Uncategorized | Words on the Page

What Your Clients Want (and Deserve)

Posted on December 2, 2010 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: Gilian the Dreamer by Neil MunroWhat’s on the iPod: Small Town by John Mellencamp Nice day yesterday – I actually had enough work to keep me busy through the day. It was refreshing. And now I feel back on task. And of course, I’m fretting imaginary deadlines. I have an interview this…

Worthy Tip: This Job, Not That Job

Posted on December 1, 2010 by lwidmer

What’s on the iPod: Jersey Girl by Bruce Springsteen A new month, eh? I know it’s not January 1st, but even December 1st can be a turning point. Hey, in my world, turning points occur on November 6th, March 19th, July 23rd, etc. I’m going to say it – every day is a new chance…

Monthly Assessment: November 2010

Posted on November 30, 2010 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: The Maytrees by Annie DillardWhat’s on the iPod: The One Who Loves You Most by Brett Dennen If agony had a physical presence, it would be my career this past month. I knew things would be slow post-surgery, post-vacation, and post-house guest visits. At a standstill? I never expected that. I had…

Today’s Second Post: A Response to a DS Question

Posted on November 29, 2010 by lwidmer

What’s on the iPod: Evil is Alive and Well by Jakob Dylan You know how much I hate returning to the same old argument. But a comment left on this thread today pretty much has me revisiting and reopening old wounds. Mind you, the comment started out with a rational attempt at clearing the air,…

The Push is On

Posted on November 29, 2010 by lwidmer

What’s on the iPod: January Wedding by The Avett Brothers I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend. Ours was spent with my youngest at her off-campus house in western PA. She made an incredible meal, and we spent the day with her and my parents. Then we went to see Harry Potter. It rained,…

When Breaking Up is Easy to Do

Posted on November 26, 2010 by lwidmer

What I’m reading downstairs: The Maytrees by Annie DillardWhat’s on the iPod: Mercury by Scott Blasey Sometimes, making those tough decisions becomes that much easier. I’d been building toward cutting a client loose for a variety of reasons (not just price), and I’d resolved to do so within the next few weeks. Then a minor…

What I’m Thankful For

Posted on November 25, 2010 by lwidmer

What’s on the daughter’s iPod: Love the Way You Lie by Eminem with Rihanna I didn’t think I’d have time to post today, but the turkey is in the oven and we’re waiting for when the rest goes into production. My youngest is doing her first holiday meal, so we traveled to share the day…

Boredom and Creativity

Posted on November 24, 2010 by lwidmer

What I’m still reading upstairs: Me Talk Pretty One Day by David SedarisWhat’s on the iPod: Thunder Road by Bruce Springsteen How bored can a working person get? If you’ve worked in an office, you’ve been there. Nothing at ALL on your desk and you’re forced to look busy lest you send the message that…

Your Best Advice

Posted on November 23, 2010 by lwidmer

What’s on the iPod: Ships with Holes Will Sink by We Were Promised Jetpacks Last week I had a nice conversation with a friend of a relative. She was about to say goodbye to her full-time job and wanted to hear about my experiences with freelancing. This is a person with a solid background in…

Self-sabotage

Posted on November 22, 2010 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: The Maytrees by Annie Dillard (a book to savor)What’s on the iPod: Sunshine by The Clarks Busy weekend. If you looked around the house, you wouldn’t think I did a thing, but if you opened my closet – voila! I cleaned, organized, and hauled away two bags of clothes and purses. Now…

Wendy

November 22, 2010

Thanks, Lori, for today's post. It brings back memories for me for everything I did wrong, in the beginning and how I learned from those mistakes. Okay, I'm not proud of those mistakes, but I did eventually learn.

I believed the experience one simply because some of the other writers were saying it. I started to think that you had to have several years experience writing for a newspaper or have to have experience somewhere in the financial field to write about it.

It seemed the only experience I had was to turn off editors and clients by telling them how I don't have experience to write for them. Basically apologizing for bothering them kind of thing.

When the revelation came that I did have background experience it led to more lucrative opportunities like writing about manure spreaders. (No, the pay was not sh**)Yes, I worked on the parts, so who better to write about them? Then, of course, that led to other things.

Eileen

November 22, 2010

For all the aspiring writers out there who are stumbling over their lack of "experience" … stop fretting. You can teach yourself. I am a self-taught copywriter – no English or journalism degree, no salaried writing job. When I first began copywriting, I used to go around town and take brochures from display racks, study ads in newspapers, and deconstruct magazine articles.

Last month, I wrote my first DVD/infomercial script ever. Did I tell the client I had no experience? Nope. First, I headed on over to amazon and picked up a couple of books on video script writing. Then I got another company's 20-minute sales DVD and had it transcribed so I could see how the script looked compared to the video. Is experience helpful? Immensely … but we all have life experience, and that's every bit as helpful as skill or industry-specific experience.

