By: Aaron Oppenheim,
on 4/9/2015
In a recent survey, 87% of UK graduates with first or second class degrees saw freelancing as highly attractive. 85% believe freelancing will become the norm. In the US, as reported in Forbes in August 2013, 60% of millennials stay less than three years in a job and 45% would prefer more flexibility to more pay.
The post A great precedent for freelancing appeared first on OUPblog.
By: Linda Formichelli,
on 10/28/2014
I’ve come to the conclusion that most writers don’t read as well as they write.
Every time I send an email, I get back several responses asking questions that were answered in the message. For example, I’ll say, “The call is at 5 pm Eastern time,” and a few people will respond, “What time zone is the call in?” Or I’ll invite readers to join a waitlist to receive an announcement when a class registration is open, and that the class will cost $X, and inevitably some people will write back with, “I signed up for your class using that link you sent and didn’t get the materials.”
I feel okay saying this because it’s something I struggle with myself. I’m impatient and tend to skim emails, instructions, and so on — and wind up asking “duh” questions that later make me want to kick myself.
Just today, I received a long email about my son’s soccer team and for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out when his practices are. Only after I sent a desperate email to the coach did I reread the message and realize they had attached a schedule.
We writers tend to be scattered and easily overwhelmed. I’m not sure if these characteristics are typical of creative people (probably), or if there’s something about the writing life that makes us this way.
But knowing this, lately I’ve been making an intensive effort to thoroughly study and understand everything I read.
This is especially, super, vitally important because most of our communication with clients, editors, and sources is via email. And too often, I get frantic messages from writers saying things like, “I just read my assignment letter and realized I was supposed to write a sidebar — and the article is due today!”
Here’s how to bump up your reading comprehension: (And yes, I’m working on doing these things, too!)
Writers, let’s get reading — and we’ll cut out a lot of angst, do better work — and get more assignments!
How about you: Have you ever misread a piece of information from a client or colleague — and if so, what happened? Bonus points if your story is funny!
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By: Linda Formichelli,
on 9/30/2014
This post is by Deb Mitchell.
I’m definitely more of a “rules are there for a reason” than a “rules were meant to be broken” kind of girl. It just never occurs to me to buck the system, and frankly, that’s served me well all my life.
But when my freelance writing career stalled (despite the fact that I had 5+ years of experience with clips numbering in the triple digits), even playing by the rules top freelance writing experts teach wasn’t getting me anywhere.
“Send pitches to newsstand pubs and LOIs to trade pubs.” Check.
“Email editors – NEVER call them!” Check.
“DO NOT clog an editor’s inbox by attaching your clips.” Check.
“Whatever you do, take time to research each market and NEVER, EVER use a template email.” Check, check.
I was spending loads of time researching markets, ferreting out the appropriate editors’ contact info and meticulously wordsmith-ing every email from scratch. Despite my best rule-following efforts, none of the editors contacted me back. Not. One.
There simply aren’t words to describe how frustrated and discouraged I felt. Giving so much time and effort with nothing to show for it eventually took its toll. On a daily basis I was at best, fighting despair and at worst, sinking in its depths.
In the midst of all this, I started working with a writing mentor (the one-and-only Linda). She calmed me down and gave me a few pieces of advice which I, of course, followed to the letter. I got a few lukewarm responses from editors as a result, and I even sold an article to a new-to-me (but not great paying) market.
Sure, it was progress, which lifted my spirits to a degree. But let’s face it — I was still working long, hard hours for minimal payoff. NOT a sustainable pattern for any small business.
Then Linda gave me a tip that helped me think outside the box – and believe me, it was one I NEVER expected to hear from her or any freelance writing expert.
“Why not try calling some editors?” she said, “And write a great LOI email you can quickly tweak for each market. Ask if they assign to freelancers or if they prefer pitches.”
Um, excuse me, what did you say?? Call editors?? Write one LOI to reuse over and over?? Pitch to trade pubs?? Break rules?!?!
As if that weren’t enough, Linda challenged me to call 25 editors in one day.
The thought of doing things that are widely considered no-no’s freaked me out enough, but seriously, 25?! Believe it or not, the part that scared me the least was the actual cold calling. I have a background in sales and I’m good at talking to people and I like marketing myself. Maybe, just maybe, the reason my by-the-book efforts were flopping was because my approach felt inauthentic. Calling editors seemed much more “me” — I’d just always thought if I did it, they’d view me as unprofessional (and kind of hate my guts for bugging them).
But with Linda, a seasoned pro writer, saying it was OK, I didn’t hesitate.
Armed with a three sentence script Linda wrote for me and a short and sweet LOI template email, I started the challenge.
I didn’t even get to leave voicemails with five editors before my phone rang.
“Deb, I was just delighted to get your message!” Really and truly, an editor was calling me to tell me she was happy I’d called her — not “hacked off” or “appalled” or even just “annoyed.” It seems she’d heard my voicemail right after leaving an editorial meeting where she’d learned an article slated for the next issue had fallen through. I’d also thrown caution to the wind and sent her my LOI email with my resume and a clip attached. She’d seen something in my article that would make a perfect story to fill that empty spot. Could I get something into her within a couple of weeks?
I know, right?!?!
After all my nose-to-the-grindstone work and months of angst over doing things the “right” way, all it took was literally a couple of phone calls and I had a gig that paid more than triple what I’d been getting! Even better, the editor ended our conversation by saying this was “the start of a very beautiful working relationship.” Hello, future high-paying gigs!
I’m no expert when it comes to freelancing, but I do think there’s something to this whole “find what feels right for you” idea. Just because the freelance writing books and classes say “Do this” or “Don’t do that” doesn’t necessarily mean those rules are hard and fast. It took me having someone of Linda’s caliber giving me permission to break the rules for me to do something that in the end felt natural and comfortable for me. And it worked.
As long as your approach allows you to both be yourself and to “sell” yourself as a competent professional, it’s worth trying something out of the ordinary — especially if you’re feeling stuck. You can’t predict how editors will react, but if you’re being genuine and gracious to them, no reasonable editor would hate you just for doing something differently. If they do, consider yourself lucky to have been warned about their inner crazy before you got stuck working with them.
