Not exactly my kind of stuff, but I suspect some of fiction writers will love this. Enjoy!

Write well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Yesterday was Blog Action Day; the subject was poverty. One of our commenters, Nicole LaMarco, who blogs at Your Writing Career also blogs at Loving Liberty. Her entry there yesterday was called: 20,000 People Died Yesterday.

When I read that entry I realize I’ve never been hungry and probably won’t ever be no matter what I might say if my lunch is delayed.

Like Nicole I regularly donate stuff I don’t use. Sometimes I do it formally, like to Goodwill, sometimes I put it on the street where it’s always picked up by people who can use it.

And as she suggests, we can all do more, without a whole lot of effort.

Thanks Nicole!

Write well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

(www.thegoldenpencil.com)

Seth Godin has a wonderful post called Is effort a myth?. (Thanks to Your Book Publishing Coach for the pointer.)

It’s a wonderful and helpful essay, complete with the suggestion to find 120 minutes each day and commit to something positive. He lists a number of things that can be done with that time, plus makes some other suggestions I like.

If I had to choose just one it would be: Only spend money, for one year, on things you absolutely need to get by. Save the rest, relentlessly. In fact, I’m going to do that and so commit to you, and myself of course.

And in the writing vein, in addition to this blog and some other stuff, today I will get the back-of-jacket copy written for my book about writing books.

What will you commit to today publicly?

Write well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Image from http://www.sxc.hu

(www.thegoldenpencil.com)

This picture is how part of me feels this morning at 5:45 on this Saturday morning. I was going to link to an article on one of my websites and went to look it over… all my sites are down, and it’s not because I haven’t paid my bill.

I called customer service and was told “a server is down.” I hadn’t known where on the planet my websites are served from and it turns out to be Kansas. I asked for that information so I could estimate how long my sites are down. I may ask for a credit.

In truth, this is the first time this has ever happened to me with my own sites. Oh, I’m sure they’ve been down when I haven’t known it, but apparently never for very long. Hopefully this won’t be long either.

Write well and often, (and, duh, the sig jpg won’t work either ’cause it’s served from… yep, Kansas!)

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Image from http://www.sxc.hu

I rarely endorse writing classes, but if I wanted to learn copywriting or become a copywriter I’d sign up for Copywriting Success Summit 2008. Here’s why:

• I know it’s possible, even quite possible to earn a ton of money copywriting - I’ve seen people do it. I ghostwrite which is another area of writing altogether.
• I know or recognize most of the instructors. I mean how can you go wrong with Brian Clark, known in the blogasphere as Copyblogger, Michael Stelzner of Writing White Papers fame, or Peter Bowerman who knows how to keep writers and self-publishers well-fed. Of course, Robert Bly, who might be called Mr. Copywriter, will be teaching too.
• It’s all done online so no commute or traffic is involved.

If you register today, it’s less than $300 - if you wait you’ll pay an additional $200 - either way, if you want to learn copywriting, this is for you.

Write well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Image from http://www.sxc.hu

(www.thegoldenpencil.com)

Hello Anne,

How do I go about doing that all-important resume when I am brand-new to free-lance writing?

thanks,
V.

Dear V.

Having a writing resume or credit list isn’t the only way to break into freelance writing (and there’s no dash in the word, and brand new shouldn’t be hyphenated… I’m assuming you’re in the US - if not, I apologize.)

You need to do what we used to do and many still do and that’s do some work on spec. Usually this is writing for magazines. You query a magazine editor with an idea and if it’s accepted it will probably be on spec. That means there’s no guarantee they will accept it. But you do have the editor’s ear and attention. When you send the article in you simply say in your cover letter something like “here’s the article you asked me to do on spec.”

Be sure to enclose an SASE and keep your fingers crossed.

Once you have several articles accepted you’ve got enough for your credit list.

Writing on spec isn’t limited to magazine articles. Although Peter Bowerman might not agree, you can do a short corporate writing gig or two on spec too.

Does this make sense?

Do you have a question about freelance writing? Ask Anne, The Writing Pro - that’s me ;) Ask in the comments or send an email and put Q&A in the subject line so I can sort it out from spam and I’ll do my best. Meanwhile, you’ll find some Q&A’s here:

Ask Anne, The Pro Writer

Write well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Image from http://www.sxc.hu

(www.thegoldenpencil.com)

One of the finalists in Michael Stelzner’s Top 10 Blogs For Writers is The Book Deal. Subtitled “An Inside View Of Publishing,” it’s written by Alan Rinzler who bills himself as a Consulting Editor. The list of authors he’s worked with is impressive to say the least and each clickable link on his Authors page gives some insight in how the book came to be and came to be well known.

Rinzler’s blog does indeed give an inside view of the arcane world of trade publishing, plus some darn good information for writers. Take today’s post: Ask the Editor: The power of the opening sentence - 6 tips

Can you resist? I couldn’t and I no writer should resist in my not very humble opinion on the subject. I particularly like Tip 6, “Don’t always avoid the cliché.” He uses it was a dark and stormy night as an example and says pretty much what I’ve always thought - in certain circumstances it works, and works well. He has more to say about that partial sentence. I won’t spoil it for you. Go read.

Come back and share your favorite tip of his, or of yours.

Write well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Image from http://www.sxc.hu

(www.thegoldenpencil.com)

An interview by Ross Dunn With Dr. Ralph Wilson, the Editor-in-Chief of Web Marketing Today. Dr. Wilson gets lots and lots of writing done and tells Ross how he does it. There’s information there any writer can use.

Write well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Here are some of my favorite posts from (gasp!) June of 2005:

• Google Helps Me With Spelling
• What Makes a “Real Writer”?
• Commercial Writing Is a Lucrative Venue
• When Life Interferes With Writing
• Should You Write For Free?

Enjoy this blast from the past.

Write well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Image from http://www.sxc.hu

(www.thegoldenpencil.com)

The other day a writing buddy of mine called. He was tempted to take a writing gig that paid way less than half of what she normally gets. True, it was a rather unique opportunity with a major trade publisher. If he did this job well he’d have an excellent contact which might lead to more lucrative work in the future. It wasn’t, however, a book, nor did it earn royalties. In my mind, the “might lead to more lucrative work” some day, some time down the road is, well, most often futile.

We’re close so I asked him what was really up. It turned out he was feeling cash poor. I asked if he had any savings, and he said he did, but he didn’t want to dip into them.

I understand not wanting to spend savings - it’s hard enough to get the money saved and horrid to see it disappear. I finally realized, however, that I have to have a savings account I’m willing to use to smooth out the ups and downs of my freelance writing income. Once I opened a savings account (I use Ingdirect.com) that I created just to smooth income I no longer worried as much when I had to use it for that. After all, I earned a bit of interest and often found I didn’t have to use it right away. I call it my Prudent Reserve account.

It took awhile to build it up to the point it actually helps fill in dips in income, but once it was big enough to do so, it made my life and my pricing so much easier. Now I rarely feel pressured to under price myself.

Of course, my Prudent Reserve account isn’t my only savings. I regularly put 12% in a retirement account and a tax savings account as well. I don’t always manage to stick with these percentages, but often enough so it works.

What I hadn’t anticipated is how secure that savings account would make me feel when I was setting prices. Because of that account, I’m free to turn down poorly paying work, or work I simply wouldn’t like. That’s freelance freedom.

Write, and save, well and often,

Two newsletters:
Abundant Freelance Writing - a resource for freelance writers including 3x a week job postings.
Writing With Vision - for those who want to get a book written.

Image from http://www.sxc.hu