Giveaway alert, FWJ people! We’re spreading quite a bit of love this month. Whether you are looking for new jobs or you want to plan out your career, this giveaway is for you. We’re giving away a free career coaching bundle worth $164 AND a Flexjobs membership for three months. [Read more…]
We’re Giving Away TWO Flexjobs Premium Annual Memberships
Giveaway alert! We have been sharing Flexjobs and its services for a while now, and if you have been wanting to give it a try but budget constraints have made that impossible, here is the perfect opportunity. We’re giving away two Flexjobs premium annual memberships. [Read more…]
Win Copies of Qbserve, an Automatic Time Tracker for Mac
Time tracking is crucial in ensuring productivity levels are high – and this is even more important for us freelancers who are surrounded by more distractions than the average office worker.
As we all know, the freedom we love can also easily be our downfall if we don’t keep ourselves accountable.
Enter tools for freelancers to streamline our work and make our lives easier. [Read more…]
Promote Your Freelancing Business with Decals from Coffee Shop Freelancers [Giveaway]
Let’s face it. Freelance writing is a business, especially if you do it full-time. That means you need to deal with all the aspects of running a business, just like every other company – big or small – does.
Depending on your location, this may include:
- Registering a business name and getting a business permit.
- Keeping track of expenses and income.
- Filing taxes, which entails knowing what laws apply and what deductions you can make.
- Promoting your business.
Regarding the last point, there are various ways you can promote your business – blogging, content marketing, social media marketing, and having your own online portfolio. Then there is the often overlooked method of real-life promotion.
Since we work online, we sometimes forget that there is a host of potential clients that you can acquire offline.
If you regularly work at a coffee shop, for example, there are probably some people who can use a freelance writer for a project. But you can’t just go around asking people in a coffee shop if they want to take on your services, can you? Nor can you approach people and hand out your business card. (Well, you can but that is probably not the best way to do it.)
A great alternative is to advertise yourself and what you do by using your laptop as a platform.
Think about it. People can’t help but stare – or at least take a look – at the laptops of those who are in a coffee shop. They may simply be glancing around, or they might be curious as to what you’re doing.
Whatever the case may be, you can take advantage of that human tendency by using decals or stickers specifically designed to promote your business.
That’s where startup Coffee Shop Freelancers comes into the picture.
They are introducing what they describe “a new way of networking” by designing and creating stickers that advertise what you do and include a call to action as well.
To get the word out, and to give the FWJ community a chance to try out their products, Coffee Shop Freelancers is giving away two laptop decals. Take a look.
Without you having to “violate” other people’s personal space, you are still able to promote your freelance writing business. Whether you work at a coffee shop or a co-working space, these decals will help you get clients in the real world.
How to win
We’re giving away these two decals to two lucky FWJ readers. Just follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter widget below, and you’re good to go.
Some important notes:
- Even if you don’t win, there’s still something for you. Simply visit Coffee Shop Freelancers, and subscribe to their mailing list. You will then automatically receive a 20% discount code upon launch. Additionally, you get automatically enrolled into more contests and giveaways.
- The giveaway is open to everyone worldwide.
- The giveaway starts today, January 12 and ends on Friday, January 16. The winners will be announced on Monday, January 19.
- You can tweet once day all week to get more entries.
Happy tweeting and commenting. Good luck!
6 Reasons Why You Should Update your Online Portfolio Regularly
Win a Hand-Lettered Mini Journal With a Maya Angelou Quote!
It’s been a while since we had a giveaway, hasn’t it? It’s not every day that we come across generous people who want to share their beautiful – and useful – work with others, but Emily of EmDashPaperCo is giving away one of her hand-lettered mini journals. Not only will it be very useful to any writer, it also has a a very apt quote, which I hope will serve as inspiration.
Emily runs a store on Etsy. She has an English BA and MA, is an avid reader, and a lover of the written word in all its forms. Doesn’t that sound familiar? She describes her craft as centering “on the visually pleasing arrangement of words on a page, incorporating her love of words both as tools for communication and as works of art in themselves.”