So what will you try that’s not in the books? Be brave and take a risk. Go ahead — run with a stick in your mouth! Jump on the good furniture! Call an editor! Take it from me — it’s good to be bad.
How about you? Have you ever broken a rule of freelance writing and benefited as a result? Or have you found a marketing tactic other freelancers would scoff at, but that works for you? Let us know in the Comments below!
Deb Mitchell is a freelance writer in Charlotte, NC specializing in writing about interior design and women’s interest topics. She also works with business clients to make their websites and client communications the best they can be and with students as a general writing and college application essay coach.
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By: SueJohnson,
on 8/8/2014
Are you a Christian? Would you like to get paid well to write for things you’re passionate about? The demand for good writers in the Christian market has never been higher. Contrary to popular belief, it’s easier than ever to find writing gigs that pay very well by tapping into the $1.7 trillion Christian industry. All you need to know is where clients are and how to land them.
Listen to Joshua T. Boswell — a minister, highly-paid writer, devoted husband, and father of 11 children — on this FREE webinar. You’ll learn what the best paying opportunities are for Christian writers, what you can expect to make for each of the projects, where to find the clients, how to land the work, and more!
INSTRUCTOR:
Joshua T. Boswell is a copywriter, author of Secrets of Writing for the Christian Market, creator of Six-Figures in Six Months: Mastering the Art of Self-Marketing as a Copywriter, an ordained minister, and Advisory Board member of AWAI (American Writers & Artists Inc.), the world’s leading trainer of direct-response copywriters.
A marketer with over 19 years of experience in business development and direct marketing, Joshua has written for and spearheaded successful million-dollar campaigns for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, ChildFund International, Sony, Microsoft, GM, and dozens of other organizations. He regularly speaks and writes on topics ranging from landing high-paying writing clients to successful web-marketing strategies.
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By: Kate Leonard,
on 6/7/2014
Hey everyone ,
Leaving art college or university can be both an exciting and nerve wrecking time for the upcoming graduate. Whether your in art college or university here in the uk or internationally and are ready to pursue your creative career its always best I think to plan and prepare before the big leap.
I remember when I graduated from my bachelor’s degree I thought everything would be plain sailing, though when you actually leave you realise how that bit of planning can help in being efficient and organised in working towards your creative goals and knowing what to do next. So to lend a hand I’ve put together 5 tip on what to do before you graduate in 2014 for pursuit in a creative career.
1. Research : If you know in yourself that your next step is to venture into creative freelancing in your specialism then the best thing to do is gather your research. Looking into things such as freelancing rates, how to register your business, potential business funding or scheme’s available in your area may just help you plan out what course you need to take to do what you love.
2. Prepare your portfolio: The key thing thats going to help skyrocket your creative career is your portfolio and the work you have in it. Now having completed your years of degree or college work you’ll no doubt have a portfolio full of lovely projects. However if like me you came away with dust covered dissertations and little of a portfolio you may feel abit daunting knowing there’s more work to do.
So whether your portfolio is ready or not you need to have it professionally presented for people to view it such as potential clients, agents etc. If your wanting to build up your portfolio from scratch then ideally allocate yourself maybe 3-6 months to build it up to have some fresh new material that your truly happy to promote and using themes like those found here on illustration friday maybe a great place to start generating idea’s.
3. Set money aside : If you’re able to its always a good thing to put money aside to later on use to invest in your business. This will enable you to buy the necessary start up equipment and materials that you need to effectively do the work to a standard that will enable your creative business to function.
4. Gain advice and mentoring : Starting out your own creative venture isn’t easy so I feel that gaining all the support, advice and mentoring that you can will be worth its weight in gold. If you don’t already know what a mentor is or have one a mentor is somebody who can be in your field of practice with experience of the industry who is there to give you advice and guidance to help you along the way now and then.
I am lucky enough to have two wonderful mentors so my advice would be asking someone who inspires you but also who you have established a relationship with whether they would possibly consider mentoring you. Either way mentoring isn’t all take, no doubt you’ll have skills and advice you can exchange so its a win win situation either way.
There’s also a variety of business support and advice centres locally no doubt aswell as online for you to access such as enterprise nation, the design trust and the princes trust so please check them out.
Hope you found this little post helpful, kudos to you for getting through all your studies and here’s to a creative venture yet to start! Have you decided where you’re venturing on from here?
Image : “Do more of what makes you happy” illustration by Lindsay at Unraveled design .
By: Aneya Fernando,
on 5/12/2014
Doing what you love for a living is everyone's dream. But if you're a freelance writer, you know how unpredictable that life can be, income-wise: staggered assignments, varying rates, delayed payments. That's why it's so important to hone your writing skills in a variety of practices, so you can be versatile and land gigs in a number of industries. Jodi Helmer, a writer based in North Carolina, shares her story in our latest Journalism Advice column: After Helmer got rolling as a full-time writer, she didn't want to limit herself to only writing for one medium or industry, so she offers courses to mentor aspiring writers, speaks at industry events and has published books. These are all other ways to leverage her editorial skills and ensure a constant flow of income from various sources, which in turn helps her continue writing for markets that pay more sporadically. "Having diversified income streams is the same as having a diversified investment portfolio; it helps you weather blips in the market," says Helmer. For more advice, including how to build your brand, read: Making the Leap to a Creative Career. The full version of this article is exclusively available to Mediabistro AvantGuild subscribers. If you’re not a member yet, register now for as little as $55 a year for access to hundreds of articles like this one, discounts on Mediabistro seminars and workshops, and all sorts of other bonuses.
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
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By: Adrienne Crezo,
on 4/4/2014
–
You don’t know my name. You don’t know my face. But it’s now several decades since I earned my first farthings by putting words in some sort of publishable order … at last tabulation, now some 3,000,000 in print, and still counting. I’ve produced novels, nonfiction books, fiction stories, nonfiction articles, photo features, screenplays, multi-media scripts and even catalogs and speeches. Call it meat-and-potato writing. One of my catch phrases is, “If you can point at it, I can write it,” which relates to an eclectic approach to both subject matter and genre. Writers, like the human species, profit best as omnivores.
