Freelance Writing Jobs » Cool stuff for writers

A Few Black Friday Deals for Freelance Writers

Deb — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:13:14 +0000

I am NOT a Black Friday shopper. There is in way in Hades you’ll get me out of bed before 7:30 on the day after Thanksgiving, especially if it’s to battle crowds and fight over big screen televisions and Barbie Dolls. I worked in a mall. I know what goes on there. It’s not pretty.

However, I do know there are some bargains to be found on Black Friday, many of them of interest to freelance writers. Here are few of the items I’ve come across that may appeal to you. Is it worth it to wake up at 3:00 a.m. and stand in a crowd to purchase one of these items?

I’ll let you decide.

Black Friday Deals for Freelance Writers

True Value

Paper Shredder – $9.99. When it’s time to get rid of old invoices, contracs, W-9’s and other personal business, you’ll want to run it through a paper shredder first.

Best Buy

Linksys Wireless Router – $20 off at $59.95
Logitech Cordless Mouse – $24.99 – A discount of over $17.00
A variety of discounted netbooks and notebooks – some with heavy discounts.

Radio Shack

Wireless Mouse at $12.99 (normally $19.99)
Blackberry Curve – free with two year T-Mobile contract
Gigaware Notebook Cooling pad for $14.99 (from $19.99( – If you have a large laptop this is will help to keep it from overheating.

Staples

HP Laptop at $299.98 (After rebate)
Dell Studio 15.6″ Core 2 Duo Laptop w/ 4GB, 500GB – $599.98
HP Core 2 Duo 17.3″ Laptop w/ 4GB, 320GB – $599.98 MIR
HP DeskJet F4280 All-in-One Printer – $39.99

Half Price Books

Offering a variety of options including discounts and gift cards.

Office Depot

D-Link Basic N Wireless Router – $19.99
D-Link Basic N Wireless USB Adapter – $19.99
Entire Stock of Cross Pens – 50% off
Compaq Presario Desktop w/ 2GB, 250GB, DVD+R – $229.99
Compaq Presario Desktop w/ 2GB, 250GB, DVD+R, 19″ LCD – $329.99

Dell

A variety of goodies

If you come across any deals you feel will benefit the writers in this community (and no fair spamming) please post them in the comments.

Sign Up for the Freelance Writing Jobs Newsletter

Deb — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:02:54 +0000

I’m excited to tell you about a newsletter we’re launching for the Freelance Writing Jobs network. It’s something I’ve been toying with for a while, but wanted to make sure the FWJ community will receive value – even a free newsletter. I’ve never been a fan of blog newsletters that only feature the same exact things that are posted to the blog each week. Well, we will have that, but much more.

Coming soon, the FWJ newsletter will feature:

* Blog posts, news and gigs from around the FWJ network.
* Past gems from the FWJ archives.
* Columns and advice by veteran freelancers not found at FWJ
* Fun stuff.
* Q & A/Mentoring- We’ll answer your questions about freelance writing and freelance writing jobs.
* Essays about freelance writing from the FWJ community.

Subscription to the FWJ newsletter is absolutely free and we hope for it to be another way to help advance your freelance writing career. The first issue will launch within the next week or two.

This is your idea, FWJ community, I hope to continue to do you all proud.

A Freelance Writer’s Guide to Twitter

Deb — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:07:40 +0000

Twitter is an essential resource for freelance writers. At first considered a fun little social networking site, Twitter now reaches far beyond your average social networking forum. In fact, next to the blog, many feel Twitter to be the most important social networking/social media tool for freelance writers.

Knowing how to use Twitter to your benefit can mean more awareness of your brand, more traffic to your blog or website, and more interaction with other freelancer writers and potential clients.

Let’s explore some of the ways freelance writers can take advantage of Twitter’s potential.

