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So, I’m working on a new Kindle e-book that’s NOT writing related, though it applies beautifully to writers of all kinds:
COMMIT: How to Blast Through Problems & Crush Your Goals Through Massive Action
COMMIT is about throwing every available resource at your goal or problem, all at the same time. I talk about the benefits of Committing and various ways you can do it — and include examples of how it works for different goals, from losing weight and beating anxiety to starting a business and cleaning out your garage.
Committing this way is how I’ve built a successful freelance business, beat depression, and reached all kinds of personal goals. In the book, I also tell the story of a Commit fail that resulted in my furniture and rugs being destroyed.
The book isn’t done yet, but as part of my own Committing to getting it finished, I commissioned three covers — and I’d like you to tell me which one YOU like best. I’ll be keeping your votes and comments in mind when I make my final selection.
Just click on the image to see the covers bigger, and let me know in the comments whether you prefer Option 1, 2, or 3. On Tuesday, December 23, I’ll randomly select one winner who will receive a free copy of the book when it comes out.
Thanks, and I look forward to seeing what you think!
(By the way, the covers are from James at GoOnWrite.com!)
Carol Tice of the Freelance Writers Den and I are busy working on our new class — a “4-Week Journalism School” where we address finding ideas, interviews, research, writing, ethics and more. This course will include all the nitty-gritty details you need to know as a freelance writer — without the 5-figure price tag of journalism school.
We want to be sure to answer writers’ most pressing questions in this class, so Carol developed a survey. Please do head over there and take a few minutes to fill it out, and as a thank-you we’ll offer you a $30 discount off the course (usually $295) if you decide to sign up.
Thanks so much — we look forward to reading your responses! [lf]
If you really, really like us, please nominate the Renegade Writer blog for the 5th Annual Top 10 Blogs for Writers Contest! I’ve been working hard to bring readers a good mix of posts about marketing, craft, motivation, productivity, and personal development for freelance writers. I love the writing life, and my goal is to help other writers break the chains of the 9-5 and make a go at freelancing. I hope the blog has helped you gain more confidence as a freelancer!
I’m thinking of creating some video posts for fun. Are there any topics you’d like to see me tackle on video? It seems the medium isn’t the best forngetting into the nitty-gritty of query writing and other writing-heavy topics, but it would work well for more personal subjects like motivation and confidence. But outside of those thoughts, I’m stumped. What do you think? Thanks in advance for your comments! [lf]
Help! For a rush assignment for Chevy Prospect magazine, I need to interview two families (with kids) who drive a Chevy Tahoe, Suburban, or Traverse. Car should be under 3 years old, and family cannot live in Michigan. I’m looking for geographic and ethnic diversity in interviewees. If this sounds like you and you’d like to participate, please e-mail me at [email protected]. And even if this is not a fit for you, I hope you’ll spread the word to others you know! Thanks so much! [lf]
I’m posting this request for Kelly James-Enger, author of Six-Figure Freelancing:
When I was working on Six-Figure Freelancing several years ago, I found only two surveys about freelancer’s income. One was a 2003 survey of 369 ASJA members. At that time, 41% made more than $50,000 a year, including 12% grossing more than $100,000 annually. Another survey of nearly 500 freelancers conducted by Doreesa Banning in 2004 found that while nearly 68.9% of respondents made less than $50,000 a year, more than 30% made more than that, including 7% who made more than $100,000 annually. (Visit http://www.asja.org/pubtips/050324a.php for more about the survey.)
What about you? Where do you fall on the income bell curve? I’ll tell you that in 2009, I grossed about $52,000, working an average of 15 hours/week. In 2008, I made $57,500, working about 18 hours/week. However, this year I’m on target to make significantly less than that, which means it’s time for me to market myself much more aggressively.
Still, I’m curious about what other freelancers are making and thought about asking for feedback on my blog. Then reality interceded; after all, I do realize not everyone is as willing to share their annual income in a public forum. So I’ve set up an anonymous survey to report on the current state of what we’re making as freelancers. Please visit http://www.kwiksurveys.com/?s=KNMIOF_cdf53ce4 to participate in the survey (it will take you 3 minutes or less!) and I’ll report on the results by the end of June here and on my blog. After all, more information about money=more power for freelancers. And that is an excellent thing.
When I did a survey of Renegade Writer blog readers a few months ago, many of you said you wanted to see examples of queries that sold. I’ve posted a few of my own, but I’d love to also run queries from our readers. If you have a query that sold to a magazine and don’t mind sharing it, please e-mail it to me at [email protected] and let me know how you came up with the idea, why you structured the query the way you did, what magazine you sold it to, and any other info you think is important. Our readers would love to learn from those — like you — who have written successful queries! Thanks so much. [lf]
I’ve come to realize that the Renegade Writer’s blogroll is seriously out of date. I want the blogroll to be a great source for writers looking for other professional blogs, and I also would like to return the blogroll love to those writing blogs that link to the Renegade Writer. If you have a writing blog you think would be of interest to our readers — mostly magazine writers, professional and aspiring — please post the name and URL in the comments below. Thanks so much! [lf]
For an article for a writers’ magazine, I’m looking for writers who have gone through the following sticky situations, who would like to share what happened to them and how they solved the problem. I’m also looking for other sticky situations, though I may have enough here for this short article:
* A key source insists on seeing a copy of your article before it goes to the editor or goes into print.
* It’s your magazine’s policy to let sources review the manuscript, and your source has covered the article with so much red ink it looks like he sacrificed a goat on it…and his changes are ridiculous and incorrect.
* You receive nasty reader e-mails and letters in response to an article you wrote.
* You get a copy of the magazine you wrote for — and see your name is missing or misspelled.
* You get a copy of the magazine you wrote for — and a major source’s name is misspelled.
* You didn’t use a source who gave a terrible interview, and now he’s asking when the article will come out.
If you’re interested in participating, please contact me at [email protected] with “Sticky Situations” in the subject line. Thanks in advance for your help!
A lot of writers ask me that age-old question: “Can you make money blogging?” I’m here to tell you that yes, you can!
I’ve been a freelance writer for, uh, a long, long time, writing mainly for consumer magazines. But now I make a good portion of my income from blogging. The key is having a variety of blogs I either write myself or contribute to in a group setting.
So, how can you make money blogging? Whether you’re blogging to create a book platform, show editors you can write in a specific niche, or blog about what you love and monetize it, here are a few tips to get the blogging income stream flowing:
1. Choose a great topic. It should be something you not only love, but also broad enough to attract readers. Sure, you could blog about the migrating habits of the Brazilian Water Beetle, but will that bring in tons of readers? Probably not. (That’s not to say that Brazilian Water Beetles aren’t lovely creatures. I’m sure they are.) Brainstorm on hot topics that you don’t mind blogging about every day and can also go the distance for many years.
2. Write great posts. A blog is a great place for your personality to shine through! People can get the news anywhere. They come to your blog to see what YOU have to say about it, so be free with your opinions and commentary. And don’t be afraid to write about controversial topics. Those often bring in lots of readers who don’t mind voicing their opinion in your comments section (this is a good thing).
3. Use social media to your advantage. Sites like Twitter, Facebook, Live Journal, and Digg are a great way to promote your blog and specific posts. Pick two or three social media sites and spend time making friends and leaving comments.
4. Work the SEO Tools. Search engine optimization might seem like an ancient hieroglyphic language, but it’s pretty easy when you boil it down. Much of it has to do with keywords – terms or phrases that capture the essence of whatever you’re writing about. There are all sorts of things you can do to boost your SEO juice, both in content and images.
5. Make it fun! Create a blog playground that’s fun for both you and your readers. Hold contests and giveaways, use polls, and interact with your readers in the comments section.
To learn more about blogging – shameless plug ahead! – sign up for my blogging class right here on Renegade Writers. The next 6-week session starts Monday, March 9, 2009. Maybe I’ll see you in class!
I’ve been struggling with a book proposal for going on two years. Every couple of weeks, my husband asks, “How’s the X book coming?” and I feel the pool of despair inch out a little farther in my gut. This weekend he asked again and I snapped, “It’s not, okay? Lay off!” I rarely snap, so we talked about it. I told him how anxious his inquiries made me feel, and he pointed out (rightfully) I’d done so much work on this proposal that it was a shame not to finish it and put it out there in the marketplace. I admitted I felt stuck with the book — I didn’t feel connected to the material — and that connectedness was important to me. He recommended I hire someone to look it over for me — another writer or a book doctor. Immediately, I perked up.
I did a little research on book doctors, found someone who looked good, then did my due diligence by asking some trusted writer friends for their opinions. I talked to one friend on the phone who said, “Diana, she’s great — but I don’t think you need her. Let me look at your proposal. Maybe I’ll see something that can be easily fixed.”
I felt my heart race, my cheeks flame. “Okay,” I said weakly. I sat there after the call feeling a bit ill. It had nothing to do with my friend being an amazing writer, someone who gets her essays selected for The Best Food Writing compilations and whose third book is coming out next year from a major publisher. I can take criticism from the best of them.
What it was is that I hate hate HATE asking friends for help. I don’t mind paying for help, thus why I was ready to shell out $500 for a book doctor, but ask a friend to read 50 pages of (what I thought was) sheer drivel? I’d rather pull my own toenails out, thank you. Maybe it’s the eldest child syndrome, or that I’m an incorrigible control freak or that I think, “They’re busy with their own work, they don’t have time to help me.” I’m simply more comfortable helping someone than to be the one accepting help. In my moments of utter self-honesty, though, it has mostly to do with an excess of pride.
I did it. I fought the urge to “forget” sending the file and I sent it. For many of you this might be a “What’s the big deal? Whoopie … you asked a colleague to read your work.” But it was a revelation for me. I’ve been thinking about how, in a way, not asking for help is selfish and keeps a relationship unbalanced. Asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness. If you’re always doing the giving, it doesn’t give your friends or colleagues the chance to give back. The relationship becomes a one-way street, with the chronic giver in this quasi-Godlike benefactor role while the chronic receiver gets stuck playing the mere mortal.
I’ve decided that I’m going to lower my guard and start asking for more help. So my writing friends out there, watch out.
How about you? Do you have a hard time asking friends to critique your work and such? How do you handle it? Add your comments below. [db]
I’m not a big reader of essays, but earlier this year I was pointed to an essay at the Washington Post written by Lori Hall Steele, a freelance writer I know from Freelance Success. By the end of her essay, my heart felt as if it were going to break in two. Go ahead. Read it. I’ll be curious what you think. And don’t read any more of my post until you go read it.
Ok now. Here’s the deal. A few months ago, I was stunned to learn that Lori had been diagnosed with a particularly brutal case of Lyme Disease. She couldn’t work, and as you know as a freelancer, when you don’t work, you don’t get money and you can’t pay bills. Her friends in Michigan held a benefit for her. I thought things might get better, but recently I found out they were only getting worse. Her doctors were now leaning toward a diagnosis of ALS, or Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, a progressive neurodegenerative illness.
Lori’s financial resources are exhausted. She’s gotten funding from ASJA (the American Society of Journalists and Authors) and just got another emergency grant from them, but it’s not enough. (You can read more detail about Lori’s plight here.) She’s days away from losing her home. At this point, Lori not only can’t work, she’s bedridden and using a ventilator to breathe.
I wracked my brain trying to figure out a way to raise more money so that Lori doesn’t have to worry about losing her home, not when she’s fighting for her life. My suggestion was a blog-a-thon, which I’m starting here. Below is a PayPal button where you can donate directly to Lori. Please please please click on it and give generously. (There’s also a button on the blog started by Lori’s friends in Michigan.) If you blog, consider adding this button to your site and blogging a bit about Lori … let’s spread the word and see what we can do for her and her son. Right after I post this, I’m going to write to every writing blogger I can think of. I know that the power of virtual communities can do good things. My heart breaks thinking about Lori’s words in her Washington Post piece:
“I tell him I’ll always be here for him, one way or another. Always always always. Just like my mother is here for me. Just like I was there when he was 3. It is an impossible promise, a gamble with his trust. I secretly pray I don’t let him down, not on this.”
Please, give what you can spare. $25 is a week’s worth of fancy coffee drinks for some of us. I know times are tight — I know they are around here — but there nowhere near as bad as they are for other folks.
I’ve been noticing a lot of freelancers complaining, some bitterly, about Peter Shankman’s Help a Reporter Out service, also known as HARO. The common theme of complaints is the volume of off-target responses reporters get from potential story sources.
(For the record, I don’t know Shankman, I’ve never used HARO, and I rarely use Profnet, another journalist-source matching service. Not because I’m against services like these, but more because I like prefer finding experts through research and Google, and mining my own sources. I completely understand why freelancers/journalists love avenues like this and I wouldn’t think twice about using them in the future.)
Here’s what I don’t understand, though. HARO is basically a free hookup service for freelancers/journalists and potential sources. Shankman started this “thing” because he likes networking, had a huge source list, and thought why not do something a little more formal with this talent and the assets. (I’m assuming he also gets good PR and builds his brand — his name certainly has burst onto the scene — so it’s not a completely selfless act.) We freelancers don’t pay for this service, nor do the publicity seekers; it’s there because Shankman’s decided to take this on and we agree to play by his rules when we sign up. So why do some of us feel entitled to slam HARO (or Shankman) when others aren’t playing by the book?
I’ve read through Shankman’s thrice-daily call for sources. He does a good job establishing the rules for sources, even going so far to publicly lambaste sources who &uck up bigtime, like the university press officer who forwarded a query that ended up on some professor’s web page — complete with the writer’s e-mail address. (Granted I’d be pissed about that — but not at Shankman.) I don’t think Shankman is charging sources to participate on his list, nor is he asking journalists to pay up. (Would that even be ethical? I don’t think so.) If you get some good leads, you’ve beat the system. (And I’m guessing writers *are* getting good stuff, else it wouldn’t be as popular as it is.) If you get a mailbox full of CheeseWhiz, well, you’ve gotten what you’ve paid for.
Here’s what I’d do to ensure my pitch beat the system:
Tell potential sources exactly what I want, who I want, and when I want to hear from them. “I’m looking for a woman between the ages of 35 and 55 who is going through a divorce with her second marriage. I need to have sources lined up by September 15.”
Tell them what I *don’t* want, too. (”I must quote MDs who work with a university-affiliated hospital. I cannot speak with healthcare consultants, PR reps, or MDs who are not affiliated with a university hospital.”
Set up an e-mail address I only use for HARO (or Profnet). That way I can protect my real work address from getting in some idiot’s hands. Even better, I’d set up an e-mail address for each specific request for sources.
Be specific. I’ve read through tons of reporter’s queries. Many of them are so vague it’s no wonder so many off-target PR pitches result. Example: “Know any breastfeeders?” versus “I need to speak with women who’ve had negative social experiences while breastfeeding a toddler (between ages 1 and 3) in public. I am not interested in breastfeeding products or experts — need real-life stories here. Thanks!”
So, do you think it’s fair to bitch, moan, and whine at Shankman/HARO? What does he or his service owe you beyond a chance to connect with sources you might not otherwise meet? Post your comments below. [db]
This June has been a struggle for me. I’m reminded of my school days, where I’d sit in math class, gazing out at the trees and blue sky outside the window, lost in my thoughts — thoughts that had nothing to do with the Pythagorean theorem up on the blackboard. This week I’ve been distracted by the Entwistle murder trial here in Boston, which just, thank God, wrapped up a little over an hour ago. I’m bored with the work on my plate, I don’t have any focus, and I just feel like grabbing a stack of mystery novels and a pitcher of iced tea and hanging out on the hammock for the rest of the summer.
I do have a scheduled vacation in August, so hammock time has to wait. (Besides, I’ll be in Houson. In August. I’ll be searching for air conditioning.) So I put this out there you folks. How do *you* beat summer ennui? [db]
Yeah, yeah, yeah — the trash from the July 4 parades is still on the ground, we know. Well, if you’re one of those freaks who actually loves buying school supplies in August and yearns for that first day of school every September (hand raised here), he’s something that’ll polish your pencil case — we’ve posted the fall schedule for our Renegade Writer e-courses. Not every course is listed yet — we’ve got some new instructors who are still working on their classes — so check back often.
And a reminder that Alison Stein Wellner decided to run her travel writing class again this summer. It starts on Monday, July 14, so sign up this week! [db]
A Renegade Writer blog reader is looking for a reputable university that offers an online journalism program. I know zilch about journalism programs in general. Can anyone here help? If so, please post in the Comments. Thanks! [lf]
All three of these sites have a tone of information about online journalism…the wave of the future in my opinion. NewsU has great online courses (free) for journalists who want to keep their skills up to date.
ojr.org (online journalism- USC Annenberg School of Communications at USC)
Chris said, on 3/4/2008 5:22:00 PM
Try Cleland Thom, my current tutor. This is UK based but I know he takes international students so it’s worth inquiring.
He is totally online. Although not affiliated with any education establishment (as far as I know…) he’s well respected in journalism training and has served presviously with NCTJ, the examining body all UK Journalism courses seek accreditation from.
Can you help me? For a rush assignment for a national health magazine, I need to interview three women between the ages of 30 and 50 who have had skin cancer. I’m hoping to find three women who have different issues — maybe one who was a sun worshipper, one who has a family history of skin cancer, etc. If you’re interested or know anyone who is, please e-mail me at [email protected]. Thanks so much! [lf]
Hi! Thanks to everyone who signed up for Creative Professionals for Animal Welfare (creativePAW). We already have over 60 volunteers! Most of them are writers, but we also have photographers, PR people, web designers, illustrators, and others. We also have 6 or 7 animal welfare organizations that have signed up.
I heard from an organization that needs help from several different kinds of creative professionals, including writers: Lauren’s Zoo, which finds homes for special needs animals on the Gulf Coast.
Also, I’d like to bump up the number of photographers, videographers, illustrators, etc. I’ve been posting on forums for those people, but it’s slow going. If you know of any orgs or forums that cater to these professionals I can try, I’m all ears!
It’s finally done…the site for my new organization, Creative Professionals for Animal Welfare (creativePAW). The organization’s mission is to help animal welfare organizations find creative professionals (such as writers, editors, illustrators, and web designers) who are willing to do volunteer work to help with the orgs’ marketing, education, fundraising, and PR efforts.
Please check out the site and join the database…it’s free (obviously) and simple, and you can choose to take on only the volunteer work you have time for. You don’t have to worry about spam if you join the database, as animal welfare orgs have to join and be approved before they can search the database.
According to the Humane Society of the United States, a homeless companion animal is euthanized every eight seconds in the U.S. creativePAW’s mission is to help animal welfare organizations publicize their causes and educate the public about homeless pet issues. So please, sign up and get involved! Also, please do send this note on to the other creative professionals you know: editors, proofreaders, translators, voice talent, illustrators, photographers, PR people, etc.
“The truth is, as a company, we’re always looking for the best writers — and it’s important to us that we continually seek out these people — and this takes up a lot of our time. This community of professional writers wasn’t organized to make our lives easier, but it sure could.”
Sweet!
So folks — if you want this wiki to work, get over there, register, and start adding to it. Who knows? Your next big gig could be checking this thing out. [db]
Any community of passionate professionals is worth the peek. Keep up the good work.
Carolyn said, on 12/10/2007 7:14:00 PM
This is great!
Jennifer said, on 12/11/2007 1:13:00 PM
A bit off topic, but just wanted to say congrats on your Top 10 Blogs for Writers win!
Michele said, on 12/11/2007 1:43:00 PM
I see you’re on the list for the Top 10 Blogs for Writers Congratulations!
wordwych said, on 12/11/2007 4:50:00 PM
This is wonderful! Congrats!
Enthousiasmeren said, on 12/12/2007 6:09:00 AM
10 beste blogs voor schrijvers…
Als dit de eerste keer is in dit blog, wil je misschien een abbonement op mijn RSS feed of mijn wekelijkse nieuwsbrief in je inbox. Dank voor je bezoek!
Er zijn veel schrijvers die enthousiasmeren.nl lezen. Daarbij denk ik niet alleen aan schrij…
DianaBurrell said, on 12/12/2007 1:14:00 PM
Hey Linda, is that Dutch?
LindaFormichelli said, on 12/13/2007 7:00:00 AM
It is indeed! This blogger runs a blog that many writers read, and he linked to our site. If you can read Dutch, check him out and subscribe!
My husband Eric, owner and editor of BoardgameNews.com, is holding his second annual Games for Soldiers drive. Until November 28, Eric is accepting donations of money and boardgames to be sent to units in Iraq and Afghanistan that he located through AnySoldier.com. Donated money will be used to buy games from a local store that has promised to match the game order with an additional 30% worth of games; so, for example, if the game order is $400, they’ll donate an additional $120 worth of games.
Last year, thanks to donations from his site readers and game group, Eric was able to send $600 worth of games to units serving overseas.
If you’d like to donate games or money, please visit the post on BoardgameNews for details. Thanks! [lf]
Michael Stelzner’s Writing White Papers Blog is holding their second contest to determine the best blogs for writers. A blog has to be nominated twice to be considered in the contest. (Thank you to Liz, who sent in the first nomination!) If you like the Renegade Writer blog, please give us a chance to win by posting your nomination in their comments section.
Some sales-talk about the blog:
We’ve held a career makeover contest that’s helped our winners achieve their writing dreams.
My younger brother will be leaving for Iraq soon. Since his Marine battalion will be there over the winter, they’ll be needing LOTS of scarves.
If you’re a knitter or crocheter and would like to make a scarf (or scarves!), please e-mail me at diana [at] ninetofive [dot] com and I’ll give you the specs and details. The scarves have to be worked with colors that are similar to their cammies, for example. If you can only knit/crochet one scarf, that’s great. Every scarf counts. There’s also an opportunity to send cookies or cards — they need lots of these things, too. [db]
Please let me know how I can get involved in this.
DianaBurrell said, on 9/11/2007 5:51:00 PM
Wow, I’m overwhelmed with the response from everyone. Thanks so much! Every scarf counts — they need an astronomical number of them — so even if you can only do one, it’ll be much appreciated.
You guys are the best!!!!
Kelly said, on 9/11/2007 8:31:00 PM
I want to get involved. Please let me know where to ship and dimensions of the scarves. Are we talking about matching the ACUs or the BDUs? ie. tans and pale greens or dark brown and dark green?
Thanks so much, Kelly
Rowan said, on 9/12/2007 8:43:00 AM
hey, I’m in too! I have been knitting camo beanies for my kids already and camo for soldiers seems like a way cool way to help. comfort is important.
H-C said, on 9/12/2007 10:33:00 AM
I’m going to knit at least one, more if I can. Also forwarded the details to my grandma. Her late husband was an army vet and she’s so excited for an opportunity to directly do something for the soldiers over seas.
Thanks for sharing this.
Shannon said, on 9/12/2007 10:36:00 AM
I would love to help out my sister sent me your link. I’ve already started looking for the materials. Please let me know what else can be sent.
Keli said, on 9/13/2007 8:01:00 AM
This is a great idea! And one that my kids and I do thru our 4-H Club. For the past few years, our 4-H knitting group has been knitting scarves and sending, and the club, as a whole, sends cards and letters. It’s the least we can do.
Rosemary O'Brien (Writing Military Mom) said, on 9/17/2007 6:37:00 PM
As a military spouse and active knitter, I’m in! Send me the specs.
Rosemary
Andrea said, on 9/20/2007 10:14:00 AM
I’d like to get involved. I emailed you but got an autoresponse back. Please email me if you are still planning to go through with this project.
Thanks to everyone who has signed up for and contributed magazine markets and edits to the Renegade Writer Markets Wiki! Recently, members have added The Writer, WOW! Women on Writing, front+porch, The Writer, and Graduating Engineer. There have also been helpful edits to the American Cheerleader entry. Please do visit and help us make the database of markets even more useful! [lf]
About front+porch, I wasn’t sure how to change the name, but it should just say “Front Porch.” (The plus sign was from when I did a search to double-check that it wasn’t already listed.) Still getting the hang of wet paint, but it’s a great resource!
LindaFormichelli said, on 8/30/2007 6:27:00 AM
I made the change, Susan! There’s a pull-down menu on the right where you can change the page name, move pages, etc. Thanks for contributing to the wiki.
Justin said, on 8/30/2007 10:01:00 AM
…members have added The Writer, WOW! Women on Writing, front+porch, The Writer…
Wow! The Writer must be pretty damn popular ’round here…
LindaFormichelli said, on 8/30/2007 1:55:00 PM
Justin just dissed The Writer! He doesn’t think it’s worth listing twice. Boo.
;->
Kate said, on 8/31/2007 2:56:00 PM
L & D,
I love the Wiki! What a great insider resource. Thanks!
Diana and I have been adding markets to the Renegade Writer Markets Wiki — today we added Imagination Publishing and Graduating Engineer — but we need your help! We can’t create a valuable markets resource all by ourselves; we need input from many, many writers to get this thing off the ground. Please visit the wiki right now, sign up (it’s quick and free), and add or edit magazine markets. If each Renegade Writer blog reader added just one market, we’d have a mighty big, helpful database. The wiki will work only if writers contribute, and the more we share the more we get in return! [lf]
Hi guys,
I feel like an idiot! I couldn’t get the hang of the wiki and added a new market (Woman’s Weekly) in completely the wrong area (it’s now under Health, for some reason…) This would be less humiliating if I wasn’t a technology journalist…
LindaFormichelli said, on 8/26/2007 8:42:00 AM
Diane, don’t worry about it! It looks like Diana moved it. You need to be on the Home page to have your added page appear under that…whichever page you’re on when you click on “Add a page,” your page will end up nested under there. But you can also move pages easily using the “Manage page” pulldown menu on the right. Thank you so much for adding a market! this is exactly what we’re looking for.
diane said, on 8/27/2007 6:47:00 AM
Thanks Linda - phew!
I’m sure I’ll get the hang of it eventually, I hope more readers of the blog contribute, it could be a really fantastic resource!
For a rush assignment for a national health magazine, I’m looking for a woman between the ages of 42 and 48 (though this is flexible) who is a bit more than a social drinker–someone who drinks just enough that she wonders if she may have a drinking problem. This article will answer all the woman’s questions about what constitutes a drinking problem, how to know if she’s affected, what the health ramifications are, what she can do about it, etc. We’d need to run the woman’s name, age, and photo.
I’m looking for someone who is not a writer or a PR person, though if they are and have a second profession we can list, that should be fine too.
An intesting point: I just spoke with someone from an organization that deals with alcohol and alcoholism, and she said that if a woman has had more than four drinks on any one occasion in the past year, or more than seven drinks in one week in the past year, her chances of having an alcohol use disorder increases fourfold!
Please pass my message along to your friends, and ask interested people to e-mail me at [email protected].
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I’ve been a freelance writer for, uh, a long, long time, writing mainly for consumer magazines. But now I make a good portion of my income from blogging. The key is having a variety of blogs I either write myself or contribute to in a group setting.
Three of those blogs are Film Gecko (a b5Media blog), TV Squad (AOL), and CliqueClack (independent). I also write a syndicated family movie column, Reel Life With Jane, and still do some consumer magazine writing.
So, how can you make money blogging? Whether you’re blogging to create a book platform, show editors you can write in a specific niche, or blog about what you love and monetize it, here are a few tips to get the blogging income stream flowing:
1. Choose a great topic. It should be something you not only love, but also broad enough to attract readers. Sure, you could blog about the migrating habits of the Brazilian Water Beetle, but will that bring in tons of readers? Probably not. (That’s not to say that Brazilian Water Beetles aren’t lovely creatures. I’m sure they are.) Brainstorm on hot topics that you don’t mind blogging about every day and can also go the distance for many years.
2. Write great posts. A blog is a great place for your personality to shine through! People can get the news anywhere. They come to your blog to see what YOU have to say about it, so be free with your opinions and commentary. And don’t be afraid to write about controversial topics. Those often bring in lots of readers who don’t mind voicing their opinion in your comments section (this is a good thing).
3. Use social media to your advantage. Sites like Twitter, Facebook, Live Journal, and Digg are a great way to promote your blog and specific posts. Pick two or three social media sites and spend time making friends and leaving comments.
4. Work the SEO Tools. Search engine optimization might seem like an ancient hieroglyphic language, but it’s pretty easy when you boil it down. Much of it has to do with keywords – terms or phrases that capture the essence of whatever you’re writing about. There are all sorts of things you can do to boost your SEO juice, both in content and images.
5. Make it fun! Create a blog playground that’s fun for both you and your readers. Hold contests and giveaways, use polls, and interact with your readers in the comments section.
To learn more about blogging – shameless plug ahead! – sign up for my blogging class right here on Renegade Writers. The next 6-week session starts Monday, March 9, 2009. Maybe I’ll see you in class!
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