Freelancing is a competitive business,
especially in today's fast-paced, e-focused
world.
Often there are hundreds of writers competing
for the same, limited number of assignments,
and the writer who can best showcase his
or her abilities is the one who lands
the job.
Editors, however, are very busy people,
and don't have the time nor the inclination
to sift through the hundreds of resumes
and clips they receive in search of your
information. If your credits and clips
are not right there on an editor's desk,
or available with a single click of the
mouse, that plumb assignment is going
to go to the writer who managed to catch
the editor's eye; even if you're the better
writer for the job.
So, how do you get your writing clips
into the hands of the editors looking
for writers? Easy, with your own online
resume!
A personal site has become a must for
today's freelancer, but successful writers
know that they need to do more than simply
paste their picture out on the Internet,
or send off their email address along
with their snail mail query.
What's needed is a site that showcases
your entire writing resume, including:
- Bio
- Publishing history
- Writing-related job history
- All published credits
- Specialty or genre
- Easily accessible and visually attractive
clips, whether scanned or in document
form
An editor is then able to access all
of your information at once, instead of
being forced to slog through link after
link looking for work that is spread out
over twelve different sites, six of which
no longer exist. With everything in one
place, an editor is also more able to
get a feel for your abilities and range.
In addition, a professional-looking site
- one that features your published writing,
not pictures of your dog and boyfriend
along with your latest Ebay stats - will
prove to an editor that you're on the
ball, that you take your writing seriously.
In turn the editor will take you more
seriously.
Even freelancers with very little computer
knowledge can set up a website; check
with your Internet service provider to
find out how to start your own (often
free) site. Or, if you have some knowledge
of HTML or are willing to learn, you may
be able to set up your own site. There
are also many web-design companies that
will set you up for a fee.
If you decide to go with a web-design
company, here are a few important things
to consider:
What are the total costs? Be sure to
read the fine print, otherwise your bill
may be higher than you'd intended.
Is maintenance included? If so, how much
does it cost and what is the turnaround
time?
How many pages are you allowed? Some
budget companies only offer six or so
pages, which is hardly enough to showcase
your clips.
Do they work with writers? Web-design
services that cater to exotic dancers
or widget-sellers may not know much about
a freelancer's needs.
Whichever method you choose, get your
resume and clips online today and start
wowing editors and making sales tomorrow!
This article was posted on March 01,
2004
