In this week’s “short share,” we have a two-year book writing plan from HuntersWritings.com. While two years might be an unnecessarily long time for many indie authors these days, I think it’s a great plan for new authors — especially those trying to write their first book alongside a traditional day job. If you find yourself with limited time to write, but you’d like to
It doesn’t matter how experienced of a writer you are. You’re bound to feel unmotivated every now and then. Sometimes you can plow through these periods. But at other times you’ll need to find ways to get excited about your projects again. I’m like any other writer in this regard. I have good days and bad days. Sometimes a lack of motivation is a result
Scrivener is a wonderful tool for writers. You can use it to write a novel or nonfiction book. You can use it to format your writing as an e-book. You can even use Scrivener for blogging. That said, Scrivener can also be a complicated tool to use. I doubt I even know half of what it can do. It’s one of those tools that you
Freelance writers often take on complementary services. For example, a web content writer might handle social media marketing for the content they write. Freelance bloggers might be asked to step in and assist a client even before they have a blog set up. If you’re able to quickly set up WordPress for your clients, charging them for the service might make a lot of sense. But if
This might sound strange. But today I want to recommend an audio app — more specifically a sleep audio app — to writers. It’s called Relax Melodies, and it’s available on both Android and iOS devices. I’ve been struggling with insomnia recently, working and sleeping rather odd hours. Sleep has been difficult to come by lately, but when I do sleep, this app usually plays a
When a client visits your professional website, are they getting the information they want and need? Are benefits of hiring you, as opposed to your competition, clear? Do they leave with enough information to make a hiring decision, or at least feel inclined to contact you? An effective freelance writer website should do those things. Does yours? I previously announced I’m in the process of
Anonymity online is a hotly debated issue. Is it “wrong” to post anything anonymously because it means you aren’t taking responsibility for your words? Or is it an acceptable way of communicating online? And when you work as a writer, is there anything you can do to protect your personal information, whether you choose to write anonymously or not? This is an issue where I
This week’s “short share” is an infographic from Brian Scott and FreelanceWriting.com. It presents common examples of publication rights freelance writers might come across while negotiating contracts. This is important information to know. I meet new writers all the time who assume that copyrights automatically transfer to clients simply because they’ve paid for the end result. That isn’t the case. Contract language has to be
In this week’s episode of the All Freelance Writing Podcast, I highlight five common blogging myths and misunderstandings new bloggers should look out for. Blogging myths featured in this episode include: You have to post every day, or nearly every day. Every post should be “epic” content, over 2000 words, etc. There’s some big difference between “blog posts” and “articles,” and freelance bloggers should be
Earlier this year, Lori Widmer stopped by the All Freelance Writing Podcast to guest co-host an episode on everyday marketing for freelance writers. Our chat ran long, so some segments had to be cut. That included a ten-minute segment about writing for content mills. We also touched on a simple tactic for finding better gigs and leaving mills behind — something Lori calls “stealth marketing.”
Have you seen bloggers feature tweetable quotes in their posts? If they’re using one of the more popular plugins, they probably look like pull quotes. Unfortunately there isn’t much variation in design, and blogs using this feature have all started having their tweetable quotes look alike. That’s why I previously showed you how you can add your own tweetable quotes, without a plugin, and with any design
Last week I received a reader question from Shirley Gazenski. She’s in an interesting position — torn between past samples in three distinct specialty areas. She wanted to know if I had any advice for her, and she agreed to have my feedback posted here in case any other community members find themselves in a similar position. Let’s start with her past work. Shirley has
For this week’s short share, I have an infographic for freelancers. This one looks at some of the pros and cons of freelancing, and it was presented by GraphicDesignDegreeHub.com. While this was published back in 2013, I’m curious if you see if your own freelance careers are reflected in the data. Which side do you fall on? Did you get into freelance writing because you wanted to?
“The best freelance writing jobs are almost never publicly advertised.” This is something I’ve pointed out countless times over the years. Yet one of the biggest questions I get from new writers is “where do I find gigs?” The best gigs aren’t usually advertised for a few reasons. Clients already have contacts that can refer qualified writers. They prefer to search for a writer on
Last week I suggested adding your latest blog content to your writer website’s homepage. That might make this week’s quick tip sound a little strange. But this one is for bloggers: Consider adding static content to your blog’s homepage. In last week’s post we were looking at freelance writer websites and author websites, where the blog is an add-on and static homepages are the norm.
Is your marketing helping you reach the best freelance writing prospects? That depends on your target market and how successful you are at reaching members of that group. One of the biggest mistakes a new freelance writer can make is having no target market. That’s when you simply take any gig that comes along, whether or not you enjoy the work, whether or not you
For this week’s short share we have an interesting one on timing your social media updates from SocialCaffeine.com. What do you think? Obviously the actual best times to post on social networks won’t be the same for everyone because of community and niche differences. But how close does your experience come to these recommended times? I’ve done the most testing on Twitter. My main account
Every year Lori Widmer of Words on the Page hosts Writer’s Worth Month. In Lori’s words, the mission of Writer’s Worth Month is “to reach freelance writers and help them gain confidence in the value of their skills.” In other words, it’s about helping you earn more and build a more successful writing business. To do this, Lori features a series of posts — both