Power Up Your Queries with Query Boot Camp

Some of my most popular posts on this blog have been on querying, including the query critiques I've offered. That's not surprising considering how important strong query skills are to successful freelancing. If your query skills aren't up to par, or you want to make your queries even more effective, I suggest Jodi Helmer's upcoming Query Boot Camp class. Here's the scoop: 

Q: Jodi, tell me a little bit about the class. 

A: Query Boot Camp is a six week virtual class. Every Monday, I send a video lesson related to querying; on Friday, participants email a query and I do an in-depth critique that helps them hone their idea and pitch to increase their chances of landing an assignment. I offer an upgraded version of the class that includes three 30-minute phone mentoring sessions. We can spend the calls doing a deep dive into a specific idea and brainstorming angles and potential markets or use the time to develop goals/business strategies for freelance success. It's a good option for writers who want extra support to launch or build their writing business.

Q: What can participants expect to get out of the class? 

A: Writers, myself included, often send ideas to editors without the benefit of a second opinion. Having an experienced freelancer review a pitch before the editor sees it can mean the difference between an acceptance and a rejection. As the saying goes, "You never get a second chance to make a first impression." Your query is your first introduction to an editor; you want to make sure it shines. Offering the class virtually lets writers work at their own pace (and we know how much freelancers like to set their own schedules)! 

Q: What made you decide to offer this virtual class?

A: I kept getting requests for a query intensive. Even experienced writers with a lot of clips in their portfolios wanted to have their queries critiqued before sending them off to new editors or dream publications. 

Q: You also offer one-on-one mentoring/coaching for freelancers, correct? What does that entail?

A: Yes, I work one-on-one with writers who want individual support to reach their freelancing goals. Writers can hire me for a single query critique or an hourlong phone call to work through an issue or get feedback on an idea...whatever a writer needs to sell a story or take their business to the next level. Interestingly, query critiques are the most in-demand service I offer!

Q: Can you share a couple of success stories from your students? 

A: I love bragging about my students! The nuts and bolts: I've helped writers break into Natural Health, Parents, Experience Life, Urban Farm, Gluten Free Living, Natural Home & Garden, Modern Dog, Country Woman, Today.com and cottagelife.com. While the publishing credits are exciting, there are other successes that are important, too. A writer scheduled a one-hour session for help managing her workload. She was offered three long-term projects, all due in the same timeframe, and wanted to tackle all of them but knew she didn't have the bandwidth to accept all three gigs. We talked about the pros and cons of each project, crunched some numbers and, most importantly, evaluated which project would get her one step closer to her long-term goals. At the end of the call, she made a decision and followed through. 

I also helped a former newspaper journalist (who left the business decades ago to pursue another career path) launch a successful freelance career. He recently sent me an awesome email that said, "It's all coming together. I suddenly have more work than I can handle." 

Query Boot Camp starts in January, 2015; sign up now and you can write off the expense on your 2014 taxes--and reap the benefits in 2015! 

***Looking for more advice about pitching and successful freelancing? Check out my freelance classic, Six-Figure Freelancing: The Writer's Guide to Making More Money, Second Edition. If you're more interested in getting into ghostwriting and content marketing, I suggest Goodbye Byline, Hello Big Bucks: Make Money Ghostwriting Books, Articles, Blogs and More, Second Edition. And if you're brand-new to freelancing, Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets walks you through the process of launching your freelance career. 

Make Your Query Better: Suggest a Source

The blogathon continues! Halfway through as of today. 

Want to make your query stand out? Tell the editor who you plan to interview for your article by suggesting a source or two. Here's a paragraph from a pitch I emailed to a market last week: 

“In your Mind’s Eye: Exercise’s Impact on Body Image” will report on this fascinating topic, and give readers yet one more reason to work out. I plan to interview noted psychologists like Monica Ramirez Basco, PhD, author of Never Good Enough and report on recent research for this piece; if you like, I can include several “real women” to report on their experiences as well. I estimate 1,000 words for this story but that’s flexible depending on your needs. 

See what I did there? I said that I "plan to interview" experts like Basco. By that I mean that Monica Ramirez Basco is the caliber of expert I will reach out to for the story. If I can't get Basco, I'll get someone else who's respected and nationally known. But by providing my editor with the name of the person I think would be a good source, I show him or her that I've already done some background research, and that I understand the importance of quality sources, especially when writing for a national magazine. 

