Eight Tips For A Productive Freelance Writing Career

by Lisa Abellera

Organization and time management are a freelance writer's best friends. Freelance writers who are new to its lifestyle will love the freedom and independence. Rather than cubicle walls, freelancers can work in the outdoors, a Starbucks, library or even the beach. However supporting this lifestyle requires discipline not unlike working in the corporate world. Although you tossed that suit for sweats, you may be struggling with productivity and finding it difficult to take on more assignments. In the freelance writing world, the faster you can complete an assignment, the more money you can earn. Try these tips to create a more productive freelance writing career:

1) keep a daily notebook specifically for your freelance writing work, which may feel odd at first, especially in an age where information can be stored electronically, but studies have shown the hand and finger movements of writing activates the areas in the brain which engage in thinking, language and working memory. Write the date on the top of a page in notebook and list out tasks or "to-do's" in bullet points. Check off each task as it is completed. Add new assignments or tasks to this list throughout the day.The next morning, date a new page, write out the "to-do's" still left from the day before, and repeat the process.

2) Organize your home office workspace by eliminating clutter of scratch paper and sticky notes. Hang a white board on the wall and write on it your current and upcoming freelance writing assignments or project and their deadlines, and use your daily notebook to write down anything normally jotted down on a sticky note. A notebook with tabs works well for those freelance writers who prefer to separate their daily "to-do" list from notes on research, client discussions, appointments and other freelance writing activities.

3) Keep track of your time each day working as a freelance writer, whether your activities involve marketing your skills, corresponding with clients or actual writing. Make note of the actual time of the day you started and ended work.This seems counter to the principle of freedom in freelance writing, but it is essential to see how much of the day is spent truly working, since you are your only employee.Tracking work hours helps in gauging time spent on an assignment. If you are spending more time on a project than originally anticipated, this is telling of either project or client, and can help in calculating the hourly rate for similar writing projects or in determining whether or not to take assignments from this client in the future.

4) Work according to your natural mental state. Some freelance writers are more mentally alert in the morning and run out of steam in the afternoon, while others are barely functioning by their second cup of morning coffee and hit their stride in the afternoon. The best time to write or do tasks which require mental focus or critical thinking is when you are most mentally alert. More routine activities like reading emails, bidding on projects, researching, and invoicing should then be done when you find it difficult to dedicate your attention to filling the screen in front of you with compelling, intelligent words.

5) Plan to work while you work. Use the time after you "clock out" as a freelance writer for personal activities.When mixing work with paying house bills, walking the dog, going grocery shopping or other personal errands, it is more difficult to assess how much time is actually spent on freelance writing jobs. Also when you congregate work hours in 3-4 hour blocks, you tend to be far more productive than when having to pick up where you left off several times during the day.

6) Get out of the slippers and pajamas and get dressed. It's important to see yourself as no different than your counterparts working in cubicles under artificial light. It doesn't necessarily have to mean putting on a tie or wearing heels, but maintaining the ritual of dressing for work helps to promote a sense of value and self-respect for your freelance writing career.

7) Turn off the television and program the DVR. Television just creates another distraction for your brain to have to sort out in order to concentrate on the task at hand. For freelance writers who like having sound of the television in the background while they work, consider playing music on speakers rather than picking up that remote.

8) Get out of the house. If you don't have a separate office at home in which you can close the door from outside, non-freelance writing diversions, try working a few hours outside of the house. Do a little research and test out the different Starbucks, Peets or other local coffeehouses to determine which ones provide the best working environment for you. Besides convenience and comfort, look for Wi-Fi availability, customer density and noise levels during the hours you'll be there working.

For the freelance writer, time truly does translate into money.The more efficient use of your time and the more organized your home office is, the more productive you can be, which means a greater earning potential and better success for your freelance writing career.

Lisa Abellera is a freelance writer living in the San Francisco Bay Area. She earned her MFA in Creative Writing from University of San Francisco. Her poetry and short fiction has been published or is forthcoming in several literary journals and in an anthology of creative travel writing. She is the cofounder of a graduate-level writers workshop group and is hard at work on her collection of short fiction. For more about the writing process and the craft of writing fiction, visit http://www.lisaabellera.wordpress.com

In addition to creative writing, Lisa enjoys her work as a freelance commercial writer, where she specializing in research-based custom SEO article writing, article rewriting and quality content development for websites and blogs.

Writing Fanfiction Can Help Start Your Freelance Writing Career

By Michelle Carlbert

If you're anything like me, you've been writing fanfiction for years, enjoying the freedom it allows you to create stories involving your favorite characters and taking part in a community with other writers who give helpful feedback.

But did you know that writing fanfiction can also help you start a new career? By writing fanfiction, you are honing valuable skills that you can use as a freelance writer.

Here are some things that writing fanfiction can teach you about becoming a freelance writer.

Deadlines.

Maybe you don't think of it this way but every time you've promised your rabid fans that the next chapter of your WIP (work in progress) was coming "in one week, I promise!" you were setting yourself a deadline. Making that deadline no matter what real life throws your way means that you've just learned one of the most important part of being a freelance writer - hitting your deadline.

Handling criticism.

When you post your fanfiction out there for the world to see, you also open yourself up to criticism. We've all had it happen - you post a story that you worked tirelessly on and suddenly someone comes up and (gasp!) dislikes it. Well guess what? Freelance writers have to deal with people like that all the time, they're called editors, and the faster you learn to deal with them the easier your freelance writing career will be. If you genuinely listen to the people who comment on your fanfiction, honestly look at what suggestions they made or why they didn't like your story and reply politely, well then you're ready to deal with an editor.

Dealing with writer's block.

Writer's block is something every writer has to deal with, whether they write fanfiction or anything else. If you've managed to complete even a single fanfiction story then I'm sure you've figured out a way to deal with your own writer's block. Busting through that invisible barrier isn't easy and by doing it with fanfiction, you've shown yourself that you can write, even when the words don't come easily. Once again, this is an invaluable skill for a freelance writer.

These are just a few ways that writing fanfiction can turn from a fun hobby into a career. Take your talent and all those skills you've learned and use them!

Michelle (also known by her pen name "Mokibobolink") is a freelance writer, editor and blogger with a love for fanfiction and how it can help new writers. She started a blog ("Moki's Fanfiction Blog") as a forum for fanfiction readers and writers to discuss their favorite hobby, provide helpful tips to new writers, give lists of her favorite stories and sites to find great fanfiction.

http://mokisfanfictionblog.com

How to Build a Successful Freelance Writing Career

By N Williamson

A freelance writing career is one that allows you to have the flexibility to work at home on a schedule that you set for yourself. However, while it may seem simple, it actually takes work and time to build this kind of career. If you want a career in freelance writing that is lucrative and successful, here are a few important steps that you can follow.

Keep Your Day Job

When you are starting out in your freelance writing career, it's important that you keep your day job in the beginning. It's a good idea to begin developing your skills while you are still working at least part-time. While you can earn enough money in this career to support yourself, it will take some time before you begin making that much money and there is also a bit of a learning curve. Until you get to the point that you think you can support yourself solely with your writing, you'll want to keep another job.

Take Time to Diversify

As you are working to build a freelance writing career, you need to take some time to diversify the companies that you write for. There are a variety of companies out there that pay up front for writing. Others may offer you some residual income as well. While many people like to be paid up front, there are also benefits to residual income. Starting out with various projects and various websites is a great idea in case writing for one gets a bit slow. If you diversify your writing, you'll be able to make sure you can make enough money to support yourself.

