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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by Amanda on March 8, 2010
A question that I often get asked is, “what is ghostwriting?” You really would be surprised at the amount of people who actually think that I spend my days writing about ghosts.
According to the dictionary, a ghost writer is:
–noun
a person who writes one or numerous speeches, books, articles, etc., for another person who is named as or presumed to be the author.
Most people assume that ghost writers only write novels and biographies for celebrities but this is not the case. The ghostwriting industry has really developed and this is partly due to the internet. Ghost writers today do a lot more than write novels although I must admit; this is still where the big money is to be made.
There are often times when ghostwriting and freelance writing overlap. This is especially true when it comes to writing for the internet. In fact most of the freelance writing jobs that are advertised are in fact ghostwriting jobs. Your clients want you to write articles, website content, sales pages, ebooks or more and they want you to hand over the copyright for this on receipt of payment. You are not getting any credit for this work and therefore it really should be classified as ghostwriting.
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by Amanda on February 25, 2010
I have a wonderful guest post for everyone today. It is from Mary Anne Hahn and I’m sure you will love it. Mary Anne is the person behind the International Association of Ghost Writers and this article is all about what you should have on your ghostwriting services website. I hope you enjoy it.
Web Site “Must Haves” for Ghost Writers
© 2010 by Mary Anne Hahn
These days, it pretty much goes without saying: your Web site is by far one of the most important tools in your ghost writing business arsenal. When done well, your site serves as a combination business card/brochure/showcase/order form/relationship builder. It might be the first impression you make on potential clients, or the most lasting one, so you want to get it right.
First of all, unless you possess highly proficient site building skills, you should consider hiring someone to build it for you. I didn’t with my own ghost writing site, and regret that—so much so that I will be having that site entirely redone in the near future. While things like WordPress, site builders and site templates have become increasingly sophisticated and easier for amateurs to use, they don’t hold a candle to what an experienced Web designer can do for you. From choosing eye-catching colors and graphics to hooking up plugins and widgets, a professional site designer can handle everything from developing a logo to setting up an online payment processing account.
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by Amanda on February 18, 2010
Freelance writing forums are great. You can pick up so much information and tips you wouldn’t believe. Even if you don’t join, browsing these fourms on a daily basis is a great idea. They allow you to keep up with what is going on, what freelance writers are complaining about, you can get freelance writing jobs, and much more.
I have compiled a list of 12 freelance writing forums for you to take a look at. I have deliberately left out the warrior forum which I know has a section for writes and the main reason for this is that I’m sure like me you will find it very frustrating. There are freelance writers on this forum offering their services and they get a lot of replies too but because my rates are not $5 or less for a 500 word article I don’t post there. I could post my services there but with so many low bids it would be a waste of time. You are of course free to check it out if you wish. $5 could be a lot to you in your local currency but in Euro it is only about €3.60.
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by Amanda on February 16, 2010
Today I am delighted to bring you a guest article by copywriter Michel Fortin. This article is titled Superior Value Equals Superior Sales and I’m sure there is some information that you can use in your freelance writing business.
Without further ado, I give you Michel Fortin.
Superior Value Equals Superior Sales By Michel Fortin
If your car needed repair work, would you go to a garage that offers free estimates? You likely would. Today, most garages offer them.
Not only has it become a customary practice, but also everyone expects a free estimate from mechanics.
However, here’s an interesting scenario. Let’s say your car broke down at the worst possible time, and you are in a terrible hurry. (If you’re like most people these days, you are.) Plus, you specifically wanted a free estimate.
If you had to choose a garage quickly, which garage would you choose? Would you go to the one you only think that offers free estimates? Or would you go to the one you know for sure that does? Especially if you don’t have much time?
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by Amanda on February 9, 2010
As a freelance writer one of your most important tasks has to be managing your workload. You have to keep on top of deadlines and you need to be able to see what you have to do. The best way to do this is to have a to-do-list.
I am probably a little outdated in this approach as I prefer to use a good old fashioned pen and paper. I like to have my diary beside me as I work so that I can see exactly what needs to be done and mark it off as I do it. Every morning I sit down and write a list of the things that I need to get done that day. I normally mark them in order of priority which means client work comes first on my list.
I always make sure to mark deadline dates in my diary too and I do try my best to get any projects finished a day or two before the deadline which leaves me free to do any revisions if they are needed. This normally doesn’t happen which is great and it leaves me with some free time to research for future blog posts and do some additional job hunting and marketing.
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by Amanda on February 5, 2010
There are so many great ways that you can earn money writing on the web and in today’s post I want to focus on writing reviews. These could be book reviews, website reviews or product reviews. Depending on the length of the review you could earn up to $100 or more.
In my experience I have written reviews for products, seminars and a couple of books. All of these have paid different rates but usually anywhere from $20 upwards. Like I said, it will depend on the length of the review but most of the product or website reviews are in the region of 500 words or more. A book review is considerable more often reaching up to 2,000 words.
Review websites are huge on the internet and most of these are owned by affiliate marketers. They fill their websites with product reviews so that people can read a review of the product they are promoting. Most of these website owners are not writers and that is where you come in. If you are a active on any of the bidding websites you will probably have seen requests for reviews and whilst this may be a place for low bids at times you can still get at least $20 for a review on Elance.
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