In this issue:

• Writer and Problogger: Can You Be Both?
• How Panic Can Ruin Your Writing Career 
• Web Usability Revisited
• The Three Ps Of Good Blogging
• Writing Blog Spotlight: ProFreelancing
• Diary Of A Working Writer April 2008

Writer And Problogger: Can You Be Both?

by Sharon Hurley Hall

Is it possible to be a problogger and a writer, too? I recently read a post by a friend of mine, who runs Inspired Author. She was outlining the difference between writers and probloggers. The main point she made was that writers who blog abandon their blogs when a gig comes in; bloggers who write abandon the writing when a new blogging opportunity comes in. Two things occurred to me. First, is there a difference between being a blogger and being a writer? Second, is it possible to do both well?

I can only draw on my own experience. I am primarily a freelance writer and ghostwriter. I say that because of 20 years' experience in the field, working for newspapers, magazines and the web. I say that because I have a background in journalism, working in reporting, subbing and editing roles for many years.

In contrast, I've been blogging for about three years, so I don't have reams of experience to draw on. However, I've learned a lot in that short time about what makes a blog successful. I'm putting some of it to work on my blog.  A successful, professional blog needs:

• great content
• an appealing design
• a growing readership
• a sense of community

If you have all those things, you will also make money from your blog if you want to, which is one of the hallmarks of a problogger - someone who earns primarily from blogging. What do you think? Contact me with your answers. I'll be exploring this question in more detail on my blog in the coming month.

How Panic Can Ruin Your Writing Career

By Sharon Hurley Hall

When you run your writing career in panic mode, you start to worry every time you don’t see a steady flow of work. If you happen to be the main breadwinner, then this panic can escalate to paralysing levels. You’re so busy thinking about the absence of a bottom line that you end up doing something that will make your working life even harder.

Grab Any Job That Moves

Once you start to panic, then you feel compelled to take any job that comes along., even if the pay is low. After all, earning something is always better than earning nothing, isn’t it? I’ll come back to that question later. You only start to relax when you see a pleasingly full diary in front of you. Now all you have to do is do the work.

Read the rest of How Panic Can Ruin Your Writing Career

Web Usability Revisited

By Sharon Hurley Hall

Are you writing web articles and blog posts? Do you know how to make them reader friendly? Jakob Neilsen gave some great advice, which I revisit in this post on Daily Writing Tips:

Keep It Short

Since people aren’t going to read a large block of text, then there’s no point in having one. A typical web page has more in common with a news story than a magazine article. It’s short and to the point - anywhere from 250 to 500 words, as a rough guide. Longer articles tend to be broken into several pages, and there’s no guarantee that a reader will get past the first page.

Inverted Pyramid

That leads to the next point, structure. Use the inverted pyramid. That means putting the key information at the start so that readers will get the information you want them to have. If you were writing for print, this information might be your conclusion. For the web, you need to tell readers up front.

Read the rest of Web Usability Revisited

The Three Ps Of Good Blogging

By Sharon Hurley Hall

I wrote this for Pureblogging, but think the lessons about good blogging apply equally to writing. Personality, passion and persistence should be the watchwords. Here's an excerpt:

Passion is about showing that you care. It doesn’t mean that you have to care equally about every topic you blog about. That would be unrealistic - and hard to sustain. However, when you blog about things that you’re not interested in, the lack of passion shows and readers may opt to stay away. (As an aside, don’t assume that your writing lacks passion just because readers don’t comment. You may have to spend time building up readership before you get regular commenters.) Most of the things I blog about are things that have affected me, and therefore I care about them. When I review something on this blog, it’s something I have used. When I write about freelance writing, it’s an experience that I want to share. The more passion I have for a topic, the more people read.

Read the rest of The Three Ps Of Good Blogging

Writing Blog Spotlight: ProFreelancing

As you know I occasionally feature reviews of writing blogs on Get Paid to Write Online. This month, I've decided to add something similar as an occasional feature for Writing Lab News. In general, I will try to focus on blogs that haven't been extensively reviewed elsewhere and I'll keep it short.

This month's featured writing blog is Profreelancing, a new freelance writing blog by Chad Kettner, a Canadian freelance writer who is already finding success. In the past month or so, I've marked three of his posts for future reference, and I want to share those with you now:

• 13 Reasons Why You Should Not Be A Freelance Writer
• Rejecting Work Based On Ethics
• Content Is King But Design Is The Crown On His Head

This blog has only been going since January, but it's definitely one to watch, with some thought provoking posts. Enjoy.

Diary Of A Working Writer - April 2008

March ended with a big challenge, as I temporarily found myself blogless. I blogged about that in Five Lessons From The Blog Black Hole. The rest of the month went well, though, with a few new gigs and some work via referrals. I love it when that happens, as it's one way that you can really know that a client is happy.

I gave some thought to the people I have met online and how we keep our online relationships going. One of the new tools I'm using to do that is Twitter. A lot of other writers are doing the same and I've discovered some quality writers and bloggers this way.

I'm starting a new gig as Garden and Hearth begins to evolve and am contemplating doing something useful with the content I've published there. More on that later. Finally, here's one for all the WAHMs - the parents' guide to blogging. See you next month!