Given the strong discussion on other blogs this week (and here) regarding client feedback on how to win the gig, I figured now might be a good time to share with you how I go about applying for work. Look, everyone does it differently and no one way is the only way. I’m simply going…
Looking for Work in All the Right Places
Tamara Berry has a fantastic post over at eMoms at Home about where we writerly types can find some profitable avenues for our talents. Give it a read. Specializing Tamara said it best. The more experience you have in any one specialty, the better your chances of charging more for your services. I specialize. I’m…
If You Don’t Want to Hear it, Don’t Ask
Writers are a strange lot. We live for a word of any sort from a potential (or current) client, and when we get it, we get huffy. Case in point – Deb Ng has a lively discussion going on over on her blog right now involving a potential employer who was kind enough to let…
Are You Legit?
There’s a bit of a back-and-forth discussion over on About.com’s Freelance site about the legitimacy of weblogs as “real” writing. Some say yes, some say no, while others are just there to play Grammar Cops and rip the hostess Allena’s post to shreds (lighten up, people!). One poster went so far as to say the…
The Guest Article
It’s funny the things you get into when you comment on someone’s blog. I was over at Georganna Hancock’s A Writer’s Edge blog when I made the comment that writing for trade magazines is just as creative, if not more so, as writing for consumer publications. Georganna was quick to say “Want to make a…
Sending Your Client to Time Out
We love a client with a strong idea. We don’t even mind so much the client with a strong opinion. But what we won’t tolerate is a client with a penchant for getting his or her way every time. It’s not that clients shouldn’t get their way – they absolutely do own the ideas and…
Unclogging Your Writerly Pipes
When asked once about writer’s block, novelist Allan Gurganus said, “My theory is you don’t get it if you don’t believe in it. I’ve never heard of anyone getting plumber’s block, or traffic cop’s block….” I couldn’t agree more. Writer’s block is this myth that keeps permeating throughout the industry. We cannot claim to be…
Screwing Up
We’ve talked plenty about what to do when you’re faced with client screw-ups and mistakes made in interpreting client wishes. What we’ve not talked much about is what to do when we make mistakes. We do, you know. Not every action is directly related to someone else’s inaction or miscommunication. Sometimes, we just screw up….
Happy St. Paddy’s and Happy Anniversary!
I find it exceedingly ironic that today, my “unofficial” national holiday is also the day I started this weblog two years ago. That I get to celebrate my heritage and my passion at the same time – well, that calls for a Guinness! And no green beers, please. That’s just wrong. Thank you, loyal readers…
Clients I Won’t Work For
Nor should you… No, it’s not another post about low-paying clients. If you don’t know enough by now to avoid those jobs, I can’t help you. This is a post about how to know when to cut bait with a client whose rates are fine, but where something just doesn’t sit well. We’ve had them,…