I actually have a small team of writers now; not only to help ease my workload a little, but also to help them get extra cash. It's a different experience managing freelancers-by our very nature, a partnership is a partnership of equals or nearly just like one between clients and writers. As a freelance writer with no little reputation now, I can usually pick and choose jobs that I will like (or at least tolerate) and I try to extend that courtesy to my writers.
It's not just a matter of doing this because I can, but rather because it's more effective. By giving my writers work they will actually enjoy and not just put up with, it ensures that they will stick through the deadlines and the writing with, if not a smile, at least a look of concentration on their faces. This in turn promotes a higher quality of work which is done on time and not delayed or ridden with angst and problems.
In a very real way, I'm more of an agent for my writers than a boss. I try to match my writers' abilities, preferences and scheduling with work so that the work they turn out is something that is worth paying for and something they can be proud of and enjoy. In return, Quill for Hire improves its reputation and gets more work which can then be shared around. Sure it means that I get the dregs sometimes, but as an all around writer, I can write on just about anything anyway. Plus I get no small amount of satisfaction when my writers tell me afterwards that they enjoyed the work and learned a lot from it.
I really wish that all businesses could find a way to make this model work. Instead of forcing employees into a role that doesn't suit, find roles that suit the employee. I'm sure productivity, effectiveness and efficiency would shoot through the roof and you'd have much happier employees with greater degrees of loyalty.
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Sunday, December 18, 2011
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
The Christmas Jam
I always have valid excuses for never being around. I have so much practice for not keeping up with things that I always have an excuse!
This time it was unexpected. Normally the Christmas season winds me down with less work since clients are doing Christmas too, but this year it seems like everyone would rather work than shop which means I"m doing a lot of work and not keeping up here! That happens sometimes though and I suppose I should be happy. I'll be happier when the money comes into my bank account ;)
Christmas has also been busy simply because there are five people living here including a two year old and that means a lot of shopping. So busy and expensive! Our savings has been wiped out (not for long, but still) and the credit cards are teetering ^^'. I guess come January, we are doing the hermit thing, lol.
Well, I have some new clients and that's exciting. I also have a new writer to try out as soon as some bids are won. Cross fingers; she's skilled and needs the work badly.
I'm hoping to start doing this regularly again soon; I was doing really well there for a while!
Freelance writing-expect the unexpected, ha ha.
This time it was unexpected. Normally the Christmas season winds me down with less work since clients are doing Christmas too, but this year it seems like everyone would rather work than shop which means I"m doing a lot of work and not keeping up here! That happens sometimes though and I suppose I should be happy. I'll be happier when the money comes into my bank account ;)
Christmas has also been busy simply because there are five people living here including a two year old and that means a lot of shopping. So busy and expensive! Our savings has been wiped out (not for long, but still) and the credit cards are teetering ^^'. I guess come January, we are doing the hermit thing, lol.
Well, I have some new clients and that's exciting. I also have a new writer to try out as soon as some bids are won. Cross fingers; she's skilled and needs the work badly.
I'm hoping to start doing this regularly again soon; I was doing really well there for a while!
Freelance writing-expect the unexpected, ha ha.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Our Egos aren't That Fragile!
The first thing you really learn as a freelance writer is how to roll with the punches. It's a hard lesson and you will probably get a few ego bruises in the process, but just like weight building where you make yourself stronger, your ego will get stronger too. After a while, being told that your article needs revision becomes an enjoyable challenge, not a reason to cry into your cereal.
But it's really hard to make others believe that. After all, we've grown up with the stereotypical artist's ego; something that is fragile and easily offended. But as any professional artist (or writer) will tell you, our egos are actually made from cement and being told that something has to be changed is a challenge to be met. That's how you know that you are not only a professional, but one who can stick with it; when you can be told that something has to be redone and you just roll with it. You may not agree with it, but you roll with it anyway and learn from it.
This mainly comes up in two ways:
1) You are working with a new marketer or client who is nervous about offending an experienced writer
2) You are the subcontractor for another freelancer who has bruised egos and is afraid to damage yours.
In both cases, all you can do is keep telling that person that you will not be offended if you are required to make revisions on your work. Tell them again and again and again! They may never listen to you and end up stewing in their grumpiness about your work not being up to their standards, but at least your position is made clear.
