Denene Brox is a Kansas City-based freelance writer who has contributed to Heart & Soul, Minority Nurse, Community Banker, Transitions Abroad, Monster.com, Yahoo! HotJobs, and other places. She recently published an e-book called The Weekend Writer: Launch Your Freelance Writing Career (Part-Time). Since Denene interviewed me for her e-book, I'd like to do a little role reversal and find out what inspires her, how she created her e-book, and what this creative dynamo is doing next.
UPDATE: The Weekend Writer ebook is no longer available but Denene has repurposed the info as the Freelance Write Now website. Lots of great tips over there and be sure to check out Denene's interview with yours truly. A great example of repurposing content for another format instead of letting the ebook sit on her hard drive. Urban Muse: What inspired you to write The Weekend Writer as an e-book?
Denene: My inspiration came from my own experience as a weekend writer. I’ve juggled freelance writing assignments with going to work eight hours a day (10 hours if you count commuting) for four years. During those four years almost everything I read about writing was from the point of view of a full-time freelancer who has all day to focus on their writing business. So I wanted to write something for those writers that would like to start writing but feel that their job is a hindrance, or who currently juggle the two and want a sense of community within the writing world. I’m doing an e-newsletter also called “The Weekend Writer” that will offer more tips and inspiration for part-time writers. I think there is a large part of the writing community out there that fits the weekend writer status.
UM: What are the best and worst parts of being a weekend writer?
D: The best part is freedom to take only those assignments that you really want. Your reasons can be for money or fun, but there’s a lot of freedom in that choice. On the flip side, time is not your friend. If you work full-time (or even part-time) you simply can’t devote as much time to writing. I gave up a lot of evenings and weekends to query and work on assignments. I wrote for more than 20 publications and web sites as a weekend writer, did a lot of phone interviews with sources from my car, and sometimes bit off more than I could chew. So weekend writers need to learn to balance their work. One writer I interviewed in the book called this a work/work/life balance.
Also on a positive note: Weekend writers aren’t relying on their writing to pay the bills. If your main source of income is another job, you don’t have to worry about the money part as much.
UM: Did you learn any new tips or tricks as you were interviewing other writers for the ebook?
D: Yes. One writer suggested writing personal essays since you don’t have to interview anyone in order to write essays. I thought it was such a great idea that I developed a free report called “10 Personal Essay Markets for Weekend Writers.” When readers sign up for the e-newsletter or purchase the e-book, they will get the list as a bonus.
UM: What article or writing project are you most proud of? Why?
D: That’s an interesting question because I’ve never thought about it before. I’d have to say this e-book because I wrote it all on my own terms with the reader in mind instead of editors and agents. Earlier in my career I had tried to get a different (career-related) book published and had gone the route of writing a book proposal and getting an agent. The relationship with the agent didn’t work out and I was so disappointed and frustrated after all of the hours of work I’d put in to the project. With an e-book, the writer can cut out so many parts of the process and have total control. You still have to have a great idea, reach a niche market, and deliver a quality product. But I’m proud that I took an idea and ran with it.
UM: Any suggestions for writers who'd like to create and promote their own e-book?
D: Look for niche subject that you are also passionate about so that you won’t get bored and you can continue to build on each product. I’m already brainstorming another e-book idea for writers. I did a lot of reading about information products and marketing before I got the idea to write The Weekend Writer. My favorite book on this subject is Stephanie Chandler’s From Entrepreneur to Infopreneur: Make Money with Books, eBooks, and Information Products.
I would love to focus more of my time on information product development because it allows me to combine my two favorite things – writing and marketing. Plus, I’m not waiting around for an agent or editor to give me the OK!
So if you have information that you think will benefit a lot of people, an e-book, or another type of information product, may be a good way to build an audience.
Thanks, Denene! Your turn! Do you have questions for Denene? Anything else you'd like to know about being a Weekend Writer?