Freelance Writer Series-Interview With Paul Lima

As a freelance writer myself, I get asked question often and I thought why don't I just start posting some info on here? So this is the first post in the series and I hope that you find it useful.
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Paul Lima is a business writer, who has been writing for 25 years. Here is my interview with him.

MVR:Tell us about your self and career?

Lima:I've been a professional writer for over 25 years and a freelance writer and
writing trainer for about 15 years. I voluntarily chose to become a
freelancer - in other words, I was not downsized!

MVR:What made you decide to go into freelance writing?

Lima:I am an English major but while in college, I wrote some articles for my
university newspaper. I thought about going into journalism, but the allure
(and money) of copywriting called to me. After working in advertising and
marketing for a decade, I decided to try my hand a journalism. I left my
job, hung out my "freelance writer shingle" and started to land gigs. I also
did a little training to supplement my writing income. I earned the bulk of
my income writing for newspapers and magazines for about a decade, but my
freelance career evolved. I still write for a few periodicals, but I also do
corporate writing and conduct business writing seminars for corporate
clients. In addition, I've written several books on the business of
freelance writing, creative writing and writing promotional copy. I find I
really enjoy the mix.

MVR:How did you get your start in it?

Lima:I started writing for community newspapers at 10-cents per word. The first
two years were a struggle; I had been used to a steady pay check. However, I
worked on developing article ideas and pitched better paying publications,
and my writing business grew. To succeed in this business, you have to have
desire - you have to want to do it. You also have to dedicate time to
developing ideas, pitching, following up or, if you want to do corporate
writing, to pitching your services to potential clients. And you have to
dedicate your time in a disciplined manner. If you give up after a couple of
weeks or a couple of months, you will have difficulty making it. This is
true of any small business.

MVR:What do you know now about freelance writing, that you wished you knew
when you started?

Lima:I wish I knew that freelance writing was a business. Like most businesses,
you have to determine what it is you are selling and you have to figure out
who you should be selling it to. Then you have to market yourself and your
services or article ideas. In other words, you can declare yourself a
freelance and hope manna falls from the heavens, or you can declare yourself
a freelance and work at making your own bread.

MVR:Any tips for people just starting their freelance careers?

Lima:Start with a business vision. Who are you? What do you do, what types of
article or writing services do you sell? Who do you sell it to? Why do you
want to do this? When and where do you do it? (I like to work from home,
and I take December off to work on my books, so I would not accept a
contract that required me to commute to work every day, and I don't do much
marketing in November because I want to do my own thing in December.) You
need to sort all that out before you can start to think of the how, as in
"how do I make this happen?" So business vision first; marketing plan second
-- to make your vision real.

MVR:Any thing you want to add?(you can use this one to advertise or whatever
you'd like)

Lima:My breakthrough came after I took a freelance writing continuing education
course. I thought the course would focus on writing. It did, in part, but it
also paid a lot of attention to the business side of freelancing. Since
then, I have been a firm believer in professional development. I've taught
workshops on freelance writing, written several books, conduct e-courses for
aspiring writers, and write a blog on the business of freelance writing
(www.paullima.com/blog). It is so important to create a firm foundation of
knowledge before you build your business, so if you are getting started
learn about the business you are venturing into. Knowledge can really reduce
the learning curve.

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You can contact him at his site PaulLima.com

Why You Need Online Reputation Management

Any site owner, writer or online business owner knows that your reputation is everything! Without it, you'd be lost and have no customers. So if somebody went out of their way to ruin your reputation online, what is one supposed to do then? You go to a Online Reputation Management company.

They go above and beyond their call of duty to bring your business back from the brink of death. Using a company to help your Online Reputation, can help your business grow and stay standing in a good reputation, even after they clean your reputation up after it's been damaged. They work with their clients and make sure that each client gets the best service they can get.

Do not wait to get your reputation cleaned up, you should look intoReputation Management right away. The quicker it gets cleaned up, the better. You can save your business, if you get to it quickly enough.

Computer Users Deaths Leave Friends In Dark/Contest

This should be no shocker, when people die they leave their online friends in the dark.

Yahoo has an article about it, you can view it here.

One man even left his son a usb drive with his online contacts to notify them, once he passed on. How creepy! They even have sites that are made for that exact purpose.

How do you feel about this? I find that creepy, but I do see the need for it. Would you spend money on a service that would tell all of your online buddies?

