Hi all – I hope you had a great weekend? I can’t believe I only have three days left in my 29 Days of Online Writing series. It’s gone incredibly quickly – I guess the dramas we’ve had with the house have sped things along nicely.

Since I am at the end of the month I am now looking forward to March and thinking about the writing goals I would like to achieve for that month. You probably know I have my dedicated client site at www.allisonwhitehead.co.uk, where I have started blogging on a regular basis. I will hold my hands up and say I never did this in the past, which is why I only ever got a dribble of traffic to it. My regular blogging efforts have seen the dribble turn into a healthy regularly flowing stream, and now I am going for a full on flood. I started the year by aiming to get one new client from the site in January (which I achieved) and one new client in February (which looks like it has happened as well). The February client is getting together info for a HUGE job and we’ve agreed rates already so providing nothing happens to put a spanner in the works it looks good to happen as planned.

So for March I have decided to up the ante and to aim for three new clients to find me and start working with me during the month. I also have another goal for my client site, and that is to find two new clients per week by the time I get to August. That gives me six months to achieve the goal, and I’m basically going to do it in a couple of different ways:

1. I am going to carry on adding new content to the blog, written specifically to attract the attention of clients

2. I am going to start writing articles to promote the site on article directories.

Hopefully these two methods will help me get the clients I want, so we’ll see how things go and I’ll report back here to let you know the results. Perhaps you would benefit from setting some blogging goals for your writing business too? Share your thoughts below!

Anyway back to today’s work: it’s 0801 and I’m about to start proper. I have my usual round of weekly blogs to do for clients at the moment, then it’s onto some new blogs for a new client.

I’ve felt a bit out of sorts today, but I think it’s just where we’re back to something remotely like normal after all the house upheavals that have happened recently. I feel like I am on the verge of a new flood of clients and some nice new connections, so we’ll see what happens.

I haven’t really kept you up to date with a minute by minute account of what I’ve been up to today. But you haven’t missed out on much because I wanted to share some of my plans for the month ahead instead. After all you’ll be finding out how well they progress as I’ll be sharing them all here! Catch you again tomorrow.

We’re at the family shop today – a home brew shop in a rather nice part of Kent in England. It’s in an old mill that overlooks a lake, so we have a lovely view and we get to see all the ducks and swans doing their thing. I’ve got some bread in my bag so I’ll stretch my legs later and go and feed them and get some fresh air as well. If you want to see where we work, visit www.brew-in.co.uk and check out the pics!

Not too much online writing to do today – a few short and easy blogs and that’s about it. A nice day to finish the week with, really.

Well it’s now 1755 and we’re back home. We had some surprise visitors as some family members came in to see us for a couple of hours at the shop. I got to feed the ducks with my niece in tow so that was a pleasant surprise. I didn’t get as much work done as I wanted to, but I have got a bit done at home since we got in. Now it’s time to go and cook dinner and enjoy a day off tomorrow. Back on Monday!

0800 – yes I had a half hour lie in this morning, helped by the scaffolding keeping everything a bit darker than usual outside (not to mention the overcast and dull weather).

I’ve done some rearranging this week and it’s enabled me to get plenty of time off from client projects today. As a result I’m going to crack on with some more articles for our own websites; some of these articles are being written to promote our websites as well, so it will be nice to get ahead and devote pretty much a whole day to that. I’ve also got some housework to do, ahead of our weekend off. The more I get done now, the less I have to do later in the week (or so I keep reminding myself!).

1034 – I’m having a great blogging day today. I’ve already written a new post on my Allison Whitehead site (aimed at clients) and I have written another one scheduled to be published tomorrow. Now it’s time to nip out to get some fresh air and to do some chores.

1311 – chores done, lunch eaten and time to focus on some more personal writing goals. I’m a stickler for getting client work done but it is important to remember to make time for your own goals as well if you have any. I’ve completed an article to help promote one of our websites this morning, and I’m going to crack on with some more web pages this afternoon. I figure it’s best to get plenty of work done now while I have the time; then I am ahead for when it gets busy again (which it will!).

1538 – it’s turning into a really nice day. I’ve got some more client work slotted in for tomorrow, but today has been spent enjoying writing some articles for our own sites. I’m just updating my Squidoo lenses at the moment too; another job I don’t often get time for. I haven’t had time to get the housework done but I’m not too worried about that; it can always wait another day or two! My personal writing goals feel a lot more important today, and it’s been nice to get ahead on those. We have several sites set up to go live soon, and they all need content written for them.

