Bringing Community Back: FWJ’s Giving Away $150!

Once upon a time there was a blog. This blog had several thousand visitors each day. They shared. They chatted. They commiserated. It was all good. Soon some mean people came by and began scaring away the happy chatters. The vibe changed from warm and fuzzy to not so much fun anymore. The owner did her best to build up community, but she was so busy with her projects and her job it wasn’t happening. She put a comment policy into place but the damage was already done. She had a reputation for having a community that liked to bicker.

She wants to change that.

If you remember the days when FWJ was a huge, lively community of writers helping writers, you may miss the golden days as well. Let’s try and get it all back. Several years ago, we built this community with a contest – a comments contest. We offered a $25 gift certficate to the person with the most comments. People came and never left. It was good.

We’re doing it again, except we’re upping the ante.

Beginning today, October 1st, we’re giving away $150 to the people who help to bring back this wonderful community. We’re giving away three $50 prizes.

• The person with the most comments between now and October 31st, on the homepage Freelance Writing Jobs blog, will receive $50.
• The person with the most comments across the whole FWJ network by the end of the month, that’s all of the blogs, will receive $50.
• The FWJ blogger who does the most to build community and join the conversation will win $50 at the end of the month.

Just a few notes:

• Comments that only say ” I agree” or add nothing to the conversation won’t count.
• Comments not adhering to our comment policy will be deleted and won’t count.
• Spammy comments or comment dropping links – unless they’re truly offering something to the conversation – won’t count.

I know you’re here. I see the numbers. Thousand of people visit each day and even more subscribe. Come join the conversation. Let’s bring community back!

A Word About Plagiarism

Yes, we need to talk about it. Yes, many of you have heard this talk since the 6th grade, but it is worth revisiting. Plagiarism is serious and quite common, particularly on the web.

The OWL at Purdue University defines plagiarism as the uncredited use (both intentional and unintentional) of someone else’s words or ideas. Many writers and not all of them are newbies, include information in their articles, blog posts, etc., that originally appeared somewhere else without giving credit to the originator of the information.

Look at the first sentence in the paragraph above, see how I gave credit for the definition of plagiarism to Purdue University? It’s just that easy. It is also a necessary and essential part of being a responsible writer. When I was a journalism student, one of my professors would issue an automatic fail for an article if a writer failed to cite their sources. As far as credibility goes, the public will institute their own “fail” to writers who steal work from others.

It sounds harsh, but it is stealing. Someone else did all the work and you used it without their permission and without giving credit. It’s a sucky thing to do to another writer and you shouldn’t allow it to happen to you either.

There are websites and programs that will track where your work appears and when it comes across a lifted quote, paragraph or whole article, you’ll be notified.  When it does happen you have every right to contact the site admin, author, etc. and let them know your work has been used without permission and you’d like it taken down immediately. You can also try to be a nice person and offer to allow them to use your information for credit AND compensation.  If you do make an offer, be sure it doesn’t violate the policy of the publication in which your article first appeared.

If you ever have a question about whether you should cite a source, then you most likely need to cite the source. So be a responsible writer and give credit where credit is due!

Has your work ever been plagiarized? What did you do? Share!

Stumped for Article Ideas? Query Your Friends!

It happens to all of us every once in a while. You need an idea for a column, blog or  article and you can’t quite seem to come up with an idea that grabs your interest. Sometimes normal sources of information just doesn’t cut it. Sometimes you gotta have friends.

Soliciting article advice from friends is a great way to put your social networking skills to good use. Tap your Twitter buddies and your Facebook friends to help you come up with the next, best idea for your work.

Make sure you tap your friends who are not writers, they often give the best ideas and angles for a story. These are people who aren’t tainted by the writing process and the burden of reading so much in a particular niche. It is also an exercise in digging for the story because most of the ideas thrown at you aren’t in query, blog, or article ready form. Turn a general “What about health care” suggestion into a working topic by asking questions about people’s concerns, local health care issues, or something germane to your niche or target audience.

“What about health care?” can breakdown into:

• Pet Insurance Do’s & Don’ts
• Finding coverage for children
• Local health care advocate news
• Health issues in your state, city, school
• Where your local Congressman stands on health care

The options are endless and I guarentee you’ll not only be able to gather great ideas from your friends, you’ll be able to find some pretty good sources among them as well.

Have you ever used a social networking site to gather ideas for an article? Tell us below.

Writing When You Know Nothing About the Subject Part 1

I hear a lot of writers talk about how they won’t apply for certain jobs or worry about accepting assignments because they know nothing about what they’d be required to write about and I hope to set you free today by letting you know you don’t have be an expert on a subject to write about it.

*Sigh* Felt good didn’t it? Letting out that breath of fear and hesitation is the first step to taking your writing career to the next level. Now, back to business. How do you write about something of which you have no knowledge? Research, research, research.

Do you need to become a leading expert in the subject before you can write your lede? No, but you need to become literate in the subject before you can begin searching for and interviewing subjects. Read up on the bones of the subject and then look at your audience. Are they other experts, hobbyists or the casual reader? Knowing your audience helps you determine how in-depth your knowledge of the subject needs to be.

