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What You Need to Know about Writing Product Reviews

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writing product reviews

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Does this look familiar?

Dear Blogger, I recently developed an XYZ app to help bloggers with X. I believe this app would be of interest to your readers. Would you please feature it in a review on your blog?

Okay. That’s a stripped-down version of a typical request for a product review. If you’re a freelance writer and you write for a blog, you’ve probably received a product review request like the one above.

How you handle these requests can make a difference in your freelance writing career. Some writers have even made writing reviews one of their specialties.

In this post, I explore what freelance writers need to know about writing product reviews. I’ll discuss the dilemma that writing a product review can sometimes cause. I’ll touch upon the FTC rules for endorsement. Also, I’ve interviewed two successful long-time writing professionals with differing viewpoints about product reviews. Finally, I’ll list a few pointers for brands that want to approach writers.

While this post specifically deals with product reviews, most of the points also apply to book reviews.
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How to Come Up with Ideas to Write About

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Writers Block

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Are you suffering from writer’s block? Most professional writers and even non-writers, struggle with finding ideas at some point in their career.

Writer’s block is annoying enough when you’re not a professional writer. But if you depend on writing for your livelihood, it’s more than annoying. It can be a career-breaker.

Writers block (or creative block) doesn’t have to slow you down. You can overcome it.

In my experience writer’s block usually means one of several things:

  • You’re stuck. You don’t know what to say next. You may be in the middle of a project or trying to get started. It doesn’t matter. You have no ideas.
  • You don’t feel like writing. No matter what words you put down, they don’t seem to work.

Both types of writer’s block can be equally frustrating if you don’t know how to deal with them.

In this post, I’ll tackle each of these problems. Then I’ll share some more resources to help you overcome writer’s block. For even more types of writer’s block and ideas on how to fix them, review my earlier post on Creative Block.

This post is part of my series on What Is the Worst Problem Freelance Writers Face?

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Dealing with Difficult People as a Freelance Writer

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Difficult-People

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As a freelance writer you work for yourself. That means no more dealing with difficult people, right?

Wrong. As a freelance writer, your people skills are still important.

In this post, I deal with three different types of relationships where you may deal with difficult people. I also provide some tips on how to deal with difficult situations.

This post is a part of my series on the Worst Freelance Writing Problems.

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Freelance Writing Loneliness: You Are Not Alone

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Freelance Writing Loneliness

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No one knows for sure exactly how many freelance writers there are. That’s because new writers “open their doors” for business every day. It’s a sure bet, though, that there are thousands of us.

Even with thousands of fellow freelance writers, many of us feel isolated and alone. Why?

Working from home leaves us vulnerable to loneliness. While other family members trudge off to traditional work or school, many of us remain at home. For most of the day, it’s just us and our computers. No wonder loneliness is a problem for so many of us.

If you’re a freelance writer who is feeling lonely, know that you are not alone. Many other freelance writers have been through the same thing. In this post, I share three groups that you should connect with to help combat loneliness.

This post is part of my series on What Is the Worst Problem Freelance Writers Face?

Caution: If  your feelings of loneliness persist despite everything you do, you may need professional help. Don’t be afraid to turn to a mental health professional if you need to. This post should not be construed as professional mental health advice.

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Ten Freelance Writing Secrets to Managing Your Time

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Time Management

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Freelancing time management.

The very words probably fill most of us with fear or guilt. That’s because most freelance writers struggle with time management at one point or another.

Time management can be a bigger struggle for freelance writers than for those in traditional jobs. Most of us work alone, at home. So there’s no one there to keep us on track.

Also, freelance writing work can be erratic. One week you may have too much to do, the next week barely enough.

In this post, I share a total of ten time management tips. First, I share the six steps I use to manage my own time. Next, I share four more tips on how you can gain better control of your time.

This post is a part of my series on What Is the Worst Problem Freelance Writers Face?

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How to Avoid Scope Creep

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Scope-Creep

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Would you accept a project for one-third of your going rate? How about a project for one-half of your rate?

If you’re like most of us, your answer to these questions is “no.”

No one wants to cut their fee by such drastic percentages.

But if you accept a project without verifying the scope you may be doing just that without knowing it.

Scope creep is a huge problem for freelance writers and it can affect how profitable your writing business is.

Even if you charge by the project, your fees are based on how much effort you expect to put into the project. If you don’t understand how much effort a project will take, you’re likely to under charge.

In this post, I explain why scope creep happens and how to avoid it. I also list some scope creep danger areas for you to beware of. This post is part of my series on What Is the Worst Problem Freelance Writers Face?

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How to Get Paid Enough

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Get-Paid-More

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Do you find yourself busy with freelance writing work, but barely making ends meet?

If your answer is “yes,” you’re not getting paid enough. And you’re not alone. Many freelance writers charge too little for their services.

You may think that you won’t be able to get clients if you don’t charge more for your work. Or you may be working for an organization that doesn’t value your work.

Regardless of the reason, if you’re not getting paid enough to write you should take a hard look at the reasons why. In this post, I’ll do just that. Plus, I’ll share some thoughts on how to avoid low paying gigs.

This post is part of the series, What Is the Worst Problem Freelance Writers Face?

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Getting Clients to Pay for Your Work

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getting-paid

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Many freelancers struggle to collect money that is owed to them. I shudder each time I read about a freelancer who can’t collect the thousands of dollars owed to them. I hate to hear about that happening.

I’ve been fortunate. In over 15 years of freelancing, there’s only been one time I couldn’t collect payment. That one time was from a long-time client that declared bankruptcy. The amount owed me was several hundred dollars.

In this post, I’ll discuss the tricky and important topic of getting clients to pay. There’s no method that is 100% effective at making delinquent clients pay your invoices. But there are some effective steps that I’ve adopted over the years to reduce nonpaying clients. I’ll share four of those steps in this post. I’ll also share an alternate way to get paid that reduces some of the worry.

This post is part of my series on What Is the Worst Problem Freelance Writers Face?

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Finding Work as a Freelance Writer

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Find Freelance Writing Work

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Do you struggle to find work? Do you wonder why other freelance writers always seem busy and you do not? Are you going about finding work the right way?

If you’re struggling to find work, you’re not alone. For many freelance writers, finding work is one of the biggest problems they face. In this post I’ll explore eight methods that freelance writers use to look for work. I’ll share my thoughts about how effective each method is.

This post is part of my series, What Is the Worst Problem Freelance Writers Face? Join us as we explore the other common freelance writing problems over the next few months.

Disclaimer: This post is based on my own thoughts and opinions. Your experiences and opinions may differ. The post also includes a link to an eBook I co-wrote with Carol Tice. If you buy the book I earn a small fee.

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What Is the Worst Problem Freelance Writers Face?

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commonwritingproblems

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If you’re a freelance writer, you know that you’re going to have problems.

I’ve written about this before. I’ve covered problems like fear, writer’s block, and even distractions.

What I’ve noticed over the years is that bloggers and other writers tend to focus on certain problems and ignore others. That got me thinking.

Are there some problems that writers face more often than others?

While I have my opinion, I really don’t know the answer for sure. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter in the comments below. What freelance writing problems do you face most often?

In the meantime, I’m starting a series to address ten common freelancer writer problems. This is the introductory post for that series.

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