Our own Susan Gunelius wrote a very thoughtful post entitled, 10 Skills Freelance Writers Must Have if They Want to Succeed. I want to expand on her idea and address the subject of people who have work experience in other areas but who aren’t sure that it can be transferred to freelance writing work. The following list of skills formed part of a recent ad for a freelance writer: Computer use Continuous learning Critical thinking Decision making Document use Finding information Job task planning and organizing Oral communication Problem solving Reading text Significant use of memory Working with others This [Read more…]
Listing Multiple Clients on Your Freelance Writing Resume
August 18, 2009. 8 Comments
Preparing a freelance writer’s resume is a little different from writing one where your goal is to find a job. A functional resume, where you focus on your skills and achievements, is a style option that you may want to consider. Can you make the more traditional chronological style work for you? Sure you can. The Challenge With a Chronological Format for Freelancers The challenge (notice I didn’t say problem) with preparing a chronological resume when you are a freelancer is that you may be juggling multiple clients at once, do a few one-time-only assignments, and have some dry spells [Read more…]
Transferable Skills and Your Resume
July 26, 2009. 4 Comments
We get lots of questions from our readers about resumes for freelance writers. Whether you are looking for your first freelance writing gig or you have some experience under your belt, it can be challenging to figure out exactly what to include in your resume. Your writer’s resume will list your writing experience, and I include other work experience on mine as well. I want the person reading it to get a good idea of who I am and what skills I bring to the table when I’m applying for freelance work. I also want to make sure that I [Read more…]
Online resume mistakes you may be making
May 31, 2009. 14 Comments
Applying for online writing gigs is a writing talent all on its own. If you make a mistake you’re not kicking off this whole, “I can write for a living” deal very well. Because you’ll be sending your resume / work bio by email, you need to adjust it for the web. Following are some mistakes not to make when applying for an online writing gig – be it a blog or other website. Mistakes when applying: You cut and paste from Word or another doc. application: This can result in some funky formatting and make your email look unprofessional. [Read more…]