If the story turned on Basco's participation--like if talking to her was essential for the story--I'd make it clear that I'd already spoken with her and had her agreement to be interviewed by me. (That's what I call the McCaughey Septuplets rule.) But for most pieces, giving an idea of the type of person you'll speak to is sufficient. 

Your assignment? Next time you send a query, make sure you suggest at least one source for the piece.  

**If you're a new freelancer, get up to speed fast with Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets, which is aimed at brand-new freelancers in search of their first clips. Six-Figure Freelancing: The Writer's Guide to Making More Money, Second Edition is a freelancing classic that helps both new and experienced writers boost their bottom line. And my latest book,Goodbye Byline, Hello Big Bucks: Make Money Ghostwriting Books, Articles, Blogs and More, Second Edition, shows how to break into the ghostwriting/content marketing field. 

Demonstrate Familiarity: Another Way to Set your Pitch Apart

Hi, readers, and welcome back to the Blogathon, day 4!

Yesterday I explained why it's smarter to find a market you can write for more than once, and then come up with ideas specifically for that market instead of coming up with and idea and then market-shopping for it. It's a technique I'm actually using right now as I'm looking to add a few new "regular" markets to my client list. 

But there's another technique I use when querying that helps set my queries apart from about 90  percent of the ones my editors receive. I demonstrate familiarity with the publication I'm pitching. In other words, I let her know I've read her magazine, whether it's print or online. 

How? By mentioning the section of the magazine I think my piece belongs. I might say something like, "Interested in this piece for your 'Healthy You'" department?" Or, "I think this story might work well in your "Time-Savers" section--let me know if you agree?" I want the editor to know that I'm not pitching blindly--I've studied her pub and really want to write for her. 

Another way you can do this is to mention a recent article, like, "I enjoyed your piece on clutter-busting tips in the April issue and envision a similar approach with this piece on money-saving strategies." (And note that a little flattery never hurts!)

So, your assignment--before you send a pitch out, make sure you demonstrate your familiarity with the market you're querying.  

**New to freelancing? Want to make money writing articles but not sure how to start? In 

Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets, I share how I approached ten different freelance articles for different markets as a new freelancer. You'll find actual query samples, contract advice, and learn how to do everything from interview a source to write more compelling articles. It's the best book I've seen for brand-new article-writing freelancers! 

Flip the Script--Choose a Market Over an Idea

Welcome back to the Blogathon! 

When I started freelancing, I used to find a story idea and then locate a potential market for it. When I found a market where the idea looked liked it would fit, I wrote a query and pitched it.

That strategy worked for me for years--and led to me writing for more than 30 national magazines during my first few years of freelancing. When I started writing about freelancing, I recommended that freelancers take a similar approach. 

Well, I was wrong. Or at least that approach is.

Today, I've flipped that script. Instead of starting with an idea, I start with the market. I find a market that I think I can write for more than once. With the market in mind, I start coming up with ideas--and I pitch the market until I get an assignment (or give up--more on that in a future post).

So don't start with an idea. Start with your target market instead. It's much easier to write for a market over and over than continually market to brand-new ones--and choosing markets over ideas makes you more efficient as a freelancer. 

Your assignment? Locate a market that you want to write for--and start brainstorming ideas for it. 

**Want more smart, proven freelance advice? Check out one of my books on freelancing: 

• Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets is written for brand-new freelancers in search of their first clips.
• Six-Figure Freelancing: The Writer's Guide to Making More Money, Second Edition is a freelancing classic that helps both new and experienced writers boost their bottom line.
• My newest book,Goodbye Byline, Hello Big Bucks: Make Money Ghostwriting Books, Articles, Blogs and More, Second Edition, shows how to break into the ghostwriting/content marketing field. 

2+2=4: How Math Can Make you a More Successful Freelancer

As a freelancer, I may work alone, but I'm always looking to other writers for strategies they use to become (and stay) successful--and then adopting them myself. That means I try to keep up on what new topics are trending among fellow freelancers (say, the demand for content marketing writers). But I have to admit I was surprised to learn of a new book for writers about something that impacts you as a freelancer (and a a person) every day--yet one you may not have given much thought to--math. So I did a Q and A with Laura Laing, a freelance writer and the author of Math for Writers: Tell a Better Story, Get Published, Make More Money.

Q: I became a writer because I didn’t want to do math. :) Seriously, why is important that writers understand math? And how can math help you pitch more effectively? 

A: Let me allay your fears right off the bat: You don’t need to have a great understanding of trigonometry or Euclidean geometry or calculus. The math that most writers depend on every day is pretty darned basic. But there are basically three reasons math is useful to writers: It can help you tell a better story, get published and make more money. It really is that simple.

Not all readers are as enamored with the written word as we writers are. In fact, when was the last time you wrote a reported story without including at least one number? Numbers help readers better understand what you are conveying. And sometimes those numbers come in pretty ugly and difficult-to-understand packages. In that situation, it’s the writer’s job to wrangle those numbers into a format that gives even more meaning to the story.

And of course writing is critical for pitching — whether you want to write an article or a book. The query is basically a sales piece, right? You want to sell your services, ideas and expertise to an editor. Numbers have always been important in sales. For example, to demonstrate to the editor that your idea is a good one for the publication’s market, you might cite a statistic that links your story to the magazine’s readers. And it might be more impactful to translate a large number to a percentage: Instead of noting that nearly 26 million American have diabetes, it might be more striking to say that 10% of the U.S. population has diabetes. 

Finally, there is tons of math in the business of managing a freelance writing career. I believe that every freelancer should know their hourly rate, be able to set a project rate, and have a good sense of the time it takes to complete assignments. In addition, freelancers can use math to manage their goals and client diversity. This protects them when the unexpected happens — like a client suddenly bails or the bottom falls out of a particular industry. When writers avoid this kind of math, they’re pretty much throwing money away.

Q: Give me an example of a common math mistake, or one you’ve seen writers make. 

A: Percentages and percentage points are not the same thing, but that fact can be glossed over or completely ignored. Here’s a made-up example: 

"Average interest rates on personal savings accounts have grown by 1 percent since last year, increasing from 2 percent to 3 percent.”

But the interest rates haven’t increased by 1%. They’ve increased by 1 percentage point. In fact, in this example, the percentage increase is 50% — way more impressive than a mere 1%. 

But the biggest mistake I see writers make is avoiding the math altogether. I know lots of writers who feel completely out of their realm when it comes to computations. It’s a real shame if the story suffers because the writer feels intimidated by the math. 

Q: Tell me a little bit about how the book came about, and why you decided to write it in the first place. 

A: A lot of my writer friends were really surprised when I published my first book, Math for Grownups. “You know how to do math??? But you’re a writer!!” As I talked to more and more writers about math (and revealed my former life as a high school math teacher), I realized that a really big chunk of them were absolutely terrified of math. It didn’t take me long to decide that my second book would be Math for Writers. 

My whole take on math is that everyone can learn it. But as adults, we often come to the table with really bad experiences — condescending teachers, prolonged frustrations, that giant red X. A lot of the work I do is convincing people that they can overcome these mental blocks and get good at the math they need to really be successful.

Q: I think I see a knowledge and understanding of math as yet another way a writer can stand out from the crowd, so to speak. You’ve been a very successful freelancers, so I have two questions—what attributes do think are important to thriving today as a self-employed writer? And what attributes have helped you succeed? 

A: I think successful freelance writers are strategic. This means setting measurable goals, knowing which rules to break and when, and managing their business in ways that maximize opportunities. It also means putting our emotions in our back pocket sometimes. That doesn’t mean we ignore our feelings — not at all! — but in order to make decisions, it can be good to recognize that our reactions to situations may not be the best barometer. 

Here’s an example: This year, I made the decision to fire my biggest client. I’d been working with them for four years, and in 2013, they represented 50 percent of my income. I might have allowed my fear (a very normal reaction) to keep them on board. Instead, I mapped out a plan for replacing the work. (Yes, I used math, but it was really basic stuff, I promise!)

Of course there are other useful attributes as well: perseverance, creativity, diligence, and a willingness to take risks. I’ve found that with a clear plan that’s based in facts that I can verify, these other values fall right into place. It’s so easy for me to get off track when I don’t know where I’m going!

