by Amanda on August 2, 2010
Yesterday I shared with you some of the things I missed about working 9 to 5 so today I thought I would flip the coin and tell you what I don’t miss.
- Office Gossip
- Being too tired to play with my children in the evening
- Having to look for childcare
- Spending the weekend doing household chores
- Having to get home and start cooking late in the evening
- Office Politics
- Have to dress appropriately
- Having to take orders
You might have a couple more that you could add to this list too. When I think about my life as a stay at home mom and a freelancer I think about how lucky I am. I get to take my children to school every day. If they are sick I am at home to look after them. I don’t spend my entire weekend catching up on housework and I don’t have to look for childcare when my children are on holidays.
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by Amanda on July 30, 2010
by Amanda on July 29, 2010
I know there are so many would be and wannabe ghostwriters out there that struggle with the whole rates thing. I came across a great article online that I want to share with you today. This article has been written by a professional freelance writer and ghostwriter and in it he talks about what ghostwriters charge. I’m sure you will find it interesting and it should help to give you a clearer perspective on what to charge a client who is looking for you to ghostwrite a book for them.
5 Things You Need To Know About Ghostwriting
I’m always a little amazed at the varied views of ghostwriting: what it is, what it costs, what it can mean to you, your personal success, your career or your business. If you look around online or root through your local library, you’ll find an incredible array of opinions about this subject, and you’ll be lucky to find two that agree. So, since I try never to shy away from a good hearty battle of wits, I’m throwing my hat in the ring too! Here are, in my opinion, the five things you absolutely NEED to know about ghostwriting:
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by Amanda on July 22, 2010
I have spent two glorious weeks on holidays with my husband and two children. During this time I had no internet connection. It was tough to begin with but after a couple of days the urge to constantly check email and social networking accounts wore off. Needless to say, that when I returned I had a lot of email to go through. I have spent the past two days weeding through all the emails in my inbox and there was one in particular that I wanted to share with everyone.
I have won an award. Yep you read that right. This is what the email said:
Congratulations! Emma Lee here, and your blog, Ghost Writing Uncovered, has received our 2010 Top 40 Freelance Writing Blogs award!
You can see your name amongst our winners here at:
www.onlinephdprograms.com/top_freelance_writing/#Ghost_Writing_Uncovered
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by Amanda on June 24, 2010
This week I had the pleasure of reviewing an excellent book and I would like to share my review with you. I am not affiliated with this book in any way. The link that you will find here in this blog is to Amazon and yes I do have an Amazon affiliate account so if you purchase through this link I will receive a few cents.
The Gettysburg Approach to Writing and Speaking Like a Professional – By Phillip Yaffe
I must admit, I am not normally a fan of books that claim to teach you how to write. I believe that writing is personal and you either have a passion for it or you don’t. That being said, I am so glad that I chose to read this book. It gave me an edge that I hadn’t realized I had been missing and I discovered a lot of really great information about the different aspects of writing that I had neglected to learn.
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by Amanda on June 23, 2010
I have been absent from this blog for a while now and I do apologise for this. All I can say in my defence is that I have been extremely busy with client work. This is of course great news. I have also been focusing on some of my own personal writing projects too. Today I wanted to share a piece of my writing with you. This is a piece that was written in 1999 but a piece that I feel very proud of. It captures a lot of feelings that I had at the time and it is what I like to call conscious writing. Please feel free to leave your comments, good or bad.
Awakened Pain
It is gone, like the flowers of summer, one touch of frost and everything is gone. The beauty, the color and the picture of happiness, everything has faded and I feel numb. I continue to ask myself over and over how it could happen and why. We had shared happiness, we had shared laughter and now all that is left are those tears, the poor frightened girl sobbing uncontrollably, like a leaf in a gale force wind blowing and blowing until she fell. That brave front had been shattered and all that remained was the little girl inside crying for a love that was lost. A love that could never again be felt, death had stolen it from her and grief had consumed her. Hiding deep beneath the surface, the little girl had become suppressed and the woman you know had taken her place. A woman, shadowed by her past and yet still living.
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by Amanda on May 31, 2010
I received a question via email the other day that I thought I would share with you. This person who has chosen to remain anonymous wanted to know:
Is it possible to have a successful ghostwriting career without a website, marketing or self promotion?
Now I know this is going to go against everything that you have read or are reading at the different freelance writing blogs at the moment but my answer to this question is yes.
You may wonder why I answered yes and the truth of the matter is, I answered yes because I know that it is possible to have ghostwriting success without doing any marketing or having a website. I have done it and I know that there are many people out there who continue to do it today.
When I started my ghostwriting career I began by using the bidding website Elance. I didn’t have a website, social networking hadn’t been invented and I didn’t promote my services in any way. I worked solely via Elance and I earned enough money to enable me to quit my day job. It really is possible.
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As a freelance writer for some years now there are some times when I actually do miss the dreaded 9 to 5. I’m sure many people will agree with me on some of these items.
- Paid holidays
- Sick days
- Fixed salary
- Pension
- Girlie chat on breaks
- Staff nights out
- Adult conversation
- Having to wear a suit
Now just because I miss a few of these things doesn’t mean I regret my decision to become a freelance writer. In fact I wouldn’t change things for the world. Let me give you a little background.
I began my working career at the age of 19. I began working in the local hospital as a clerical officer and during my 10 year career I worked my way up, had a good salary and enjoyed a permanent and pensionable job that would be mine until I turned 65. I had a government job and that really was something.
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by Amanda on April 27, 2010
It is almost the start of May and for work at home ghost writers who have children this means only one thing, school holidays. School holidays affect all parents but for those of us who work from home it means total disruption. Your work schedule really does go out the window and now is the time to start planning.
There are two main options:
1. Schedule your ghost writing work for early in the morning
2. Schedule your ghost writing work for late at night
I have two children aged 3 and 6. My daughter Emma is in school 5 days a week until 2pm. My son Conor on the other hand only attends Montessori three mornings a week from 9.30am to 12.30pm. My work schedule revolves around school. I have three mornings that are dedicated to client work. This gives me 2 hours of full on work every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Once the end of June hits I won’t have this dedicated time and this is why I need to start planning my new work schedule now.
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by Amanda on March 12, 2010
I have another great guest article today for everyone. I’m sure you are going to find this really useful and packed with great ghostwriting tips. I won’t say to much I will leave that to Mary Anne.
The Case of the Disappearing Client
© 2010 by Mary Anne Hahn
Recently, I landed a ghost editing assignment for which I felt especially suited, one that held the sweet promise of ongoing work. The client worked for a professional organization in a field where I possess a tremendous amount of experience. She needed someone to edit articles that she received from contributors for the association’s newsletter that, while technically correct and filled with information her members needed, needed serious revamping.
Someone who was familiar with my work and her need introduced us via e-mail. The client filled me in on her need, I quoted my price ranges depending on the amount of editing needed, and she accepted. She sent the first two articles. I rolled up my sleeves, went to work, and sent them back to her within the specified time frame. At her request, I invoiced her using PayPal. I sat back and waited for payment, and more assignments, to roll in.
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