You are currently browsing the monthly archive for February 2008.
As of this moment, I have just published my 20th article on Suite101! I am so excited. For celebration’s sake, here’s the link to all 20 of my articles….read them and tell me what you think. I am also looking for ideas pertaining to any of the following for new articles: books/reading/literary culture, writing/publishing, and newlywed issues. Let me know if you’ve got something you’re curious about and I’ll see if I can make an informative article out of it (but only if you promise to read it!)
P.S. it may take a few hours for the latest two articles to show up so be patient.
photo courtesy of Jupiter Images
You want to write. You love to write. You eat, sleep and breathe to write. So what kind of area do you want to write in? There are a few big areas, so here they are as well as what kind of freelancing jobs fall within each area. (info courtesy of 2008 Writer’s Market)
The Business Area: This consists of writing annual reports, brochures, fliers for business, business & sales letters, business & government research, general business editing, business plan writing, business-writing seminars, catalogs for business, consultation on communications, copy editing for business, corporate histories, corporate periodicals editing, corporate periodicals writing, corporate portfolio, grant writing for business, government writing, grant proposal writing for nonprofits, newsletters production, newsletters editing, newsletters writing, translation
Advertising & Public Relations: This area of freelancing includes advertising copywriting, advertorials, book jacket copywriting, preparing launch info for product campaign, catalog copywriting, general copyediting for advertising, direct mail copywriting, email ad copywriting, event publicity and promotions, press kits, press/news releases, public relations for business, government, organizations, non-profits, schools and speech writing.
Media: Includes writing book summaries, screen writing, movie novelization, radio commercials, TV commercials and TV scripts
Book Publishing: Includes writing such things as abstracts, abridging, anthologies, book proposals, book query critiques, book query writing, children’s book writing, content editing, copyediting, fiction book writing, ghostwriting, indexing, manuscript evaluation and critiquing, nonfiction book writing, novel synopsis, proofreading, research, rewriting and translation
Technical: Includes computer, scientific and technical writing such as computer-related manual writing, email copywriting, medical and science editin/proofreading/writing, online editing, technical editing/writing, webpage design/editing/writing
Design: desktop publishing, greeting cards, photo brochures, photo editing, slides and powerpoint presentations
Education & Literacy: educational consulting and design of courses, education grant and proposal writing, manuscript evaluation for theses, presentations, readings, teaching college courses and seminars, writer’s workshops, writing foor scholarly journals
Magazine & Trade Publications: arts reviewing, book reviews, magazine columns, magazine features, content editing, copyediting magazines, fact checking, ghostwriting articles, magazine research, proofreading, reprints, rewriting, trade journal columns, trade journal articles
Misc.: cartoons, comedy writing, craft project instructions, encyclopedia articles, family history/genealogy, institutional history, manuscript typing, resumes/cover letters
Newspapers: arts reviewing, book reviewing, local columns, copyediting, feature writing, obituary writing, proofreading, reprints, stringing, syndicated columns
Hopefully this will widen the areas of writing possibilities for you. Are there any categories that sound especially interesting to you?
I’m a huge proponent of reading. As I’ve said before, I believe that in order to be a good writer, one must be an avid reader. But what if you’re not a writer? Well, I personally also believe that reading makes you a well-rounded person. Being able to have access to uncensored ideas and information is a valuable tool, that everyone can benefit from.
So why I am bringing this up? Well, it seems like for quite sometime now, there has been buzz about print books being “on the way out” or even worse “dead”. I find this hard to believe based upon the resurgence of reading among younger demographics thanks to the Harry Potter series, and the every-increasing popularity of Oprah’s recommended books. But then I go to Amazon and find on their homepage their new “Kindle” which is their version of a “wireless reading device” (MSRP $399 at time of this post). I don’t think I can get behind this concept. I understand that the amount of people who read books (as opposed to spending their leisure time watching TV, surfing the web, or doing other numerous non-reading activities) has rapidly declined and I understand the logic behind promoting books in an electronic medium. I just don’t think it provides the reader with the same experience as picking up a physical book, cracking the spine and flipping the pages. On the same token, I’m not a fan of ebooks either. I prefer having my books adorn my bookcase as opposed to my hard drive.
