Uncategorized | Words on the Page

Writers Worth: When Fear Matters

Posted on June 4, 2018May 29, 2018 by lwidmer

We’ve been talking a lot about what we’re afraid of and what we should do to, well, get over it. What we haven’t talked about is when we have to pay attention to our fears. When our fears matter, and when they deserve some attention. Some fears that are more than just our little egos…

Writers Worth: Your Freelance Competition

Posted on May 29, 2018May 28, 2018 by lwidmer

Confession Time: I worked a little yesterday. Yea, I know. Yesterday was the post about taking time away. I have a good excuse: I took off early on Friday. And I’d forgotten to schedule this week’s posts. So at 6:45 am on a holiday, I was here making sure this post would be waiting for…

Writers Worth: When Fear Has Many Faces

Posted on May 24, 2018May 24, 2018 by lwidmer

Jenn Mattern is one of the most fearless people I know. She’s an aggressive marketer, planner, and writer. I don’t know a time since I’ve known her that Jenn hasn’t had several projects going on at once. Her whiteboards in her office (she has a few) scare the hell out of me. They’re loaded with…

Writers Worth: Fear Without Apology

Posted on May 23, 2018May 16, 2018 by lwidmer

There’s an honesty about Yolander Prinzel that is what I would call refreshingly disturbing. It’s refreshing because she gives you her genuine feelings. It’s disturbing because her words often make you face the very shit you’ve been trying to cover and hide from. I adore Yo because she’s never afraid to say what she’s thinking,…

Writers Worth: Removing the Mind-Killer from Client Relations

Posted on May 16, 2018May 10, 2018 by lwidmer

Some friendships are purely coincidental. Such is the friendship that Dana Ford and I share. A technical writer by day, he dons the garb of Super Friend in his off-peak hours. We bonded over fathers and loss. We also bonded over all sports Pittsburgh-related, sharing snippets of “Can you believe that call?” or “Where was…

Writers Worth: Fear of Reaching Out

Posted on May 14, 2018May 1, 2018 by lwidmer

Marketing Monday. When it lands amid this Writers Worth Month, it’s going to focus on you overcoming fear in some facet of your marketing. Today’s Marketing Move: Lose Your Fear of Reaching Out For every writer who is actively locating clients, there are probably three times as many who would stick skewers in their arms…

Writers Worth: Fear and Competition

Posted on May 7, 2018April 30, 2018 by lwidmer

Welcome to Week Two of Writers Worth Month! Even amid our annual celebration, there’s room for a Marketing Monday or three, don’t you think? That’s because marketing never ends, particularly as we’re learning to overcome fear. This Week’s Marketing Move: Lose Your Fear of Competition How many times have you said or even thought something…

Writers Worth: Using Yes to Combat Fear

Posted on May 2, 2018April 26, 2018 by lwidmer

Let me tell you how many ways I love Anne Wayman. She was one of the first freelance writers I knew who was actually helping other writers. Sure, I’d met plenty of friendly, helpful people on newsgroups (remember those?), but no one was running a website for the express purpose of helping other writers. At…

Coming May 1st ….

Posted on April 26, 2018May 1, 2018 by lwidmer

The 10th annual Writers Worth Month Bookmark this page and come back each weekday for advice and strategies to help you gain the confidence and skill you need to boost your freelance writing career. This year, we have all-new content, great guest posts, and plenty of activities designed to get you on the right track….

Casting a Narrower Freelance Net

Posted on April 4, 2018April 2, 2018 by lwidmer

What I’m listening to: Love My Way by Psychedelic Furs Show of hands: how many of you have a specialty? (just tell me in the comments — I really can’t see your hand) For every one of you who has a hand up, there’s more than likely that many ways in which you got there….

Joy Drohan

April 4, 2018

I specialize in environmental and agricultural science, both writing and editing. That happened because I had a master’s degree in the area and fell into a part-time writing job at a university. I didn’t feel very well qualified to do anything on the ground with my degrees.

To begin my freelance career, I initially hung signs around campus offering my editing services for a pittance to supplement the part-time work. For my first freelance client I did ESL editing in electrical engineering. I’m glad I didn’t let that experience sour me on editing, but it surely wasn’t my favorite.

I picked up more freelance clients working on topics of greater interest to me, worked the part-time job into a full-time job, and kept freelancing as well. We moved and I became full-time freelance.
Over the years (~23) the level of pay I’m willing to work for has steadily increased as I’ve made more contacts and learned what kinds of organizations can offer work I enjoy at a price that’s appealing.

1. lwidmer
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  What a good beginning though, Joy! That you were able to market locally is a nice plus. I love how you describe your rise in pay and your expansion into other organizations. Smart move on your part!
Krista O'Connell

April 4, 2018

I consider myself highly specialized: 6-12 math, science, ELA assessment writing. Aside from a bit of a slow period last year, I’ve had as much work as I can handle for several years now. I still love it. The type of work remains the same, but the topics, approaches, etc. are always changing! I “kind of” stumbled into it as I started out doing everything, but this is the area that best fit my education background and paid the best.

1. lwidmer
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  Aren’t those happy accidents the best, Krista? And a full work schedule never hurts! Sounds like you’ve found a niche where few freelancers exist, too. Even better!
Devon Ellington

April 4, 2018

I definitely don’t call myself a “generalist.” I find it has a negative connotation. It’s vague, like you can’t do anything well. My “brand” so to speak, is that I do MANY things well, and I take on clients whose work/passion/mission interest me. I jokingly call myself a “Renaissance Writer” (I even wrote an article for WOW-Women on Writing about that); as far as I’m concerned, if people think that means I only write about the Renaissance, we’re not the right fit anyway. I also call myself the “Anti-Niche.”

I do have what I call “Areas of Specialized Knowledge” that are always expanding, and tend to be the type of clients to which I’m drawn and who are drawn to me: anything in the arts, music, alternative medicine, health/wellness/yoga/meditation, cooking, gardening, history, textiles, clothing, sports, environmental issues, global issues, social justice issues.

Client base and focus changes depending on where I want and need to put my energy, and which interesting businesses I come across in my research. I have LOIs and pitch packages that are easy to put together, and portfolio packets skewed to different areas that I can pull up and send off pretty quickly.

The newly designed websites have helped a lot, too. Plus, people I’m meeting through political activism are growing my client base; we are from many different areas of knowledge, but we are working toward a common good. In my case, being politically vocal on social media has helped my business writing, rather than hurt it.

1. Paula Hendrickson
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  So you have separate websites for each area of knowledge? If so, is there some overlap?
2. lwidmer
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  She has a number of websites, Paula. It’s impressive how Devon can keep it all straight let alone profitable!
3. Devon Ellington
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  I have a business writing website, http://fearlessink.com (which now even has a business writing blog, called “Ink-Dipped Advice”). I have the main Devon Ellington site, and the different series I write each have their own site, but the templates and the look of the sites are similar and tie them together. I have another website for the tarot, meditation, etc. I have too many email addresses. 😉 But moving hosts, redesigning everything on the WordPress platforms have been a huge help.
4. lwidmer
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  Oh, I’d never call you a generalist either, Devon. You have plenty of specialized areas, and you do them all remarkably well.
5. Devon Ellington
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  Thank you. That means a lot, coming from you.
Paula Hendrickson

April 4, 2018

I guess I fall somewhere between Joy & Krista and Devon. My main area of interest is writing about the television industry (as opposed to TV reviews or “showbiz news”), but that came about due to a huge overlap with the business, marketing and promotion coverage I initially did. I also have smaller niches involving knitting/crafts, pets, and cooking. I’m always looking for topics where two or more of my favorite things merge—and it’s amazing how often that happens!

I’ve also written about college and career planning, but that client has moved most of the work in-house. I’m not actively seeking to replace that client, which tells me I wasn’t really excited by the subject matter anymore.

1. lwidmer
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  I like all your niches, Paula. They’re so different, yet they all speak to who you are. I think it’s great that you nurture them all. I think we all should nurture multiple sides of our personality.
2. Devon Ellington
  
  April 4, 2018
  
  I have a business writing website, http://fearlessink.com (which now even has a business writing blog, called “Ink-Dipped Advice”). I have the main Devon Ellington site, and the different series I write each have their own site, but the templates and the look of the sites are similar and tie them together. I have another website for the tarot, meditation, etc. I have too many email addresses. 😉 But moving hosts, redesigning everything on the WordPress platforms have been a huge help.