When you've spent years writing and researching essays while reading some of the world's best literature, for an English major, the post-graduation moment is a double-whammy of relief and weightlessness...…
I've been freelancing for more than thirty years. I've replied with job applications to hundreds of ads for writers posted online. Over the last decade and a half, I've nailed freelance jobs with AOL, Arthur Andersen, Forbes Investopedia, and many more print and online publications. Some of the editors at those publications told me that hundreds of qualified writers applied for those gigs. Why was I selected for the job rather than some other writer? I was told they hired me because they liked my cover letter, clips and resume... …
A bit unsure of myself, it took an act of boldness to submit my first manuscript three decades ago. But, the article sold to the first magazine I sent it to, and has been reprinted many times... …
Several years ago, in the "Paying Market Section" of WritersWeekly.com, I noticed a German magazine seeking articles. I'd published one for our local paper about independently operated Saturday language schools, so called because they meet on Saturday mornings throughout the school year. I pitched them my idea, but narrowed my focus to German schools. In turn, they sent me a contract. Last year, another German magazine requested a similar version of this article. I freshened it up and it, too, was published... …
Whether writing advertising copy, novels, articles, essays, or poems, it is essential to paint word pictures by wringing the last drop of creative juice from the sponge of your brain. Adjectives, verbs and adverbs make butterflies of less-than-colorful nouns and verbs. Yet, apply a too-heavy coat of description and the reader's mind will never take flight. As in mixing colors, precision coaxes the loveliest of hues to appear; in writing, excessive verbiage results in a muddy mess... …
My first picture book finally found a publisher! For me, the years of visualizing the story in my head like a movie, and the arduous writing and rewriting paid off. I believed in my dream (though it was a bit dusty). One day, I searched for a publisher. Yet, a thought nagged me... …
Back in 2011 when I started freelancing, I would have never imagined that I would be at the level that I am at now. While I still am not reaching all of my freelance writing goals, I must say that over these past three years I am nowhere near where I started... …
I write comic cozy mysteries. I am not famous. I'm down in the trenches, trying to get my name and titles out there. My publisher is small and my marketing budget is, too. Can you relate? On more than one occasion I've wondered if I should simply get a job at the bank, and forget this whole writing dealy-bob. It's a tough slog. But, take it from me, good things can happen if you hang in there... …
When I exploded onto the freelance scene earlier this year with the essay "This is what happened when I drove my Mercedes to pick up food stamps," people assumed it was an overnight success, built on luck and good timing. It was that, but so much more... …
I was well published with essays, articles, children's stories and poetry appearing in both religious and secular magazines. But there was one genre I had never thought to explore - devotionals - until a writer friend suggested I delve into this genre. Because these magazines publish daily devotionals, there is plenty of opportunity for sales... …
As a stay at home mom, I had been out of the professional workforce for several…
It's no secret that everyday experiences are fodder for writers. Readers relate to everyday experiences. Often, though, we writers think we've exhausted all our everyman material, and have nothing to write. Such thinking is nonsense. Right off the cliched top of my head, I can think of a well-known example where writing success has been the result of making something out of nothing: Seinfeld (the "show about nothing").…
I sold the first article I ever wrote to the first magazine I submitted it to. But, that was after revising the piece over and over until I had faith that my article had reached perfection. Excited by my sale, I sought out and joined a local writers' group that met semi-monthly. Members would read their manuscripts aloud at one meeting each month, and receive verbal comments. Those comments were somewhat helpful, but it wasn't until I was invited to join a critique group of six published authors that my magazine sales started to soar...…
With all the emphasis today placed on social media as a tool to network and build…
At the end of 2013, I quit my publishing job after 12 to pursue the life of a freelancer. I announced my plans across social media and, although it wasn't intended as a pitch, I quietly hoped the announcement would lead to some interesting (paid) work. Soon after, a local independent arts venue contacted me to say they were fans of my blog... …
Dreaming of selling my writing and seeing my work published, I did what I thought needed to be done: I submitted... …
