Part II – Freelance Jobs: Making Money, Not Spending Money

by Ron Samul

It has been a five days since I engaged an online freelance writing service that appeared to be shady. They have emailed (because I have them my email) everyday since I looked into their web service. So, after this much harassment, I decided to Google this service. Quickly I learned what I suspected. One person wrote about “the catch.”

They draw you in – often with an email saying you have been “selected” to register with a special $2.95 registration fee.  If you read the small print, you will find that this is a seven day trial period and there is then a monthly charge of $49.95.   However, they also state that if you are not satisfied, there is an 8 week money-back guarantee. [CLICK for article.]

This person then read about an 8 week money back guarantee. When they requested it – they ignored them. Then they hit the writer’s credit card again for another $49.95. As this writer found out – the information on the website never got them any direct work and the information that was there was available in other sources for free.

This may be the only thing suspicious about the website. Maybe people are using the website and getting some kind of work. However, it is vital as writers (on any level) to understand the commitment that these companies are disguising as introduction offers and other package deals.

Always be vigilant and do your research before you put money into a subscription or web service. A writer in the freelance markets wants work and they are seeking it out. In this economic down turn – people are searching for jobs more than ever, but it should be done with resources that you can bank on. Personally, the Writer’s Market Guide is a better investment than a listing that you might find anywhere. To compare, the Market Guide gives you names of hundreds (if not thousands) of magazines and outlets for writers, including editors, what they are looking for, addresses, and how to them query. This would be  a better investment of $40.00 than subscribing to a website that offers little more than what you can find scattered all over the web. Not only that, but you can often go to the library and find the Writer’s Market Guide and photo copy the section that you need – for the cost of the copies.

It is important to be smart, professional, and make decisions that make money for you, not spend your money. People want to make money, but I will repeat – you can still get something out of a publication credit. Like all jobs, businesses, and work experience – you have to build up your credentials and credibility. If you have to give that away for a chance at exposure or a chance to break into a new market – it is better than throwing $50 into the electronic feeding frenzy of scams and slick marketing websites.

Let us know how you feel. Sharing information on this topic is important so people can avoid costly mistakes and gain the insight to the legitimate writing markets.

Freelance Jobs: Making Money, Not Spending Money

by Ron Samul

Every few days I go through Craigslist in my area and see what kind of writing jobs and gigs are out there. I have worked as a freelance journalist and boxing writer for awhile and I had made some connections with people looking for content for their blogs. I saw a listing that paid for any kind of writing. I responded and was offered an email sign up. That should have been the first clue that something wasn’t right. During the sign up portion – it is explained in very simple terms that if you write a lot – you will get paid a lot. They want content and as long as you can write a sentence, you can make it work. The catch is the $2.95 sign up fee. Now, I can spare two dollars and ninety-five cents and I would do it willingly if I knew exactly what I was getting into. They promise a list of jobs that I can pick from and write and write until I am rich. The initial set up fee was $69.95 but it was reduced – if you act now. They had a timer running that showed me how long this offer will last. It had fifteen minutes on it – and counting down. When I refreshed – it rest back to fifteen minutes. That is where I stopped. Something was fishy – in fact, something was really fishy.

In writing, I’ve learned an important lesson – if agents and freelance sites are looking for your $25 or $50 dollars, they probably aren’t working for you, but collecting small increments of money in order to keep their business afloat.

I didn’t go beyond the registration fee at this freelance writing website, and perhaps it is a legitimate outfit. Yet, writers who are professional and value their work shouldn’t be misled into a service or agreement where they are shelling out any money for their work.

As writers, we are looking for affirmation and a break that will shift are writing career into gear. It might be that agent, or that three part article, or that technical manual that will be the break we’ve been waiting for. But when you add in the hours we spend writing, connecting with other writers, looking for jobs, education, and late nights working – it doesn’t justify paying any small fee to get in the door. Don’t be duped by marketing companies looking for ways to offer you that affirmation of a writing life by picking your pockets little by little. Always do your research with agents and make sure they have a code of ethics and belong to the Association of Author Representatives. I have discovered that if you find a legitimate space to place your writing, you should gain (at the least) a publishing credit that doesn’t cost you a cent. There are others who put a higher premium on their work and some may deserve it. However, small publications, e-writing, and blogs don’t always have money to pay contributors. But, it is possible to get your work out to a large audience and build some forward progress. You might not get paid, but you are not paying out.

