My subscriber base is small but loyal. I don’t know much about promoting my newsletter but I am learning and hope one day to join the ranks of www.fundsforwriters.com or www.writersweekly.com.  I like to research free writing courses and interactive lessons and try them out first. I have often thought about taking some university writing courses but so far haven’t put that thought into action yet. Maybe this will be my year…

Right now I am subscribing to Beth Ann Erickson’s 15 day ecourse, 15 Techniques to Turbo Charge Your Writing Income. I am well versed on some of the information because I have been freelancewriting for many years, but I have picked up a tip or two. If you are interested in reading more  information about the ecourse, visit Filbert Publishing Ecourses at:

http://www.filbertpublishing.com/Courses.html

Until next time….write it right!

I always make it a point to google my own name every so often to see if someone is using my work without my consent. I did catch one individual posting one of my articles on her site and when I confronted her and asvised her that she was using my work illegally, she retorted that I should be honored that she thought my work was worthy enough to include it on her website. Needless to say, I wasn’t buying that excuse, besides someone else owned the partial rights to it and they paid for it.

I have been trying to be somewhat regular with this blog but it is a bit depressing when I am not sure if anyone is reading it. Makes me wonder if my time could be better spent writing something else. I have researched how to draw readers to your blog and it advises to keep writing and the readers will come. Well considering I don’t have a better plan at the moment, I will keep writing and see if my stats go up. If you have any blogging promotional tips, please send them my way. Help!

I have been busy finishing up some writing work and have two more articles on the burner for submission at the end of the month. I received these two assignments from good ole querying. I used to dread querying and preferred to submit to markets that accepted the completed submission but with experience, I realized it is better to query first than spend a whole day writing an article that has no intended market.

I hated querying because I wasn’t confident in my ability to write a good query. One day I received a copy of Jenna Glatzer freelance writing workbook for payment for a short humourous piece I wrote for her site. After working through her workbook, I finally hit upon a template for my queries and have been using it ever since. A querying template is the most effective way  to write your queries and get them out there. I am not saying that all queries should say the same thing, nothing can be further from the truth but if you follow a certain format, you can master the dreaded query.

Here is my format for a good query, remember to keep it one page:

1st paragraph - your opening statement introducing your topic.

2nd paragraph - more information on your topic.

3rd paragraph - information on your article and how it pertains to the topic and why it is suitable for the publication’s audience. Also include word count and a list of the articles subheadings if applicable.

4th paragraph - Your offer to send the completed the article for review for publication.

5th - closing statement thanking the editor for their time etc.

That’s it - that is my formula for a good query.
Give it a try and good luck!

Until next time - write it right!

So there came a day when I had to decide which newsletters I would keep and which ones I would have to say farewell to. Firstly, I had to decide which newsletter delivered the most pertinent information for my writing needs. I had decided earlier on that non-fiction would be my genre of choice so I could do without any newsletters that were strictly geared toward the fiction writer. If I decided to venture into fiction writing, I could always subscribe again.

Next, I analyzed each newsletter for the content contained within the newsletter and determined which ones offered me the most value for my precious time. I like the newsletters that offered plenty of resources, freebies, and markets. I leaned towards newsletters’ editors who were successful and had solid advice to offer including Hope Clark of www.fundsforwriters.com, and Angela Hoy of www.writersweekly.com. I remained subscribed to two Canadian newsletters (homeward bound!): Krista Barrett, The Writer’s Gazette and Krissy Brady of the now defunct www.bradymagazine.com.

Coincidentally, I went on to write articles for 3 out of 4 newsletters. I have written a couple articles for www.fundsforwriters.com and www.writersweekly.com and wrote a monthly column called Writers On Tap for Brady Magazine. 

My success in contributing articles to these newsletters can be attributed to my thorough knowledge of the newsletter itself. This is good advice for all writers: if you want to write for a specific publication, take time to get acquainted with the publication’s contents. Study the publication for its tone, style and topics already addressed and determine what you cane offer the publication that has not been addressed?

Until next time…write it real!

Truthfully I even tried out for a blogging position with the site but dropped out after a couple of weeks.  The blogging position application process was set up in American Idol style and I found that I was spending too much time creating my blog entries for the contest when I should have been actively pursing paying freelance jobs. I guess the difference between that blog and this one is that blogging at today.com is something I am doing to polish my blog writing skills and I don’t have an entire audience trying to vote me off each week. I can say that trying out for the blogging position at freelance writing gigs was definitely an experience but I would have rather just applied for it like any other job and let my writing speak for itself. I guess in an essence that’s how it was but instead I was being judged by a very large selection audience – visitors to the site.

There are a few other job boards that I visit pretty regularly and have set Yahoo! alerts for a few of them. Don’t ask me how I managed to set up the Yahoo! alerts, I still have no idea how I did it nor can I repeat it but the alerts pump new leads into my mailbox daily so that’s all that matters. On average, I probably apply for two positions daily but unfortunately the only ones that seem to respond are those offer very little pay or no pay at all.  One ad that I responded to stated that it was paid position although the poster was seeking an ‘intern’. After being rewarded the position, the poster explained that it was an unpaid position but may turn into a paying gig in the future. After I quoted his ad that it did in fact read ‘compensation’, he ignored that fact and argued that everyone knows internships are unpaid positions. Duh…I guess I missed that part of the lesson in freelancing school!

Until next time…write it real!

I would say my first big break as a freelancer came when I wrote a short humorous piece for www.absolutewrite.com. In exchange for payment, I received a copy of one of Jenna Glatzer’s books on freelance writing. After reading her book, I learned how to write a great query, and started writing and selling non-fiction articles for print and online publications. I wasn’t making much money but I was selling my work and that was enough inspiration to keep my momentum up. To date, I have sold hundreds of non-fiction articles on an array of subjects including parenting, careers, eco-friendly, health, internet safety, freelance writing, home and garden, frugal living, interviews, website reviews, book reviews, essays, and just about anything else you can think.  Over the last few years, I have actively tried to expand my portfolio and offerings and have written website content, resumes, covering letters, job descriptions, product descriptions, proofreading.

Over the years, I have earned enough money to classify my freelance writing as a part-time venture however I don’t think I will ever get rich from it. Ideally, I would like to earn enough from my writing that it earns me the equivalent of a fulltime wage however; I am doing better than a lot of other freelancers out there so I am grateful. My oldest son is headed to university this coming September so I feel this extra push to earn as much money as possible from my freelance writing efforts.

I guess my staying power has to do with perseverance; despite numerous rejections in the early ‘learning’ years of my freelancing journey, I have stayed with it and kept plugging away. Another part of me cannot turn my back on my urge to write, it is in my blood.

I hope that my blog, appropriately called Late Night Writer, will inspire you to stay on your writing path and lead you to success in the freelance writing world.