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5 Mistakes to Avoid When Writing Job Queries

By on November 8, 2011. 4 Comments
mistakes

If there’s one piece of advice a freelance writer needs, it’s to keep looking for jobs. You always want your plate to be overflowing rather than barely having enough work to pay your bills. This means you need to send out the occasional job query. However, there are some things you should know before you get started. Here are five mistakes to avoid when writing job queries. Using Poor Grammar and Spelling Nothing will get your query deleted or thrown in the trash can faster than an editor seeing spelling and grammatical mistakes. You need to read over your query [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Writing Writing Jobs | Blogger Jobs | Online Content Jobs

How to Deal with Late Paying Clients

By on November 8, 2011. Leave a Comment
payments-late

The freelance world can be a bit difficult from time to time. You spend hours seeking out jobs and writing the perfect articles, but what happens if you don’t get paid? It can be stomach turning for the end of the payday to arrive and not have received payment. While you may get angry, or sit there in complete shock, there are a few ways to deal with late paying clients. Give Them the Benefit of the Doubt It may look fishy to not receive payment, but things happen. Your client may have internet problems, been in an accident or [Read more…]

Categories: Off Topic

Creating a Stunning Online Writing Portfolio

By on November 7, 2011. Leave a Comment

If you are a freelance writer, then it is likely that most of your business comes from clients that you have never seen face to face. A freelancer’s office is, for the most part, online . . . and online is where you “meet” the people you write for. As a freelancer, it is important that you are always looking to grow and expand your business, so as to create for yourself a stable and reliable income. Therefore, you should have a virtual presence to use as a marketing tool for procuring clientele. Your best advertisement is your writing, and [Read more…]

Categories: Blogging Writing Jobs | Blogger Jobs | Online Content Jobs

5 Tips for Handling Client Complaints Gracefully

By on November 2, 2011. 1 Comment

One of the most terrifying parts of being a freelance writer is the notion that at any point, a client could call, IM or email you and say something alone the lines of, “This is completely not what I want. Change it immediately.” This is especially scary if you’ve just paid all your bills and you don’t even have ramen noodles to eat. When you need the job, you need to deal with the client’s complaints. But you also have to stay cool. Clients are like dogs — they can smell your fear. The following tips will help you a [Read more…]

Categories: Off Topic

5 Quick Research Tips for Freelance Writers

By on November 1, 2011. Leave a Comment

When you’re a freelance writer, you have one of the best jobs in the world. At least, until you have about 3 hours to do a project you could comfortably deliver in 8. While it’s great to get paid to learn things, sometimes your ability to learn is limited by the fact that you’re having heart palpitations thinking about the complexity of the research you’re being expected to do. So the following five tips should have your keyboard rocking and rolling in no time. Wikipedia is Your Friend Wikipedia is one of the best sources of information ever devised by [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Writing Writing Jobs | Blogger Jobs | Online Content Jobs

Revision Requests Getting Me Down

By on March 30, 2011. 6 Comments

Dear Jodee, Most of the time when I submit my work to a client, it is accepted the first time. There are times, though, when I have a run where several pieces are sent back. During these times, I start to wonder about the quality of the work that I do and I feel a bit insecure about continuing to do work for clients. What would you suggest? R.J. Dear R.J., I think that to be involved in creative work always involves a certain amount of insecurity. You can’t just show up and expect to get paid; instead, you have [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Writing, Freelance Writing Advice Column Tags: , ,

Prospecting for Links and Referral Traffic

By on March 29, 2011. 7 Comments
prospecting

You want links and traffic from some of the more popular, well-known bloggers in your niche. You want to promote your content because you you deserve a bigger audience. You want to make money online and need referral traffic to develop the crutial element needed for success. The problem is you’re not sure how to get those popular bloggers to drop you a link, they ignore your emails and don’t write back. Maybe they are too busy. Maybe your content just isn’t all that great in the first place. At least those are the sort of thoughts that begin to [Read more…]

Categories: Blogging Tags: , , , Writing Jobs | Blogger Jobs | Online Content Jobs

Show, Don’t Tell for Freelance Success

By on March 28, 2011. 4 Comments
Success

When you are communicating with a potential client about a freelance writing job, you want to present yourself in the best possible way. Unlike applying for a traditional job, you may not be asked to meet with the client for a face-to-face interview; your cover letter, resume and samples may be your only shot at persuading the client to hire you. This is not a situation where you can hold something back and save it for the face-to-face meeting – there may not be one. Instead, make sure that whatever you submit gives the client the information he or she [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Writing, Job Tips Tags: , ,

Freelance Writing – Turning “No” into “Yes”

By on March 25, 2011. 2 Comments
Rejection Letter

No. Every new writer is afraid of hearing it. Seasoned writers are used to it, but still wouldn’t invite it over for dinner. The good news is there is life and success after being rejected. Sometimes that success comes from the same publication that just rejected you. Why? Every “no” is not rock solid. In fact, many have a little wiggle room if you look and listen closely. Absolutely Not “Not in this lifetime.” “Hell no.” “Your writing makes me weep for the educational system.” These are firm, but why dwell? Let’s move on… Not right for us. Ah, this [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing Tags: , , , , , Writing Jobs | Blogger Jobs | Online Content Jobs

How Do I Get Started as a Freelance Writer

By on March 23, 2011. 4 Comments

Dear Jodee, I love writing. It’s always been one of my passions. I want to go to college but can’t afford it and am definitely not scholarship material. I want to get a job as a freelance writer to earn some money for at least a two year college. I’m graduating this year and I can’t stand thinking I might not be able to go to school anymore. Will you please give me some advice on what I should do? I’d really appreciate it. Jo Dear Jo, It is possible to make enough money from writing to help you pay [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Writing Advice Column Tags: , ,

What exactly is ‘good’ content anyway?

By on March 22, 2011. 14 Comments
content

This really is a very interesting question because many blogging experts teach the importance of great content and how that one element is paramount above all other factors when it comes to growing a website. You’ve heard the adage ‘Content is King’ repeated often, right? Good content is the absolute foundation for most successful blogs. Quality content makes it easier for readers to recommend it to other potential readers. Content makes blog marketing much easier because it naturally supports the processes involved in promoting a website. Successful bloggers recommend the same thing: Create killer content and learn to market it. [Read more…]

Categories: Blogging

Should You Take a Survival Job as a Freelance Writer?

By on March 21, 2011. 5 Comments
Coins

I’ve seen a number of web sites recently that suggest freelance writing as a survival job for people who are in between employment opportunities. While I admit that I do find the idea that anyone who can string a couple of words together can get paid to write until they find something better to do with their time a little insulting, this post isn’t about that particular topic. I want to talk about people already working as freelance writers who may be faced with having to work for less than they are used to making. Many of us are familiar [Read more…]

Categories: Job Tips Tags: , , ,

Going Green in Your Writing Office

By on March 17, 2011. 7 Comments

Bring up the topic of green living and people think recycling and light bulbs. These are, of course, important parts of caring for the environment, but they are not the only things each of us can do to save, reduce and reuse resources. The office presents several opportunities to lessen our personal impact on the world around us. Paper Control Cut back on paper use. Writer’s use a lot of paper, including to hand -edit pieces. That’s why it’s important to keep a bin next to the printer to deposit used paper. The paper is can be reused for back-side printing, [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Business Tips, Tools for Freelancer Writers Tags: , , , ,

When to Follow Up with a Prospective Client

By on March 16, 2011. 2 Comments

Dear Jodee, What is an appropriate time to wait before following up with a potential client? I’ve made a pitch and had a good initial discussion with the client but haven’t heard anything further. I don’t want to appear too pushy, but I also don’t want to let this opportunity get away from me. Martin Dear Martin, I can appreciate that if you have had a positive response from a prospective client you want to get the project firmed up right away. Even if a client is receptive to your pitch, it doesn’t necessarily mean that he or she will [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Writing Advice Column Tags: , ,

Tell Readers What You Want Them to Do

By on March 15, 2011. 6 Comments
community

In the world of blogging and internet marketing, a ‘call to action’ is a message that encourages prospects to perform a specific task. This can involve purchasing a product, making a donation, subscribing to a newsletter or feed, joining your community on social media sites like Facebook or Twitter, things of that nature. The specific action is defined by the marketer and is based on personal goals. When you think about it, call-to-actions are really a very natural result of the majority of human interactions we experience almost daily. How many times have you called a friend up, exchanged pleasantries [Read more…]

Categories: Blogging Tags: , , ,

Would You Complete a Personality Test for a Freelance Writing Job?

By on March 14, 2011. 15 Comments
Test

When a person is working for a brick and mortar job, it’s not uncommon for the employer to request that the candidate undergo some type of testing. People who are interested in working in law enforcement or as firefighters are required to complete physical and personality tests as part of the screening process. Applicants for administrative positions could expect to be asked to do a typing test at some point in their job search. Freelancers are in a different category, since they are not applying for a job. I’ve been asked to do a personality test as part of a [Read more…]

Categories: Job Hunting Tips Tags: , , ,

7 Blogs You Should Be Reading ‘Write’ Now

By on March 10, 2011. 15 Comments

I firmly believe reading great writing is key to becoming a great writer. It doesn’t matter the subject, what matters is how the writer connects with their readers and how well they deliver the information they are charged with conveying. Check out these great blogs *listed in no particular order.* 1. The Oatmeal Before you cry ‘Foul!’ Yes, The Oatmeal is not a traditional, 500-word-per-post blog. It is, however, incredibly clever with the small amount of words each post uses. Each blog hits its target and it doesn’t dwell on ledes to do it. 2. TechCrunch Chock full of information, TechCrunch is [Read more…]

