Kill Fees – Not a Halloween Tale

By Terreece M. Clarke
For many writers it’s a bloody stab to the heart – the kill fee (cue scary movie scream). Writers are given a kill fee when a publication decides for whatever reason – change of direction, unusable article, etc. – not to use an article and instead of paying the writer the total [...]

Press Release Writing Intro

By Terreece M. Clarke
Press releases make up a nice little chunk of web writing and is good steady work if you are interested. Why? Because on any given day there are thousands of companies trying to catch the eye of the media and potential customers. Many of these companies don’t have a public relations team. [...]

Got an Angle, Give an Angle – Need an Angle, Take an Angle

By Terreece M. Clarke
Ever have an article topic that has been written about so many times you can’t see any new way to cover it? I have. This is especially true for evergreen topics. While evergreen topics are promoted because of the their timelessness and consistent audience, they can become a writer’s block trap for [...]

There’s Rejection and then there’s REJECTION!

By Terreece M. Clarke
I forget where I read it, but some writer once said that 9 times out of 10 your article pitch is going to be rejected. So, in essence, live for the 10%. While a bit pessimistic, the overall sentiment is right on. Rejection is as much a part of freelance writing as [...]

Promoting Your Work to Get Work

By Terreece M. Clarke
By now, every writer knows to promote their blogs and web articles through various social networking sites. Almost as soon as you hit publish, you’re sending the url through Twitter and that’s great, but have you ever thought about using social networking and email blasts to promote your print work?
It’s pretty easy [...]

Best Query Advice

*Oopsie Note: I thought I hit publish on this hours ago! Goes to show, you always have to check your work!
By Terreece M. Clarke
One of the first things people ask me after “How do I get started with freelance writing,” and “Is there any money in that?” is how to write a great query letter.
A [...]

You Know You’re A Freelance Writer…

By Terreece M. Clarke

You Know You’re A Freelance Writer…
…when something interesting happens you say “Wait ’till I blog this!” instead of “Wait until I tell…”
…if beside your bedside table is a well-worn, well-loved copy of the AP style guide.
…if you have ever been warned NOT to write about a family member’s embarrassing medical issue.
…if your [...]

Grammar god or goof?

Can you identify the parts of speech beyond nouns and verbs? Do you still remember how to diagram a sentence? Does the phrase dangling participle send you running for the hills? Do sentences that end with a prepositional phrase grate on your nerves like nails on a chalkboard?
Then you’re a grammar god.
These are the people [...]

P.U. Why That Web Article Stinks…

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You’re a writer – and a darn good one too. You’ve got tons of magazine or newspaper clips under your belt, you’ve been a freelance writer or blogger for years, but for some [...]

Writers and Editors – Friends?

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As a freelance writer, you get to meet all sorts of people and often you make some unlikely friends. I’ve been lucky to cultivate friendships among many of my interview subjects and some of my editors, however, friendships with editors can be a dicey subject.
Editors often feel besieged by writers who want to be [...]

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