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ASJA offers so many opportunities for members to connect with potential clients and with each other, which hopefully lands us all more work. We'll feature member success stories each week. Share your success stories with us! Contact marijke@medhealthwriter.com.
Member Name: Frank Hyman — Durham, North Carolina
Success Story: Cancelled a contract with a small publisher and moved to a new publisher (otherwise might sound like I simply pitched a project to a different publisher, which would not be uncommon)
What happened: There weren't any flat-out disasters, but when the tally of small and mid-size problems early on with my publisher reached eleven (e.g. forgetting to send me a check for $2,500 on signing) I knew things weren't going to get better once the book was published. I threw my problem out to book writers on the forum essentially asking, "How do I cancel a contract without cutting my own throat?"
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Are you blogging but not getting the traction you expected? What are the pros doing that you should be doing, too? What are the current best practices for blogging? Join us for a discussion that will take your blog (or the blog you write for a client) to the next level.
That’s what we’ll talk about in this month’s “Shop Talk” event.
Join us:
Wednesday, May 17, 2017
1 p.m. Eastern
Register now!
About our guest expert:
Debra Eckerling is author of Write On Blogging: 51 Tips to Create, Write, and Promote Your Blog and founder of WriteOnOnline.com, a website and community for writers. A project catalyst, Debra works with individuals and small businesses to strategize, set goals, and manage their projects. To connect with Debra, like Write On Online on Facebook, join the Facebook Group, and follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
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MasterWriter gives you Word Families, a unique reference dictionary that will open up a new world of possibilities for descriptive words, Phrases, Synonyms, Rhymes, Pop-Culture, a searchable Bible, the Definition and more. We recently added Figures of Speech, a new set of dictionaries which gives you instant access to Metaphors, Similes, Onomatopoeia, Idioms, Oxymorons, Allusions, Alliterations and Intensifiers.
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To read more about those elected, please click here.
Whether you can't attend this year, or just want to be sure you don't miss a word of it, now is your chance to order recordings at an amazing price. Recordings are audio-only and can be downloaded as MP3s you can listen to anywhere. There is a significant discount for ordering the recordings BEFORE the Conference so don't wait. Your package is only $175 now ($199 nonmembers) and will be $249 ($299 nonmembers) after the event. Don't miss out!
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Forbes
Every freelancer has missed a client deadline at one time or another. If you haven’t yet, trust me, eventually you will.
But missing a client deadline doesn’t have to be the end of the world, or the end of your relationship with that client. Follow the right steps, and you can make sure your client is happy and appreciative in the end. Here’s how.
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NerdWallet
Alysse Dalessandro doesn’t have a conventional budget. This is in part because she doesn’t have a steady income. The Ohio-based writer is a full-time freelancer. Her situation isn’t unique. Roughly 55 million Americans freelance, and 25 percent report doing so full time, according to a 2016 survey by Upwork and the Freelancers Union. Irregular paychecks make budgeting difficult, but they also make it essential. These tips can help freelancers and contractors create workable spending plans.
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Columbia Journalism Review
Is it “toward” or “towards”?
“Backward” or “backwards”?
“Afterward” or “afterwards”? Conversationally, it doesn’t matter. In journalism, though, every style guide wants you to leave off the “s.” Why? They don’t say.
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The Content Standard by Skyword (commentary)
When I started my freelance career three years ago, the biggest difficulties I encountered were branding myself, attracting clients, and pricing myself to prospects. Nothing in my education or prior work experience had prepared me for these subtle little landmines. It was only by reflecting on my seat-of-the-pants successes and failures that I began to understand what I was getting wrong — and occasionally getting right.
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IJNet
Journalists often turn to scholarly studies and reports to add credibility and depth to their stories. Usually, the practice works well — unless the information is biased or flawed.
There are looming questions: How do media professionals distinguish good data from bad? How do we keep from being taken in by shoddy or self-serving research? What are the red flags?
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Poynter
Old-school censorship and repressive government tactics have combined with technology and social media to create a new and troubling press freedom climate for journalists around the world, according to a new report from the Committee to Protect Journalists.
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The WRITER
In the 2010 documentary "Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work," the late comedy icon showed her biggest fear and, inadvertently, that of most new freelance writers.
