I have to admit that keeping up with social media is harder than Keeping Up With the Kardashians. I barely have time to finish my day job during the day let alone come up with witty tweets and conversational topics on Facebook. But oh how I try! This week I got feedback from two different people on my social media efforts. On the + side, my personal tweets are looking A-okay and so is my professional efforts on FB. I have to thank author and teacher IJ Schecter for providing the feedback for my personal social media accounts. This is…
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When I wrote this list of easy ways I increased my chance to freelance writing success, I neglected something BIG. In fact, it was the number one thing that helped launch my career. And the fastest. Just this past March, I wrote about how I was on the fence about this one. Looking back, I’m patting myself on the back and singing my “hallelujahs” because had I not done so, I might be singing a whole different tune today. How I Became the Lone Wolf When I started freelancing about four years ago, I was way behind the pack. Writers…
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Instead of an A for excellent, they probably should have given you a P-for perfectionist. You know who you are. You spend an inordinate amount of time perfecting your craft. You have been known to make basketballs out of your shoddy pieces of work. If anyone asked your friends of your family, what they admire about you and what annoys them most about you, the answer would be the same = your perfectionism. You’re probably working the perfect on the outside with a bit neurotic on the inside (a.k.a. you’re also a control freak). You end up charging less than…
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Mediums That Move Me Last night I was bawling harder than I had been in a long time. Like a traffic accident, I was both glued to the TV screen and fighting to turn away. Indecisive about what I should do next, I finally decided to whip out my nifty remote control and put a pause on it instead. I was watching one of my favorite, but recently cancelled shows Little People, Big World. When I saw Matt Roloff cry in response to his eldest son leaving the coop, I lost it. The entire hour was a crying fest, one…
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While I’m hardly one to call myself a success (unlike this couple), I have picked up a few learn-as-you-go tips that have seriously change my career and my life. To be honest, my freelancing career started without any preparation, focus or long-term planning. I basically decided one day that it was time to stop waiting for my life to happen and start living it. Although it’s been a rocky road, I have never had trouble finding a writing gig (*knock on wood) and have succeeded in getting bigger and better jobs throughout my career. I must have done something right.…
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When I first started telling people I was going to quit my full-time job and go freelance, I think they heard “rogue” instead. It’s as if I just announced I was going to make a living making balloon animals or shooting to outer space. It’s hard to explain their expression-a mix of disbelief, pity and maybe even undertones of resentment. I initially chalked it up to my own insecurities. Maybe they thought I wasn’t good enough or that I was just being Brandi-you know irresponsible, only child syndrome. What they said was things like: You can’t be a writer. Writers…
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{She’s one of the first people I connected with via social media and one of the kindest. Since then, Natalia has continually impressed me with her talent, wit and her ability to draw people together. I was so honored when she agreed to write something for my lil’ blog on her journey as an author. Read what she’s learned in the process of writing her first book and how she’s using that knowledge to make her next book that much better.} photo via pinterest. originally from here. by guest blogger: Natalia Sylvester The hardest thing is to keep starting over.…
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Okay, I’ve been keeping a secret for WAY too long. It’s been eating me up inside… But I think I can finally share at least one of them. Here’s what it’s not… I didn’t write a book. {Though I hope one day I can reveal a secret like that one.} I’m not quitting freelancing. I don’t have a TV or a book deal. {In my dreams, lol.} I didn’t get an article in Real Simple or Whole Living {Another few I would go crazy happy for.} I didn’t win an award for my writing. {Aw shucks, this is getting depressing.}…
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photo via pinterest I spent “last Friday night” doing something a whole lot more conservative than Katy Perry. I got my hair done and had dinner with my husband. On our walk in town afterwards, we stopped by one of the last remaining historical monuments of my generation: Borders. As we pushed our way through screaming kids and their fed-up parents, I started to reflect on what this bookstore chain has meant to me throughout my life. As I walked through the big black and red signs with big number discounts, I heard friends bemoaning the loss. I saw women…
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It’s Wednesday, but it already feels like a Friday. {Maybe it’s wishful thinking?} To get us through this hump day, I’m posting something a little different. I’m going to add a disclaimer here by saying: I am not a professional artist. But I do think everyone is creative. And with that being said, here is cartoon I did awhile back just for the sake of doing it. Hope this gives you a little giggle!