Yesterday I was looking back through my email and I found one from several months back (so sorry for the delay) asking if the author should use initials instead of her full name on her writing because she’s afraid of identity theft. I thought I’d throw out it here for discussion. The way I see it, web writers have about the same chances of being a victim of identity theft as novelists, newspaper columnists, people who work in an office and Walt who packs my groceries. Yes our name is out there, but anyone who writes our parking tickets, makes [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for Wednesday, April 30, 2008
April 30, 2008. 11 Comments
Good morning FWJ Friends! It’s the end of April already, and I am ready to see some May flowers. I’ve got a couple of gigs for resume writers this morning, along with some internships, jobs for copy writers and editors, and some blogging opportunities. There are a couple of magazine listings thrown into the mix. I hope you find something worth applying for on the list. Leads… Music and Finance Bloggers @ Oversee.net Corporate Marketing Writer/Reporter – Temporary – Newark, NJ – Work from Home 80% Freelance Copy Editor @ FLEX Magazine – Woodland Hills, CA Freelance Technology News Reporter [Read more…]
Why Busy Bloggers Need an Offline Editor
April 30, 2008. 4 Comments
A busy blogger’s best friend is an offline editor. Trust me when I tell you it will make your life more simple. My weapon of choice is Windows Live Writer. As someone who juggles dozens of blogs for several clients, I’m here to tell you your productivity will increase once you download one of these puppies With an offline editor you can: Use the same dashboard for each of your blogs without having to leave the page. Simply use the drop down menu to switch to a new blog. Post ahead of time. When I can, I blog a week’s [Read more…]
Where I Blog
April 30, 2008. Leave a Comment
Psstt…Want to See Where I work?
April 30, 2008. 4 Comments
The Importance of Keeping Good Records
April 29, 2008. 13 Comments
I always joke that I married an accountant because of his record keeping skills and because he handles my taxes. The truth is, his success at keeping track of the family finances, is contingent on my success at keeping good records in my freelance writing business. That’s only the start of it though, good record keeping isn’t only keeping track of money. It has to do with keeping track of clients, projects and deadlines. As a freelancer or sole proprietor, you can’t put your record keeping off nor can you let someone else handle many of the little details. It’s [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for Tuesday, April 29, 2008
April 29, 2008. 8 Comments
Good morning FWJers! I have one internship this morning, along with a few gigs for bloggers. There are some content writing gigs, a couple of translaton opps, and a magazine for bankers that needs content. Leads… Communications Writer/Editor – Atlanta, GA Content Writer/Blogger College Basketball Blogger @ b5media Reporter/Blogger @ The Wall Street Journal Online Men’s Fashion/Style/Grooming Writer @ TSB Magazine Banker’s Edge Magazine Seeking Writers ($500 per completed assignment) Writers for Technology Topics ($0.12-$0.14 per word) SEO Writer Wanted Find and Rewrite Article Titles – UK Financial Subjects Poker Writer – Telecommute Translator – English to French – Temporary [Read more…]
Where I Work
April 29, 2008. Leave a Comment
Should You Take Advantage of A Media Circus?
April 29, 2008. 2 Comments
I hate when bloggers jump on every single media circus that comes along. It may be smart SEO but to me it looks spammy and needy. What’s ironic is I posted the words “Hannah Montana” in a post yesterday. However, I had written the post on the weekend and had no clue about the whole Vanity Fair vs. Miley circus that was about to break, honestly, she was the only teen star I could think of when I wrote the post on Saturday. But the whole day I felt like a sell-out. I work for some clients who urge me [Read more…]
Your Turn: What Would You Like to See More of At FWJ?
