Uncategorized | Words on the Page

Finding Good in the Bad

Posted on February 23, 2011 by lwidmer

What’s on the iPod: Awake the Soul by Mumford & Sons Yesterday was a gift. Not that all days aren’t gifts, but this one was the gift of time. I had a large project I needed to put some polish to, and I was able to get through much of it yesterday. I was thankful…

Dude, Where’s My Check?

Posted on February 22, 2011 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot DiazWhat’s on the iPod: Almost Famous by Eminem I wished for, and got, a slow day yesterday. It was nice to relax and settle in on a Monday. There were a few projects I could have done, but I concentrated instead on the…

Weekend Recoveries

Posted on February 21, 2011 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot DiazWhat’s on the iPod: Keep Yourself Warm by Frightened Rabbit You know it’s been a good weekend when you come back to work to recover fully from it. We spent the weekend at the Scottish Irish Music Festival – literally. We showed up…

Things That Make My Head Explode

Posted on February 18, 2011 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan DoyleWhat’s on the iPod: I Feel Lucky by Mary Chapin Carpenter Busy day again yesterday. I think I’m just going to paste that as my disclaimer at the top of every post. God willing, it will always be true. I got up and running on…

Market Value and You

Posted on February 17, 2011 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan DoyleWhat’s on the iPod: Fell by Scott Blasey Yesterday was a day of new beginnings. Okay, they were small beginnings, but I managed to get some stuff lined up that will make March rock financially. Amen. I’m doing better this month, but the checks aren’t…

Easing Up on the Brakes

Posted on February 16, 2011 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: Night Crawler by Diane ParkinWhat’s on the iPod: Restless Days by The Clarks Yesterday was nuts. The amount of work I finished by 3 pm was astounding. I was spent, but I had a handle on what had gone from a relatively easy workload to a massive, need-it-yesterday pile in a mere…

Shooting Your Own Foot

Posted on February 15, 2011 by lwidmer

What’s on the iPod: Girls Lie Too by Terri Clark Last week was a bit of a marathon. I managed a lot of little things that add up to big projects. Two big projects will provide ongoing revenue streams. Plus I worked on article interviews. This week I get to put the story together, which…

Guest Post: Confessions of an Ex-mill Writer

Posted on February 14, 2011 by lwidmer

What’s on the iPod: Cinderella Man by Eminem A week or so ago, I was reading through the comments when something our own Wendy Johnson’s comment about writing for mills. She said, ” I wish I could say that I never did it. On the other hand, though, it taught me some valuable lessons.” That’s…

Worthy Tip: This Job, Not That Job

Posted on February 11, 2011 by lwidmer

What’s on the iPod: Love the Way You Lie by Eminem (with Rihanna) Odd day yesterday. I managed a small, complex project and got some brainstorming for a larger project started. At lunchtime I dashed out hoping to find a coat. I have a friend in my meditation group who’s having a rough time and…

Writer, Help Thyself

Posted on February 10, 2011 by lwidmer

What I’m reading: Night Crawler by Diane ParkinWhat’s on the iPod: Valley of Tomorrow by Needtobreathe Yesterday was a busy day. I had three interviews for an article plus a small project to finish up in between all the calls. I managed to get some research cobbled together for the calls, so I’m happy where…

Mistakes Writers Make

February 10, 2011

Excellent points, especially number 1.

The generosity of writerly advisors online never fails to impress me, but some newer writers (in fairness, only a few) come into the business with a sense of entitlement, almost – they feel that those who are successful should spread their success around, hand some stuff to them on a plate, and that they have just as much 'right' to be paid for their writing as others.

One of the best pieces of advice I have heard is that journalism does not owe you a living, and I think that goes for publishing in a wider sense too.

Alex.

Lori

February 10, 2011

Wonderful advice, Alex! And I've observed similar behavior, though thankfully never directly. No one is entitled to free help – or free anything. I've heard tales of new writers expecting (and in a few cases, demanding) veterans hand over their time, their advice, and in a few odd cases, their clients.