**Thanks so much to Laura for this Q and A, and be sure to check out Math for Writers: Tell a Better Story, Get Published, Make More Money. Visit her website to check out her full virtual book tour roster and sign up for a free, live teleseminar just for writers who need math: http://www.mathforgrownups.com/math-for-writers-book-tour/

The Importance of Powerful Pitching

New freelancers sometimes focus on how to write for clients, overlooking the obvious--that before you can write for a client, you must have one. And that means knowing how to pitch. In fact, if you can't pitch new markets, you may as well forget about succeeding as a freelancer. So I was happy to talk with freelancer and writing instructor Anne Trubek, Professor at Oberlin College, Editor-in-Chief of Belt (beltmag.com) and Founder of The Thinking Writer, about this very topic. Our Q and A appears below.

Q: I think pitching is arguably the most important skill for a freelancer, especially a new one, to possess. Do you agree with this, and why or why not? 

A: Yes--not just because you need to pitch to get good assignments, but developing a good pitch is a great way to understand all the components of a story, from focus (what’s the subject line of the email pitch? can you focus your topic to a good subject line?) to structure (how will you describe the structure do in one sentence or two?), tone, research, etc. 

Q: I know that as a new freelancer, most of my pitches stunk—and were rejected. What common mistakes do you see writers making when they pitch? 

A: Agreed! It took me a very long period of trial and error to get good at pitching. 

Many writers don't have a clear enough focus or angle, haven’t done the proper research in advance, or lack any news hook or “timely” element. These were all things that I struggled with when I first pitching as well. 

Q: I have a four-paragarph template I use to pitch that includes a lead; a “why-write-it” section; a “nuts-and-bolts” section where I describe how I plan to approach the story; and an ISG (I’m-so-great), where I make the case for being THE writer for the story. Do you tend to use a template too? Why or why not? 

A: That is more or less the template I use, but I now tailor my pitches much more specifically to the publication. I also am writing shorter pitches lately: we run lots of editor Q & As  in all The Thinking Writer courses, and editors seem to prefer short, one to two paragraph (max) pitches now. Some of the information I used to always put in the initial pitch I now  communicate in a an email back and forth if the editor is interested. 

Q: Anne, I know you teach classes at The Thinking Writer. Tell me more about your classes, and how writers can benefit from them. And are they geared more toward new writers or more experienced ones? 

A: These classes began with two main groups of writers in mind: women (in response to the VIDA statistics about gender disparity in bylines), and academics who wanted to write for general audiences (because I was once exactly that!). But it has evolved over the 3 years The Thinking Writer has been around. Now I think the class ["How to Pitch and Submit"] is very well suited to freelancers with a smidgen of experience (enough so they know what “pitch” means--although we do walk through those terms in the class) and those with experience but who either want a way to help them get a lot of work done in those two weeks (say, write and submit an op-ed during the op-ed course, or pitch 4 book reviews during the book review course) or want to write for more “thinky” publications. For instance, last year a full-time experienced freelancer took the course because he wanted to work on cracking some dream markets--and he did! A pitch he worked on in the class became a feature for the Sunday New York Times Magazine just a month after class was over. 

Q: Anything else you think is critical about pitching that freelancers should know? 

A: Read! Read the publication you are pitching. I’m sure most folks have heard that advice before. Just a reminder ;) 

Q: Oh, tell me a bit about your background, and how you started teaching these kinds of classes for writers.  

A: I was once just a professor--I taught English at Oberlin College. About 10 years ago I decided I wanted to write for general audiences, and taught myself how to pitch, learn about publications, etc.  I loved doing it! So I left academia and became a freelancer. Then, when the VIDA statistics  came out showing gender disparity in bylines for “literary publications,” I decided to bring my teaching experience to bear on the freelance game, and started these classes in order to help women pitch those publications. Since then, The Thinking Writer has broadened: we now teach 3 different courses--How To Pitch, Writing About Books and Writing and Publishing Op-Eds and Commentaries. These days, I am also the editor of a magazine I started--Belt (beltmag.com) and so I now receive pitches from writers. And boy do they make lots of rookie mistakes! 

If you want to make fewer (or no!) rookie mistakes, be sure to check out classes at The Thinking Writer. And thanks again to Anne for today's Q and A!

