Tweet {photo source} I recently added group leader to my list of writing tasks and I have to say I really like it! There’s something about the camaraderie a group provides that you can’t get online. I also enjoy the chance to share what I’ve learned in my writing process as well as get feedback on things I wouldn’t have dreamed up on my own. There are definite pros to the list. But what else do you need to know to start your own group? Here’s a few tips: Think about what you want to get from it. Then, share your…
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Tweet Between starting the longest article I ever undertaken and working as an Associate Editor, I barely had time to hop onto this blog and my inspiring one. But I somehow managed to fit in a guest post. And I feel really honored to do so. Why? The person I was guest blogging for is Dina Santorelli, a freelance writer with published articles and a book to her name. Someone I admired dearly. Somehow she found me on Facebook and asked if I would guest post for her on something inspiring. And I did with great excitement. So here it…
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Tweet Did you know in Paris, the city of love, there are bridges devoted to lovers? Our tour guide Berthon said couples come to the bridge to pledge their affection for each other. We strolled down the bridge to take a glance at their “objects” of affection and were surprised by what we saw. At first glance, you see a stream of metal locks bolted together to signify a solid commitment. But our guide beckoned us to look further. As we got closer, we saw knots tied together with strips of a plastic bag, ribbon or paper. Berthon said those…
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Tweet Edward Cullen in Twilight said, “I don’t have the strength to stay away from you anymore!” Yet, there were more than warm and fuzzy feelings hitting hormonal teenagers and middle-aged moms. From some dark, deep and dreary place, stay-at-home mom and Twilight series author Stephanie Meyer drew a well and from it an empire of wealth and success. It’s that intense, can’t live without it passion that shakes us silly from our boring day-to-day reverie. Whether we’re copywriters, social media experts, bloggers or any writing gig for that matter, we need to get off our flat (cause we sit…
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Tweet DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME (or anywhere else for that matter!) 5 Tips for Freelance Writers on What Not to DO Don’t settle. You remember being in your twenties, desperate and single? Or how about a time when you really really wanted something so much so that you felt desperate. That’s kind of how I felt when I first started freelancing. I said, “Sayonara” to my plum job at Apple. With that, I was unemployed and scared silly about what was next. So what’d I do? I applied for every job that came my way and I took any…
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Tweet You may have a blog, sell jewelry or work for a nonprofit. In all cases, writing something that inspire others is important. Inspirational writing is actually quite versatile. Even seemingly non-inspiring pieces inspire others in surprising ways. Think about what makes you bookmark a site or click through the pages of a particular blog every day. For me, it’s a person’s ability to express their passion whether it’s home decor or psychology. There’s something he or she is able to do and convey and it makes you want to be better. Then, you know you’ve found something inspiring. If…
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Tweet {photo credit} Ever read someone else’s writing and cringe? Not because they did a hacked up job of writing and/or editing, but because they are SO good! They are so good that you are suddenly reduced to the insecurities of a teenager. And from out of nowhere you hear yourself saying (in a surprisingly high piercing nasally voice I might add), “Why oh why can’t I write like that?!” Been there done that my friend. I too, agonize over another writer’s perfect prose. The witty way they used that word or the colorful way they intertwined adjectives. I usually…
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Tweet Got too many plates up in the air? I hear you. Writing while you’ve got other things to tend too can be exhausting to say the least. But this is the problem: Those plates? They still need to get done. You’re going to have to do all of them (marketing, editing, writing, transcribing, etc.) and still do them well too. So I’m going to let you in on a little secret. {Something that’s helped me power through articles, blog posts, queries and cover letters.} I’m a jumper. Not the adventurous parachuting kind. But the “I’m a writer and I…
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Tweet Were you ever a fan of Jon & Kate Plus 8? Before Jon left and made it a sad sounding Kate Plus 8? If you haven’t a clue as to what I’m talking about. It’s okay. I’ll save you the TLC gory details. Anyway, there was one episode where Kate Gosselin, mother of 8 (twins and sextuplets) said something like, “Being a mom is not a glamorous job, but it’s a rewarding one!” The same can be said about writing. In fact, in a recent No Reservations episode (can you tell I watch too much TV?), Anthony Bourdain said,…
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Tweet I don’t know if this is a girl thing. But my hair is my best friend and my worst enemy. I have a lot of hair! As a kid, I bemoaned the day I forgot to bring a rubber band. In swimming class, my hair floated around me. I was a body of hair with a tiny body attached. And it gave the boys extra ammunition to tease me that day and call me, “Medusa.” Boy was that hard to shake off! As an adult, my hair still gets in my way. When I’m working out it falls forward…