7 Steps to Becoming a Freelance Writer

7 Steps to Becoming a Freelance Writer 7 Steps to Becoming a Freelance Writer 7 Steps to Becoming a Freelance Writer By Mark Nichol You love to write, and perhaps you’ve even had some of your work published, but you just can’t seem to get your career as a freelance writer of nonfiction off the ground. Here are some flight lessons: 1. Focus Nonfiction is an enormous universe. Map out a very small segment of the cosmos. Do you enjoy writing creative nonfiction long articles and essays with a narrative flair that reads almost like fiction? Or do you have a more practical bent, tending toward how-to articles or procedural guides? Perhaps you’d like to write reviews of books or video games or software or appliances. Narrow your topic field; you can always widen your scope later. 2. Adopt What are your favorite Web sites or magazines or books? Are there writers whose styles inspire you? Find the publications that publish the kinds of content you like to read, and study the writing techniques on display. Don’t strive to imitate; use this step simply to help you find your niche. 3. List Create a short directory of publications or publishers to target. Assuming you’re just starting out, list targets more likely to publish writing by a beginner, but don’t be afraid to include a couple more high-profile publications. And don’t neglect what’s right under your nose: community newspaper(s), local magazines, and Web sites that publicize your region’s businesses or cultural and natural assets. 4. Compile Collect some of your best writing published or otherwise that represents you well and matches the type of content those publications are looking for. 5. Contact Go to your publisher directory, look up the URL for publication Web sites, and search for submission guidelines. If there are none, send a request for guidelines to the editorial department’s email address or the information address. 6. Pitch Come up with proposals for a few articles or essays you’d like to write, match them to various publications, and send them in. Alternatively or in addition, submit completed articles on spec. (â€Å"On spec,† short for â€Å"on specifications,† means tailoring an already written piece toward a specific market and offering it for publication.) The strategy of writing on spec has its detractors, but it’s a good way to break into the writing market, and even if the piece itself is turned down, it may demonstrate to an editor that your pitch is worth a look, or that you might be a good match for an article they need a writer for. 7. Persevere Repeat step 6. If your pitch or your spec article is rejected, send it to someone else. If you strike out five or ten times, retire the idea, call in another one, and start another round with a new batch of publications. (Wait a few months before circling back around to those that turned you down previously, but never delete them from your directory.) Repeat. You may get an acceptance or an assignment on your first try. (It’s happened.) You may get turned down once, or ten times, or a hundred times. Don’t give up. If you want it bad enough, you’ll get it, eventually. Your goal is not to hear â€Å"No† a given number of times, but to hear â€Å"Yes† once, and then once more, and then once more after that, etc. An unpublished writer is a writer who has given up. If you would like more help to get started freelance writing online stay tuned for the re-opening of our Freelance Writing Course early in May. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Freelance Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Words for Facial Expressions7 Tips for Writing a Film ReviewPersonification vs. Anthropomorphism

What the President Does on the Last Day in Office

What the President Does on the Last Day in Office The peaceful transition of power from one United States president and his administration to another is one of the hallmarks of American democracy. And much of the publics and medias attention on January 20th every four years rightly focuses on the incoming president taking the Oath of Office and the challenges that lie ahead. But what does the outgoing president do on his last day in office? Heres a look at five things almost every president does just before leaving the White House. 1. Issues a Pardon or Two   Some presidents show up at the White House bright and early for a ceremonial last walk through the historic building and to wish their staff well. Others show up and get to work issuing pardons. President Bill Clinton used his last day in office, for example, to pardon 141 people including Marc Rich, a billionaire who had been indicted on charges of defrauding the Internal Revenue Service, mail fraud, tax evasion, racketeering, defrauding the U.S. Treasury and trading with the enemy. President George W. Bush also issued a couple  of pardons in the last hours of his presidency. They  erased the prison sentences of two border patrol agents convicted of shooting a drug suspect. 2. Welcomes the Incoming President Recent presidents have hosted their eventual successors on the last day in office. On Jan. 20, 2009, President Bush and  First Lady Laura Bush hosted President-Elect Barack Obama and his wife, as well as Vice President-Elect Joe Biden, for coffee in the Blue Room of the White House  before  the noon  inauguration. The president and his successor then traveled together to the Capitol in a limousine for the inauguration. 3. Leaves a Note for the New President Its become a ritual for the outgoing president to leave a note for the incoming president. In January 2009, for example, outgoing President George W. Bush wished incoming President Barack Obama well on the fabulous new chapter he was about to begin in his life, Bush aides told The Associated Press at the time. The note was tucked into a drawer of Obamas Oval Office desk. 4. Attends the Inauguration of the Incoming President The outgoing president and vice president attend the swearing-in and inauguration of the new president and then are escorted from the Capitol by their successors. The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies describes the outgoing presidents department as being relatively anti-climatic and unceremonious. The 1889 Handbook of Official and Social Etiquette and Public Ceremonies at Washington described the event this way:   His departure from the Capital is attended with no ceremony, other than the presence of the members of his late Cabinet and a few officials and personal friends. The President leaves the Capital as soon as practicable after the inauguration of his successor. 5. Takes a Helicopter Ride Out of Washington Its been customary since 1977, when Gerald Ford was leaving office,  for the president to be flown from the Capitol grounds via Marine One to Andrews Air Force Base for a flight back to his hometown. One of the most memorable anecdotes about such a trip came from Ronald Reagans ceremonial flight around Washington on Jan. 20, 1989, after he left office. Ken Duberstein, Reagans chief of staff, told a newspaper reporter years later: As we hovered for a second over the White House, Reagan looked down through the window, patted Nancy on her knee and said, Look, dear, theres our little bungalow.  Everybody broke down in tears, sobbing.

