Kudos, Meg. I'm a huge fan of pitching too. I try to convince my students that it's 100% worth spending 30 minutes on a pitch, rather than sending out 20 copy-and-past emails. Here's what convinced me on the value of pitching: people remember a pitch. They may not respond instantly, but sooner or later they get in touch. One client contacted me 5 years after I pitched him. He'd started a new company. Not only did he send me dozens of projects, he recommended me to his customers...

Can you still make money blogging for businesses? Yes, you can. My best tip: be enthusiastic. People want to work with people who not only enjoy what they do but who also care. I created my first blogs in 2000. By 2004, companies finally caught on to the internet, and…

Have you wondered about writing ebooks as a profitable way to make an income? Self-publishing is still the perfect home business. You don’t need big money to get started, and you can write in your spare time or full-time. …

I teach writing, so I chat with writers every day. We explore ideas for their writing, for marketing, and for making a full-time income. The biggest challenge for my students? Over-thinking. They read writing advice, then attempt to follow the “rules.” Some rules such as the rules of grammar, are…

Today, self-publishing is big business. Wondering how many books Amazon has on its Kindle store? An estimate: 48.5 million. Amazon stopped making figures available several years ago, but it’s estimated that around a million new ebooks are published on the Kindle Store each year. …

Are you freelancing? Perhaps you’re a freelance writer or a designer. It can be a precarious life. Getting gigs takes time, and even if you have a full pipeline, clients can cancel at any time. This happened to one of my students, a writer. Her biggest client told her he…

“Does writing on Medium help writers?” Whenever I’m asked this question, I respond: “It depends. What do you want to achieve?” If you’re unfamiliar with Medium, the publishing platform was developed by Evan Williams (co-founder of Blogger and Twitter) in 2012. The platform has gone through many changes, but it’s…

You’re writing fiction, but you’re not making sales. When I advise fiction authors, I often suggest that they return to basics. This might mean marketing basics: Revise the book’s title, so that it appeals to readers in the genre. Redo the blurb to tease readers, and arouse their curiosity. Check…

Does social media marketing (SMM) make sense for anyone with a creative business? Recently, a successful freelance writer told me that as far as she can tell, she’s never made money from social media. She gets clients via word of mouth, and emailing prospects. …