May 2010

Ask Me Anything: Academic Samples

Clare K. R. Miller asks, What if you’re just starting out? Are academic samples appropriate, or should you write some things to use as samples even if they’re not published? In general, using academic samples can be a way to get around not having any published samples that you can use in terms of work [...]

Read the full article

Pitching Magazine Editors on Twitter, Plus 80+ Editors on Twitter

Over the past couple of months, I’ve made a point of friending the editors of publications I’d like to write for on Twitter. I’ve landed several assignments through Twitter, including a few where the editor sought me out, rather than the other way around. That’s because Twitter is an ideal tool for building connections: when [...]

Read the full article

Ask Me Anything: Work Samples

Laura Renegar asks, If asked for work samples, how many should you send? My standard number for sending out work samples is to send three top-notch pieces, along with a link to my portfolio so that if a client wants to browse through and look at more of my work, he can. I try to [...]

Read the full article

Constructively Productive: Teaming Up With Other Freelancers

As you might have guessed from my recent ebook, I launch projects of my own every so often. Sometimes, I have the opportunity to work on a particularly cool project with another freelance writer. I’m launching just such a project today, with the incredible Ali Hale. Ali is a freelance writer and operates her own [...]

Read the full article

Why No Negative Reviews?

Not too long ago, I was asked why I didn’t seem to ever post a negative review here. As a matter of fact, very few of the reviews I write are negative, no matter where they appear. The reason why I don’t seem to write negative reviews is simple: it’s because I actually don’t write [...]

Read the full article

Keeping Your Last Name: Can Freelancers Afford to Change Names?

When I married my husband, I didn’t even think about changing my last name. He asked once or twice, just to make sure we were on the same page, but it was a non-issue for both of us. Of course, both my family and his address all my mail to Mrs. Swenson, but no one [...]

Read the full article

The Glamorous Life of a Freelance Writer

My little sister thinks I’m just like a character out of Sex in the City, based on the fact that I’m a writer. Apparently she thinks I drink a lot of martinis, write when the mood strikes me and generally have quite the glamorous life. I may have snorted the water I was drinking out [...]

Read the full article

My Writing Bucket List: The 5 Goals that Make Up My List

As a writer, I’ve set myself some goals over the course of my career. Some I’ve accomplished, some I’m still looking forward to. These aren’t always goals that I can just get out there and achieve, of course. Several of them are steps that I have to work my way up to in steps while [...]

Read the full article

My Latest Ebook: The Freelance Writer’s Guide to Passive Income

As a freelance writer, there are days when I feel like I’m banging my head against the wall. No matter how many new clients I land, there’s an upper limit on how much I’m going to earn. There are only so many hours in the day and, honestly, I’d rather not work all of them. [...]

Read the full article

Ask Me Anything: When Clients Delay Projects

An anonymous freelance writer asks, I’ve been writing for a website for over a year (technically). At the end of last year the site was being overhauled and apparently there was a huge hiccup that still hasn’t been resolved. I typically sent my articles in batches, and the site hasn’t been updated in several months. [...]

Read the full article