Showing posts with label Freelance Writing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Freelance Writing. Show all posts
Sunday, May 22, 2016
I finally finished!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
How to ...
You fill in the blank. Have you ever wondered exactly how to do something? Maybe you've wondered how to speak Spanish, how to play golf, get out of debt or even become a substitute teacher? Wouldn't it be nice to save a little money and do some research first on these topics? Maybe you could to some things all by yourself, you know, the DIY method. Well, Mahalo has "how to" guides written on these and a host of many other subjects. Check out the list below and see if something doesn't strike your fancy. I know the first one has appealed to me. :)
- How to Break into Freelance Writing
- How to Make a Friendship Bracelet
- How to Get Pregnant
- How to Draw Manga
- How to Become a Pharmacist
- How to Get a Free Credit Report
- How to Get Out of Debt
- How to Buy Gold
- How to Become a Substitute Teacher
- How to Play Golf
- How to Speak Spanish
- How to Throw a Spa Party
- How to Buy a Timeshare
- How to Make Simple Syrup
- How to Protect Your Computer from Viruses
- How to Use Frequent Flyer Miles
- How to Get Rid of Bad Breath
- How to Write a Grant Proposal
- How to Buy Your Own Health Insurance
- How to Become a Caterer
- How to Get a Car Loan
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Grammar in The Wrong Hands Can Be Dangerous
As a writer of web content, I'm going to take a minute to vent here. After all, if I can't do it here, where can I do it? OK, so there is your fair warning - this post isn't necessarily about working from home or fatherhood ... deal with it.
What has happened to the grammatical standards of the English language? Perhaps the Internet and all of it's fast-paced slang abbreviations killed it. Maybe, just maybe, we allowed it to die because nobody really held an interest in keeping it alive anymore.
I write for several places online, and am endeavoring to break into the offline markets as well. My concern for the future of English grammar comes from these writing experiences. Many times I have seen copy editors just ignore grammar issues an approve stuff anyway. That is disconcerting enough. However, when I see copy editors actually make corrections that are wrong and publish them to a group of people - hold the phone, we've got real issues now!
Not only does this impact the person who wrote the piece, but it also impacts everyone who is "learning" from this editor's feedback. While the editor's job should be to make corrections and bring things up to speed - all the while training folks, it doesn't always happen this way. So what happens when an editor gets it wrong and actually pushes the "correction" out to his staff? A group of people have just become more ignorant of proper grammar and are farther behind the writer's curve for having listened to him.
Now you know the reason for the title of my post. Grammar in the wrong hands truly can be dangerous. My only question now is how to communicate the truth to the copy editor without getting slapped in my wallet.
What has happened to the grammatical standards of the English language? Perhaps the Internet and all of it's fast-paced slang abbreviations killed it. Maybe, just maybe, we allowed it to die because nobody really held an interest in keeping it alive anymore.
I write for several places online, and am endeavoring to break into the offline markets as well. My concern for the future of English grammar comes from these writing experiences. Many times I have seen copy editors just ignore grammar issues an approve stuff anyway. That is disconcerting enough. However, when I see copy editors actually make corrections that are wrong and publish them to a group of people - hold the phone, we've got real issues now!
Not only does this impact the person who wrote the piece, but it also impacts everyone who is "learning" from this editor's feedback. While the editor's job should be to make corrections and bring things up to speed - all the while training folks, it doesn't always happen this way. So what happens when an editor gets it wrong and actually pushes the "correction" out to his staff? A group of people have just become more ignorant of proper grammar and are farther behind the writer's curve for having listened to him.
Now you know the reason for the title of my post. Grammar in the wrong hands truly can be dangerous. My only question now is how to communicate the truth to the copy editor without getting slapped in my wallet.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Networking and Writing
Ah, where to begin. The journey never really ends, does it? I've renewed my personal interest in building a network of readers - either through my blog on topics of religious interest, or my articles that I am going to write on everyday events and issues as a citizen journalist.
You see, everything is going great over on my full-time gig. No problems. So why am I going to start stepping out and doing freelance stuff on the side? Well, as the old saying goes, I don't want to have all of my eggs in one basket.
At heart, I really do believe I have it in my to be a writer. Granted, a lot of my writing style is very conversational and opinionated. I don't know if I can stick to the facts and garner a following as a reputable citizen journalist without wavering into the passion zone of my writing, so-to-speak. I really want to continue this blog, and develop an outlet for my other articles as well.
I've taken another look at Associated Content, Helium as well as another writing gig that I've signed up for - Natural News. None of these are paying big bucks, although Helium does have a marketplace section where real publishers are paying decent money for articles that are picked out of the crowded competition. Of more interest to me over there right now is their current involvement with the Pulitzer prize people as well as the National Press Club. Now there are two groups that it would pay to be associated with as a writer!
Keep your eyes on the blog here, and I will be passing along my profile(s) as well as a link (or two) to my writing outlet blogs. Hopefully you're up for the ride ...
You see, everything is going great over on my full-time gig. No problems. So why am I going to start stepping out and doing freelance stuff on the side? Well, as the old saying goes, I don't want to have all of my eggs in one basket.
At heart, I really do believe I have it in my to be a writer. Granted, a lot of my writing style is very conversational and opinionated. I don't know if I can stick to the facts and garner a following as a reputable citizen journalist without wavering into the passion zone of my writing, so-to-speak. I really want to continue this blog, and develop an outlet for my other articles as well.
I've taken another look at Associated Content, Helium as well as another writing gig that I've signed up for - Natural News. None of these are paying big bucks, although Helium does have a marketplace section where real publishers are paying decent money for articles that are picked out of the crowded competition. Of more interest to me over there right now is their current involvement with the Pulitzer prize people as well as the National Press Club. Now there are two groups that it would pay to be associated with as a writer!
Keep your eyes on the blog here, and I will be passing along my profile(s) as well as a link (or two) to my writing outlet blogs. Hopefully you're up for the ride ...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)