So I’ve decided to spill the beans as it were. It’s time to come out of the freelance writer’s closet and perhaps pass on some pearls, cultured or otherwise, concerning the lessons I’ve learned—some I’ve purloined, some spurned, but now ready to return to those standing at that proverbial fork in the writer’s road. To be a writer or not to be, or more importantly, whether one can earn a living in its pursuit. Maintaining that metaphor, my Uncle Duncan from Gallway would often wag his finger in front of our young upturned faces and admonish us with these words of wisdom: “When you come to that fork in the road, take the spoon!” We had no idea what he was talking about, but he would laugh himself silly.
Now let me step back in time to that indelible image when my first words appeared in print. It was a check for $10. Oh, the beckoning lure of lucre ignites the Muses’ fury. Seen through the wide eyes of a 10-year-old back in the mid-1950s, it was a momentous amount. The prize money resulted from my entry in an elementary school campaign focusing on the dangers of smoking. I had drawn a scary-looking cigarette and penned a few words curling out of its burning wrinkle of a mouth. It was a winner and the check was awarded to me in front of my fellow schoolmates. My face burned red and my hands shook as I held the check and certificate. From that day I never stopped writing nor did I ever take a puff.
Now to those promised Ten Lessons learned along with some self-indulgent biography to provide credence to my pronouncements on successful freelance writing. To get things started…
Lesson One: Freelance does not mean you work for free … although a lot of current Internet sites seem to think so. They offer “exposure” which reminds me of being left out in the freezing cold. True, we all know one must create a “buzz” or “go viral” to get any attention these days, so maybe passing out some free samples might be a good idea. Or as Lenny Bruce said, “Time to grow up and sell out.” Other options include entering any of the myriad “writing competitions” most of which now seem to charge an entry fee, another money maker for the legions of struggling publications which we naturally hope remain with us. Today, in response to the “screen culture” many jump into the whirl of words with their own blog, some even capturing considerable audiences that can attract “sponsors” and thus some payment in return. Of course, for those that have the back-up of a “real world” job can practice their writing on the side while adhering to oft heard aspiring writer’s mantra… “keep your day job.” Bottom line, living the life as a full-time writer, and like getting old, is not for sissies.
Lesson Two (in the form of a question): What is the difference between an amateur writer and a professional writer? Answer: The only difference is that the professional gets paid.
Ok, now back to my credentials. Fast forward a few more years into the early 1960s and a south Florida high school where I was elected president of the Creative Writing Club. Our group was one rung up the geek ladder from the A-V Club but we benefited from a great mentor, our English teacher, Mrs. Young, who fanned our teen-aged angst into poems, essays and fiction appearing in our school publication aptly named The Raconteur. I tried my hand at all the various genres to varying degrees of success. I also penned an “expose” of the clique-culture of my high school contemporaries that so impressed my psychology teacher that copies were printed up and disseminated throughout the school which resulted in the other teachers looking at me warily as some kind of wunderkind/freak while my schoolmates were further convinced of my geekhood but now one deserving of total banishment from their society. It was my first work of journalism, but certainly not my last. Undaunted by a lack of comparison with Milton, Salinger or Walter Cronkite, I pressed on.
There followed a bit of a hiatus, beyond term papers, while attending Tulane University where my major in psychology shifted to the path of least resistance to homework…English…aided by a predilection to intense studies of Smirnoff 101. Hey, after all this was New Orleans and the distractions were of Mardi Gras-proportions. One could chalk us this period to what writers traditionally call their “experience-gathering time.” If you haven’t lived it, how you can write it? At least that was my excuse.
Upon a miraculous graduation, a year followed teaching “Communication Techniques” to children dealing with life within a migrant agricultural worker environment. This is a whole other story, but suffice it to say it further tempered my life as a writer. My students delved into performing plays and writing haiku of such quality that the state authorities displayed their work. It was a learning experience all around and my first foray into helping others find their writer’s “voice” and in turn my own. It was yet another fork in the writer’s road, and like Rome, it all led to the same destination.
After the teaching stint, I ingratiated myself into the venerable Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars, an M.A. program. Blissful is the word that comes to mind. It was all about writing with other committed writers and outstanding instructors. During this stay in Baltimore, with a statue of Edgar Allan Poe lurking outside my apartment doorway, I published my first “official” story. As it turned out, the short story took First Place in the Carolina Quarterly’s Young Fiction Writers national competition. It certainly helped with my course grade as well as other “perks” as a Young Turk now with something of a writer’s credit.
Somewhat “authenticated” by the success and after graduation I sat down for six weeks at a small Olivetti typewriter and with nothing else to do “between jobs” I wrote a science fiction novel. I sent it “cold” to Bantam Books who then passed it on to Doubleday who published it, no doubt based on the gracious preliminary review given by A.E. Van Vogt, one of the icons of the sci-fi world at the time. Publication really never went to my head … it only meant it was time to write something else.
I then decided to try my hand in Hollywood and so made the move from Florida to L.A. where I planned to get rich and famous. It’s good to have a goal. It’s also good to have a sandwich to eat now and then. After several weeks guarding outdoor furniture in a shopping mall all night long, I sought a job as a janitor at USC, but somehow found myself taking and teaching classes. (It was either that or a scheduled appearance as a contestant on the Tic-Tac-Dough TV game show…yet another story.) Okay, so now I was teaching freshmen the art form of composition, basically essay writing. Teaching forces one to convey strategies of writing in a comprehensible form, in this case to18-year olds who for the most part couldn’t write their way out of a wet paperback book. The concepts of inductive and deductive reasoning were not in their repertoire of skill sets. It was enough trouble to get them to write with a pen instead of a pencil. But there was progress. One, I was able to convince them that while writing was an unnatural process, far from the brain centers for normal speech, it could be approached by a simple paradigm, a set of rules to follow to create a palatable essay, their goal for the class. And two, yes, you do have something worth writing about, perhaps the greatest initial obstacle to overcome. For the following two years my graduate work in media and literature co-existed with my teaching duties, and there occasionally appeared a glimmer of hope. While most of the students seemed more concerned about the ski slope conditions for the weekend, every now and a nascent writer recognized his or herself.
As for me, trying to grok and grade 200 freshman essays every week took its mental and emotional toll. There were screams in the night that probably rattled my neighbors. But USC also offered brilliant and stimulating professors and I would often leave my classes with my brain buzzing, every atom energized. So I had classes to teach and classes to learn from. No pain, no gain. I also managed to publish first one, then several fiction pieces that set the freelance writer wheels spinning forward. Spinning in an unexpected direction. Spinning on two wheels in fact. Motorized.
As it turned out I was putting around Los Angeles on a series of old motorcycles and somehow spun that into a series of short stories that appeared in well-known motorcycle and “men’s” magazines. After graduating, this motorized inclination led to seeking my first job as a feature writer at a motorcycle periodical publishing company. I rode in on my rather spiffy 1969 Norton which was a good opening move I thought. And when the publisher learned I had no magazine journalism/editor experience, I offered to go out, find a story, take photos and pen an article and be back the next day. If they liked what they saw, they could hire me. And they did. So
Lesson Three: Those who dare sometimes win writing jobs.
This first “gig” evolved into staff writing jobs at other “motorsport” publications, eventually as full Editor at several. I was writing about stuff I enjoyed and while I eventually went into full-time Freelancing, I still maintained my connections with many of those magazines and remain a full-time contributor to several.
Lesson Four: Write about what you know. Better yet, write about what you love.
Lesson Five: When you’re not writing about what you love, write about what you’re getting paid for.
Lesson Six: You can write about anything. If you know how to conduct research (and do interviews), you can write successfully about a wide range of subjects. For example, while I have penned tons of articles about people with tattoos and the artists who created them, I myself do not have a spot of ink on me. I have written about many musicians and bands, but can’t even whistle Dixie. I have written PR materials for a major pasta company, but can’t boil water. But I know how to listen, and I have developed a paradigm that always succeeds when conducting a “one to one.”
Lesson Seven: Learn the five cardinal points of a good interview. They involve, like any good newspaperman will tell you….Who, Where, When, Why, How? The rest of the interview, conducted in a relaxed “unprepared” conversational tone, takes its own organic form by careful listening, one question opening the next door. The magic involves truly caring about your interviewee, doing your background homework, and also remembering that for many, this is a very special moment in their life…when their story will appear in print…and it also emphasizes a writer’s professional and ethical responsibilities….your words can impact livelihoods and public image…and thus every word counts. Creative listening is the key. Importantly, remember the interview is not about you. While the interviewer sets the scene and applies the initial impetus, the story belongs to the interviewee. I’ve done literally thousands…in the field, over the telephone, over coffee…whatever and wherever the moment presents itself. Seize the day, seize the word.
Lesson Eight: There is no such thing as writer’s block. If you’re looking to expand your market base, go to a newsstand and look at what’s out there. Pick a magazine you want to write for then analyze the subject matter, style, tone, and the vibe of the readership, even the word count. Then go find a story that fits. Once upon a time, I discovered an old photograph taken in the late 1930s in Germany. It peeked my curiosity. To date I have written and had published two 500-page nonfiction books concerning WWII.
Lesson Nine: Follow the thread. If you have curiosity, that’s 90% of the game. The rest is leg work backed up by perseverance. Rejection slips: I could paper a wall with them, but more of my walls are covered with published works.
Lesson Ten: Self-discipline. Writing is both a vocation and an avocation. A real dyed in the wool writer is compelled to write…well, obsessed in fact. You get up every day, do your morning ritual to establish full-consciousness, and then get to work. At least 8 hours a day. At least five days a week. Like they say, it’s not just a job, it’s an adventure. You’ll excuse me, but it’s time to practice what I preach…I’m currently shaking up a story about vintage toys, another about horses and another about earthquakes….
Oh … my name. That would be Paul Garson. I am Googleable.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
paulgarsonproductions.com
By: Aneya Fernando,
on 3/24/2014
Versatility is essential to success as a freelance writer. Transitioning from fiction writing to nonfiction freelancing could mean the difference between writing as a hobby and actually earning an income.
There are plenty of benefits to having a background in fiction. In the latest installment of Mediabistro’s Journalism Advice column, one writer claims that after writing fiction, generating fresh ideas for articles was easier than ever:
Having trained myself before to hone my curiosity and keep my eyes and ears open for ideas, it comes naturally now. I’m likely to come up with an article idea, a turn of phrase or an untapped market while I’m driving, playing blocks with my 2-year-old or taking my lunch break. If you can invent a villain or dream up a plotline or a setting, you can develop a pitch for a nonfiction article.
For more, including how a background in fiction can help you deal with deadlines, read: 5 Ways Fiction Writing Prepared Me for Nonfiction Freelancing.
The full version of this article is exclusively available to Mediabistro AvantGuild subscribers. If you’re not a member yet, register now for as little as $55 a year for access to hundreds of articles like this one, discounts on Mediabistro seminars and workshops, and all sorts of other bonuses.
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By: frannygoldberg,
on 3/11/2014
Mediabistro is introducing its newest boot camp: Freelancing 101. This four-week interactive online event starts April 28, and teaches students the best way to start a freelancing career, from the first steps of self-advertising and marketing, to building your schedule and managing clients.
With St. Patrick’s Day quickly approaching, Mediabistro is inviting you to try your luck with code GETLUCKY. Register with the promotional code and you could win anywhere from $10-$50 OFF your registration! Make sure to sign-up before 3/17 to redeem this offer!
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
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By: Jerry Beck,
on 5/24/2013
This is the only animator-for-hire ad you need to read on Craigslist this week. Click image to embiggen:
(Thanks, Josh Ryan, via Cartoon Brew’s Facebook page)
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By: Tonia Allen Gould,
on 4/17/2013
Copyright Tonia Allen Gould, All Rights Reserved
What’s an idea? The mere concept of an idea is difficult, maybe even impossible to perfectly define. Even notable philosophers couldn’t seem to agree on what an idea truly means. The Free Dictionary Online indicates that according to the philosophy of Plato, the definition of an idea “is an archetype of which a corresponding being in phenomenal reality is an imperfect replica.” The web source goes on to say that according to the philosophy of Kant, “an idea is a concept of reason that is transcendent but nonempiral.” But, even Hagel said it differently. He claimed that an idea means “absolute truth; the complete and ultimate product of reason.” In the dictionary, the definition of an idea reads “something, such as a thought or conception that potentially or actually exists in the mind as a product of mental activity.”
