WritingThoughts

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Even though I’ve been writing for twenty years now, there are some types of writing projects that I just don’t accept (and some topics I don’t tackle).

While I have broad knowledge of many subjects and specific knowledge in several, the research required to learn some topics makes writing about them impractical.

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One of my writing specialties (in addition to marketing copywriting and technical writing) is blogging. Today, I thought I’d share a few blogging tips with you.

Over the past few years, I’ve blogged professionally at five different blogs (not including the one you’re reading, which I own). During that same period, I’ve literally written hundreds of blog posts.

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So, you want to be a freelance writer–but you don’t quite know how to make it work.

Last week, I discussed the importance of getting started, among other things. If you don’t get started, you won’t succeed as a freelance writer. Of course, that may seem like common sense, but for many would-be writers getting started is an obstacle to overcome.

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I hear a lot of excuses from would-be freelance writers these days. It seems there are a LOT of reasons not to get started as writer.

Well, not writing does NOT make you a freelance writer. So, here are three of those excuses holding back would-be writers and my answer to each of them.

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There seems to be a lot of strong opinion against publishing list posts on blogs. Over and over again, I read complaints from folks who just don’t like to see lists on blogs.

Yet, over at Freelance Folder where I serve as blog editor, list posts are consistently some of our most popular posts. They tend to get more comments and more page views than other posts.

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By John Brook

A cluttered desk might be the sign of a genius, but it could also be a sign of an out of control home based business. As chaos reigns in the office, maintaining a well-organized, well-managed business becomes more difficult.

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Smileyjoanne

I write a lot about writing on this blog. On a regular basis I try to cover each of my three writing specialties: copywriting, technical writing, and blogging.

If you happen to be a writer, you probably find all that talk about writing interesting. If you’re not a writer, though, you might just be a bored by it all.

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So, you want to be a technical writer, but you’re not quite sure where to start?

Technical Writing (more properly known as technical communication) is the process of making complex information easier to understand by using various forms of media such as online help systems, user manuals, training guides, and other means.

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Should you trust that big writing project to a freelance writer or handle it in-house?

The answer is…it depends.

As someone who has been both an in-house writer and a freelance writer, I can look at the question from both sides.

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Who are you writing for?

If you can’t answer that question, you may be in trouble. The reason that a lot of marketing copy, blog posts, and yes, especially technical manuals is ignored is because the author failed to adequately analyze their audience.

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