Categories: Blogging, Freelance Writing Tags: , , , ,

Nervous About Meeting Prospective Client

By on March 9, 2011. 1 Comment

Dear Jodee, I’ve been contacted by a prospective client who wants to arrange a time to meet. I’ve been working remotely for some time and the idea of sitting down for an interview is really intimidating. Can you give me some tips? Nervous Nellie Dear Nellie, First of all, congrats on being invited to meet with a prospective client. I can understand that this is exciting but a little uncomfortable as well, but you need to keep in mind that this is not quite the same thing as a job interview. You are sitting down with someone to have a [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Writing Advice Column Tags: , ,

Freelance Writing Jobs for March 9, 2011

By on March 9, 2011. 11 Comments

What does freelance mean? According to About.com, the word freelance means a knight or mercenary who would sell his services to any lord who is willing to pay. Combine the words freelance and writer and you obviously get the meaning. Are you a knight looking for a lord? Go post your skills in our comment section. Who knows, a lord might be lurking here looking for a knight. New Articles When a freelance writing job doesn’t pay Never “apologize” for lack of posting Content Writing Need an Author for Personality Disorder Book (Boston / Anywhere) Website Writer for NYC Tour [Read more…]

Categories: Writing Gigs

Never “Apologize” for Lack of Posting

By on March 8, 2011. 21 Comments
gone-fishing

Even for the most committed of bloggers, issues in the real world tend to creep up. Whether it’s a family emergency, your regular job placing more demands on you, holidays or simply a case of blogger burnout. It happens. There may be a few days in a row that you are unable to post – those few days have a tendency to turn into a week and so on. And that’s okay! Your readers will likely understand as long as it doesn’t become a habit. No matter what the reason, don’t make your return to blogging an apology post. If [Read more…]

Categories: Blogging Tags: , ,

When a Freelance Writing Job Doesn’t Pay

By on March 8, 2011. 11 Comments

There is perhaps no other topic in the freelance writing world that generates more controversy than the concept of writers writing for free. Bring it up and lines in invisible sand are drawn, commenting spikes and in the case of Harlan Ellison, a few F-bombs are dropped. It’s understandable. Shady publishers and editors prey on vunerable writers who want to see their names in print. Writers are constantly burned by “write for free now and earn later” promises in which “later” never comes. However, in the angry buzz of the debate something gets lost. Choice and education. There will always [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Fair Pay, Freelance Business Tips, Freelance Writing, Monetizing Blogs, The Dark Side of Freelance Writing Tags: , , , , ,

Freelance Writing Jobs for March 8, 2011

By on March 8, 2011. 2 Comments

There are now over 18 million home-based businesses in the U.S. I have one but I do not have a defined home office. I go wherever I feel like working in the house. Not a good practice. As a freelancer, do you have a space in the house that’s cut solely for you to do work? Here is a list of tips to give your home office that professional feel. New Article How to Cope with a Client’s Inappropriate Questions Content Writing Philly2Philly.com Gay Female Political Writer (Philadelphia) Musicians Looking for Part-Time Writers (MD/DC/VA) Writer for a Travel Website (Phoenix) [Read more…]

Categories: Writing Gigs

How to Cope with a Client’s Inappropriate Questions

By on March 7, 2011. 7 Comments

Have you ever been asked an inappropriate or even illegal question in a job interview? It’s happened to me on occasion, and unfortunately both times the interview was for a job at a law firm. (You would think legal types would know better, but apparently they don’t.) One person interviewing me asked if I was married, and then caught himself and said that he probably couldn’t ask me that question. The other time was much more blatant and I was really shocked that it was a woman asking me if I planned to have children in the next year or [Read more…]

Categories: Job Hunting Tips Tags: , , ,

Freelance Writing Jobs for March 7, 2011

By on March 7, 2011. 3 Comments

How does one become a writer? Brian Cohen, in his book 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts: Ideas for Blogs, Scripts, Stories and More, said, “Write. Just write. Write as much as you can as often as you can. It doesn’t matter if you’ve written anything lately, just start now. If you have an off week, month or year, it doesn’t matter because you can start writing again at any time. If you have the desire to write and you can give yourself the permission to have this passion in your life then you are a writer.” Now, if you really want [Read more…]

Categories: Writing Gigs

Freelance Writing Jobs for March 4, 2011

By on March 4, 2011. 3 Comments

How do you become a better writer? Do you have tips to share before we all go for the weekend? James Altucher is a hedge fund manager and author who writes about his tips for being a better writer. He actually has unusual tips on how to become a better writer. Here’s my favorite: “Write a lot. I spent the entire 90s writing bad fiction. 5 bad novels. Dozens of bad stories. But I learned to handle massive rejection. And how to put two words together. In my head, I won the pulitzer prize. But in my hand, over 100 [Read more…]

Categories: Writing Gigs
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