hedging essays

hedging essays Currency and Hedging As business becomes increasingly global more and more firms find it necessary to pay careful attention to foreign exchange exposure and to design and implement appropriate hedging strategies. Exchange rate risk is the unexpected exchange rate changes creating variability in the domestic currency value of current and future cash flows of a company. Foreign exchange risk management begins by identifying what items and amounts a firm has exposed to risk associated with changes in exchange rates. Exchange rate risk thus depends upon how "volatile" exchange rates are and the size of the "exposure" to exchange rate changes meaning the amount of cash flows whose domestic currency value is sensitive to exchange rate changes. Foreign exchange exposure is usually categorized according to whether it falls into one or more of the following categories, for example there are transaction exposure, economic exposure and translation exposure. Transaction exposure is concerned with how changes in exchange rates affect the value of anticipated foreign currency denominated cash flows relating to transactions already entered into. By failing to cover transaction exposure, a firm may incur a vast loss on a single very large receivable or payable denominated in a foreign currency. This may result in an overall loss for the firm in a particular financial period which could in its turn, lead to financial distress. Economic exposure refers to the possibility that the present value of future operating cash flows of a business, expressed in home currency, may be affected by a change in foreign exchange rates. According to purchasing power parity theory, exchange rate changes are associated with different relative rates of inflation. Translation or accounting exposure arises as a result of the process of consolidation of foreign currency items into group financial statements denominate ...

Business - Business Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Business - Business Environment - Essay Example Profit and not for-profit organizations are very essential and play important role in U.S economy. Although both have some similarities, they also have differences. For-profit organizations are some of the prime movers of the economy in that they are responsible for a big share of capital generation. For-profit organizations utilize natural, artificial and human resources to generate profits. Most of for-profit organizations are involved in generation of products and services for the population. Notably, for-profit organizations are able to harness and utilize resources at a large scale therefore benefiting from economies of scale. Therefore, they are able to provide goods and services at a low cost. For-profit organizations are responsible for provision of employment to the greatest percentage of the U.S workforce. On the other hand, not for-profit organizations provide human empowerment services to the U.S population without generating profit. They play a pivotal role in economy in that they provide free or affordable services that would otherwise have cost the population a lot of money. Additionally, not for-profit organizations provide employment to approximately 10 percent of U.S workforce. Although they do not necessarily make profit, they provide mechanisms in which money flows through the economy. There are two primary ways in which economy can be regulated. The first one is through fiscal policies and the second one is through monetary policies. Whereas monetary policies are implemented by the central bank, fiscal policies are economic regulations implemented directly by the government. Monetary policies have either short term or long-term effects on the economy. Restrictive monetary policies seek to slow down economic activities to avert a possible inflation in the future. On the other hand, stimulative fiscal policies seek such as reduction in tax, increased spending aim at rejuvenating economic activities. Fiscal policies on the other hand, regulate the economy by use of government regulations that are sourced from acts of congress. This is done through regulation of government spending and tax structures both at federal and state levels. It is assumed that business cycles are controlled by aggregate expenditures. This is mostly reflected on business sector and government spending. Therefore, the government implements policies aimed at controlling the flow of capital in business sector as well as government spending. Therefore, the government controls government purchases or spending and taxes on business sector. This way, the government is able to regulate the economy. Air transport service is one of the most widely used forms of global transport. It accounts for the greatest percentage of inter country transport. Whereas air transport is a lucrative and profitable business, accessing global markets is usually a challenging endeavor. This is because the business rests on different market structures with have different and som etimes, contrasting interests. The most appropriate strategy for accessing global market would be to access the travel and transport needs for different countries in which the air transport service is to be provided. Different cultural and societal needs for all countries need to be assessed. It will thus be possible to access these markets by

Proposal Draft-Terence Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Proposal Draft-Terence - Coursework Example One demographic routinely passed over when it comes to the benefits conferred by technology: senior citizens. While senior citizens could easily benefit from technology in the sense of improved health care and social outcomes, they have trouble adjusting to it. The compelling evidence in the literature suggests technology is less of a cultural resistance and more of a fundamental lack of accessible training and literacy. The old generation is incapable of acquiring the computer skills. The elderly population, today, did not have computers taught in school (Wood, 2010). The modern world requires everyone to possess basic computer skills. When computer access is necessary to acquire information, senior citizens find difficulty when lacking computer skills (Wood, 2010). Computer technology services may include obtaining government services such as pay slips, banking services, and accessing the performance of their children in school (Suntanto, 2012). The elderly population should learn computers because computers are necessary for adapting to modern society. A cursory examination of the issue introduced above reveals a number of compelling studies provide a meaningful overview of the situation as it stands and its most significant social factors. An examination undertaken in 2011 carried out a survey of large random sampling of senior citizens in order to gauge their views towards interaction with information technology (McMurtrey, 2011). McMurtrey (2011) reveal an important point: even if senior citizens do want to learn how to interface with information technology the restriction of access to training or education. Resistance is an issue, which must consider other studies have chosen to look at the issue (Gilly, 2012). The primary obstacle to acceptance seemed to be the usage: lack of support stemming from a lack of available training and

A ceremonical speech Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

A ceremonical speech - Essay Example Why is that you might ask? The reasons are multiple but the most important aspect of the relevance of this day to the rest of your lives is with regards to how it will impact on each and every one of the determinants that have been listed that might otherwise provide a powerful impact upon one’s future and happiness. This is not to say that the emotional and personal triumphs of life should be diminished with respect to something as â€Å"simple† as a graduation ceremony; instead, the understanding and purpose of the importance that this day portends has to do with the level and degree each and every one of you should now conduct yourselves. For instance, take the situation described above as the â€Å"first job†. Certainly, many of you might have already experienced that first summer job; doing something that you might otherwise not have wanted to do just as a means of making a bit of extra spending money. However, when you place it in context with the momentous nature of this day, you can readily see how your college degree will impact upon the way in which you consider work and what work you are suited for the rest of your entire life. In short, although it is quite possible to achieve a degree of success in this life without a college degree, the importance and momentousness of this day is contingent upon each and every one of you reducing such a hurdle to your future success. This is not to state that a college degree alone will be sufficient to pave the streets of gold for you and your loved ones; rather, it merely makes the door that much wider and gives you that much greater of an opportunity to succeed within this life. Similarly, the college diploma that each and every one of you now have will enable you to livea better and more comfortable life than most of the individuals within the current world system. This should not be seen as a means of encouraging arrogance; rather, it should allow for a deep moment of self reflection and introspection with regards to how each and every one of you can work towards bettering the world and seeking to ameliorate some of the miserable conditions that continue to exist within it. From a personal standpoint, the first home purchase, the first new car purchase, or any of the other â€Å"firsts† which will be engaged with as a function of the jobs and salaries you will receive will also be informed by a degree of knowledge that you have learned and must retain as a result of your college studies. In short, although there are a number of key firsts that are experienced within life, it is my understanding, as it should be yours as well, that from a professional as well as personal standpoint, this momentous day ranks very high on the list. Due to the fact that this single moment has the possibility for defining so many personal and professional decisions that you will make for the rest of your life, I encourage each and every one of you to consider the gravity that the current celebration holds. This is not to say that you should not celebrate this moment with your family and friends; quite the contrary. Instead, once the celebration has calmed down and once the procession has left this hall, once the cap and gown are stored in the back of the closets – long after the pictures of this day have made the rounds within the family, this day absolutely will continue to have an impact upon the decisions that you make as well as the means by which other individuals within society view you. In such a way, I implore each and every one of you to conduct yourselves as fully worthy of the honor that this degree has provided you. Most importantly of all, I personally congratulate you on your triumph and wish you all

Chinas One-Child Policy Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Chinas One-Child Policy - Case Study Example Environmental Issue: The main reason and environmental science driving the whole policy is considered to be the ‎overpopulation. China covers around one fifth of the world’s population whereas it has quite a ‎lesser proportion when it comes to arable land. ‎ Benefits Due to the One Child Policy: The policy has assisted in economic fields as there has been a decrease in unemployment ‎and natural resources. The rate of exploitation has also drastically dropped down (Fong, 2006). ‎ Detailed Description of Policy: One child policy is overall an extremely controversial topic that is always in debates across ‎the planet. At every place you will find some believers and so as the disbelievers of the policy. ‎ Promotion: The overall scenario by the government was seen and they believed that a birth control policy ‎was extremely significant in order to avoid the problems faced by China then and even to avoid ‎the threats in the upcoming days. ‎ Current Status: In 2010, according to a report and survey it was estimated that these days the policy ‎implementation hasn’t been up to the mark and numerous families are violating it (Hvistendahl, ‎‎2010). ‎ Conclusion: The Chinese government claims that their one child policy had caused about three to four ‎hundred million fewer people in 2008. It is therefore the Chinese leaders and authorities believe ‎it as a great and leaping success towards helping and improving China’s current economic ‎growth. ‎ The essay aims to presents detailed analysis of the case study focused upon ‘China One Child policy’. The policy basically refers to population control measures implemented by the Chinese government with the intention to control the growth of the population of the country. The policy aims to restrict the population growth by putting restriction on the number of children a Chinese couple could have (Merli and Raftery, 2000). The essay presents an overview of