Entries Tagged 'Writing Advice' ↓

Why do you write?

This is a question I ask myself on a regular basis. Any activity you spend eight to ten hours a day doing is worth a little bit of reflection, now and again. After all, if I were able to go to a job every day and do tedious and unfulfilling tasks until quitting time, I’d be doing it instead of writing. I left the IT field precisely because I couldn’t find any purpose or joy in what I did.

Still, if freelance writing is to be a suitable replacement for fixing networks, I’ve got to ask myself: Why write?

There are several reasons I write.

I write because I enjoy it.

It’s not the banging on the keyboard itself that I enjoy. It’s the production process. I love watching an idea gestate, grow, and finally be birthed on the screen. No matter that it’s not always my idea; I get to be a midwife of sorts to other people’s ideas. And that’s pretty cool.

I write because I learn in the process.

On a daily basis I get to learn about anything from postpartum depression to how to change your car’s tires to politics.

You see, I’m a student, and I always will be. I went back to school at 32 years old to get my Master’s degree in Humanities. I enjoy learning about nearly any subject I can. In particular, I’m interested in human nature, human history, and the human condition. Writing lets me explore those things in a way that a 9 to 5 job never did.

I write because I want to make a difference.

Not everything I write is especially useful to a large crowd of people. However, if the occasional article on defensive driving helps prevent an accident, or if an article about prenatal vitamins helps convince a pregnant woman about the importance of folic acid, I’m tickled.

Heck, I even like to think I make a difference right here. If something I write inspires someone in their writing career, it’s all worth it to me.

I write because I’m good at it.

I don’t say that to brag or boast. I’m a good writer because I’ve worked diligently to become one. I don’t think I have more innate talent as a writer than the next person. I do think I’ve spent years honing my craft. I’m to the place now where my clients know good work when they see it, and they keep coming back. This means my business continues to grow, and I continue to experience more and more success.

There are more reasons, but I’d rather hear from you than go into them just yet. Maybe they’ll come out in the comments. Tell me, what about you? Why do you write?

photo credit: rachaelvoorhees

***UPDATE FOR AUGUST 2, 2008: I HAVE JUST TWO COACHING SPOTS LEFT FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST. SIGN UP NOW TO START OR REJUVINATE YOUR FREELANCE WRITING CAREER!***

photo credit: skippy13

It’s no secret that I plan to open a writer mentoring program in the future. I spend at least a little bit of time, each day, working on the program. I’m exploring many options, too. I’m looking into what kinds of resources I can bring to the table. I’m exploring potential partnerships, looking at software packages and designing curriculum. Some of the possibilities are pretty exciting, and I think those of you who’ve been waiting won’t be disappointed.

I don’t know how soon the program will be ready to launch. There are a lot of T’s to be crossed, and a lot of… lower-case j’s to be dotted. Rest assured, it’s coming. I’m hoping to have a real timetable in the coming weeks, and you’ll be the first to know when it does launch.

Not a week goes by, however, that I don’t get someone asking me when we’re going to start. That’s an awesome encouragement, and part of what keeps me motivated to keep working on the project.

In the meantime, I hate to see new writers struggling. On top of that, I know how hard it is to get a writing career started, or to try to restart one that’s stalled.

I do what I can here, on my blog, to help writers achieve their dreams. And, I’ll be doing more once the mentoring program begins. At that point, I’ll be able to help literally hundreds of folks.

For now, I want to do something a little extra. For a limited time, I’ve decided to open up coaching opportunities for a limited number of my readers. Specifically, I want to help some of you:

• Propel your writing business ahead
• Learn to write with impact, conviction and, authority
• Make money writing online
• Understand the complex inner-workings of the Internet Writing business
• Map out your own pathway to freelance success

How will I do that? Well, as a stop-gap measure designed to help at least a few of you out until the mentoring program is in full swing, I’ve structured a personal writing coach program that begins today. In this program, I give you:

• Four hours of personal attention to help you with your writing career
• A customized coaching program that most suits your needs
• My perspective as a seasoned freelance veteran
• A hands-on analysis of your writing
• Communication via E-mail, chat, or any combination of the two

Now, my time isn’t limitless. I wish I could help every one of my readers in this way, but I can’t. That will come, down the road, when the mentoring program opens up. For now, I can only accept a total of 5 clients into this coaching program. I’m not promoting the coaching program anywhere else, and this blog post is the only time you’ll hear about it, at least for this month.