I don’t know about you, but I would love to have this particular piece of work in my bag!
That looks nice, doesn’t it? Here’s more information about the mini journal.
• Hand-lettered individually — NOT printed or mass-produced
• Moleskine’s “pocket” size, measuring 3 1/2″ x 5 1/2″
• Ruled pages
• Soft, flexible cardboard cover
• Contains 32 pages (64 front and back)
• White acrylic calligraphy ink
It’s small enough to take with you wherever you go, so you can jot down your thoughts for all those lightbulb moments.
To discover more of Emily’s work, you can find her via the following venues:
Twitter: @emdashpaperco
Facebook: Sparrownestscript
Instagram: http://instagram.com/emdashpaperco
How do you get the chance to win?
Just follow the instructions in the widget below. You can tweet every day to earn more entries, and you have to be a US resident to qualify. We will choose the winner at random on Friday, February 22, around 10PM EST. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Win a Free Copy of Kathleen Krueger’s “The Fast Track to Freelance Success Online”!
The Fast Track to Freelance Success Online
Many of you have been working online for quite some time, but I am sure that we also have a good number of readers who are only starting to wade in the freelance waters. Whichever group you belong to, I think that you will benefit a lot from reading Kathleen Krueger’s recently released e-book, “The Fast Track to Freelance Success Online”.
Kathleen is one of our readers, and I was made aware of her book when she left a comment a week or so ago, and guess what? She has generously agreed to give away two copies!
The title gives you a pretty good idea what the book has to offer, but let me tell you this: it is a pretty good handbook for anyone who wants to launch a freelance career and be successful without waiting ages.
The book is divided into seven chapters, starting with identifying your goals, moving on to how to begin, and ending with an update on Kathleen’s professional status.
What I really like about the book is that it does not give you a generic formula to success. While the title is very upbeat and might give you an impression that you are about to have a “guaranteed success” read, it really is not all about that. (Aside: I don’t know about you, but in general, I am wary when I am given such guarantees in an uncertain world.)
What Kathleen does, instead, is to share the lessons and nuggets of wisdom she has learned in her own journey to freelancing success. And, I have to say that this book should be mandatory reading for anyone who wants to succeed in this field.
Here is some more information about Kathleen that you might want to know.
Kathleen is a full time freelance writer from Minnesota with a creative, casual style. Currently she contributes articles to several local and national lifestyle magazines; is a writer of informational online articles regarding a wide range of topics; ghost writer for several company blogs and website content in a wide range of industries.
Now, would you like to read the ebook that can help you with your freelancing career?
As I said earlier, we’re giving away TWO copies. Here’s what you need to do to get a chance to win.
Step 1: Copy & paste the following, and then tweet it:
I want a copy of The Fast Track to Freelance Success Online from @FreelanceWJ and @kacky222! Enter here: http://spla.us/RIwpJO #contests
Step 2: Leave us a comment on this page to let us know you tweeted, and paste the link to your tweet in your comment. (Note that our comments are moderated, so your comment may not show up immediately after you click the “Post Comment” button.)
The winners will be selected at random from the commenters on or around 11:00 pm EST on Wednesday, September 26. The winners will be notified via Twitter, after which we’ll get your details. Don’t forget to thank @kacky222 if you win!
Important: You can enter the contest once per day between now and the 26th.
In case you don’t win, you can still get The Fast Track to Freelance Success Online for only $4.50. In the meantime, remember to tweet and leave your comments till Wednesday!
Who Wants to Win This Ray Bradbury Mug?
Ray Bradbury Mug
I don’t know about you, but this is one of my favorite quotes from a writer. While I have to be honest and say that I am not a huge Ray Bradbury fan (not because I don’t like his work, but simply because I haven’t had the chance to read much of it), this line just hits home at times.
When I saw this mug on Etsy, I had a feeling that some of you guys might want to get your hands on it as well. Not only is the design something we can relate to as writers, the mug can also easily become a constant companion. I think I am not wrong in assuming that a cup of coffee or tea is never far from reach, am I?
