It’s November, which means that if you’re a fiction writer, it’s National Novel Writing Month for you. Given that the month is well underway, you may or may not be happy with your progress. And that’s the problem with NaNoWriMo.…

Take a NumberAfter a small pause to let you all settle into your SMART freelancing techniques, Elizabeth Fayle is here to give you the next key to rockin’ out your freelance biz. If you’ve missed the series to date, …

When people out of the blue get in touch with me and offer a guest post, I usually approach the situation with skepticism. It’s like dating – don’t make a move for a home run when we haven’t even gotten …

Most customer experiences you’ll have are fairly average. Not great, not horrible, just somewhere in the middle. Very often, that average experience occurs because the grand majority of people in customer service positions don’t have the training they need to…

Today’s post comes to us from an international authority in copywriting and peer of mine that I respect highly, Dean Rieck of Direct Creative and …

This is going to be a hard post for some writers to read. There are the exclamation-point addicts out there, you see. They’re the writers who feel they really can’t put across the excitement, immediacy, or sincerity without that little…

If you’re one of those people who writes articles, ebooks or website copy for a living in order to make enough money to do the other kind of writing – yes, we mean fiction writing – then this week’s special…

Welcome to the fourth installment in our Freelancing SMART series written by Elizabeth Fayle. If you missed the first three posts, you can find them here: The Grand Introduction, Step One: Being Specific, and Step Two: Getting Measurable Up for …

I recently wrote about how and why arTEESTes piss me off, and I used the example of an average guy I called Joe, who doesn’t really know why one copywriter or web designer should be worth more than another. He…

“Ow.” He picked his foot up and grimaced. “Ow-… Look, this is not good. Never again, man. Ow.” “Quit complaining.” James lifted his feet and placed them carefully on the gravel, wincing a bit. “It’s job hazards. Gotta do what…

Measure Your WorthWe’ve been pleased to see so many freelancers enjoying our series on working SMARTer. Welcome to the third installment, written by Elizabeth Fayle. She’s whipping us back into shape – but you get lucky. All you need …

James squinted at the figure on the tiny video screen. The man seemed confused, wandering at the side of the building for a minute before staring straight up into the closed-circuit camera that watched his every move. He put one…

There’s a debate online (and probably offline too) that divides writers, designers and more into two camps: those who consider their work a trade, and those who consider their work an art form. Now, for those of you who know…

And she’s back, folks! Please welcome Elizabeth Fayle. Not long ago, I wrote about the concept of freelancing the SMART way: • Specific • Measurable • Agreed Upon • Realistic • Time-based You can read more on that introduction to…

In the past few weeks, I’ve been discussing the blogging community, how it’s being misused and abused, and how those who don’t abuse it have become my community. Then I realized that a lot of people out there seem not…

This is a story about some guy – just a guy like anyone – who decided to start a blog. The next thing he knew…well. I’ll let him tell you about it. Please welcome Josh Hanagarne, the World’s Strongest Librarian.…

Smart FreelancingWhen graceful Elizabeth Fayle and I (and her partner Marc) shared a bottle of Chardonnay one day, little did I know that within one week, I’d hire her as my consultant. Hey – if she’s good enough for …

Today’s guest post is from Larry Brooks, the bestselling novelist talking novel over at Storyfix. We hope you enjoy his next installment in his guest series for fiction writers. For an extra boost of fiction advice and tips, check out …

Last week, I wrote about deadbeats in the community. I even swore. In English. It was great. I didn’t really mean it. Well, I did mean some of it, like the part where I say screw the deadbeats who use…

Community is a word you’ll hear all over the internet. You’re part of a community on Twitter. Blog networks are a community. Your blog’s comment section is a community. The whole blogosphere is a community. You’ll also hear that you…

Finding ways to help your readers understand your ideas and concepts isn’t always easy – but there are two writer tricks that you can use to get that “a-ha!” from your crowd: analogies and metaphors. Now, we’ve covered analogies before.…

I once heard someone say that a name is the only gift you give a child that lasts forever. The reminder that you really should choose your children’s names wisely (of course) followed that touching thought. My kids have good…

A lively, thriving comment section is a hallmark feature of a good blog. But way too many blog owners treat comments like prizes. The more they collect, the better. They don’t respond to each person. They often don’t respond to…

The taste of dust in my mouth. The smell of cows in the air. The sound of buzzers, bells and staccato gunfire ringing in my ears. Loud screams… Yes, folks, the local fair has been in town. For a few…

“I am never doing this again,” James hissed, exaggerating his tip-toeing just in case a floorboard creaked and set off the noise again. “You volunteered,” Harry said from the sofa where he’d been leafing through a magazine. “SHHH!!!” The waving…

Harry pushed back the yellow construction helmet and tucked the clipboard under one arm. He squinted against the sun at the brand-new building. All around him, heavy machinery whirred. Off in the distance, he could see James trying to wheedle…

Before you read, we’d like to let you know that this post is littered with links. Some go to other posts of value, and most go to Amazon. No, we’re not trying to be sleazy. We’re recommending books we think…

I have a secret. I cheat. A few years ago, I decided to become a freelancer. With a strong business background and plenty of skills, expertise and knowledge, I had exactly what it takes to make it. But I didn’t…

We’re huge proponents of working smarter, not harder. We want to build a business with a solid foundation for growth and keep on growing it. We also try to model these beliefs by testing theories and applying them to reach…

I admire Stephen King’s work. It may be arrogant of me to say that I think his writing is rather terrible, if you look at the pure sentence structure, grammar and all that jazz, but arrogance aside, none of that…

It’s rare that we do a book review here at Men with Pens, but today you’re in for a treat. After my recent shopping spree, I discovered an invaluable book for business. I’ve read it cover to cover, I recommend…