Content Magician, Freelance web content writers

Archive for the ‘Writer’s Rant’ Category

Boredom…..a disease that strikes just about anyone who does repetitive work for prolonged periods of time. Boredom can strike anyone and writers are no exception. Well, in short….yes, I get bored with writing too. My fingers uncharacteristically ache whenever a thought or reminder dawns on me that the time has come for me to….well, tap out, yet, another article on a subject matter that is of no concern to me as a person or individual.

But tell that to a website designer and the designer can tell you the same thing. Yeah, it gets boring.

Here’s where a writer’s sense of responsibility and capability comes in. As much as I, sometimes, feel the dislike of having to delve into a topic that is off my tangent, I remind myself that this is my job and I have the heavy responsibility of delivering whether I like it or not. My preference is of no concern to the client. They are depending on me to come up with articles or web content that makes sense…but most importantly, makes them money.

So, I counter the attack of the boredom with creative writing. A sentence at the top of my head can actually spur a lot or ignite a fire that dimmed when I am trying to fight off the feeling of jadedness.

Reading and writing outside of the scope of work is an extremely important aspect of keeping the fire of passion (for writing) alive in us. Creative work is often that demanding. The same goes for people who act, do voice-overs, perform on stage, give powerful speeches or dance.

As a writer, I sweep my boredom aside, my own personal longings into a closet or under a carpet so that I can focus. But not before I delve very fleetingly into something that I love doing. Like blogging, like now.

I write a lot of fiction as well….short stories, long stories, an inspirational paragraph or an outline of a story. For more or less twenty to thirty minutes every day, I open these up and add to them whenever I feel boredom strike.

Then after that, I close the ‘drawer’ in my mind and reconnect with my work. Let’s face it, if I were to let boredom dictate my work as a writer, I would be delivering crap to all my clients from time to time and honestly speaking, I can’t afford to do that.

No, let me rephrase that….I refuse to do that. I value my work and the integrity that I stand for more than anyone can ever imagine. I fought way too hard to establish myself to let all of that slip away. It takes but only one simple mistake to lose the trust that I have developed and earned from my clients.

So now that I’ve dealt with the issue of boredom, it’s time for me to get back to work.

Boredom, I’ll see you again tomorrow. For now, cheerios!

Patience and Persistence.

Some people get easily frustrated and give up halfway when trying to learn a new trait. I think that’s such a waste, especially when there’s potential for growth in that person. Just because a person signs up for violin lessons doesn’t make that person a Vanessa Mae within a couple of months or a year. Taking up golf does not make a person Tiger Woods within months. These examples I just gave are people who are born to excel because they have the attitude and the right upbringing.

Most importantly, they know what it takes to make it in their own respective industry. It takes persistence, practice, lots of patients and most probably a lot of tears as well. Learning how to write well for the internet, author a book or become a freelance writer takes a lot of practice and patience as well. And this is the encouraging word that I would love to leave aspiring writers with today.

There WILL be criticisms and some people will hate whatever you’ve written. Some other professional writers will scoff at your effort. You could have spent countless hours just toiling over a seemingly well-written piece, thinking that it’s the best piece you have written thus far, only to have people say that it’s stuff kindergarten kids come up with.

Trust me, people, especially critics, are exceptionally cruel when evaluating works of others. As it turns out, it’s far easier to say negative things about what someone have written than to say nice things about it. The negative points, after all, is far more apparent in the beginning. To find the good things in what you have written, it takes effort and not a lot of people are willing to put effort into finding GOOD THINGS to say about what you have written.

In order to make it in this online world and to be a well-paid freelance writer or freelance web content writer, you’ll need to learn how to take criticisms seriously without letting it dampen your will to succeed.

With every backlash, you are one step closer to perfection.

I’ve always thought that when you’re a writer, you can literally write anything that is required of you. Be it a script or a magazine article, an advertising copy or a poem. As it turns out, it’s not true at all.

I’ve always wanted to write poems and lyrics to songs. I love music and I would love to write a really good one one day…but twas no to be. Turns out, I can write web copy, advertising copy, blog copy….but not lyrical copy.

In order to write lyrics to a song or a poem, one needs to immerse in an emotion. Akin to acting out a role in a play. You need to put yourself completely and unabashedly into the position of what you’re writing about and write as your heart feels.

This is something that many writers have problems with. Only those who are emotionally accessible…or MAKE THEMSELVES emotionally accessible are able to write lyrics and poems.

I guess, for now, I will continue to write my SEO articles, web content and other advertising copy that comes my way. But on the sidelines, I am not giving up hope of ever writing a really nice song (turns out, I am OK with coming up with a tune….just the lyrics!) one fine day.

Marsha M

http://www.marshamaung.com

I think one of the hardest lessons to learn as a professional freelance writer is this….finding your own personal writing style and also accepting criticisms from those who prefer a different style of writing. For instance,….yes, you would have guessed, journalists and published authors.