We can both guess how the last one worked out. LOL

Wendy

February 10, 2011

Lori, I have to say that you have given me tons of advice and I've used some of that advice (And from other writers too). I thank you so much for that, by the way. But, I've done my own leg-work, I busted my own butt in my own career. That's the way it should be.

Eileen

February 10, 2011

Advice that has never worked for me: cold calling. I don't have the temperament for it and never will. So any marketing program that depends on cold calling for success is doomed to fail with me from the start.

Advice that works for me again and again: targeted direct mail campaigns with a soft offer of an informational bait piece. There are books, ebooks, coaches, and bloggers who dispense this particular piece of advice, and tailored to a writer's goals and skills, it can be a powerful way to build a business.

Lori

February 10, 2011

Wendy, you're welcome. I hope you didn't think I meant you. It's the folks who say "You never tell us how to get better jobs! Where are they?" We tell them – repeatedly. It's time they realize it's up to them to take the advice and run with it (or amend it as needed).

Eileen, same. I loathe cold calling. LOATHE it. I will say getting a person on the phone does work, but I'd rather walk through boiling water.

Devon Ellington

February 10, 2011

"Find a niche and stay in it" — I think it's bullshit. I am the anti-niche. I follow whatever interests me and get paid for it. In fact, during the financial meltdown, it was a lot of the niche writers who found themselves out on the street with no work, and the Renaissance writers (not those who write about the time period, but those who write in various arenas) who kept working.

Cold-calling also doesn't work for me. Direct mail does, especially with follow-up postcards. The post-cards usually get more response than the DM.

Lori

February 10, 2011

It is, isn't it? I have several niches. Each time I get bored, I find a new one. I guess I'm multi-niched. 🙂

Interesting about the follow-up postcards. I'm going to give that a go myself.

Wendy

February 10, 2011

Lori, I knew exactly what you were talking about. Sometimes, it's as if you're hoarding some kind of Top-secret website, that no one else is privy to.

Lori

February 10, 2011

Yet all they need to do is open their eyes and search a little….

Paula

February 10, 2011

Devon's comment reminded me of a writer friend who told me I was stupid for focusing so much on one field. I still did business writing and general feature writing and other things, but the bulk of my work was (and still is) in one certain area. She actually said, "Don't put all of your eggs in one basket."

Fast-forward a few years, and she was writing almost exclusively for one very specialized sector. Due to the economy (this was late 2001 early 2002 when most companies slashed ad budgets) several of my regular markets folded (only one was in my main area of interest). The same person – raking in the cash from one or two huge clients in her field – said, "You spread yourself too thin. You should have specialized on one area, like me."

She denied ever having given me the opposite advice.

In the end I think the only advice that might work is to be true to yourself. Seek out work that interests you. Not only will your enthusiasm for the subject shine through, but you'll enjoy your job.

Jake P

February 10, 2011

The best foundational advice for me came from Peter Bowerman's philosophy on pricing in the original Well-Fed Writer. He made me feel justified to set my rates quite a bit higher than instinct would have led me early on. I also loved and benefited massively from his cold-calling technique, but CC'ing clearly polarizes people, and it's by no means a guarantor or requirement for success. (Same thing with niche vs. nicheless. I count myself among the latter, but hey, whatever works!)

It's always worth experimenting with something new, but if you hate it or don't find results from it, for heaven's sake there's no shame in abandoning it. Like Tom Robbins wrote in Still Life with Woodpecker, "There are two mantras, Yum and Yuck. Mine is Yum."

Joseph Hayes

February 10, 2011

Well done, Lori.

Lori

February 10, 2011

Paula, I remember your mentioning her before. It cracked me up that she's got all the answers and each time, the answer changes. 🙂 Maybe for her that's true, but maybe she needs to stop giving advice. LOL

Peter does a great job at laying that out, Jake, I agree. I'm just a chicken. When I sold real estate, it was the part of the job I hated most. I would have bought and sold homes myself to avoid that damned phone.

I think I should give it another try, though.

Good seeing you, Joseph! How are you?