The People of Walmart is one of those blogs that gets me through every situation. For example, if I’m feeling as if I have nothing to wear, I turn to the People of Walmart to show me there are endless wardrobe possibilities for the taking in my own closet.Just when I think my hair cut is ge...
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Last week I posted a job ad for a business looking to start a website from scratch. He laid out a flat fee of $5,000 for the project. Now, I can’t speak for him but I’m assuming he received a good response. He offered a fair wage for his project and I almost considered applying for it...
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The day after Thanksgiving is traditionally called Black Friday. It’s called this because merchants all over the country significantly lower prices to bring in customers looking to save money on their holiday shopping. The purpose is for the shops to sell so much merchandise, merchants will...
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If you’re one of the American members of this community, you’re probably getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving. Pretty soon homes all over the country will fill with the smell of roast turkey and pumpkin pie. Friends and family will gather to give thanks. As I enjoy my first cup of ...
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I had to pick up new glasses today. Actually, I kept my old frames but needed to up the prescription. I only took the appointment today because the nice lady on the phone assured me it would be a slow day and I wouldn’t have to wait forever to switch out my lenses.”You’ll be in ...
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I wanted to share an email I received this week. I thought it would make for an interesting discussion. The letter writer requested I leave her name out, but it’s reprinted with permission. I did edit for brevity (again with permission) as the original letter was very long:Dear Deb,My frien...
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This year has been a roller coaster ride. For those of you who missed it, I maintained FWJ while working full time as a community manager, lost the full time gig thanks to budget cuts, and have to battle negativity on a regular basis for standing by a sponsor I absolutely believe in. A few people...
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Today, freelancers from Demand Studios are going to receive information regarding the “Write for a Cause” campaign. Thanks to a partnership with First Book, one book will be donated to needy kids for every eight articles written. The goal is to donate 20,000 books on behalf of their ...
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I was just reading on Media Bistro how Good Morning America canceled Adam Lambert’s appearance originally scheduled for tomorrow morning after receiving over 1500 complaints due to Lambert’s racy performance on the American Music Awards last weekend. Sometimes celebrities go a little ...
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Thanksgiving is only two days away and the inevitable Thanksgiving happenings are, well, happening. These are the things you can expect every year, whether you like them or not. They’re traditions even though many of them aren’t on the family schedule.Let’s go off topic for a wh...
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Last week we discussed the importance of freelance writers using social media tools to build online relationships. While the benefits abound, it’s important to note offline relationships are also important. In fact, taking your online relationships offline, can further solidify a working as...
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Things have changed so much for the freelance writing world, even in the last five years or so. Advances in technology naturally led to advances in communication. This is especially apparent in how we deal with our clients. Ten years ago, I wouldn’t even consider talking to a client after r...
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Have you ever thought about branching out ? Many of us have skills and talent that extend beyond freelance writing. We shouldn’t be married to form of income or another, however. Sometimes packaging a variety of skills can land more lucrative gigs, while saving a client money in the long ru...
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A couple of weeks back I recommended a list of books to give to your favorite writer. Since then, I put out the call for other suggestions for holiday gifts for writers and received a bunch of publicity pushes but nothing that comes close to what I would put under the tree for a writer in my life...
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This morning inspiration struck while I was in the shower. I quickly dried off, threw on my robe and ran to the office where Mr. Ng was sitting at my laptop. “I have a thought!” I called out. “I need to write!” “I’m looking for work!” my husband called ba...
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Yesterday my friend Anne Wayman sent a link to her post “Job Postings Here are the Tip of the Ice Berg.” Anne’s thoughtful post was inspired by another freelance writing blogger’s decision not to post freelance writing job leads. I know Anne wanted me to go to her blog and...
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Dear Miss Deb,I help you blog. I blog good to you. Yes?Haito K.Dear Haito,No.- Miss DebDear Deb,I think you’re only pretending to write so you can have traffic.- Name withheld by request even though it was probably anonymous.Dear Anonymous,You got me. I’m faking it. Am I pulling it of...
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I talk about trust a lot. If you or my clients didn’t trust me, I’d be sucking it up in a cube farm somewhere. So being real is important to me. However, I realize how you see me and how I see me are two different things. Appearances are important. That’s why when I work on buil...
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You probably see me on Twitter…a lot. The truth is, I like Twitter for many reasons. for example, it breaks up the monotony of the day when I’m home alone. There’s more to it than that, though. I find the networking to be invaluable. Twitter has enabled me to build on so many di...
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Back in the day, it was imperative to back up articles with facts, references and whos, whats, wheres, whys and hows. Nowadays it’s much different. On the web we can write what we want, when we want, and how we want. We can write the most unbelievable crap, if we want, and there will still ...
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Deb’s note: This is part three in our “Freelance Writer’s Guide to Social Media Series.” Also see: The Freelance Writer’s Guide to Twitter and a Freelance Writer’s Guide to Facebook…and stay tuned for the accompanying ebook.It almost seems as if everyone...
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I was up for some time last night thinking about the reaction to the announcment that Demand Studios was offering affordable health care coverage to their freelance writers. To be honest, I’m perplexed by the reaction. I’ll always expect more than a few people to direct negativity in ...
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Freelance Writing Jobs So Demand Studios announced health care options for their freelancers today. Your thoughts?
The impending holiday season means many freelancers are going to lighten their load for the next month and a half in order to handle obligations at home and spend time with family. However, does back burnering a client now mean you might lose that client to another freelancer before January? Wil...
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I find these posts hard to write. Because of my partnership with Demand Studios, there are always some people who write off my positivity as being a shill or mouthpiece. So I can tell you about why I feel so positive about Demand Studios, but half of you will walk away thinking I’m paid to ...
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Demand Studios made the announcement today that they are offering health insurance options to their freelancers. Though we touched upon this one month ago, the freelance writing community has been waiting with baited breath to learn the details. Some even wondered if it’s too good to be tr...
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I credit much of my freelance writing success to being a morning person. If not for the ability to wake each morning at 4:00, I wouldn’t have been able to find quiet blocks of time to work undisturbed. I woke early almost every day for five years – until my son was in first grade and ...
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I am NOT a Black Friday shopper. There is in way in Hades you’ll get me out of bed before 7:30 on the day after Thanksgiving, especially if it’s to battle crowds and fight over big screen televisions and Barbie Dolls. I worked in a mall. I know what goes on there. It’s not prett...
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Pardon me while I reflect a bit…2010 will mark my tenth year as a freelance writer. Though it’s a dream come true, it’s all rather surreal. I honestly thought freelancing would be a way to supplement my husband’s income until our son was in school full time. I didn’t...
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Jenna Glatzer’s book, Make a Real Living as a Freelance Writer: How to Win Top Writing Assignments was the first book I read while contemplating my decision to seek higher paying freelance writing opportunities. In fact, I credit Jenna’s book as giving me the inspiration and motivatio...
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by Lisa Jo RudyAnswer: it sounds a whole lot harder than it is.If you can think in a straight line and follow a set of written guidelines, you’ll probably do just fine as a grant writer. Of course, you’ll want to hit the deadlines, fill in all the blanks, and be sure you’re writing the correct nu...
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