Don't Forget About Taxes

Many people who get started in a freelance writing career never think about taxes. Most companies that hire freelancers will not take out the taxes. This means that you should be saving money out of your paychecks to make sure that you can pay the taxes when tax time comes around. This way you won't be hit with a huge amount of tax debt on April 15th.

Realize You May Not Always Be Able to Choose Topics

While it is always great to write about topics you like, when you first get started in your freelance writing career, you need to realize that you may not always be able to choose the topics that you want to write about. You will probably have to start out writing about a variety of different things.

Be Ready to Work

There are some people who have the idea that a freelance writing career is easy. However, it does really to take a lot of work. You'll need to do your research, there is time spent writing, and you'll have to edit your own work as well. There are plenty of benefits you can enjoy and so long as you work hard and stay disciplined, you will increase your chances of being successful.

A Roadmap For Your Fiction Writing Career

By Randall Ingermanson

What's the dirtiest word in a writer's lexicon? Think about that for a minute before you read on. What's the worst thing you can call a fellow writer?

Here's what many writers would say: "Unpublished."

I've met a ton of writers at writing conferences. To break the ice, I usually ask them what they're working on. They'll spend ten minutes telling me all about their novel. Then, if they've not sold a book yet, they'll hang their heads like they're admitting to being a drug dealer or a congress-critter and mutter, "But I'm (shudder) unpublished."

Let's just dump that word. I've got a better one. When I was in college, I knew a lot of students who were hoping to get into med school. Some of them eventually made it. Some didn't. But here's the thing: I never heard any of them saying they were "unmedical" students. They said they were "pre-med."

I wish all writers would quit calling themselves "unpublished." I think it would be a whole lot smarter to use the word "pre-published."

Why is this important? Because the way you think about yourself influences whether you succeed or not. And how long it takes you to succeed.

I spent about 16 years pre-published (counting from the day I decided I was gonna write me a novel till the day I saw one of my novels on the bookstore shelf.) That's not at all uncommon. I've got friends who took longer. I've got friends who did it much quicker. I took way too long, and I suspect my own attitude had a lot to do with it.

I believe it should take about four years to get to publishable quality in your fiction. Some writers will be quicker, some slower, but four years is reasonable. I've got a longish article on my web site that explains the whole theory behind this: http://www.AdvancedFictionWriting.com/art/freshman.php

The bottom line is that I classify pre-published writers into four categories, Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors. At each stage, there are specific tasks you need to accomplish to advance to the next stage.

You may be a Freshman, a Sophomore, a Junior, a Senior, or even a Graduate. If you aren't happy with how your career is going, then here are five steps you can take to get back on the road to where you want to go.

1) Take inventory of yourself. What level of writer are you? Do your writing friends agree? Do published authors agree? If you think you're a Senior and everybody else thinks you're a Sophomore, then there's a problem. Being a Sophomore doesn't mean you're a bad writer. It means you're not fully trained yet. There's a difference. Figure out where you are.

2) Make a long-term goal for yourself. If you've figured out that you're a Freshman, then a reasonable long-term goal is to graduate in about four years. Whereas if you're a Senior, then a reasonable goal is to graduate THIS year! Please note that you need to realistically think about whether this writing game is for you. You may wind up spending the next four or five years training to write fiction, and then end up NEVER getting published. Does that make you chuck your cheeseburgers? If so, then go find another career. Pick a safer one, like wing-walking or cliff diving or lion taming.

3) Make a short-term goal for yourself. Rome wasn't built in a nanosecond, and you won't learn neurosurgery or tennis or fiction in a few days or weeks or months. Can't be done. What can you reasonably do in the next three months? In the next year? For my short-term goals, I ask myself what I'm weakest at and what I'm strongest at. Then I work on improving just those two areas of my writing.

4) Get yourself some advisor's. You are the average of the five people you hang out with most. Change your hang-out group, and you just might change your behavior! Find some advisor's who are at a similar stage in their careers, writers who are positive thinkers and are dedicated to advancing. (If you're a Sophomore, hang out mostly with other Sophomores, and maybe a few Freshmen or Juniors). Your advisor's won't be in this just for you. They'll be in it for them too. They'll advise you, and you'll advise each of them. This is often called a Mastermind Group or a Dream Team or whatever. Get yours. No less than five. No more than six. This is NOT the same as a critique group. These are career advisor's, not craft polishers.

5) Map out a plan to meet your short-term goal. If you're not sure what to do, ask your advisor's. That's what they're there for. If they don't know, figure out who does. Share what you learn with your advisor's. Do everything you possibly can to help them succeed. They'll return the favor in spades.

6) I promised five steps, but you get a bonus sixth: Go do it. Put your plan into practice. Meet regularly with your advisory group. Keep each other accountable. If your plan isn't working, figure out why. If you don't know why, figure out whom to ask. Get help! Give help! Work your plan until you reach your short-term goal. Then set a new one.

That's all! It's pretty simple, but don't kid yourself -- it isn't easy. Learning to write fiction is hard work, and if you don't like that, then quit. Quitting IS easy and you'll get to watch more TV and probably have a better love life. You just won't ever get published, but you won't really care, or you'd be willing to do what it takes.

But the fact is, you can't quit and you won't. Because writing is in your blood. When writing is in your blood, you're going to do what it takes to succeed. You're going to assess where you are. You're going to make a plan. You're going to execute that plan.

That's what writers do.

Randy Ingermanson is the award-winning author of six novels and one nonfiction book. He is known around the world as "the Snowflake Guy" - a tribute to his invention of the widely used "Snowflake method" of designing a novel. Randy has a Ph.D. in theoretical physics and is the publisher of the world's largest electronic magazine on writing fiction, the free monthly Advanced Fiction Writing E-zine, with over 8000 readers. Visit his web site today: http://www.AdvancedFictionWriting.com

What If My Whole Writing Career Has Been Wrong?

By Beth Erickson

I've been writing professionally for nearly 15 years. I've seen a lot of ups and downs, triumphs and disasters.

As an industry, freelancing has transformed more times than I can count, the big-wigs of yesteryear have been replaced and today's big-wigs will invariably be a fond memory someday.

Overall, freelancing has been good, helped me achieve many of the objectives I set out to achieve.

One thing I didn't expect, however, is how easy it is to fall off track. I share this story with you in the hopes that you don't fall into the same trap(s) I did.

Back when I was working with my Creative Mindset Group, I always emphasized the importance of Polaris. If you're unaware with this concept, here's a quick explanation: Sailors worldwide could navigate earth's vast oceans (at least in the Northern Hemisphere) because they fixed their heading based on the position of Polaris, our North Star.

Polaris is positioned directly above the North Pole. This means that despite the earth's continual rotation, Polaris is the only star that doesn't appear to move across the night sky. Instead, it remains fixed in its position, allowing reliable ship navigation.

So, theoretically speaking, no matter where you are (in the Northern Hemisphere), if you can't find your way, all you need to do is look up, find Polaris, and you'll be able to navigate your way back on track. Cool, eh?

Now, time for my quick story.

I begin my writing career with a message in my soul and a song in my heart. Along the way, I discovered that making a living as a freelancer was a little more challenging than I expected. Turns out, I'm not only expected to know how to write, I must spin a great yarn, I must persevere in a tough profession, and most horrifying of all, I must learn to sell my writing.

It's a tall order.

So, setting my ultimate dream (my Polaris) aside, I embarked on the long process of perfecting my craft (still have a ways to go on that count, I'm sure), keeping my mindset strong, and mastering various components of the persuasive process, i.e. marketing, just to name a few challenges.

That's about the time things started going a bit amok for me.

While I rather enjoy exploring these techniques, they are mere tools to propel me towards my ultimate goal... my Polaris. However, none of them are my "official" Polaris.

Sadly, for far too many years, my life rotated around these exact activities. I studied writing, I immersed myself in mindset issues, I lived, breathed, and ate everything I could get my hands on when it came to mastering marketing techniques. In fact, I even became a professional copywriter for a time.

Ah, the incredible detours we take.

Bad part was that my ultimate dream, my Polaris,languished, patiently waiting for me to come to my senses.

And here's where it gets really interesting.

I firmly believe that we're born with in in-born navigation system, a way we can instantly know when we're on a path contrary to our Polaris. Whenever I'm working on a project that is in harmony, something that is leading me closer to my ultimate goal, I feel great. I'm in the creative zone. I love it. Challenges hardly feel like challenges because I find the whole process so invigorating.

When I'm working on a project that isn't in harmony with my Polaris, I feel a resistance, an annoying niggling feeling that makes it hard to write. I have to force myself to the computer to get moving. The whole process has a dark pallor about it.

When I experience these negative sensations, I know I need to reevaluate the project and examine whether it will enhance my ultimate goal, or whether I should pass the project on to another writer who may find joy working on it.

I know. Easier said than done.

It's hard to turn down projects. It's only the daring who have courage to run after their own dreams, especially when you've got a few dollars at stake.

My theory is that talented people are capable of a lot. However, just because you have the ability to do something doesn't mean you should. We have a finite amount of time per day. How will you spend that time; writing something truly heart felt and empowering, or slaving over a project you took on for the sole purpose of earning a few bucks. The old adage is true: You earn every cent when you take on a project solely for the money.

Somewhere along the line, you'll have to decide whether you'll follow your personal Polaris, your life purpose, or allow yourself to be side tracked by the myriad of possibilities that could, in essence, be valuable, but may leave you wondering at the end of your career, "What if my whole writing career has been wrong?"

Beth Ann Erickson is a compulsive writer, author of seven titles, and editor of Writing Etc., the free zine for writers. Get her first novel when you sign up as a VIP member of new newsletter. It's free, fabulous, and fun. http://BethAnnErickson.com

Turbo-Charging Your Writing Career - 6 High-Yield Strategies

by Marg McAlister -

Hands up all those who'd like to have a successful writing career.

(What's that you say? What do I mean by 'successful'?)

All right, I know all writers are individuals. To some, 'successful' might mean just getting one article published. Others want a string of best-selling novels, recognition in the supermarket and megabucks in the bank account. So, for the purposes of this article, we'll define 'successful' as "achieving regular or ongoing publication credits in tandem with a growing income". That income should increase as you become more recognized and popular as a writer.

Now for the crunch. How do you achieve success? How do you win a growing readership? And the biggie: how do you make sure you get paid for your efforts?

There's a simple answer. You need to INVEST in your career. Think of your writing as a fledgling business. Wise investment will help it to grow - and help you to get the results you want. 

1. You need to spend a buck to make two (or more) bucks
2. You need to prioritize your spending
3. You need to invest time as well as money
4. You need to invest energy
5. You need to surround yourself with wise advisors and positive people
6. You need to plan, review, and plan again

1. You Need To Spend A Buck To Make A Buck

Every craftsperson needs to have good tools to get the best results. A writer is no different. 

• You can make do with a typewriter - but a computer is better. (Why? It's easier to edit your work; you can connect to the wider writing community via the Internet, and editors are increasingly asking for manuscripts and proofs to be emailed to them.)
• You can make do with looking up publishers in the Yellow Pages - but the latest edition of a Writer's Marketplace is better. (Why? It gives you much more industry-specific information - and it's a darn sight more convenient.)
• You can make do with business cards and postcards to promote yourself - but an email address/website address is better. (Why? The take-up rate of Internet users is phenomenal - people can reach you or read about you easily and conveniently.)

It's easy to talk yourself into "making do". And it's true that writers can spend almost nothing on tools of the trade. However, successful businesses know that in the end, you have to spend money to make money. That doesn't mean waste money - it means you carefully plan your spending.

2. You Need to Prioritise Your Spending

There are three main things you need to think about when you're prioritising your spending on your writing career. 

1. What will help me improve my skills?
2. What will help me to do my job more effectively?
3. What will help me to become better known and to market my work?

Look realistically at your income and expenditure, and decide what you can spend on your writing career in the next 12 months. Don't make this the least possible you can manage. Think of it as ongoing costs in building an effective business. (And remember that many start-up businesses don't expect to make a profit for the first 3 years!)

Here are a few ideas:

(a) What will help me improve my skills?

Books on writing for your professional library - a writing course - a writing workshop or program - a writers' seminar or conference - membership of a writers' centre - writing software - a critique service

(b) What will help me do my job more effectively?

An up to date computer - a good-quality desk and chair - an internet connection - a directory of writers' markets - a separate room for writing - a reduction in working hours in my outside job - a fax and/or good printer - a better word processing program

(c) What will help me to get known and to market my work?

Attendance at writing talks/seminars/workshops/groups - local functions and social groups - internet discussion lists - my own website - submission of articles to industry magazines/ezines - run my own seminars and workshops - business cards - regular column for local paper - radio chat show appearances

These are just a few ideas. Brainstorm a list of your own, then rank the items on each list in order of importance to you. What is the wisest use of your money at this point in your career?

3. You Need To Invest Time As Well As Money

You have probably already noticed that many of the career-boosting strategies that involve investment of cash also require an investment of your time. The importance of giving time to your career cannot be overestimated. 

• It takes time to read up on markets and draw up a submission list.
• It takes time to keep records about where your work has been and where it needs to go next.
• It takes time to go to seminars, workshops and regular group meetings.
• It takes time to read up on techniques to build your writing skills, to use them, and to get feedback on how well they worked.
• And of course - it takes time to actually sit down and write!

In writing, as in any field of endeavour, there are far more 'gunnas' than achievers. "I was gunna write for an hour every day, BUT..."; "I was gunna do a chapter this week, BUT..."; "I was gunna go to that seminar, BUT..."

It's far easier to find excuses for not doing something than to get out there and do it. With every excuse, your writing career stalls again. Sure, we all have times when everything that could go wrong does go wrong - but we need to be careful that this enforced 'time out' doesn't stretch from weeks to months, or from months to years.

4. You Need To Invest Energy

An energetic approach to achieving success in your writing career is just as important as spending time and money. You can spend thousands of dollars and you can sit down at the computer for four hours a day seven days a week - but if you don't invest energy then you are diluting the effects of both.

Example #1: You can go to a seminar and sit by yourself the whole time (or nod off because you're bored/tired)... or you can make an effort to talk to other writers; ask questions of the panel; introduce yourself to an agent.

Example #2: You can skim through the posts on an internet discussion list... or you can join in and toss around a few ideas (and get to know the others on the list).

Example #3: You can sit at your desk for 2 hours and write a page, play 10 games of Solitaire, answer your email and chat on the phone to a friend for twenty minutes... or you can write a scene, print it out, read it out loud for pacing, analyse the dialogue, then rewrite it - in short: be proactive about using your writing time.

5. You Need To Surround Yourself With Wise Advisers and Positive People

It has often been said that writing is a lonely occupation. It certainly can be, if all you do is sit in front of the computer for hours on end, lost in your writing world. It's even lonelier if you seem to be the only one who believes that you've got a chance of making something of 'this writing caper'.

Am I saying that it's a bad thing to become really involved in your writing? Not at all - but you do need balance. You also need to surround yourself with the right kind of people to help you move forward - (1) the right advisers and (2) positive people.

Who are the 'right advisers'? People who know something of the world of writing. Usually, these will be other writers or professionals connected with writing: agents, editors, writing centre personnel, and experienced members of writing groups (online and offline).

What about 'positive people'? This is easy. Getting published is hard enough without the doomsayers undermining your confidence. If your family is not supportive, look for others who are. Talk about writing with people who care. Beware of published writers who launch savage attacks on the publishing industry without offering any constructive advice (sometimes they have a hidden agenda).

You love to write. You want to make a living at it. You want to know how to make this a reality - not be told how awful and impossible it all is.

Naturally, you shouldn't close your ears to sage advice. If there's an editor everyone hates dealing with, you want to know about it. If there's a publisher who takes ten months to respond to a manuscript, doesn't take calls and is slow paying contracted authors - you want to know about that too. But overall, mix with positive people. Your enthusiasm and effectiveness will soar.

6. You Need To Plan, Review, and Plan Again

A well-run business reviews its performance regularly. As you invest time, money and energy in your career, stop periodically to review the effectiveness of your strategies. 

• What did you learn from that conference/workshop?
• How much return will you get from your investment in that book on technique or that directory of writers' markets?
• How much difference has your investment in an internet connection made to your knowledge and contacts?
• What is the next step in your career?
• What do you need to invest to take you to the next step?

Plan, review, then plan again. This should be an ongoing process in your campaign to establish yourself as a successful writer!

By employing these 6 high-yield strategies to investing in your career, you'll notice a definite change in your attitude and your results.

Does this approach work?

Well, for over a decade now I've had a career based solely on writing and writing-related activities. It pays well in both satisfaction and dollars. I've always invested time, money and energy in my career. I've tried to surround myself with good advisers and positive people. And yes, I do plan, review then plan again! I'm constantly updating my knowledge, tools and contacts.

These 6 high-yield strategies have worked for countless other writers. They're based on (1) common sense and (2) good business sense.

Give them a try, and watch them work wonders for you.

(c) copyright Marg McAlister

Marg McAlister has published magazine articles, short stories, books for children, ezines, promotional material, sales letters and web content. She has written 5 distance education courses on writing, and her online help for writers is popular all over the world. Sign up for her regular writers' tipsheet at http://www.writing4success.com/

How to Create a Professional Writing or Artistic Portfolio

by Eric Engel -

Up for a job interview? Trying to win over a prospect? Want to show potential clients that you have what it takes as a freelancer?

Pages stapled together (or pieces taped into a leather bound book) won't cut it. Your portfolio says everything about you as an artist. You can't afford to let it look like a hack's job. And the binding says just as much about you as the work itself.

Your Portfolio Should Tell the Story of You

A portfolio should speak for itself. You won't always be there to comment on the work. You may have to leave your portfolio with someone so they can spend more time examining it. In some cases (such as with out-of-town prospects), you may have to mail it to them before they'll even see you.

How to Organize Your Portfolio

Organize your portfolio in some sort of categorical sequence...and each category should have a title page. Most writers and artists prefer to start with 'College Work'. If you have no college work to show, then jump right into the industry or type of creative work. But make sure to include the title for that industry.

You can separate the title page for each category, by trimming a quarter of inch off the rest of the pages. Then (if you have a printer that will print on the edges) print the title on the edge of each title page in your portfolio.

With so many technological advances, there's no reason to glue pieces of your work to the pages. If it's an electronic publication, simply cut and paste into whatever software you're using to print it out (more about software later). If you want to show the printed work, scan it and paste it in as a graphic.

The printed pages from your computer are easier to manage, won't fall out, and easier for your prospects to page through. The last thing you want your prospects to worry about is losing scraps of paper that fall out while they're trying to get a good look at your work. If you don't have a color printer, save everything to a file and find a local print shop that will do the work for you. It's an added expense, but it's well worth the money.

What Kind of Software to Use

The software you use largely depends on what kind of software you can afford (and your ability to learn software). If you're a computer graphic designer, then you probably already know what to use. For writers, Microsoft Word will work...but it would be easier to make a really outstanding portfolio with Microsoft Publisher. Publisher would make it easier to use graphics, colors, and text windows.

Adobe InDesign is great for a multi-page document, and you can easily import work from other programs. It also gives you more control over the sizes of what you import. So your portfolio can have extended pages for the titles. Adobe products are generally more expensive and harder to learn. Corel has several more affordable options.

The Final Portfolio Touches

Whether you're a writer or an artist, the little details will mean a lot to your prospects. Again, using a standard 8 ½ x 11 booklet will make it easier for the prospects to look through your portfolio. It also makes it easier to mail your portfolio to and from prospects.

It's permissible to include an electronic version of your portfolio (either online or by CD), but prospects still need a hard copy to look at. Even for animated graphics, using screen shots arranged in a timeline will impress them more than directing them to a website.

Sports Writing As a Career Job by Charles Nocis

Being a sports writer is a lucrative job for many people. Sports journalism is there in forms of many things. The media is teeming with sports channels. Be it the magazines, sports newspapers, news, dedicated sports channels, and in today's world, the traditional forms of old media is overtaken and supplemented by new media channels like websites and other forms of net based applications and software. For e.g., the there are groups dedicated to sports in Facebook where people can post their reviews and critiques. The sports writing scenario is the new career option in town. Annually, sports aficionados are boosted by ambition and dreams of success and competence to take up sports writing as their career tenure plan. In today's age of intense competition, you have to excel in everything to survive; therefore, in order to really make it out there, you have to be good in what you do. The question we ask ourselves is: so what does it take to take up sports writing as a job and career? Do you just need a good knowledge in English or a better knowledge in sports? If you are thinking about taking your sports knowledge and writing capabilities to the next level, but you are uncertain then there are a few pointers that can help you.

As said earlier, in today's age, you have to excel at what you do to make it big and in order to excel at being a sports writer, you have to be a passionate lover of sports. This fact has been tested proven by many writers and critics alike. Only through loving what you do can you truly give it your best to do the best. Having a general knowledge about sports is a must. Most sports writers may face difficulties in the beginning as they may be entitled to cover a story in which they have no idea about. In these kinds of situations, the sport writer must conduct extensive research and immerse himself in what he does. In order to cover a game, the final day is not the only day in your interest but every day till the finals as well. You must even attend the practice sessions to understand the game, the players, the chemistry and the focal points truly in depth. You must be capable of being critical and always open to possibilities of learning new things.

You may have the talent and motivation of passion, but if you truly want to reach the sky, building up your sources and contacts is the best way to take thing up a notch. In order to furnish people with interesting stories, you need to have the sources of the stories. The sources you build up must range from a wide variety. You need to have a different thread for each type of story. Thus to sum up, taking up a sports writing job is good as long as you excel and love what you do with the properly built contacts.

A professional copywriter is one that can provide you with the best copywriting, content writing and creative writing services. You need to ensure that your website can have content that would grab the attention of your users. Through such content writing, you can be sure that your website would have its desired content made available. I have been a professional content writer for many years and today I wish to share some of my information with others. The fact that such knowledge is extremely vital to share means that you have to completely certain of your wordings and just what exactly you wish to speak out. Contact me if you wish to have any further information on effective content writing services.

