Get paid to learn

Tuesdays with Tiffany
by Tiffany Colter

One great thing about being a writer is there are so many opportunities for you to be paid to learn skills that will build your marketability.

Even if you don't make much money [or if you do it as a volunteer] these are still skills that will serve you well as you grow and develop as a writer. I'm going to point out three today. Take some time to research these areas and see how you can build your writing business while helping others.

Short articles
Many people know that they can donate articles to the church newsletter or to the small gardening group they participate in, but have you looked in to the free local papers that are available at businesses and the library? Contact these editors and see if they have need of freelancers. Then include your blog/website in your bio at the end of the article.

Newsletters
Putting together a newsletter can do a great deal to build your readership when you speak at events or even distributing an e-newsletter periodically. If you can find a small business who wants to hire you to do these for them then you can practice and build your skills by working on someone else's publications. Get paid to learn. [It should go without saying that you still want to produce high quality work.]

blogs
Blogs are a great way to build readership but many people don't have the time or don't have the skills to write an engaging blog. If this is something you can do then get paid ghostwriting blogs. While you may not get bylines on these kinds of blogs, they will be a source of revenue for you.

So start thinking of things you'd like to do in your business plan, then look for ways you can be paid [in cash or exposure] to develop those skills. That is called working smarter rather than harder.

Tiffany Colter is a writer, speaker and writing career coach who works with beginner to published writers. She can be reached through her website at www.WritingCareerCoach.com
Learn more about Tiffany's Marketing techniques on her main blog.
Read Tiffany's award winning manuscript "A Face in the Shadow" on her fiction blog.