There are hundreds of freelance writers on Twitter

If you ever wanted to join a writer’s group but didn’t have the time, money or inclination, Twitter is like one giant network for freelance writers. On a given day we:

Share links to informative blog posts and articles: Every blogger shares links to blog posts and most understand the rule about not being spammy. It’s how we’re turned on to new writing blogs and how other freelancers and writers learn about FWJ. Before you start sending out links, build up relationships with your followers. Once you’re enjoying each other’s company, send out periodic links to your blog posts. If your followers find the topic interesting they’ll be inclined to stop in for a visit.
Share job leads: Lots of folks share links to job lists and job leads. Keep in mind, many of these leads are for freelance bidding sites.There are also plenty of leads for decent non-bidding site opportunities. I keep my Seesmic (see “Twitter Tools” below) open to several search terms at once, many of them having to do with freelance writing jobs. Your favorite job search sites no doubt also have Twitter accounts and following them will enable you to see their job Tweets. You can also do a Twitter Search and Twitter Job Search to find freelance writing jobs.
Talk with potential clients: It’s funny how many potential clients are following you on Twitter and you may not even know about it. In fact, some of the people who I know on Twitter have contacted me to discuss freelance writing opportunities after our online chats. They may originally follow you because they find you interesting and may end up hiring you after getting to know you.
Build relationships: I have many good friend thanks to Twitter. Using social networks to meet and share with others led to some mutually beneficial relationships. Some of those relationships led to jobs, some led to joint projects, and some led to some wonderful, long-term friendships. Many of these relationships continue to grow offline as well.
Discuss issues pertaining to freelance writers: Do you have questions regarding freelance writing? Is there something sticking in your craw? Are you looking for information on a particular content site or client? Use Twitter for a lively discussion, an intelligent debate or to ask questions of your fellow freelance writers.

Twitter Search

Use Twitter Search to find other freelance writers, freelance writing work, check out upcoming events, meet folks in your genre, talk to interview subjects, gain a new perspective, learn the top stories and anything else you can think of.

Twitter Groups

TwittGroups and Twibes are two ways to find groups of Twitterers who share your same interests. These don’t have to be related to your niche, either. There are Twitter groups for your favorite television shows, movies, current events, recipes and everything else under the sun. If you’re writing about a particular topic, using a Twitter group can help to find people to talk to and interview.

Twitter Job Search

Twitter Job Search aggregates all the job listings on Twitter enabling you to search for specifics. Even if you’re not looking for a freelance writing or social media job, Twitter search has all the bases covered. Mr. Ng has even used it to look for available accounting opportunities. It’s not precise though, so if you plug in “freelance writing jobs” you might receive results with that phrase in the title but not actually linking to any gigs.

Twitter Lists

Twitter lists are a new feature enabling Twitterers to pull together lists of their favorite Tweeters in various topics. For example, yesterday I put together a list of folks who are always worth a ReTweet. I found out yesterday I’m listed on about 85 lists mostly having to do with freelance writing, blogging and social media. What I like about Twitter Lists is the ability to check out new Twitterers who are isolated in these groups, which I may not have been able to do otherwise. If I like what I see I might follow them and read their stuff. They might also follow me in return and read my stuff. Some folks feel it might be a little exclusionary, and while I can see that happening, I also feel social networks on a whole are exclusionary.

Twitter Tools

There are a variety of Twitter Tools of use to freelance writers, far too many for me to list here. My favorite tool is my Seesmic application which enables me to have one window open showing Tweets from the people I follow, @replies directed at me, my direct messages, and a few search terms that interest me. Seesmic is similar to TweetDeck but I find it to be a better option, I especially like how I can view and respond to my FaceBook news feed.

Some other cool Twitter tools for freelance writers (and others!):

Twittonary - The Twitter dictionary.
Is Twitter Down? - OK, maybe this isn’t for freelance writers really but if you’re an addict like me and you get the Fail Whale, Is Twitter Down will let you know if it’s you or if it’s Twitter.
Twilert - Type in your search word and tomorrow you’ll have a note in your in box listing all the Tweets on that topic from the day before.
TweetMeme – Allow others to retweet your blog posts.
TweetBurner: Allows you to track links posted to Twitter.
TwitterLocal – Allows you to find Twitters in your area. This is especially helpful if you want to learn more about local businesses who might want to hire your services.