Lucky for us, the creator of this mug is a writer herself, and she has generously agreed to give it away to a lucky FWJ reader! Well, technically, it won’t be the same mug that Hanna is giving away because she is going to make one especially for this giveaway, but that should not be an issue, should it?
Before we go to the contest guidelines, I suggest visiting Hanna’s Etsy shop, Ophelia’s Gypsy Caravan, where you will find so many more hand-painted mugs. If you’re anything like me, who can’t have enough coffee mugs around the house, then you are in for a treat!
Now how do you join this contest? Here are the steps.
Step 1: Copy & paste the following, and then tweet it:
I want to win the Ray Bradbury mug from @FreelanceWJ and @hannachoward! Enter here: http://spla.us/N5zKKK #contests
Step 2: Leave us a comment on this page to let us know you tweeted, and paste the link to your tweet in your comment. (Note that our comments are moderated, so your comment may not show up immediately after you click the “Post Comment” button.)
The winner will be selected at random from the commenters on or around 10:00 pm EST on Thursday, July 5. The winner will be notified via Twitter, after which we’ll get your details for shipping. Don’t forget to thank @hannachoward if you win!
Important: You can enter the contest once per day between now and the 5th. Also, due to shipping considerations, the winner will have to be based in the United States.
Win Codes for miTypewriter App for the iPad
I am sure that I am not alone in feeling nostalgic about the entire experience of putting words on paper (literally) using a typewriter. As a kid, I would alternate between the desire to daintily tap on the keys and the urge to pound away like a crazed writer.
It might be a difficult thing to find real typewriters nowadays, but for those of you who have an iPad, here’s the next best thing: miTypewriter.
This app turns your iPad into something like the typewriters of old, and while you won’t have the tactile experience, the looks and sounds certainly provide an enjoyable trip down memory lane. miTypewriter looks like this.
miTypewriter Interface
You can tweak the settings to suit your fancy.
miTypewriter Settings
And once you have typed out your letter, article, or whatever it is you are working on, you have a few options to choose from as well.
miTypewriter Options
Once you’re done, you can even print out your letter.
miTypewriter Letter
Doesn’t that make you want to have miTypewriter on your iPad?
That’s what we’re here for: to give you the chance to have some play time. Teruaki Onoda of white dev, the guys behind miTypewriter, has been so generous and has given us 10 codes for the app. Yes, 10 codes to give away to writers who miss the clickety clack of typewriters.
You know how this goes…
Step 1: Copy & paste the following, and then tweet it:
I want to win a code for miTypewriter from @FreelanceWJ and @white_dev! Enter here: http://spla.us/JwaBwv #contests
Step 2: Leave us a comment on this page to let us know you tweeted, and paste the link to your tweet in your comment. (Note that our comments are moderated, so your comment may not show up immediately after you click the “Post Comment” button.)
TEN winners will be selected at random from the commenters on or around 10:00 pm EST on Friday, June 1. Winners will be notified via Twitter, after which we’ll send the code through DM. Don’t forget to thank @white_dev if you win!
Important: You can enter the contest once per day between now and the 1st.
Get an Electronic Copy of “Corridor” by Robin Parrish for FREE!
I believe that writers need to continue to improve themselves, and one way of doing that is to read, read, and read some more. When it comes to reading, I can read practically anything (except fashion magazines, maybe), but I do love a good fiction book. And speaking of fiction, did you know that we have a published fiction writer in our team at Splashpress Media?
Robin Parrish is a journalist, blogger, and author. He contributes to our sister sites ForeverGeek and Apple Gazette. He has been so kind as to offer an electronic copy of his latest novel, Corridor, to you guys.
Corridor is an action novel that keeps you at the edge of your seat. Here’s an idea of the story.
THE ONLY WAY OUT IS TO RUN.
On the eve of his seventeenth birthday, Troy Goggin finds himself inexplicably transported to an impossibly huge, miles-long structure called the Corridor. But what is the Corridor, and why was he brought to it?
It’s a place of mystery, wonder, and heart-stopping danger. It will test him and push him both mentally and physically. His only companion is the girl whose voice he hears inside his head, explaining the rules he must follow if he hopes to escape.
