My 15 Favorite Freelance Hacks
I swear by these simple practices and habits that make freelance life easier while yielding the same–or–better results.
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Everything You Need to Know About Writing for Non-Corporate Entities
Freelancers who write for schools, nonprofits, and other non-company clients answer common questions about what the work entails.
A Journalist’s Guide to Thriving in the Era of Influencers and AI
Practices need to evolve with changing technology and how people find news, according to speakers at the 2026 ASJA virtual conference.
When It Comes to AI Transcription Tools, Writers Have Choices
AI transcription tools can eliminate hours of crushingly dull mental labor–if chosen and used with care.
Help Your Book Break Through to Reach Agents, Libraries, and Curators
Authors are committed to telling their stories, but when it comes to getting others on board—including key stakeholders like agents and booksellers—the formula for breaking through can feel elusive.
How Journalists and Writers Are Making AI Work – But Not Write – for Them
Multiple conference speakers shared how AI can be useful to those who love to write.
What Authors Can Do about Book Publishing Scams
“New authors just don’t have that level of sophistication to keep up with the scams that now are out there.”
ASJA 2026 Conference Day 2 Recap: Finding Your Next Opportunity
Freelancers need to overcome an identity problem, shifting from thinking of themselves as being “just a writer” to a communications expert.
2026 ASJA Conference Day 1 Recap: Satisfying That Community Craving
It’s a mean, cold industry, and ASJA writers are lucky to have found each other, President Darcy Lewis said to end day one of the event.
5 Last-Minute Things to Help You Prep for the 2026 ASJA Conference – And 2 You Can Do If You’re Not Attending
Last-minutes tips to help you get ready for the ASJA conference April 20-24, 2026, which takes place on the Airmeet online event platform.
The Art of Co-Working Online
For writers, virtual co-working sessions add newness to sameness. And boy howdy, can they be good places to get stuff done.
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Press releases: Mailbox junk or idea goldmine?
If your inbox looks anything like mine, it’s overflowing with messages from a range of…
What Is the John Newbery Medal?
If you’re a children’s book writer, I bet you’ve fantasized that your book will one…
From Manuscripts to Musicals
People who work with words occasionally decide that if they can do one kind of…
The ASJA Conference: Why It’s a Must for Me
My family knows not to schedule anything for the last weekend in April each year….
The Anniversary Edition
It’s a good thing that I don’t have to make my living writing books. Nonetheless,…
Those Pesky Ghosts of Journalism's Past
Quiz time! Think, for a second, about San Francisco, which played host to an ASJA…
Communicators and Customer Engagement: Why It Matters
Customers rule and it would be hard to deny that the continued quest for new…
Readers Hate Clichés. Except When They Don’t.
Clichés weren’t always clichés. Once they were creative images or poignant observations that became clichés…
Should You Find a Publisher or an Agent?
Should you pitch a project to publishers, agents, or both? While having an agent who…
Transformative writing, how to teach it
If we go deep within to the spaces we are scared to go, we defeat…
Pushing Your Limits
In 2010, I was told that my 29 assignments for the “Leaders & Success” column…
The Top 5 Mistakes Even Smart Essayists Make
Essay is a popular genre. Trouble is, the number of viable markets is shrinking while…
Five Ways to Put Your Heart on the Page: Putting Words to the Caregiver’s Journey
My mother’s Alzheimer’s drove me to write. My writing inspired me to speak. Over the…
‘Freelancing Sucks’: A Texas-Sized Whopper
Independent writers are used to being disrespected. It goes with the territory, along with all…
Writing Rituals that Make Things Work
I’ve always been fascinated by how creative people balance their work and personal lives. Recently…
The Trade of Trade Magazine Writing
I’ve taught “Succeeding As a Magazine Writer” for many years. Usually, my students’ main goal…
Speaking (and Signing) for the Work
What I’ve always liked about writing: it isn’t talking. But even in my earliest years…
Take a Hike!
I make this suggestion for two reasons. First, it removes you from your writing space…
Businesses are hiring writers who specialize
Recently I asked a technology executive if businesses value writers as much as lawyers or…
3 Ways Stats Can Screw Up Your Story
Whether you’re writing a non-fiction book or crafting a piece for one of the…
Sportswriting, anyone? 8 Tips from National Sports Editors
As a decades-long suffering Cleveland fan (read: no championships in my lifetime — yet), I’m…
An Impulse that Paid Off
I got a book idea over dinner with an opera star. My favorite Metropolitan Opera…
An Essential Tool for Writers: Building a Creative Community
I spent many years participating in career days at local schools, asking classrooms at every…
MFA Programs: What are they and how do they work?
You’ve been freelancing for years. Clients love your work. But something about your writing isn’t pleasing…
Small Writers Group Nets Big Results
The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, FastCompany.com, Columbia Journalism Review,…
Take the Reins On Your Amazon Reviews
Your book’s Amazon page is part orchestration, part free for-all. Your publisher will set up…
Why I’m Glad to be an Office Nomad
For much of my freelance career I had a home office, a spare second-floor bedroom…
My Favorite Office Assistant: Freelancers have a special bond with their pets
When he was with me, my office assistant always let me know when a package…
No Tax Break If Client Stiffs You
Contrary to what many freelancer writers mistakenly believe, long-standing regulations usually prohibit most of them…