Lori

November 22, 2010

Brings them back for me too, Wendy. Didn't we all make those same mistakes once? 🙂 Manure spreaders – I'm glad the pay wasn't sh**! LOL I should start a thread about the most bizarre jobs we've ever had. Yours is right up there!

But it's true – we get "good advice" from well-meaning people who say "You CAN'T start out there!" when in fact you can if you do your homework, hit them with a can't-fail idea, then slam it out of the park. I believed the same drivel. I get ill thinking about how much work I didn't go for because that was reverberating in my brain….

And that, Eileen, is why you're successful. You did your homework and you taught yourself what you needed to know to please your client. Congrats – you're an example to live by. 🙂

Wendy

November 22, 2010

Hey that job opportunity gives new meaning to "content farm." LOL!

Lori

November 22, 2010

Oh my lord! Tea just went sailing – thanks! ROFLMAO!

Jake P

November 22, 2010

Not as much fun as manure when it comes to farm-themed writing and operating outside one's experience, but a few years back, I wrote a brochure for a company that sells crop and hail insurance.

The piece of advice that I continue to make excuses about is subcontracting my accounting to someone who 1) knows what they're doing and 2) enjoys it…

So, please, someone save me from myself!

Lori

November 22, 2010

Crop and hail insurance? Done that! I've also written about crop damage from …stink bugs. Seriously. It's a fascinating industry, insurance and all things risky, isn't it, Jake?

I need the same help. I do my own accounting, which results in the annual IRS love letter….

Eileen

November 22, 2010

When my hourly wage hit $100/hour, I realized how foolish it was for me to be doing my own taxes. At that point, it became cheaper to outsource them. I could spend 8 hours (or more) on taxes and give up $800 worth of billable hours, or work for 8 hours and pay $400 to the accountant, who also "found" plenty of money that we never did. Silly me never thought the accountant would find more money for us – we were meticulous. I was humbled, and richer, for submitting to our accountant's expertise. Just. Do. It.

Paula

November 22, 2010

Especially when approaching a trade pub, I like to point out how I've managed to spend nearly 15 years covering a very quirky industry despite no background in it simply by asking good sources the right questions. Then I note how the same tactic worked well when writing for trades in several other industries.

Your post reminded me not of reactions to my writing advice, but in general. One of my best friends has a nearly pathological need to the smartest person in the room. (Sometimes she is, she's just not smart enough to realize no one is always right.) Naturally, she doesn't take advice. She only gives it whether it's asked for or not.

I can offer sound advice for almost anything you can think of and her reply will be, "Won't work…" and the she spells out how and why my suggestion couldn't possibly apply to her situation. A month or so later, whaddya bet? She's "solved" the problem by doing exactly what I'd suggested.

Devon Ellington

November 22, 2010

"It's too hard," they whine.

"Then you don't want it enough," I reply.

Lori

November 22, 2010

Excellent advice, Devon! And happy housewarming! Glad you're able to stop by even for a minute. 🙂

Eileen, I know you're right. I have my own "system" of recordkeeping that is simple, but works well. I'm a little embarrassed to show anyone my paper-based system, but I know that's stupid. Maybe this coming year – I'm really organized this year.

Paula, I have friends like that, too. One would argue the sun's color. I get a LOT of "No! It's this!" comments, and frankly, it's draining to talk to someone who has such a closed view of things.

hugh.c.mcbride

November 22, 2010

Tangentially off-topic here, but what the heck …

Given all we've learned about "Big Ben" over the past coupla years, I have to admit to enjoying the way he dropped like the proverbial sack of pierogies after one swipe from Richard Seymour.(Something along the lines of "picking on someone yer own size" came to mind 🙂

[Full disclosure: Lifelong Browns fan. Also, lifelong advocate of nonviolence. And if you've seen the Browns play defense in the past decade, you'll understand how both of these beliefs fit so nicely together.]

Lori

November 22, 2010

Ack! You're a BROWNS fan?? Egad!! Do they still have fans?

I will admit the sucker punch was, in my mind as well, somewhat satisfying. I was unhappy with the turn of events in Ben's personal life and thought he belonged on the curb. There's no denying his talent, though his moral judgment appears to be seriously impaired.

Ashley

November 22, 2010

Wow, Eileen. That script job preparation definitely took initiative. It took more time, effort and foresight than your basic content mill job, and you were rewarded with much better pay. What a great example for beginners and those who are too scared or lazy to pursue the more challenging jobs.

I've been guilty of thinking I don't have the experience for writing about certain topics. But I'm naturally inquisitive so I know I could do it. Time to get a little braver and pursue something new.

Amie

November 23, 2010

I used to run a wellness group for my coworkers at my old cube farm job…we talked about self-sabotage all the time as a barrier to reaching health goals. It's amazing how often–and in how many different aspects of our lives–we get in our own way!

Lori

November 23, 2010

Go for it, Ashley. Inquisitive and talented – check! You've got what it takes.

Amie, so true, isn't it?