April 29, 2008. 25 Comments
Hi, it’s me. Better late than never.. So I was thinking…every now and then I like to throw out a few questions to find out if I’m on the right track. Freelance Writing Jobs is a blog for you – to discuss topics of interest to the freelance writer, particular in the area of finding freelance writing jobs. Since we’re about to celebrate our anniversary, looking ahead another year – what would you like to see? Am I covering the things you want covered? Are there any topics I’m not hitting? What areas do you want us to talk more [Read more…]
List Post Winners to be Announced this Week
April 28, 2008. 1 Comment
When a Client Crosses the Line
April 28, 2008. 7 Comments
Years ago when I was an editorial assistant I worked for a very high maintenance publisher. She expected me to come in at the crack of dawn and work until all hours of the night. She called me Sunday mornings at 8 and Wednesday nights at 3:00 AM. When I told her she was crossing a line she told me I was welcome to clean out my desk. So I did. I left publishing for the incredibly boring world of accounting, and though I missed the fun of working in an editorial office, I knew I could go home and [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for Monday, April 28, 2008
April 28, 2008. 27 Comments
Good morning FWJ Friends! I hope you had a good weekend. I’ve got some blogging opps this morning, a few postings for technical writers, and some editing gigs. If you have experience writing about flooring, there is a job here for you to check out. Leads… VIP Blogger @ Today.com Internet Marketing Blogger @ Blueliner Pregnancy Blogger on Health and Wellness Channel @ b5media Fitness, Yoga & Pilates Blogger @ b5media Summer Intern @ In Touch Weekly – Englewood Cliffs, NJ Consumer Product Blog Writers Wanted – Experienced in UK English Writer Needed for Celtic Jewelry Web Site Australia Blog [Read more…]
Blogging Challenge: Who Are You Actually Blogging For?
April 28, 2008. 4 Comments
The feed question Deb posed the other day made me wonder – as a paid blogger, who am I most responsible to? Deb asked if bloggers should shorten their feeds to please readers. It seems like many people do think that whatever readers want readers should get. But what readers want is not always what benefits my client and myself. In the world of blogging you have some choices about who to blog for – you may be blogging for one, two, or all three choices. Yourself Readers Clients You may have a clear idea about why you blog. Back [Read more…]
Hear it from Jennifer's Co-blogger
April 28, 2008. Leave a Comment
Jennifer did a great job covering the pros and cons of having a co-blogger, so I won’t add much in that area, but how does it feel to join an established blog as a co-blogger? Arriving at an established blog with an overall theme you didn’t pick can be a strange experience, maybe a bit like moving into an already-decorated apartment. Plus, I was very aware that Tree Hugging Family was Jennifer’s creation from the beginning. I didn’t want to stomp on that, but I had to find a way to add my stamp as well. No worries though. It [Read more…]
Sunday Morning Link Love for April 27, 2008
April 27, 2008. 8 Comments
Morning, friends. I actually started this list yesterday morning but had to put it off a day. . Here’s what I’m reading this weekend. A hat tip to @IttBiz for Tweeting this gem: A 1943 Guide to Hiring Women. Boosting Your Blog with Better Content at Blogging Tips. 7 Tips for Prioritizing Your Work at Blogtrepreneur. How Well Do You Know Your Customers at Business and Blogging. The Ethics of Setting Your Prices at Catalyst Blogger Five Ways to Win the ProBlogger Book at Chris Garret The New Media Model for Creating Lifelong Customers at Copy Blogger Four Ways to [Read more…]
Discuss…Full vs. Partial Feeds: What's Best for a Network Blog?