But there is a limit to this. Some clients simply do not know what they want and end up spinning round and round, never able to articulate clearly what it is they expect from you. It is usually a new client who is guilty of this; they have an idea in mind, but they can't express it to you and so the round of revisions starts and usually ends with two very cranky people who never want to see each other again. I've had this happen to me before and believe you me, being fired came as a distinct relief-to both of us! (Another limit of course is being told that you are terrible, you are useless, you are no good to them. At that point, I generally shut the digital door in their faces. That is just plain rude!)
Which leads me to my final point about our ego and writers, gather in and listen well. If there is one thing we are guilty of in this discussion, it's not asking for details about work. I've done it, you've done it, we've done it. We should know better, but we still do it.
Asking is good. If you want clarification, ask. If you're unsure of something, ask. If you just want to make absolutely bloody certain you know what you're doing, ask. It doesn't make you look like an idiot, it makes you look dedicated to delivering the right work the first time. Even if it's a client you've worked for before, ASK! You never know when something will change and your client will probably forget that you're not psychic; particularly if it's a client you've worked with for a while.
Being willing to acknowledge mistakes, make revisions and ask any and all questions are not hallmarks of being novice. Masters know that the only way to do anything right is to keep trying and keep asking questions. Only novices think they know everything and only need to do it once.
Ciao everybody!
But it's really hard to make others believe that. After all, we've grown up with the stereotypical artist's ego; something that is fragile and easily offended. But as any professional artist (or writer) will tell you, our egos are actually made from cement and being told that something has to be changed is a challenge to be met. That's how you know that you are not only a professional, but one who can stick with it; when you can be told that something has to be redone and you just roll with it. You may not agree with it, but you roll with it anyway and learn from it.
This mainly comes up in two ways:
1) You are working with a new marketer or client who is nervous about offending an experienced writer
2) You are the subcontractor for another freelancer who has bruised egos and is afraid to damage yours.
In both cases, all you can do is keep telling that person that you will not be offended if you are required to make revisions on your work. Tell them again and again and again! They may never listen to you and end up stewing in their grumpiness about your work not being up to their standards, but at least your position is made clear.
But there is a limit to this. Some clients simply do not know what they want and end up spinning round and round, never able to articulate clearly what it is they expect from you. It is usually a new client who is guilty of this; they have an idea in mind, but they can't express it to you and so the round of revisions starts and usually ends with two very cranky people who never want to see each other again. I've had this happen to me before and believe you me, being fired came as a distinct relief-to both of us! (Another limit of course is being told that you are terrible, you are useless, you are no good to them. At that point, I generally shut the digital door in their faces. That is just plain rude!)
Which leads me to my final point about our ego and writers, gather in and listen well. If there is one thing we are guilty of in this discussion, it's not asking for details about work. I've done it, you've done it, we've done it. We should know better, but we still do it.
Asking is good. If you want clarification, ask. If you're unsure of something, ask. If you just want to make absolutely bloody certain you know what you're doing, ask. It doesn't make you look like an idiot, it makes you look dedicated to delivering the right work the first time. Even if it's a client you've worked for before, ASK! You never know when something will change and your client will probably forget that you're not psychic; particularly if it's a client you've worked with for a while.
Being willing to acknowledge mistakes, make revisions and ask any and all questions are not hallmarks of being novice. Masters know that the only way to do anything right is to keep trying and keep asking questions. Only novices think they know everything and only need to do it once.
Ciao everybody!
Monday, December 5, 2011
So I thought Christmas was Quiet...
I seem to recall Christmas time being relatively quiet last year, but this year everyone seems to be plowing on all at once. It's things like that which make life as a freelancer... interesting; you can try to track patterns of work all you like, but sometimes your ideas get shot to hell.
Generally, Christmas is quietish, largely because many marketers have families. But sometimes it can get a little nutty because of Christmas sales and a drive to soak up the last dollars before the new year. It's hard to say. The only point of stability I've had three years running is that August is dead and September/October is busy.
And now December I guess. :O
Stability is a nice thing to have, but if you work on commission, things can get unstable really fast. There are some coping strategies to take on:
1) put money away for the dry periods
2) in dry periods, work on personal projects and keep your fingers in the work scene
3) in busy times make sure you have and stick with a schedule. If you're only going to do 2x articles a day for each client, stick with it. Trying to do more will just drive you batty.