Post Round-Up: 10 Posts New Freelancers Should Read

So, it's St. Patrick's Day but I've spent the afternoon working. I'm in the final stages of finishing the galleys of Six-Figure Freelancing: The Writer's Guide to Making More Money, second edition; it goes to print once I approve them. I have to say that the updated version is even better than its predecessor--partly because there's a lot more stuff in it (new chapters on marketing and on writing books, advice about social media, and new advice from successful six-figure freelancers--along with a dozen queries, eight letters of introduction, and five proposals), and partly because I'm just a better writer than I was ten years ago, when I wrote the first edition. I'm not bragging--that's what happens when you do something for years. You get better at it!  

And I will have Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets available in a print edition in the next week or so. Been busy with that, too. In other words, I am swamped with things other than my blog, so I'm hosting another post round-up. And I have a question for my readers: Do you have any great promotion ideas for me as I launch Improvise Press' first two books? I'll be doing some giveaways; writing articles and blog posts for a variety of markets; seeking reviews; and hosting some events for freelancers in coming months. And yes, I will Tweet about it. But I'd love to hear from you! Please let me know. 

Okay, now for our post round-up--10 posts that every new freelancer should read: 

* If you want to write articles for print and online pubs, you have to be able to write a compelling query. 
* The other essential tool in your marketing toolbox? The LOI, or letter of introduction. 
* If you lack experience, you should be pitching the FOB, or front-of-book, section. Here's why.
* Don't be afraid to follow up. In fact, plan on doing it with every pitch. 
* Focus on relationships, not assignments. 
* Worried about interviewing someone? Five tips for better interviews.
* Use the "TK" trick to write faster, or "swim like a shark," as I say. 
* Make your editor love you--it's not that hard. 
* Know the perfect time to pitch an editor. 
* Understand what attributes play a vital role in your freelancing success. 

--Til next time! 

The Best Market for New Freelancers to Pitch (It's Not What you Think)

I'm often asked what the "best" market for a new freelancer to pitch is, or whether I'd recommend certain markets for a writer who's just getting started. Well, there is such a market, but it is dependent on who you are and what your experience and background are. 

In short, the best market (or markets) for a new freelancer is you can write for more than once. 

Here's what I mean--there are two basic ways to go about pitching an idea. One is to come up with an idea first, and then try to find a potential market for it. That’s what I used to recommend for new writers. The second method is to find a market that you want to write for, and then come up with potential ideas for it.

Today, I suggest that writers use the second method. Here’s why. Marketing, especially when you’re a new freelancer, takes a huge amount of time. If you can find a market that you can write for multiple times, you cut your marketing time. It’s much easier to sell an idea to an editor you’ve worked with before than to someone completely new.

I learned this lesson the hard way. I was so focused on coming up with saleable ideas as a new freelancer that I wound up doing a lot of “one-shots,” where I would write about one subject for one market and then move on. So, I wrote one story on a charity car show for The Lion magazine, and then moved on. I wrote a profile for a magazine called Accent on Living, and moved on. I wrote a story for Editor & Publisher, and moved on. I sold a piece to a (now defunct) health website…and moved on.

You’re getting the idea, right? Each of those stories took a lot of time to pitch, plus I had to research and write them afterwards. By never writing for those markets again, I wasted my time.

My career took off when I started to focus on markets that reflected more of my interests. For example, when I started freelancing fulltime, I was planning my wedding. Then, and as a newlywed, I had lots of bridal-related ideas. Well, I didn’t write just one story for Bridal Guide. Because I came up with more ideas, I got more assignments. And then my editor started approaching me to assign ideas she’d come up with for me.

When I sold a piece to For the Bride, another national market, the same thing happened. Yes, I was still pitching, but now I was a known entity to my editor, and she responded more quickly than she would have to a complete stranger—and also reached out to assign ideas she had come up with to me.

  So forget about selling one idea to one market. So start with markets you can write for more than once, and work with the goal of writing for that publication multiple times. That tip alone will make you more efficient (and smarter!) from the start. 

 **What about you, readers? Did you look for markets you could write for more than once as a new freelancer? Or, like me, did you look for an idea first, and then locate an appropriate market for it? 

  For more advice about freelancing, check out my latest book, Writer for Hire: 101 Secrets to Freelance Success. And if you're a new freelancer, stay tuned--I'm going to announce THE book that will take you from unpublished to published and paid!