How to get started freelancing, part two

Now that you've decided you know how to write, the next step is pretty simple: start writing! Any successful writer will tell you that writers write, and if you want to be a writer, you need to write a lot. Writing a lot gives you practice so you get better, both at the mechanics of it and at coming up with ideas, feeling comfortable with doing it, and so on. Plus, if you're not writing anything, what will you sell?

Where to get ideas? All around you. Every interaction with every person you come across, every place you go, every television show or news broadcast can be a source of inspiration. In my case, I have a niche: horses. Having a niche helps me to narrow down my choices of what to write about, but I also dance (another niche), eat, travel...you don't have to confine yourself to a niche, but you might find it helpful to capitalize on one if you can.

Tomorrow I'll start talking about where to sell your writing.

How to get started freelancing, part one

Although I have only been freelancing for a short time, I like to think I'm doing pretty well, and I'm very humbled to say that I have had several people tell me I've inspired them! It's really an amazing feeling to have people look up to me and ask me for advice for something this new to me. However, I must be doing something right, so I might as well embrace it!

I get a lot of requests for advice on how to get started freelancing, so I thought I'd do a mini series with my advice on how to do it. There are many different approaches and opinions, so I can only tell you what worked for me and the lessons I've learned. Some of them I've already shared, but I'll be a bit more pointed for the next few posts.

How to get started freelancing, part one: Learn How to Write

I can't stress this enough. I've harped on it before, and I'm going to harp on it again now. If you just want to write for your own enjoyment, it doesn't really matter how well you write--you should just write and get your thoughts on paper and enjoy it. However, if you want people to pay you for your work, you need to give them a product worth paying for. You probably wouldn't pay good money for an amateurish painting and put it on your wall, would you? The writing world is very competitive, and a publisher who has to choose between a poorly written piece and 100 well written ones is not going to go with the poor one just because "it's only fair" (or whatever other justification you can come up with).

Learn how to write. Get some textbooks, manuals or tutorials, read books, take a class. Get the basics down: spelling, grammar, punctuation, logical organization of the work. Read a lot of the type of thing you want to write--whether it's articles about horses, short stories or news items. Get a feel for how they are written and come up with your own style. Figure out what your weak points are and work on them.

Writing is a craft, not a task like flipping burgers. You must learn it well and hone it if you want to be successful.

Now that I've admonished you sufficiently, I'll start talking about how to get work tomorrow.

Do you have a nose for news?

So, I recently started writing for www.thehorse.com (see today's piece at http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=12890 with more likely to follow). I think I mentioned this in a previous post--I sent a letter of introduction to them to offer my services, and they gave me a shot.

This is a departure for me, because thehorse.com is a news site, focusing on horse health. I've done a little on horse health before and it's a subject I enjoy writing about, but I've never really done news before. I have to sniff out my own stories and write them in a journalistic style, packing as much info into 300 words as possible. It's actually quite a rush! The hardest part is getting a feel for what news is, vs. a feature, and finding the stories. Once I find the topic and get the research done (using only reliable sources), the writing is actually pretty easy. I'm looking forward to learning a lot about this style of work and writing more for them--the editor, Erin Ryder, is extraordinarily helpful and patient. Thanks, Erin!

Don't be afraid to expand your writing horizons. The more flexible you are in the type of assignments you take on, the more money you can make. Different people have different ways of approaching a new type of assignment. Some people will tell you to act like your an expert whether you are one or not and learn fast so you can do a good job. While I agree with the last part of that sentence, I have a hard time not being completely truthful. I was honest with thehorse.com and told them I have little experience with news but am willing to learn and do the best I can, and they took a chance on me. I did the same with LEG when I applied to write press releases for them--I told them I'd only written a couple before and gave samples, and they hired me. I think as long as you show you can write, most places will be willing to give you a shot. Just make sure you learn fast and incorporate every suggestion they give you!

Time to Brainstorm!

How often do you brainstorm story ideas? I only do it when someone tells me to, which is silly. However, it is a fantastic exercise! I do best when someone says "give me titles/ideas for such-and such topics." This has happened twice now, and I came up with so many ideas! However, not all of them were fits for the magazine that requested them. So, what to do with these leftover ideas? Forget them. Toss them out. They're useless, right? Wrong! Why not take the ideas that magazine rejected and sell them somewhere else? Surely someone will want them.

I put my new-found tactic to the test yesterday. I pitched some ideas to one place, but that place only wants news and a lot of them were really features. So, I sent them to another magazine I work for regularly and asked if they want them. I haven't heard back yet, but I have tons more places to send them if this one doesn't want them.

One more sign I'm growing as a writer!

Cool!

Today I got a special package in the mail. The Ultimate Horse Lover, the very first book to contain my name! Looks like a great read. I'm on page 161. They changed the title to "We're Just Here to Look," but I forgive them.

I don't know if I'll ever get over that cool feeling of seeing something in print with "by Jennifer Walker" at the top of it (er, or at the end, as the case may be). Maybe I'll get all jaded eventually, but I still have to look for every issue of every magazine and dig through the table of contents until I find it.

Of course, there will be more books with my name in them! For example, the Accentuate Writers Short Story Contest Anthology will contain at least two of my works and will be out early next year. And, I'm still sending out queries for Bubba Goes National.

To infinity, and beyond!

The Ultimate Horse Lover is now available!

My humorous true story, "We're Just Going to Look" can be read in The Ultimate Horse Lover, now available from HCI books. Purchase it and their other books at: HCI Books New Releases

Don't be shy!

I've mentioned before how valuable networking can be for getting work. Last week I was at Arabian Sport Horse Nationals. When my coach and I were breaking down, two ladies came over to talk to her (she's a very prominent figure in the sport). They mentioned something about having a bunch of stories and photos, and they just need to decide which ones to do, so it became evident they were from a magazine. I asked them which one, and they named one of the major Arabian Horse magazines. I happened to have some of my business cards with me, so I pulled them out and introduced myself and offered my services. They promised to check out my website and gave me their card so I could send them some samples and said they hadn't picked a writer yet and it was a definite plus I had been there. If this works out, I'll have an in with them, which is major!

I also sent a letter of introduction to www.thehorse.com. Their news editor asked me to send her some pitches, which I did, she selected one and I wrote it. You can read it here. It never hurts to put yourself out there, but it sure can help!