From Bunny Slippers to Business Plans
I’m a bit obsessed with the Twittersphere. I’m logged on 24/7 and use the site to promote my work, seek out sources, and network with other freelance writers. Plus, it helps me to maintain my sanity when I’m desperate for some small bit of human contact.
Why not use the site as a virtual business card as well?
I’ve been having trouble waking up lately, feeling not at all refreshed by my 8.5 hours of sleep.
And yesterday, I was only able to manage one flipping blog post.
After that, I couldn’t bring myself to care that not working meant not getting paid.
It’s not typically like this.
It’s been a productive week. Since taking my hubby’s advice and scheduling my days into blocks of time for each project on my plate, I’ve been getting my blogging done more quickly, and I’ve finished up two projects that had been hanging over my head for weeks. And I’ve still had time to read! After the jump, some of my favorite articles and blog posts from the past week:
Last weekend, I spent the bulk of my time copy editing a manuscript. I have to be honest…it made me feel a little guilty, especially after the revelations of this post.
But sometimes, deadlines are deadlines and, if you’re prone to burning out quickly during the week, it sometimes helps to stretch out tasks into the weekend.
And so, as a counterpoint to my blissful weekend of slacking off, I present some tips for working through the weekend:
Earlier this week, one of the members of UPOD challenged all of us to give up our three greatest online addictions for an entire week. While the prospect intrigued me, I came to the conclusion that it would be impossible for me to do.
My three online addictions? Gmail (and the accompanying gchat), Google Reader, and Twitter. The thing is, I often use gchat to communicate with my team of MM bloggers; the scouring of other products blogs through my Google Reader is a necessity for my work; and, aside from using my Twitter account to promote my own work, I’ve also been tasked with managing MM’s Twitter account.
While I may occasionally have dreams of unplugging (very occasionally), my career is inextricably intertwined with the Internets.
And besides, wouldn’t it be more productive to just figure out how to manage my online time more effectively?
After the jump, several tips for doing just that:
Earlier this week, I bared it all in an essay I wrote for Nerve, on my experiences posing for a nude portrait.
Its publication was a long time coming: I first faced my fears by stripping down for a complete stranger, and then did up my essay in a frenzy of excitement and inspiration.
It was considered “too flippant,” and “not revelatory enough.” I rewrote it.
It was considered “too dark.” I rewrote it.
Nerve then got a new CEO, and my editors told me they were uncertain my essay would ever be published, because of the site’s possible new editorial direction.
I tried not to freak out.
Finally, it went up, slightly truncated. The entire process was far more traumatic than actually getting naked.
When I first started writing personal essays, I felt that nothing could be easier — or more fun — than writing about yourself. After the jump, find the reasons that baring it all (in writing) can be tougher than you think.
[Photo via]
It can be tough to make money when you have a conscience.
Over the weekend, I asked tweeters whether they thought their feelings toward a manuscript’s subject matter subconsciously affected the way in which they edited it. I was slogging my way through a particularly arduous manuscript, and the contents weren’t helping matters. “You’re getting a paycheck,” my husband told me when I complained.
True enough. But have you ever found yourself turning down a project because of personal biases? Or turning down advertising dollars or freebies because you couldn’t bring yourself to endorse a profuct or service?
After the jump, various sources of freelance-y moral crossroads:
Obviously, I’ve been having trouble holding it together in the face of the changes mentioned last week.
As I wait, white-knuckled, for updates fed to me piece by piece, it’s become tougher and tougher to concentrate on my other work.
One ray of sunshine: The personal essay I had sweated over for the site — a first draft and two rewrites — will finally be running this coming Monday (knock on wood). A single caveat: It’s been shortened even further, to account for the new direction of the site, in which such essays will be far less sprawling.
Instead of blogging here, or working on rewrites, or copy editing manuscripts, I’ve been obsessively refreshing my Google Reader and my Twitter feed so, at the very least, I do have some link love to share with you, albeit one day late. Check it out:
So my mom called me this morning just to tell me that it was Poem In Your Pocket Day. Basically, in honor of National Poetry Month, you’re supposed to carry a poem around in your pocket (obvs), sharing it with those you encounter throughout the day.
As one of those word nerd sorts — who used to write absolutely hideous poetry as a child…and…um…a college student — my favorite poem is unsurprisingly related to writing…or at least to the power of words:
A week ago, I posted here about an invoicing error I had made, mentioning that I was lucky to have covered my ass in the service agreement I had drawn up.
Because I hate to bring up a problem without providing a concrete solution (and because my contract advice probably leaves much to be desired), here is a roundup of sites that offer sample contracts and contract-related advice:
