figmo@tymix.Tymnet.ARPA (11/06/85)
From: figmo@tymix.Tymnet (Lynn Gold) Suggestion: there is a book that comes out each year called "The Writers' Market." In it is a list of pretty much every major periodical out, how they feel about freelance writers, what they pay, what they're looking for, and how to present yourself. The business of freelance writing isn't all that difficult to break into. If you have problems due to lack of experience, one way to build credibility is to write for smaller, more localized publications (local newspapers, fanzines) and develop a portfolio. Once you've written enough, when someone asks you "What have you done?", you can open up your folder and show your work to them. I should note that I'm not speaking idly, but from experience. It has been a few years since I've done any writing-for-pay, but when I did it on the side, I had to turn offers away because I couldn't keep up with the demand (I was in college at the time). --Lynn Gold UUCP: ...tymix!figmo ARPA: FIGMO@MIT-MC.ARPA