Technical Writing Career Training Opportunities

Students can enroll in a number of accredited vocational training programs in order to gain an education in technical writing. Professionals in this field are trained to translate technical and scientific languages into a simple language that people can understand. Students can work for a variety of companies once they have obtained an accredited degree in the field. Students have the opportunity to train for an exciting career in technical writing by enrolling in a bachelor's degree program.

Training can include obtaining a certificate or bachelors degree in technical writing. Students can choose to complete anywhere from six months to four years of educational training. With an accredited education in technical writing students can learn a number of skills needed to enter into the workforce.

Learn to write assembly instructions for various products.
Train in writing user manuals for electronics and more.
Gain knowledge in writing internet content for various websites.
Learn to write training manuals for employers and companies.
Train for careers producing reports for various companies.
Learn to write policies and procedures to be used by organizations.
With an education in this field students will gain the knowledge and skills they need to seek employment in a variety of areas. Accredited vocational schools allow students to train for the career they desire.

Coursework will vary by program, desired career area, and vocational school of attendance. Students can study a variety of subjects that relate to technical writing including subjects of study such as:

Print Production
Web Site Design
Content Management
Computer Programming
Scientific Writing
Technical Communication
...and many other related courses. Depending on the level of education and career desired studies can also include:
Web Site Publishing
Math
Technical Editing
Scientific Communication
Visual Media
User Interface Lay-Out
...and much more. Students who choose to train in this field will gain the skills and knowledge needed to enter into their desired career in technical writing.
Career training will allow students to pursue a variety of positions with a number of companies. Accredited training can provide students with the opportunity to enter into careers working with:

Newspapers
Broadcasters
Book Publishers
Radio
Magazines
Television
...and much more. Students who earn a certificate or degree in this field can seek out employment in:

Manufacturing
Aerospace
Software
Telecommunications
Electronics
Computer
...and many other areas. Accredited vocational schools prepare students for entrance into the career of their dreams in technical writing.

By enrolling in an accredited technical training program students can gain the training needed to pursue the career of their dreams. Accrediting agencies like the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (www.acics.org) are approved to fully accredit qualifying vocational training programs. Students can learn more about the education of their choice by requesting more information about available programs. Start the path to an exciting career by enrolling in a technical writing program today.

DISCLAIMER: Above is a GENERIC OUTLINE and may or may not depict precise methods, courses and/or focuses related to ANY ONE specific school(s) that may or may not be advertised at PETAP.org.

Copyright 2010 - All rights reserved by PETAP.org.

Renata McGee is a staff writer for PETAP.org. Locate Technical Writing Schools and Colleges as well as Online Technical Writing Schools at PETAP.org, your Partners in Education and Tuition Assistance Programs.

How to Begin a Career in Freelance Writing by Contel Bradford

While freelancing is not a new market by any means, it has grown immensely due in large part to the popularity of the internet. Thanks to its partner in crime the web, the internet is able to offer golden opportunities for writers, photographers, designers, and just about anyone with the desire to indulge in freelancing from the comfort of their own home. Since writing is the focus here, this article will explain what you need to do in order to begin a career as a freelance writer.

Create Your Portfolio

No matter how skilled you are as a writer, few clients will feel comfortable hiring you without some credentials to back you up. Don't worry, acquiring the credentials you need for potential clients to take you serious is as simple as building a good portfolio. Write up a few good articles, and publish them on free content sites such as Yahoo's Associated Content, Helium, and Hub Pages. Not only are these sites great for building a portfolio, but they also receive a lot of traffic, which could draw more eyes to your work, and possibly attract some clients as well.

Start Looking for Writing Gigs

Once you have a good portfolio, it is time to go out and find yourself some freelance writing gigs. This part can be a bit intimating at first, but trust me, it is much easier than you think. So where do you go to look for gigs? Your friendly search engine of course. Remember, this is the internet - the virtual land of opportunity. A simple search for "freelance writing jobs" will yield tons of relevant results that can point you in the direction of your first gig. The most important aspect of the job seeking process is your application. In order to beat out the dozens to hundreds of potential candidates, you must be clear and concise on why you are the man (or woman) for the job.

Build Your Website

Although a portfolio on the aforementioned content publishing sites is enough to get you started, you will eventually need your own website to make an impact as a freelance writer. Trust me, this is for the best. Having your own site makes you look more credible, professional, and will cause potential clients to take you more seriously. More than likely, you will need a web hosting service provider to deliver all the tools and technology to actually create your site. This is another process in itself, but for now, I recommend going with either HostGator or LunarPages. These are two dependable companies that will take care of you and provide everything you need to create a professional website for your new freelance business.

Good Luck!

You need the skill as a writer of course, but with that intact, this is all it takes to start a career in freelancing writing. The internet and its infinite resources makes it a heck of a lot easier than in past times. So what are you waiting for? Get out there, and start building your freelance writing business!

Contel Bradford is a seasoned freelance writer, journalist, and author of multiple books, including The iPod & iTunes Handbook. Though he specializes in numerous areas, Contel truly excels in the field of technology, well versed in topics that range from cloud computing and virtualization to email marketing and digital advertising.

During his tenor, he has produced content for some of the top internet brands in their respective fields. Some of his clients include Associated Content From Yahoo!, Benchmark Email, and Digital Media Buzz to name a few.

To learn more about Contel's professional services, please visit his website at http://ContelBradford.com

Are You Sabotaging Your Writing Career Goals? by Sharon Hurley Hall

It's often easier to state your planned goals for your freelance writing career than to actually achieve them. Sometimes we spend so much time worrying about results that we forget to actually do something. You may have set yourself the goal of earning more money from freelance writing this year, but how many of the things you do with your time actually help you achieve those goals? Are you bogged down in the day to day activities you need to earn a living, while the activities that will help you meet longer term goals go undone?

Many people look for balance in their lives and what that means may be different for everyone. For writers, it may mean having time for themselves, their children and their family, having well paid writing work and having enough spare time to work on those pet writing projects that don't actually pay the bills - not yet, anyway. So how do you get to a point where you achieve what you want and stop sabotaging yourself?

First of all, be clear about what those goals are. You're the only one who knows what balance looks like for you and what your dream future will be. Dream big - and who knows what you will achieve?

Next, think about how to make these goals a reality. For many writers, it might mean carving out some time once a week to work on those pet projects. For others, it might be a question of having time to think and plan - time when you are not working on something else. For still others, it might mean setting aside time to chase higher paying work. Only you will know what you can do.

Once you make your decision, break each of these goals into little steps that you can achieve and set aside some time to do them. For example, you might commit to sending an extra query every day for a job that pays double your standard rate. You don't have to go for all the goals at once. It's probably less stressful to try to achieve balance gradually.

Finally, be positive about what you can achieve. Think back to when you started your writing career. Haven't you come a long way since then? We all progress, though sometimes we forget to take note of it, so in another year, you'll have achieved some of your goals and will be working on the next ones.

Kick start your writing career with straight talk about freelance writing and FREE resources from Get Paid To Write Online.

Is Fear Keeping You From Writing Career Success? by Sharon Hurley Hall

So you want to have a successful writing career. It can be a tough decision to make. Some people start writing, stop, then come back to it because they suddenly realize how much they love it. Others skirt around it doing other things and leaving it as something they do part time. It's not so easy to make the decision to become a freelance writer. There are lots of reasons why you might be afraid to take the plunge. If you've been writing in your spare time and have never shown your writing to anyone, you might lack confidence. That's normal, especially for fiction and poetry writers.

