The Steps I Took to Land My First Freelance Writing Job

Do you want to be a freelance writer but have no clue how to start? Or, are trying to make some money as a freelance writer and all youre getting are one-off content jobs for $20? Navigating the world of freelancing can be a challenge if you dont know where to find jobs or how to have steady work. I started freelance writing over two years ago. My twins werent even two years old when I landed my first client. I was new and made a lot of mistakes. Looking back now I see the steps that helped me land my first freelance writing job as a writer for an automotive website. Lets first look at what didnt work and then what did work. You Cant Make a Living With Freelance Marketplaces The very first place I found work was on iWriter. Now I know this isnt a freelance marketplace; its a content mill. All I knew was that it was easy to sign up and create a profile, look for a gig and get hired. My first – and only – writing job I had was for a toy product description. It was around 300 words, but it took me hours to write. Why? Well, I had no idea what the toy was and had to research on Amazon and YouTube to get an idea of its features. I then had to create a small description about the toy using a conversational tone. The client didnt want just a bullet list of the features or specifications. The client wanted a bit of a backstory to the toy. I finished the piece and received payment – $1.62 and decided this was not for me. I didnt have the time to waste writing for pennies. No way. I switched gears and signed up to Guru and Upwork (it was oDesk at the time). I created profiles and set my rate and pitched to jobs. I pitched to countless jobs and didnt land any of them. Im not sure why I never landed any of those gigs. It could have been my lack of experience or the rate I bid was too high. Im actually happy I never landed a gig with Upwork because I think I wouldve totally given up and not have pursued freelance writing. I realized it was impossible to make a living as a writer since the work on that platform was ghostwritten and your pay is based on your rate and not the value you place on your content. Letting Doubt Stop Me One thing I had to battle with as a new writer was the constant doubt I had. I felt like an imposter and knew I didnt have the credentials to back me up. Why would anyone hire me? Im not a journalist. Im not a good writer. Im an introvert. For a while, I was paralyzed, and my doubts took over me, but with some much-needed pep talks by my husband I was able to snap out of it and get back in the game. Here is what helped me land my first freelance writing job. I Created an Online Presence I learned early that to make it out there as a freelance writer (away from Upwork and other freelance marketplaces) I had to make a name for myself. But how? I decided to set up a Twitter account and LinkedIn account. I also knew I needed a   home base or a website for my services. At first, my niche was generalized. I didnt want to pigeonhole my service and felt that if I was just a content writer that ANYONE would hire me. I now know that thats the wrong way to approach freelance writing, but back then I still managed to get clients, so it didnt hold me back that much. So, my website and my social media profiles helped me get online, but I still needed a way for prospects to find me. They werent going to stumble on my site anytime soon. I had to find a way to spread the news I was a freelance writer. I Strategically Guest Posted Can I tell you a secret? When I first started out as a freelance writer, I looked up to a lot of other freelance writers. I studied their website, their copy and where they were writing. Then I researched if those places hired or accepted guests posts. If that successful writer published on Social Media Today, you bet I will try that too was my philosophy back then. I made sure to write guest posts in my niche back then (health and parenting) and guest post on sites that I saw other freelance writers guest post on (like Social Media Today and Brazen Careerist). During this time I started a blog but mostly blogged about the world of freelance writing since it was a new passion of mine and I wanted to write about it. So in a month or so I had several guest posts out, started a blog and was ready to start pitching. I Pitched Hard I learned that the more I pitched, the better chance I had at landing gigs. But, in the beginning, I just pitched to ads I liked and were in my niche. Those pitches were for a lot of health and parenting blogging gigs. The pay wasnt the greatest ($25 a post), but I just wanted to land a gig. I also did some cold pitching and pitched to educational companies that used Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA). Since my educational background is in Psychology and ABA therapy, I thought there might be a need for a content writer that understands the principles of behaviorism. After a while though, I wasnt getting any responses to my pitches. I had to make a change. Right then and there I decided that I had to pitch to jobs that werent in my niche, but were still interesting to me. I pitched to job ads for a: Canadian living writer Pilates writer Article writer for a refrigeration company Pet writer WordPress theme writer If I was remotely interested in it, I pitched to it. And one of my pitches caught the eye of the editor for an automotive enthusiast site. Soon after I had an inquiry for social media writing and editing. I found new confidence and started getting inquiries for eBook formatting and eBook cover design. I couldnt believe I was getting paid to do all this fun stuff. I love creative work and writing. I finally found a path to getting paid for my value and making a living as a writer. I wasnt scrambling trying to land a gig for $25. I was making $100 a post, then $120 and I kept moving up and up and recently, I made $600 from a post under 1500 words. My way was working, and I found a framework, or blueprint, that can work for anyone. What Are You Waiting For? My blog is filled with information to help you get out there and land a freelance writing job. But, dont you want more? Dont you want to know how to build a successful freelance writing business so that you can make a living as a writer? Over to you – tell me what youre doing to land your first gig. If youre ready to really earn a living from writing, you can get your step-by-step profitable freelance writing blueprint by joining Write Your Way to Your First $1k. It walks you through the exact action steps you need to take to land clients, tweak your website to increase conversions and get paid as a writer.

