What I will do on my summer vacation

I’m having a pretty good spring so far. I’ve landed a few assignments for new clients. I recently finished up one long-range project. I’m getting semi-regular assignments from a client that I’ve worked with for a long time. I’m feeling okay.

Now I need to not rest on my proverbial laurels. I am thinking about doing a few things over the next few months to further develop my career. Here’s my tentative list. Tell me what you think.

1. I think I’m going to join at least one more professional organization. I’m already a member of Society of Professional Journalists, but I think it’d be worthwhile to join another group. The one that I’m currently considering is the American Medical Writers Association, since I write so much about health care for various publications. In an ideal world, I’d like to rejoin the Association of Health Care Journalists and the Education Writers Association because I belonged to those groups in the past. But I don’t think I’m doing enough education-specific writing these days to qualify, which is a shame because I absolutely adored writing about education and schools. (I didn’t even mind covering all those graduations and writing stories about high school exit exams.) I think you can get a lot out of your professional memberships if you want to make the effort to do so.

2. I’m going to work on launching my own website. I love blogging, and I don’t plan to quit, but I think it’s time to have a formal website, too. I need to purchase a domain name and find someone who can make a pretty site for me. I’d like to be able to include my website on my business cards and on my signature so that any potential freelance client can learn more about me.

3. I’m going to commit myself to sending out more query letters. Yes, sending out queries, especially to editors who’ve never heard of you, is a drag. But I’ve found that putting together a good query forces me to really think through a story pitch and develop a solid strategy for follow-through. In other words, it’s a good exercise in critical thinking, even if nothing comes of it. But every so often, something does come of it, something in the way of an assignment. And how can I ever expect to get more assignments if I sit around and wait for people to get in touch with me? There’s no hocus pocus in getting writing assignments.

4. This isn’t directly related to freelancing, but it’s still part of my plan. I want to read more good writing. I’ve always been a reader. I usually have three, four, maybe even five books going at once. (Right now, among other things, I am reading Salvation on Sand Mountain by Dennis Covington, Cleaving by Dennis and Vicki Covington, Lest Innocent Blood Be Shed by Philip P. Hallie, and One Fifth Avenue by Candace Bushnell.) I want to continue to look for good books to read…because after all, one of the best ways to improve your own writing is by reading other things that are well written. I learned long ago that I can learn how to improve my writing even by reading good fiction. Good writing is good writing, no matter what genre it falls into.

So that’s the laundry list for now. I’m sure I’ll add to it or maybe modify it. But I wanted to write it down so I would have it in front of me.

What is your work worth?

Fellow writer and blogger Lori Widmer asks the question of other writers, “Is it all about the dollar signs for you?” Widmer, who created Writers Worth Day, makes a really interesting point: wouldn’t it be better to focus more on growing your writing business rather than focusing solely on the money? Hmmm.

Jen’s Writing Journey also addresses this question this week. Jennifer Roland asks, “How do you make sure you earn what you are worth?”

Whew. Some big things to consider. I, of course, got all convoluted, just mulling it all over. I started to think of all these meta-questions, like “How do you even know you’re asking yourself the right question?” Which led to my wondering, “How do you know what you ARE worth, let alone what you should earn for what you’re worth?”

I hope I’m worth a lot. Well, make that “I hope my work is worth a lot.” And I hope that my business will reflect that.

I do know that I think I’m a much better writer and editor than I am a marketer-of-my-freelance-writing-and-editing-business. I’m sure many other people are much better at the whole “growing your business” aspect than I am. I’d rather just write.

But I am realistic and experienced enough to know that it just doesn’t work like that. You can’t just sit back and expect the work to come to you. You can’t just rely on your talent or skills to be enough. You have to get out there and actively look for work. You have to apply for jobs. You have to send queries. You have to show people why your work is good and tell them why they should hire you. And then you have to deliver on what you promise. It helps if you’re pleasant to work with, too. Because after all, it is a business. It may be a business that allows you (and me) to conduct phone interviews in pajamas, but it’s still a business.