By the way, the Channelgoods contest will end this tuesday, so be sure that you enter.

Pimp Your IPhone For Free/ChannelGoods.com Giveaway

I am the new Gadget writer/blogger for ChannelGoods.com(awesome site, I highly recommend checking it out) and being the new writer, I was able to talk to the owners into doing a contest for my fans and readers.

What is the prize? Three(3) lucky winners each will win one(1)Silver Pane Pattern IPhone sticker/decal. Thats right, 3 winners!

*note:These only fits the older model, not the 3G model. So please keep that in mind!

Here are the rules and disclaimer

1:All ages and countries can enter.
2:You agree by entering that you will recive marketing newsletter from ChannelGoods.com
3:This contest ends March 17 2009 at 12:00 pm EST.


Simple enough, right?

You can enter here.

Good luck and be sure to spread the word around!

It's More Than Just An Mp3 Player!-A Review Of The Coby MP200-1G MP3 Player

This one is pretty nifty if I have to say so myself! This Coby flash mp3 player has a built in USB drive(no need for those pesky cords that get tangled and lost-thats my kind of an mp3 players ;), and has up to 1 GB(you can also get a 2 GB one) of storage(it will depend on each model though and for of those of you who don't get tech talk, thats equals to one million bytes). It can store data and mp3/wma files(meaning it plays those mp3s/wma files). Though it has no LCD screen, it is super mobile and handy to charge.

Here are the specs for my friends ;)

Color: Black: 1G, 2G
Memory Capacity: 1GB, 2GB
Media Support: Integrated Flash
Format Support: Audio: MP3, WMA
OS Support: Windows Vista/XP/2000
Audio Output: 3.5mm Headphone
PC Interface: USB 2.0 Hi-Speed
Power: 1 x "AAA" Battery
Battery Life: Audio Play Time: 8hr
Unit Dimension (WHD): 3.58" x 1.1" x 0.75"
Package Dimension (WHD): 5.5" x 8" x 1.75"
Carton (inner, master): 1, 10
UPC: 1G BLK: 7 16829 72003 5; 2G BLK: 7 16829 72004 2
Certifications: FCC, CE


So as you can tell for its price which is $13.94, it is very useful and works like a charm. It's great for those of you who do not need a lot of tech trouble or for kids who are just dying for an mp3 player.

You can buy it here for $13.94.

A Kingdom Of Sims

We all know that EA is famous and doing well thanks to its games from the Sims series. So when MySims came out for the DS, myself being a huge Sims fan I just had to have it! So I bought it and played it, and I enjoyed it. It may not be exactly like the Sims you play on the computer, but I still enjoyed it.

So MySims must of been a hit, because it has had follow up games, and one is the fairly new released MySims Kingdom!

On MySims Kingdome, you must help King Roland who is in dire need of help for his Kingdom, and it's up to you to help him! You will run into some of your old pals that you know from the previous games and meet new quirky characters that you will adore or hate. You will roam new lands, have harder challenges and even build devices during your quest.

And yes, like with the first MySims you can also make your self look however you want, after all it wouldn't be Sims without it!



Some of the new and old characters you'll meet are-
Chazz McFreely-he's a little extreme, but hey if you want to be a legend sometimes you have to be extreme!
Marlon-He isn't up to his best Magic there for pops up and disappears often.
Leaf-A rocker wannabe who happens to also be an elf!
Buddy-Not bright, but is loyal
King Roland-Kind of the casle he is, and make sure he has plenty of cupcakes
Chef Gino-Mr. Gossip is back!
and many more characters also.

You can buy MySims Kingdom DS for $19.99 and MySims Kingdom WII for $27.99

Apple Never Learns

Tsk tsk, Apple! You want to compete with the likes of Dell, Compaq HP, Acer ect. But you just don't seem to realize that even they have cheaper computers than you still!

Did ya hear? Apple is "lowering" their price for the new Mac Minis. Indeed, so they say. They are selling their new version of the Man Mini staring at a shocking $600.00(for the starter) and $200.00 or more for a fancier version of it.

Hmm, so let me get this right Steve Jobs-you expect me to buy a $600.00 tiny computer tower-minus the screen/keyboard/mouse ect and do so smiling? When I can get a total desktop or a laptop computer for that much or less? Hahaha! Get real Mr. Jobs!

I think they must be hurting and will still be hurting unless they take a good look at who their competitors are!

Would you spend that much on just the tower?