Filmmaker R. J. Cutler discussing his reservations while shooting the upcoming film The September Issue. The quote is speaking to Cutler’s thought process involving a hard-to-convince Vogue editor to appear in his film.
“The rule I was taught by D. A. Pennebaker is that you’re going to miss 80 percent of what you want, but when you’re making the film it feels like you’re missing 98 percent.”
Categories: Advice
What have you deemed impossible and thus holding back from?
“Some of the world’s greatest feats were accomplished by people not smart enought to know they were impossible.” ~ Doug Larson
“Never tell a young person that something can not be done. God may have been waiting for centuries for somebody ignorant enough of the impossible to do that thing.” ~ Dr. J. A. Holmes
“Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.” ~ Saint Francis of Assisi
“Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done.” ~ Justice Louis Dembitz Brandeis
I get about seven to ten emails a week from writers looking for advice on how to start out a freelancing career. Most of the letters are well thought out, show they have read my work, and display a passion for writing beyond just a byline. My goal is to answer everyone with at least a short response within 48 hours, and if their letter requires a more detailed response within two weeks.
After writing a few hundred people back I thought it would be good to put some of the advice in a blog post. As I always tell the folks who email me, take my words of advice as just another person’s opinions. I can’t stand on my soapbox and tell you they will work every time, but I can tell you it’s what has worked for me and it possibly might just work for you.
* Read: I can’t stress this enough. Read every day. Make sure to read multiple mediums — books, newspapers, magazines, online, blogs, etc. — and take notes on things you like and things you don’t. When reading also make sure to look at how the medium displays the text and how an online article reads differently from say a New Yorker feature. When pitching publications it is imperative to understand how they chose to communicate with their readers. This might sound obvious at first, but editors complain all the time about the lack of freelancers who take the time to really understand the publication they are pitching. One tip is to look at the publications media guide for advertisers and look at their readership demographics. If you are pitching say Woman’s Adventure, it would be good to incorporate in your pitch the article supports the fact women make up 80% of all travel decisions for families. This not only displays that you know the publication, but it proves to the editor that the article you are pitching will enhance their readers’ lives in some way.
* Pick up the phone and ask questions. The first thing I did when I wanted to be a travel writer was email just about every writer and editor who wrote for my favorite publications. I would send them a note asking for advice, thoughts on how to break into the industry, and any contacts they could introduce me to. The feedback was overwhelming. One writer, Kate Siber out of Durango, Colorado, recently passed my name along to an editor who previously didn’t return my emails. I hadn’t talked with Kate for nearly a year and was glad I took the time to approach her the right way. There is a catch however, and it comes with taking the time to research the writer/editor and knowing what to ask without wasting their time. Make sure to know how they can provide value to you and what questions to ask in order to get the information you need. Simply saying, “Hi so and so, I’m a new writer looking to get into magazines and was wondering if you had any advice?” Will make you look like an idiot. For some great advice on how to contact a senior-level writer check out this post by Todd Defren who owns one of the most forward-thinking PR firms.
* Write down a list of goals and post them on your bathroom mirror. The list should include goals that could take years and goals that could be met in a week. Getting into the New York Times is hard, and though it can happen fast for some, it’s the little steps that lead to a big byline. Make sure to map out your path and reward yourself when you reach important milestones. In the freelance world there is no performance interviews with bosses, just yourself.
* Listen to what industry leaders are saying, but don’t let it make you become negative. I subscribe to Media Bistro’s daily morning newsletter and each day I start off with a sobering dose of reality: magazines are getting shut down, newspapers are disappearing, senior editors are jobless, the Internet is going to ruin us all. The news is discouraging and constantly makes any freelance writer question their decision to write. But it is also empowering. It shows that an industry so familiar with itself just a few years ago is broken and confused. There is unlimited opportunity right now for freelance writers; it just might not come with a huge paycheck or standard byline. So before reading all the negative news remind yourself: first there was word of mouth, then paper, then the printing press, then radio, then TV, and now the Internet and you know what? People are still writing and telling stories.
