Freelance Writer

I have the passion and the education. I work for a major consumer magazine, but in advertising. I’m just looking for ways to gain more clips/exposure/experience so I can work my way into the editorial field at my job. Thanks.

Good question. Actually a lot of Fortune 500 companies look publish newsletters for their clients and often don’t have internal writers and will hire local freelance writers. You may want to contact your local bank, financial firm, insurance company and see if they need a writer for their client newsletter.

Good luck!

I want to know if there any organizations for writers who want to be published or a paying job for writers in science and nonfiction subjects in Chicago, IL. They must be free or low cost to join.

freelance.org

I have read some great books, and I would like to contact the authors to let them know that I enjoy their work. I have tried using search engines to search for them, and I have also e-mailed the company they have written for in the past with no luck in contacting them. Any ideas?

Thank you

If the author doesn’t have a website, the next best thing is to write a letter to them in care of the publisher. This does two things: (1) you get to show the author some appreciation and (2) the publisher knows that people care enough about the writer to write.

By the way, never ask a published author to read your work or ask for the name of their agent. Very amateur. Just a tip for you.

Probably thousands.

There are plenty of websites that are looking for regular content to help with their search engine ratings..You can make money by submitting articles… I will post a link below that has better information than I do, make sure you read "Writing Articles"..If you are serious and spend serious time…you can make serious Money

I have heard that freelance writing can be a lucrative career. I have worked for newspapers and I am barely able to afford the gas to cover stories. Are magazines a better avenue? How do writers do it?

It can be done, because I do it. Granted, I am not anyone’s definition of rich, but I get by. You have to be committed. The problem that I see with many beginning freelancers is that they do not put in a full 40 hour work week. If you want full time pay, you have to do full time work. Newspapers, magazines and websites all need material. Don’t make the mistake of only going to the big magazines, though. Go to your library and look at the different magazines they have. Check out your bookstores, too. There are literally hundreds of magazines out there. They may have smaller circulation numbers, but the markets are less competitive. Once you get some good clips, larger assignments will come. Don’t overlook online markets, either. They typically pay less than print markets, but optimal word count is 400-500. If you are a fast writer, the money adds up quick. Whatever you do, don’t give up.

I have been writing research papers, short pieces, and poems. For instance, I have been writing research papers, since the summer of 2004, on several biological subjects: cyanobacteria, Penicillium, and panbiogeography. I wondered is there any company that can offer a paying salary/charge for freelance writing work?

"Freelance" and "salary" or "job" are opposite ends of the employment spectrum. If you want a salary, you want a job – not freelancing (which is usually project-by-project work for different employers).

I don’t know many employers who will pay you to write poetry, but certainly there are companies that need research papers written as part of marketing or customer support. You experience writing on "biological" subjects is excellent. Look for jobs with medical or biotech related companies and look for job titles like "tech writer" or "technical writer."

The "Skills Profiler" on America’s Career InfoNet (from the U.S. Dept. of Labor) has a very good exercise for helping you identify skills and associating job titles with those skills. See it at http://www.careerinfonet.org/acinet/skills/default.aspx?nodeid=20

There are many good sites for finding jobs. Here are some general starting points:

* Indeed.com – http://www.indeed.com
Indeed is an "aggregator" site which collects job postings from job sites as well as employer Websites, so searching on Chicago and a job title will give you more options than most other sites.

* Craigslist for Chicago – http://chicago.craigslist.org/
Craigslist is a giant online classifieds (mostly free) so you’ll find many jobs posted by small companies and individuals. You’ll also find some junk (scams, etc.) so be careful. But it can be very useful. Here’s an article on using Craig’s List to land a job – http://jobhunt.typepad.com/jobsearching/2006/07/using_craigs_li.html Craigslist also has "writing gigs" listed, so you may be able to continue your freelance income stream while you look for a salaried job.

* ChicagoJobs.org – http://www.chicagojobs.org/
Local resources and advice sponsored by the Skokie Public Library. Search jobs, get connected with local job search support (for ideas, emotional support, and help with networking), and get job search advice.

* Job-Hunt.org – http://www.job-hunt.org/jobs/illinois.shtml
Has over a hundred employers and career resources collected specifically for Illinois, including more job search support groups to help you with your networking (like finding out who is hiring).

Be sure to know what job you want and to let everyone know that you are job hunting. Over 75% of the time, people get a job because they know someone already working for that employer. It’s called networking, and it’s a key to success (but not a short cut the first time).

Good luck!

television or radio script or a scripted commercial outright to the target company, or even to their advertising agency? Freelance writers can sell their greeting cards, television or drama scripts, etc etc. If yes on freelance commericials, where is a good place to get info? Thanks

You can certainly sell you services as a freelance ad copywriter and write advertising copy for businesses that may appear in print, radio, TV or on a website. That’s one of the functions that advertising agencies provide and a good place to start would be to contact ad agencies who often use freelance ad copyriters. Another possibility is small business owners who need compelling marketing and selling copy but can’t afford – and don’t need – a full time advertising copywriter on staff.

Advertising copy should be emotionally compelling and stir up in the target audience a desire to move closer to buying – or actually buy – depending on the objectives of the ad.

One of the most lucrative – and relatively unknown – ways to make money as an advertising copywriter is writing sales letters. A good sales letter can and will fetch thousands and possibly millions of dollars in sales and even though many ad agency copy writers turn up their nose at sales letters – they are bar none the most effective way to get the biggest bang for your marketing buck. So, business owners in the know are willing to pay a lot for a pro to write a good sales letter.

I offer an ebook called "Secrets of Money-making Sales Letters at http://www.SalesLetterEbook.com

So, generally speaking you don’t go to an ad agency or a business owner and say, "I have this great ad slogan – would you like to buy it?" Instead you say, "I can help you increase your sales by improving your ad copy/brochures/website copy/whatever. Would you like a proposal on what I can do and what I charge?"

All the best,

Denise Michaels
Author, "Testosterone-Free Marketing"
http://www.MentoringwithDenise.com

I know The Escapist does. Are there any more like that? Preferably with a sense of humour?

There are many different options for someone trying to break into the writing business. These websites could help.

Oboulo.com is a publicly authored, publicly accessible database covering a wide array of topics. Each time you publish a paper, article, presentation etc. on the website, you will receive $15.00 in royalties. Create an account and enter ambassador # 9590ba to earn $15 per published article.

After connecting to the site, you will be asked to enter an ambassador number. By entering ambassador# 9590ba you’ll receive $15 per document published.

This is a good place to start to get your name out there and some published articles under your belt.

Next, go to the Associated Content website and sign up as a writer. Submit as many articles as you can. The payment varies, but they are generous.

Good luck!

www.top-writers.co.uk
www.freelancewritersdatabase.co.uk