I’m Not A Woman, Gay, Or Chinese But I Write For Magazines Serving Those Readers! By Peter Garland
Just as train tracks cross so can your interests intersect with those of many other "lines" in the publishing world. You must make the connection! …
Articles
The Scam That Got Its Dirty Little Hooks In Me By Sam Priddy
I have written as a ghostwriter a few times and usually the contract that I enter into is held with respect by both parties. In this instance it was not. Watch out for scammers that will literally steal your work! …
Rock Your Book Talk! Do’s, Don’ts And Tips By Susan Sundwall
These days writers must sell themselves, it's a given. We've got to look for and latch onto any opportunity to self promote. Book talks are an excellent way to do it. Senior citizen groups, local service clubs, libraries, schools, and writers groups all have a frequent need for speakers and we must serve - if we want to sell, that is. Of course the first step is informing everyone by phone call, letter or email of your availability to speak. Then, as the dates pile up, you'll need a plan... …
From Vacation To PAYcation: Writing and Selling Your Travel STORIES By Eric D. Goodman
If you're like me, you love to write in part because you love to explore. One of the few things I enjoy as much as exploring new territory in my fiction and nonfiction writing is exploring new places in the world. I love to travel almost as much as I love to write. Years ago, I decided to combine these two passions.…
From Bartering To Cash By Victoria Grossack
The problem with editing for a family member is that you generally can't ask for money... …
13 Mistakes To Avoid While Writing Your Bio By Devyani Borade
Biographies are invaluable to a writer. A strong bio makes a strong impression and is a powerful tool to advertise and sell the writer's writing skills. A good bio can lead to repeat business with editors whose attention is captured, a loyal readership whose interest is retained and new clientele whose imagination is piqued, which is great for your business and credentials. And writing a good bio should be a piece of cake for a wordsmith. Yet writers often stumble at this important task. …
Are Bloodsuckers Trying To Steal Your Writing Talent? By Tom Douglas
The recent Writers Weekly article, Great Writing Gig Or A Scam?, got me thinking about all the deadbeat editors I've met in my long freelancing career and how I've answered some of their "scams." …
How Do I Get Magazine Editors To Respond To Me?! By Logan G. Harbaugh
As writers, many of us feel the same things as we try to get the attention of the editors we believe would be a perfect fit for our submissions. As someone who's been doing this for more than 20 years, and has also worked as an editor on occasion, I'd like to offer a little perspective... …
A Writer’s Revenge: A Dish Best Served Cold By David Wilkening
As an underpaid adjunct English-Journalism professor, I always looked desperately for concrete examples to enlighten my students why good grammar was not just a theory in principle but actually paid off. Little did I know then that I would need to heed my own advice. Not only did my own suggestions help me avoid cheats but I also got some revenge (a mild dish served sort of like a cold turkey sandwich)... …
How To Turn Life-Changing Events Into A Niche By Teresa Bitler
Niche never crossed my mind in the ICU waiting room. At the time, I could barely understand what had happened. Old people had strokes, not 49-year-old, otherwise healthy men, and certainly not my husband. Whatever had just happened, I told myself, it was a temporary thing. He would heal and we would go on with our lives. Unfortunately, that's not what happened... …
Tax Tips For Freelance Writers By William Pepe
In my 40-plus year career as an income tax preparer, all too often I would find that clients who were trying to earn money as self-employed, or as freelancers, but were not successful did not realize that they could deduct their expenses (losses) against their other income... …
Great Writing Gig Or A Scam? 10 Red Flags! By Melissa Rudy
Here's how to spot 10 of the most common red flags telling you that great gig you're thinking about is really a scam... …
How To Use “Comment Marketing” To Land Clients! By Jennifer Brown Banks
Comment marketing. That's right. You see this "dream client" materialized as a result of a simple, thoughtful comment I placed a while back at another blogger's site. Impressed and intrigued, he followed my link and the rest is history... …
5 Digital Products That You Can Create And Sell By Reginald Gates
You're dragging along as a writer and you're doing pretty well. You're making a comfortable living from your skills - and working hard for every cent. But, wouldn't it be nice to start earning some passive income? Wouldn't it be great to create something with the skills that you already possess (writing) that will keep on generating income month after month? Maybe you're not at the point in your career where you're able to just write up a full-length book. That's okay because there are some low-or-no-cost digital products that you can make right now, and sell on Amazon, your blog, your website, or wherever else... …
Are You Too Hard on Yourself? By Katherine Swarts
Writers are dealt a tough hand. We see little early correlation between effort, talent, and profit; we slave over details until our eyes water, just to expose ourselves to criticism. Small wonder that Googling "writers as masochists" returned more than 3 million results. But, are you more of a masochist than necessary? Are you criticizing yourself more than the critics, demanding more of yourself than any editor would? …
QUERYING QUERIES? What To Do When Editors Fall Silent By S.E. Batt
It's a problem that plagues a lot of new freelancer writers and many are unsure about how to tackle it. Fortunately, there are ways to deal with an unresponsive editor. …
