Freelance Writing Jobs for Tuesday, October 21, 2008
October 21, 2008 by Jodee
Filed under Freelance Writing
by Jodee Redmond
Good morning FWJ Friends! Since I’m running a little late today, I’ll skip the recital of today’s leads and just let you check out the list.
Here’s a quote from a non-paying ad that gave me a chuckle this morning: “No pay, but you’ll have a great deal of affection from the bottom of my heart. (I know it don’t pay the rent, but it’s something.)”
Leads…
On Site/Contract:
- Creative Freelance Writer @ Hobby Lobby Stores – Oklahoma City
- Freelance Writers @ The Desert Sun – Palm Springs
- Freelance Proofreaders – Princeton, NJ
- Part-Time Reporter @ Courthouse News Service – Syracuse, NY
- Legal Reporter Needed in the North Bay – San Francisco
- High End Senior Writer – 90 Day Contract – Santa Cruz ($7,500-$12,000 per month)
- Technical Writer – Raleigh
- Minor Translation Work for Major Video Game Publisher - Dumbo, NY
- Blogger/Researcher/Outreacher – New York Based Applicants Only ($22 per hour to start)
- Experienced Writer for Biography – New York
- Novelist Seeks Editor – Manhattan
- Los Angeles-Based Freelance Writers
- Writer/Editor for Humanitarian Services and Social Network Website – Los Angeles ($20-$25 per hour DOE)
- Irish Screenwriter Needed – Silverlake/Los Angeles
- Freelance Copy Editor/Writer – Culver City ($25 per hour)
- Seeking Writers for GLBT Publication in Boston/New England
Telecommute:
- Freelance Writer Needed for Skincare/Cosmetics Products
- Kick-off Time Seeks Writers/Bloggers
- Business/Finance Site Seeking Contributors
- Freelance Pharma Copy Talent Needed (up to $100 per hour DOE)
- Female Gamer/Writer/Reporter for Regular Spot on Blog
- Revenue Canada Case Law Research
- Writer Needed for Dating Site
Blogging Jobs:
- History Blog Writer ($10 per post)
- Wedding Blogger Wanted ($10 per post)
Internships:
- Legal Research Team Needs Intern Content Writers - Washington, D.C. (College Credit)
- Business Writing Internship @ Employee Benefit News – Washington, D.C. (College Credit)
- Internship for Gay Writers @ TheSword.com – San Francisco – Paid
- Fashion Social Network – Philadelphia (College Credit)
- Editorial Internships @ YourLocal.com – Brooklyn, NY (College Credit)
- Beauty Web Company Seeks Interns – New York (College Credit)
Good Luck!
You mean all this time I could have been paid in affection?
Aw shucks!
@ Fiona: Yep, deep heartfelt affection, apparently!
So here’s a question that’s unrelated to today’s job leads but maybe Jodee, James or someone else can help me out.
A new restaurant is getting ready to open in town and they ran an ad in the weekend newspaper that was HORRIBLE! Far too much text crammed into a tiny space – nothing to catch my eye and tell me it’s a restaurant (the name of the place is School!) and just an incredibly ineffective ad.
So it’s been bugging me all weekend that this ad was so bad and this is their opening publicity! I have been thinking of contacting them and seeing if they need someone to write copy, ads, etc for them but I’m not sure how to approach it. Should I call and say, “You know I saw your ad and think it could be better.”
Any suggestions?
Workng as a writer/copy writer for local businesses is a great way to supplement your income. Chiropractors, dentists, massage therapists, personal trainers and others need writers to help promote their business because their clients need to be educated for obvious reasons.
Restaurants are a little different, but if they want to be involved with the community: cooking tips, menu changes, fundraisers and public relations — then approach them.
If you feel comfortable approaching them, keep in mind, that they produced a terrible ad, which reflects their attitude and professionalism. Do you want to work with people like that?
They might create headaches, extra work that could have been avoided and so forth. Go with caution!
Kenna – good advice. Thank you!
Hi Jodee,
As always, you’re doing a great job–I love the listings you find!
Regarding “affection,” I already have a pet.
And, note this from the Wedding blogger listing:
Additionally, please take the time to give us a sample of your style by writing a brief article (less than 600 words) about this season’s hottest wedding gowns.
I’d be a bit concerned about writing a 600-word article as an applicant. Who’s to say the would-be employer isn’t using all of those application articles as a source of free content for the site?
Finally, Fiona–Yes, you’re on to something. I think it’s great you want to show some entrepreneurial spirit and help a business while helping yourself.
I’m not sure I’d use the approach you suggested–the company may think their current advertising is superb as is (especially if the owner created it).
