Comments on: Is Writing For A Byline Really Good Enough? http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/ freelance writing by a freelance writer that works in the freelance writing field Mon, 08 Sep 2008 10:31:09 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: Grinch http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-5584 Grinch Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:09:38 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-5584 I agree the best byline is on a cheque, although the other one comes in handy and is also nice to have. I don't see why one can't have both. How does one get paid for internet articles? I've written for newspapers and magazines and put together film and radio documentaries as well as done business writing BUT all jobs involved getting a cheque. The web seems to be an unruly frontier where too many writers get chopped to pieces. Years ago I helped start an association for journalists to ensure that writers got fair treatment. It seems that writers need such an association to govern fair internet practice. I'd be interested to hear what others have to say. Unfortunately, with the incredible shrinking magazine/newspaper market the best bet for writers looking for chances at steady work is on the internet. One answer to the "send in a sample of your work" scenario is to send something for which you've been paid. I agree the best byline is on a cheque, although the other one comes in handy and is also nice to have. I don’t see why one can’t have both.
How does one get paid for internet articles? I’ve written for newspapers and magazines and put together film and radio documentaries as well as done business writing BUT all jobs involved getting a cheque. The web seems to be an unruly frontier where too many writers get chopped to pieces. Years ago I helped start an association for journalists to ensure that writers got fair treatment. It seems that writers need such an association to govern fair internet practice. I’d be interested to hear what others have to say. Unfortunately, with the incredible shrinking magazine/newspaper market the best bet for writers looking for chances at steady work is on the internet. One answer to the “send in a sample of your work” scenario is to send something for which you’ve been paid.

]]> By: Monika http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-3496 Monika Sun, 20 Apr 2008 22:03:01 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-3496 @ Suneetha: Thank you for taking the time and stopping by. I like your idea on the samples bit as it is like seasoning a meal with different spices. I guess it makes the whole deal more exotic doesn't it. I have to compliment you on your site as well, I found it to be very professional and different from what we normally see and i guess this makes it more stand out. You seem to do what I'm hoping to do one day and that is become a travel writer for inflight magazines. Maybe you can share some tips with me in regards to that. :-) @ Suneetha: Thank you for taking the time and stopping by. I like your idea on the samples bit as it is like seasoning a meal with different spices.

I guess it makes the whole deal more exotic doesn’t it. I have to compliment you on your site as well, I found it to be very professional and different from what we normally see and i guess this makes it more stand out.

You seem to do what I’m hoping to do one day and that is become a travel writer for inflight magazines. Maybe you can share some tips with me in regards to that. :-)

]]> By: Suneetha http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-3492 Suneetha Sun, 20 Apr 2008 14:38:00 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-3492 Monika I wandered into this via the jeetblog site, and like it very much. I am not a compulsive or prolific blogger, but rather write for bylines and checks the more. I too have scampered out of a corporate cabin into the freelance jungle and writing is the only skill I have... Bylines are certainly important, and I have found that persistence does pay, but there are always exceptions! I guess, as someone has commented before me, we could keep samples of various genres in our blog and give them links as and when needed, instead of writing out whole samples...btw, I have heard of guys who run their site by samples... Monika

I wandered into this via the jeetblog site, and like it very much.

I am not a compulsive or prolific blogger, but rather write for bylines and checks the more. I too have scampered out of a corporate cabin into the freelance jungle and writing is the only skill I have…

Bylines are certainly important, and I have found that persistence does pay, but there are always exceptions!

I guess, as someone has commented before me, we could keep samples of various genres in our blog and give them links as and when needed, instead of writing out whole samples…btw, I have heard of guys who run their site by samples…

]]> By: Shiva http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2787 Shiva Sun, 02 Mar 2008 15:21:14 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2787 Hi Monika, I totally subscribe to your samples - daylight robbery viewpoint. But do you think there is an alternative out there for them? Like do you think point to your own blog instead of samples will do any good? Hi Monika,

I totally subscribe to your samples - daylight robbery viewpoint. But do you think there is an alternative out there for them? Like do you think point to your own blog instead of samples will do any good?

]]> By: What Is My Worth? | The Writers Manifesto Blog http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2726 What Is My Worth? | The Writers Manifesto Blog Tue, 26 Feb 2008 10:36:48 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2726 [...] Is Writing For A Byline Really Good Enough? [...] [...] Is Writing For A Byline Really Good Enough? [...]

]]> By: Monika http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2695 Monika Sat, 23 Feb 2008 01:56:12 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2695 @ Opal: I think what you just said is often underestimated by most bloggers and I thank for making me more aware of that fact. I'm quite involved in SU myself always trying to stumble my favorite posts and help these guys get some more traffic. I don't Digg as much since I don't understand the Digg community and would only waste their and my time I think. Writing a proper submission however is something that I could also improve on as often I choose the fast way instead of spending a little more time to make it more attractive. @ Mike: Guest blogging is great for branding reasons and that is exactly why I chose to do it. I've seen Skellie rising from nowhere and becoming very popular in a short amount of time and this is entirely thanks to her great writing. The reason I've decided to guest blog is similar. I'm hoping to attract more readers which in turn will result into more writing gigs. Hopefully it will eventuate, all though the new connections I have made in the industry are worth is alone I think (just look at sexy Jon) ;-) @ Jon: You are so right you know. In fact I have to remodel my whole self branded website now to fit in all the new stuff I have been doing lately plus my new upcoming package launches. @ Opal: I think what you just said is often underestimated by most bloggers and I thank for making me more aware of that fact.

I’m quite involved in SU myself always trying to stumble my favorite posts and help these guys get some more traffic. I don’t Digg as much since I don’t understand the Digg community and would only waste their and my time I think.

Writing a proper submission however is something that I could also improve on as often I choose the fast way instead of spending a little more time to make it more attractive.

@ Mike: Guest blogging is great for branding reasons and that is exactly why I chose to do it. I’ve seen Skellie rising from nowhere and becoming very popular in a short amount of time and this is entirely thanks to her great writing.

The reason I’ve decided to guest blog is similar. I’m hoping to attract more readers which in turn will result into more writing gigs. Hopefully it will eventuate, all though the new connections I have made in the industry are worth is alone I think (just look at sexy Jon) ;-)

@ Jon: You are so right you know. In fact I have to remodel my whole self branded website now to fit in all the new stuff I have been doing lately plus my new upcoming package launches.

]]> By: Jon Phillips http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2689 Jon Phillips Thu, 21 Feb 2008 16:55:09 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2689 humm, well just the fact you can say you wrote for a site that has over 50k readers is just awesome, looks very very nice on a resume! :) humm, well just the fact you can say you wrote for a site that has over 50k readers is just awesome, looks very very nice on a resume! :)

]]> By: Mike Smith http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2688 Mike Smith Thu, 21 Feb 2008 16:13:03 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2688 I think if you're blogging as a way to showcase your writing skills and your website has a "hire me" page or focuses on pulling in clients, then writing for other blogs is a great way to get the word out. Skellie from www.skelliewag.org does a LOT of writing. Some of which is paid for, but she did a lot of guest posting in the beginning to get her name noticed. Now, when people say "skellie" the majority of the blog-o-sphere knows what it means (or who it means lol). Other then the added exposure, I don't think writing pro-bono is worth it to be honest. It's the same as me designing a website layout for a contest. No guarantee of money. I think if you’re blogging as a way to showcase your writing skills and your website has a “hire me” page or focuses on pulling in clients, then writing for other blogs is a great way to get the word out. Skellie from http://www.skelliewag.org does a LOT of writing. Some of which is paid for, but she did a lot of guest posting in the beginning to get her name noticed. Now, when people say “skellie” the majority of the blog-o-sphere knows what it means (or who it means lol).

Other then the added exposure, I don’t think writing pro-bono is worth it to be honest. It’s the same as me designing a website layout for a contest. No guarantee of money.