IS THERE TOILET TISSUE ON YOUR VIRTUAL SHOE? 10 Embarrassing Things Readers Won’t Tell You About Your Blog! By Jennifer Brown Banks
Let's face it: as a writer competing with millions of blogs, in a very crowded niche, the last thing you want to do is stand out in a bad way! And, many of us are too close to the problem to be truly objective... …
Authors! Create An Audience In Five Easy Steps…By Hunter Liguore
Every author needs an audience, and there's no reason why you can't start building one right now in your own backyard. What follows are five easy steps to get you started... …
From Baseball To Barnyards: Land A Contract Writing Children’s Non-Fiction Books! By Tyler Omoth
You've seen them lining the shelves in the kids' section of your local library. Perhaps your own children read them. Simple books that teach, explain, examine, and enthusiastically describe the world to children one simple subject at a time are everywhere. Luckily for us, someone needs to write them... …
Use Magazine Vendor Websites To Find New Paying Markets For Writers! By Robert Kingett
We have all been there. We have poured over websites for writers, submission directories like Writers Market, and WritersWeekly.com to find that next freelance opportunity. There are many magazines to write for, both online and off, especially now that the Internet has blossomed and bloomed, but the trouble comes in when writers try to find actual paying work... …
Make Money Publishing Your Own Subscription-based Newsletter! By Lori Parr
A couple years after creating my garden service, I spent a long, dormant winter crafting and conniving an effective means of training my clientele to eventually take over my job one day. What better way to insert my opinion and unsolicited advice than a complimentary newsletter? It was brimming with the most basic, practical information... …
Spin Coverage Of One Event Into Numerous Articles! By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Is it worth the effort spending two hours covering an event, two hours on the road driving, and time to write the piece? Yes, if you can write more than one article from the experience. Most periodicals want something fresh, so if you take the same theme but approach it from a different angle, you're golden... …
How To Give A Writing Critique…Without Losing Friends! By Cortney Matz
A friend/colleague/stranger announces they have written something. A song, a story, an article for the school newspaper. And, not only have they accomplished this feat of scribtacular virtuosity, but...they want to know what you think of it. Cue the dramatic horns of horror... …
WARNING – Never Write For A Skinflint! By Katherine Swarts
Reverse sticker shock hit me at the rise of freelance blogging. Were online publishers serious about offering just $10 - 20 per article? …
How To Sell More Books On Twitter! By C.M. Saunders
Unless you’ve been living under a rock since 2006, then you probably already have a Twitter…
How To Edit Your Book Before You Submit To A Publisher By Rickey E. Pittman, Bard of the South
Ernest Hemingway said that it is in the editing process that most writers break down. Hemingway was ruthless in editing his own work. One biographer I read said Hemingway edited everything he wrote up to thirty times. I have taught freshman composition for many years. I tell my students that good writing is rewriting, refining, and finding those little demon typos and errors that can damage the quality of what is written. Don't be discouraged or surprised if your POD publisher encourages you to hire an editor.…
How To Compile Your Existing Articles Into A Book! By Christine Laws
We have all heard that there is a potential book within each one of us, just waiting to be written. But, what about the book that you have ALREADY written? That book could be hiding in your hard drive, ready to be copied and pasted into a folder of its own.…
Why I Fired My Agent, And Turned To Self-Publishing By Anonymous
What encompasses more than half the battle of getting a book published? Obtaining a reputable agent. Some would argue those are kind odds about the reality of the game. I'm here to impart that it is a game, of the shell variety, a three-way chess match in which the unaware writer is the pawn...…
How To Sell Your Zine At Festivals! By Christine Stoddard
The summer morning started with a frenzy of packing paper goods, dashing to the ATM for…
6 Ways To Kill Your Freelance Writing Career Before It Begins By Shanon Lee
Starting a freelance writing career can be challenging. Creative careers often attract individuals fueled by passion, without the business acumen to sustain their efforts. Learning how to attract and retain clients, while remaining fulfilled by your work, is a delicate balance that can be achieved by avoiding these common beginner mistakes... …
Paying Culture-related Markets For Writers! By Lisa Reynolds
Trawling through the web for websites that give you the opportunity to earn money writing about culture-related issues can be like trying to find a word in a manuscript...amongst a hundred pages. …
Publications That Pay NOTHING, And Take All Rights, Are ROTTEN! By Denise Reich
A few weeks ago a writer friend suggested that I check out one of her favorite publications. On the surface it looked promising. The journal presented itself as a socially conscious, humanitarian outfit. However, the writers' guidelines told a different story... …
When “Industry Experts” Give Out ILLEGAL Advice! Stealing/Altering Others’ Images and Text on Pinterest (and Elsewhere) is NOT Okay!! By Cheryl Pickett and Angela Hoy
Has someone recently told you it's okay to grab, alter, and republish someone else's material from Pinterest or another website? If so, you should be very wary of that individual's ethics and so-called expertise... …