More journalists join the ranks of the unemployed

Just read that the Baltimore Sun is laying off one-third of its newsroom staff. The Tribune company’s been floundering for awhile, trying to claw its way upward and out of bankruptcy, and I guess this is the latest effort. Reports indicate that 61 people are now on the way out the door. Ouch. It always makes me sad when one of the best ones gets hit.

Also, I have a soft spot for the Sun because I remember working near some of its staffers when I was working for the U of Maryland’s Capital News Service in the Maryland statehouse back in 2001. The paper’s reporters were not only knowledgeable and professional, but they were really nice to those of us who were wide-eyed and wet behind the ears. I don’t know if any of those people are still there–or will still be there when the pink slips are handed out.

Also, how much would it suck to find out you’re losing your job while you’re covering a baseball game?

As always, you can find out more detailed info about the swooning newspaper industry’s effect on employment at the blog Paper Cuts.

Meanwhile, I will be sitting here in my cluttered home office, feeling depressed. I’m not even currently working for a newspaper, but as I’ve said before, you can take the girl out of the newsroom, but you can’t take the newsroom out of the girl.

We all need some downtime. Don’t we?

Do you ever just get tired? Tiiiiiiired? Tired and uninspired? Or, as we say here in the South, tahhhred?

I’m beat. I just had a crazy month or so, and I’m just feeling sort of depleted. I finished up a huge freelance project this afternoon, turned it in and then felt sort of limp. I knew I should have immediately started following up on queries that I sent out awhile ago, or I should have started sending out new queries. I should have at least trolled some of the journalism and freelance writing job websites for leads–you know, the usuals, like Freelance Writing Jobs, All Freelance Writing, Media Bistro, About Freelance Writing, JournalismJobs.com, etc.  Or I could have read some of my favorite blogs by other writers. But I just. didn’t. want. to. I didn’t want to do anything related to work at all.

Know what I did instead? I reread a yellowed copy of  Betsy’s Busy Summer by noted children’s author Carolyn Haywood. Haven’t heard of her? That’s because she wrote most, if not all, of her books before about 1960. And yes, the reason that I have this book in my house is because of my mother and her infamous Mom Bomb. It was relaxing, reading about the watermelon party that good old Betsy and her friends had in the summerhouse in the backyard.  I read that book so many times as a little girl that I practically knew it by heart. Even today, I felt like I there was still an imprint on my brain from the book.

I think we, as a society, tend to undervalue that type of activity: the kind that lets you rest your brain for a little while. I’m not talking about watching television or playing video games. I’m talking about the sort of mindless activities that are quiet and yet can be active, in a way.  Re-reading an old book that doesn’t force you to think hard or analyze. Ironing, if you enjoy that sort of thing. Puttering around in the garden. Little chores or tasks that don’t require a lot of serious thought and allow you to just imagine or let your mind wander.

Too often, we have to either be or seem busy. We (okay, we as a society not we as in I because I don’t yet have one) carry around our Blackberrys and we check them like addicts. We overschedule our weekends and don’t really get to relax. We’re embarrassed to admit it when we sleep in because it’ll seem like we’re not being productive.

I’m guilty of it sometimes. Take today. Even though I just finished a bunch of projects, I felt that tinge of guilt about taking a breather. But why shouldn’t I take a day or even a couple of days to just let my brain recover a little bit? Yes, you could argue that I need to keep looking for work, looking for new freelance clients, finding ways to make more money. And I do need to continue to do that. But I think I needed some time off, just a little bit, in order to be able to do good work again. We all need some downtime sometime. Don’t we?

At least, that’s how I’m justifying it…

Face to face

Yesterday, I interviewed two occupational therapists for a freelance story that I’m writing for a local parenting magazine. When I arrived at their office, they met me in the reception area and shook my hand. They ushered me into a conference room, where I plunked down my little digital voice recorder and my legal pad, and I started asking questions. After the interview wound up, one of them gave me a tour of their office, and I got to see all the treatment rooms, the gyms,  and the toys and equipment they use to help their young patients. It was a great visit. I got a really good sense of what they do and where they do it.

