How do you pitch a story based on a current event? Pitches tied to news cycles need extra consideration before you send them off; you not only have to prove you can write the story, but also that you can write it before it loses relevance. Let’s look at a pitch based...
Know what’s even better than guest posting on a popular blog? Getting mentioned or featured by a popular blogger, with a link back to your blog. When you have an expert link to you on their blog and say, “Hey, look at this valuable info,” you are golden. No hours of...
To be a successful freelancer, you have to understand money. Being your own boss means negotiating your own rates, tracking your own invoices and managing your own freelance taxes. I’ll be honest with you: The financial side of freelancing can be hard to master,...
About a year ago, I discovered Charlie Gilkey’s concept of a productivity heat map. His idea is to map how productive you are throughout the day to identify your personal productivity hot spots and low points, so you can plan your creative time appropriately. When you...
Linda is giving a lucky reader a copy of her new book, How to Do It All: The Revolutionary Plan to Create a Full, Meaningful Life — While Only Occasionally Wanting to Poke Your Eyes Out With a Sharpie. She’ll pick one commenter on this post at random after one week....
When your book is released, it’s tempting to try to get as many reviews as you can. You hope someone, anyone, will write an all-important Amazon or Goodreads review that will boost sales. But authors and self-publishers who adopt a scattergun approach risk putting...
Sometimes, especially in the early stages of our creative careers, we might be asked to do pro-bono — free — work. Pro-bono requests can come from family members, friends, charities, and other sources. Although it may seem counter-productive to our goal of being...
Rules? Yeah, they’re made to be broken. In the world of writing, blogging and online marketing, there are a lot of rules and best practices shared by experts and novices alike. It can be confusing as a new or even seasoned writer to determine which rules are worth...
As the largest online retailer and likely the most popular place to buy books, Amazon.com can’t be ignored — especially if you’re a writer. By 2011, ebook sales on Amazon had surpassed those of printed books. And with self-publishing on the rise, we can only expect...
My career has changed significantly since this time last year — and my tracking systems need to change as well. This month, let’s look at my freelance tracking spreadsheet to see how I’m adjusting it as my career evolves. First, the numbers for March: Completed...