But there is much more to this extraordinary place than Troy could ever imagine. The Corridor’s true purpose — the biggest mystery of all — is revealed only to those who make it to the end.
You can read excellent reviews of the book at Good Reads. I have started reading Corridor, and I find it riveting. I can tell you this for sure: you just might not want to start it if you do not have time to finish the book!
So who wants a copy? Here’s how to join.
Step 1: Copy & paste the following, and then tweet it:
I want to win a copy of Corridor by @robinparrish from @freelancewj! Enter here: http://spla.us/KpID0k #contests
Step 2: Leave us a comment on this page to let us know you tweeted, and paste the link to your tweet in your comment. (Note that our comments are moderated, so your comment may not show up immediately after you click the “Post Comment” button.)
ONE winner will be selected at random from the commenters on or around 10:00 pm EST on Thursday, May 3. Winners will be notified via Twitter, after which you can send us your email so Robin can give you the book. Don’t forget to thank @robinparrish if you win!
Important: You can enter the contest once per day between now and the 3rd.
Happy tweeting, and good luck!
Win Codes for Chapters – Notebooks for Writing!
Chapters - Notebooks for Writing
What is your most important writing tool?
Many years ago, the most common answers would probably have been “notebook” or “notepad” and “pen” or “pencil”. I wouldn’t be surprised if majority of modern answers include laptop, desktop computer, and iPad (or any other tablet for that matter). This is especially true for those of us who use the Internet as the main means of carrying out our work, isn’t it?
If you own an iPad, and you would like to have a handy app that will help you write down your thoughts in a more organized way, we have something for you this week: Chapters – Notebooks for Writing.
This is an app which basically gives you an electronic version of the good old notebook. As with many things electronic, you get a lot of advantages. With Chapters, you can create many notebooks, each designated for a specific task. You can create a personal journal, a travel diary, a notebook for a specific client, and so on. More than that, each specific notebook is also searchable! If you want to look for a particular entry, you can easily do so without having to flip through the pages of a traditional notebook.
I don’t need to emphasize how convenient a tool this can be for writers, do I?
There is an added feature, which is perfect for those concerned with privacy. If other people use your iPad, you can always lock notebooks so that no one but you can view their content. This is great for personal journals and other sensitive material. Other features include:
- Autosave
- Write comfortably in any orientation
- Protect private notebooks with a passcode
- Simple bullet list support
- Turn on word count if you need to know how much you’ve written
- Adjust your text per notebook (shade, font, size)
- Pick a background color to color code your notebooks
- Pick from a few paper colors
- Fast search with contextual snippets
- Rename each notebook by tapping its title
- Add photos from your photo library, float them on the page
- Resize and rotate photos, slide them around
- Export any notebook entry via email with a single tap
- Create a PDF version of a single entry (or all of them)
- Optionally show timestamps on each entry
- You can export the text of an entire notebook easily for safekeeping
- Use the calendar to look for entries, tap to read
- Create backups that will let you restore in case you lose your data
- Mark entries with timestamps
Do you want one already? You can purchase the Chapters from the iTunes Store for $3.99, or you can join our contest! We are giving away THREE codes for the app, courtesy of Steven (the developer). To learn more about Chapters and other work by Steven, you can visit Slide to Rock.
So how do you get a free code? Here are the steps.
Step 1: Copy & paste the following, and then tweet it:
I want to win a code for Chapters – Notebooks for Writing from @FreelanceWJ and @slidetorock! Enter here: http://spla.us/zUwHXt #contests
Step 2: Leave us a comment on this page to let us know you tweeted, and paste the link to your tweet in your comment. (Note that our comments are moderated, so your comment may not show up immediately after you click the “Post Comment” button.)
THREE winners will be selected at random from the commenters on or around 10:00 pm EST on Thursday, February 16. Winners will be notified via Twitter, after which we’ll send the code through DM. Don’t forget to thank @slidetorock if you win!
Important: You can enter the contest once per day between now and the 16th.
Good luck!
