The writing of how-to reports and folios is the largest money-making enterprise in the mail order industry today. lt's something anyone can produce. It is the basis for many beginning mail order operations and has even been the springboard that has made some entrepreneurs independently wealthy! If a report includes all of the proper ingredients and is marketed effectively, it's popularity may propel the writer to great wealth.

A basic how-to report is usually two pages in length, sells for about $3, and outlines instructions, details, or a new idea for solving a problem, starting a business, making more money, writing good advertisement copy, attaining greater happiness, or fulfilling an ambition or desire. One of mail orders earliest success stories came about through a short report on How To Keep Moles Out Of Your Yard. Another big money-maker had to do with the many different ways to prepare and serve hamburger. Yet another covered how to make big money selling two sheets of paper - and simply told how to write and sell a how-to report! Simple, basic, grass roots information is what people are
looking for.

Any man, woman or child can write a saleable report on any subject - providing he or she has knowledge of that subject through personal experience, research, or both. In the past, a lot of women wrote successful money-making reports based upon better ways of solving household problems while men wrote on how to get greater pleasure from leisure time activities such as fishing, woodworking, or other hobbies. Nowadays, however, gender is no qualifier. Anyone can write successfully about any topic, provided they have a thorough grasp of the subject. The list of subjects one can write about is endless, and reports on how to make more money easier and faster are no more limited to male authors than expertise in cooking is limited to female
authors.

When doing business by mail, these money-making how-to reports we've
discussed are known by many names: folios, booklets, pamphlets, business
guides, or even personal success plans. In reality, these reports are written guidelines that give the reader more information on a subject about which he desires knowledge. They serve as a springboard to launch the reader into a new occupation, or to help him decide how to best proceed in his quest for added income. The report is not the final word on any topic in and of itself, but will introduce the novice into a new realm of understanding.

Money-making reports can cover a wide array of topics. Folios are often written to show other people how to start, develop, enjoy or expand a hobby. How to learn and develop new or greater abilities. How to start, develop and operate a new business, or expand a current one. How to develop and prepare for a new career. How to make more money. How to save money, better one's standard of living, and have more time for leisure. How to solve personal problems and enjoy life more. How to attain success in any endeavor. Wherever there is a need for information, there is the opportunity to write a money-making report.

You'll find that the better selling reports are well researched, authoritative, factual, and helpful to the reader in the achievement of his goal. Your report can be put together and sold as anything from a two-page typewritten paper to a multi-page, typeset and professionally bound book. It is important to remember that the people who are going to buy your report are going to be interested in the information it contains, not how long it took you to put it together, the reason you wrote it, or the number of pages you've written. All that concerns
the reader is that it contains the information he desires.

Picking a subject to write about - one that has sales appeal and that will sell well - is not as hard as it sounds. The best rule to follow is to only write about some topic of which you already know a great deal and that particularly interests you. The more you are involved or interested in the subject, the easier it will be for you to write about that subject in a manner that will hold your reader's interest. Your knowledge and enthusiasm will shine through, causing your reader to overlook any technical writing weaknesses.

Once you choose the subject that's best for you to use for your first report, channel your thinking along the following lines: If you love to fish, put together a money-making report on "How To Catch The Big Ones." If you love to sew, you could probably write a report on "Tips For Beautiful Sewing." If you have experience in advertising, write a report on "How To Write An Eye-Catching Ad." If your experience is in printing, perhaps a report on "How To Prepare Copy and Layout For Best Printing Results" would be a wise choice. Your experience in business might develop into a folio entitled, "Better Business
Operating Techniques." Whatever you write about, make it something in which you are especially interested.

Art Fettig writes about motivation and ideas for selling because he has spent many years doing just that - motivating people toward larger sales volume and brainstorming new ideas for bigger and better sales. Doug Hooper writes about the power of positive thinking because he has practiced it and believes in it. It works for him and he knows it can work for you. Maryanne Raphael, a freelance writer, addresses her booklets to all those aspiring authors seeking the many and varied writers' markets open to freelance writers. Maryanne has spent many years learning all about these markets and effectively communicates that knowledge to her readers. She knows the problems of the freelance writer, and she passes along information of great value because she's been there. I could go on and on naming folks who have taken a subject they were interested in, found out everything they could about it, and parlayed it into a fortune by starting with the writing of a how-to report. Rather than merely tell how others are doing it, let's get on with the task of showing you how to write
your own how-to report and turn it into a personal wealth vehicle of your own!

Having decided on the subject and perspective of your report, the next step is thorough research. Visit your public library and bone up on your subject. Read as much about it as you can find in newspapers, magazines, books - everywhere! Start collecting clippings, talk to your neighbors, your friends and relatives, and take careful notes on all information you gather. When you've spent a good six weeks intensively researching your subject, gathering notes and consulting with as many different people as possible, you will be ready for
the next step -the sorting, compiling, and assembly of your notes. Simply read through all the notes and clippings you have accumulated, discarding those that are useless, and organizing the rest according to a proposed subject outline.

