Attribute Magazine is the premiere Internet based publication for progressive, optimistic, ethical people. We are a virtual company staffed by intelligent, fun, ethical people.
The basic mission of the publication will be to showcase the “attributes” of all generations to the betterment of society and the world. What is it that drives us? What is it we contribute and are passionate about? Who are we, what do we consume, where do we play, live, etc?
by Jodee Redmond
Good morning FWJ Friends! It’s December 31 and the last day this year that I will have leads for you. It’s another relatively quiet day, but things will pick up after the New Year.
Enjoy your New Year’s celebrations, everyone!
Leads…
Telecommute
by Jodee Redmond
Good morning FWJ Friends! There was a bit more activity on the boards this morning, and I’ve leads for content writers, business plan writers, fitness writers, translators, proofreaders, and copy writers. A few blogging opps and internships are included as well.
Something on today’s list might get your new year started off with a new gig. Do let us know if you get hired for anything we post here. We love to hear about your success, and it is inspiring to other readers, too!
Leads…
Telecommute
Recently I told you about how I had my Adsense account yanked from this blog, resulting in an 80% loss of income. As you can imagine, losing this much income at the same time we had to switch to a new server (a big and unexpected payment) almost devastated us. But I’m not writing this to give depressing news. I’m writing this to offer light at the end of the proverbial tunnel.
I know of many bloggers who lost Adsense to their blogs for various reasons and thought there was no chance in ever getting back in Google’s good graces. This isn’t the case at all. Though I wasn’t happy about losing my main source of income, the folks at Google were pleasant and accomadating for the most part. They worked with me in helping me get reinstated. Granted, it took several weeks, but I’m ok with that. Sort of.
The good news is that losing Adsense forced me to look for other forms of advertising. I still haven’t found anything that brings in as much money to the FWJ network as Adsense, but I did find a few possibilities. I also found a couple of affiliate programs that are actually bringing in results. In the past, I couldn’t find any affilaite programs that worked.
So yes, Viriginia. There is life after Adsense. I’m not ready to give it up yet, but it’s good to know there are alternatives (which we will explore here soon).
You’ve probably noticed slim pickings these past few weeks. Everyone looking for work are reporting dismal findings. In fact, I receive many letters each day asking if this is a result of the current economy. My answer is “maybe not.
Don’t get me wrong, times are going to be a little bit tough coming up, but that’s not the main reason you’re not finding any work this month. November and December are traditionally slow months because folks don’t want to hire during the holidays. They don’t want to spend money on writers during that time. Indeed we’re experiencing tough economic times, but there will always be folks looking for writers, especially online. Even though advertising is down for many websites, folks still need to stock their sites and blogs with content and that’s where we come in.
Things will pick up after January. I’m not saying there’s going to be a big hiring boom, but you’ll see more jobs. December is always a dismal month for freelancers, please don’t get discouraged.
This is our last Monday Markets column for 2008, and tonight I’m not going to stick to a specific niche. I have a magazine for homeschoolers, one of interest to parents and kids, and one for people who like to brew their own beer.
From the Web Site:
Home Education Magazine is an award-winning publication for homeschooling families, or for anyone who enjoys living and learning.-* If you’re not familiar with homeschooling, please study our publication before submitting. If you are familiar with homeschooling, you might want to study it anyway, as our primary focus is unschooling, and we take an active political stance for empowering families.
General article length is 900 to 1,700 words, but we do occasionally accept longer articles. We prefer completed articles to query letters. Unless your query is clearly not about homeschooling, you will be asked to submit the completed article. Samples of previously published material are not necessary.
Any topic of interest to homeschoolers will be considered. Please be aware that we have the most widely diverse readership in the homeschooling community, and our content reflects that diversity. We do not run articles that preach to homeschoolers from an “expert” perspective nor are we looking for articles that bash the public school system. We prefer articles that outline a problem your family has faced and solved (solving is necessary), stories about successful learning adventures, information that will help other homeschoolers (college application, cooperative classes), project-oriented articles with specific suggestions for readers to follow, musings on life as a homeschooler, new developments in the homeschool community, articles from a particular perspective (single-parent, dad, grandparent) or any other topic that encourages or gives fresh, new ideas.
We welcome articles from inexperienced writers, especially mothers with homeschooling experience. Regardless of what you were taught in high school English classes, writing is nothing particularly mysterious. It’s only another form of communication. If you can clearly explain your ideas to a friend, you can write a good article for our magazine. Our voice is from homeschoolers to homeschoolers, so you don’t need to be an education expert or an English major to write for us.
Your article must hook the reader from the beginning. If we’ve read the same thing a thousand times on the Internet, we don’t want to read it in a magazine. Your writing must be clear, interesting and concise. Decide on a topic and stay with that topic. We get lots of “here’s how homeschooling looks in my family” articles. We love the topic, but we can only take the best of those and even some good articles are returned to their authors just because we receive too many on that topic. Find a way to say it that will make our readers want to savor every word.
Pays $50-$100 for feature articles.
Attribute Magazine is the premiere Internet-based publication for progressive, optimistic, ethical people. We are a virtual company staffed by intelligent, fun, ethical people.
The basic mission of the publication will be to showcase the attributes of all generations to the betterment of society and the world. What is it that drives us? What is it we contribute and are passionate about? Who are we, what do we consume, where do we play, live, etc?