Fear Of Being Unable To Write

Many people think that they can't write. They think that no-one would actually pay them because their writing is no good. Ironically, some of these people make the best writers. Writing skills can be learned, and willingness to learn will take you a long way. A good way to address this fear is to take a writing course - you'll soon find out whether your skills are up to the mark.

Income Fears

For others, the barrier is the fear of being broke. If you're making an essential contribution to your household income, then this is a very real fear. The answer to this is to sacrifice some of your spare time and start doing paid writing work on evenings and weekends. Many successful writers have started this way. There will come a time when you have so much work that you begin to think about freelancing full time. However, since freelance writing is seasonal, there's no guarantee that you will earn the same amount every month, so that stops some people from taking the plunge.

Moving Beyond The Fear

In the end, you will become a full time writer when the fear of not doing it outweighs your fears about being broke or being a poor writer. As you submit more and more work and win more and more gigs, you will build confidence and you will soon find out that you can write. More importantly, you will find out what your writing strengths are, and build on them so that you can attract the paying clients that you need. This is a sensible time to take the plunge into a freelance writing career.

This is the only way to find out if you have what it takes to build a successful writing career. Take a gamble on yourself. If you're right, you will soon have more work than you can handle and you won't be afraid to call yourself a writer.

Kick start your writing career with straight talk about freelance writing and FREE resources from Get Paid To Write Online.

Enrollment Options for Technical Writing Career Training by Renata McGee

Many industries like law and medical research present readers with hard to understand subject matter. In order to convey documents in a simplified form professionals are used. Students have several higher education enrollment options to choose from in technical writing.

The goal is to take different writings such as reports, manuals, research briefs, and more and make it understandable to the consumer. Typically, consumers are employees or individuals that need information on a particular subject for a variety of reasons. Translating complex topics into readable documents takes a certain level of understanding on how to manipulate words and edit at a high level of proficiency. Programs are available at the certificate and associate's degree level, which are offered by vocational colleges.

The techniques used to convey technological and scientific information in a simple format are learned inside certificate programs. Students learn to utilize research and editing techniques to create understandable products. Computer programs and web skills are focused on because technical writers use technology consistently inside their career. Training prepares students to take intricate facts and rewrite them in an interesting and readable way to create assembly instructions, user guides, pamphlets, and more. Common course subjects include:

*Technical Concepts

Training develops the technical knowledge and skills of students by having them examine database interfaces, programming languages, network protocols, and more. Through the study of these areas students become highly comfortable using desktop publishing tools and graphic user interface procedures.

*Technical Editing

Programs explore the necessary rules and guidelines used when rewriting documents by teaching students proper editing techniques. Training focuses on writing for companies online and in print. The mechanics of writing and editing is explored through several topics like style guides.

Continuing education or beginning training at the associate's degree level gives students a wide skill set and more time to develop their writing style. Coursework dives right into teaching students about designing materials and editing practices. Course topics train students to make written material understandable to its intended audience. Students learn to create documents such as press releases, memos, websites, and much more by working on multiple writing assignments throughout their time spent in school. Common courses that develop these skills could include:

*Writing for the Web

The style and audience online is different than those that read traditional forms of media. Students learn to incorporate techniques that make their writing more Internet savvy. This type of course also focuses on reading and critiquing online writing.

*Usability Principles

User-centered design is studied to develop technical writing skills. Students learn to make decisions based on the objective, mission, and environment that their writing will be read in.

Students that want to pursue further education can enter bachelor's and master's degree programs. These program levels train students to enter specific areas of the industry such as government, technology, and business. Education focuses on building the skills needed to succeed. Students should complete accredited technical writing training programs and enter the industry prepared. Agencies like the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools ( http://www.acics.org/ ) can accredit programs that offer the best quality career training.

DISCLAIMER: Above is a GENERIC OUTLINE and may or may not depict precise methods, courses and/or focuses related to ANY ONE specific school(s) that may or may not be advertised at PETAP.org.

Copyright 2010 - All rights reserved by PETAP.org.

Renata McGee is a staff writer for PETAP.org. Locate Technical Writing Schools and Colleges as well as Online Technical Writing Schools and Colleges at PETAP.org, your Partners in Education and Tuition Assistance Programs.

A Writing Freelance Career - Amateurs Be Forewarned! by Mark Drest

Your writing freelance career has begun, and you are excited to start spinning the myriad of words inside you in order to get that lovely pay-check. If you are an amateur, however, there are several aspects of this job of which you should be fore-warned. A writing freelance career can be a fantastic life, but it can also be incredibly aggravating. Here is what you should know.

Not all job listing sites are run by "the good guys". Unfortunately, like in most other businesses, there are scammers out there. Do your homework prior to accepting a job assignment. Take a peek around writers forums and see if there are complaints about payments or response times from that particular site. Your freelance writing career can not afford to take a hit such as a website simply "disappearing" once your work has been submitted.

Bidding for "blind ads" is a big risk. If the person posting the ad gives no information about him/herself, they may be hiding something.

Don't feel you need to limit your writing to novels or articles. Sure, these are popular avenues for your writing freelance career, but there are SO many more ways you can earn money with your writing! Poetry, copy-writing, editing, technical writing, copy-writing... and more!

Winning any job bid will help your writing freelance career. Amateurs tend to believe this. The truth, however, is that you can do a lot of damage to your "name" if you submit poor quality work due to your lack of knowledge about the particular topic. Bad reviews stick around a long time! It is better to stick to subjects you with which you are very familiar, and submit excellent work.

Like anything worth working for, it helps to be intentional in the steps you take to build your freelance writing career. Follow the advice above, and start writing! Your exciting and potentially lucrative job awaits! IF you know the secrets of finding those high paying writing assignments, you will do well.

If you are content to write for under minimum wage, then your writing freelance career will be quite a challenge. But if you know that you are worth more than that, what you'll find at http://www.writerincome.info will kick your writing freelance career to the next level!

Whether making money with freelance writing is a full time career for you or simply a way to bring in some extra, much-needed cash, learning about how the to find the high-paying gigs will be well worth the time spent. Check out Writing Jobs Online and start to your freelance writing career on the right foot!

How to Start Your Freelance Writing Career by Charlene Sampilo

Just like every facet in life, you need hard work, determination and patience to become successful in anything you do. This goes the same if you want to be a freelance writer. The word "freelance" in itself connotes independence. It means you are in control of your career especially in the field of writing. One typical myth most people believed when it comes to freelance writing is that it is a very "easy" job. The hard core truth is there is no easy money. Everyone has to work really hard to achieve the income they wish to have. In fact, the underlying concept of freelance job is the more you work, the higher you are paid. More people are now turning to freelance work because of the many benefits it brings especially if the skill involves writing; yet, it also means investing time, effort and the right attitude to become successful.

Here are some of the steps you need to take if you want to become a freelance writer.

Enhance your Skills

Before you get your first job, you first have to enhance your God-given skills. You need to have the passion to write. Along with this, there are so many other things to learn when it comes to the art of writing. Correct grammar and punctuations, as well as, great command in English are a must. An effective way to enhance your writing is to practice every day. This is the reason why it is commended that you should maintain a blog site where you can continually write as this will hone your abilities.

Write Articles Regularly

Websites in the Internet like Helium, EzineArticles, and eHow are just some venues where you can be a regular contributor. Through these sites you get the exposure you need as a writer. Each site has guidelines and trainings that aim to help in improving your writing skills-grab them. They also have wonderful ways of generating traffic to your articles that will surely benefit you as the author.