4) Have someone watch the toddler. (someone remind me to bribe my sister....)
So, I have 16 days left before my Set In Stone Vacation time for the holidays. (and YES IT'S SET IN STONE DAMN IT!)
In that time, I have roughly 40-60 articles. And I've declined invitations to boot!
My head hurts ^^'. Back to work!
Generally, Christmas is quietish, largely because many marketers have families. But sometimes it can get a little nutty because of Christmas sales and a drive to soak up the last dollars before the new year. It's hard to say. The only point of stability I've had three years running is that August is dead and September/October is busy.
And now December I guess. :O
Stability is a nice thing to have, but if you work on commission, things can get unstable really fast. There are some coping strategies to take on:
1) put money away for the dry periods
2) in dry periods, work on personal projects and keep your fingers in the work scene
3) in busy times make sure you have and stick with a schedule. If you're only going to do 2x articles a day for each client, stick with it. Trying to do more will just drive you batty.
4) Have someone watch the toddler. (someone remind me to bribe my sister....)
So, I have 16 days left before my Set In Stone Vacation time for the holidays. (and YES IT'S SET IN STONE DAMN IT!)
In that time, I have roughly 40-60 articles. And I've declined invitations to boot!
My head hurts ^^'. Back to work!
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Never Eat Lunch With a Friend...
I was going to be really awesome today. I had my goals set out in stone:
1) Finish a client (CHECK btw)
2) Do three articles for the lovely Sarita (erm, working on that)
3) Do two articles for each of my other three clients (HA HAHAHAHA!)
Yeah.
Instead, I got distracted by a friend I haven't seen in a while and lunch. It was my own bloody fault; every time I tried to leave, I'd start talking again. ^^'. But lunch was fun, I'm just dealing with the aftereffects of having only completed 1/3 goals for the day.
Even when I leave the house, i still manage to get distracted! Maybe I'm just easily distracted, ha ha. Being a work at home anybody in theory means knowing how to mitigate and minimize distractions so that you get your work done. Unfortunately, the reality isn't so much mitigating distractions as learning to work with them so that you still get stuff done, but you acknowledge the fact that it won't be as much as you set out to do. I don't think I've ever successfully finish all my goals for a day; usually I manage 2/3 or a 3/4 sort of thing. It's best not to get frustrated, upset or angry with yourself or you will probably just end up doing less work because you're too distracted by your annoyance at yourself!
So, I'm off to achieve at least 2/3 of my goals for today and then start over again tomorrow night. Such is life!
1) Finish a client (CHECK btw)
2) Do three articles for the lovely Sarita (erm, working on that)
3) Do two articles for each of my other three clients (HA HAHAHAHA!)
Yeah.
Instead, I got distracted by a friend I haven't seen in a while and lunch. It was my own bloody fault; every time I tried to leave, I'd start talking again. ^^'. But lunch was fun, I'm just dealing with the aftereffects of having only completed 1/3 goals for the day.
Even when I leave the house, i still manage to get distracted! Maybe I'm just easily distracted, ha ha. Being a work at home anybody in theory means knowing how to mitigate and minimize distractions so that you get your work done. Unfortunately, the reality isn't so much mitigating distractions as learning to work with them so that you still get stuff done, but you acknowledge the fact that it won't be as much as you set out to do. I don't think I've ever successfully finish all my goals for a day; usually I manage 2/3 or a 3/4 sort of thing. It's best not to get frustrated, upset or angry with yourself or you will probably just end up doing less work because you're too distracted by your annoyance at yourself!
So, I'm off to achieve at least 2/3 of my goals for today and then start over again tomorrow night. Such is life!
Saturday, December 3, 2011
I wanted to find funny freelance comics
But I can't find any free ones.
Which is fair enough; I think people deserve to be paid for the work they do. It's a bit of a soapbox issue for me actually and one I'll get into later, but it also means that I couldn't find any freelance writer comics :(.
There are some funny things to do about freelancers though; such as clients suddenly changing things around or adding more, weird demands on your time and abilities, and yes-clients coming on to you. (This has happened to me and needless to say, the client saw the digital door). One of the best things to do as a stressed freelancer is to laugh at many of the things that stress you out (if you can).