Read up on the subject and then contact an expert. Ask the basic questions and also ask for research and source recommendations. Ask about angles on the subject that are not often covered. Remember, even for the casual reader you want to offer something more – something that will catch a reader’s eye and draw them into the article. Every parent has read an article on infants losing their belly buttons, but an article targeting less circulated newborn belly button issues like hernias is a great and different angle.

On Thursday: Part 2 – Research Sources.

Top 10 Reasons Why Your Writing is Suffering

Why aren’t I getting gigs? Why am I caught in this niche I have grown to hate? Where’s my career going? There are a lot of reasons why a writer’s work suffers and some are so common most writers have or will experience them at some point. Do any of them ring a bell?

1. You’re bored. There are times a writer needs to switch course or look for new ways to stay passionate about an familiar topic.
2. You’ve gotten lazy. Let’s be honest, sometimes freelancers slack off and don’t feel like doing what they are supposed to do. I’ve been there and it’s tough to get back on task, but take a look at that electric bill – feel like writing now?
3. You’re not reading enough. The more you write, the more money you make right? The more work you have can take away from the other things that make a writer great, like reading other great writers. It’s amazing the amount of inspiration one well written piece can provide another writer.
4. You’ve got too much work. It sounds like a good problem to have, but in reality too many projects can take away from the time you have to devote to the perfection each project. The result? Sloppy or rushed work and not too much to show for it.
5. You’re burned out. When’s the last time you took a break? Switched up the routine a bit? If you’re still thinking, you may need a breather, a chance to go off the grid for a day or so and recharge. Time to refresh is not a privilege it’s a necessity.
6. You’re lonely. Online social networking is great and you can make some wonderful friends, but you also need to get out there and make friends in and out the writing field. You need your writing friends to commiserate and appreciate the life you lead and you need non-writing friends to give a different perspective. A writer’s life can be a lonely one and it can drive you bonkers, don’t let it happen to you.
7. You don’t have any support. Are you battling deadlines, kids, bills and the feeling no one really understands what you do? You are in need of support – it makes all the difference in the world. When someone’s in your corner it can help you get over those hump days and it’s important to have someone to share the good times. Nothing like calling up a friend to relay the news of a hot new gig knowing they are just as excited as you are about it.
8. You’re not enjoying yourself anymore. An important indicator of having a great job is when you love what you do.  You don’t have to love it all the time, there are days I’d like to throw my laptop and favorite pen out the window, but generally I get a whiz bang out of writing. Recapture that magic and it’ll show up in your work.
9. You’re not charging enough. Raise your hand if you ever worked your butt off for a piece only to get the check and decide it’s just not worth it? Ok, hands down. What’s going on with your fee schedule? Should you really charge more and does your work justify it? This great article from James will help you make what you’re worth.
10. You’re not doing what you really want to do. You became a freelancer so you could travel the globe, or your local playground, finding tips and trends in a fascinating field. Six months later you’ve got SEO and tech work coming out of your ears. You keep telling yourself it pays the bills, but really a corporate job would do just as well if that’s all you wanted. Time to check your goals and develop a plan to get back to your dreams.

Getting to the bottom of what ails your pen is not only great for your career, it’s great for your health. People who are passionate about what they do live fuller and longer lives. Let’s get you back to living yours.

Thursday’s post: “Inspirational Writers for Inspired Writing”

Got any great tips on a common writing threat/malady? Have you dealt with one of these and overcome? Share below!

Are you finished with that article or just finished?

Deb had a great post this week: Freelance Writing: You’re Only Competing Against Yourself. It got me thinking about how often we can sabotage our success. One area writers can set themselves up for failure is ‘just finishing’ an article.

Just finishing is getting an article in just under deadline, under duress and under your standards. Procrastination is usually the right hand man to just finishing. The root causes of procrastination are as varied as the writer – poor time management, fear of tackling the piece, cockiness that you will get it in on time and it’ll be fab because you’re just that good, etc.

The consequences of just finishing show up in a variety of ways. When you have set the standard that you will likely be the last writer to get their piece in, an editor knows you are the worst person to call with a rush piece. This cuts down not only on your ability to get more of the juicy last minute gigs and the rush fees that may accompany them, it will make your services less valuable to the editor. There’s no competition between a writer that will work hard, get things in before deadline and deliver tight work, versus one that will squeak in under the deadline with an obviously rushed piece and a sheepish emoticon grin.

Another possible scenario – if you have set yourself up as a stellar writer who turns in great work before deadline and you start down the path of last minute, your editor is going to notice. Editors and teachers can tell when something has been written last minute. It, at times, reeks of desperation. The article will likely need more tightening/editing than any of your previous pieces and if seen repeatedly the editor/publication will begin to wonder if you are still passionate about working for them. That’s never a great conversation – trust me.

Now let’s be real, everyone has off days and even months. There are times when things don’t click, won’t click and can’t be persuaded to click. Editors understand, they are people too and are more likely to give their favorite writers the benefit of the doubt.  Don’t take advantage of their humanity and avoid being in that position if you have just started establishing a reputation and a career. Getting comfortable with ‘just finishing’ is like cozying up to mediocre – it will just hold you back.

There’s No Whining in Freelance Writing

This week I am pretty disturbed at the amount of angst Deb received when she took a break from writing leads. There was a distinctive tone I heard in many of the comments that was very familiar…it was like so many of the writers I’ve had the opportunity to work with throughout the years.

I heard a level of entitlement. I’m sure you’ll find it in every line of work, a host of people who like to stay in their comfort zone, particularly when that comfort zone has a bit of hand holding.

As an editor, I love to work with writers who have flexiblility and who strike a good balance between independence and knowing when to seek counsel. These writers are confident in their knowledge and skills enough to know when things are under control and when it’s important to contact an editor with questions. These writers are more likely to be the ones who accept edits and input with professionalism and make editing a breeze.

Then there are writers who really like their comfort zones. They never want to vary from their writing style or story angle no matter if it’s better for the audience or publication. They view critiques and edits as a personal attacks and they require a fair amount of hand-holding. An editor’s job is tough enough without having to baby-sit a writer.

Here’s the problem with loving your comforts too much – it prevents you from stretching and growing as a writer. So while there are some things as a writer you’d prefer to live without – a good cup of coffee, or in my case cocoa and a sharp pencil, there are some things you can’t live without and thrive in this profession: flexibility, independence and a “plan-b.”

If You’re Bored Writing It…

By Terreece M. Clarke

…Then I’m likely bored reading it.

It’s true. Writing articles or blogs can become so by-the-formula that you can mentally check out and still deliver, on the surface, a quality article.

A “surface quality article” has all of the makings of a great article – structure, sources, insight, clean copy, but lacks oomph or the passion of the writer behind it. There is a difference between mom’s brownies made with love – whether from box or scratch – and the mass produced, machine-handled bricks that pop out the vending machine. You can serve them both up on a plate, but it feels different.

A bored writer often comes from boredom with the subject or approach. Figure out which one applies to you and work on bringing the vigor back. If it’s the subject that puts you to sleep, new sources, new angles, unusual audiences may help stimulate your mind.

How are you approaching your work? Downtrodden with a heavy heart, all business or with enthusiasm to bring out the best the subject has to offer for your audience? Often it’s the mood you’re bringing to the table that will determine if your article has that extra sparkle.

Step out of your comfort zone or regimented routine and try something different. Inject humor into the article – where appropriate. Write the article from a completely different perspective. But do something, because if you’re boring I won’t read it and your audience won’t either.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Merry Christmas Freelance Writing Jobs Community!

Take this opportunity friends, to enjoy this moment to relax and reflect on all that you’ve accomplished this year, but not in the freelance writing arena. Today is a day to be with the people that have supported you on your freelance writing journey. The friends, family and religious mentors, if you have them, that have listened to your triumphs, frustrations and aspirations.

Most of us get into freelancing so we can make our own hours, rearranging them to spend more time with our family. Have you accomplished your goal? What fun times did you have with those most important to you this year that you would have missed if you had been shackled to a cubicle?

For those of you who don’t celebrate Christmas, happy Thursday! You’ve got a choice today. You can either spend your time enjoying a relaxed, bonus day off or you can take this opportunity to get ahead on work, or take the “Query Challenge.” Either way, all writers should take this end of the year time to look back in order to prepare for the future.

How Well Do You Fact Check?

by Terreece M. Clarke

The BEST writing “how-to” ever!.

Our first job as non-fiction content writers/journalists is to present the truth fairly and accurately. Whether it’s on the web, in glossies or newsprint we are obligated to uphold a certain standard. It is what makes people trust what we say and what makes them look to us when they need information.

Most of us do our jobs well. We seek out knowledgeable sources and we try to stay as objective as possible. But how well researched is that knowledgeable source?

You’re writing an article on clothes detergent – the best kind for a large household. You smartly bypass detergent companies because they obviously have a vested interest and instead set up a meeting with a textiles or hospitality service professor from a respected university. What they have to say will be gold right? Maybe not. Thoroughly check out your expert. Did they work for a detergent company before turning to academia? If they’ve completed research on cleaning agents, who sponsored the study? What’s their stance on environmentally safe cleaners? Depending on your experts ties to industries, you may get a less than objective viewpoint.

Does this mean you have to ax a source because they have certain leanings on a subject – no, but there are times when those leanings should be disclosed to the readers.

Before the election, when pundits weighed in on which candidate was telling the truth and what information was misrepresented, they would often relate to the audience “this person, a democratic strategist” or “commentator so-and-so, owner of conservative think tank blah, blah.”

When a study hits the newswire, always ask who sponsored the study, the information should be easy to find. When you look for sources foundations and associations always sound great, but investigate the opinions or industries the organization represents.

For example, owners of social networking web sites will say social networking is the future of all internet activity and the leader of the National Association for Seat Belt Liberation will likely say that seat belt laws are a sinister plot by the auto and insurance industry and is a violation of civil liberties.

So be a Max and not a Bloo and fact check!

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