When you chop down a dead tree, you don't have to throw it all away when you're finished. You can make use of the wood, and even the splinters. In other words, if you are working on a major product - like writing a book - be alert for articles you can write and sell based on the research you've accumulated... …
A day at the local mega-bookstore rejuvenated my freelance career... …
Do not underestimate the power of a writing group. I owe the success of my first sale to such a group with a membership of only two. While there may be strength in numbers, there is also strength in commitment... …
As I sat, ready to sign my very first traditional publishing contract, I took the time to look back... …
Maybe I should try to write about the things I loved most, and submit it to those companies and to those people... …
In 1990, my photographer husband and I owner-built a home. It was hard work, and offered a typical university of life learning curve. We'd already collaborated on nine home and do-it-yourself building related books (four of which had been published internationally in the US, UK, and Australia, as well as our native South Africa), so it wasn't a surprise when the MD of one of the publishing companies we'd been working closely with suggested we create a book about owner building based on our personal experience... …
Recently, I took an online writing class called "30 Queries in 30 Days" by Mridu Khullar Relph. The goal of the class was obvious: to send out 30 query letters in a month. Every day, Mridu would send a lesson via email that taught us how to research magazine markets, generate ideas, write query letters, or some other how-to of marketing our writing... …
In 2012, I made plans for my freelance writing career to grow to full-time over a three-year period. The plan included keeping my full-time "day job" so I wouldn't have to worry about paying the mortgage. This also afforded me the ability to refuse grasping at the low-paying and "low-hanging fruit." …
Just like you and every other author on this planet, I have my successes and failures. In the end, perseverance continues to pay off... …
I have had success condensing essays to fillers, expanding devotionals into expository compositions, and re-working a serious article into a poem. I even combined several un-sold manuscripts into an article about a sales drought and sold it to a writing magazine. Generating a manuscript in various forms for various audiences increases its marketability. Whether the original piece has been sold or is sitting in your hard drive, consider whether it could be worked into a different genre... …
The first article I ever wrote shared how my husband and I co-owned a Correct Craft water ski boat with another couple. Due to the high price of the boat, co-ownership made the purchase possible. My article explained how well our arrangement worked, and outlined what readers should include in their contracts. I sold this article to the first magazine I submitted it to... …
In 1998 I became temporarily disabled, and was forced to leave my full-time job of ten years' duration. As I regained my strength, I decided to see if I could cobble enough together with writing and teaching jobs to support myself. The first thing I had to do was overcome my personal aversion to "networking"... …
As an active member of several writers' forums, I often answer questions from new writers. I know how lonely the life of a freelance writer can be, and how much difference getting some advice, a helping hand, and sympathetic ear can make. However, when people started contacting me off the forum, asking longer questions, wanting marketing advice, and asking me to critique their work, I realized that this had gone beyond a helping hand and I was in danger of spending half my working time writing for no pay... …
Each year about this time, a new set of graduates with fresh, new academic degrees embarks on post-academic life. Especially among those who majored in a humanities field, or who earned advanced degrees in creative writing or literature, the road to graduation was likely paved with plenty of course papers and presentations. I'm not sure how many new graduates (or, for that matter, those with degrees earned in years past) realize that this work needn't simply gather dust - literal or virtual. Sometimes, it can be transformed for publication and payment. …
An old friend contacted me out of the blue via email to see if I would write a press release for an event she was planning. I followed the link she sent, and learned she was now on the board of a well-known non-profit that hosted two big fundraising events each year. But, I also noticed there was no social media activity associated with these events... …
Back in 2010, we'd been writing TV scripts together for almost five years, but had gotten zero traction. No meetings with executives wanting to hire us - there wasn't even any interest from managers or agents. As we approached that five-year anniversary, we began to wonder if we were wasting our time... …
I remember clearly how hard it was to get started so here are three pointers that led to my success as a freelancer... …