Kyle: sure 

Jerri: Alrighty then. This is going to be a moderated/protocol chat. If you'd like to ask a question post ? and I'll call on you in the order your questions come in. 

Em: Hello everyone 

Jerri: If you'd like to make a comment send ! and same goes for calling on you. 

Jerri: Kyle would you like to give us a little itroduction about who you are and what you do? 

Jerri: Hi em! 

Kyle: Well, I'm a freelance writer, like you all, and I focus on Internet publications 

Kyle: I haven't been doing this very long, bt so far its been pretty lucrative for me 

Jerri: And you have a newsletter for freelancers, too. Can you give us a quick description of that? 

Jerri: Hi Mary & Michelle. We're under protocol. Please post ? or ! to ask a wuestion or make a comment. 

Kyle: It's very new, just a couple of weeks old, but it's goinbg great so far! It focus on issues importnat to web writers, advice articles and online jobs 

Anna: ? 

Kyle: I spent so much time looking for online only jobs taht I decided to make teh information available to otgers 

Kyle: excure my typos please! 

Jerri: lol! Anna go ahead 

Kate: =o) 

Anna: Hi Kyle. I was wondering if you can share with us how you started looking for markets and how you've narrowed your searches for paying markets? 

Kyle: I spent A LOT of time searching ezines and websites for writers; there really aren't any lists out there that contain only paying job markets so I have done a lot of searching 

Kim: ? 

Kyle: I also subscribe to many newsletters as well as simply emailing publications about their guidelines 

Anna: ! 

Jerri: Anna, go ahead. (I'll get you in just a second, Kim.) Anna: Thank you Kyle. It is what I do as well. :-)
Researching is a long and hard job. 

Jerri: Kim, you can ask your question now. 

Kyle: Yes, it is, and I want to make it easier for other so you can spend more time writing and less time searching for jobs 

Kim: Hi Kyle, thanks for sharing your wisdom with us today. When you refer to paying markets, do you mean ezines that take articles, or are you generating copy for web sites? A combination of both? 

Kyle: Both. I started out doing website content, which is great because so many websites change content daily or weekly but now i"m egtting more into ezines 

Kim: ? 

Jerri: Kyle, which seems to be more lucrative, content or zines? 

Kyle: They both are pretty much the same and it just depends on the publication. So far for me websites have been more lucrative, but ezines that have been around for awhile pay pretty well too 

Jerri: Thanks. Go ahead Kim. 

Kim: How much do you know about a company or product or whatever before you start writing their content? 

Kyle: I always check out the site or ezine and if I have a good feeling with it, and from the editor, I go ahead and write. Gut instinct is really important, and so is researching the publication to see how long tehy've been around. I've gotten a lot of good information about publications from writer's groups 

Kyle: I've walked away from a site before whose editor was vague about payment issues Elizabeth . 

Jerri: Kyle how do you avoid scams? 

Kyle: And now I find out they haven't paid their writers 

Kyle: Research and networking 

Jerri: Could you explain that a little more? 

Kyle: If a lot of time will be invested I always research the company and ask other writers if they'v ever dealt with them 

Kyle: I had a book deal once with a compant who had never published before and didn't pay until publication. I was leary of working for them and walked away 

Jerri: Do you have any tips on finding other writers that have worked with a company you might be interested in working with? 

Kyle: there are lists out tehre on some writers websites about bad publications. I think (link no longer available) has one 

Kyle: And I beling to a lot of writers lists and newsletters so word gets around quickly if a publication doesn't pay or pays late 

Kyle: www.Absolutewrite.com , sorry 

Jerri: Will you share with us your favorite writers sites and newsletters? 

Kyle: Also, the Freelance Editorial Assoc. has a newsletters for members taht lists problems with publicatiosn 

Kyle: Ummm.....tehre are a lot of them! I check up on freelancewriting.com alot, Inscriptions, Inkspot... 

Kate: ? 

Kyle: www.Absolutewrite.com , writers; digest, writer online 

tigger: :-) 

Jerri: go ahead Kate. 

Kate: Thanks for joining us, Kyle. Do you find that editors on line give new freelancers a shot easily or do you need to start small as in the publishing world? 

Kyle: Start=ups are a lot more willing to give new writers a chance, and I hate to say this, but your work doesn't always have to be first rate 

Kate: lol 

mweidler:? 

Kate: ! 

Kyle: But I have found that a lot of publications that have been around longer are very nice to newcomers, genarlly pay more, and except top-notch work 

Jerri: Go ahead Kate 

mweidler: ? 

Jerri: Mary you're next. 

Kate: Is the clip process more or less the same in e-publishing? 

Kyle: expect, sorry 

Kyle: Yes, I think so. Any more, many online publications like to see clips or samples, and some won't accept work form writers who haven't published before 

Kate: Thank you, Kyle. 

Jerri: Mary you can ask your question now. 

mweidler: Thanks, Jerri. Kyle, how do you find those "nice to newbie" publications (besides the classifieds)?
Should you attempt to reach start-ups before they place an ad and, if so, how do you find them? Thanks. 

Kyle: I have never tried to reach a start-up before they've placed an ad, but I do check job listibngs every day so I know about new jobs and publications right away 

tigger: ? 

mweidler: Thanks. 

Kyle: Im sure if you heard about a new start-up publication you could emil and offer them your services, but unfortunatley MANY don't pay well or at all 

Jerri: Mary, I'll add a little to this since I've dealt with a few start ups. If you're interested , send them a letter
telling them you are and ask if they have any positions for freelancers available. Be sure to enclose a couple of good clips. 

Jerri: And Kyle is right about the pay for many start up companies. 

