Starting a Freelance Writing Career (or Thoughts About Taking the Plunge)Written by Michele R. Acosta
Nike's ad has taken on new meaning for me of late; "Just do it!" runs through my mind like a mantra. Although my dreams have nothing to do with athletic shoes and little to do with athletics (unless you count long list of ideas I have developed which revolve around my sons and their activities), I have spent a long time avoiding one thing I've always wanted to do - write.Writing has actually been a part of my work life for a very long time. I've written and edited in business world. I've taught writing to high school students. I've written countless lesson plans, activities, etc. I have never tried to get any of my work published, until now. Making decision to write for a living was actually one of most difficult obstacles I needed to overcome. ("Overcome" is probably too strong. I am still scared to death that I won't be able to pay my mortgage.) I never doubted my ability to write, but I did doubt my ability to write for a living. My former employer helped me make decision by firing me. (They actually called it a reduction in force, or RIF for short.) After avoiding application process for weeks, then staring at an online application for close to an hour, I finally had to come to terms with myself and my goals for future. While I love teaching, I am tired of politics that accompany teaching. I can't face it any more. I need to pay my bills and be financially responsible, but part of raising my children involves being a role model. I don't want them to be afraid to take a risk that could help them realize their dreams because they watched their mother play it safe. Having said that, I must admit that my new found bravery faltered when I wrote two checks totaling $1100.00 for two children to play travel soccer next year. Nevertheless, I developed a game face and hid my fears from everyone. I even fooled myself for a while. As school year ended, my colleagues began asking me about my plans for fall. I answered - with confidence that I only partially felt - that I planned to write. After repeating this statement to tenth person, I began to feel somewhat guilty. After all, I was making it sound as if it were a done deal, when I really had barely started. I had a bunch of "how to" articles stacked in my home office that were conflicting and sometimes confusing. I had not even read some of articles yet.
| | Check Your English Grammar With This Easy TechniqueWritten by Heris Yunora
As an International language, English has been used widely in online world. Whether you use it to write a sales letter, a follow up, ads headline, an article, and so on, you need to use it correctly. Now, by using search engine (Google, etc), you can check: -typing error. -grammatical structure. This sort of tutorial is intended for you who have some basics in English. For first example, if you want to check whether right word is "below" or "bellow", just type word in search box. Here are steps: 1.Type word "below" in search box and click "Search". 2.When search result appears, click a website that uses word to make sure that website use it correctly. 3.Notice search result. 4.Now, type word "bellow" in search box and click "Search". 5.Repeat step 2 and 3 for word "bellow". Here are signals whether word is right or wrong: -The search result shows a list of websites that use word. In other word, if word is wrong, search result will show nothing. -If you find that both words have search results, notice number of websites that appear and compare both words. Usually, right word has more search results.
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