Japan and Its Neighbors essays

Japan and Its Neighbors essays Japan, China, and North Korea have a strong history that makes dealing with the present and future very difficult. All three countries have close geographic proximity to one another, but have very different cultures, governments, and histories. After World War II (WWII) and the Allied Occupation, Japans constitution includes Article Nine, which states, the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes. Many people felt that this clause would bring an end to the ongoing struggle in the region, and that Japan would fall to the wayside as an international power. Also, because the historical dealings that Japan had with China and North Korea, mainly had negative outcomes because of the Japanese military, it would be easy to assume the three nations could resolve conflicts more easily now. On the contrary though, history is still an argument used each time China and North Korea have any diplomatic involvement with Japan. Now there is talk of amending Article Nine and allowing the Japanese to rebuild a military, but with its neighboring countries so close, and still so bitter about the past Japan will not be able to have its own free standing military in the near future. China and North Korea both bring up arguments of their histories with Japan when illustrating why Japan should not remilitarize and amend Article Nine. The Japanese first invaded North Korea in 1359 and 1361 when they forced out the Mongolians who were occupying the area. In 1592 and 1597 the Japanese launched major assaults against Korea. Korea was independent until the 19th century when China in attempt to pacify some of Japans strength, established Korea as part of China. These tensions led to the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, in which Korea was annexed by Japan after another war with Russia in 1910. It was not until Japan was d...

Definition and Examples of Conditional Clauses

Definition and Examples of Conditional Clauses In English grammar, a conditional clause is a type of adverbial clause that states a hypothesis or condition, real (factual) or imagined (counterfactual). A sentence containing one or more conditional clauses and a main clause (which expresses the result of the condition) is called a conditional sentence  (also known as a conditional construction). A conditional clause is most often introduced by the subordinating conjunction if. Other conditional subordinators include unless, even if, provided that,  on condition that, as long as, and  in the case of. (Note that unless functions as a negative subordinator.) Conditional clauses tend to come at the beginning of complex sentences, but (like other adverbial clauses) they may also come at the end.   Examples and Observations If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome. (Anne Bradstreet, Meditations Divine and Moral)Romans park their cars the way I would park if I had just spilled a beaker of hydrochloric acid on my lap. (Bill Bryson,  Neither Here Nor There: Travels in Europe. William Morrow, 1992)Even if it snows, even if there is a tornado, nothing will put off this expedition. (J.F. Powers, Death of a Favorite, 1951)After that first taste of the sandal in the dining room, I foolishly believed I would be safe as long as I stayed away from the table. (Adrienne Kress,  Alex  . Weinstein Books, 2007)and  the Ironic GentlemanIf you can keep your head when all about youAre losing theirs and blaming it on you,If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,But make allowance for their doubting too;If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,Or being lied about, dont deal in lies,Or being hated, dont give wa y to hating,And yet dont look too good, nor talk too wise...(The first stanza of Rudyard Kiplings If- , 1895) What Are 'Conditions'? Conditions deal with imagined situations: some are possible, some are unlikely, some are impossible. The speaker/writer imagines that something can or cannot happen or have happened, and then compares that situation with possible consequences or outcomes, or offers further logical conclusions about the situation. (R. Carter,  Cambridge Grammar of English. Cambridge University Press, 2006) Stylistic Advice: Positioning Conditional Clauses Conditional clauses have traditionally been placed at the beginning of a sentence, but you should feel free to place a conditional clause elsewhere if doing so would make the provision easier to read. The longer the conditional clause, the more likely it is that the provision would be more readable with the matrix clause rather than the conditional clause at the front of the sentence. If both the conditional clause and the matrix clause contain more than one element, you would likely be better off expressing them as two sentences. (Kenneth A. Adams,  A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting. American Bar Association, 2004) Types of Conditional Clauses There are six main types of conditional sentence: For example, the equilibrium between liquid and vapor is upset if the temperature is increased.(General rule, or law of nature: it always happens.)If you start thinking about this game, it will drive you crazy.(Open future condition: it may or may not happen.)But if you really wanted to be on Malibu Beach, youd be there.(Unlikely future condition: it probably wont happen.)If I were you, I would go to the conference center itself and ask to see someone in security.(Impossible future condition: it could never happen.)I would have resigned if they had made the decision themselves, she said.(Impossible past condition: it didnt happen.)If he had been working for three days and three nights then it was in the suit he was wearing now.(Unknown past condition: we dont know the facts.) (John Seely,  Grammar for Teachers. Oxpecker, 2007)