Jerri: Tigger, go ahead. 

mweidler: Thanks, Jerri and Kyle. 

tigger: Ok...maybe it's a lack of caffeine today but....is your newsletter basically made up of info you've gathered from other writers sites/links/classifieds? And if so, what is the difference between yours and theirs? 

Kyle: But sometimes if you get in at the beginning you have a good shot at a staff position or a paying job when and if they do start to pay. It's just whether or not you're willing to risk it 

Anna: ? 

Jerri: Kyle did you see Tigger's question? 

Kyle: My newsletter has all original content, although some jobs I get from other sources. I comb the job and new market listings daily and get all of the online jobs in one place so if that's all you're interested in you don't have to search all over the web for just online jobs. 

tigger: ok 

Jerri: Anna, you can go ahead. 

Kyle: I also contact publications myself to see what the status is of paying writing obs 

Kim: ? 

Kyle: I write some advice articles myself and buy some form other freelancers, and write article about epublishing news and issues myself 

Anna: How would you suggest gettting clips for a specific pub if your clips aren't in their topics... 

Jerri: BTW, folks, Kyle's newsletter is a paying market. 

Kyle: I'm proud to say that, Jerri, although the pay is low right now. 

Kyle: I would write a clip just for them. It takes a little more work than just sending them something you already have, but it's necessary if you don't have the right clips. And you can always recycle teh article. 

Jerri: Kim go ahead. 

Anna: ? 

Kate: ? 

Kim: How often do you publish your newsletter? I find that if a newsletter is more than weekly, often the positions are filled before I apply. 

Jerri: Kyle did we lose you? 

Jerri: Anna, Kate I have you both in queue...I hope that Kyle didn't get punted. 

Kate: Isn't E-communicating fun??? 

kylelooby: sorry, got booted 

kylelooby: the last question I got was how often I publish my newsletter and I'll answer taht now 

Jerri: LOL! Thanks for coming back, Kyle. 

kylelooby: I publish weekly abd have new jobs listed every week. I try to get them just a day or two before publication so they're fresh 

Jerri: Anna, you can ask your question now. 

Anna: Ok, so to clear the confussion in my brain, it is acceptable "generally" just to send a writing sample rather than a clip 

kylelooby: usually, unless specifiaclly asked for published clips 

Anna: thank you Kyle 

Jerri: Kate, your turn. 

RachelG: ? 

Kate: How do you handle bookeeping? Do you use a CPA or keep the records yourself? . . . . If you do it yourself how do you keep up with taxcode as it pertains to freelance homebsed business? 

kylelooby: I do it myself at this point. Right now I haven't made enough to worry about taxes, but I keep out a percentage of everything I make for that lovely day when the tax bill comes. 

Kate: lol 

Kate: thank you 

kylelooby: That is something I need to look into more for next year when I become rich --lol! 

Kate: =o) 

Jerri: Another note from me, I keep 30 percent of everything I make in a Money Market account (read interest!) and then DH does the taxes. But we may be forced to get an accountant this year. 

Jerri: Rachel, you can ask away. 

tigger: ? 

RachelG: thanks :) Is it possible to make somewhat decent money from just online writing and editing? For someone as impatient as I am, I can't stand waiting to hear from print pubs? What would you say is a reasonable goal for an online writing income? 

Kate: WE lost Kyle again 

kylelooby: I;m here 

Kate: lol sorry . . . . 

Otterbe:? 

kylelooby: I like to make $1000/month at this point. We have one income and mine is just extra, but I hope within about 5 years to be making a "regular" salary 

kylelooby: By that I mean at least $30,000/year 

RachelG: Is that because you'll be a "better" writer, or b/c the market will pay better? 

kylelooby: But I also teach online to supplement that 

RachelG: Ok... Thank you :) 

Jerri: ohoh...I think we did lose Kyle this time 

Kate: WB Kyle 

kylelooby: sorry about that--I'm not sure what's happening 

Jerri: Not a problem, kyle. We've had others bounced too. 

Jerri: Otter, you had a question? 

Elizabeth: ? 

kylelooby: I think I will get better at anticipating what editors need and I think teh market will start payibg betetr 

Otterbe: Hi, Kyle. When you send email queries how long do you wait to do a follow-up? Do you wait for a response on a query before sending to another publication, or is that a bad idea? 

Otterbe: sending simultaneous queries to online markets that is 

kylelooby: I usually don't follow up. I think most editors find that annoying. A lot of pubs allow sim subs, but if they don't I find a new angle on teh same article and query several pubs at once 

kylelooby: Just change teh words to target each publication differently Otterbe thank you, Kyle 

Jerri: Kyle, when you're reslanting articles, don't you also need different sources (interview sources) for different markets? 

Elizabeth: Hello Kyle. Is your weekly newsletter free and how does one subscribe? 

kylelooby: yes, and often different background research aswell 

kylelooby: It is free and you can subscribe by going to topica or emailing me at kal_1@msn.com  

Elizabeth: Thanks. Jerri, I wasn't sure if I should just ask my question, or wait for your go ahead. 

Jerri: Kyle what's the name of you newsletter? 

kylelooby: I do also have a paid edition that lists at least 30 new jobs or matkets 

Jerri: You did fine Elizabeth! 

kylelooby: The Write Moves 

Jerri: And you have a website associated with that right? What's on your site and what is the URL? 

kylelooby: sorry, you can also subscribe through my website www.allthewritemoves.com  

kylelooby: The site is small right now, I have new tips every week for freelance web writers, info about me and a pic, and info about teh newsletter 

Jerri: Great. DO you have any other marketing tips for us? 

kylelooby: Soon I'll be adding links to the best writing websites 

kylelooby: I thik you're teh marketing expert, Jerri but I do have a new book coming out soon with booklocker called How to Write for Websites, Ezines, and Newsltters. Look for it in Sept.