The next round of Freelance Writer Bootcamp is on me (for one of you)
Applications for the Yolisa Qunta Bootcamp scholarship are currently closed. To apply for a paid spot in the next session, visit www.FreelanceWriterBootcamp.com. The scholarship has been renamed in memory of Yolisa Qunta. Yolisa was a freelance writer, author, and Bootcamp alumni. For years after her initial enrollment, she stayed active in the Bootcamp alumni group, […]
The business of freelancing: How to chart a course for success
This Monday, July 22, I’ll be part of a virtual panel called “The Business of Freelancing,” hosted by the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing. We’ll talk about how to run your freelance business like a business, addressing things like the importance of an entrepreneurial mindset, how to successfully develop clients and interact with […]
Writing Coach Podcast Bonus: FB Live Integration Q&A
This live pitching Q&A serves as a bridge between the practical “what to do” lessons in the Freelance Writer Breakthrough mini course and the mindset management in the Writing Coach Podcast that enables you to do those things in the first place. Listen to the bonus episode of the Writing Coach Podcast: WCP Bonus: FB Live Integration […]
The Writing Coach Podcast 14: Reporting behind bars with Shaheen Pasha
Listen to episode 14 of the Writing Coach Podcast: WCP14 Reporting behind bars with Shaheen Pasha Shaheen Pasha is an educator and journalist. Today we’re talking about her work training both university students and inmates as journalists at the University of Massachusetts. This isn’t jail porn. Subscribe to The Writing Coach Podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, Android, or RSS. Shaheen Pasha is […]
Freelance Writer Bootcamp alumni discuss what the program’s really like
Bonus: FB Live with Freelance Writer Bootcamp alumni Wondering what it’s really like to go through Freelance Writer Bootcamp? Join me for a discussion with several Bootcamp alums about their experiences. Registration for Freelance Writer Bootcamp is open until Tuesday, October 2: https://www.FreelanceWriterBootcamp.com More info and show notes: https://www.rebeccalweber.com/podcastalum Subscribe to The Writing Coach Podcast on […]
The Writing Coach Podcast 4: The perfect black T-shirt
04: The perfect black T-shirt Tailoring your pitch to an individual publication will be a game changer if you’re used to a spray-and-pray approach. Simultaneous submissions may seem efficient in the short-term, but there’s a reason why most editors don’t respond to the same pitch you sent to their competition. Subscribe to The Writing Coach […]
Introducing The Writing Coach Podcast
Rebecca L. Weber’s Writing Coach Podcast features the sustainable strategies, mindset management, and creative skills development she uses to help independent writers around the world. Subscribe to The Writing Coach Podcast on Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | | Audible | Android | RSS | or click on an episode below to listen. Listen to the Writing Coach Podcast Greatest Hits Playlist […]
What freelance writers can learn from Cape Town’s Day Zero
As a freelance journalist based in Cape Town, South Africa, the full meaning and impact of Day Zero is revealing itself both incredibly fast (what about this? and that! and the other?!) as well as incredibly slowly (such as the city’s non-release of details about logistics, or queuing for water). What is Day Zero? In […]
Freelance Writer Breakthrough: A new mini course
Register for the Breakthrough mini course (free for a limited time). Want a behind-the-scenes look at the best strategies for reaching your freelance writing goals in 2018? Please join me for a new mini course, which includes some of my best tips to help you build and sustain the freelance writing career you want. We’ll […]
The quarterback, the quiet friend, and “effortless” assignments
(Psst … Registration for Freelance Writer Bootcamp is OPEN. Click here to join the last session in 2017.) Recently I got an email from a new-to-me editor who works at a publication I’d never heard of. If magazines were high school archetypes in a teen movie, and the New York Times was the football quarterback […]
Freelance Writer Retreat near Cape Town, South Africa
Registration for the Freelance Writer RETREAT near Cape Town, South Africa, is now open. Two days of workshops focused on boosting your confidence, skills, and bottom line as a freelance writer. Plus, penguins. Imagine if you could easily generate freelance article ideas that delighted you, your editors (or the editors you want to write for), […]
7 ways your environment impacts your writing and creativity
Is your surrounding environment helping or hurting your creativity? As a freelance writer, you may feel like you’re supposed to be able to work anywhere. Maybe you’ve done great work under stressful conditions. But small environmental stresses can build up over time and erode the confidence, stamina, and support that lead to your best work. […]
That thing you want to write
Early bird registration is now open for the Freelance Writer Retreat near Cape Town, South Africa. Visit www.rebeccalweber.com/retreat to register. In my own small way, I’ve taken the advice of Toni Morrison to heart: “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” A […]
Modern Journalist Toolkit 15: For freelancers who are worth the money
When I started freelancing, I was 100% DIY. Pitching, researching, writing, editing–that was me. Tech support, print cartridge buyer, office cleaner–that was me too. One of the tricky things about making a good living as a freelance writer is getting a feel for what to do yourself and where to spend–or invest–time and money. Some […]
Setting 2017 freelance writer goals
If you’ve already signed up for the 2017 goal-setting challenge for freelance writers, watch the video below to get yourself ready. Otherwise you can click here to register for the goal-setting challenge: www.rebeccalweber.com/2017goals If you’re not feeling like looking back at 2016, scroll below to read about my own resistance to this exercise. When it […]
7 most popular posts of 2016
Would you be surprised to hear that this Backstory blog was originally conceived of as a place to post comics about what goes on behind the scenes when writing articles? A few years ago, I was not imagining that I would be making videos, teaching freelance writers how to pitch, leading goal-planning challenges, or even […]
Modern Journalist Toolkit 6: Yusuf Omar on Reporting with Snapchat
Yusuf Omar is a cell-phone trailblazer. He finds unconventional uses for apps like Snapchat, Facebook Live, and 360 video for telling serious news stories, most of which are viewed on small screens. Omar is the new mobile editor at the Hindustan Times, one of India’s largest English newspapers, with a print circulation of more than […]
Modern Journalist Toolkit 5: Taking Notes & Recording Interviews
I put fresh batteries into my tape recorder shortly before I hopped on the DC Metro for my interview with Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland. I’d pulled a personal favor with somebody who in turn asked for a favor to get me the private face time, and I’d done all my due diligence […]
Pay Me!
In a strange twist of my-fish-that-got-away-was-bigger-than-yours, freelance writers sometimes like to play the game of my-deadbeat-client-owes-me-more-than-yours. Who said bigger was better? While occasional late payers are inevitable, I’ve had very few over the years, even though I’ve written for many clients all over the world. Do you want to know the steps I take to […]
Modern Journalist Toolkit 3: Home Office Hacks for Writers
Like most freelancers these days, my office is where my laptop and cell phone are. I do well with a home office/out of the office split. At home, I have lunch the way I like it, and a puppy who likes to go for mid-morning walks. At a cafe, I have the buzz of people […]
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