Rivers pulls out a giant monthly planner, and turns to an empty page. “If my book ever looked like this,” she says, “it would mean that nobody wants me, that everything I ever tried to do in life didn’t work, nobody cared, and I’ve been totally forgotten.”
The late comedian nailed the existential dread of downtime. The experienced freelancer knows how to capitalize on the unoccupied hours so they yield opportunities, not roadblocks.
Here’s how.
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Journalism.co.uk
Journalists often cite academic research, reports and papers in their reporting to support the facts presented or offer alternative views.
But even when it comes from a reputable source, the information should be verified to avoid citing work that uses flawed analysis, for example, or that is not backed up by sufficient evidence.
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Did You Receive Your Client Connections Appointment List?
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If you registered for Client Connections, you should have received an email from the ASJA office on April 28 listing your meetings. If you did not get it, please get in touch at asjaoffice@asja.org as soon as possible.
By Sandra Gurvis
While solid information about getting ready for Pivot Publish Prosper: ASJA’s 46th Annual Writer’s Conference and other writers’ conferences has been rampant throughout ASJA’s publications and website, I take a holistic approach. Like anyone who’s gone to at least one conference knows, I plan on arriving with a bagful of ideas and a full set of teeth. Also wise: Doing the groundwork of finding the least expensive and most convenient flights, accommodations, airport transportation (from JFK and LGA, leaves to and from Grand Central every half hour, as low as $28 round trip); and hanging out with attendees — usually native or transplanted New Yorkers who have been there a while — who can direct you to the tastiest and most reasonably priced dining and drinking spots.
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Registration For Virtual Client Connections Starts On May 23
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Our next Virtual Client Connections event will be held the week of June 5 and editors from Grist.org, Psychology Today, Men's Health and Stoke Group (agency recruiting for Adobe projects) have already signed up. Check out the Client Connections webpage to learn about each editor and check for new editors. Note that registration for the June VCC will be first-come, first-serve instead of a lottery. Be sure to read the VCC FAQ’s for detailed information on the process.
The first-come, first-serve registration for the April mini-VCC will open on Tuesday, May 23 at 2 p.m. Eastern and the link for the registration will be posted on the VCC website when it is live. Please note that you can only sign up for one editor the first 24 hours of registration. If an editor’s spots are filled up, Waiting List Only will be added to their name in the registration dropdown box. On Wednesday, May 24 at 2 pm Eastern (after the registration has been open 24 hours to give all members a chance to sign up for one editor), members can sign up for additional appointments with editors that still have open appointments. Since you do not need a password to sign up through the Google Form, members who are unable to be online at this time can have a friend or family member sign up for them.
Note that you cannot sign up for a specific time due to the increased volunteer effort this would require. However, if you are assigned to a time that you are unable to meet, we will do our best to find another member to switch with you.
If you have any questions or concerns, please email JenniferGregory@nc.rr.com.
The newest, busiest topics in our members-only online forums Compiled by Mark Obbie, Forum Chair
Avoid The Spam Filter
When sending a letter of introduction, attaching a resume might doom your message to the editor’s spam folder. So here are tips on flashing your bio in different ways. (Join the conversation)
Editors Who Make Copy Worse
Which forms of bad editing are worth protesting? And what’s the best way to do that? Members share horror stories, from grammar flubs to missing a story’s whole point. (Join the conversation)
LinkedIn’s Seminar-For-Upgrade Deal
In advance of the next online seminar provided by the LinkedIn For Journalists group, ASJA members talk about the troubles they’ve had lately in meeting LinkedIn’s evolving standards. (Join the conversation)
Annual Conference Plans
In the run-up to the ASJA Annual Conference, use the forums (starting with the conference’s own forum) to get a head start on your networking. Members are arranging room shares and social gatherings while sharing tips on making the most of meetings with editors and agents.
Jobs, Jobs, Jobs: The latest posts seek writers on real estate, travel, camping, and many more. When you see freelance work opportunities, please share them in this forum — it’s a group effort.
Log in daily to see the latest discussions and check out tips on making the most of the forums. Remember, you must log in to the forums in addition to logging in to the members-only side of the ASJA website.
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The American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) does not endorse any company, product, or service sold by any corporation, institution or member supporting our organization. Corporate partnerships, advertisers and sponsors are not an endorsement of a product or service and may not be represented as such, in any way. The use of the ASJA name and/or logo, or representation of such, without the written consent of ASJA, is strictly prohibited.
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