Twitter Feed

Use Twitter Feed to automaticall post your blog posts to Twitter. Set it and forget it.

Twitter Hashtags

Want to learn what other freelance writers are talking about? Try using the #freelance or #writer hashtags to follow the conversation. Use the Twitter search function in your Seesmic, TweetDeck or your Twitter web page or use the Twitter search page to follow your favorite hashtags.

As you can see, Twitter is very useful to freelance writers. From searching to networking to landing actual clients it’s a must have tool for your arsenal. How are you using Twitter.

45 Free Things for Writers

Deb — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:26:28 +0000

So I haven’t done a “free stuff for writers” post in a while. Probably because it takes a lot of time to scour the Internet for freebies. However, it’s a sucky economy and we’re all looking to save where we can. With that in mind, I’d like to offer this list of free things for writers. Some of this stuff isn’t for all writers, but I hope it’s safe to say there’s something here for everyone.

I checked all of these. There should be no strings attached, no “offers” to sign up for, and (with the exception of one place asking for shipping) no reason to take out your credit card.

I give you:

45 Free Things for Writers

The Library – Hah! You thought this would be a roundup of links, didn’t you? There will be plenty of those, dear readers. However, there are plenty of offline goodies to take advantage of as well. As the daughter of a librarian, I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you about the library. In addition to finding free books on everything, it’s also one of the best places to conduct research. In addition to books and magazines, my library offers many classes. Most recently they did a series on blogging and social media for business.
WiFi – Writers need portability. This list of free WiFi hotspots from around the world will help with your hookup when you’re away from home.
Online Courses – Here’s a list of 31 Free online courses
Google Calendar – Great for those times you can’t access your Outlook. Schedule your activities using this online calendar- it will even email reminders each morning.
Google Docs – Share docs or keep your stuff online.
Free ebook – How to Write a Proposal Superfast
Open Office: Don’t want to pay Microsoft prices? Use Open Office for a free alternative to Word, Excel and others.
Business Cards: Vista Print will print up a couple of hundred business cards at no charge, as long as you pay the shipping.
Free Report: Marketing for Writers (from Writer2Writer)
WordPress: Worldpress.com is a free platform for bloggers. Wordpress.org is also free but you’ll have to provide your own domain. If you use Wordpress.com however, you won’t be able to host ads or use javascript. (This blog is hosted by Wordpress.org on my own domain.)
Blogger: Blogger is another great free blog platform and you can host ads and javascript.
Online Dictionary: Use Dictionary.com when you don’t feel like lugging out the heavy volume.
Online Thesaurus: Ditto Thesaurus.com.
Free ebook - Book Writing for Fun and Profit.
Free Report – “The Non Celebrity’s Guide to Getting a Children’s Book Published”.
Free Ebook – “The Art of Writing” by Robert Lewis Stevenson
Free online version of “The Elements of Style.“
Free online fact checker at refdesk.com.
Free online Encyclopedia Britannica.
Free Newspapers - 100 of them, to be exact!
CIA World Factbook
Free Ebook - The Lousy Writer’s Guide to Writing Persuasively
Twitter - You no longer have to spend an arm and a leg on networking and marketing.
Free subscription – Website Magazine (No, you don’t have to complete a million offers.)
Unleashing the Idea Virus: Seth Godin’s free ebook.
Free sample: Green Mountain Coffee
Free Historical Documents - From the Foundations of Freedom.
Ever want to write your own cookbook? Here’s a free cookbook kit from Morris Press.
Free QuickBooks download – It’s important for all freelance writers to keep good records.
Free IRS Tax Calendar for small businesses and the self employed.
Free 2010 Calendar Poster courtesy of the New Yorker.
Free online bookkeeping with Outright.
A free tax organizer is available at SmallBizTaxes.com.
Nice! A free journal and pen from Competitive Society.
Free correction pen courtesy of Ringtonica.
Authority Rules: Copyblogger Brian Clark’s report on online marketing.
Learning Labs Writing Skills free tutorials for writers.
Orangoo’s free online spell checker is a handy tool for all writers.
Free download: The Graviax Grammar Checker.
Free whitepaper: Blogging for Marketing 101.
RHL School offers free grammar and usage worksheets.
YWriter has novel writing software available.
Yaro Starak’s Free Blog Profit Blueprint
Using the Social Web to Find Work a free ebook by Chris Brogan
Free ebook: Creative Freelancing by Melissa J. Gallagher

