So I lie. Sometimes, it’s very easy to say good-bye, like when you have to break it off with a client where the relationship just wasn’t working or the material was driving you batty. As many times as I’ve fallen victim to “Muphry’s Law” here (the one that states that whenever you write about grammar, you will make a grammatical error) this blog has been a ton of fun! So, in this case, it is, indeed, hard to say goodbye. I feel like I should be exploring why goodbye doesn’t need a hyphen, but I’ll let that sit for now. [Read more…]
Goodbye, Friends
June 30, 2010. 38 Comments
Today is the day I’m handing over the keys to the kingdom to Splashpress Media. In case you weren’t aware of this, I sold Freelance Writing Jobs and today is the last day under my ownership. I’ve had 30 days to think about this transaction and while I still believe it’s for the best, it’s also strange and sad knowing that FWJ will no longer be mine. I wrote this post in my head about twelve times in the past few days but it’s not coming out like I intended. I thought about writing about the lessons I learned as [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for June 30, 2010
June 30, 2010. Leave a Comment
Good morning FWJ Friends! It’s the last day of the month; are you scrambling trying to finish projects or did you finish early? Here are your leads for today. Happy Canada Day to all of our Canadian readers! New Around the Freelance Writing Jobs Network Freelance Lifestyle = A Different Kind of Stress Adaptation and Change You Get What You Pay For Freelance Writing Jobs Content Writing Jobs Smart Freelance Writers Real Estate Writer Website Content Writer Content Writer with HTML Experience – Brea, CA MMA Writer – Peoria Online Content Writers – South Lake Union Sr. Web Writer – [Read more…]
You Get What You Pay For
June 30, 2010. 4 Comments
It’s one of the most basic principles of the market, and it’s no different for the freelance writing business than it is for anything else: You get what you pay for. What made me think of this? Last week I received a Facebook friend request. I didn’t recognize the name, but an email came along with the friend request asking if I could take a look at this person’s site and quote some prices for content writing. Over the course of communicating with this client, I discovered that he originally found out about my freelance writing services via one of [Read more…]
Goodbye, Friends
June 30, 2010. 13 Comments
Today is the day I’m handing over the keys to the kingdom to Splashpress Media. In case you weren’t aware of this, I sold Freelance Writing Jobs and today is the last day under my ownership. I’ve had 30 days to think about this transaction and while I still believe it’s for the best, it’s also strange and sad knowing that FWJ will no longer be mine. I wrote this post in my head about twelve times in the past few days but it’s not coming out like I intended. I thought about writing about the lessons I learned as [Read more…]
Freelancing Lifestyle = A Different Kind of Stress
June 30, 2010. 2 Comments
Freelance Writing Jobs for June 29, 2010
June 29, 2010. 1 Comment
Good morning FWJ Friends! Can you believe it’s June 29th already? I don’t know where this month has gone. Here are today’s freelance writing job leads: New Around the Freelance Writing Jobs Network 3 Tricks to Keep on Track When You’re the Boss Ridiculous Client Requests Freelance Writing Jobs Content Writing Jobs Freelance Writer for Articles and Press Releases Paranormal Article Writer 20 Articles About Funeral Planning Website Article Writers Needed Health Writer Article Writer Wanted SEO for Hand Sanitizer Web Site Content for Web Site (Legal) Blogging Jobs SEO/SEM Blogger Bilingual Entertainment Blogger Need Writer to be My Right [Read more…]
3 Tricks to Keep on Track When You’re the Boss
June 28, 2010. 7 Comments
As freelancers, we don’t have bosses to check up on us and to make sure that we’re on track to get all of our work done. There are plenty of freelancers for whom that’s never a problem, but, sometimes, some of us need a little help staying focused on our work. Over the years, I’ve found a few different strategies that work for me. Build in procrastination: Some days, writing is harder than others. On those days where I want to be anywhere but my desk, I break down my assignments into small increments. I’ll tell myself that as soon [Read more…]
Ridiculous Client Requests
June 28, 2010. Leave a Comment
Oh lord. While I was hanging out on Facebook the other day, I happened to follow a link posted by a friend. I mean, with the ever-so-descriptive phrase “Hehehehehe,” a cute kitty picture, and the title “yeah that’s not what I was looking for at all.” (all punctuation original) to go along with it, I couldn’t resist clicking, right? It took me a second to figure out exactly what I was looking at, but once it sunk in, I had to laugh. To be honest, it probably sounded something very much like “Hehehehehe,” as I sat at my desk and [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for June 28, 2010