The normal rate for this coaching program will be $250 per month. For August only, I’m going to set the price at $150 per month. This lets you get a chance to see if you benefit from the program, and it gives me a little leeway to experiment on you. Mwah ha ha ha!

The program will run at least through the end of the year, and folks who are currently enrolled will have first pick of the slots for each following months.

The first five of you who enroll will get the spots in this exclusive program. Go to the sign up page and get started now!

(Before you read today’s post, check out Yaro’s Blog Mastermind opening page. He reopens the program at 10 AM today. If you want to learn to make money blogging, sign up. You won’t regret it.)

If you want to make it as a writer, you’re going to have some bumps along the way.

Make no mistake about it. You’re going to have a client who drops off the face of the earth right after you send her $500 worth of work. You’re going to farm out some work to someone who proves to be unreliable. You’re going to lose a gig somewhere, not because you couldn’t land the client, but because you couldn’t find the damn order in the middle of your chaos.

In my freelance writing business, I’ve been going through some growing, although most of it hasn’t been painful. In the last three months I’ve landed several new clients and found cause to bring some other writers into the fold. I’ve even been able to bring my wife, Angie, on board to help me keep tabs on everything and to help get new clients.

Yes, there have been some dips and hurdles, but overall this growth is good.

I’d just like to say, while I’m here, that Angie is amazing. She’s got something like a 60% conversion rate when bidding projects already. We wondered at first if it was beginner’s luck, but the gigs keep on coming. Yeah, my portfolio is impressive. I do excellent work, and it speaks for itself. But she’s got the goods when it comes to hooking clients and getting them to really consider hiring us.

Along with this growth, I’ve had to modify my business plan. I’ve written many times about the need for both vision and flexibility in that vision. While you can’t guarantee that a given endeavor will or won’t succeed, you can adjust as needed to ride the unexpected waves.

What am I getting at with all of this? Just sharing my journey, folks. That’s what this blog is about, after all.

I’m curious about your stories, though. If you’re a freelancer, are you working solo? Have you had growing pains, and what sort? If you’re not yet making a living with your writing, what do you envision in the long term? Will it be just you, will you have a writing team, or will you just have support staff?

I’ve got a post today over at Freelance folder called How Freelancing Is Like Network Administration. Give it a look, and feel free to add your comments.

While I’m on the subject, though, I’m curious about something. I do most of my writing in good old Microsoft Word 2007. I’ve had clients request everything from Notepad to Word Perfect formats. Usually, I can just write my material in Word and export it. I even do that with blog posts, making sure to paste the text in the HTML editor in WordPress so as to avoid all those goopy Microsoft Word HTML add-ons.

What I’m wondering is this: how do you write? Do you use one of the “writing-room” type programs, or do you use a Word Processor? Tell me why your method is best; I really just need an excuse to dump Word!
photo credit: House Of Sims

It’s been quiet around here lately. Why is that?

Blogging, for me, isn’t as much about getting thousands of subscribers (although I’m well on my way to four digits as of this morning) and it isn’t even about making a bunch of money (though I do get some affiliate sales through products I recommend and some clients through my services page).

For me, this blog is about helping you achieve your dreams.

When I first started blogging, I was of the mind that I needed to post every day. In fact, on my gaming blog, I was posting two or three times a day.

That turned out to be a bit pointless. It didn’t help me get subscribers, and it didn’t make me any money.

So, with The Writing Journey, I’ve tried all along to only post when I’m inspired. That means, sometimes, creating a series that inspires me to keep going, like the gong series or the food series.

At other times, it means the blog sits silent, like it has for the past week.

Life gets in the way of blogging, and sometimes you send all your inspiration elsewhere for a few days.

What’s my point here?

Simply this: while I have some feelings of regret for not having posted in a week, they are more to do with the interaction I get with my readers in the comments section than anything else.

I don’t do the “sorry I haven’t posted in a week” bit. While I understand what prompts folks to make those posts, it also comes off as egotistical. While I believe you will benefit every time I post, fact is that your writing career isn’t going to go down the tubes because I don’t blog for 7 days.

I’m not particularly worried about not having posted for a week.I’ve never unsubscribed from a blog because they didn’t post enough (unless it was a month between posts). I have unsubscribed when they continually post filler material, however.

There are varying schools of thought on posting frequency. For myself, I tend not to worry much about it. You all keep coming back, even when I’m gone for a few days. For that, I’ll say “thank you,” and try to return the favor by posting more frequently the next week. Not out of obligation or fear, but because I want to interact with you and because I genuinely want to help you achieve your dreams.

photo credit: tomsaint11