Generally speaking, these professionally-trained individuals are highly qualified people where writing is concerned and frown (very deeply) upon the style adopted by bloggers and internet freelance writers because of their lack of style and formal training. ‘The foundation isn’t even there’…. ‘that’s a whole load of bull’…or ‘he/she could use a few months in proper training on how to write PROPERLY’.

They view the materials written by bloggers and internet freelance writers as an insult to their profession.

Professionals, as I would now like to call them, are particularly harsh on bloggers, internet freelance writers and so-called self-proclaimed freelance writers because they’re pretty much against vanity press. It seems, to me, their awards, certificates and accolades, perhaps, have given them the right to criticize other styles of writing not taught in school.

I guess in a lot of ways, it works out just right because if I was a lawyer and someone came up to me, claiming to know more about an area of law that I was educated for, I would be on my feet slamming on tables, fuming at the sheer arrogance of this person claiming to know more about the law…which is something I was trained for.

But I think some professional writers, authors, reporters, journalists should just hang loose for a bit here and stop being so harsh on internet freelance writers. There is a long brick wall standing between these literature experts and freelance writers….a long, thick wall and frankly speaking, I don’t see how freelance writers and bloggers can be a threat to journalists.

Bloggers and freelance writers have evolved so much with Web 2.0 that a ‘new style’ of writing has been developed. Instead of churning out striking web of words, the focus is on how to deliver thoughts, feedback, reviews and ideas in as personal a way as possible and in the shortest period of time.

People who read on the internet couldn’t, really, be bothered with how well spun an article is. Journalists and newspaper writers should just stick to their own industry…writing for magazines, books, newspapers, and other more traditional form of media….unless they’re willing to bend their own rules and principles a little.

Bloggers and freelance writers can then focus on how internet writing works and generate reasonable income from providing their ‘services’ to their clients.

So, please….don’t be harsh on us just because we’re not QUALIFIED. The same way journalists can’t comprehend or do away with using a certain method of coming up with a masterpiece, bloggers can’t quite understand why something so simple has to be so complicated.

The same way a journalist will find it hard to be a copywriter and a copywriter might have more than a little trouble writing a screenplay, people cannot unreasonably impose journalistic principles on bloggers and internet writers who rely significantly on Web 2.0 and vanity press.

In this case, shouldn’t we just say ‘we agree to disagree‘?

Recently, I’ve just taken on a writing job that requires me to write a lot of nonsensical stuff and basically to fill out a web page with enough keywords without losing out on the point of the whole article….by the bunch. For those who have worked with me, you know where I stand about these things. It’s not always about the quantity but the quality.

Which is something I try to maintain as best as I can – I don’t always succeed, mind you, but I DO try my best to be as meticulous as I can.

While writing these articles, there’s an urge for me to remind everyone out there that when you’re trying to promote yourself or your products or services to people who are surfing the internet, please, please, PLEASE do not forget to focus on two things and forget about one thing.

THINGS TO REMEMBER

1. To focus on the sale and reel them in, impress them and make a long story short. Use words that they can easily understand.
2. Remember the message that you’re trying to bring across to them

THINGS TO FORGET

1. Word-counting

Which is what I am doing right now and it’s not fun.

With the current state that the economy is in, I’d say freelance writers like me should be a little weary and careful about the kinds of projects we take on these days. Writing is, by far, one of the most rewarding yet anxiety-causing profession I’ve taken so far and I think it serves a purpose for me to post something about it now…since the economy is gravely ill at the moment.

Don’t put all your eggs into one basket! Heed this warning, my dear freelance writers! Heed it, write it down and remember it like a mantra! At this moment, let’s admit it, a lot of companies are struggling. What freelance writers are contending with is the following:-

• Clients may not pay as promptly as they use to;
• Freelance writers will have difficulty finding stable and consistent freelance work
• Freelance writers might be cheated by dubious and grandiose-sounding projects ejected quite suddenly out of nowhere in times of trouble
• You might need to do a little bit more chasing compared to usual
• You find yourself going back to basics – i.e., finding really cheap work just to keep food on the table and compromising a few writing principles on quality that you have built over the years

Going freelance is a lot of like having your own little small business and this means you have big competition and small budget. Hence, when the small companies wrap up, you wrap with them if you have counted on them to put stable money into your bank account.

Don’t do that. Vary! Sure, it’s easier when you have to deal with just one or two clients, but at the end of the day, if you don’t want to start begging for freelance writing work, you’d have to start offering a variety of services to your clients and vary the industry.

by Susan Gabriel

There is a statistic I’ve seen in a couple of places that says that 99% of all writers who submit their work never get published. At best, this statistic is discouraging. Yet it floats around out there as if a tool to flog ourselves with mercilessly.