June 28, 2010. 1 Comment
Good morning FWJ Friends! It’s the start of a new week and we have fresh leads for you. Hope you find something that looks like a great fit. New Around the Freelance Writing Jobs Network A Large Percentage of People Use % In Writing Obstacles You Are Likely to Face on the Road to Bigger Clients 5 Tips to Help You Develop a Good Client Base Freelance Writing Jobs Content Writing Jobs Freelance Writers Freelance Content Writer – Belmont, MA Football Company Seeks Website Content Editor – Brentwood, TN Freelance Business Writers Three In Depth Articles About Fort Worth, TX [Read more…]
5 Tips to Help You Develop a Good Client Base
June 28, 2010. 3 Comments
Looking for freelance writing jobs is one of the drawbacks to doing this kind of work. In the “regular” working world, looking for work is something that you do when you are out of work or you are trying to find another job, either because you want to advance in your career or you don’t like where you are currently employed. No one likes looking for a job because, quite frankly, it sucks. How would you like to never have to look for work again? (Or at least not as often.) Here are some tips that will help you develop [Read more…]
Adaptation and Change
June 27, 2010. 2 Comments
One of the basic principles of running a successful freelance writing business is adaptation. Being able to constantly review your business, revise your processes and change the way you do things is the difference between keeping current in the field, and lagging sorely behind. While this is true for every freelance writer, it’s especially true for those of us who primarily make our livings online. For example, your freelance writing business today might consist, primarily, of blogging. Blogging can be a great way to earn a living, and there are plenty of folks doing just that. Tomorrow, however, blogs may [Read more…]
A Large Percentage of People Use % In Writing
June 26, 2010. 9 Comments
I’d like to take a few paragraphs to vent, if you don’t mind. If you read this column regularly, you know I typically follow AP style — and so do most of my clients. In AP Style, when you’re writing statistics or percentages, you should use numerals followed by the word percent. Even if the number is less than ten (2 percent) you should use the numeral and the word percent. When do you use the percent sign (%)? Never. This rule is, incidentally, the same in the Chicago Manual of Style. However, many bloggers (and even some print publication [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for June 25, 2010
June 25, 2010. 1 Comment
Hello, FWJ Friends! It’s the end of the week, and here are your writing leads for today. New Around the Freelance Writing Jobs Network Three Things to Do When You Lose Your Editor Found a New Blog…Oh Dear What is Outsourcing, and Does it Embarrass You? Writing Divas Need Not Apply Freelance Writing Jobs Content Writing Jobs Green Real Estate Content Writer Rockstar Writer for New Company Web Content Writer Email Content Writer Federal Government HR App Expert Writers Finance Writer – NC Blogging Jobs Blog About Drums and Drummers Poker Writer/Blogger Wanted Financial Blogger Self Improvement Blogger Wanted Copy [Read more…]
Obstacles You Are Likely to Face on the Road to Bigger Clients
June 25, 2010. 5 Comments
For the past few months, I’ve been talking about how to find freelance writing jobs with larger, mostly corporate clients. The reason some of us want bigger clients is because the projects they offer are often longer in duration and pay more than many smaller client projects. In this series, I’ve listed 12 high paying writing positions that companies often seek to fill. I’ve identified five places to look for corporate writing jobs. I’ve also specifically described the writing fields of technical communication, marketing communications, and medical writing. We’ve discussed mentoring and client meetings. You’re pretty well prepared to go [Read more…]
Found a New Blog…Oh, Dear
June 25, 2010. Leave a Comment
So, I just accidentally found a new blog that I think you all are going to like. I’m a little loathe to send you over there, because I think that Kiersten White is approximately five thousand times funnier than I am. But I’m a generous soul. And I can’t keep a secret. (That’s totally not true, by the way. I’m a great secret-keeper.) See, I told you she was funnier. I can’t even fake my own shortcomings for a joke. Anyway, you should check out Kiersten Writes. I was going to tell you to start with this post detailing the [Read more…]
Three Things to Do When You Lose Your Editor
June 24, 2010. 1 Comment
Freelance writers and editors often are portrayed as having an adversarial relationship. The long suffering writer has to bow down to the editor – supreme being of a publication. The editor has unfair demands and a fickle finger. One minute you’re in, the next you’re a kill fee. On the other side, editors are rumored to be workaholics who have so much to balance and not enough time to do it. They are besieged by freelancers who keep spelling the editor’s name wrong and while mass pitching 1000 word/$5 per word pieces. They juggle writers who miss deadlines and who [Read more…]
