Should You Work For Free?…

 

Click the Picture

Get paid to write? Yes, please!

In a perfect world everyone would be paid for the work they did. Unfortunately however in many cases (mine being journalism for example) there are many arguments for working for free. There are also some stupid reasons, and the chart above might just help you filter out a few of them.

Jessica Hische has created a flow chart which might just guide you through the decision of whether you should accept the free work or expect payment for it. The chart seems to assume you are somewhat established so for all budding writers, you might find that it does not apply, but you can still use it as a simple guide or future advice.

If you’re already established and have jobs coming in from all directions, this chart is bound to help you in one way or another.

Saying no to people, particularly those in need and trying to hold promises that you just don’t have time for can be one of those bad habits that anyone can pick up, particularly when you’re used to saying yes to every job being offered,

This pretty flow chart will hopefully help those in need and for those that don’t find their solution in it, three questions you should ask yourself when asked to work for free.

1) Do you have the time?

2) Is it something you’re passionate about? e.g a band? a charity?

3) does it have the potential to help you get paid in the future?

You can see the flowchart in its entirety here

Don’t Mind Your Language, in the words of Stephen Fry… Literally

A fantastic animated typography voiced by the one, the only, Stephen Fry…

Learning the rules of any language is important, even more so if that language holds great impact on your career, such as journalism. Without a proper grasp of the English language for example it can be pretty difficult to communicate effectively.

But, if you find yourself hung up on perfecting the English language you may find yourself impeding your own creativity and development of said language in general.

Matt Rogers has taken a piece of audio recorded by the one, and only Stephen Fry, where he argues that the enjoyment of language is more important than pedantic accuracy. Without this freedom nothing new may be created, and the development of language is hindered.

Personally I can never see myself accepting the place of “text” language into my vernacular but I would like to say I’m trying. We should all still aim to write well and communicate clearly, but the point of this video and Stephen Fry’s full essay is to prove that we should choose our battles of language wisely. and not get hung up every minute detail.

Stephen Fry Kinetic Typography - Language [Matthew Rogers on Vimeo]

and for Stephen Fry's' full essay on the topic, go here…

Don't Mind Your Language

Write a Book in a Month – NaNoWriMo…

 

 

NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month and it falls upon us this November, meaning this post is two days late but also an interesting test on anyone that thinks they can meet a deadline.

The Goal? Writing one 50,000 word novel from scratch in a months time. Possible? Well plenty of people have done it before.

It’s not about quality, it’s not about writing that publishable novel, it’s more about throwing everything out the window and focusing on a single output. Complete abandon.

Why do it? The reasons are endless! Its a chance to take part in something so uniquely crazy it almost seems impossible. If for nothing else, bragging right over that writer who took 10 years to produce a book, when you took 30 days.

How do you participate? Just sign up online, its that simple, but to be added to the official list of winners your minimum 50,00 word novel must be online by midnight November 30th.

“Why 50,000 words? And how do you define "novel"?

• Novel-Writing Guidelines

Our experiences over the past nine years show that 50,000 is a difficult but doable goal, even for people with full-time jobs and children. The length makes it a short novel. We don't use the word "novella" because it doesn't seem to impress people the way "novel" does.

We define a novel as "a lengthy work of fiction." Beyond that, we let you decide whether what you're writing falls under the heading of "novel." In short: If you believe you're writing a novel, we believe you're writing a novel too.”

For the entire list of rules, just head over to the NaNoWriMo Website and start writing, right now, who knows, your novel could be the next Lord of the Rings, or it could amount to nothing. Either way, you wrote a novel if you reach the end of it.

http://www.nanowrimo.org/

This is your chance to get in on 30 days and nights of literary abandon!

What if you Wrote One Page a Day?

"If there's a book you really want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." - Tony Morrison

One Page Per Day is exactly what the website states it as. "It's a very simple web typewriter that presents you with a single blank page each day. You are free from the tyranny of the infinite page."

It is simplistic but genius and allows anyone who finds themselves struggling to write, the chance to do so without the never ending word document or open pad.

How does it work? Simply log in using your Google account or twitter and type your one page a day, whether it is to get you into the practice of writing, you're starting your new book, or simply, you want to finally commit yourself to that blog you've always tried to keep up to date.

And One Page Per Day will remind you to fill up that one page, pushing you to finish what it is you have started.

Distraction Free Writing can be found here: OnePagePerDay