Networking and Establishing Professional Relationships

Networking and Establishing Professional Relationships

Getting your feet wet in the writing world? A great move toward success is to make and maintain as many contacts as you can handle. All that stuff they told you in school about networking being the key to life--well, it’s the truth!

After I started my new job as a news editor about a year and a half ago (I've since left to be fulltime freelance), one of my freelance editors shot me a quick e-mail. “...Kate ­ you still alive? This new job killin' you? Let me know you're ok or I'll send out a Search & Rescue team....” I have written for his paper for between two and three years now and we have established quite a rapport. That touching little note meant so much and truly made me realize how valuable these contacts can be. We're supposed to get together for lunch one of these days, but both have such busy, busy lives. I'm sure it will work out sooner or later - but the point is, keep in touch with your contacts, even if you aren't actively completing an assignment!

1. Make and maintain contacts – exchange business cards if possible.
   
   
2. Touch base every so often, even without a motivator.
   
   
3. Keep things professional: Tell as much as you need to without getting into your life’s history. You’re going on vacation to the Bahamas, fine. It’s your fifth honeymoon and you left the kids to fend for themselves… maybe not such a good idea!
   
   
4. Have FUN! Be friendly and productive.

Behold, the Fruits of Your Efforts

Behold, the Fruits of Your Efforts

You slave away on your latest literary masterpiece. You gruel away hours of your day working on a project, but how long do you have to wait before you have the enjoyment of seeing your name - and your work - in print?

For immediate gratification, write for websites. Anything to be published on the Internet can take only moments to upload and publish, giving you the satisfaction of seeing your work almost immediately.

Newspapers, whether daily, weekly or irregular, will give close to immediate satisfaction most times, especially if they go into print every day or every week. Some newspapers come out sporadically, but it isn't a bad idea to get your byline into these markets as well!

Magazines generally offer the longest lead time. You may have a story to write that is due in December, but it may not come out until April, and you may not receive your check until a month or so later!

All forms of publication work differently, but here is the breakdown if you feel the need to consider these angles before submitting your work:

IMMEDIATE SATISFACTION:
*Blogging*
Waiting period - type it in and just click save&post or publish post!
Payment - Pennies, via check or keep them adding in your account... Or dollars if you have some Google Adsense savvy!

*Websites/Internet*
Waiting period - within a day or several days, perhaps longer
Payment - Varies greatly on a wide scale, often can receive payment quickly

Slightly Delayed Satisfaction:
*Newspapers*
Dailies
Waiting period - overnight, usually!
Payment - Most often greatest out of newspaper publications, probably quicker paying, too.

Weeklies
Waiting period - within a week or two, depending on amount of breaking news and features in queue
Payment - typically monthly

Delayed Satisfaction:
*Magazines*
Waiting period - Anywhere from a month to six months or more...
Payment - Most pay fairly well, within a month or so after publication.

Fuel your Fire - Three Cliches You SHOULD Follow...

I've always wanted to be a writer, ever since I was a little girl. My brother and I used to have our own "fake newspaper" that we composed on pages of notebook paper, still assembled like a book but missing the cover. At about age 12 I began writing short stories and poems.

I followed my passion through high school and college, writing for the school newspapers, writing notes to friends, letters to penpals and writing stories as often as possible. In college I took a chance with some freelance writing and loved it. Even then, though, I did not realize my full potential as a freelance writer.

If writing is your passion, you must realize a few things before setting off to make it your livelihood.

Firstly, you must believe in yourself. I'm not talking about that standard, cliche - "You can do anything you put your mind to." No. What I mean is much more important and more critical to your success as a freelance writer. You must believe that no matter what, you will achieve great things.

Let's say you know how to write news articles and special features, but you have no experience in corporate and commercial copy - newsletters, marketing brochures and the like. What you must do in this instance is give yourself a chance to play around with the possibilities. A software program as simple as MS Word can assist you in creating eye-catching brochures and newsletters - you just need to know how best to use it. If you've got access to other software programs with better design capabilities, you'll be a couple steps ahead of the game, but whatever the case - never say never. If you aren't familiar writing in a certain genre, do a couple projects and add it to your accomplishments!

Secondly, "practice makes perfect." Chances are, if you've found my blog, you've been around the Internet a good deal, whether blogging or just reading people's posts. Chances are you've done a good deal of posting yourself. So my question is this - if you can blog it, why not write it for a targeted market? Maybe you won't want to be so personal and conversational when you switch from your personal blog to an article in your local paper, but honestly, breaking the ice is the toughest part. Once you see your name in print for the first time, (and the second, and the third, and the...) you've already begun to fuel the fire that will carry you to each successive assignment!

Finally, "there's no time like the present." I live the glamorous life of a procrastinator. I wait until the last possible second to do a number of things I should really do ahead of time. Life always catches up with me too quickly to avoid it, so I let the deadlines propel me to the finishline. However, there's no time like the present when it comes to getting your writing career off the ground. Stop saying you'll do it tomorrow, over the weekend or next month. Stop waiting for that free time that never gets here, the day off from work that never arrives and the good, swift kick in the butt you need to get yourself moving.

"SWISSHHHT" There you go; consider your butt kicked. Now what are you waiting for? GET WRITING! :)

Why I Write

Why I Write

To Create, to Invent, to tell a story, to share a moment, to put a few pennies in your pocket, to put some gas in your tank, to make a living, to keep on living, to relieve your stress, to vent, to get something off your chest, because you cannot speak, because you must speak, because you are numb, because you need to feel,because you need to share what you feel? To let go of a past, to welcome a future , to look forward to things to come,to reminisce about those past, to rekindle a romance or a friendship,
to remember which items to buy, to record a phone number, to relive a moment , to escape reality, to create a new reality, to instruct others, to convey emotion, to welcome a moment of solace that belongs to no one but yourself?

I write for all of these reasons and more; do you?