Remember Gavin de Becker’s 1997 book, “The Gift of Fear?” A potential employer gave it to me during one of their intensive interviews. Strange gift for most jobs, but this one fit the bill. I was interviewing for work as a private investigator.

Surprisingly, I got the job.

My one year stint as a PI was more than I bargained for. But one thing I learned from the book and the job was to follow my instincts.

Or so I thought.

Like Jesaka I’ve had to relearn the lesson time and time again.

As a P.I., not trusting my inner teacher (as I like to call it) was dangerous. And as a writer, it was bad business.

Here’s what I lost in the process:

Read the rest of this entry

This past weekend I attended the first ever National Magazine Day at a local San Francisco bookstore called, “BookSmith.” Although I missed the first 5 hours of food, drink, and fun of skimming through hundreds of magazines, I did get there in time for what may have been the best part. Hearing what’s hot in the magazine industry from a group of writers/magazine publishers (Local writer Kevin Smokler, Derek Powazek (Fray),  Jen Angel (formerly of Clamor), Jeremy Smith (of the digital Shareble.net), and Andrew Leland (managing editor of The Believer).
Read the rest of this entry

The belief that we should ask for what we need is a difficult concept for me. I am a woman for one and a minority for another. I’ve been brought up to believe statements like, “You can’t really do anything about it. Don’t bother/make trouble. Just let it go.”

This is the reason why I used to wonder if I was born in the right family. If I didn’t look so much like my parents, I might really question where I came from.

Instead, I took on a different belief system. The belief that I could do anything and be anything, if only I asked. It still wasn’t easy, however, to get past this long-held belief. Every time I ask for something I need, I take a deep breath, grasp onto faith, cross my fingers, say a prayer, and do anything to deal with the anxiety that starts when I do anything contrary to what I was raised to believe.
Read the rest of this entry

Photo by: roberthuffstutter

My husband and I hobbled on over to a used car lot recently. The reason for our less than enthusiastic attitude was our fear of encountering the dreaded stereotypical used car salesman. The man with a big persona (a.k.a. desperate man who talks too much).

You know the guy. The one who hunts you down and seems to pick up your scent even before he sees you. A swarm of salesman suddenly encircles you all in business suits, all waiting until fatigue and desperation gives way to a sale.

Okay it might not be THAT bad! But if used car salesman can smell fresh new meat a mile away, then I can tell desperation from afar as well. When a guy comes running towards me asking to show me his car without even knowing what I’m looking for, I run the other way. Desperation is not attractive when dating or when selling. Read the rest of this entry

I went to a new writer’s group last weekend. I was on a hunt to find like-minded folk locally and decided that since it was 2010, it was about time. Though I was full of gusto and excitement of meeting new writing peeps, the group left a lot to be desired.

The two guys who showed up were really nice and all and all I felt comfortable and supported, but it just wasn’t a good fit. The one thing that stayed with me was something one of the members said. He commented that a lot of poetry was “self-absorbed.” That stuck with me and made me question how much of my own writing was a form of narcissism.

The desire to be heard, the glory of the written word and the recognition that writing sometimes brings, all makes writing a self-indulgent gift. Yet, none of it has to do with making a living as a freelance writer or does it?
Read the rest of this entry

Last year I sent out a flurry of queries and a couple completed manuscripts. I worked like crazy to reach that impossible, unattainable dream-to get published in a well-known magazine.

And here’s what happened:

No, I didn’t get into Glamour or O magazines. A prayer wasn’t answered. A miracle was yet to be seen.

Instead, last year’s queries were answered by this year’s, “I’m sorry your idea doesn’t fit with the current needs of the magazine.”

After listening to my heart shatter for a few minutes, I put myself back together like Humpty Dumpty. I realized that one rejecting letter, did not a failure make.

So this is what I did:
Read the rest of this entry

Photo by striatic

Have you ever had a bad haircut? I’m sure we’ve all had them. As for me, I’m like TLC’s Duggarts, I’m on my fifth and counting.

The thing my husband always says after I get back from another disappointing hairdo is, “I don’t get it. You tell them exactly what you want and they never do it the way you want.”

“Hmm,” I thought. There’s a bit of wisdom in there somewhere.

The more I pondered, the more I saw that there was a similarity between bad haircuts and bad business.
Read the rest of this entry

Photo by: Wit

Freelance writing is kind of like fishing. There’s a lot of waiting involved. You throw out the bait, wait for a bite and then get ready for the fight.

However, instead of thumb twiddling or going to the opposite extreme and getting unnecessarily busy (online shopping or applying for jobs like crazy, for example), this may be a good time to get yourself organized and prepared for the next bite.

Here are a few productive things to do while you’re waiting for your next big project:

Read the rest of this entry

I was talking with a fellow writer the other day and then it hit me. We were both striving for the same thing-to make a living as a freelance writer. But we had very different ways of reaching our goal.

For me, business is a lot slower. I really want to focus on magazine and newspaper writing but the process is a lot longer than other writing gigs. There’s querying, waiting, writing and then waiting again. To make up for it, I do have a few clients that I do copywriting for. But even with that, I’m still a world’s away from my writer friend’s work load. Read the rest of this entry

photo by: Tomm (hmm at Rosa tint)

Over the past 3 months I’ve learned more as a freelance writer, than I ever did working in a cubicle. Learning things that I’m passionate about is fun and so I’ve been absorbing everything around me, attempting to learn as much about the freelance writing world as I can.

From months of reading, writing and learning, I’ve compiled a list of resources that has helped me and will hopefully help you, get a head-start on becoming a successful freelance writer. Read the rest of this entry