To me, an idea is something that begins as a glimmer; a mere flicker in the mind that can suddenly grab hold, and unfold through any period of time, like the single root of the ivy plant that grounds itself deeply into the soil before it grows upwards, clinging to a wall with its tiny tentacles, reaching out and hanging on, until it forms its own shape and dimension. The ivy grows and grows, like no other ivy plant in existence, and reaches for the sun in a way that suits itself in order to flourish. Like an idea, the ivy didn’t plant itself. Someone had to place it there. The gardener of the ivy had to have foresight to buy or rent the house, invest in the fertilizer and the soil and the tools; he had to invest in the plant and spend his time digging the hole and planting it in the hopes that it would grow.
Like the gardener; creative professionals must make an investment in time, be committed to the outcome, and diligently work to understand and meet the project objectives. That’s a lot of footwork and fancy dancing already. But, what about the ideas you generate…those tiny seedlings of thought, that grew and took shape and added a dimension to the project that were unlike every other idea before it…those absolute truths…those nonempiral transcendent concepts of reason…those imperfect replicas…what about those? Those ideas, my friends, have value and they are your greatest asset. Sometimes, we forget that and give them away too freely, as if they have no value. So if you’re questioning your creative worth, maybe you should start looking first at your assets. #yourideashaveworth
By: John,
on 7/25/2012
Why should a freelance artist absorb the risk for YOUR concept? Whether or not your idea is going to be successful is YOUR gamble, not ours. If you want talented people to develop good ideas (and increase your chances to be in the 1-10% of profitable content) you should pay your creators. Even if the contract is “work for hire” (meaning the creators do not retain any of copyrights for the characters they create), they need to be compensated for their time and the expertise which they are providing. You can find fair rates in the Graphic Artists Guild Handbook - Pricing and Ethical Guidelines.
—cartoonist and illustrator Alec Longstreth, from his public reply to a request for spec work. I highly recommend you read the entire thing, whether you’re a professional artist — it can’t hurt to remind yourself that your work is valuable and you deserve fair compensation because you are a professional — or a potential client, who might not even realize that spec work is not as normal as you think, and that everyone does not share your enthusiasm for the Bright Bonanza you’re sure is awaiting you in Hollywood.
I've begun a new blog at my client area website offering tips, resources and general stuff I've learned over the years about freelancing and setting up websites.
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By: Nina Mata,
on 3/2/2012
It’s definitely more appropriate to share your accomplishments, but what about rejection? This topic hasn’t really been as openly discussed as much as it should be. I’m going to wear my heart on my sleeve here and hope by sharing this experience it eases the pain a little for other creatives who’s gone through similar situations.
As a freelancer, trying to establish yourself can be quite draining.There are a few words and situations that can be traumatizing enough to threaten the livelihood of ones career. “Send me your KILL FEE” has been by far my worst and biggest fear come true.
A couple of years ago I was approached by a widely known establishment to illustrate something to go with a copy they were planning on releasing. I really wasnt clear on why I was chosen to do this commission since they wanted me to illustrate something loose and abstract. I wasn’t sure I would be able to meet their vision but I had to try. After all, this client was on top of the list of companies I’d always wanted to work with.
I spent a few days trying to create something engaging and abstract. When I sent in my inital sketches for the said artwork I got feedback to REWORK, EXPLORE, REVISE. So i did as I was suggested, days later I sent in my revisions and got the most devestating reply I had ever read:
“This isn’t working. Send me your kill fee”
(For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term, a “kill fee” is otherwise known as a cancellation fee. It’s a percentage of the originally agreed upon payment that the client is required to pay should the project be terminated.)
My heart sank to my stomach. I read the message over and over again trying to wrap my brain around this horrifc sentence. I wanted to reply, no, call them to give me another chance. But I knew that pleading wouldn’t be the most professional thing to do. So I took a deep breath, ignored my quivering fingers and replied with an invoice graciously.
The days that followed were pretty bad. It felt like a really bad break up. I went through the first four stages of grief within the following weeks. At
first I denied the whole thing ever happened by deleting any evidence of correspondence. I even deleted the invoice and contract out of my records.
Afterwards I completely broke down. I cried. I cried for days (my eyes hadn’t been this puffy since they cancelled Punky Brewster) and I drowned myself in massive amounts of self pitty. After a couple of weeks, I learned to accept the loss but I wasn’t completely over the whole scenario. I took a one month break from everything. I closed the door to my studio and replaced productivity with a full days worth of sitcoms and reality shows. Fun.
If it weren’t for my family and friends, getting out of this funk would’ve been ten times harder. Having a support system helps. It
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By: Karen Cioffi,
on 9/21/2011
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By: Margo Dill,
on 7/14/2011
By: Hazel Mitchell,
on 6/30/2011
Deadlines are good things. They make you stretch yourself. You achieve things you thought were impossible. Sometimes things are even better because you have to work quickly. I relish them and - I dread them. But I know I am happier when I have them, than when I don't. I think that's one of the reasons I enjoy working in the illustration field. Mostly you are working for a client, and that client has expectations - after all they are putting food on your table. I often hear freelancers (in all kinds of work) saying that they have a hard time getting motivated. My advice: get yourself a deadline. And if you don't have one, create one for yourself.
The reason I am rattling on about deadlines is that there's a few on my calendar. This is excellent, means I am busy. Who doesn't want to be busy? I handle my deadlines by making a written calendar, right now it goes until August 31. I have 2 manuscripts to illustrate by then (the next two books in Anastasia Suen's cheerleader series for Kane and Miller publishing). Before you 'gasp' they are black and white with colour cover, so it's not colour double spreads!)
Mid way through this is wham bam ... SCBWI Summer Conference in LA. Just to make things difficult for myself I've decided to redo my portfolio with totally new pieces. So that's F-I-V-E weeks away. Plus I want to take 2 dummies with me. I will be entering the Portfolio Showcase again ... this year I feel like I know what I am doing. Well, more than last year anyway!
As I said, nothing like a deadline ... here's one of the new pieces with a more whimsical style than usual.
