Every year come January, millions of people all around the world decide to make sure the coming 12 months are better than those that came before.

Last year was okay. This year can be so much more. And they’re ready to do what it takes to change the status quo and push into success.

So tell me: Will 2013 be your best year ever?

I bet you’re thinking, “I sure hope so, James!” And as I write this post, I’m thinking the same for my own businesses: I want 2013 to be better than ever, full of game-changing results.

Not just for me, but for you.

You and I both know that bettering your business, changing your game and improving your results doesn’t happen magically. There’s work to be done. Action to be taken.

You need to follow through.

If you do… well, that’s when the magic happens. You can pretty much guarantee your efforts this year will pay off in success, because you’ll have tipped the scales in favor of positive results.

And boy, will life ever be good.

Speaking of good, we have plenty of good stuff coming your way this year. After all, at Men with Pens, our entire philosophy is devoted to helping you reach your goals of achieving the life you want.…

If you think you’re prepared for SXSW.com, you’re wrong.

You may have bought your ticket. You may have booked your hotel. You may even have packed your bag and triple-checked that you’ve brought your toothpaste and alarm clock.

But you weren’t prepared for an event the likes of which SXSW – and the world –has never seen.

It’s an event that you can look at one of two ways:

The public unveiling of a deeply ingrained persona and catharsis of epic proportions you won’t want to miss
The SXSW event that everyone will be talking about for a long, long time – and where anything might happen.

This March at SXSW.com in Austin, James Chartrand is unmasking… for the first time ever.

Yes, it’s happening. After 12 years on the ground, James is taking flight and landing in balmy Austin for a full week of fun – and not JUST James. The whole Men with Pens crew is attending SXSW to meet peers, colleagues and friends like you.

Up close and personal. One on one.

We hang out with you every day, of course – you already know us. James, Dave, Jeff, Taylor… and our latest addition, the lovely Marla, ScheduleGirl extraordinaire.…

I’m going to do something I very rarely do: I’m going to tell you about an opportunity for you to get ahead.

You have to understand this is risky for me. Some people are going to be upset. Some will unsubscribe from this blog. Some won’t read. Some will snort in disgust.

I feel sorry for them. Because their scepticism will hold them back for life.

Other people – the smart ones – will see this for what it is: A person you know and trust, a person with integrity, telling you about a beneficial opportunity that can help you get ahead in business and in life. And those smart people will say, “Thanks for letting me know, James.”

So for those people, I’m going to take the risk.

Now, here’s something you might not know: I get a lot of emails from people who ask me how to get ahead. How to get work. How to start a business. How to make money. How to pull themselves out of a bad rut or a poor economy or a tough situation.

And I do my best to help. …

Maybe I give them a little bit of advice.
Maybe I suggest a new idea to try.

A few months ago, we asked you guys how you’d like to earn a living writing fiction and fantasy-related work instead of business-related copy.

The response was pretty overwhelming. Most of our readership isn’t just into writing for the scads of money to be made while working in your pajamas and holding a beer in one hand (because that’s how freelancing works, right?).

Many of you are fascinated by the idea of writing just because you love it. Many of you are creative writers, or role players, or gamers. Many of you have a passion for using writing to create worlds and novels.

So when Gamer Lifestyle told us they were reopening their membership course again and that they’ve added new features, a select few spots, and some exclusive offers for Men with Pens readers, we thought we should let you know about it, because we want to you the chance to pursue that writing lifestyle.

First, a Recap

When we first told you about Gamer Lifestyle, we explained that this program is all about helping you make money writing on something you already enjoy doing – namely, roleplaying, creative fiction and gaming. The two creators of this course, Johnn and Yax, have both earned some pretty serious money creating products around that passion.…

I’d like you all to imagine a Jedi hand-wave right now, because that title doesn’t work nearly so well without it.

There is no ebook. There has never been an ebook. We never referred to it obliquely a few weeks back. We haven’t been keeping it under wraps. We haven’t even subtly slipped it into place in our store without you being aware of it.

Never happened.

We did try to tell you there was nothing to this vicious rumor of a new, updated, expanded and generally awesome upgraded version of Write for the Web, your guide to becoming a freelance writer on the Internet.

After all, we wrote Write for the Web years ago. We have learned nothing since then. Nothing! And we’re certainly not sharing it with you.

It’s all lies, we tell you. Vicious lies. We heard the rumors, too. We heard gossip about all kinds of amazing things in this fantastic second edition release of the Write for the Web ebook, like:

• 85+ pages of brand-new, fresh, never-before-read-by-human-eyes (we don’t count James) content, all of it designed to help you become the biggest, baddest web writer the Internet ever did see.