Resume, Qualification and Outsourcing Job Websites

Now that you are ready, you can start by making your resume with more emphasis on your qualifications as a writer. You can register for free at the many different outsourcing job websites available in the Internet that can market you as a writer. In these sites are several tests available that you need to pass so that your skills will be promoted effectively. As a novice in this field, it can be quite overwhelming (and sometimes frustrating) seeing so many much experienced writers vying for jobs. Always remember though, everyone started like you-a beginner. There is someone out there who will certainly give you the break you need that will land you on your first job. You just have to be patient and determined.

With your first writing job you need to always keep in mind that even if you don't see your client, it is vitally important to show sincerity, honesty and hard work. Work online is so vast the moment your clients are satisfied with your performance, they will always come back for more. One of the greatest benefit as a freelance writer is the chance to continually improve your skills. The more work you get, the more you learn the secret of the trade. Sometimes it takes years to become a successful freelance writer but the job satisfaction is worth all the hard work.

Charlene is a freelance writer who writes on various niches especially in regards to health, food/cooking, family and relationships, self help and self improvement. To avail of her writing services, you can contact her at lynne.sampilo@hotmail.ph. To know more about the writer, you can visit her personal website: http://lynnesampilo.wordpress.com

The Benefits of A Writing Career

Writing is a career and a profession. Writing is not as difficult as it seems to many people.Anyone can write no matter his level of qualification,specialization or educational background. As long as one can write a letter,that person can write and convert his writing skills to a money making activity if he can set his mind and energies to it.

However,writing requires focus and determination. To be able to write,you must endeavor to write everyday no matter how little and the ideas will continue to flow like a burst water pipe. You need to carry a pen and notepad around and write down ideas that pop up.

The qualifications of a writer


What qualifies a person to write will depend on his possession of one or more of the following:

1. -Training in a particular field of endeavor
2. -Valuable experience in a particular field of endeavor
3. -A hobby about which ideas can be shared
4. -Having a special interest
5. -Having an uncommon passion or interest about something eg to impact upon lives through writing
6. -Having an extra-ordinary skill,insight or revelation which can be shared.

Everyone has some knowledge that can be released to benefit others but much of the time,the information lies dormant in our minds. People are willing to pay for what the writer knows so long as it solves their problems. The purpose for writing is to be able to solve problems for people.

The benefits of a writing career

1. -Writing gives the writer instant public recognition by bringing him and his works into limelight.
2. -Writing places the writer in the minds of the public as an authority in the area of expertise written about. Though there may be others who are more knowledgeable in that area,the public will prefer to deal with the author who has written on that subject because he has placed himself as an authority.

1. -Through writing,an author records his achievements and contributions to an endeavor for posterity and to add to the body of knowledge which generations coming behind can benefit from.
2. -Writing can create multiple streams of residual income and will continue to generate money for the author without further effort.
3. -Writing enables an author to leave behind a legacy which many generations can tap into to benefit.
4. -It immortalizes an author as people will continue to research his works long after he may have departed into eternity.For example, John Bunyan and William Shakespeare who lived and died about 400 years ago, and who wrote The Pilgrim's Progress and Hamlet respectively are remembered for their works.

The author, Ayodele Adegbulugbe, is a freelance writer who owns http://www.maritalsuccessresource.com

Several Freelancing And Self-employment Opportunities That Are Wide Open

By Scott Bannon

One of the questions I have been asked a lot is what real money making opportunities exist online for someone willing to work hard for honest pay? So, I've spent the past few days talking with some peers who all earn honest livings from their homes to compile this list of opportunities that we all agree are relatively easy to launch and also have high potentials in the current market.

Keep in mind that when I say easy to launch I don't mean any monkey can do it. Each of these requires some minimal skill sets, a willingness to hustle and like any business, a commitment to providing services of value if you want to succeed. What I mean by easy to start is that they require little or no initial financial investment, and little to no special equipment or hardware to get up and running. Basically, opportunities that you can begin from your home quickly.

1) Programming

This is a field that continues to grow. There are many out there who'll say that it's saturated, but my friends and I agree that for anyone who can hustle freelancing jobs and stays current with the trends and needs of potential clients as the web and software needs evolve there is huge rewards available.

Obviously, this requires programming knowledge. The best programmers often tend to master a single programming language and style/type of development.

One risk with this field that a lot of new or young programmers fail to recognize is low end market places. Avoid bidding for jobs in these large flea-market environments at all costs. You'll waste tons of time competing on price points, and ultimately under-value yourself. There are better options, with more realistic pay scales out there, you just have to invest the time in finding them.

Another idea that's worked well for quite a few programmers, is to develop software (either for the web or for PC based application) as Open Source that has a mass appeal and need in the market, and then provide support services and add-on modules or programs for pay.

It's a myth that Open Source means completely free. If you create a good program, you can provide the core of it as Open Source and build a viable commercial business around supporting it.

2) Data Conversion

Here's an area that seems to be opening up by the day online. Old web sites which often began using plain text, flat-file databasing are everywhere. Many who own and run them have begun to realize the benefits in converting their outdated databases into MySQL or other platforms, however lack the knowledge or time to do it themselves.

For aggressive go-getters with the ability to perform such conversions there is a wealth of business available right now, and it only looks to increase for the near future.

If you're also a talented programmer, you can combine this service with assisting clients in updating their web pages to utilize the newer database model as well for additional revenue. Plus, being able to provide the "full service" to potential clients will likely land you more jobs.

3) Blog Transcription Service

Here's a neat idea that came up in our conversations this week and still has me thinking I'd love to use a service like this myself.

There are a zillion (give or take) bloggers online now, and many of them do it for fun. However, many use their blogs for professional reasons and view it as a work chore that pulls them from other duties rather than an exciting way to spend time each day.

For these people, a service that allowed them to phone in their daily postings, which would then be typed out and sent by email to the accepting address of their blog for email-posting (which most blog software provides for) while they are on the go or between meetings could be very popular.

With the low-costs of setting up a toll-free phone number, and many of these services offer free voice-mail with the number as well, you could easily charge on a per post, weekly or monthly basis and make a nice income transcribing client's voice messages into blog postings for them.

I'm not advocating on behalf of any specific service, but some like Kall8 offer toll-free numbers with voice mail for under $5 per month (at the time of this writing). When someone calls and leaves a message, it gets sent to you by email as an audio file, making it perfect for use in this kind of service. As I said, I'm not endorsing Kall8, there are others who offer the same type of service, I only named them as an example of how little the overhead could be to start something like this.

4) Web Development

While this one may seem obvious and saturated, where my friends and I agreed that there is still a large market available is in assisting small and medium size businesses in your area to expand their brick-n-mortar operations online.

Depending on the business, this can be anything from a single page site that explains the business and provides contact information to full-scale ecommerce applications.

The opportunities for someone doing this are everywhere. One example that came up was from my friend Mike who recently had car trouble. He was stuck on the shoulder of a busy highway and couldn't get cell service when a tow-truck passing by pulled over to offer him assistance.

The guy offered to tow him free to a gas station at the next exit, or for a fee to anywhere else. My friend paid to have his car towed home, and during the ride discussed business with the driver.

By the time they got to Mike's house, Mike had convinced the guy to have a single page web site created, that was optimized for his coverage area. Mike charged the driver $85 to create the optimized page, and a $25 monthly fee to host and maintain it for him. This service includes submitting it to the search engines and various directories, and updating those submissions on a regular basis.

