100 Posts and Articles I’ve Dubbed Worthy of a Little Link Love

by Amy Derby on November 28, 2007

In honor of this being the 100th post for this blog (I like to celebrate the little victories), I’ve put together this list of 100 posts and articles I feel are worthy of a little link love. I recommend bookmarking these for sometime when you have 12 (or so) hours worth of reading time to kill…

  1. 3 Ways to Immediately Improve Your Networking Skills
  2. 5 Simple Ways to Open Your Blog Post With a Bang
  3. 7 Deadly Mistakes That Cost You Money And Assignments
  4. 7 Important Distinctions When Writing To Businesses
  5. 10 Tips For Making Money With E-Books
  6. 10 Tips On How To Cultivate Relationships With Editors
  7. 10 Ways To Get More Done In Less Time
  8. 10 Ways to Kill the Kudzu and Get Your Blogging Mojo Back
  9. 10 Ways To Make A Six-Figure Income As A Freelance Copywriter
  10. 10 Ways to Make Editors Hate You Before They Even Know You
  11. 10 Ways to Make Deadbeats Pay up…Fast!
  12. 11 Tips for Getting Your Comments Noticed on a Popular Blog
  13. 12 Breeds of Client and How to Work with Them
  14. 13 Breeds Of Freelancer And How To Up Your Game
  15. 20 Essential Blog Directories to Submit Your Blog To
  16. 23 Places to find freelance writing jobs and freelance blogging jobs
  17. 40 Fabulous Faults of Freelance Failures
  18. 41 Reasons Why Your Blog Probably Sucks
  19. 100 Notable Books of 2007 (New York Times list)
  20. 101 Best Websites for Writers (Writers Digest list)
  21. 101 Ideas to Get More Freelance Work and Generate New Client Leads
  22. 150 Resources to Help You Write Better, Faster, and More Persuasively
  23. Are You Writing Content That Attract Links?
  24. Bargains for Writers
  25. Blogging Tips for Beginners
  26. Breaking Into Job Hunting And Career Magazines
  27. Breaking Into Local Newspapers and Magazines
  28. Creating a Writer’s Resume
  29. Eight Things that Can Go Wrong for a Freelance Writer (And What to Do About Them)
  30. Elaine Grant Talks About Magazine Writing Basics
  31. Everything You Need to Know About Writing Successfully - in Ten Minutes, by Stephen King
  32. Five Secret Tips To Help You To Write Creatively And Have Fun Writing
  33. Freelance Writers Need To Stay Organized
  34. Freelance Writing From Home - The Drawbacks
  35. Freelance Writing: Not Everyone Can Do It
  36. Freelancing & Living the Life You Want
  37. Get Anyone to Read Every Word You Write With These 7 Steps
  38. Getting the Best of Your Writer’s Block
  39. How and Why You Should Transition to Online Freelancing
  40. How I Make Money Blogging
  41. How Serious is Your New Prospective Client? Four Easy Questions Help You Figure It Out.
  42. How To Be A Starving Writer: Write for Pay-Per-Click Sites!
  43. How to Create a Writing Portfolio
  44. How to Get Clients to Come to You
  45. How to Get on an Editor’s PITA List in Three Easy Steps
  46. How to Find Readers for Your Blog
  47. How To Market Your Blog in 2007
  48. How to Outgrow “Write What You Know”
  49. How To Rewrite and Edit Your Own Writing
  50. How to Say No to Clients You Want to Keep
  51. How to Write an Email Query
  52. How to Write for Pet Magazines
  53. How to Write Great Blog Content
  54. Increase Your Freelance Income Through Stock Photography
  55. Increasing Your Writing Income
  56. Keys to Being a Full-time Writer
  57. Lessons I’ve Learnt About Blogging
  58. Letters of Introduction - A Profitable Alternative to Queries
  59. Making Money Writing Fillers
  60. Networking Techniques That Work Fast and Pay Off Big!
  61. Nine Factors to Consider When Determining Your Price
  62. Offline versus Online Writing - Which is More Profitable?
  63. On Deadlines and Self Examination
  64. One Article, Many Checks: Selling Reprints
  65. Portfolio Tips for Freelance Writers
  66. Questions & Quandaries
  67. SEO for Bloggers
  68. Setting Freelance Writing Rates the Right Way
  69. Seven Editing Tips for Professional and Nonprofessional Writers
  70. Seven Holiday Gifts for Writer Mamas
  71. Should You Reduce Your Rates?
  72. Smells Like Something’s Burning
  73. So You Want to Write for a Newspaper
  74. State Magazines: Ten Tips for Landing Great Features in Your Home Area
  75. Successful Stringing
  76. Tax Tips for Freelancers
  77. Ten Essential Tools for the Freelance Writer
  78. Ten Great Reasons (Plus One) to Attend a Writers’ Conference
  79. Ten Tips on Beating the Writing Blues
  80. The Beginner’s Guide To Freelance Writing
  81. The Monster List of Freelancing Job Sites
  82. The Power of the Pre-Write: 5 Things to Do Before You Create Your Freelance Business Website
  83. Top 5 Free Ways to Promote Your Writing Business
  84. Top 55 Reference Websites
  85. Top Dos and Don’ts For Freelancers
  86. Top Ten Christmas Gifts for Writers
  87. Top Ten Questions About Copyright Permissions
  88. Top Ten Signs You May Be Charging Too Little
  89. User Generated Content and the Threat to Journalism
  90. What to Do When Clients Don’t Pay
  91. When it’s OK to Fire a Client
  92. When You’ve Been Violated: What To Do When Someone Steals Your Ideas or Articles
  93. Why Giving Away Your Services For Free Will Get You Business
  94. Work-For-Hire Assignments
  95. Write Engaging Headlines: Use the Emotional Marketing Value Headline Analyzer
  96. Write Off That Income
  97. Write Query Letters that Sell
  98. Writing For Children’s Magazines
  99. Writing Personal Essays for Profit
  100. You Get What You Pay For - Investing in Your Writing Career

What’s your favorite blog post or article on the web? Have a favorite writing blog or website? I’d love to know where the gems are.

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Should You Quit Your Day Job?

by Amy Derby on November 28, 2007

I get a lot of emails with questions from people who want to know how long they should wait before they quit their jobs. There’s no easy answer to this, as everyone’s experience is different. We’re all in the same proverbial boat, but we’ve all got different waters surrounding us.

Maybe you’ve just started freelancing, and you’re wondering how long it will take before you can fire your boss and focus on living a full-time freelance life. Or, maybe you started freelancing on the side with the goal of quitting your day job within a year. Now, a year has passed, and you’re stuck in a rut feeling like you’re really working two jobs (because you are!). How do you know when it’s time to quit your day job to focus on freelancing?

A. You’re financially secure enough to go without your day job’s salary for at least six months (possibly a year) while you get your freelance business established.

OR

B. You already have enough steady freelance work to turn it into a full-time profession.

Take into account the expenses you’ll incur in self-employment taxes, health insurance costs, personal expenses (mortgage/rent, car, utilities, food). Then, factor in that you won’t actually be doing billable work anywhere from one-third to one-half of the time. Can you truly afford to quit your day job? If so, go for it!

When did you know it was time to take the plunge? What gave you the confidence to do it?

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