Which leads me back to my unsuccessful hunt for comics.
But here:
http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/f/freelance_writing.asp
Chock full of silly freelance writing comics.
....sadly, most of these are based on reality.... ^^'
Which is fair enough; I think people deserve to be paid for the work they do. It's a bit of a soapbox issue for me actually and one I'll get into later, but it also means that I couldn't find any freelance writer comics :(.
There are some funny things to do about freelancers though; such as clients suddenly changing things around or adding more, weird demands on your time and abilities, and yes-clients coming on to you. (This has happened to me and needless to say, the client saw the digital door). One of the best things to do as a stressed freelancer is to laugh at many of the things that stress you out (if you can).
Which leads me back to my unsuccessful hunt for comics.
But here:
http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/f/freelance_writing.asp
Chock full of silly freelance writing comics.
....sadly, most of these are based on reality.... ^^'
Thursday, December 1, 2011
SEO Madness
SEO Madness.
SEO, or search engine optimization, is the process by which content is done in such a way as to attract the attention of a search engine through the placement of keywords. But many marketers are now decrying SEO, calling the whole thing madness.
Search engine optimization is important, don't get me wrong (it better be, or I've wasted three years of my life learning it!) But it can get insane. Google.com, the world's largest search engine, is the target you're aiming for and SEO is one of the ways to do it. But Google only looks for your keywords in a few places:
Your Title
In the sentence blip that shows up below the title (usually about 160 characters)
Perhaps a few times throughout the article such as at the end and in a subheading.
That's it!
However, many newbie freelance writers (and many marketers) panic and think that they have to force the keywords in as much as possible. This leads to stilted, awkward, and unreadable articles which readers will ignore and Google will drop like a hot frying pan. The fact is that Google doesn't just rank your site based on keywords, but also on things like how relevant your content is and how many people come in and out. You can't get these two important factors if you overdo the SEO.
If you are going for SEO, it's important to keep the following in mind:
-Your keywords should be placed in such a way that they are natural and easy to read.
-Your keywords should not be intrusive
-You only need a few keywords and phrases overall, not thirty of them (I've seen clients do this and while I didn't say anything, I also didn't jam the articles).
It's up to freelance writers to not only, well, write, but also to advise. Sometimes I've had to tell clients that something is wrong, a product is useless and their format may be off. A good client will listen to you and take your words into account. Bad ones will ignore you. You may still have to work for the bad ones, but at least you will have made your point and they may come back at some point, heads hanging, and say you were right.
Or they might not. But remember: the client is always right.
Even when he's wrong. (unless he violates your conscience in which case, you should just leave the client and find other pastures).
SEO, or search engine optimization, is the process by which content is done in such a way as to attract the attention of a search engine through the placement of keywords. But many marketers are now decrying SEO, calling the whole thing madness.
Search engine optimization is important, don't get me wrong (it better be, or I've wasted three years of my life learning it!) But it can get insane. Google.com, the world's largest search engine, is the target you're aiming for and SEO is one of the ways to do it. But Google only looks for your keywords in a few places:
Your Title
In the sentence blip that shows up below the title (usually about 160 characters)
Perhaps a few times throughout the article such as at the end and in a subheading.
That's it!
However, many newbie freelance writers (and many marketers) panic and think that they have to force the keywords in as much as possible. This leads to stilted, awkward, and unreadable articles which readers will ignore and Google will drop like a hot frying pan. The fact is that Google doesn't just rank your site based on keywords, but also on things like how relevant your content is and how many people come in and out. You can't get these two important factors if you overdo the SEO.
If you are going for SEO, it's important to keep the following in mind:
-Your keywords should be placed in such a way that they are natural and easy to read.
-Your keywords should not be intrusive
-You only need a few keywords and phrases overall, not thirty of them (I've seen clients do this and while I didn't say anything, I also didn't jam the articles).
It's up to freelance writers to not only, well, write, but also to advise. Sometimes I've had to tell clients that something is wrong, a product is useless and their format may be off. A good client will listen to you and take your words into account. Bad ones will ignore you. You may still have to work for the bad ones, but at least you will have made your point and they may come back at some point, heads hanging, and say you were right.
Or they might not. But remember: the client is always right.
Even when he's wrong. (unless he violates your conscience in which case, you should just leave the client and find other pastures).
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