As a freelancer, I tend to conduct the majority of my interviews on the phone. This is by necessity, unfortunately. I often have to interview people who don’t live anywhere near me, or whose lives are so busy that I’m just lucky to squeeze a fifteen-minute phone call onto their packed schedule.

But occasionally, I still get to meet someone in person, and I always enjoy it so much more. The interviews are always so much better, too.  You know the old adage, “Show, don’t tell”? You can also apply those words to an interview. You should look for what people are showing you about themselves, not just what they’re telling you. You get a much better picture of that person.

Take the woman I interviewed last fall for a profile story for a Vanderbilt publication. The woman was inspired by her recent diagnosis of diabetes to completely overhaul her entire life to improve her health. It was so much fun to meet her in person and to really see the results of her diet and exercise plan. I could see for myself that she was tall and svelte; I was able to describe her physique and the positive attitude that she projected based on what I saw. The story was much stronger as a result.

Or how about the young anchorwoman whom I interviewed for a story for Desert Magazine a couple of years ago? I met her at her house, a few hours before she was leaving for work at a Palm Springs television news station. I saw the tangle of shoes peeking out from under the sofa. I saw her young son’s toys strewn across the living room. I saw her briefcase full of work that she’d brought home from the office. I met her husband. I saw how her eyebrows furrowed when she talked about trying to juggle her two great loves: her family and her career. I was inspired by those details when it was time for me to sit down and write her story.

So I will always relish the chance to meet a source in person, to see them face to face. I’ve been conducting interviews for so long that I rarely ever get nervous before one;  instead, I look forward to it. I know that I’m receiving a great opportunity.

Not that I ever turn down phone interviews. They definitely have their place. They’re especially useful when you just need to ask someone a few quick questions. Or when you know the person pretty well and are just checking in. Or you’re on deadline, and your time is very limited. Or it’s the only way to reach the person. Sometimes, you’re so busy, a phone call’s all you can do, too.

But it’s just nice to be able to meet the people I interview. I like to think I write better stories from those meetings, too.

So I’m a little behind…

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Snow

It snowed in the Deep South yesterday and last night, leaving a nice coating of the white stuff in many places unaccustomed to it. Like my friend’s yard in New Orleans.

We only got a smattering of snow at my house, but it was enough to make me worry that my son’s school would close, and I’d be stuck rearranging my whole day to accommodate his energy level. Luckily for both of us, that didn’t happen.

But it reminded me of the time it snowed in November in the high desert of Southern California about four years ago. We woke up on a Sunday morning to discover everything, including nearby Joshua Tree National Park, blanketed in several inches of freak snow. You ain’t seen nothin’ ’til you’ve seen cactuses coated in a thin layer of snow and ice crystals. It was spectacular. The fronds of the giant palm tree in my front yard drooped under the weight of the snow. Here, don’t take my word for it; check it out for yourself:

That picture was actually taken after some of it had already melted off. But earlier, before I even had much time to enjoy it, my editor Ben called me up. Go out and talk to people about the snow, he instructed me. I tried to protest that it was a Sunday, and I wasn’t scheduled to work that day. Didn’t matter. Snow in an area of the country that routine breaks the 120 degree mark in the summer was News. I lived in the area closest to the national park, and so I was dispatched.

Study the photo again, by the way. Notice that I was wearing sneakers and a windbreaker over a heavy sweater. Not exactly the ideal “venture out in the snow and interview people” attire. But I did what I had to do. I gingerly drove around and found ecstatic people playing in the snow, got some notes, and then drove home, filed my story by email and thawed out. I did what I had to do. My feet got pretty cold in my New Balances, and I kvetched a little about wanting to have a real snow day, but we had a great front-page story and photos the next day.

But it was nice to not have to do that this time…

Hello world!

Greetings!

I’m Jennifer Larson, and I’ll be your writer today. Please let me know if I can get you anything. Really. I’ll just let you get settled, enjoy the header picture of Walden Pond, and I’ll be right back to take your order.