By: Linda Formichelli,
on 9/27/2010
I hear from a lot of freelancing parents who have trouble getting it all done. How can I do an interview, they ask, while the house is falling down around my ears? How do I handle mountains of laundry and my writing when I have only two hours a day while my kid naps?
I have a very active 21-month-old son, an exchange student, and a fairly big house. I have to admit that I’m very lucky that my husband is also a freelancer and is an equal partner in child care and housework, but I also have some tactics that help me juggle it all — without going insane.
Any freelancing parent, no matter how many days she works, needs to cram all of her work into a short amount of time — when the kids are napping, after the kids go to bed, while the kids are at daycare. As you may know, “A href=”http://www.therenegadewriter.com/2010/01/30/how-to-work-less/”>I work only two days per week, but still have a full-time workload
. We have our toddler in child care twice a week, so that’s my time to get it all done. If I have to work on my days “off,” I write and schedule interviews during our son’s two-hour nap.I’ve found that when you have only a short amount of time, it helps to “batch” similar tasks. For example, I try to schedule interviews during the same two-hour block (even on days when we have child care). That way I can get them all out of the way and not waste mental energy thinking about interviews all day long. I also try to write blog posts in batches of three or more. When I get a Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn friend/ follower/ connection request, I drop it into a special folder in Gmail and process them all at once every one or two weeks. Finally, I answer my Write for Magazines e-course e-mails on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and because I have a separate e-mail address for this course, I’m able to answer my students’ e-mails in batches a few times per day.
I even batch some home tasks! Tonight, for example, we’ll be having some homemade mac-and-cheese, but it will take me only a minute of effort. That’s because a few weeks ago, I made a triple batch and put two pans of it in the freezer. All I have to do is toss one in the oven, and in an hour we’ll have a home-cooked meal. I also bake two dozen banana muffins at a time and freeze them so I have an easy breakfast for the kiddo on rushed mornings. Just add some fruit and we’re out the door!
For the past two months, I’ve been getting up between 5:30 and 6 am. That may not sound so early for you 9-5ers, but for me — a freelancer, and not exactly a morning person — it’s the middle of the night. Our toddler generally sleeps until at least 8, so that gives me two hours or more to read a book, relax, check e-mail if I feel like it, do little house chores if I need to, and so on. I’ve written entire articles before my family even gets up! I also spend a few minutes just looking out the window and setting an intention for my day. I might also go over my to-do list in my head, or decide what my most important tasks are for the day.
It’s hard to wake up at 5:30, but once I’m downstairs with a cup of coffee or tea in my hand, I’m fine — and it’s SO worth it to have some time to myself. What’s even harder than getting up early, for me, is waking up at 8 am and immediately having to be “on” — to have to rush downstairs to make our son’s breakfast and be thrown haphazardly into the day.
Try setting you
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By: Lynn Alpert,
on 9/25/2010
By: Jodi,
on 8/5/2010
I’ve always been strangely proud of the fact that I go on vacation without a laptop, smart phone, or any other device that would tempt me to “Just check in”, “Answer a few emails”, “Dash off a blog post”, or any of the other thousand things I could come up with that take “Just a minute”. I’m not one of those people with a margarita in one hand and a laptop in the other or strolling the beach yelling at the seagulls “It’s in the Anderson file and it has to go out today!” People talking on those hands-free phones still freak me out(and I imagine the sea gulls don’t enjoy them either).
When I go on vacation I really go on vacation…or so I’ve always told myself. But my pile of things to be packed for vacation includes two books that need to be read and reviewed, a book proposal I’m hoping to start(and Larson’s book about book proposals), and a post I promised a blogger the week I return. I’m also hoping to work on handouts for a class I’ll be teaching. And there’s always my novel. Did I mention I’ll only be away for a week? Somehow, I convince myself that without all the pressures of my everyday writing I’ll have time for the projects I’ve been pushing off. Except I’m supposed to be on vacation!
According to my dictionary the definition of a vacation is:
1. A period of time devoted to pleasure, rest, or relaxation, especially one with pay granted to an employee.
Pleasure, rest, relaxation. Yep, that sounds right. The problem is the second half “especially one with pay granted to an employee.” When you work for yourself—welcome to the wonderful world of freelancing—you’re constantly aware of the fact that if you don’t work, you don’t get paid. So I drag along projects out of guilt, panic, hope?
I’d like to say that after writing this post and thinking about my un-vacation like behavior I’ll leave all the projects at home. I won’t.
Are your vacations project free? Computer free? Smart phone free? Am I the only neurotic “I’m sure I can squeeze in a little bit of work” freelancer? Have you ever managed to completely leave the work at home? Tell me your secrets! Quick, I’m leaving for the beach soon.
You can learn more about Jodi and her crazy life on her blog Words by Webb at www.jodiwebb.com. Next week is dedicated to her favorite genre with Mystery Week
By: Linda Formichelli,
on 8/2/2010
I offer to bust readers’ excuses for not pitching magazines — or, if they’re pitching, for approaching only low/no-pay pubs. (By the way, if you have an excuse you’d like me to bust, you can send it to [email protected].) Have a lot of excuses — or a lot of questions? I’m offering a 10% discount off my phone mentoring through August 20. Here’s what a client I helped last week had to say:
“In one half-hour telephone session, Linda covered a lot of ground—she answered all of my questions, offered specific, detailed advice and gave me some fantastic tips and resources. As a freelancer who has experience but is ready to move to the next level, it was a huge boon to be able to speak with someone so knowledgeable and so willing to share her insights. Exactly what I needed!”
—Fiona Kirk
Here’s Jan’s excuse: My problem with NOT writing is that I’m 52 years old and JUST started writing. I know I have a lot of wisdom from my experience but I also have doubts as in I’m too old to be writing this late in life. Am I too late in starting out? Can I learn enough to still be successful? I’m not 25 and starting, or 35, or even 45.
There’s a Dear Abby (or maybe it was Ann Landers) column that I love and always remember when this excuse comes up. A woman wrote in that she wanted to go to college, but she was 70 years old. “When I graduate, I’ll be 74,” she said. “Should I do it?” Abby (or maybe it was Ann) answered, “And how old will you be in four years if you don’t go to college?”