Writing Divas Need Not Apply
June 24, 2010. 6 Comments
I saw an ad looking for freelance writers in my travels today that listed the characteristics this particular client is looking for. It mentioned that they were looking for someone who could behave professionally and that “writing divas need not apply.” I’m not sure at what point we started deciding that diva-ness was something that we should be celebrating. Maybe it was around the time that companies started marketing the princess concept to little girls and their parents. If the focus of hiring a freelance writer to do a job is the work, why would a client want to put [Read more…]
Query Letter Writing: Your Portfolio
June 24, 2010. 3 Comments
So, it’s that time again: time to talk about tweaks to your query letter writing strategy! Today I’d like to talk about your portfolio. You know, the examples of work that prove you actually can write, and write about the subject you’re pitching. You do have a portfolio, right? Words Say a Thousand…oh, Nevermind I was trying to come up with a clever metaphor to describe how portfolios help a editor visualise your work in their publication. But it didn’t come out right, so let me just say this: Writers who “kind of” fit what the editor is looking for [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for June 24, 2010
June 24, 2010. 1 Comment
Hello, FWJ Friends! Here are your leads for this morning. New Around the Freelance Writing Jobs Network How You Made My Life Easier, Free Nachos and Other Delights (Part 2) The Right Words to Use Freelance Writing Jobs Content Writing Jobs Writers and Content Experts for Educational Content Business Writers Article Writers Wanted Part-Time Writer – Gilbert/Phoenix Healthcare Writer Writer to Improve Web Site Content Writer Wanted – SEO/Social Media Advertising/Marketing Writer Content Writer for Web Site Insurance Article Writer Needed Blogging Jobs Freelance Writers/Bloggers Wanted for Psychic Newsletter/Blog Internet Marketing/Social Media Bloggers Copy Writing Jobs Sr. Copywriter with Multicultural [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for June 23, 2010
June 23, 2010. 3 Comments
Hello, FWJ Friends! We had some technical issues earlier today, and I apologize for the lateness of getting the leads to you. Hope you find something that was worth waiting for! New Around the Freelance Writing Jobs Network Copyright 101 for Freelance Writers at the Writer’s Success Resource Center 4 Questions that Can Reduce the Workload on the Road Freelance Writing Jobs Content Writing Jobs Writers and Bloggers @BlogWorks Freelance Writers for Pregnancy Community Humor Writers @ Barnes & Noble/Sparknotes Article Writer Blogging Jobs Nutrition Bloggers @ LiveStrong.com Deals Editor @ Wise Bread Beauty and Fashion Blogger Snarky, Obsessive Vampire [Read more…]
What Is Outsourcing, and Does It Embarrass You?
June 23, 2010. 3 Comments
I remember when we first started our writing business (www.berrybrewer.com), we were dead-set against the idea of doing “outsourced” work. Somehow, it seemed less legit to us to do work that someone else went out and found. Like, we weren’t pulling our own weight or being professional enough or something. When we did accept our first outsourced gig, it was actually with a bit of embarrassment and shame. We definitely didn’t tell other writers that someone else was handing off their “overflow” work to us because we had so much free time on our schedules that we were desperate to [Read more…]
Freelance Writing Jobs for June 22, 2010
June 22, 2010. 2 Comments
Good morning FWJ Friends! Here are your leads for today. New Around the Freelance Writing Jobs Network Copyright 101 for Freelance Writers at the Writer’s Success Resource Center 4 Questions that Can Reduce the Workload on the Road Freelance Writing Jobs Content Writing Jobs Freelance Political/Finance Writer Can You Write? Local Quality Freelance Writers Wanted – Raleigh Freelance Search Marketing Copywriter I Need a Writer for my Website Independent Writers Blogging Jobs Australian Mum Bloggers Wanted Mom Bloggers for Weekly Posts Accounting, Tax, IT – Multiple Bloggers Needed Bloggers @ SHFT.com – Several Topics Available Copy Writing Jobs Interactive Copywriter [Read more…]
The Right Words to Use
June 22, 2010. 1 Comment
Hi, Dawn! Hope all goes well. I have two words that really bother me, and are changed [in my publication] whenever possible: “utilize” vs. “use:” Why not use the shorter term almost all the time; is there really a difference between them? Your thoughts? Best, David Thanks for writing in, David. The word choice of “utilize” instead of the simpler “use” has been a pet peeve of mine for a while. Years ago I worked for an editorial director who ranted for 20 minutes when one of the writers chose the word “utilize.” She tore up press releases that claimed [Read more…]
