further (counts on fingers) 3 that I'm waiting to hear back from them about - let me tell you that NOTHING moves quickly in the publishing industry!!
I also received a nice cheque for £25 at the weekend from Bauer publishing - it took me about 2 hours to actually remember what it was for - a letter that I didn't even know they'd printed in Spirit & Destiny magazine so nothing huge but it was a nice surprise on a Saturday morning! :-)
I'm currently working on another couple of related SETI (Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence) features but had terrible writer's block all last week - hoping this week will prove better (and if the truth be told I'm using this as a little 'warming' up exercise !)
By the way - a couple of people have told me that they couldn't get hold of Paranormal magazine at their newsagents? Sorry to hear that but this month's article was only small (but perfectly formed - ha ha)- the one in the upcoming issue is much larger and much more worth the price of the magazine! It's certainly stocked in larger newsagents and places like W H Smith or Jarrolds in Norwich - should anyone actually wish to see my insane ramblings... ;-)
Right - must get back to the grindstone - Supermarkets and utility companies do unfortunately seem to insist on something called money in exchange for their goods and services... A strange system if you ask me. They showed no interest at all when I offerred them a dead badger to trade last month - it's a hard world! Best wishes to all
Monday 1 February 2010
New year, new day, new blog
Morning folks - Yes, it's another update from the world's most tardy blogger. It's a strange thing, y'know, blogging - put a blank word doc in front of me and a vague idea for an article and I'll be flying in seconds; words pouring out of me and onto the screen in seconds but blogging? I seem to get this mental block - or maybe it's just that I don;t get out into the 'real' world much these days! Unlike you folks with proper jobs I only have a wife, an insane toddler and a theosaurus to talk to during the working day.. it's hard to get inspired under such circumstances.
Anyhoo - my writing continues apace: had a small piece printed in this month's issue of Paranormal Magazine (Issue 45 with a big dead alien on the cover) but the larger articles (which confusingly they accepted first) will be start appearing next month. That's the impressive one - all about the Fermi paradox (No - I'm not going to tell you what it is just so you'll have to buy the magazine and read it for yourselves :-)) Currently, waiting to hear back from them about 2 other articles and further one just went off to Psychologies magazine - it would be a real victory to get published in Psychologies so fingers are firmly crossed for that one! My tutor loved the piece when he saw it so hopefully the features editor will be impressed.
Oh, and I hada birthday in January too - I'm now a venerable 38 years old - actually feels quite weird to think that I'll be 40 in another couple of years - but I still feel very young at heart (if still pretending to be a Jedi knight whilst swinging your replica lightsaber around in the artic can be considered being young at heart).
Well, I must start going through the weekend papers looking for interesting ideas for articles, etc. Frankly that's not a bad way to start a Monday morning - leafing through the broadsheets and sipping coffee! That is a distinct advantage over my old office job!
Anyhoo - my writing continues apace: had a small piece printed in this month's issue of Paranormal Magazine (Issue 45 with a big dead alien on the cover) but the larger articles (which confusingly they accepted first) will be start appearing next month. That's the impressive one - all about the Fermi paradox (No - I'm not going to tell you what it is just so you'll have to buy the magazine and read it for yourselves :-)) Currently, waiting to hear back from them about 2 other articles and further one just went off to Psychologies magazine - it would be a real victory to get published in Psychologies so fingers are firmly crossed for that one! My tutor loved the piece when he saw it so hopefully the features editor will be impressed.
Oh, and I hada birthday in January too - I'm now a venerable 38 years old - actually feels quite weird to think that I'll be 40 in another couple of years - but I still feel very young at heart (if still pretending to be a Jedi knight whilst swinging your replica lightsaber around in the artic can be considered being young at heart).
Well, I must start going through the weekend papers looking for interesting ideas for articles, etc. Frankly that's not a bad way to start a Monday morning - leafing through the broadsheets and sipping coffee! That is a distinct advantage over my old office job!
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