We are currently seeking to add creative, quality writers to our staff. Open to genre and topic but must pertain to our mission. Features, news, reviews, health and wellness, entertainment/culture, creative writing (poetry, literature), travel, personal growth, parenting, social issues, and politics.
Interested parties please send an introductory email, cover letter or query letter. If you have links to articles, please include in your inquiry. Writing samples upon request only.
Please send replies to: [email protected]
(Serious inquiries only!)
Thank you and best of luck!
Attribute Magazine
I’ve been asked more than once how I deal with the lack of security that goes along with working as a freelance writer. Since I’ve started freelancing, I’ve come to understand why actors and other creative types are said to be insecure. You are only as good as your last performance (gig), and there are no guarantees that you will get another assignment. Talk about working without a net! At the same time, I feel more secure as a self-employed freelancer than I did when I was working for someone else.
Why? It’s quite simple, really. When I work for myself, then I’m in control of my business. I can decide whether I have enough on my plate or if I need to devote more time to applying for freelance writing jobs or pitching potential clients. I have been in the position of being laid off from an office job due to circumstances that were beyond my control and that had nothing to do with my job performance. I would rather succeed or fail based on my own efforts than work for someone else.
Does that mean I always feel secure? Not at all. But then again, I didn’t feel particularly secure when I worked for someone else. (At one place where I used to work, the woman in charge of Personnel liked to fire people on Friday afternoons, so a lot of us made a point of not answering our phones after lunch that day. The logic was that if she couldn’t find you to summon up to her office, she couldn’t fire you….)
I guess the bottom line here is that we can all control how we feel about who we are and what we do. Security is something that comes from within, even though it can be a struggle to feel that way at times. Just like the lady in the photo here, if we focus on being afraid and think about whether we are going to fall, we are setting ourselves up for failure. Even if we don’t feel particularly secure at any given time, we can project a confident image (which is half the battle) to our clients and potential clients.
Do you feel secure in your freelance career or is that something you struggle with?
by Deborah Ng
One of the reasons I changed the FWJ logo from the pajama blogging lady to the coffee cup is because I was getting a little tired of the assumption that folks who work at home are a little lazy. It’s assumed that it’s too much trouble for those of us who work at home to change out of our sleep clothes. It’s assumed that those of us who work at home do so because we don’t want to work a “real” job or “real” hours. It’s assumed that those of us who work at home do so because we can’t adapt to the strong work ethic we need to spend our days at a cube farm.
If you’re looking to work at home because you love the idea of being able to write in your pajamas or design websites for a couple of hours a day, think again. While I have no desire to ever return to the traditional office job, the reasons aren’t out of laziness. In fact, I maintain one must have a stronger work ethic than those who work in an office because we have to remain focused and not let the television or friends distract us. Moreover, I maintain those of us who work at home put in more hours than those who work outside of the home.
So if you have romantic preconceived ideas about luxuriating through a work at home job instead of putting in the time and effort needed to hold down a “real” job, put that thought out of your mind right now. I wonder, is it the actual working at home or the romantic idea of working at home you’re after.
Is it because you want to spend more time with your family? If so, you many be frustrated because you’re having a hard time balancing home and work. The truth is, it’s extremely difficult to work while children are demanding your attention or fighting in the background over the last chocolate chip cookie. Sometimes I wonder if I would be a more hands on parent if I left my “real” office job at 5:00 and didn’t return back to it at 8:30 a.m.
Is it because you want to dress more comfortably? Indeed it’s a perk. My stocking bill is lower and I rarely wear heels anymore. I don’t always work in my pajamas though because I feel the need to separate work from home. Getting changed into some casual clothes to work in puts me in the proper frame of mind. Different freelancers have different opinions on that. However, dress isn’t really a reason to work at home.
Is it because you want more flexibility? One of the best reasons to work at home is the ability to work via your own schedule. I love working early in the morning before everyone is a wake while the house is so quiet. Plus I can take time off to lunch with friends or help my son with his homework and take him to activities. My recommendation is to set aside specific blocks of time as “work hours”. When you start and stop constantly it’s hard to be productive. I also found others respect your time more when you set non-negotiable business hours.
Is it because you keep reading about so many work at home jobs? It’s true, the Internet has created so many work at home opportunities. Be forewarned you can’t quit your day job one day and have a huge clientele the next. It takes time to cultivate relationships. Moreover, in today’s economy, work at home jobs are coveted and competition is fierce. My recommendation is to have work set up before taking the plunge.
Is it because you want a lighter load? If so, you may not necessarily get that working at home. If you freelance you’ll probably have a heavier load because you’ll need to find lots of gigs to help compensate for the salary you left behind. You’ll also need to work hard to find clients and meet deadlines. If money is no object, a lighter load is certainly a good reason to work at home. If you need to support a family, this is rarely the case.
If you’re looking to work at home, first think about the reasons you really want to work at home. It’s not all fuzzy slippers and bon bons. There’s a reality here and it’s not always a free and easy lifestyle. I’ve never worked so hard in my life – and if that’s not your goal you may as well stay back in your cube farm.
by Jodee Redmond
Good morning FWJ Friends! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. It’s a bit quiet on the boards, but I do have some leads for you this morning.
Leads…
Telecommute
