WritingThoughts

So, for those of us in the U.S., next week is a major holiday.

What are your plans? Do you plan to travel? Do you plan to stay at home? Do you plan to work?

(For us, it’s stay at home with a light workload…)

Check out this post about independent contracting over at Home Biz Notes. Be sure to leave your own thoughts about home business myths on that post, or on this one.

(I’m feeling a bit punchy today, but am I the only one who thinks that there needs to be a MythBuster theme song? Maybe it’s just because it sounds too much like Ghostbusters …)

Contents (c) Copyright 2007, Laura Spencer. All rights reserved

I recently discovered the Wordpreneur blog from Eldon Sarte and I liked it so much that I’ve made it this week’s blog “of note.” The Wordpreneur is a great resource for writers. You’ll find everything from tips to reviews to home business information.

I’ll definitely be back to visit Wordpreneur often.

Last week’s blog “of note” was The Writing Life. You can read more about The Writing Life here.

Note: If you’re consistently posting great information and haven’t seen your blog featured in Of Note yet, I apologize. I’ll probably find you soon. I know there are a lot of great blogs out there; I discover more new ones each day. (So many blogs, so little time.)

Contents (c) Copyright 2007, Laura Spencer. All rights reserved

There are three things currently going on in the blogosphere that might be of interest to writers.

1. Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month). Are you participating? I’m not, for this year at least, but I know that a lot of you are. If this is something that you’re currently taking part in why don’t you leave a comment so that we (the readers and I) can drop by your blog and encourage you.
2. Michael Stelzner’s Writing White Papers blog is looking for the ten best blogs for writers. Stop by and register your own vote, or just check out some of the writing blogs that have been nominated.
3. Robert Hruzek’s Group Writing Project is back at Middle Zone Musings. If you find yourself wondering what to blog about between now and Sunday you just might want to give this a try. It’s also a great way to promote your blog.

Is there something going on at your blog that WritingThoughts readers should know about? Leave a comment.

It’s part of freelancing – the inevitable work slowdown.  For some reason, it often comes at this time of the year, too. I don’t know if it’s because employers are busy with the holidays, or if companies run short on budget at this time of the year.  Anyway, I thought this would be a good topic to discuss today. Here are some tips for getting through the slow times:

1. Save money when you are busy.
2. Use the slow times to market your business.
3. Search for new opportunities.
4. Take a break.

Has your business experienced a slowdown? What are your tips for getting through the slow periods?

Contents (c) Copyright 2007, Laura Spencer. All rights reserved.

In my post about offline writing opportunities I promised to explore some offline methods for finding work. Without actually suggesting that you hang out a neon sign, I managed to come up with a few ideas.

In no particular order, here are some offline marketing suggestions:

• Join a writing society for your specialty. By networking face-too-face, you will meet others in your specialty. There are quite a few writing societies available. I actually blogged about writing societies in this post, What Kind of Writer Are You?
• Use business cards. Pass them out to family, friends, and former colleagues. Make sure all of your acquaintances know about your business.
• Use the telephone directory to find the addresses and phone numbers of small to medium businesses in your area. Create a letter detailing your services. Follow-through with a cold call.
• Contact small, regional publications in your area. Let them know that you are a freelance writer who is willing to provide content from time to time.
• Don’t forget to check the classified ads in the local newspaper for writing jobs.

I know that I must have left at least a few ideas out of this list. I’d love to hear your suggestions for offline marketing of writing services. Why don’t you leave a comment and share what they are?

Contents (c) Copyright 2007, Laura Spencer. All rights reserved.

As you can see, WritingThoughts is in the midst of a design makeover.

Actually, it’s nearly complete — there are a few more things that I’d like to tweak.

Stay tuned for the rest of the discussion about making money offline. I’ll also post the results of where my traffic comes from later this week.

I hope that you like the new look.

Earlier this week I asked the question: Offline versus Online Writing – Which is More Profitable? I was pleased with the discussion that post started, but from the comments I was really surprised to find out that some writers apparently think that the only way to get an offline writing job is to send out query letters.

While it’s true that you need to send out query letters if you want to publish an article in a magazine or have a book published, there are many less glamorous opportunities for writers that don’t require a query letter. I’ve taken the time to list a few of those opportunities here.

Gig Number 1: Public Relations Writer

What it is: Create press releases, media kits, and advertising copy for businesses and organizations.

Who needs this? Small to medium companies, particularly those without a web presence. Non-profit organizations.

Gig Number 2: Newsletter Editor

What it is: Write, edit, and coordinate the production of a weekly, monthly, or quarterly newsletter.

Who needs this? Any organization that still mails a newsletter. Clients can include: small to medium companies, non-profit organizations, community groups, schools and churches, groups of hobbyists, and anyone else who publishes a newsletter.

Gig Number 3: Proposal Writer

What it is: Write and edit sales or grant proposals.

Who needs this? Sales people. Those who submit grant proposals to the government or to charitable foundations.

Gig Number 4: Technical Writer

What it is: Write instructions for products to be included with the product when it ships.

Who needs this? Companies who include paper instructions with their products.

Gig Number 5: Editor/Proofreader

What it is: Edit documents for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. Advanced editing may require content suggestions and/or fact checking.

Who needs this? Other writers. Students. Publishing houses. Companies.

These are just a small sampling of offline jobs available to writers. You won’t get a byline or author credit for most of this work, but you should be able to earn a nice paycheck.

Next week, I’ll list some offline methods for finding writing jobs. In the meantime, feel free to add your own offline writing suggestions in the comments.

Edited to Add: Here is my post about marketing your writing offline.

Contents (c) Copyright 2007, Laura Spencer. All rights reserved.

I thought we could take a break from serious discussions this week and start a discussion instead about Halloween.

Do you celebrate it? If so, how?

Leave a comment and share any fun stuff that you and your family do for Halloween, or just your opinion.

I’ll go first. Typically, we attend an alternative Fall Festival celebration at our church.

Your turn …

Contents (c) Copyright 2007, Laura Spencer. All rights reserved.

For most of my freelance and professional career I’ve done offline writing. Technical manuals, online help systems, training classes, marketing copy, newsletters … these things have been my bread and butter.

Lately, however, I’ve been creating a lot of online materials. Looking around the web, I think that I’m not alone. Yet, in my experience, most online projects pay less than most offline projects. In fact, an online project can pay up to 50% less than an offline project that requires the same or similar effort.

If my experience is typical, why are some many writers moving online?

Of course I can’t speak for every writer, but I think some of the following may answer that question:

• The thrill of learning something new (such as HTML or blogging)
• The seduction of instant online publication at the click of a button
• The feeling that online writing is the future and offline writing is the past
• Every writer’s doing it, so every writer needs an online presence

I’m not disagreeing with any of the above statements, but I wonder if they represent the whole picture.

What is your experience? Am I right? Does offline writing generally pay more? Which type of writing do you do, and why? If you write online, what are your reasons?

Edited to add: Here is a link to my post with offline writing job suggestions.

Contents (c) Copyright 2007, Laura Spencer. All rights reserved.