We have just upgraded our web site so that it will be much more useful to you as you build your freelance writing business. Here are five ways that you can get more out of Worldwide Freelance.


1. Check out the new Word Power drop-down menu.

We've added a new drop downmenu called "Word Power". It has quick links to many resources that will be helpful when you are trying to find the write words: dictionary, thesaurus, quotations, phrases, abbreviations, rhyming, proverbs, grammar, song lyrics, specialist dictionaries for medical, computing, legal and more. You can find Word Power on our main menu near the top of the page.

2. Identify some publications to target and start pitching.

If you don't approach some writing markets then you will not sell anything. The freelance writing business is all about writing and marketing/selling your writing. And that is one reason why Worldwide Freelance is such a great resource.

We have one of the largest databases of writing markets available on the Internet. We've been building it up gradually over ten years. So use it!

Are you on a tight budget? No problem. Our basic database lists more than 750 writing markets. That should be enough to get you started so you can build up some publishing credits.

If you need help pitching your queries then check out Moira Allen's ebook, "The Writer's Guide to Queries, Pitches and Proposals".

When you have sold a few of your articles or manuscripts and have a little income from your writing then you should consider upgrading to a Markets Plus subscription so you can identify many of the higher-paying writing markets.


3. Register on our site as a user.

As I mentioned last week you don't have to register in order to use our site. However it is free to register and registered users will have access to some special content in the months ahead.

You can choose your own username and password for our writing community. If we gave you a temporary username (because you were already a Markets Plus member) then please log in now and change your username and password to something you like. Very soon we'll be adding more fields to user profiles so if you want to let other users know more about you, you will be able to.

If you haven't yet registered as a user on the site, look for the 'Register' link near the Login box on our main page.


4. Get interactive.

At Worldwide Freelance we welcome all writers to be active participants in our writing community. We've redesigned our web site to be more interactive and we're inviting your input and feedback. You can now comment on articles, take part in surveys and polls, and start interacting with other members.


5. List your writing services in our Find a Writer section.

This section of our web site is where people looking to hire writers can search for and find you.

One writer emailed us to say, "Just wanted to say I am happy I bought the listing in WWF. I have had 3 people contact me so far from that listing in the last month alone. Cool!"

It is now easier than ever to add a listing to our Find a Writer section. It costs $11.95 for 3 months and you will be able to update your listing directly whenever you want.


One Final Note.

I particularly like the following quotation from Natalie Goldberg:

"Take out another notebook, pick up another pen, and just write, just write, just write. In the middle of the world, make one positive step. In the centre of chaos, make one definitive act. Just write. Say yes, stay alive, be awake. Just write. Just write. Just write."

If you are serious about building a freelance writing business then you need to use sites like ours to get the maximum possible benefit for your business, but don't let this become another distraction or excuse for not writing.

You have to write, write, write. Don't be so caught up with writers' newsletters, writing forums and social networking sites that you stop doing the most important thing, writing.

Draw up a schedule of when you are going to write and keep to it. When your writing is done, then go and do all those other things.  

Happy Writing!