ONLINE RESOURCES
Don't go through life, grow through life - Eric Butterworth
Job Search Sites:
All Indie Writer’s
American Society of Journalists and Authors, or ASJA
Blogging Pro
Freelance Job Openings
Freelancewrite About
Gorkana Journalist Jobs
Journalism Jobs
Media Bistro
Problogger.net
Upwork
WritersMarket
Write to Done
Writing Thoughts
Blogs for Freelancers:
About Freelance Writing
All Indie Writers
Be a Freelance Blogger
Freelancer FAQs
Freelancers Union
Funds for Writers
My Blog Guest
Productive Writers
The Well-Fed Writer
The Write Life
Words On Page
Other Websites:
FilbertPublishing
Freelance Folder
Writers.net
Writersweekly
Web Site Development:
Akismet – Spam protection software
Google Analytics for Wordpress – track the traffic to your website or blog
Optimizepress – themes for Wordpress blogs designed for marketers
Wordpress – free website building software
About.Me – Personalized web page
Mailchimp – free email campaign platform
Other Tools:
Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator
The Free Library
Google Scholar
Profnet
Canva – Graphic design tools, including eBook covers
PixaBay – Free stock photos
HARO
Help a Reporter Out, or HARO, is a service that connects journalists and writers with experts in specific fields. You can register at helpareporterout.com as a journalist. Then, submit query forms when searching for a credible source to cite. The sources receive three emails a day with various queries from journalists. You can also sign up to HARO as an expert if you have specialized knowledge in a field and are looking to get media exposure.
Gorkana
Gorkana describes itself as a media database company and, as a freelance journalist, you might want to be added to their lists. That’s because PR firms pay a lot of money to access the database and will send journalists on Gorkana press releases and/or story ideas. If you’re out pitching stories to editors or looking for ideas, these updates can have some value. You can register as a journalist on the Gorkana web site under Journalist Services.
KEY TERMS
Attribution - Citing a source of news, images, music tracks, or quotes.
Blog - Originally called weblog, the word is a combination of the words Web and Log. While they originally started as online diaries with stories in chorological order, the mil ions of blogs take on many shapes and forms today. Most provide two-way interaction between authors and readers through comment sections.
Blogger - A regular contributor to one or more blogs.
Bounce rate - The number of people that leave a web site immediately after visiting it.
Brand - The product’s image in the public’s eye. Applies to companies and individuals as well.
Buzz - Online chatter about a specific product, company, or individual.
Content Marketing - The development of content like ebooks, press releases, or webinars to increase awareness about a product or company. Participating in blogs and social media is also a form of content marketing.
Copyright - The owner’s exclusive right to intellectual property.
Domain name - Typically beginning with www and ending with .com, it the web address for a web site.
eBook - A book, usually 20 to 30 pages, that focuses on one topic and is published electronically.
Freemium - A web site or app that includes a combination of free content and fee-based products. The word is a combination of the words free and premium.
Guest blogging - Contributing to another writer’s blog in order to generate greater awareness about your products or services.
Host - A company that provides servers and other software to maintain web sites and blogs.
Linkbait - Content that is intended to attract traffic and links to a web site or blog.
Microblogging - Short messages delivered online. Twitter is an example of microblogging.
Niche - A focused specialty or expertise focused on one industry, market, or audience.
Podcast - An audio recording or a series of audio recordings posted on a web site or blog.
Press release - A corporate update delivered to the media and the public to announce a new product, executive change, or other significant corporate event.
SEO - Search engine optimization is any method used to increase the rankings, and traffic, to a website or blog. Promoting online content, linking to other web sites, and using strategic keywords are examples of SEO strategies.
Syndication - Licensing agreements between an online publisher and other web sites, blogs, or publications to republish content. Publishers will syndicate content in order to capture a wider audience.
Tag - A keyword or description used to categorize content.
White paper - An article or research report that offers an in-depth look at a subject or topic. White papers typically include statistics, expert commentary, and other source material.