* Take a business class and understand what ROI, clickthrough, CPM, and unique visitor mean. Pitching an editor now requires some business understanding of how the industry works, and by setting yourself up to understand the back end of writing, you will be more successful in determining where to allocate your time. This does not mean you have to take advertising classes and cross over to the “dark side,” as editors may say, but it is important to understand what a publisher is thinking when deciding how much money to spend on an average issue or website.
Finally the most important thing you can do is write. Write every day. Write when you don’t want to. Write about things you like and things you hate. And when you’re done writing remember to listen. Because once you write everyday you will need something to write about and listening is an art too many people have forgot. And listening is truly the key to success in any business.
Good luck and remember we are all in this together. Yes freelancing is competitive and tough to get these days, but that does not mean taking the time to help one another is wasting your time or taking opportunity away. It is building relationships, advancing the industry, and ultimately will pay off tenfold.
Categories: Advice · Journalism · Writing
Every once in a while I run across something so inspiring I can’t help but share it with everyone I know. I first saw Louis C.K.’s now famous “Everything’s Amazing,” clip last year when a friend emailed it to me. I was going through a rough time — a dream job didn’t work out, my bank account was at zero, my motivation was non-existent — and he thought this would put some things into perspective. Boy was he right.
It’s hard to remember the small things in this world sometimes. Like the fact that we take for granted things once deemed impossible. Just think about how idiotic you would’ve sounded if 200-years-ago you told the world population their great great great grandchildren would be able to speak to anyone within seconds, regardless of their geographic location. Or that traveling around the world could be done in less than a day and without breaking a sweat. You’d be tarred and feathered and labeled a lunatic.
So take a few minutes and check out this clip. YouTube took down the original video, but this site here has it. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Enjoy.
When I told my ninth grade teacher I wanted to be a writer she advised me to write what I knew about and to write every day. She even gave me a journal and asked me to fill it up by the end of the school year. I started out strong, but soon found myself skipping a few days here and there, and before I knew it, I was going an entire month without penning one wordd. At the end of the year she asked to see my journal and I was embarrassed. I had failed miserably.
Now 13 years later I’m still struggling to follow her advice. I try to write every day, but sometimes I get busy and push my writing aside. If you are a budding writer or a seasoned author take a second and check out this clip from John Grisham on writing. The advice is priceless, even if you have heard it a thousand times.
- Thanks to APhotoEditor
Lately I have been seeing quite a few over-priced seminars and conferences about how any average Joe going on vacation can sell their story and not only become published, but be reimbursed for their trip. This is utterly ridiculous. Writing travel prose is not just rehashing a trip to Hawaii or talking about the crazy Britt you ran into while staying on the bottom bunk of a hostel in Italy. And it’s definitely not about just getting a free vacation. Nope. Nada. Don’t get scammed. It’s way harder than it looks and many times after just a short period of being rejected by publications people give up. Trust me, I see it every day. So save your money and buy a few more margaritas. At least that way only your stomach will reject you the next morning.
Categories: Advice
On the day when a good friend wrote a post on making it happen and the pain one must endure, the New York Times published a solid article on the benefits of having a personal trainer. The story highlights the key reasons why trainers are a necessary component when looking to get faster, but also briefly mentions the emotional tenacity an individual must have when looking to push their personal boundaries. Whether you’re an athlete or not the articles is worth a quick read. And who knows maybe it will inspire you to go out and tackle something you once thought impossible.
Categories: Advice
Write it down. Post it somewhere. Don’t forget it.
“When you blame others, you give up your power to change.” ~ Robert Anthony
I went running yesterday with an amazing woman. Not only did she bring her four-legged friend who might as well have run the doors off me, but she also pushed me in more ways than one. Our conversation was deep—life, goals, passions, why our calves hurt—but never became too heavy. As we ran next to Boulder Creek, twilight seeping into the canyon and pink clouds wafting overhead, she said some that shook me: “So why don’t you just do it?” It was the same thing I ask people every day. And then I did exactly what I say NOT to do and stumbled out excuses justifying my slothfulness. “I guess I don’t get it,” she said back. And then it hit me. She’s right. I should just do it.
It has been just shy of eight months since I started freelancing after my internship with Backpacker Magazine and I’d like to think I’ve come to learn a few things. They are as follows:
