My cousin may have a used Mac for me – it's an old iMac they've added tons of memory to (he said they had something like 5,000 photos stored on it). On Thanksgiving we'll see if it has the OS I need. If it does, then I might be able to try the digital recorder. That's assuming I can figure out how to transfer files from one computer to the other without a CD burner.

See? Low tech. But cut me some slack. I just got a DVR yesterday. Cable company is giving me 6 months free DVR service. I'm still trying to figure out all of the options. It took the installer 90 minutes to get it set up. Why? On Demand wasn't working. Apparently I was supposed to have been getting that all along, but they had "traps" on the lines to filter the signal. When the pros have trouble with technology, it doesn't bode well for me.

(Yes, corded phone. Yes, cassettes. I did say low-tech, did I not?)

I just play/type/rewind and repeat endlessly. A couple friends borrowed real transcribing equipment to test out before they invested, and both found it cumbersome. I guess there's a learning curve before using it becomes second nature.

I don't quite trust myself with digital recorders. Right now I have a stack of four interview tapes waiting to be transcribed so there's no danger of accidentally recording over something.

Good news: transcribing the longest interview of this batch just took me 97 minutes. It only felt like 3 hours.

I love when you visit. 🙂

Paula, you're thinking like I'm thinking. Eileen, you up for a guest post? I'd love to hear more!

Sal, very true. The attitude with which we present things can often squelch any argument. Well, except for those who are going to argue just for the principle of it. But there are plenty of times my confidence has halted any "Are you kidding?" responses. You just feel it, don't you? You can sense when they're dying to lower your price, even if they don't say it directly.

EXACTLY! Don't write yourself short just 'cause it's a (!!!!!) print magazine (is it print? doesn't matter). If you can pull 10 articles on doo-hickeys out of your butt, it's quite possible that you could write one great, polished query AND AND AND it could be accepted! Do it!

Thanks Lori! Best post I've seen today.

Also, I have found that attitude and excitement go a long way when there are prereqs for writing assignments. I didn't know a thing about health insurance (but it was on a topic I wanted to learn more about) so I put in a LOI and ended up getting the job.

Lori, next time you traipse the globe, force Eileen to write at least two guest posts: One on magalogs (just because I love the word) and another on simple motivational techniques like she mentioned above.

FYI, I just saw DS is now seeking "Independent Writing Contractors." Almost makes them sound respectable.

The project I could improve on is the trade article I'm doing for a publisher who likes to micromanage. I'm pushing back, though. When one of the sources they wanted in the article said his company wasn't a good fit (this is more like an apples and carrots situation than apples and oranges one), the editor said to include them anyway. I already had more sources than I need for the assigned length, so I spelled it out: The source knows his company doesn't fit; I already have too many sources based on your own sources-to-word-count ratio, so why waste my time and his? She agreed with me.

I'm also logging how much time I spend transcribing the interviews so the next time they try to assign something I can argue for a higher rate. I'm thinking something like, "Hah! That won't even cover the transcribing costs!"

The thing is many writers wouldn't take the job at $100, as you well know, unless it's a quick write. So these markets may be more open than we think to new writers.