Personal Column

The objective to writing and publishing a garden talk magazine column was to report and provide information to the clientele of East Central Alabama as part of the duties and guidelines of Extension. All magazine articles for my personal column were written to provide homeowners and others seasonal information and educational tips regarding home gardening, insect & plant disease control, and as well as, to promote Extension workshops and events. All articles were written to be informative, timely, and educational yet have an entertaining and personal touch. With smaller local newspapers today and space limited for guest columns, the monthly magazine column has been very effective and has increased local Extension visibility. Numerous compliments, comments, and responses via telephone calls, emails, and personal contacts have been received from publishing regular monthly articles. All magazine articles for the personal column were written, typed, and edited by Shane Harris. The word processing software used was Microsoft Word 2016.  Each article and accompanied photos was emailed directly to the staff of Tallapoosa Publishers, distributor for Lake Martin Living.  Circulation for Lake Martin Living is approximately 65,000 subscribers with potential readership of 155,000 throughout rural East Central Alabama. In addition to the print copy, all submitted articles were published online at www.lakemartinliving.com as well as shared on Lake Martin Living and Tallapoosa County Extension office Facebook pages respectively.