Curriculum questions Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Curriculum questions - Coursework Example According to the chosen standards documents, the analysis process is highly focused on few major aspects including curriculum documentation process, situation resulted in the development phase primary purposes and organizing process of the contents, implementation process of the curriculum and evaluation of the learning outcomes, and identifying strengths and limitations of the curriculum (Parkway Central Middle School, 2013). The limitations that have been recognized in the curriculum documentation process are the inability to define the key roles and significance of the curriculum critically along with its transaction. Moreover, problems associated with exploring syllabuses and their association with the ESOL standards is observed as a major limitation of the curriculum analysis (Posner, 1995). During the development phase of the curriculum, the project team is involved in various situations. In this regard, the superintendent makes the curriculum development project. The superintendent is accountable for generating effective set of cast characters associated with the curriculum standards and accordingly, supervise their roles. Few of the major cast characters associated with the development phase of the curriculum include Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning; Assistant Superintendent of Student Services; Human Resources Consultant; Chief, Communication, Information and Financial Officers. The key cast characters in the curriculum development project are affiliated with the curriculum standards in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). According to the curriculum development project for 6-8 grade, the Assistant Superintendents of both teaching and student services are responsible to identify the required set of curriculum activities that can address t he needs of the first grade learners. Moreover, they are also accountable to

Design of Concrete Frame based on Iranian Code (2800) and Eurocode (EC Literature review

Design of Concrete Frame based on Iranian Code (2800) and Eurocode (EC 8) for Resistance to Earthquake - Literature review Example Another incident claimed 1000 people in 1981 in Kerman while 40,000 faced the same in Gilan, a province in Northern Iran. The Ritcher scale reading struck 7.2. An earthquake that occurred in Bam in December 2003 is numbered among the 130 major earthquakes in Iranian history with estimated casualty cases of 30-50 thousand (Iranian Studies Group, 2004, p.2). The foundation of assessment of seismic hazard in Iran is on the frequency of seismicity in relation to time and space. In the assessment of seismic hazards, seismotectonic sources are considered. The success of this study relies on regional and local knowledge on geology, seismicity and tectonics. The core sources of seismotectonic forces are; †¢ Fault sources and †¢ Area sources (Takavoli, B., and Ghafory, M., 1999, P.1013). Research conducted by different firms like Wilson (1930), Niazi (1968) and many others reveal that seismicity in Iran is linked to local surface geology and tectonics (1014). Iranian plateau is characterized by active faults, active volcanoes with an Alpine earthquake belt that is elongated and of high surface. Active earthquake activities are found along Zagros fold thrust belt thus making most parts of Iran vulnerable to earthquakes (Takavoli, B., and Ghafory, M., 1999, P.1014).... This allows the required dissipation energy. Capacity design protocols, parameters and fashion designs assist greatly in obtaining of design standards followed in design procedure. Seismic design codes vary from country to country due to various factors which include: The desire for seismic design codes of high quality The impact created on previous earthquakes relying on provision s indicated on the codes Research conducted at academic institutions on seismic designs and The period taken in the implementation of policies and legislative laws. Iran being an earthquake prone area has developed its own codes to be implemented in construction of structures. Reinforced Concrete Frame Buildings Reinforced concrete is composed of horizontal elements called beams and vertical elements called columns. These two components are joined together with rigid joints. The beams and columns are cast together to form a monolithic structure. Reinforced concrete frames offer resistance to gravitational and lateral loads by bending that occurs in beams and columns. Some of the subtypes of reinforced concrete frame construction are: Nonductile reinforced concrete frames with or without infill walls, Nonductile reinforced concrete frames with reinforced infill walls, Ductile reinforced concrete frames with or without infill walls. Tremendous changes have been made to design and details of reinforced concrete frame structures in seismic zones. Earlier building codes focused on requirements needed strength of a structure. The structural members were to provide resistance to lateral seismic loads. From various researches conducted about earthquakes, building codes shifted focus to sectioning and detailing of beams, columns and joints. The aim

