Posts Tagged ‘freelance’

Writer’s Digest, a magazine for freelance writers

Posted in Resources, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on August 29, 2011| 2 Comments »

I always say that what I love about being a freelance writer is I get to learn all the time. And some of that learning is about the craft of freelance writing. That’s why I subscribe to Writer’s Digest.

I’m sure every freelance writer has his or her favorite magazine; Writer’s Digest is one of three magazines I subscribe to.

The magazine has a website, http://www.writersdigest.com/, in addition to the magazine, which is published eight times a year.

Each issue includes articles and features for freelancers, although the bulk of the magazine is devoted to writers of books, poetry and short stories. Yet even the features devoted to these areas, such as author profiles give freelancers like me insight and something to learn. For example, the profile of Julia Cameron, the author of The Artist’s Way, notes she began by writing feature articles and freelancing.

Here are just a few of the departments and articles I’ve found especially helpful:

Standout Markets – a list of various markets, it always includes markets for freelance work.

Conference Scene by Linda Formichelli offers a view of places where writers can gather for networking and learning. Each installation of Conference Scene has a theme, such as Writing Without Borders, writing conference throughout the world, or Finding Your Niche, which listed conferences for screenwriters and pet writers.

“The Wired Writer,” in the July/August 2011 edition of the magazine outlined various apps writers would find useful.

Write a How-To Article in Six Easy Steps, by Christina Katz, also in the July/August 2011 broke down a formula article into six easy steps.

The Not-So-Fantastic Four. This article in the July/August 2011 issue outlined four freelancers’ biggest problems, with tips on how to solve them. The examples in the article included an AWOL editor, vague assignments, late-paying clients. The article was by Kelly James-Enger, author of Six-Figure Freelancing. I enjoyed reading this article because it told me that I’m not the only freelance for face these obstacles.

The fact-check checklist, May/June 2011

101 Best Website for Writers, May/June 2011

Getting Started in Ghostwriting by Kelly James-Enger, with a box on markets, March/April 2011.

Best Online Markets by Vanessa Wieland & Jennifer Benner, Nov/Dec 2010.

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I did not come gently into the world of journalism….

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 1, 2009| Leave a Comment »

My first 10 years at work were spent as a secretary, time served before computers. I even fetched a cup of coffee or two for an executive. Finally, I returned to college and attended Bowling Green State University in Ohio, where I received a degree in journalism and in women’s studies.

I found my first job as a reporter with the Gaffney Ledger in Gaffney, South Carolina, where I covered everything from the Peach Festival to the school district. I then went to South Korea for a year and taught conversational English at Pusan National University, where I learned that teaching, like soccer, is more difficult than it looks.

I returned to the United States to attend graduate school at the University of Missouri in Columbia, where I fell in love with the hands-on Missouri Method and journalism all over again.

I received my master’s degree in 1993 and went to work for the Columbia Missourian as an editor and then for two daily newspapers before returning to Columbia to oversee the public outreach portion of a federally funded arthritis project at the University of Missouri

Then I moved to Moscow, Russia, for a year where I began my freelance career by writing for English-language publications there.

My Russian sojourn came courtesy of my husband’s Fulbright Scholarship award for 2003-2004, and we lived in a Soviet-style apartment of three tiny rooms and from there, I wrote for PASSPORT Moscow magazine and The Moscow News.

The rest, as they say, is history.

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