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Freelance Writing – Turning “No” into “Yes”

Rejection is not the end

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: , , , , ,

Going Green in Your Writing Office

St. Patrick's Day isn't the only day to be 'green'

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: , , , ,

7 Blogs You Should Be Reading ‘Write’ Now

Great writing inspires

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: , , , ,

When a Freelance Writing Job Doesn’t Pay

How to make the decision to work for free

By on March 8, 2011. 10 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: , , , , ,

Freelancer 2.0 – Shoeboxed Review

Getting organized with online help

By on March 2, 2011. Leave a Comment
Shoeboxed.com Test Page

  There have been many advances in the field of freelance writing over the last few years: for most publications it is no longer necessary to send in an SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope) query; electronic payments outpace snail mail checks; social media has made it easier to connect to other writers and editors, etc. The business side of freelance writing has gotten easier with more online applications streamlining mundane tasks many writers loathe. Shoeboxed is one great app that moves shoeboxes full of receipts out of the closet and into cyberspace. Shoeboxed organizes and stores receipts, business cards and documents [Read more…]

Categories: Best of FWJ, Freelance Business Tips, Freelance Writing Tags: , ,

The Best of FWJ February

Top 10 Posts of the month

By on February 28, 2011. 4 Comments

February brought most of us in the States snow storm after snow storm, Valentine’s Day and some really informative posts from the FWJ crew. Here are a few of the most popular: Applying for a Freelance Writing Gig Without Looking Desperate by Jodee Redmond In this post Jodee cautions against oversharing when looking for writing gigs. Is Your Blog Dressed For Success? by Gayla Baer-Taylor First impressions are important. Gayla shows you how to make sure your blog turns heads. I’m a Ghostwriter (Get Over It) - by Jeffery Reyes In this terrific guest post, Jeffery hits on the many misconceptions [Read more…]

Categories: Community Discussions, Freelance Writing, Freelance Writing Business Tags: , , , , , , ,

How Not To Suck at Freelance Writing

5 Simple things freelance writers can do to keep from blowing it in this field

By on February 24, 2011. 19 Comments

Being a freelance writer isn’t an easy gig. Many people wake up on January 1st and after staring at themselves through a hazy fog of cheap champagne and celebratory glitter decide that this would be the year they took the big step and pursue their passion for the written word. Three months and several rejection letters later they sit alone in their basement home office muttering about being an under appreciated, true artist. Instead of writing for a living, they spend the majority of the day failing at freelancing. Fortunately, after spending a fair amount of time sucking at this [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing, Networking Tags: , ,

How to Influence Editors and Make Friends

Three ways to become an editor's fave

By on February 17, 2011. 3 Comments

There are some writers that are heads and shoulders above others. They always snag the important gigs and never seem to have a dry spell. What is it about them that makes them so popular? Abundant talent? Insider connections? Eh. Talent will take you far and connections will help you get your foot in the door, but there are three things that, when all else is equal, separate the cream from the watery stuff no one wants. Communication. Star writers are excellent communicators. They keep their editors informed on article development, including any changes or source issues. They are accessible. Emails [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing Tags: , , , ,

Time Management Tip #3 Give the Query a Rest

Save time by resisting the urge to micromanage

By on February 15, 2011. 6 Comments

I get a lot of emails from people seeking freelance writing advice. One letter last week got me thinking about how much time writers waste on queries. In the email, a new writer asked if I could read his query and tell him why it was rejected and point out any obvious problems. He went on to say he knew he didn’t miss anything because he had worked on nothing else but the query for two weeks. Two weeks is a long time. Queries are an important part of writing, especially for writers trying to establish themselves in the field. [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Best of FWJ, Freelance Writing Tags: , , ,

Time Management Tip #2: Be Realistic

Cut your To Do list in half

By on February 10, 2011. 6 Comments

It’s time to put down the cape. It’s also time be honest. Is that ‘to do’ list really doable? There are still only 24 hours in a day and the majority of our problems with time management involve unrealistic expectations. When you have a daily 20 or 30+ list of items that must be accomplished, you are setting yourself up for failure. The same goes for a list of three time consuming items. There are three quick ways to tell if your list of action items is too long: 1. Carry over. If you are still finishing Monday’s list on [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing Tags: , , ,

Time Management Tip #1: Prioritize

Making the most of your writing time

By on February 7, 2011. 2 Comments

Writers tend to juggle several projects at once, in addition to all of the other things they do during the day – billing, networking, searching for work, living life, etc. There are times when it feels like there are never enough hours in the day to complete everything. The bad news: there isn’t enough time. The good news: not everything has to be finished today. One of the craziest things that people do when trying to manage their time is giving each to-do item equal priority. I’ve talked with friends who have said that everything they do is important. I [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing Tags: , , , , ,