Monty Python Talks About Writing

Deb — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 12:43:28 +0000

I’m fascinated by the writing process, especially for others. In this enjoyable clip, Eric Idle talks about writing with John Cleese for the hysterical Monty Python series. Enjoy!

Top 10 Ways to Tell You’re a Freelance Writer

Deb — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:41:04 +0000

Are you someone who writes for a living but you’re not sure if you qualify to use the term “freelance writer” in your job description? Do you think of yourself as a freelancer, but aren’t sure if everyone else does? Fear not, this handy guide will put you in the know. Behold:

Top 10 Ways to Tell if You’re a Freelance Writer

10. Your friends and neighbors drop in any time they want because you’re home all the time

If you had a real job, you wouldn’t be at home. Freelancing means you’re available for coffee cake and back fence commiseration. No matter how many times you insist you really do work, no one actually believes it.

9. Being dressed up means you’re wearing your clean sweats

No laundry problem in your house, because you don’t have to change clothes several times a day. No stocking, suit jackets or business casual for you. You wear the same comfy sweats every day because who is going to see them? If your family are the only ones who think you smell a little ripe, it doesn’t count. Besides, it keeps the neighbors from dropping in unannounced for coffee.

8. You find yourself hunting up scraps of paper whenever you’re offline to write down the ideas in your head

Everything is fodder for a blog post or article. Sometimes you even want to pull over in the car to write down ideas. If you’ve ever told your kids to remember a phrase, or ask your husband to “write this down” you are, indeed, a freelance writer.

7. You amaze your friends with your bits of trivia and information regarding topics no one else has no use for

All those articles you had to write about pallet racks or septic system repair? No one cares, not even the polite friends.

6. The mailman is your best friend

We hear “the check is in the mail a lot.” Opening that mailbox to find a window envelope with its contents made payable to us, is the icing on the freelance writing cake.

5. The size of your jeans goes up every few months

Walking from the desk to the fridge several days does not constitute “exercise” no matter how often we try to convince our selves otherwise.

4. You know the winners of all the VH-1 and Bravo reality TV shows for the past two years

Even though the television is only on for “background” noise you’re paying attention, aren’t you?

3. When folks ask you who you work for you drop a long explanation rather than a name

It’s so much easier to explain what we do, than who we do it for.

2. You’re working well into the night because you spent the day on the beach or at the mall

Flexibility rocks.

1. Your commute consists of walking down the hall

No traffic jams. No subways. No exhaust. No smog. No regrets.

Free Webinar: Marketing Strategies with White Papers

Deb — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 15:00:08 +0000

Every time my friend Michael Stelzner hosts a webinar he gets an amazing turnout. My biggest regret is that I get so caught up in what I’m doing I put off writing about them here until the very last minute. So today I’m giving you a week’s notice.

Mike is offering a webinar next week called “Marketing Strategies with White Papers.” The webinar is actually $60, but Mike’s letting FWJ readers attend at no cost. In other words, free.

I’m going to post the who, what and where’s below – but if you’re interested, please enroll using the link provided on this page.

In this free class, Michael will reveal:

* What marketing techniques bring in ongoing leads at no cost?

* What are the five deadly marketing mistakes most businesses make and how can I avoid them?

* How can I effortlessly get my information in front of prospects?

* What are three proven techniques that greatly improve the quality of leads generated?

* How can I find prospects actively looking for the products or services I sell?

Whether you simply need new ideas to generate interest or have been thinking about white papers, you need to see what Michael’s going to share.

Go here to grab your seat before they’re gone. Remember, this is a free event. Normally Michael charges $59 for this, but he’s decided to offer it at no cost for a limited time.