Only time will tell the future of books and reading in general, but I’m staying optimistic. Until they stop publishing paper books, I’m going to keep reading them and I hope you will do the same.
What do you think of this whole ebook/electronic reading device/lack of the general public reading for enjoyment?
So far, I’ve been freelancing mainly as a ghostwriter, which is akin to writing a friend’s paper in school for money. You get paid but you don’t reap any of the glory/notoriety. It’s becoming a source of distraction for me lately. Honestly, I am getting bored with the work and am I am finding myself less than ambitious.
This leads me to deciding to spend more time writing about things I enjoy and have a genuine interest in, with the hope that at the very least they are appropriate for Suite101, best case scenario is to start querying print publications with my ideas for articles.
Do you remember the first article you ever pitched? What was it? Who published it?
I can’t emphasize it enough, with freelance projects it really is a sink or swim endeavor. I just finished a 10 article project today, and landed a website proofreading/editing assignment as well. Sometimes it gets overwhelming to face the workload, especially when it’s more work than you bargained for. However, I’ve realized there are certain things a busy, stressed-out (and still slightly sick) freelancer can do to make their jobs a bit less daunting. Besides, if the work wasn’t coming in, I’d be complaining that I was bored (and broke!!).
1. Step away from the computer. Yes, I realize there is work to be done. However stressing out about it and attempting to get it done all at once is both impossible and a recipe for burnout. Take a deep breath and step outside. Do anything for an hour except work. This will give you a fresh perspective when it’s time to get working.
2. Divide the workload. Some projects are easier to break up into small sections and some are more of a challenge. Regardless, it is vital to realize that you are not going to complete 24 hours of work in one day. Look at the time line you have for completing the project and divide up your time accordingly. For instance, I am working on a proof reading assignment that I estimate will take me a total of 24 hours to finish. I’ve told the client I can have it for them in one week. In hindsight, I see that I should have extended my turn around time to two weeks, but for the time being I will stick firmly to the one week frame. So, I estimate that I can do either 5 hours worth of work for 5 days or 4 hours of work for 6 days. Either way, I have a general idea of the time I need to invest in this project.
3. Communicate with your client. Worse case scenario: it’s the night before you’re project is due and you still are not done. It’s time to fess up to the client. While this should always be a last resort, it is a fair and professional thing to do (so long as you don’t make a habit of it!). Be sure to explain to your client that the project is taking a little longer than originally expected and offer a realistic date when it can be completed. Also, do not wait until the last minute to inform your client that his/her project won’t be complete on schedule. If you have a time line that you are following, you should know by day 4 of a one week project, that time constraints will not feasibly allow you to have the work done in 3 days. This would be the time to tell your client. Giving them as much notice as possible is the professional thing to do.
4. Learn from the experience. If you budgeted your time too thinly, make a mental note for future projects. It is always better for you and your client to over quote the turn around time and have the work done early, than to lag behind and try to play catch up.
photo courtesy of Jupiter Images
First of all, allow me to apologize for the lack of posts as of late. I’ve been struck with an awful case of bronchitis that has all but kicked my butt! I haven’t seen any rooms of my apartment other than the bedroom & bathroom for the past 5 days.
So my predicament got me thinking. What would I do if I had gotten sick and my only source of income/health insurance came from freelancing? Pretty scary stuff. As is, it’s nice to know that my full-time employer pays my sick days and my doctor’s appointments and prescriptions. How does a full time freelancer handle the complications of health and medical insurance? What about work load? If you have deadlines, your clients are not going to care that your on death’s door. They want their work when it was contracted for.
If you are a full time freelancer, I’d love for you to share your take on this subject. I’d like to know what I’m in for down the road!
How do you decide whether or not you are successful in this industry? Is it based on monthly income? Repeat clients? Work that you have lined up?