• Extraordinarily valuable business resources (called Woots, no less!) by the score so you get an additional boost on your road to web writing superstardom

• Common Sense Tips – dozens of them!…

Well, it’s a wrap, folks. The finalists are out for the Top Ten Blogs for Writers, and we’re pleased and honored to have made the grade again.

“Oh, come on, James. We all knew you’d be on the list…”

Well, to be frank, we didn’t. There are new sites for writers and writing blogs cropping up daily, some of them with excellent contributors making waves around the world. It’s anyone’s game, frankly.

And making it to the Top Ten Blogs for Writers list is still is anyone’s game, because no one should ever get so comfy they forget the little guy that might come out of left field. That’s where we came from, and we know that someone else can do the same.

Bring it on, tigers. With the great competition we all offer each other, we can only get stronger together.

Now for the list of finalists in the Top Ten Blogs for Writers – don’t forget to visit each site!

Copyblogger: This site is the heavyweight champion of the world four years running (and one of the top blogs on the planet)!  The brain-child of Brian Clark, his blog keeps winning because of its insightful articles.
Men With Pens…: James Chartrand and Harry McLeod maintain the number two slot with their inspiring content and rich community discussion.

Special announcements are good. Everyone needs special announcements from time to time, right? Well, I have three for you today.

Top Ten Blogs for Writers Finalists

The 4th annual Top Ten Blogs for Writers contest is now closed for submissions, and the list of finalists has been posted.

Nearly 300 blogs were nominated, and we’re honored to have made it to the list of finalists. We’re ready for the next stage, too, where finalist blogs are analyzed and winners selected based on some pretty tough criteria.

Whew. It’s a little nerve-wracking!

In Which Attempt to Clear Up Rumors

So recently, someone went and spread rumors about Taylor and an ebook. I’m stuck trying to defend my honor and dispel this vicious gossip. I don’t know who started it all, but when I find out, that person and I are going to have words.

Possibly even in French.

I really think it might be an impossible task, though. I mean, how can a writer who writes really good ebooks who works with another writer who writes equally-good ebooks possibly manage to convince the whole blogosphere that there are no ebooks on writing for the web being written around here?

It’s enough to make a grown man cry.…

The 4th annual Top Ten Blogs for Writers contest is open and taking nominations!

That’s right. It’s time for you to head on over and vote for your favorite blog for writers.

(Men with Pens, right?)

Thanks to your support, we’ve been in the Top Ten Blogs for Writers for two years running now. (Check out last year’s results!) We sure would love to make it onto that list this year. We consider being in within the top ten a prestigious honor, and not one we take lightly.

We work hard to make it on that list, too. Remembering that we’re a blog for freelance writers first and foremost is always on our minds.

That’s why we give you awesome writing advice. Fantastic business tips. Tricks to get ahead, and ways to rock your freelance writing business so you can earn a decent living online.

And we’re not done yet. We’re here for a long time, not just a good time, so stay tuned for another full year of hits and chart-toppers.

But don’t forget to go vote!

Click here to nominate Men with Pens in the Top Ten Blogs for Writers challenge.

Thanks!…

In November, we asked readers if they ever wanted to get unstuck from where they were. The resounding answer came back, and it was, “Yes!”

Our Sticky Business Contest received fantastic response, and nearly two hundred people entered. It was a tough competition though, not an easy random win, and after four weeks of task-work, only a little over 30 people were still in the game.

It’s time for us to announce the winners – and trust us, judges had a very hard time deciding who those winners would be. Everyone worked hard, ideas were original and contestants had done their research.

We received many emails thanking us for hosting the contest, because the tasks gave them direction, guidance, and pause for thought. Many people said that they were winners regardless, because their business idea took shape just from having answered the questions we asked.

If you want to benefit from the four easy questions that can help get your business idea off the ground, check out the Sticky Business tasks:

Task One
Task Two
Task Three
Task Four

Before we release the names of winners, we’d like to thank our sponsors (thank you, thank you!!) and invite you to visit each of their sites.…

Imagine going to University for say, about seven years. Imagine studying hard for more than 40 hours a week. Imagine trying to hold down a job while you do that just to make ends meet at the end of the month. Imagine fitting in friends, a social life family… You work hard, get exhausted, study long, crunch for exams and push to reach your goals.

It’s tough. You have to want it pretty bad.

Then the day finally comes. You walk out of the classroom for the last time. You’re on your own now. You take a deep breath of fresh, clean air and think, “I did it. I made it.”

You’re ready to open your doors and start building your business of dreams – and you don’t know a damned thing about how to do that.

Welcome to the world of lawyers.

These people (and other highly skilled professionals) go to school for many years and invest a great deal of their life (and their debt ratio!) into learning. Unfortunately, they often find themselves leaving school with a diploma, debt, and very little skills on how to build and manage a successful business.

They don’t know how to hire staff.…