Published on October 8, 2014
writing career advice
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…
Published on September 24, 2014
writing career advice
![6 Ways To Kill Your Freelance Writing Career Before It Begins By Shanon Lee 6 Ways To Kill Your Freelance Writing Career Before It Begins By Shanon Lee](https://writersweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/killing_1439341609.png)
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…
Published on September 3, 2014
writing career advice
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…
Published on August 20, 2014
writing career advice
As I look back, I am stunned that the ignorant inquiries I made to my traditional publisher and literary agent did not create waves of guffaws and rollicking cackles. Upon the release of my first book by a traditional publisher, during a conference call, I queried the publisher and her henchmen about their promotional plans. Would there be some sort of tour maybe? A round of book signings in a few large cities perhaps? A few flights and hotel stays, at the publisher’s expense, of course, in the pursuit of boosting book sales? Silly me. The nerve! A publisher spending money promoting a new author’s book? Ha…
Published on August 13, 2014
writing career advice
![WHO Are YOU? Choosing a Pseudonym for Maximum Impact…and Sales! By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant WHO Are YOU? Choosing a Pseudonym for Maximum Impact…and Sales! By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant](https://writersweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/mask_1496868574.jpg)
Your byline is important, not just in its frequency of appearance, but also in how it affects your income. Some writers operating writing businesses use a name other than their own if they pen web copy or advertising, for example. But for some types of writing, such as periodicals and books, your name is your brand identity…
Published on July 23, 2014
writing career advice
I learned the concept of the Rule of 5 at a seminar, “The Rule of 5 for Leadership,” by John Maxwell. Since then, I’ve heard the Rule of 5 for just about everything. The Rule of 5 is a list of the five key things that you must do every day in your business, in your writing, or whatever goal you may be pursuing…
Published on June 25, 2014
writing career advice
One way to increase income is to write and sell more. But, how do you overcome inertia? Consider what excites you…
Published on June 18, 2014
writing career advice
![Nautical Notes: Boating Magazines That Welcome Freelancers Aboard By Cyndi Perkins Nautical Notes: Boating Magazines That Welcome Freelancers Aboard By Cyndi Perkins](https://writersweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/anchorage_1483993928-e1483993947122.jpg)
Story opportunities are as densely packed as the crab traps that blanket Florida Bay. For the nautically minded writer, opportunities abound wherever mariners are enjoying their boats – or not enjoying their boats, i.e.: treating stinky waste-holding tanks, fixing balky engines or extricating the entangled lines of those pesky crab traps from propellers…
Published on June 4, 2014
writing career advice
A friend had recommended me to a curriculum publisher. Could I revise workbooks for fifth-grade science? I said that I would give it a try, and soon a big box appeared on my porch.
I eagerly delved into the materials: course samples, manuals on how to design curriculum, workbooks to revise, and the fifth-grade science textbook. The cover art featured a wise-looking owl. Was I wise enough to rewrite ten science workbooks?
Published on June 4, 2014
specialty markets for writing, writing career advice
![Converting Coursework Into (Publishing) Credits – and Cash! By Erika Dreifus Converting Coursework Into (Publishing) Credits – and Cash! By Erika Dreifus](https://writersweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/university_1548881805-e1548881892964.jpg)
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.