Her point was that time was going to pass anyway, so you may as well follow your dreams no matter what your age is now and what your age will be when you succeed.
Fear of failure is an insidious thing, and sometimes it crops up wearing different masks, like “I’m too young” and “I’m too old” and “I’ll start when the kids are in school/I feel more confident/I take five thousand writing classes.” See your excuses for what they likely are — a fear of trying and failing.
You can learn the basics of freelance writing at any age. You have access to the same tools and resources as everyone else. And as you said, you have the benefit of wisdom from your life experience.
The even better news is that editors rarely care — or even know — how old you are. Heck, they don’t much care about you at all except for whether you can turn in a great piece! I wrote for Parenting before I even planned to have a kid myself. I now write for magazines aimed at women in their 20s and 30s, even though I’m 41.
The trick is that you need to know how to think like your market, and that’s a skill you’ll need as a magazine writer no matter what age you are. For example, if I were pitching AARP: The Magazine, I’d need to understand the issues that people face in their 50s and beyond. When I wrote for parenting mags, even before I had a kid, I had to get into the minds of moms with young children. And when I wrote for a magazine aimed at college-age, minority employees, I had to think about what they wanted and needed to know about the issues that affect them. (And I’m not college-age, a minority, or an employee.)
This is a skill you can pick up by reading magazines, books, websites, and online forums that target all different markets.
I hope tha
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By: Linda Formichelli,
on 7/5/2010
I’ve been reading Dan Ariely’s new book The Upside of Irrationality: The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home. In it, he talks about how humans and animals alike need to find meaning through labor.
Ariely conducted an experiment where subjects were asked to complete a simple puzzle on a sheet of paper. For the first successfully completed puzzle, the subject would receive $.55; however, for each subsequent page after the first, the subject would earn five cents less.
In the first setup, the researcher asked the subject to put his name on the paper and then complete the puzzle. When the subject handed in the completed puzzle, the researcher looked it over with an approving nod and then put the sheet in a stack and asked the subject if he would like to do another puzzle for five cents less.
In the second setup, the subject was not asked to put his name on the paper, and the researcher would take the completed puzzle without looking it over and put it in a pile before asking if the subject would like to continue with another puzzle.
In the third setup, the researcher would take the completed puzzle from the subject and, without looking at it, feed it immediately into a shredder right in front of the subject’s eyes. Then the researcher would ask if the subject would like to do another puzzle.
The results? People who were acknowledged completed on average 9.03 sheets, compared with 6.34 sheets for the people whose puzzles were shredded. And those subjects whose puzzles were ignored but not shredded completed on average 6.77 sheets — not much more than the “shredded” subjects.
What this told Ariely is that money, while an important motivating factor, is not the only reason we do work. We also crave meaning — we want people to see and appreciate our work.
This got me to thinking about my own writing career. If I had to choose between having all my work read and appreciated but not paid for, and earning a very high income but having no readers, which would I choose?
On the one hand, I write this blog. I post two to three times per week, and I’m not paid for it. Sure, some people who read the blog also take my e-course, but when they pay $240 it’s for the work I provide during the e-course, not for the posts I write on the blog. They get $240 worth of work from me. The blog is additional and free.
Now, I could stop posting to the blog and try to sell my post ideas to Writer’s Digest. They pay me $.60 per word. Multiply the number of words I’ve written on this blog and multiply it by $.60, and you’ll see that I would make quite a bit. But when I pitch Writer’s Digest, not every idea is accepted. Also, I have to wait to see the article in print, and I rarely receive reader feedback. But when I post on the blog, I get to write what I want, see it published immediately, and read feedback in the form of comments and e-mails from readers. Don’t get me wrong, I love writing for Writer’s Digest — the topics are fun and the editors are top-notch. But the fact that I don’t try to pitch every blog idea to Writer’s Digest instead of writing it up immediately for the blog tells you I might value getting read over getting paid.
On the other hand, I write beauty product stories for a health magazine, and I love doing it. The editor asks me to write in an edgy style, and always says that I get the tone right on. But when the articles make it into print, I see that for space reasons they took out my clever bon mots and went with bare-bones descriptions
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By: Linda Formichelli,
on 6/30/2010
I offer to bust readers’ excuses for not pitching magazines — or, if they’re pitching, for approaching only low/no-pay pubs. (If you have an excuse you’d like me to bust, you can send it to [email protected].)
Ali sent in her excuse: My excuse is that I just don’t know how to start. I’ve made a decent living as a freelance PR manager for the past three years and know I can write, but I just don’t know how to take that first step to identify a magazine, send a query and then follow up to get an assignment. I guess really I should just get on with it, take the plunge, get it wrong and then learn from it and get it right next time. But I’m blocked on a kind of fear of going about it all wrong and therefore looking stupid and messing up my chances of getting an assignment. So I don’t even try. Rubbish, I know!
Okay this is where I get to shill my class: On July 19, the next session of my popular Write for Magazines e-course will begin, and it takes you through eight steps of generating a salable idea, researching and writing a query, identifying markets, sleuthing out editors’ contact info, and getting your query out the door. If you opt for the Premium course with e-mail support, I can also offer help with fear, demotivation, and other issues that keep you from getting started. Previous students have landed assignments from magazines like Spirituality & Health, Woman’s Day, SELF, Writer’s Digest, E: The Environmental Magazine, Black Health, and more.
Okay, sales pitch over. As for doing it wrong — let me assure you there is no wrong. Okay, if you write your query with crayon on scented paper or address the editor “Dear Boss-Man,” that is wrong. But there’s such a big variation in how things work, and you need to find what works best for you. That’s what The Renegade Writer is all about: Trying out different tactics, tossing what doesn’t work, and keeping what does.
No two editors are the same, so there’s no one way to appeal to an editor — or to piss one off. So throw out even the mere idea of being perfect. You can’t.
Also, as I’ve mentioned before on this blog, one of my first queries to Family Circle was called “Quik Dri Cheez: Why Advertisers Can’t Spell.” Not only did the editor not blackball me from the world of magazines after receiving this horrendous pitch, but I ended up writing a dozen articles for the magazine (once I learned from that pitch and improved my ideas).
In addition, in my e-course Get Unstuck! for Freelancers, one of the assignments (to help beat perfectionism) is to send out a query or letter of introduction with a typo in it. One of my students said “No way!” — and later that day gasped in horror as she pressed SEND on a query and then noticed, an instant before it zapped off the screen, that there was huge typo in the first sentence. Did the editor shoot back a scathing reply? No…he replied within the hour to say that he liked the idea but the magazine already had a similar one underway, and asked the writer to send more ideas.
Don’t worry about messing things up! If you screw up, change your tactics and try again. It’s the only way to succeed. [lf]
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By: Linda Formichelli,
on 6/7/2010
I offer to bust readers’ excuses for not pitching magazines — or, if they’re pitching, for approaching only low/no-pay pubs. (By the way, if you have an excuse you’d like me to bust, you can send it to [email protected].)
Jessica wrote to me about her excuse: Contacting interviewees before I’ve gotten the assignment to get quotes for the query letter fills me with dread, and I have a hard time overcoming this. I’m also a bit overwhelmed by exactly how and where to find my expert sources – I’ll find someone and think “Yeah, they seem to fit the bill.” But then I start looking and thinking “There are TONS of people who fit the bill. How am I supposed to be discerning about this when I’m so not the expert?”
This is a common fear, but it may make you feel better to know that my e-course students each have to contact three to four experts for pre-query interviews, and I can’t think of one time the students were treated with anything but respect. And I’ve probably done hundreds of interviews before getting the assignment, and most sources say yes.
Here’s my trick: When I write or call the source, I say something like this: “Hello! My name is Linda Formichelli, and I’m a freelance writer based in New Hampshire. I’m working on a proposal for Health magazine for an article on common period problems and how to solve them. Would you be available for just five minutes so I can interview you to get a few quotes for my proposal? Then, if I get the assignment, we can set a more in-depth interview.”
Notice that I name the magazine I’m pitching; I think this sounds better than telling the source that you’re working on a pitch you’ll send who-knows-where. Also, I make sure to say “proposal” and not “query,” because I don’t think most people outside of the freelancing world know what a query is. Finally, I ask for just five minutes of the source’s time. That’s hard to say no to — and often the source will end up chatting with me for longer than that. (However, when I say five minutes, I mean it — if the source needs to hang up after five minutes, that’s fine.)
As for how to vet your sources, that’s a more difficult question. Some people become experts because they call themselves experts. And some sources have something to sell, whether it’s a product or a viewpoint, so no matter what question you ask it will come around again to that product or viewpoint.
I tend to look for expert sources in the following places:
* Professional schools: For example, a well-known business school or medical school. Contact their PR department to ask for sources, or go directly to the school’s website and read through the bios of the faculty members.
* Associations: Organizations like the American Dietetic Association and the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons (yes, I used them recently) can often put you in contact with knowledgeable sources. Just look up the topic you’re writing about and “association” in Google.
* Amazon.com: I usually assume that anyone who has authored a book on a topic can be considered an expert. However, I always check the publishing house to make sure the book is not self-published. I have nothing against self-published books, but anyone can write one and there are no barriers to entry, while with traditional publishers you have at least some reassurance that the author has been accepted by a board of editors, a
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Posted on 5/24/2010
Last year I rented an outside office in downtown Concord, NH. I loved it, but when I cut my work week down to two days in August of 2009, I realized it wasn’t worth $300 per month to spend a mere eight days in my office every month. So I sublet the office to a nice yoga instructor, and now I work from home again.
If you’re like me, sometimes you just have to get out of your home office (or dining room, or living room) and work at a freelancer-friendly place like Starbucks, Borders, Barnes & Noble, or a local café or bookstore. But while these are great for a change of view, they can also create major hassles for busy freelancers. Sometimes I go to Borders and all is fine and dandy, and other times I go there and end up sitting next to a lip-smacking loud-eater, getting approached by every weirdo in the store, and having to fight for a table near an electrical outlet. So I compiled this list of advice on how to get the most out of your visits to your “office away from home.”
1. Get there early. If you get to the café or bookstore at noon, forget it — every freelancer, telecommuter, and computer-game addict in town will have commandeered the tables near the outlets. If I get to the store by 10 am, I can usually find a good spot.
2. Bring a cord. Sometimes all the tables by outlets will be taken, but the tables that are almost-but-not-quite near outlets will be free. I always bring the extension cord that came with my Mac so I can sit a little further away from an outlet. If you do this, just be sure that you’re not stringing your cord halfway across the floor; you don’t want to trip up any innocent old ladies.
Also, I hope it’s kosher to pull out a tip from the comments. Thursday Bram of the Constructively Productive blog left a great comment: “I make a point of going beyond just bringing a cord: I bring a plug that turns your average outlet into a charging station. It’s got a couple of extra outlets, as well as USB slots for charging phones and such. A power strip will serve the same purpose. This way, you can always get extra folks plugged in, making you a favorite at the coffee shop and making it easier to find a seat.” Thanks, Thursday!
3. Plug your ears. For some reason, I seem to be a weirdo magnet — and my local Borders has a lot of weirdos. One time, a drunk man sat at my table while I was clearly working and started babbling about his “&^$# VW van.” Another time, a young man dressed like a caricature of a gang member sat down at the chair next to me and regaled me with stories about how he was thrown in the clink for beating the $#!^ out of some other guy. He also recited lines from A Clockwork Orange. That’s one of my favorite movies, but I really don’t need some freak whispering “The old ‘in and out’” in my ear over and over.
Another writer suggested I wear a pair of headphones to deter anyone who’s thinking of making themselves comfortable at my table and bending my ear. This works on airplanes — why not in cafés and bookstores while you’re trying to work? If you find music distracting, you don’t need to listen to it; no one will know that you’re just listening to the sweet sounds of silence. (By the way, the headphones also block out the sounds of the loud eaters you’ll inevitably find yourself sitting by.)
4. Buy something, dammit! Starbucks, Borders, and so on don’t
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What a great post, and perfect timing, too. I've been doing some copywriting for a pittance, and would like to try and venture out.
I look forward to part two.
Great, Sioux. Glad this helped you! :)
Great post, I enjoyed ready reading it, Keep posting good stuff like this.