Fix Your Toxic Writing Environment

Five areas to address to breathe easier and write better

By on February 3, 2011. 4 Comments

There are two sides to the writer debate – those who require certain comforts and those who can write in the middle of a toxic dump. I’d argue both types are just as likely to have hazardous work environments. Your office could be making you sick, or at the very least, decreasing your productivity. The good news is there simple way to creating a safe and healthy work environment. 1. Trouble in the Air The information is scary: according to the August 2000 EPA Indoor Environments Division, Indoor Air Quality and Student Performance report, “Indoor air quality can reduce a [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing, Work at Home, Work/Life Balance, Writing Life Tags: , , , ,

Freelance Writing Jobs Blog – The Best of January

What you missed, what you need to see again

By on January 31, 2011. 1 Comment

Every month, the bloggers at FWJ work hard to provide quality and helpful content. Hardworking freelance writers click through looking for great leads and info, but let’s face it, some posts may slip by in the daily hustle and bustle. Here’s some great posts you may have missed: Writing From Home: Warnings & Tips on How to Survive When You Have No Office by Robin Parrish Robin captures the writing from home experience perfectly. My favorite: Get Out of the House. As important as it is to guard your at-home work time, sometimes you just have to get away from [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing, Good Stuff, Tools for Freelancer Writers Tags: , , , ,

Article Quickie: A Writer’s Confession

By on January 30, 2011. 10 Comments

My name is Terreece and I’m addicted to ellipses. There. I said it. I am free from my shame. Those three periods…they say so much and I find myself using them way to often. Every writer has a crutch. Some liken it to their ‘writing style,’ but there is a difference between a crutch and a style. “I can quit anytime.” One way to tell if your go-to writing technique is a style or a crutch is if a writer can be flexible and not use the item. Whether it’s a particular format or transition, if a writer has trouble [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing Tags: , , , ,

Article Quickie: Freelance Writing Jargon

M - Z: Mastheads through Writers Guidelines

By on January 27, 2011. Leave a Comment

Masthead Located within the first few pages of a publication, the masthead lists the important information you need – editor names, assistant editors, departments, contributing writers, etc. It is also helpful to find out the email configuration of the company – a not so secret tip on getting your queries to the right person without the SASE. On Speculation When a writer has a fantastic idea and an editor isn’t so sure, they will ask the writer to write the piece on spec or speculation. This means a writer will write the article in its entirety on the hopes that [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Best of FWJ, Freelance Writing, What is...?, Writing Tips Tags: , , , ,

“You’re Stupid.” When Cutting Edge Articles Go Bad…

By on January 25, 2011. 1 Comment

I love spunky articles and blog posts. When a writer takes an unusual stance or approaches a topic with razor-sharp wit it makes me excited about a piece, often ends up in my saved/bookmarked file and is forwarded on through various social media channels. As much as I like an offbeat approach, I practically cover my eyes and cringe at some ‘devil may care’ stances that fall flat. One reason why these posts miss their mark is they lack true understanding of who is in their audience. There was a post from a PR rep that recently made internet waves. [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing Tags: , , , ,

Article Quickie: Freelance Writing Jargon

H - L: Headlines to Lede (Lead)

By on January 18, 2011. 1 Comment

Article Quickie: Freelance Writing Jargon – A – C: From AP Style to Crib Sheet Article Quickie: Freelance Writing Jargon – D – G From Deadlines to Ghostwriting Headline The attention grabber,  the big bold letters at the top of the articles that stop readers in their tracks. Example: “Sixty Ways to Drive Your Man Wild” or “Top Ten Blogging Tips for Beginners” or “Why Your Kids Hate You.” Careful with the sensational ones, readers hate a content tease. HTML Hypertext markup language. Without getting all techie, it’s the tags that create <b>bold</b> lettering, italics, indentations, hyperlinks, etc. Some gigs [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Best of FWJ, Freelance Writing, Freelance Writing for Beginners, Writing Tips Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Article Clip 911

Protect your career and back-up your work

By on January 13, 2011. 7 Comments

This is it! This is the opportunity you’ve been waiting for – a publication you’ve had your eye on is interested in your work. Perhaps you’ve had a chance meeting with an editor or saw a job post. Now all you need is to send in that one great clip. You know, the one that shows your skill, expertise and spot on interviewing? So you type the title and your name into Google to pull up the piece…It’s gone. Silly you, you never got around to saving that clip or even printing it out. You figured it would always be [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Business Tips, Freelance Writing, Writing Tips Tags: , , , , ,