April 27, 2008. 15 Comments
Yesterday one of our commentators mentioned he wouldn’t visit our blog if we continued to shorten our feed. The truth is, we don’t shorten our feed, we shorten the post. There are steps we can take to shorten the post and leave our feed intact, but I haven’t been able to get it to work properly with this particular blog. We like to shorten our posts because they make the front page look tidy, but not at the expense of our readers. So what do we do? The Benefits of Shortening Your Feed The argument over whether or not to [Read more…]
Balancing Post Count
April 27, 2008. 6 Comments
Reader comment / question: “It annoys me when a blog has 15 or 20 posts a day. To me, it feels like the friend who forwards 15 chain emails a day and also sends 2 or 3 personal emails… I won’t name names, but I subscribe to a couple of blogs that do this. When I get too far behind in reading the posts in my reader, the first thing I do is go to those blogs and mark all their posts as read without reading them. I also tend to skim their posts more often than other blogs because [Read more…]
My Blog's Stats After Adding A Co-Blogger
April 26, 2008. 6 Comments
My previous two posts about co-bloggers covered the potential positives and negatives of having a co-blogger. Today I’ll share some results. Background: The blog I’ve been discussing in the last two posts is Tree Hugging Family. It launched in August 2007, so it’s somewhat new. Being a green family blog, it’s in a smaller niche, then say, pop stars or tech. Being in a smaller niche was one reason I was worried about getting a co-blogger; I wasn’t sure a co-blogger would reap large enough traffic benefits to make a difference. I blogged at THF solo for about 5.5 months [Read more…]
FWJ 3rd Anniversary Festivities: Let the Games Begin
April 26, 2008. 17 Comments
As you’re probably sick of hearing, FWJ celebrates it’s official three year birthday on May 5th. Because I’m so cool that way, I’m keeping the festivities going all month long. The entire month of May is guest blogger month, in addition to inviting all of FWJ’s regulars to come out of the comments and post for the day, I’ve also invited a few more high profile bloggers to drop by. Expect some awesome posts by some of my friends and problogging colleagues. I also have an urge to give something away. (No not that. I stopped giving that away a [Read more…]
Turning Negative Situations into Positive Opportunities
April 26, 2008. 18 Comments
I’m not a religious person but I do believe in karma and good positive energy. How we approach our tasks, and really life, does have an influence on the outcome of certain events. That’s why I believe in taking negative situations and turning them into something positive. In freelance world, we can take many negatives and turn them around to our advantage. Check out a few cases in point: Disclaimer: Some of these may be a tad exaggerated, but hopefully not enough so you miss the point. Negative: A writer has a nitpicky editor. She changes everything so much it’s [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for Friday, April 25, 2008
April 25, 2008. 8 Comments
Good morning FWJ Friends! It’s Friday and I have several gigs for copy writers this morning. There are a couple of research opps, and some internships as well. eHarmony.com is looking for articles about relationships, and some of you may want to check out this one. I hope everyone has a great weekend! Leads… Financial Writer/Editor @ Investopedia – New York Freelance Video Journalists @ The Wall Street Journal – New York eHarmony.com Hiring Writers for Relationship Articles Project (400 words; $0.10 per word) Copy Writers Wanted – New York Freelance Writer for Swimwear Articles Freelance Writer/Proofreader – Rochester Celebreality [Read more…]
Why I Don't Meme
April 25, 2008. 10 Comments
Not a week goes by I don’t get tagged for a blogging meme. I used to meme with gusto and tag in return, but I had to stop. It got to the point where I had to wonder if they weren’t sucking up too much time and if my readers really cared whether I drive a black car or how I didn’t learn to drive until I was in my late 30′s. Here’s why I don’t meme: Memes Take Time I just don’t have the time to respond to everyone who tags me for a blogging meme. This might go [Read more…]
Pickin’ & Choosin’ Finding the Freelance Writing Jobs that are Best for You
April 25, 2008. 11 Comments
So yesterday’s rant wasn’t entirely a blast from the past, the was a moral to the story. Anyone….anyone….Bueller? I was setting us up for today’s discussion about finding the best freelance writing jobs for you. You probably think that’s easier said than done, and in a way you’re right, but I’m here to tell you that there are ways to work it so every gig is an enjoyable gig. Step 1: Apply to Everything You’re Perfect For Every if you have enough work to keep you busy now, apply to those jobs for which you feel you’re a perfect match. [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for Thursday, April 24, 2008
April 24, 2008. 5 Comments
Good morning, FWJ Friends. I’ve got a real mixed bag of leads for you this morning. There are blogging gigs, and jobs for technical writers, web content writers, copy writers, and a few internships. About.com is hiring for several channels, and I have a couple of things that (hopefully) will be of interest to those of you in the UK and Australia. Leads… Business News Satire Blogger ($12 per post to start/$20 per post after three months) Mobile Electronics Blogger @ BIM College Students/Alumni for Green Blog Tech Writer/Blogger for Law Firm – Los Angeles Freelance Writer/Research Assistant – Chicago [Read more…]
