Skip to content

Words on the Page

a freelance writing resource.

Menu
  • Blogs Worth Reading
  • Courses
  • Ebooks
  • Free Writers Worth eBook
  • Guest Posting Guidelines
  • Home
  • Marketing 365
  • Monthly Assessment
Menu

Boosting Your Freelance Writing Career (when there’s an economic meltdown happening)

Posted on April 16, 2020April 14, 2020 by lwidmer

I don’t need to tell you what it looks like out there. Over 16 million people unemployed. Businesses closed until further notice. But you knew that already. In fact, you may have lost a client or two because of the current pandemic. But guess what? You can gain new clients right now, too. Yes. You…

Read more

Beware the Freelance Writing Oversell

Posted on April 14, 2020April 13, 2020 by lwidmer

With the world in a literal crisis right now, you knew it was coming. It’s oversell time. Everyone and his uncle is trying to convince you that their product, their new book/webinar/course/paid whatever is exactly what you need right now. You’re probably already seeing sales, limited-time freebies, and pushes coming from the lists you subscribe…

Read more

8 Downtime Strategies for Freelance Writers

Posted on April 7, 2020April 13, 2020 by lwidmer

You know that thing you’ve been putting off? That personal freelance writing project? That marketing? That ___ ? Now is the time. Seriously, when is it going to be a better time? A few caveats first. If you don’t capitalize on this time that’s been gifted to you by one of the most life-altering, ongoing,…

Read more

3 Ideas for Successful Freelance Marketing (Yes, even now)

Posted on April 3, 2020April 13, 2020 by lwidmer

There’s an entire country of people who are about to do — or are already doing — what we do every day: Work from home. You already know the impact that’s having on businesses, particularly small businesses and those that were struggling before the pandemic. Some companies are scaling back drastically (Macy’s, Lush, Sephora, and…

Read more

What Every Freelancer Should Know About Relationship Marketing

Posted on March 30, 2020January 28, 2023 by lwidmer

Remember that saying “We’re going to hell in a hand basket.” Welcome to hell. Not so comfy in that basket, is it? The world is upside down and contorted in ways we never thought could happen. That includes the working world. Companies everywhere are seeing unprecedented losses thanks to statewide orders to shut down. I…

Read more

The Freelance Writing Sniff Test

Posted on March 24, 2020April 13, 2020 by lwidmer

Not long ago, I had an email from a potential client. Well, let me back up a little. It was an email from someone I’d just connected with on social media. I mean, I’d connected with them in that same minute. The email was a thank you, but it was also a request. The person…

Read more

The Freelance Guide to Pandemic Marketing

Posted on March 17, 2020April 13, 2020 by lwidmer

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! And happy Blog-iversary to Words on the Page — for 14 years, we’ve been together. I thank all of you for helping make this a great place to share ideas and friendship. As much as I love a good St. Patrick’s Day celebration, that’s not happening. There’s this pandemic thing… So…

Read more

How to Schedule Like a Freelance Writing Boss

Posted on March 10, 2020April 13, 2020 by lwidmer

It happened again. I spent Tuesday through Friday of last week in the hospital. It was one of those health issues that just can’t be ignored, but once treated, it’s just a waiting game. And since it had happened once before, I knew it when it happened, so I calmly gathered what I’d need —…

Read more

The #1 Way to Earn More at Freelance Writing

Posted on March 4, 2020April 13, 2020 by lwidmer

I’m in the middle of a long run of constant work. I’ve met my March earnings goal with the projects I have on hand already, and it’s only the 4th of the month. You want that too, right? Look, there are precious few “secrets” to making a living freelance writing. Most of what you’ll do…

Read more

Freelance Writing Marketing Mistakes You Didn’t Know You Were Making

Posted on February 27, 2020February 26, 2020 by lwidmer

A while back, there was an odd exchange happening on a forum I frequent. One of the forum members asked a pretty general question about, you guessed it, how to find more work. The writer did give a snapshot of her background, and stated, amid a bit of complaining about her lot in life, that…

Read more
  • Previous
  • 1
  • …
  • 21
  • 22
  • 23
  • 24
  • 25
  • 26
  • 27
  • …
  • 267
  • Next
  1. Krista Avatar
    Krista
    February 27, 2020

    As a writer from rural Nova Scotia, I second the fact that you don’t need to live near your clients! Some clients have refused to work with me because I’m in Canada, but it’s usually because they don’t understand the tax rules. I started in 2007 with really not a clue on how to succeed. I NEVER would have dreamed of asking someone to give me a step-by-step list. If it was so easy everyone would do it I figure. And when I get lazy questions like that from people I can tell they’re probably not going to make it. They are looking for an easy way to make money and freelance writing isn’t it! One question I got was something like, “My maternity leave is ending, and I don’t want to go back to work. Maybe I’ll do freelance writing. Who do you work for?” I was lucky enough to be well established by the time my son came around. I can’t even imagine trying to build a career from scratch with no writing background while breastfeeding and changing diapers. Oh, and I did need to have childcare in place part-time so I could actually, you know, work. 😉

    Reply
    1. lwidmer Avatar
      lwidmer
      February 27, 2020

      Krista, yes. You are living proof! Truth is I know a writer who worked (and may still work) from BC and her clients never knew. She had the benefit of a US-based bank account and a relative who would transfer her money to her Canadian-based account.

      Do the tax rules apply to foreign clients?

      You are right — if the questions are lazy, that’s a warning that the ship is sinking before it embarks. I love too that you’ve nailed exactly the attitude about freelancing to outsiders. It is NOT easy, and they quickly figure that out. It’s building a business from scratch, then maintaining it.

      Oh, I started very part time at freelancing when my daughter was one and my son was six? Good for you to have been established. That’s the reason I was very part time — kids. 🙂

    2. Krista Avatar
      Krista
      February 28, 2020

      Oh my that must have been hard with a one-year-old! I remember trying to get some work done with my son here and it just did not work out. LOL I was really lucky and actually back tracked to part-time until my son went to school this year.

      So, to answer your question, the U.S. and Canada have a tax treaty. I just fill out a different IRS form and don’t get money withheld. At the end of the year I square things up with the Canadian government. It’s actually really simple. I just think some clients are hesitant because they don’t know the rules so they get nervous when I can’t fill out a W-9.

    3. lwidmer Avatar
      lwidmer
      February 28, 2020

      That’s it? Wow. Some people get so stuck in their paperwork! Yes, that should be ridiculously simple.

      And hard = impossible. I wrote during her naptime. 🙂

  2. Paula Hendrickson Avatar
    Paula Hendrickson
    February 28, 2020

    That writer reminds me of this woman, claiming to be a single mother with young son, who constantly posts on our Nextdoor group asking for free things. First they needed furniture. Then Christmas presents for her son. Then something else. While some people “donated” things to her, others shared information about businesses near her who were hiring. She had an excuse to reject every single suggestion. These day’s she’s posting questions about where to get her eyebrows waxed, what to order at a certain restaurant, where to find the best tiramisu in town (I kid you not!), so I hope it means she found a job!

    Reply
    1. lwidmer Avatar
      lwidmer
      March 2, 2020

      I hope she has too, Paula. That’s crazy! Introduce her to Freecycle. She can be picky with strangers. And she’d be doing people a favor helping them get rid of things they don’t want.

© 2026 Words on the Page | Powered by Minimalist Blog WordPress Theme