The Writing Life--Perks that Work!

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While being a freelance writer is incredibly fulfilling, the freelance lifestyle also has some definite perks.

Now, I'm not talking about sleeping in or working when you feel like it or taking an afternoon off and curling up with a good movie; although those things are great, too--even if most of us rarely do that (with our offices in the home sphere, the opposite happens: we never seem able to get away from work).

No, I'm talking about the chance to observe things we might miss if we were squirreled away into an office somewhere away from home.

Writing Perks
Working from home gives you a bird's eye view of what's going on around you. You wander down to your kitchen to make a cup of tea and in the process notice little things that brighten your working day.

For example, I regularly have visitors to my back veranda. These creatures help to make long hours tolerable. When human contact is limited, I'm reminded that there's a world outside my window.

I'm visited by a raccoon, a skunk, and recently, these two doves made an appearance.

Further Reading
More Ways to Earn Writing Income
5 Ways to Write for Money
Discovering Niche Markets

Writing Courses

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Today I want to discuss writing courses. If you are trying to carve out a living through your writing efforts, it can be helpful to brush up on your skills.

I've seen a number of writing courses offered over the Internet, loudly proclaiming almost miraculous riches--but we all know those ads. usually sell dreams over tangible reality.

I'm simply not willing to part with my money or invest my time, unless I believe that the pay-off is worthwhile.

Hard working writers know that it takes work and many long hours to create a sustainable writing income. And while they know the value of writing courses, many simply can't buy time out from their writing commitments to attend an actual school.

Writers are turning to the Internet to find writing jobs and generate income. It's so much faster in so many respects. Web writing differs from hard copy, though, and requires somewhat different skills. Accordingly, many writers have become e-learners, brushing up on their skills through online writing courses.

If you are thinking about taking a writing course in the New Year, the following writing courses definitely make the grade in my books.

Angela Booth Writing Course
Sell Your Online Writing Now Angela Booth offers a series of weekly lessons, which upon completion, are designed to net you earnings. This course is taylor-made for the busy writer who wants to learn and earn. Angela has a long record of successful writing and many years experience. Her writing blog is one of the top writing blogs today.

Nick Daws Writing Course
By now, most of us have heard of Nick Daws. He's a living example of a successful freelancer. This man knows how to sell short pieces and how to get books successfully to market. His Quick Cash Writing Course can help you to master which markets to target. Click on the related badge on this blog for course information.

Either of these writing courses will help you to realize and accomplish your writing goals. I highly recommend them. Let's make 2009 the best year yet!

*If you found this information helpful, please spread the word!*

credit: cohdra

Understanding Trackbacks

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If you've been blogging for any length of time, you'll have heard of trackbacks.

Has this ever happened to you? You go to submit an article to a blog carnival and it asks for a trackback URL. You are left scratching your head, wondering what a trackback is exactly.

Now you sort of know but . . . hmmm . . . where the heck do you find the URL?

Now, if you are like most of the populace, you, in a Mr. Bean-like fashion either blindly hit that little X up in the right hand corner and make the bad question go away or you try to wing it and paste in a URL, hoping it's the right one.

What's a Trackback URL? I've looked all over the Net for an answer to this question. Today, I came across an excellent site that explains what a trackback is and how to actually find the little begger.

In a post entitled The Ultimate Trackback Help Guide, the author shines a light on this murky concept.

Blogging is a learning process and trying to understand trackbacks, some have said, is as painful as learning algebra.

Thanks to this timely information, trackbacks have been demystified.

BlogCatalog: Are You Using it?

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BlogCatalog: Are you using it?

BlogCatalog is one of the biggest blog directories on the Internet and can be a powerful blogging tool. If you have a passion for blogging or want to attract a greater number of readers, BlogCatalog can be a valuable resource.

BlogCatalog--also known as "blogcatalog com" or "www blogcatalog" is easy to use and offers a number of great features, such as blog widgets and a Search button you can install on your blog (as seen over on the right) so that visitors can find your posts discussing the subjects they are interested in.

BlogCatalog News Feed
A new launch is the News Feed or Social Stream Widget. What is it? This widget displays your activity on the social networks you've added to your BlogCatalog profile. Why is this important? Because using the widget can increase your blog traffic--it shows your "stumbles," "twitters," and BlogCatalog activities!

When you are active, the widget constantly changes. Updated content usually results in increased exposure for online content.

As it says on the page, the widget gives:
* "users the opportunity to add your feed to their RSS reader so they can follow your favorite stories and videos at their convenience."

* "As soon as BlogCatalog sees that you have a new post, we put it in your followers feeds so they can check it out right away."

In a nutshell, the widget allows you to promote your favorite web pages to your followers.

Other BlogCatalog Features
BlogCatalog also allows you to join Groups, a handy gathering place of people who share your interests.

Have a question?
Why not start a discussion and access a large group of people who may have the answer.

Want to improve the look of your blog?
Search though the www blogcatlog Directory to see what other bloggers are doing.

Looking for hot topics to write about?
Check out Trending Topics

BlogCatalog is a good resource for bloggers who want to grow their online presence.

Further Reading
Paid Blogging: How to Create Blog Posts for Pay
Paid Blogging: A Look at 5 Blogging Opportunities
Blogging at PrintNPost
How to set up Your Own Free Blog
Using Feeds to Boost Blog Traffic
Paid Blogging: 10 Paying you to Post Sites

Online Writing Tips

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If you are a newer writer looking to break into the world of freelance writing and want to compose content for online writing sites over writing for hard copy markets, swing by my other writing blog, Write It for tips and tricks on how to get started.

I discuss online writing tips at both of my writing blogs; however, Write It is particularly suited for newbies. I give insights on markets that pay for content and outline how to go about growing an online writing income.

Each writing blog offers a wealth of information about writing, writing markets, and related writing how-to's.

With relevant online writing tips, it's reasonably easy to get started as a freelance writer.

HubPages Earnings

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Today, I checked my HubPages stats and I now have 64 HubPages sign-ups.

Do you know what this means? More importantly, could you do the same?

What it Means
Each time someone joins HubPages, this creates an income stream for me, resulting in HubPages earnings. In a nutshell: I earn residuals on the HubPages others' create.

Now, the percentage is small: 10%, but each time someone joins HubPages and creates pages, I benefit. You can too.

Could You do the Same?
Simply join HubPages and tell others about your experiences with this free publishing platform that allows you to create pages around your interests and nets you HubPages earnings.

Free Writer's Giveaways

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Have you noticed that Christmas items are appearing in stores around you? The Holiday Season is poised to begin.

To thank readers of this blog, I'm creating this post to point you to free writer's giveaways. With these products, you can kick off the new year with even more writing tools and skills in your writing arsenal.

We all like freebies and for struggling writers, writer giveaways can be a real boost, not only in terms of the zero cost but in having access to tools of the trade and helpful writing resources.

Check out these writing giveaways and choose materials best suited to your writing needs.

Happy writing and earning!