Having just watched “Who Killed The Electric Car?”, I was fascinated by the fact that the first cars were in fact run on batteries. It was Henry Ford’s Model-T that made the internal combustion engine popular, and thereby created a massive worldwide demand for oil. Would the world have been the same today were it not for this one man? I wrote an article about the Electric Car for my website portfolio found at http://www.hotcopy.co.za.

Check it out at:
http://www.hotcopy.co.za/Hot%20Copy%20articles%20Writing.htm

It seems that if technology keeps going in the direction it’s going now, and at the same pace, we’ll be seeing a lot more hybrid or electric cars on the road pretty soon.

Anyone who says that freelance writing doesn’t have a downside is either stupid or blindly optimistic or trying to sell you something remarkably crap. Think about it: you have no secure 9 to 5 job where you can sometimes get away with merrily assing around and still get paid the same amount at the end of the month. You have no company benefits like insurance and banking group schemes. No secure pay cheque at the end of the month. Some people are fortunate to work for companies that REALLY know how to look after you, with special training courses, study subsidies and mentorship.

Kiss all that goodbye if you’re a freelancer.

Freelancing is a lonely career. Unless you’re getting the best of both worlds and sharing office space with other freelance writers and designers, a lot of the nitty gritty of your life will remain unshared - nobody to bitch to about a picky client, and no encouragement from colleagues close at hand. When you work with other people every day you also learn a lot from them, picking up new work skills or developing interpersonal ones. Many freelancers who are intent on working solo lose essential social skills and become hermit-like. This is why writers hang out in coffee shops - it’s lonely out there on your own.

Working as a freelancer you also never stop thinking about work. You actually have to force yourself to stop working to find time for other things like family, relaxation and friends.

So why do so many people do it?

There is probably no greater joy than to create something from scratch and watch it grow into something successful - as a freelancer you are an entrepreneur, marketing your services and building your brand and reputation. After lots of hard work, you’ll be able to look back and be proud of what you have achieved.

You are your own boss - and although this can be a double edged sword it means that any decisions that need to be made are made by YOU - no waiting for others for permission to make a move, it’s all up to you. The kudos for good work goes directly to you, and so does the blame for bad work. This is a great and potentially fulfilling responsibility.

You can say NO to work if you don’t want it. Think about that - imagine telling your boss that you don’t think you will do that new project, sorry about that, maybe another time. Simply bloody marvellous.

As a freelance writer the earning potential is phenomenal. Let’s say you work as a copywriter in an ad agency or PR agency or similar and earn a salary of say, R10,000 per month. Not unrealistic. On average you’ll probably write three or four pieces of work per working day. These could be articles, press releases, web copy or how to guides for example. Now reflect on the following fact - freelance writers are charging up to R1,000 PER PIECE - in your example that would be R3-4,000 per day. Multiply this by 20 working days per month and you are well into R60,000 per month. And there are freelance writers out there earning this. In a slow month. Even after tax it’s not something to sneer at.

Freelance work means you potentially get exposed to a variety of clients. You may also end up doing most of your work for one or two key clients. It’s really up to you - you’re at the helm and can take this puppy anywhere you want to go.

There are a bunch of really good resources to look at to find out more about freelance writing. Some of my favourites are:

Phil Gyford’s Beginner’s Guide to Freelancing:
http://www.gyford.com/phil/writing/2006/10/26/a_beginners_guid.php

Bad Language - how to be a freelance journalist:
http://www.badlanguage.net/?p=344

Freelance Writing Dot Com:
http://www.freelancewriting.com/

Freelance Central South Africa:
http://www.freelancecentral.co.za/

Good luck!

Tony

From: Copywriters Roundtable #158

“When you find something at which you are
talented, you do it until your fingers
bleed or your eyes are ready to fall
out of your head… “

- Stephen King

1) Write Honestly.

In the context of copywriting, what does this mean… to write “honestly?”

No, I’m not talking about your sales ethics. Though important, there’s another lesson here. More of what I’m saying is that you need to write without
pretension.

Just as an example, when King starts the book he offers a forward. In it he explains — remember, this is a guy who’s been writing bestsellers for the
last 30 or so years — that he doesn’t know much at all about writing. And that most writing books are full of “bulls*it.”

The rest of his memoir continues in the same direct, no nonsense manner. He doesn’t make himself to be a genius, even though he’s made millions as a novelist. Somehow that frankness made his other opinions much more valid. And his insights that much more valuable. If he had filled the book with self-indulgent puffery, he would have sacrificed most or all of that effect.

As a copywriter, how does this apply?

Well, how many times have you seen good promo ideas bogged down by dense, overly-brainy language? How many times have you seen a copywriter indulge in
cleverness, business-speak, or sales-copy clichés?

How many times have you seen a copywriter bury a thorny detail because he’s afraid it will become an objection to the sale?

I’ve never seen that strategy work effectively.

What works is clarity. Frankness. Boldness. That’s surely true in all writing. But it’s directly measurable in direct mail.

2) Read.

In the memoir, King talks openly about other writers. Not just writers in his own genre. But all kinds of writers. Yeats, Faulkner, Fitzgerald, Eudora Welty, Hemingway and many others. Some of them he likes and respects. Others, he does not.

But the important thing is that he has read them. And he continues to read widely. He also listens to audiobooks whenever he has the chance. And he keeps
a book in his pocket for any time he’s caught waiting around or standing in line.

Says King, when he runs into someone who says he wants to be a writer but who doesn’t have time to read… he tells that person than they don’t really have time to be a writer either.

It’s laughable, says King, to think otherwise. You cannot write well if you do not read. Period.

But what about you, the copywriter?

Are you reading? And what are you reading? Is it relevant to your craft? Is it relevant to the products you sell or hope to sell? If not, then get busy.

If writing is really the career for you, this is something you should enjoy most about the job – the ability to learn as you write. The best ideas don’t happen in a vacuum.

3) Bliss out or don’t bother.

I think this was one of the most valuable points in the memoir… and the most pertinent to us as copywriters.

Bliss out, said King, or don’t bother.

To explain, King told a story about buying his son a saxophone. His son, at age seven, got hooked on Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. He was particularly fond of Clarence Clemmons, the band’s famous sax player.

King’s son begged for the saxophone. Then he begged for lessons. Then, a few months later, he begged to quit. What had happened?

“He practiced,” wrote King, “but only in the times his teacher allotted for him. And in all that time, we never heard him break into something of his own.
We never heard him ‘bliss out.’”

Sure, there’s something to be said for perseverance. And no matter how much you love something (like writing), you’re going to need staying power if you
ever expect to get good at it.

But, says King, if there’s no joy in what you’re doing, it will never be good enough.

There’s more in the memoir.

For instance, one trend I’ve seen lately in copywriting is the powerful effectiveness of story-driven leads. They’ve always worked. Right now, they seem to work better than ever. If there’s one thing King can definitely do, it’s spin a story.

4) “Kill your darlings”

He also steals a line from Hemingway: “Kill your darlings”, which basically means you need to cut out those pieces you’re keeping in just because you love
them too much to let them go.