What Writers Can Learn from Ted Williams

Regaining your voice after setbacks

By on January 6, 2011. 5 Comments

If you haven’t heard of Ted Williams by now, you must have been working really hard! Ted Williams was homeless, asking for change by the highway in Columbus, Ohio. He has an incredible voice perfect for voice-overs, radio work, etc. In fact, before addiction took hold, Williams worked in radio. A videographer for the Columbus Dispatch newspaper captured his voice and story, published the piece and it went viral. Soon, calls and job offers began pouring in for the man with the “golden voice.” There’s a lot to be said about the heartwarming story – the power of social media, [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing, Writing Tips Tags: , ,

Article Quickie: Freelance Writing Jargon

D - G From Deadlines to Ghostwriting

By on January 5, 2011. Leave a Comment

Deadline These are those all important dates that you never miss. It’s when an article is due, when the editor wants it in and when excuses will be tough to take. Dek A quickie summary of what an article is about, it usually is placed in the table of contents or under the article headline. Editorial Calendar The theme and publishing calendar for a publication. Most print publications have calendars set far in advance, some as far as six months which is important to remember when sending queries. Writers also use an editorial calendar to schedule their work and organized [Read more…]

Categories: Best of FWJ, Freelance Writing, Freelance Writing for Beginners, Tools for Freelancer Writers Tags: , , , ,

For The New Year’s Day Dream Makers

By on December 31, 2010. 1 Comment

I had planned on taking the rest of the week off. Normally, I post on Tuesday and Thursdays, but Christmas and New Year’s this year I gave myself the Thursday before each holiday off. Then this morning I woke up with a memory: Years ago on New Year’s Day I was sick, had the day off from work and was researching information for the beauty and fashion column I wrote for a friend’s site. It was a fun thing I did on the side, but while researching I came across the term “freelance writer.” I realized there were people out [Read more…]

Categories: Good Stuff, Writing Tips Tags: , , , ,

Article Quickie: Freelance Writing Jargon

A - C: From AP Style to Crib Sheet

By on December 29, 2010. 3 Comments

Jumping into a freelance writing career is very exciting. Bursting with ideas, writers sit down in front of their computers anxious to discover what this wide, wonderful world has in store for them. Unfortunately, they often find tons of advice full of industry lingo that can be a bit confusing. Here is the first in the latest Article Quickie series designed to help you hit the ground running: AP Stylebook or AP Style Called the journalist’s bible, the AP Stylebook is a listing of how things like grammar, religions, titles, times etc. should be written within the text of an [Read more…]

Categories: Best of FWJ, Freelance Writing, Tools for Freelancer Writers Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Deck the Halls with Freelance Writing

Add your own verse!

By on December 21, 2010. 2 Comments

Deck the blogs with tons of leads Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la Tis the season to take heed, Fa la la la la, la la la la. To the tips, advice and wisdom, Fa la la, la la la, la la la. Troll the boards making friends, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Search the archives, thoughts and surveys, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Ask Jodee about your queries. Fa la la la la, la la la la. Noemi leads in grammar guidance, Fa la la la la, la la la la. While Jonathan talks legal countenance, [Read more…]

Categories: Freelance Writing, Fun Stuff

Reading to Pitch

What to do BEFORE creating a query

By on December 16, 2010. 1 Comment

A query isn’t just about developing a good idea and sending it to the right person, a query is designed to show your idea meets the publication’s needs and reader demographic. Before pitching a publication, a writer has to do one very important thing – read the publication. You wouldn’t believe how many writers skip that part and wonder why their idea was rejected. Once you’ve read the publication, go back and read it again. Most experts suggest reading six months worth of information. At the very least, look at the last three months. This will help you determine four [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing, Magazine Markets and Guidelines Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Article Quickie: Bullet Points

Fast facts about bullet points and how to use them

By on December 14, 2010. 3 Comments

A bullet point is a helpful little tool that helps break up content, smooth transitions and draw out important main ideas. They also help create more white space on the text or web page. When using bullet points remember to: Be consistent with content and style. Start each point with the same part of speech and maintain the same length within bullet point sets. Use main ideas. Bullet points are key to directing the reader – and their eyes – to the ideas that count. Clarify complex information. Complicated topics are best explained when broken up into bite sized pieces. [Read more…]

Categories: Article Writing, Freelance Writing Tags: , , ,
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