Health and social care unit 7 Essay Example for Free

Health and social care unit 7 Essay Behaviourist approach, people believe that behaviour has been learned when we are younger and effects us later on in life e.g. if a child is too strictly potty trained then may effect them later on in life, and could have OCD Freud believed this. Classical conditioning is a theory discovered by Pavlov a Russian physiologist he worked on dogs and the digestive system before this study people believed that saliva was produced when food in in the mouth but then Pavlov found out it happened when the dog saw the food, possibly smelling the food. Pavlov used classical conditioning, his experiment was used with a dog. When the bell rings the dog doesnt do anything until after a while Pavlov gives the dog a treat every time the bell is rung so every time the bell rings now the dog will start salivating. This is how systematic desensitisation works, people associate a fear or a phobia by something they may of seen the say that an accident may have occurred causing the phobia e.g. if a man had a car accident and the car that crashed in to him was blue, the man may have a fear of blue now because of this (the dog learning that food comes with the ring of the bell) psychologists can help this by slowly showing the man that blue isnt scary by talking about the colour, seeing the word written on paper then seeing the colour and being comfortable with it, this is then cured of the fear this is called the Hierarchy of fear. This reaction cant be learned so he called this unconditioned response. This theory is what psychologists use to look at phobias, it shows that there is always something too set a behaviour off e.g. if something bad happened in your life and the most thing you remember is a poster on the wall or even a song you listened to that night, you could develop a phobia of that poster or song. The best way to help this is to find the cause and ask the patient to make a list of their worst fear about that phobia. This is where operant conditioning comes in, this is used to help peoples frame of mind, they use reinforcement techniques and create more appropriate behaviour. â€Å"Let’s say that at your house whenever someone flushes the toilet the shower gets crazy hot. After a while, you learn to jump out of the shower stream whenever you hear the toilet flush. A guest at your house won’t know that this happens, so she will jump out of the stream of water when it gets hot but not when the toilet flushes.† http://instruction.blackhawk.edu 20:39 18/12/12

Flannery OConnors A Good Man is Hard To Find Essay -- Literacy Analy

Flannery O’Connor’s A Good Man Is Hard to Find is one of the most well-known short stories in American history. A Good Man Is Hard to Find is a disturbing short story that exemplifies grace in extremity as well as the threat of an intruder. The story tells of an elderly grandmother and her family who embark on a road trip to Florida. The grandmother is a stubborn old woman with a low sense of morality. While on the trip, the grandmother convinces her son to take a detour which results in a broken down car and an encounter with a convicted fugitive, The Misfit. Although the grandmother pleads for mercy, The Misfit kills off the rest of her family. Through the grace she finds in her extreme circumstance, the grandmother calls The Misfit her own and implores him to spare her life. The Misfit does not oblige her and states after her death, â€Å"She would have been a good woman if it had been someone to shoot her every day of her life.† Through Flannery Oâ₠¬â„¢Connor’s disturbing and shocking display of the grandmother’s demise, she gives the reader a sense of the threatening power of an intruder and the idea of extreme situations bringing about a state of grace. The reason for such a powerful work may have resulted from Flannery O’Connor’s religious upbringing as well as the state of the nation at the time. During much of the 1930’s and 1940’s, the United States was a fairly isolated nation. While much of Europe and rest of the world were waging war against Germany, the United States kept a fairly pacifist stance and refrained from military involvement (World War II: Isolationist America). Many citizens in the United States feared an intrusion from outside forces, especially after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, which changed t... ...dly evil character, The Misfit, is able to help the grandmother to find grace makes him redeemable as well. Whatever the reason was for Flannery O’Connor to write A Good Man Is Hard To Find, it will forever be one of her best works as well as one of the best and most unusual short stories of all time. Works Cited Gordon, Sarah. "Flannery O'Connor (1925-1964)." New Georgia Encyclopedia. Georgia Humanities Council and the University of Georgia Press, 3 Mar. 2009. Web. 10 Mar. 2012. . Shmoop Editorial Team. "A Good Man is Hard to Find" Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 10 Mar. 2012. "World War II: Isolationist America." Second World War II Campaigns. Historical Boy's Clothing, 31 Dec. 2002. Web. 10 Mar. 2012. .