So why would someone do something that has such miserable odds? I wonder that myself, since I’m one of those people plugging away. I have been writing for 14 years. I have gone to what feels like a zillion conferences, taken creative writing courses, and worked out stories in writer’s groups month after month, year after year, for years. I have done this while piecing together part-time jobs and child-support to make ends meet.

In the process, I have written at least four viable manuscripts (two of which my agent is marketing), one now in print, and have a new one I’m working on. This new one will probably be revised a dozen times before I send it to my agent, probably a year or so from now. Folks, this is definitely not a get-rich-quick endeavor.

A whole industry has grown up around people who want to write. They are often called “wannabes” or they want-to-be a writer someday. And they, like me when I started out, are incredibly naïve about what it actually means to be a writer.

On the other end of the spectrum are the “I used to write” camp. These are the people that gave it a go and for whatever reason, usually having to do with paying the bills, gave it up. I don’t blame them one bit. I understand completely. And at the same time, I fight daily to not become a part of this camp.

This is not something you do for fame or fortune. Writing is something you do because you have to do it. You have to do it or else you will explode, implode, or be very unhappy. You have to do it or life as you know it will end. It feels like life or death. Being creative-writing, painting, sculpting, dancing, whatever-is not something that can be chosen lightly. It is a responsibility. And every time we pick up the pen or paint or learn a new dance position we are defying the odds.

*** *** ***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Susan Gabriel is an author of fiction for adults and children. Her latest book, Seeking Sara Summers, is gaining acclaim in diverse circles.
More info at http://www.susangabriel.com
Gabriel works and plays in Colorado.

If you’re an aspiring freelance writer looking for tips on how to start, run and manage your own freelance writing work-at-home career, I’ve got a tip for you today. Iron everything out right from the start. Lay down the ground rules, the foundation and never waver, if you possibly can, from the deposit rule. Take a deposit before you start work.

Laying down the rules takes some practice and some experience because each project, each client is different. The most important thing to make clear is the issue about communication and delivery, timeline and expected responsibilities. Most of the freelance writing jobs out there are pretty straight-forward. You deliver as and when you’re done. When the deposit is used up, you ask for more. They don’t top it up, you don’t continue writing. 

I know it’s hard to lay down this rule when your freelance career is just starting up but trust me, this is the right footing to start the biz on. Maintain your ground and keep to it….if they don’t like it, they leave…don’t worry, another one will come along. Too many times this has happened to me and most of the time, I let it fly by because it’s a calculated risk but if I could do it again, rewind time and do it all over again, I wish someone would have told me this before.

Start out on the right footing with your freelance writing clients and you’ll have them for life….well, for as long as they remain in business, that is.

Even with Copyscape, we would have to admit that it’s hard to put a radar out for every one of the content that you put on your website or article directories. Even Google can only do so much to protect, detect and ban sites that copy your website content. We all know how much time and effort you’ve put into producing top-quality, up-to-date information and articles for your readers….we all know that but do people care?

That’s the thing…they don’t give two hoots how much effort you’ve put into your content. All they know is that they find it incredibly convenient to copy your content and place it into their websites.

The sad part of this is that not only do website owners copy others’ work, freelance content writers do that too. It’s something I call the easy way out because if you’re a writer, you can do the following and get away with most search engines. (more…)

I was sitting in Starbucks chatting with a bunch of designers straight out of design school abaout logos last night. Along the way, we discussed the latest Jimmy Choos, the current economy crisis, rising gas prices, etc. But the amazing thing that tickled me pink was the fact that every time we mentioned something new, we would mention something about ‘googling it’. Do know of any Greek gods? Google it. Do you have pasta recipes? Google it. Do you know how to fix a broken toe nail? Google it.

You get the picture.

It nothing new. We’ve all accepted the fact that ‘google’ is now usable as a verb, as with a noun, not yet an adjective.

In the Internet business and online promotion world, businesses won’t survive for very long if they don’t have a widespread marketing campaign. Well, they don’t have to rank very high for keywords that is highly competed for but at the very least, they should make an effort to work Google for important ‘local’ keywords.

For example, if you can’t get to the top of Google with your content marketing campaign for ‘real estate’, try ‘Canada real estate’. If you can’t get to the top for ‘ladies handbag’, try ‘NY ladies handbag’…even then I think you might need to narrow down the NY bit because I think every single moving human being in NY either have their own website or blog or is somewhat in touch with the search engine marketing business. Google-ing is what they do best.

Well, that my bit today for search engine marketing and article writing.

Oh, I have something to say about writing and all of that stuff, nothing jazzy but I couldn’t quite agree with how some people are actually trying to market their stuff online via article marketing. It really miffed me off. But it’s their style, not mine and I will keep my teeth out of their shoulder.

–Marsha–