You might want to consider paying the company a visit and have your business card and portfolio ready. See if they’re interested in outside services. (Maybe they can’t afford your services?)
Anyway, it’s great you’re noting potential customers, Fiona!
Bobbi
Bobbi – that was my concern too, that they might think it’s the best ad ever.
Fiona,
If you do approach them, you might wish to stress how much time and money you’ll save them if they outsource their advertising (rather than talking about the quality of their current ads).
Good luck!
Bobbi
@Fiona – I’ve actually done this once and it failed miserably, but I still feel it was worth my time. The restaurant is up in Stowe which is one of the biggest area for tourists come ski season. The restaurant was established but business was slow and they were trying to draw interest. The menu that they included in the ad was filled with misspelled words, punctuation errors and then the ad copy was packed with grammar errors. One of my favorites was “Order one of our many scrumptious chocolate deserts,” and on a cruder level, how about “Dick a’l'Orange” instead of duck. I still shake my head that the “i” made it past their proofreaders because that was a big mistake to have go to print.
They shot me down saying they had their own qualified team and didn’t need anyone else, but that they were happy I’d brought it to their attention that their ad had errors. In the end, I dislike that I helped some of them do their job for free.
Hi everyone,
I’m relatively new to freelancing, and I have a newbie question. By the way, thanks for setting up such a fantastic Web site, Jodee.
Anyway, I’m going to apply for the history blogger job, but I’m a little concerned because of the anonymity of the poster. I have no problem giving out my name or e-mail to an established company. But in cases such as the blog job above should I set up an e-mail account that doesn’t use my last name? How about if I send published writing samples? Should I cover my name on them?
Or I’m I just being way too paranoid here?
The female video game blogger asks for a picture. Is this typical with video blogging? Do you really need to be Heidi Klum to land a video blogging job??
Is it really common to send out a lot of letters with your samples and resume and NEVER hear back from most of them. I’m really irritated with people for doing this. At least they could say, “Wow, you suck.” I’m one of those people who need closure. Am I doing something wrong or is it just a string of bad luck?
@ Fiona, I agree with others in not bringing up the flaws in their current ad. I might consider stressing how you could make their ads/publicity efforts more effective without directly speaking of the weak points of their ad. I do think that it’s a great idea to try to pursue the work and wish you luck. Let us know how it turns out.
@Ann–Someone from the Stowe area, good to see! Stowe is one of my favorite places to visit and snowboard. I had seriously considered moving there before I moved out west.
I’m sure you’ve heard this a million times by now Jodee, but thank you for separating the telecommuting jobs from the others. I’d never seen a Reno-specific listing before so this is very valuable indeed for me. I know it takes you extra time to do this, so thank you very much.
@ Fiona – It’s good that you’re noticing potential opportunities, but as others have mentioned, pointing out errors could be a double-edged sword. If the owner created the ad, pointing out its flaws could put him on the defensive. I’d pitch yourself to them without mentioning the (lack of) quality of their opening ads and really showing them what you can do for them.
@ Matti – I’ve placed ads on Craigslist and have gotten over 500 responses, so it’s really not feasible for every potential client to send a response. It would be nice if they had an autoresponder, letting you know that your e-mail was received, but sending out anything more than a form letter would be too time-consuming for most people. I’m just now getting contacted about gigs I applied for in July and August, so don’t give up hope just yet.
@ Shannon: Glad you like the site, but it belongs to our Fearless Leader, Deb Ng.
I haven’t had any problem with sending out my name when I apply for a job but if you are concerned, you could set up an alternate e-mail account and copy and paste your samples into the body of the e-mail.
@ Kristen: If the job involves appearing in a video, I can see why the employer may want to see a picture. They probably want to make sure they are not hiring Quasimodo’s less handsome brother for the gig.
@ Matti: It is normal to send out applications and not hear anything. Some people estimate that you might get one job in 10 that you apply for. And getting nastygrams that tell you how bad someone thinks you suck is not fun.
@ Christine: You are most welcome.
@Matti>> There was a time when I sent an average of around five applications every weekday for a few months. I heard back from very, very few (which really does nothing for my self-confidence, but I got used to it).
@Jodee: Oops. Thanks anyway for your compilations of job listings. I decided to just go ahead and use my first and last name. I thought about it, and I don’t see what it would hurt; especially if most other freelancers have no qualms about it.
Re: Not Hearing Back
Don’t give up completely. I just heard back from an application I sent out back in July. Not that I like that practice either. While I was looking for work then and was really interested in that position, I’m really booked up now and doubt I can handle another job on top of the four I have.