I’ve only been doing this a short time, and in my experience it’s been a very “feast or famine” type of thing. I either have so many projects to work on that I start to feel overwhelmed or I have nothing lined up and I feel inadequate.
What has been the defining moment in your career where you felt as though this was something you were successful at doing as opposed to something you were tinkering with?
courtesy of Jupiter Images
You probably don’t know much about me from a personal perspective, as I mainly use this blog as a means for documenting my freelancing career. However, you should know that I am a big animal lover. I’m talking BIG TIME animal lover. So in the spirit of combining the two things I am most passionate about, I wanted to share a site with you called creativePAW. It’s a volunteer-based organization where creative professionals offer their services (writers, photographers, web designers…) to help with animal welfare organizations. I just registered with the site and I am hoping to offer my help in any way possible. If you are an animal lover who is creatively inclined and is looking to do something good, I urge you to check it out.
photo courtesy of Lisa Dooley-Rufle 2006
It seems like a lot of people have been expressing interest in writing for Suite101, so I’d like to tell you why I perceive it to be a great place to write:
1. You have to apply to become a writer. As opposed to the other content sites out there in web land, Suite has an application process for all new potential contributing writers. When I applied in December (if I remember correctly) I needed to first register with the site and then fill out a very specific application. It included my resume and a description of ideas for potential articles as well as some samples of my previous writing. I guess this serves as a means by which to weed out those who are serious about writing.
2. They have their own “house style”. At first this was by biggest challenge, getting myself accustomed to writing both for the web and for their site. All of the articles that you write for Suite are expected to be of high quality and follow a formula which is key-word centric: title, subtitle, article summary, article body, keyword list and picture(s). While it may be a little bit tricky at first, they offer a plethora of resources to help a new writer become accustomed to what they expect. There is a writer’s handbook (which is incredibly useful) and a writer’s forum where you can chat with other Suite writers and get advice.
3. You have an editor. Again, as opposed to the other content sites on the web, Suite provides all their writers (both contributing and feature writers) with editors who review your work to make sure that it meets all of Suite’s strict quality guidelines and standards. Your editor will offer suggestions and tips for making your article the best it can be. This is good because it ensures that only writing of a certain caliber appears on the site, which boosts the reputation of everyone else who writes for Suite as well.
4. It is reputable. Writing for Suit101 is different from writing for other content sites because they have been around for 12+ years and they have a standard of quality. When you include Suite on your resume or you include samples of your work on Suite, people know that it is not only well-written and researched, but that it is written for the web in the most optimized way possible.
5. The Perks are great! As a writer for Suite, you do earn a portion of the revenue based on ads. And the money is a lot better than another content site that I write for but will remain nameless. But the perks I’m referring to here are the ones where you get offered to write for other publications as a result of your presence on Suite. Lots of Suite writers have shared success stories of having major magazines and websites approach them for work. Also, as a writer who enjoys reading, I get tons of review copies of books which to me is great since I save a ton of money by not having to buy books!
6. You can write about anything that interests you. As a contributing writer, I get to write about any topic I want. This is great because it gives me freedom as a writer to explore things that interest me, and then share them with my readers.
7. The Quota is Manageable. When I accepted my contract with Suite, as a contributing writer I was contracted to write 10 original articles in a three month period. Nothing that was too overwhelming.
8. You get amazing experience writing for the web. Writing for Suite really does prepare you and makes you a stronger web writer. It’s also a great way to show off samples of your work to potential clients.
Please feel free to post any comments or questions, and I’ll be more than happy to answer them for you. I’d also really love it if you are writing or were writing for them, to share your thoughts about Suite101.
Because I made less than $600 last year in freelance work, I do not need to claim it on my taxes. However, this year I’ve already exceeded that mark so I need to start keeping good records. As I mentioned in an earlier post, all of the books that I buy for work related subjects, I keep the receipts. All the office supplies, business cards, stationery, courses taken and postage all keep the receipts. At the moment I have a file where I put all the business-related expense receipts, that way they are all in one place, ready for next year’s taxes (because I will make over $600 this year!).
Courtesy of Jupiter Images
