Yet Another Guest Post
I really didn’t plan it this way, folks. My editors make these decisions, you see.
I’ve got another guest post for you.
Today’s guest post is over at Freelance Switch. This is a test run of sorts, and if it works out you might get to see me over there more often!
So, for the 2nd day in a row, I’m sending you away from my blog:
Ah, well. C’mon back on Friday, I’ll have something just for you all right back here.
The Violent Truth of Opportunity
Opportunities aren’t just made; they’re painstakingly crafted. See what I mean at today’s Freelance Folder guest post: The Violent Truth of Opportunity. I’m particularly proud of this one, so give it a look, won’t you?
Working Hard for YOU, 24 x 7
Hi folks. Happy Niebuday!
Just wanted to give you an update on the Helium Report. I’m putting the finishing touches on the report today, and will post it late tonight or, more likely, some time tomorrow. I’ve discovered that I have a lot more to say about Helium than I thought at first. The word count is over 5,000 at this point! I’m thrilled to be passing along so much good info.
While you’re waiting, make sure to check out a couple of my favorite posts from the last few days. Some are useful, some not so much. I’ll let you decide which are which:
Should You Specialize in Website Content?
Chris Brogan: est Social Media Advice From This Site
How to Get More Freelancing Work from Your Writing
I Am Not Useful. (And Why You Should Be Cool With That)
Should You Tattle On A Bad Client?
5 Tips to Grow Your Twitter Presence
How To Stop Regretting The Past And Start Building Your Future
Are You Cut Out for Freelance Writing?
Have an awesome day, folks!
How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer - Review
Overview
For months now, I’ve seen the button and banner ads for How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer. To be honest, I assumed that I really didn’t need the book. The fact is, I was (and still am) already wildly successful in my freelance career. While I love reading Freelance Switch as much as anyone, I assumed that the book would be must a re-hashing of what I’d already read there and elsewhere. But, curiosity finally got the best of me, so I decided to check it out. Here are my thoughts, for what they’re worth.
For Experienced Freelancers
In many ways, I was right. How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer didn’t teach me anything I didn’t already know from five years in the field. It did, however, reminded me of some of the basic lessons I’ve learned in that five years. I can’t say I’d recommend How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer to anyone who’s been at the Freelance business for more than a year or two (unless your business is in the tank, in which case you might give it a read). If you’re already a successful freelancer, it is a good read and a pleasant reminder of the basics, but your $30 would probably be better spent elsewhere.
For New Freelancers
If you’re just getting started out as a freelancer, How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer will give you more than what you need to jump-start your freelancing career. If I had this book when I first started freelancing, I probably could have saved a good year’s worth of headaches, and would be a full year closer to realizing my ultimate dream of writing solely for myself. If you haven’t yet taken the freelancing plunge, How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer can help provide you with an accurate picture of the field and the lifestyle so that you can decide if it’s for you.
From practical issues like setting up your workspace to big ideas like branding, the folks at Freelance Switch offer up a ton of useful information. There’s information about how to figure your hourly rates, how to increase your rates over time, getting leads, managing clients, marketing, and subcontracting.
What’s Not There
I’d like to have seen more Information on Internet-specific writing and marketing. How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer is probably just slightly more useful for the print freelancer than the Internet freelancer, although both can benefit. To be sure, Internet writing is my thing, so I’m partial to seeing this sort of content.
Where It Excels
How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer is awesome at providing the basic principles from which you must operate to be successful as a freelancer. What How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer lacks in tactics and small-picture questions (although there is quite a bit of minutia there) it more than makes up for in strategy and big-picture ideas.
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Overall, I give it a 9.5/10 for new freelancers, and a 7/10 for those who’ve been at it for more than a couple of years. Oh, and yes, by way of disclosure, it’s an affiliate link. You buy it, I get a pittance 
178 Ways to Improve Your Internet Writing
We talk all of the time about writing well. We talk about how it’s important to master the language, to write with feeling, to be compelling in our prose. Yet these generalities all too often fail to give us practical ways to achieve those goals.
What follows is a list of writing tips I’ve compiled, over time, for my own use. Now, they’re yours as well. Master all 178 of these tips and you’ll be the best damn writer in your niche:
1. Subscribe to The Writing Journey via RSS or by Email.
2. Take a Comp 101 class at your local community college.
3. Develop your vocabulary by learning 3 new words every day.
4. Buy a huge dictionary, thesaurus and grammar book.
5. Use that dictionary, thesaurus and grammar book every day.
6. Proofread other blogs to practice your editing skills.
7. Swear off using the word “great.”
8. Do the same with “nice.”
9. And “beautiful.”
10. And “wonderful.”
11. And “just.”
12. And “really.”
13. And “quite.”
14. And “that.”
15. Memorize the 8 Internet Writing Mistakes.
16. Avoid them.
17. When your spell-checker finds a misspelled word, write down what it was. Learn to spell that word correctly.
18. Experiment with writing tools like Q10, dictation software or (I know it’s revolutionary) a pencil.
19. Learn to use commas and apostrophes.
20. Stay on topic.
21. Subscribe to and read at least 2 monthly magazines.
22. Read at least one each of fantasy, horror, suspense, crime and romance novels.
23. Read prose frequently.
24. Read your writing out loud after you write it.
25. Turn off spell-check and grammar-check for a week, and check your writing manually.
26. Ask other writers for their advice.
27. Ask other writers for their help.
28. Help other writers, and offer them advice.
29. Practice active voice.
30. clear your writing area of distractions.
31. Write to express, not impress.
32. Connect with other writers.
33. Outline before you write and revise as you go.
34. Practice different writing voices.
35. Learn capitalization rules.
36. Put punctuation inside quotes.
37. Use simple strong verbs.
38. Let your writing sit 24 hours before publishing whenever possible.
39. Avoid superparagraphs.
40. Write interactive dialogue.
41. Join a peer writing group.
42. Submit writing to a peer-reviewed journal or website.
43. Read your writing in reverse.
44. Cut or replace words, don’t add.
45. Learn the rules of logic.
46. Use them in your argument.
47. Learn the names of 23 different colors.
48. Aim to write at an 8th-grade reading level.
49. Fail in your writing, but learn from your failure.
50. Avoid redundancy.
51. Don’t write the same thing twice.
52. Learn and defeat the 7 Deadly Fears of Writing.
53. Use transitions.
54. Practice clarity.
55. Brainstorm frequently.
56. Watch spacing.
57. Use strong verbs when appropriate.
58. Use cliffhangers in your prose.
59. Learn comma rules and use them.
60. Write your own life story.
61. Write your own life story from the perspective of your left ear.
62. Take a writing workshop.
63. Get a writing mentor.
64. Brainstorm.
65. Read Hugh MacLeod’s How to be Creative.
66. Hire an editor.
67. Use adverbs sparingly.
68. Practice a conversational tone by writing a conversation about your topic.
69. Don’t write to impress.
70. Eliminate awkward phrases.
71. Write what you know.
72. write what you enjoy.
73. Print out a draft to proofread it.
74. Participate in NaNoWriMo.
75. Be talented.
76. Write to entertain.
77. Follow the rules as often as possible.
78. Avoid cliches.
79. It it isn’t good, get rid of it.
80. Listen to public speeches.
81. Learn another language.
82. Use images effectively.
83. Freewrite.
84. Write first thing in the morning.
85. Write last thing at night.
86. Write first, edit later.
87. Learn what run-on sentences are and avoid them.
88. Write with authority.
89. Wrestle with your writing.
90. Write truthfully.
91. Write some garbage.
92. Stop worrying what others think.
93. Submit your writing until it is published.
94. Write something backward.
95. Listen to real-world conversations to hear how people truly communicate.
96. Don’t use such colorful language that it detracts from your message.
97. Sometimes, write without a message.
98. Watch out for floating body parts.
99. Be consistent in sequence.
100. Be consistent in tense.
101. Read screenplays.
102. Use pronouns clearly.
103. Make subjects and verbs agree.
104. Modify your word order when necessary.
105. Use but don’t overuse alliteration.
106. Watch for wordiness.
107. Avoid vague pronouns.
108. Write with a goal in mind.
109. Consider your reader’s education and expertise.
110. Use headlines.
111. Define specialized terms.
112. Write with standards.
113. Summarize your writing in a sentence or a paragraph.
114. Keep it simple.
115. Use short sentences.
116. Use short paragraphs.
117. Write with confidence.
118. Write with authority.
119. Vary sentence structure.
120. Join professional organizations.
121. Improve your Dialogue.
122. Write poetry.
123. Write a sonnet and a Haiku on the same topic.
124. Show, don’t tell.
125. Be hard on yourself.
126. Write with rhythm.
127. Write with necessary caution.
128. Avoid slang.
129. Avoid abbreviations.
130. Avoid symbols.
131. Use ellipses sparingly.
132. Use apostrophes correctly.
133. Smile when you write.
134. Memorize homonyms.
135. Use section headings.
136. Make an idea web.
137. Cite your sources properly.
138. Stay on topic.
139. Write patiently.
140. Don’t plagiarize.
141. Answer the 5 Ws and the H.
142. Be relevant.
143. Be dedicated.
144. Use an introduction, body and conclusion.
145. Avoid sentimentality for sentimentality’s sake.
146. Sweat the small stuff.
147. Find your own voice.
148. Write real content, not link-bait.
149. Use the semicolon rarely and correctly.
150. Use the colon correctly.
151. Learn the difference between a dash and a hyphen.
152. Understand the difference between parentheses, brackets, and braces.
153. Use the slash correctly.
154. Follow style guidelines.
155. Follow publisher guidelines.
156. Avoid excessive question marks and exclamation points.
157. Avoid weird words.
158. Write joyfully.
159. Verify your sources.
160. Use “its” and “it’s” correctly.
161. Write a 15-word sentence.
162. Write a story using only 3-word sentences.
163. Read daily.
164. Use criticism to your advantage.
165. Write as if you have a deadline.
166. Write in a readable font.
167. Adopt good writing habits.
168. Learn to use “Who” and “Whom.”
169. Write with intention.
170. Use writing prompts.
171. Read Shakespeare.
172. Write with confidence.
173. Avoid using technical terms.
174. Be harsh with your editing.
175. Make an argument in your writing.
176. Be open to criticism.
177. Never quit writing.
178. Ever.
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