The Renegade Writer Blog

It’s been a bit since I posted here about my more-than-fabulous RW makeover, and (I think) for good reason: instead of just reviewing books, I’m writing one.
Okay, so I’m not penning the great American novel or even a fun pop-culture non-fiction title. I’m writing a travel guide book (about a place by the sea, hence [...]

Kris writes: “I started out being a good query girl until I read The Renegade Writer. I made sure that I didn’t query the big publications until I had some local and regional experience and followed all the standard rules. I have been published in a few trade journals, local magazines, regional newspapers and I [...]

Karen asked two questions:
“How can I conquer my fear of sending simultaneous submissions? I have absorbed so many of those ominous ‘exclusive consideration’ warnings from editors over the years, I find myself paralyzed each week on Query Submission Day. I’ve managed to send one query to as many as three pubs at a time, but [...]

He was a good kitty. [lf]
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Linda and I were just gossiping reminiscing over the telephone about our earlier efforts at query letter writing. Linda remembered one of her first queries to Family Circle: “Kwik Dri Cheez: Why Advertisers Can’t Spell” which was about the psychology behind product labeling. The surprising thing is that even after that cringe-worthy query, Linda later [...]

David Allen is the author of Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity (Penguin, 2002) and Ready for Anything: 52 Productivity Principles for Work and Life (Viking Adult, 2003). These books have changed the way I juggle all the tasks of being a freelance writer — and a busy person — from research to [...]

In January, I announced that I was experimenting with a new way to run my eight-week e-course on getting published in magazines: instead of announcing a set start date, I would allow students to sign up and take the course any time they liked (thanks to the wonders of my new autoresponder).
Well, I’m going back [...]

Toddie writes: “Oh goddesses of the freelance world: [Nice! -Linda]
In a number of the reference books I’ve read regarding breaking into freelance writing and/or freelance copywriting, the authors give advice of joining writers’ groups to get an idea of what people charge. I already have the reference article from Writers’ Market entitled ‘How Much Should [...]

Kristen Fisher is the author of Creatively Self-Employed: How Writers and Artists Deal with Career Ups and Downs. [lf]
Why did you self-publish Creatively Self-Employed, and what did you learn about creative freelancing from the process?
I published this book because I’ve always dreamed of being an author and this was a topic I knew about. I [...]

We just wanted to remind everyone about our new Renegade Writer e-Books store, where we offer e-books about freelancing. The books available there so far are:
Editors Unleashed: Magazine editors growl about their writer peeves: For this e-book, Linda interviewed ten (anonymous) editors of national and trade magazines about what writers do that ticks them off. [...]