Outline what you want to say before you write it. This is imperative. While many professional writers compose their ideas as they're typing or writing, everything will flow smoother and will require a lot less rewriting if outlined in advance. The more time spent in properly planning your writing, the better the finished product will become. Outlining allows you to gather together all the various aspects of the topic, place them in a logical and sequential order, and to
compose your report with a sense of direction and purpose. Do not skip this important first step. Don't let the outline part of your project become an obstacle, however. An outline is simply listing the order in which you want to write about or discuss each aspect of your subject.

Once you've completed your research, organized your notes, and have your outline set, you're ready to write the money-making report that just might make you rich! Everything that's written should have a natural introduction, a body ofinformation (the text), and a conclusion. With your outline handy, you'll find it easier to say what you would like to express. You'll be able to cover all the bases in an orderly fashion. You won't have to worry about forgetting or leaving out an important point you want to make. The coverage of your subject will be more complete, and your writing will be much smoother.

Writing your report is easy and quite simple. However, it does take longer and requires more "sweat, blood, and tears" for some people to produce a finished product than it does others, even if they are equally intelligent and knowledgeable. The best advice anyone can give you on how to write a money-making report is that you write as though you were talking with someone - as though you were instructing your next-door neighbor over the telephone on the subject at hand. I use the word telephone here to point out that regardless of how much you wave your arms, point your finger, or even draw pictures, you aren't getting the message across, and your neighbor won't "see" what you're talking about until you tell him in language he can understand.

Write your report or folio in a style similar to the book reports you used to give when you were in high school. Remember the theme papers you used to have to research, outline, and write for English class? You received a good grade if you presented your material in a straightforward style, had the facts, and didn't pad your paper with meaningless fluff. Be factual and clear. Know your reader
and use the kind of language he can understand. This does not mean that you should curse like a sailor or that you should elevate your vocabulary to the level of a nuclear physicist. In writing the basic how-to report you should bear in mind that it will serve as a personal, one-to-one consultation between you and your reader. Thus, your language should establish a rapport the reader can feel.

If you have a personal computer with a word processing program, you will easily be able to begin writing, make the necessary corrections, and safely store your manuscript away after each session. If a computer is not available to you, don't worry. You can still work very easily with only a typewriter or a large writing pad. You can later have a typist put your manuscript in its final form.

Start writing as though you were talking to someone. Your report,
after it has been written, rewritten, and rewritten still again, is still nothing more than a written conversation between two people. Compose your how-to report as though you were instructing a high school graduate in how to do something his first day on the job. It makes no difference whether you write the report out longhand or pound away at a typewriter. Once you've got your material organized, start writing and don't stop until you're finished! Just get it all down on paper!

When you have finished, be proud of yourself! Take a break, go out to dinner, enjoy a night on the town! In other words, put this first draft of your report aside for a few days and allow your brain, your body, and your creative juices to rejuvenate themselves. After a couple of days off, take up your report and go through it with a sharp pencil, just as you imagine an editor would do. Strike out, rewrite, and polish each paragraph for clarity, accuracy, and flow.
This is the time to make sure that what you've written is easy to read and understand. Make sure that each sentence follows the one before it as logically as spring follows winter. The smoother the conversation or the writing of your report flows, the easier it'll be to read. The easier it is to read, the more copies you will sell.

Now you have a money-making report that has the potential of creating a great deal of wealth for you. If you are a good typist, go ahead and type it out in finished form. If you're not a typist, have it typed by someone who is or even pay a small fee to have it typeset. This will be your master copy, so after it is typed in finished form, make several copies: at least one for your file, and two to submit for copyright protection. Copyright everything you write. Otherwise, you leave open the possibility that someone else will take your report, copyright it themselves, and later sue you for infringement upon their copyright! Information on filing for an official copyright is available from your local library.

Now that you've written your money-making report and have copyrighted it, you want people to start buying it. This means that you have to let people know about it through advertising. You have to tell he people who'll want to read the report that you have written something that can help them with their problems. To this end, send out sample copies for publicity write-ups, and spend some money advertising the availability of your report. Copy the advertising techniques of those who are already successfully selling how-to reports. Soon
you will be receiving orders from across the nation for your report.

As soon as possible, write a second report. Continue to build upon your success until you have created a complete set of ten or twelve reports that can be placed into a series. Making your series of how-to reports available through as many mail order publications as possible will increase the number of orders you receive, and will propel you on the road to financial security. Make that first move. Get busy writing that first report today!