In addition to being called “freelance commercial writing,” our field is also known simply as “copywriting” (AND commercial copywriting, business copywriting, marketing copywriting, and others). But, if you’re relatively new to the field, and you hear the term “copywriting,” you’ll likely think of direct response copywriting. You know, the “long-letter” variety: 10-15 hype-filled (“Wait, there’s more!”) … Read more
The ‘APPETIZER’ Series: The original version of this piece first appeared as an Appetizer course in The Well-Fed E-PUB in June 2016, and was one I wanted to run as a blog post (with minor alterations) in order to get input from many voices. Got this note from a successful commercial writer recently: Another new … Read more
Great guest post from Matt Seidholz, a freelance healthcare content writer in Omaha, Nebraska. Hats off to Matt for having the courage to admit some of these classics, but I’m certain each of us have our own “Really??” stories from our early days that we’re not too proud of. But, we learn, correct and move on. Thanks, Matt! ******************* When I started commercial … Read more
The “APPETIZER” Series: The original version of this piece first appeared as an Appetizer course in The Well-Fed E-PUB in February 2017, and was one I wanted to run as a blog post (with minor alterations) in order to get input from many voices. A friend of mine recently sent around a pithy quote (source … Read more
The “APPETIZER” Series: The original version of this piece first appeared as an Appetizer course in The Well-Fed E-PUB in December 2015, and was one I wanted to run as a blog post (with minor alterations) in order to get input from many voices. So I’m on the phone a few weeks back with one … Read more
Apologies for the long hiatus from the blog. As many of you know, I went on an adventure for the first three months of this year (see the photo albums linked from the Appetizer course in the March issue of The Well-Fed E-PUB), and slowly getting back into the swing of things. Thanks for coming … Read more
Note: If this post has a familiar ring, there’s a reason for that: I ran it as an “Appetizer” course in The Well-Fed E-PUB this past September. It’s one of those topics that begs for other voices weighing in with their great follow-up stories. Look for similar re-purposed stories in the coming months. How important … Read more
Got this email from a reader in Canada a few weeks back: Writers in my market are noticing a trend towards clients hiring low-cost writers, mostly journalism students from the local college. Journalism has been pretty much wiped out here so there’s been a huge increase in these writers. We’ve also noticed several big clients … Read more
I got an email from a reader recently, spurred by one of my newsletter pieces (the “Appetizer” course of THIS issue). It’s a subject a bit different from the usual commercial freelancing fare on the blog, but thought it was worth running, given that it’s something any reasonably experienced commercial writer has no doubt encountered—whether … Read more
(Apologies for the LONG hiatus from the blog. Been up to my neck in selling my home of 26 years, shedding tons of stuff, packing, moving to a much smaller place (very liberating…), and getting settled in. So, to ease back in, I thought I’d keep it light…). So, a few weeks back, a dear … Read more