Archive for May, 2008
Many people take the plunge into writing without any real direction or understanding of the industry. I know I did. I sent in my first short story to Seventeen magazine when I was, well seventeen. It was rejected and with a photocopied letter that I still have today.
The sad thing is that I had one of the tools that would have helped guide me in my quest to write. I had received a subscription to The Writer when I first expressed a serious desire to write. The articles on query letters and knowing your market must have slipped right past me.
The Writer still comes to my home today. I also get other writing tools through the mail and now through the internet, but The Writer is still the one that ALWAYS offers me tips and suggestions that truly help me better my skills or increase my business (writing IS a business!).
If you aren’t currently receiving regular information about the craft of writing then The Writer is a great choice. The subscription fee is small, there is an online site, and the magazine is great for the experienced and the new writer.
This month (June, 2008) the magazine has some great tips on how to schedule your calendar, several articles on how to write children’s fiction and suggestions on taking real life people and molding them into fiction characters. Each month there is also a list of markets for the freelance writer and an interview with a successful writer that give tips on how to write.
Expand your writing skills and learn from some of the top writers in the field by using the tools that are available to you today. Whether you subscribe to a magazine like The Writer, invest in an online magazine subscription or find books to help you along the way, it is important that you continue the journey to become a better writer.
May 9th, 2008
Yesterday I got a rejection for a magazine. It was one of those rejections that actually give feedback. I consider these a challenge. It is my goal to take the feedback and make the next query one that is accepted and purchased.
There are many people who do not believe in good rejections or failures. But the only people who ever fail are those that are attempting to reach for a goal or a dream. The difference between a good rejection and a bad rejection lies in my attitude of the letter.
I could be hurt that the magazine did not purchase all of my blood, sweat and tears. Defending what I wrote would be the natural response of many writers. It would be easy to turn up my nose and refuse to query that magazine again (but eventually a writer who does that will run out of places to query).
Instead of being hurt, I am grateful that the magazine didn’t accept my article. The editor was right (shock, dismay) that there could be more to the story. With some tweaking I can help others with the story and not just show off my own situation. Instead of defending the piece as it is written I need to embrace the vision that the editor offers for what it could become.
The more I am willing to improve then the farther I can go. I refuse to see the rejection as a negative. It is a red flag challenging me to send something that is perfect for that magazine and that no editor could ever refuse.
May 7th, 2008
It seems that it is easier for people born into a family of wealth and means. There is a limitless supply of money and connections to help them achieve their purposes in life. Things just always are going their way.
This is YOU!
As a child of God, you are born into the greatest family in the history of the world. Your Father has everything (literally). The entire world is in the palm of His hand.
The problem for most of us is that we feel more like the wicked step children than the blessed children of God. It is time that you stepped up and claimed your inheritance.
1. Meet your Father. Everyday take time to talk with your Father AND to listen to what He has to say.
2. Engross yourself in the word and will of your Father. He has already written out how you can receive all of His blessings (and even what those blessings are -
Deuteronomy 28:1-14) so dig in and find out about your true inheritance.
3. Step out in obedience. Do what your Father says and do it when your Father says to do it. Partially obedience is full disobedience.
4. Believe in the blessings of your Father. For most people, if their earthly father came to them with a promise they would expect it. The same is more profoundly true for your spiritual Father. Look for the fulfillment of His promises.
5. Hold on to faith and joy. Refuse to allow circumstances to override the promises. Hold on to what you have learned from a personal relationship with your Father.
Take your place as a true child of God and you will find that your success truly is guaranteed.
May 3rd, 2008
I’ve been writing online in various aspects for around two years. Many of the sites that I have worked with pay a bare minimum (particularly when you compare them to the print market). With a few strong sales under my belt, I’m becoming more discriminate about what I will take and what I will not. Unless the topic is one I would do for free anyway, I have set my minimum per word pay and I’m not going back.
Just a few jobs a week that pay $50 an article will push you to your $5000 goal every month. And YES those kinds of jobs are out there when you really are willing to look for them.
1. Use keyword searches to find “top paying freelance writing jobs.” Avoid those sites that take a percentage of any jobs and avoid the ones that you have to pay to join. There are plenty of sites out there that have lists of well paying freelance writing jobs.
a. You just may have to spend a day specifically looking for new markets and new jobs.
b. Book mark the top sites that you find or subscribe to any newsletters that they send out to make your search easier in the future.
2. Be bold, be brave and be tough. Be bold and ask for the job. When you are at a website or forum that you like then you should ask for a chance to write and article for that site. Be brave enough to ask for what you think is fare and reasonable pay (about half of what you would expect from a print source). Be tough enough to take what ever answer is dished out.
a. Remember that no just means you have another chance to perfect your pitch elsewhere.
b. You can make the big dollars if you don’t ask for the big dollars.
3. Work on your skills. It is important that you perfect your writing, but it is just as important that you perfect your approach and your query. You can take a class or course on queries or you can work with other writers in a group or even online. Great queries are a sign of a professional writer.
a. Watch your grammar.
b. Check (and recheck) the spelling of the editor’s name and the website you are pitching.
4. Work at writing every single day. Do a little of every genre that you desire to work in. Set a goal of 1000 or 2500 words each day in each field and then set aside time to get that done. The more you do what you want to do then the better you will become and the easier it will be to reach your for your dreams.
Each month I set a new goal for my income target. I will continue to push myself more until I reach the level that I desire and then I will probably just begin pushing in another direction. Success requires action and I am determined to be a successful writer starting today.
With persistence and daring, YOU can make $5000 each month writing online. Hone your writing skills, look for the right jobs and the produce a product that is worthy to be called your own. You will soon find that the $50 (and even higher) jobs will begin to start looking for you.
May 2nd, 2008
Yesterday was a hard day. Besides being physically tired, my entire being felt completely beat down. It was time to quit (quit writing, quit cleaning and basically quit trying since I seemed to be moving backwards anyway). My normally positive side had definitely gone on vacation. Fortunately I was blessed that an IM friend was online during my bleakest moments. She coaxed me through without even trying.
Before calling it a night, I sent out emails for about a dozen possible jobs. I was determined to earn more for my efforts than the $2 so many online publishers want to pay. My IM friend and I departed ways determined to spend the next few days sending out queries as well.
I also decided to do a little positive reading before calling it a night. I started with scripture (I try to read one chapter of Proverbs before bed). I found it refreshing that I was starting back at the beginning of Proverbs on this particular night. I also read a part of a chapter in “Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude.” I went to sleep determined to have a bright new morning.
Not only did the morning start bright and sunshiny, but my husband apparently caught the determination as well. He was up before me (if you know him then you know how shocked I was – I thought the house must be on fire for HIM to get up at that hour) and was out doing chores before the sun came over the mountain. That was the most positive reinforcement I could ever receive.
As for me, I’ve already received a response from one of the contacts last night. It pays more and is on a subject that I truly enjoy. The bible devotion that I receive every morning had the title “Break Through the Wall.” And my frustration over yesterday has flittered away. I am POSITIVE that I will break through. To quote a song I love, “You can mark my words, something is about to break.”
The point of all of this is that tomorrow really will get better. Giving up CAN NOT be an option. That is why it is so important to have a support system that can help carry you through to a new day. Join an online group, start a group in your home, but get people in your life that will help you do all that you desire to do.
May 1st, 2008
