""Become a Freelancer""
Do you like to write? Would you like to be a freelance
writer and earn income doing it? Yuwanda Black's
informative e-book HOW TO REALLY MAKE A LIVING AS AN
EDITORIAL FREELANCER tells you how. She starts with some
historical background. The dot.com explosion began in 2000. After 911, publishing
companies reduced their staffs and relied more on
freelancers. Between 2000 and 2001, 100,000 jobs
vanished. Online advertising grew 46.7%. Those who want
to write no longer have to rely on big publishing houses;
there are today many small nitch markets. Newspapers
dropped from 5857 in 2000 to 1648 in 2001. There are
approximately 100,000 magazines in the USA and 73,000 book
publishers. E-Zines (on-line newspapers) are too many to
count, probably hundreds of thousands. All of the above
make it obvious that freelance talent, today, is very much
in demand, but be aware that editorial freelancing is not
easily mastered. Ms. Black describes the various fields that are open to
freelance talent: copy editor, proofreaders, copy writers,
editors, index producers, and writers. Writers create
articles. Of all the fields open to freelancers, writing
articles is the easiest place to begin. Where does one
find clients? Your present or past employers are likely
candidates. You are already familiar with their products.
They might prefer you to write their advertisement and
articles. Friends and word-of-mouth connect you with other
potential clients. Most effective of all is selling
yourself through direct contact. Black gives good advice
on methods of contacting potential clients. Ms. Black interviewed some representative publishers asking
what skills they seek and what they pay. She then provides
more detailed advice for marketing your skill, invoicing
your clients, and making sure you get paid. She includes
fourteen website addresses that might help the reader.
Yuwanda Black owns a small website business that advises
people how to become freelancers and how to operate a small
website business. She has done it herself. If you are
interested in offering your skills to a rapidly growing
market, you might find this e-book helpful.
Reviewed by Maurice A. Williams
Posted October 13, 2003
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