An exception to this is the awards and contests, specifically for creative writing. Writers can submit to awards and contest that will require that you pay a fee. It is from this fee that they derive the funds to run the contest, hire a judge, and eventually print the winners. Simply put, always read the submission guidelines and understand what they are looking for. Understand the market and the contest you are applying for and see if your work is compatible. It will save you the time and money when you can avoid awards and contests that aren’t looking for your writing.

Professional listing, groups, and unions often require dues to participate. I appreciate that and it is very clear what is involved up front. These professional organizations are small and rely on membership and dues.  Yet, when an agent asks for $200 for copies, you might go along with it. But it makes you wonder if they are selling manuscripts or just collecting fees. Professional groups add clout to your experience and resume. It shows that you are not just interested in writing, but the profession at large.

With limited incomes and recession worries on the mind of writers, freelance opportunities are an option. But always work with people and editors, not computer interfaces, websites, and fee based membership clubs.  Always read the fine print when it comes to websites that promise a substantial income. It might be legitimate, but often it is too good to be true. Below are a few more tips.

• Work with people you know already. Ask an old assignment editor or query your old boss looking for freelance work.
• Network in your field of expertise.
• Check with your full time job and see if they have a newsletter, publicity department, or internal writing jobs that you can work on.
• Considering breaking into a market for free to build up some writing samples. If you write about dogs, write a few for a blog or website and build your reputation. Then you can begin to develop a fee schedule.
• Don’t rely on one particular source for work. Diversify your contacts and your writing and you will find more opportunity.
• If you can’t get paid for writing, think about how you can use it for your writing resume. If you don’t get compensation, gain a skill or background that can be applied directly into your writing resume. It may not be immediate gratification, but it might work out at a job interview.
• Join professional groups in journalism, writing, and professional associations. Showing your clients and editors that you are dedicated to your writing as a profession show a professional commitment.

All writers know they won’t get rich on freelance work, but if you stay focused and professional, you will see through the scams and the people who will waste your time, and begin publishing in a diversified area of print and new media.

Print Version of Miranda Spring 09 is Ready!

The print version of Miranda Literary Magazine Spring 2009 is ready. Click on the cover below and check it out or go to the website and look around. Thanks for your support and interest in our magazine.

Cover Story – Accepting Submissions

The new cover of the Spring 2009 print version, which will be available very soon, has an interesting design. We want you to write a story that connects the two (back and front covers) and come up an inspired art form. Send them to submissions@mirandamagazine.com – and put “COVER STORY” in the subject line – and we will publish the best entry. Check it out and send us your story, poem, or whatever you create. We will send your stories to our Art Director Cynthia Samul for the final decision (after all, it is her design). Note, the image below is only the front cover.

Light, Camera, Miranda

We want your version or reading of creative work on video to include on our website and on our YouTube channel. Come on, you know you love the camera, work it, create it, send it.

Send to norlumas@gmail.com – can’t wait to see you.

Kirstin Genthner Joins Miranda

Kirstin Genthner, educator and writer is joining the Miranda Literary Magazine staff. She has a background in novel length fiction, historical writing, magazine experience, and academic writing. She hold her MFA from Western Connecticut State University Professional Writing Program. She lives in Michigan with her family.

Kirstin will be helping us with her sharp editorial skills, her passion for new and established writers, and her ability to work under pressure.  To see her blog check out the Wrinkled Page.

Miranda Contributor Rich Murphy wins Gival Press Award

Gival Press has announced that Rich Murphy of Marblehead, Massachusetts has won the 2008 Gival Press Poetry Award for his manuscript Voyeur, which was chosen by last year’s winner Richard Carr.

Our sincerest congratulations go out to him.

Rich Murphy’s credits include a book of poems The Apple in the Monkey Tree by Codhill Press; chapbooks Great Grandfather by Pudding House Publications, Family Secret by Finishing Line Press, and Hunting and Pecking by Ahadada Press; poems in Rolling Stone, Poetry, Grand Street, The London Magazine, New Letters, Negative Capability, Segue, Big Bridge,  foam:e, and Confrontation; and essays in Fulcrum, The International Journal of the Humanities, Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning, Reconfigurations: A Journal for Poetics Poetry / Literature and Culture, Fringe, Big Toe Review, and up-coming in Contemporary Poetry and Crisis anthology. He teaches writing at VCU.

Le Conversazioni 2006

Carol Ann Duffy chosen as UK poet laureate

Click to read the story.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090501/ap_on_re_eu/eu_britain_poet_laureate

Our New Video Channel

We are starting a video channel through YouTube. We want to see your videos of you reading your work, an artist rendition of your work, or whatever cool, creative video you can come up with. We would like to expand this concept and use your videos on our blog, website and Youtube channel.

Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/user/MirandaMagazine