122 N 6 S TEPS TO F REE P UBLICITY Jim Cooke, a Boston actor who executed a column on a much smaller scale, was also very satisfied with having done it. To promote his one-man show on Calvin Coolidge, he wrote 18 free monthly columns on Coolidge for the Green Mountain Gazette in Vermont, our 30th president's home state. Although he doesn't recall more than a few letters and inquiries about performances, "It helped me develop material," he says, "and I can still send out photocopies of the col- umn. It's worthwhile because you never know where something is going to end up. Someone in a small town in Vermont who read the column sees my name later and says, `Oh, that's the guy who wrote the column.' It's like a drop of water wearing away a rock. You don't know which drop of water will do it, but it happens." For Linda Marks, the biggest motivator is the chance her column gives her to keep her hand in as a writer amidst a busy speaking, teaching, and counseling practice. Although she has received some 20 letters or phone calls from readers, that's just a warm, fuzzy bonus for her. Some of the feedback about her column is critical, especially