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Be a Greeting Card Writer!
by Regina Hill

As a young girl I realized that I had what some might people might refer to as a strong inspiration while others would say I experienced my "muse". Either way, I felt the urge to write down my feelings and emotions. Putting pen to paper, I began the journey that would eventually lead to many of my poems being published by my favorite greeting card company, Blue Mountain Arts.

Voicing my thoughts and feelings has always given me trouble in my life. I'm one of those "quiet" people, the type of person you see with their nose in a book, who looks at you with a blank expression should you interrupt them between paragraphs. I simply never had the knack of verbal communication. Insecurity? I won't go into self-analysis. For whatever reason, through the written word, I found the opportunity I was searching for, the chance to speak and be heard without actually using my vocal cords. Writing down my feelings meant I didn't have to suffer the peering eyes of my listener, or become anxious over their facial expressions or the effect my words were creating.

Sharing your feelings, expressing yourself on paper, is the preface for writing greeting card poetry. Everyone has relationships with mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents and friends. We've all had, and will always have, people we hold dear to our hearts and want to share our hearts with.

From my personal experience, writing greeting cards is about drawing on those relationships and those feelings felt for friends and relatives as inspiration for your poetry and prose. Personal relationships are a breeding ground for every imaginable emotion, the sparks that light each word you write with a genuine expression of warmth and sincerity.

In writing or any form of creativity, there is something more than mere words or ideas. There is passion, feeling, self-expression, a sense of intensity and purpose. The best writers are capable of using their passion to create prose that floats off the page and into the reader's heart. A deep passion for your topic is essential in creating poetry that will touch your reader's soul and keep them interested in your words. Almost any of us can reach that spark of passion by reflecting on someone we love or feel a deep affection for. Our relationships are our foundations for the best writing we could achieve, especially in writing greeting card verse.

Every so often, Blue Mountain Arts sends their previously published writers an updated-needs list with deadline dates. Usually, these needs are seasonal or holiday related. Valentine's Day, Father's Day, Mother's Day. When I receive one of these updates and sit down to write poetry that will fit in with Blue Mountain's needs, I pull out my memories and begin to reflect on the moments that will help me the most. 

If Blue Mountain needs Mother's Day poetry, I consider the thoughts and feelings that I would want to express to my own mother. In other words, I write from my heart and if what I feel for my mom can touch another mother's heart, I've achieved my goal of writing a greeting card poem. If I sat down before my word processor to write a Mother's Day poem without those memories and feelings for my mom, I doubt I could truly write anything that Blue Mountain would consider publishing. With the inspiration or "muse" that my own mom sparks inside me, I can write on and on and on, because my feelings for her are endless, of course.

I really don't know how most writers reach their audience or decide how to achieve their writing goal. I can't speak for other writers because I don't know how they go about creating prose that will touch the heart and soul, or cause a glow of emotion inside someone they might never see or know personally. I only know from my personal writing experience that I need to draw on my relationships with family and friends to create a poem that others might be able to empathize with, a poem that might be considered publishable material because of its ability to touch another heart with insight into their own feelings. Hopefully, as the reader reads what I've written, they discover a glimmer of themselves and their feelings. Only then have I achieved the goal of a writer, saying, through the written word, what someone else might not have been capable of saying.

Blue Mountain Arts, where many of my poems have been published, recommends this very technique to writers interested in submitting their poetry. In Blue Mountain Art's writers guidelines, the statement, WRITE WITH A SPECIFIC PERSON IN MIND, explains the point I've expanded on throughout this article. It is key in writing greeting card poetry. With this one guideline, I've discovered a niche for my own poetry.

And, there are enough different types of greeting cards that nearly any writer could find an endless supply of market possibilities for their own personal situation. Humor, inspirational, seasonal and the list continues. I enjoy writing on topics such as inspirational, encouragement, hopes, dreams, and romantic poetry. This is the writing that comes easiest to me and where I've found the most success. Clearly, we are all different, unique and special in our personalities and ideas. That is what keeps our world interesting. Reach for your own star and I wish you all the best in achieving all of your writing goals!

Blue Mountain Arts Visit Blue Mountain Arts Web Site - Free Egreetings

Blue Mountain Arts
SPS Studios
P.O. Box 1007
Boulder, CO 80306

Blue Mountain Arts has recently changed their name to SPS Studios. This company is listed in Writer's Market if you are interested in submitting your own writings. When I submit material for their review, I usually submit 10-20 poems at a time with a SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope) for their reply or return of my material. Should you submit to BMA, you might want to consider their popularity, hence, the lengthy wait for response. I have always received a response, despite the waiting process.

I would also like to comment that BMA offers a very high pay rate in comparison to most major greeting card companies. This publisher is extremely considerate to the writer, always offering a byline on any greeting card or poem they purchase the copyright for. Despite the lengthy wait from submission to publication, this publisher is the BEST in relation to every aspect of the author/publisher relationship. They have always shown me the utmost respect, a willingness to help on any questions I've approached them with, and encouragement at every turn. Since my first submission in 1994, I've found this publisher to be totally worthy of all my trust!

Copyright © 2001 Regina Hill. All Rights Reserved

Regina Hill's poems have been published by Blue Mountain Arts as greeting cards, in anthologies and calendars. She also has had poetry published in national  magazines, her non-fiction byline has appeared in  The  Asheville Citizen Times, Our State Magazine, Team Penning, and Carolina Country. To contact Regina, email here: AutumnScorpio@msn.com.

See more of Regina's writing at:
Published Reviews and Editorials http://ginahill.epinions.com/user-ginahill 

**Note from Writer Gazette Editor: More information on:  

Greeting Card Specialty Markets

Greeting Card Association

Greeting Card Freelance Job Posting