Back in July, all bright-eyed and enthused about a project we had in the works, we blogged on the upcoming August release of our amazing ebook for beginning freelance writers. You may have noticed the ebook hasn’t hit the stands yet. Well, we’re not too proud to admit our mistakes, and we’ve learned a few valuable lessons about producing ebooks and selling them. One, they’re a damned lot of work to write, edit, and edit again. Two, they’re even more work to put on sale than we imagined. That surprised us. Why? Because we write
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Know Any Good Books?
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People often ask me whether I know any good books to read. Good writers tend to read a lot, so I suppose that it’s normal I get asked. But my answers often disappoint. I do read, often and frequently. Because I write daily for a living, though, I find that my mind isn’t soothed and relaxed by complex works of literature. It’s not that I’m a dummy; I just break my head over words each day, so I really don’t want to amuse myself in the evenings by conceptualizing philosophies or learning effective business management.
> Read MoreWork-at-Home Employment: It isn’t a Real Job
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There is one big problem with working at home. People think you don’t have a ‘real’ job. That makes taking yourself seriously an important factor to business success. By taking yourself seriously, you show others that you need to be taken seriously, too. But sometimes, it’s difficult. I know. I’ve blogged on tips to help show others you’re serious about your profession before. And yet, for all that I apply my own advice, I still struggle to get people to understand that I have a serious job. Case in point: last week’s phone call from
> Read MoreRumblings from the Inbox: Review of the Copywriting Maven Blog
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My introduction to the Copywriting Maven (sorry, didn’t catch your full name on your blog…) was fairly pleasant. The blog looked nice and there was some okay info. The blog promised tips and techniques, which always perk my interest, but honestly, I didn’t find much that I found valuable. On the other hand, Maven’s posts feature on Copyblogger, a blog I have great respect for. At any rate, I had a, “Meeehh… Okay, let’s see what you can give me,” reaction that led to my signing up for post updates. Well. So much for that
> Read MoreSocial Networking OverKill
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One of the problems with increasing traffic to blogs (or websites for that matter) is a serious lack of time. I commented on Instigatorblog about just that problem after reading about link-baiting tactics. Links are like gold. The more you have pointing to your blog, the more your page rank increases and the more people travel over to check out what you have to offer. Getting those links directed your blog’s way, though, involves a lot of effort if you’re new to the business. I’m bombarded by people saying, “You should have a LinkedIn page.”
> Read MoreCross-Training: Writers becoming Designers
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Jamie sent me an ad for a course that encouraged copywriters to train to be graphic artists. The idea was to boost sales and offer a one-stop solution to a client’s needs.I have very strong feelings about cross-training, but I’m not going to go into them here. Instead, I read the ad and thought, “Damn, I must be one lucky guy.” I’m blessed with the skills of both writing and graphic design, and I have a natural talent for both. Not many people can claim that. Either they’re very good writers and can’t draw a
> Read MoreRumblings from the Inbox: Review of Copyblogger
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This review isn’t going to be on a newsletter or ezine, but about Brian Clark’s blog, Copyblogger, a must-read for those interested in copywriting and Internet marketing. These two areas go hand in hand on the Internet, and Copyblogger delivers a whallop of good stuff for readers. I’m pleased to recommend it. Here’s why: Most importantly to me, there isn’t any advertising or self-promotion to sift through. I can’t stand content that keeps telling me to buy now or else miss my chance at success and millions of dollars. The truth is that success comes
> Read MoreBlog Contests: Great for Building Popularity
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Links mean everything to blog survival. When you’re new, though, getting other sites and blogs to link to yours can be a challenge. (We know. Trust us, we know.) One, your blog doesn’t carry any weight or prestige yet; it hasn’t been around long enough to be recognized as a household name like ProBlogger. Two, most people don’t like to be the first in line to do something. They like to follow the group, not lead it. This is more problematic where commenting is concerned, but it’s still an issue for linking as well. People
> Read MoreThree Scams Freelancers Face and How to Avoid Them
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Scams are common. They always will be. Someone always wants more for less, to avoid shelling out dollars, to get a better deal, no matter what the means. Writers aren’t immune to scams, either, and there are a couple of them to avoid. The Free Sample Scam A new client approaches a writer with a proposed assignment of, say, ten articles. The client requests a free sample to make sure the article is up to standards or matches the desired tone and style. That sounds reasonable to new writers. So, the writer produces a free
> Read MoreRumblings from the Inbox: Review of Fab Freelance Writing Ezine
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The first review winner is Angela Booth’s Fab Freelance Writing Ezine, mostly because it was the first one in my inbox this week. Here goes: My beginning peeve with this ezine is that the content isn’t delivered straight in my inbox. I have to open the email, click a website link that brings me to some website, and click again to tell the site that yes, I’d like to see the ezine. I have to wait for Adobe to open before beginning to read a thing. What a waste of time. The first thing that
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