Autumn Reading #3

Robert Bly is my new friend. Over the past few weeks he's been convincing me to become a professional writer. Bly makes a very clear case that freelance writing is not only possible for those who love to write and are willing to work at it, but that you can be paid quite well if you are working in a lucrative niche market.

The basis for your pay as a freelance writer is: can you save someone enormous amounts of time and bring benefit to their business by selling your writing and research skills to them?

Have you ever

• yawned your way through a professional journal or trade publication?
• trashed your employer newsletter because it is redundant and boring?
• had your eyes glaze over looking at a dry-as-dust annual report?
• read an ad that actually turned you off of a product or brand?
• looked at a web site that shouted out "amateur!" on every click and page view?
• wished that you had some superb printed materials to sell your product or idea?
• read EnRoute magazine in an Air Canada plane and wondered Who pays for this?

Fact is, writers hold the key to solving all of these business problems. A company will pay very well to have their public image shaped positively, and the companies who understand this will hire good writers and pay them well.

How you say something is even more important than what you say. Enter the freelance writer.