]]> By: Opal Tribble - Addicted To Writing http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2687 Opal Tribble - Addicted To Writing Thu, 21 Feb 2008 13:00:44 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2687 Monika, I've always been fairly aggressive when it came to my work, business, sports, so "Making it happen" in freelance writing was second nature. Keep it up it's amazing how much you can make happen just by going for it. Some of my biggest traffic has come from the smaller websites I'm guessing, in my case, that they are more personable so their readers feel that the author has more of a connection with the person they are writing about or introducing. With the new website that I write for, I received over 3,000 visitors from one Digg. A person linked to me in their post and I received over 600 visits to that particular post. The website is small compared to some and I never met either people before but they wrote a great intro to my articles and people were curious enough to click through. I have been mentioned on a few of the high profile blogs but my traffic has been low under a few hundred. However, a few friends have linked to me on their post and my traffic was in the hundred. The way I was mentioned was completely different. I've linked and stumbled some of my friend’s website, and they averaged over 800 page views from the Stumbles/Digg. I usually tell people when I stumble or Digg their articles. When writing the brief review about the article I make sure I write something that will make the person want to visit that website. From my personal experience I've found that how a person links to another website can be important. I try to make the website appealing that I'm linking. Monika,

I’ve always been fairly aggressive when it came to my work, business, sports, so “Making it happen” in freelance writing was second nature. Keep it up it’s amazing how much you can make happen just by going for it.

Some of my biggest traffic has come from the smaller websites I’m guessing, in my case, that they are more personable so their readers feel that the author has more of a connection with the person they are writing about or introducing. With the new website that I write for, I received over 3,000 visitors from one Digg. A person linked to me in their post and I received over 600 visits to that particular post. The website is small compared to some and I never met either people before but they wrote a great intro to my articles and people were curious enough to click through.

I have been mentioned on a few of the high profile blogs but my traffic has been low under a few hundred. However, a few friends have linked to me on their post and my traffic was in the hundred. The way I was mentioned was completely different.

I’ve linked and stumbled some of my friend’s website, and they averaged over 800 page views from the Stumbles/Digg. I usually tell people when I stumble or Digg their articles. When writing the brief review about the article I make sure I write something that will make the person want to visit that website. From my personal experience I’ve found that how a person links to another website can be important. I try to make the website appealing that I’m linking.

]]> By: Monika http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2685 Monika Thu, 21 Feb 2008 12:17:28 +0000 http://www.thewritersmanifesto.com/blog/2008/02/19/writing-for-byline/#comment-2685 @ Opal: I'm impressed by your ability to snatch jobs basically at will :-) It just shows that going for it beats waiting any day and like you I'm trying to do the same thing. At present I have some 5 applications floating around and until I get another job come through I will keep plugging away. This has worked for me since the beginning and I didn't have to apply for any jobs in over 3 month. This spell has now dried up (ironically just when I go full time). I had the best two weeks of the month ever and since then it's been like the Sahara desert. @ Jon: yeah, I was stumped to be honest but actually have been warned that LH won't convert well. It's true though, I got linked to from Lifehack to a post on my other blog and got also thousands of visitors which was great. Unfortunately the guest blogging doesn't seem to work as well. I'm happy to come and collect my thousands of visitors from FF for sure. ;-) Let me construct a kick butt post and then get back to you. @ Opal: I’m impressed by your ability to snatch jobs basically at will :-) It just shows that going for it beats waiting any day and like you I’m trying to do the same thing.

At present I have some 5 applications floating around and until I get another job come through I will keep plugging away. This has worked for me since the beginning and I didn’t have to apply for any jobs in over 3 month.

This spell has now dried up (ironically just when I go full time). I had the best two weeks of the month ever and since then it’s been like the Sahara desert.

@ Jon: yeah, I was stumped to be honest but actually have been warned that LH won’t convert well. It’s true though, I got linked to from Lifehack to a post on my other blog and got also thousands of visitors which was great.

Unfortunately the guest blogging doesn’t seem to work as well.

I’m happy to come and collect my thousands of visitors from FF for sure. ;-) Let me construct a kick butt post and then get back to you.

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