This was several months ago, but Mike says the last time he spoke with the driver he was getting at least 1 additional job call per day thanks to that single page web site, so I'm sure he's happy to have pulled over that day to help Mike out.

In any given area, there are hundreds, or even thousands of small and medium size businesses which aren't online. If you have the technical skills to build a web site, and the marketing skills to go find these opportunities in your area this is a viable business to begin.

...

I hope some of this helps you. One common element that all of these opportunities has is that they require a desire to work and a commitment to providing a valuable service to your clients.

None of these are "get rich quick" ideas. I don't believe in those and will never endorse them on my site. I believe in an honest day's pay for an honest day's work, and so should you if you intend to build a business of your own.

About the author: Scott Bannon earned his first online revenue in 1995 and has made a full time living online since 2000. Get valuable advice and tips from Scott's free blog for webmasters, O`Bannon's Leap, where he chronicles the ongoing leap of becoming a webpreneur.

Choose Your Platform Carefully Before Launching a Social Media Campaign

Despite the numerous benefits that businesses can get from social media marketing, such as increased referrals, low-cost lead generation and valuable feedback, social media agency Punch is warning companies not to jump onto the bandwagon without first considering which social media platform is right for them.

Rather than joining Twitter or Facebook for the simple reason that everyone else is, Punch recommends that companies first discover exactly where their target customers congregate online, and then develop a strategy for communicating with them through utilising social media.

To emphasize the fact that there is more to social media than Facebook and Twitter, the Social Media Agency has highlighted three other social media platforms that might help companies to achieve their goals more effectively:

B2B Networks -- popular B2B social networking sites like LinkedIn and Ecademy might prove to be far more effective than Twitter or Facebook for some companies. Such sites offer a more business-focused style of networking, allowing a user to make useful connections with key players in their industry and focus on developing relationships in a more professional environment.

Forums -- by providing a constructive and valuable contribution to forums through offering expert advice and information, a company can quickly boost its reputation online and become a go-to resource whenever potential customers have a query.

Blogging -- one of the best ways to develop a strong online community and build up a brand's reputation as an authority resource is to launch a corporate blog. The good thing about a blog is that it can work perfectly well on its own as well as alongside other social media channels.

Pete Goold, the Managing Director of SEO Agency Punch Communications, highlighted the fact that social media is never a one-size-fits-all solution:

"Whereas some companies choose to focus on one social media platform, others use a number of them together and then integrate them through cross promotion, such as by highlighting their new blog posts in their social networks. The important thing is that companies take the time to work out where they should be focusing their efforts instead of just following the crowd because the ideal solution will vary from company to company."

Freelance Writing Career - Everyone Wants a Specialist Writer

By Angela Booth

Want an easy way to build your freelance writing career? Here it is. Specialize. When you become known as an expert writer in a topic or an area, editors come to you and give you commissions. The areas you can specialize in are unlimited.

In this article we'll discuss areas you could specialize in, but here's the big tip: specialize in an area you're passionate about. Your own deep interest makes research easy, because you're "researching" anyway. It also means that your enthusiasm comes through in your tone, which makes your writing highly readable.

I started writing for computer magazines some 20 years ago, and I'm still writing for them today. Once you become known for specializing in an area, you'll get writing jobs, and will keep them for a long time. This cuts down on the biggest time waster of a freelance writer's career - job hunting.

So let's look at three ways you can find areas in which to specialize.

1. Write about your life-stage or lifestyle

Whatever life stage you're in, or lifestyle you have, you can write about it.

For example, if you're in college, write about it. On the other end of the time line, if you're a retiree, write about that. Every life stage has unique challenges and concerns which provide rich material for a writer who's experiencing them.

Writing about lifestyles will never go out of fashion either. Lifestyle writing includes not only "home" and real estate writing, but also milestone writing - weddings, and so on.

Lifestyle writing also includes health issues: dieting, and health challenges like arthritis and cancer.

If you're a new parent, or are home schooling children, those are prime areas for specialization - until your children grow older of course.

This is the thing about life stage and lifestyle writing: write about them when you can. You've got rich material all around you. Once this period of your life is over, you won't have the interest in writing about it.

2. Write about your job's industry

Your job is part of an industry. It may be the health or the financial services industry. Whatever industry it is, you can write about it. (Always remembering not to reveal proprietary information.)

Make the most of the contacts and the information your day job brings you, and write about your industry.

Keep a notebook to help you to find ideas for article topics.

3. Write and make fun profitable

You can make your fun activities profitable. You can write about travel, wine, antiques - anything fun-related, which other people are interested in too.

How to Specialize: Just Write About the Area

Specializing is easy. Just start writing about an area, and keep writing about it. You'll soon discover whether specializing in an area is for you, or not.

Many writers hit their specialist topic by accident. An editor asks them to write about a topic, and then asks for more material. Before you know it, you're a specialist.

The benefits of specialization are many: writing jobs come to you, you can charge more because of your expert status, you may find book publishers approaching you with ideas - everyone loves a specialist.

Start thinking about the areas in which you could specialize today - your writing income will improve, and so will your status as a writer.

Discover how easy it is to make money freelance writing with Angela Booth's "Sell Your Writing Online NOW" Training Program at http://sellwritingnow.com/Home/training.html The program is fun and profitable too. There's a full year of lessons and assignments:"Sell Your Writing Online NOW" helps you to earn while you learn, even as a brand new writer.

For free weekly writing information sent to your Inbox, subscribe to Angela's Fab Freelance Writing Ezine at [http://fabfreelancewriting.com/ezine/fab-freelance-writing-ezine.html] and receive "Write And Sell Your Writing: The Power-Write Report" immediately.

How to Make Money Online by Freelancing by Mika Hamilton

Money is always welcome. No matter how much we earn, our income always falls short of our expenditure. The rising cost of living and materialistic approach towards life can be attributed to this human tendency. People are continuously on the lookout of finding ways of making more money. The internet has to some extent solved this problem by opening up various options of money making. It has to offer something to everyone irrespective of their age, gender, or locality. It is possible to work online for companies which may be situated thousands of miles away from us.

Every day, thousands of companies are being launched. Most of these companies have an official website. There is lot to be done online to keep the websites updated and to attract the customers. They need people to work for them online. Although, they have a salaried staff to work for them, but at times their requirements are so huge that they need extra manpower. Moreover, the payment and maintenance of in-house employees is quite high. Hence, the companies are now keener on outsourcing the jobs. They float their advertisements online to hire freelancers. These freelancers are paid per project. This works well with the employers as the cost involved here is far less than what they would have to incur if they officially employed the staff. It also serves as a good opportunity for freelancers who want to supplement their existing incomes.

Freelancers are required to write articles for various websites. There is also a great demand for web designers, graphic designers, and banner makers etc. There is no paucity of work; if one wants to take up a freelancing job. There are many well-known websites which help you to obtain freelancing assignments. You can register free in these websites. There are many freelancing jobs listed here. You can choose jobs which suit your expertise best. You will have to bid on these jobs. If you are selected by the provider then you will have to complete the assignment in the given time period. The website may charge you a small commission for using its services. If the provider is happy with your work then he may hire you for further projects as well.

Freelancing is a very good online tool for making money. If you have the patience and are ready to put in a few hours of hard work; then you are bound to make some good money through it.

If you are ready to learn how to make money on the internet, visit our website at http://www.101waystomakemoney.com