What it takes to be a Writer, Editor, or Proofreader

Yeah, yeah. I know. There are thousands of articles about “How to be…” this, or “What you need to be…” that. Well, here’s another one…

To be good at anything, you should have good senses. Not just the olfactory ones, but professional “senses” that serve you well while doing your day-to-day job. It’s no different for writers, editors, and proofreaders. They have to have a storyteller’s sense of flow, an artist’s sense of imagery, a musician’s sense of timing and rhythm, and a drill sergeant’s sense of demanding perfection at every waking moment of the day! Whew. Sorry about that.

Anyway, writer, editors and proofreaders (I’m not going to type that out all the time, so I’ll tap into my government experience and make an acronym out of it: WEP; meh, good enough) are no different than any other profession (Ha! Yeah right!). They need to have their “senses” in order. Here are some additional senses that WEPs should have. And if you want to be one, you should be well-versed in these also.

Sense of Urgency
Every WEP needs to have a sense of urgency when they are doing their work. If you’re commissioned to write something, there’s no need in dawdling – get to it! Do your research, outline, and first draft and have something to show for your time. Impress yourself with your writing speed. Impress yourself with your ability to find mistakes in a draft. Impress yourself by arguing over the use (or not) of an Oxford comma. But don’t mess around. Start writing (or editing, or proofreading)!

Sense of Pride
Every project a WEP contributes to is a work of art. Not everyone will appreciate it. It won’t wind up in the top literary journals or be lauded by your local book club. But, it’s important that you have a sense of pride in your work. Even if your boss rips up your first draft and tells you to start over (or try a different profession), know that you created something out of nothing. Take pride in the…

Sense of Process
That’s right. Process. I’ve written about process before. I actually love the process. As I’ve grown older, it’s not just the written word that excites me, but the process to get there. Thinking. Outlining. Drafting. Revising. Yelling. Screaming. Crying. Punching. Sulking. Yelling more. Talking to myself. Revising. Submitting.

Beautiful, huh?

Sense of Self
WEPing will give you a great sense of self (if you don’t already have one). It will have you soaring above the clouds and thinking you’re the best WEP in world (nay, universe!) or have you rocking back and forth in the corner wondering if you have any value to society at all. But isn’t that cool? You really learn all there is about yourself when you’re creating something. It may not be your mission in life, but give it a shot. Write something. Edit something. Proofread something. You’ll learn something new and leave the endeavor with a good sense of self.

Now get out there and WEP!

The Freelance Life (pt. 2): Midwest-Style

In the last post I wrote about my life as a start-up freelance writer/editor. I wanted to continue that theme in this post because I think it’s important for people to understand a bit more about how simple it is to start a freelance company and how hard it is to keep it going.

The “Easy” Part

Starting a freelance company is super easy. All you have to do is decide to start a freelance business. It was really easy for me because I’ve always wanted to work for myself. So, one day I said: “Self, we’re going into business.”

Done. Easy, right?

Ok, now onto…

The Hard Part

Everything else. That’s right. Every other part of running a freelance business is hard. Here are just a few things that you have to do (not in any particular order):

• Register your business with the government (depending on your area)
• Set up a finance plan/spreadsheet
• Monitor your competition
• Network your ass off
• Develop marketing materials
• Keep your IT systems up-to-date
• Always be ready to answer the phone
• Create and update your website
• Be organized
• Develop an elevator speech
• Understand your industry
• Stay current on latest trends
• Understand and use social media
• Master your craft
• Buy supplies
• Keep track of your time
• Keep track of your mileage (for tax purposes)
• Understand tax laws (local, state, and federal)
• Open a business bank account

Whew! By the way, this is BEFORE you have a client!

What Makes the Hard Part Easy?

Moving out to the Midwest (Indiana in particular) has been an eye-opening experience. The people here have made the transition from the northeast (New Jersey) almost as smooth as glass. I still miss a good slice of foldable New York-style pizza, Wawa, and the loving attitude of my fellow Garden State commuters, but Indiana has embraced us and given me a great opportunity to succeed as a freelance writer/editor.

They make marketing so much easier because they are open to meeting new people. They make learning so much easier due to the many networking and educational opportunities available. They make writing so much easier because of the unique need of governments, nonprofits, and political groups (my niche).

I’m really excited about the journey I’m on. I don’t know if I’ll ever officially call myself a “Hoosier” any time soon, but the freelance life in Indiana is pretty damn cool.

Thoughts? Let me know what you think about freelancing, the Midwest, or writing/editing in general.

Happy writing!

The Freelance Life

I’ve always wanted to work for myself. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have horror stories about working for a crazy, mean, or disrespectful boss. The vast majority of people I’ve worked for have been good managers. They’ve understood how my brain works and allowed me the freedom to accomplish my tasks without interference.

Working for myself has just been a dream of mine. I’m independent. I like to formulate ideas on my own. I like spending time working through a problem, coming up with a solution, and presenting it. Writing is great for that. Being assigned a task (an article, press release, or report), doing the research, thinking about how best to structure it (outlining), then creating something out of nothing really gets the juices flowing.

Well, working as a freelancer is hard. There are thousands of articles out there about the “freelance life” and what you can do to succeed. I’ve read plenty of them. Some have been helpful, others have been, well, blah. It’s always the same old stuff: “Make thousands as a freelancer with no experience!” “Quit your day job and be a freelancer!”

If you read between the lines - really “listen” to what they are saying - you’ll find that it’s not as simple as just telling your friends and colleagues you’re a freelancer and all of the work you can handle will fall into your lap.

Here’s my story.

My fiancée, Jennifer, and I moved out to Mishawaka, Indiana in December 2015. She’s a sales manager for a couple of senior care communities. This was my chance to fulfill my dream. Of course, I’ve applied for writing/editing jobs here locally, but my main goal was (and is) to be a freelance content writer and editor. When we arrived, I hit the ground running. I started researching local writing groups, marketing associations, advertising agencies, business assistance groups (like the small business development center), and anyone I thought could help me get started.

Things started going well. I was setting up meetings with local professionals. I was learning the lay of the land. I felt confident.

Then things started dragging out. Oh, I was still going to meetings. And more meetings. And still more meetings. No one was buying. I was looking online for freelance gigs. I talked to my SBDC business advisor. I worked on government certifications. I did just about everything short of getting on my knees and begging.

Happy ending? Not yet. I’m still working. I’m still talking to people and meeting people and trying to sell. It’s tough. The freelance life articles never mentioned that gut crunching stress of not working for weeks at a time. Don’t forget, most of the people writing those articles have successful established businesses set up. It’s easy to write about success when you have it. When you’re still working your tail off trying to get something going, it’s hard. Really hard.

So, I’ll keep you up to speed on how things are going. I’ll try to be as positive as possible, but again, it’s hard. I know, I know: keep at it. Good things come to those who wait. Never give up, never give in. I won’t. This is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I’ve found my calling. I’m a freelance content writer and editor. Nothing will stop me. If I have to get a job, I will. I owe it to Jennifer to do whatever I need to do to succeed. I owe it to myself. But, I will keep at it.

This is one of my more rambling articles, but I hope you get the point. Sometimes it’s good to just write and let people read it without the polish. Well, here it is.

Oh. Thanks to all of you who have read my writing and liked/commented on my Twitter and LinkedIn posts. It’s really great for a writer to know people like what’s written. Please keep reading and send me some leads!

Happy writing!

Update: I landed a small gig with a local advertising agency as I was working on this post. Hopefully that’s the beginning of the flood gates opening! Wish me luck!

Finding your Writing Niche

At some point in every writer’s professional life, they face the moment when they ask themselves: “what kind of writing do I enjoy the most?” A writer may be employed to write advertising copy, business letters, annual reports, or any number of types of documents. He may enjoy the work or not find it fulfilling. If you’re in the latter category, here are some quick tips on how to find your writing niche.

Excitement

Are you excited? Does your heart rate increase a bit when you’re thinking about writing something? I don’t mean that you can’t sit still unless you share your thoughts, but it’s not too far off from that. I’ve found that researching, writing, editing planning documents (strategy, communications, management, etc.) gets my synapses “popping” more than writing, say, a business letter. Now, I enjoy writing and editing in general, but those types of documents get me going a little bit more (yeah, I know, it’s weird).

Interest

What are you interested in? It could be anything. Hamburgers, pet care, politics, sneakers, whatever. If you’re truly interested in something, your reader will be able to tell. Most writers write about what they’re interested in, but sometimes you can tell that their heart really isn’t into it. The writing may be good, but there’s just something missing that bleeds through.

Interest is tied to excitement, so it’s natural that your interests excite you. That’s what you should write about.

Praise

Have you written something and your readers (or your boss) praised your finished product? You may have found your writing niche. You can probably tell that these three tips are tied together. If you’re interested in something, you’ll more than likely be excited about it, which will reflect in your writing and ultimately result in praise from your readers.

Do an honest self-evaluation of what you like to do and you’ll not only find your writing niche, but your writing will improve.

Quick story: 

Just last week, I did this evaluation when I was developing a value statement for potential clients. After feeling confused about what writing, editing, and proofreading services I would offer (and to which clients), I looked at my experiences and interests more critically. What I discovered was that government, nonprofits, and politics were my niches. Writing campaign management plans, disaster recovery plans, researching and reports, communications plans, and other documents that could be beneficial to government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and political candidates and groups gets me excited and have received the most praise.

Now of course I won’t cut off my nose to spite my face and turn down writing assignments when offered (I am in business), but my marketing focus will be on those three sectors.

Give that self-evaluation a try and let me know what you find.

Happy writing!

I'm baaaack!

It's been a long, long, long time since I've updated this blog. The last time I wrote a post, Mitt Romney lost the presidential election and I was, frankly, depressed. Not that I was a Romney fan (not in any way, shape or form), but I just didn't want (nor did our country need), another four years of one of the most hollow presidents in history. Oh well. Now we're into another presidential race. I'm kind of semi-retired from politics, so I won't be writing a lot about it. I've discovered my true calling: freelance content/policy writing and editing. Strategies, op-eds, plans, speeches, ad copy, etc. It's fun. Not only have I "found myself", I got engaged (August 24, 2015) to the most wonderful woman in the world (Jennifer), worked for FEMA as a technical writer in support of Hurricane Sandy recovery (2013-2015), and moved to beautiful Mishawaka, Indiana. That's right. Mishawaka. The Princess City. Ok. You've never heard of it. I hadn't either, but it's right next to South Bend (home of Notre Dame University). There's lake effect snow. Super nice people. And, a chance to start a new chapter in our life. I hope you'll tune in for my updates. In the meantime, check out some of my other "ramblings" on LinkedIn, Twitter, and my website.