Tomorrow it will be back to client work again, but tonight we are going to treat ourselves to a Chinese takeaway to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Whatever you are doing tonight, I hope you have a great time. I’ll be back tomorrow with more online writing and client work at the top of my list. See you then.

0717 – It’s day two and I got up at 7am this morning to get a good start on the day. Armed with tea and toast, I am going to start by writing three short articles to complete the work due on one of our own sites before I do any client work. I know that if I get our work done first, I can relax and get on with client work for the rest of the day. That way ours doesn’t get pushed down the list and off the bottom! I definitely felt guilty finishing early yesterday, which is why I ended up coming back to my desk after a soak in a nice hot bath and writing the home page for our latest site. Now I just have to do those three articles…

0806 – that didn’t take long! Ok now it’s time to crack on with client work. I’ll wait a while for my next cuppa and do some articles first…

1200 – been a busy morning. Just fleshing out a description for a mobile app (one of those little but interesting jobs I get once in a while!), then it’s time for lunch.

1236 – stopped for lunch and a phone call to my sister. My niece has been poorly for a year now and has been diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. Not common! [Big hello and hugs to Sarah if you're reading this! I know you do sometimes]

1354 – two short blogs to complete now, followed by some short articles this afternoon.

1425 – doing well, but I am stopping for some hand exercises. I suffer from tendonitis in my left wrist (first triggered by a job I did years ago) and I am suffering a bit at the moment. My partner found some worthwhile hand exercises to do on YouTube and they seem to be working okay. I just need to remember to do them every day.

1625 – on the home straight now. Just writing some very short entries on various pop groups and musicians for a large website. Lots of them to do but they literally require a couple of paragraphs each. This is one of the nice things about online writing – you just never know what will turn up next…(hopefully in this case it will be a cup of tea)

1740 – whew, finished for the day! Just need to post this to my blog and update my professional site, and that’s it. Time for dinner and some downtime… back tomorrow!

UPDATE: there is a weird thing going on with WordPress at the moment. When I looked at the home page of the blog before signing in to post this, ALL my posts and pages had disappeared. After a frantic moment of fanning, panicking and wondering what on earth had happened, my partner finally got it sorted (i.e. the household technical whiz). That was NOT pleasant. Thankfully it was a quick fix.

Writing blogs can be valuable in all kinds of ways. For example you can earn an income from your writing blog through the use of Google Adsense, not to mention selling your own writing related products and recommending ones created by other people in return for a commission on every sale.

But they can be valuable in many other ways as well. For example, even though I have a professional website that is designed to attract clients rather than writers, I have still gained new clients who have found me and got in touch via this blog. I have also been fortunate enough to get in touch with other writers who seem to like the various topics I focus on as part of my blog.

My blog has also provided me with ideas for eBooks that I could write as part of this year’s drive to get published on the Kindle platform. I won’t be taking the short route and trying to convert blog posts into Kindle material; rather, I will use existing posts as the trigger for new material. I like this idea because I can focus on those posts that had a good response from readers, not to mention those that consistently get good traffic. These are clearly topics that other people want to know more about.

Some writers still don’t have their own blogs to work with. I remember when I first got started, I did so because I felt the time was right to start my own blog. But it was a while before I got any decent traffic and started to see any recompense for the time I spent blogging.

Luckily when your blog does start paying you back for your efforts, it’s not a one time thing. As you can see from what I have written above, it can pay you back in more than one way. In truth, if you have a writing blog then it IS valuable to you. It just might take a while before you can see the true value it has for you. And it might be a lot more valuable than you ever thought it would be.

How often do you toot your horn about your writing blog?

No matter how proud you are of it, you may still be in the shy and retiring group when it comes to spreading the word.

The thing you must remember is that spreading the word about your writing blog will get it seen by more people. It makes sense to use as many free methods of doing this as you can – after all, you don’t want to spend money on advertising when there are plenty of free methods you can use to promote your writing blog first.

Most of us send emails out every day, especially when we’re contacting potential clients, applying for writing jobs and answering queries. What you may not realise is that every email you send out is a potential link back to your blog. All you have to do is to slot your blog address into your email by using the signature facility.

I have mine set up so a little promotion for my writing blog always appears on every single email I send.

Why not? I always keep it nice and simple – it basically says “Read my writing blog at http://myonlinefreelancewritingcareer.co.uk.” It’s just enough to get the job done without waffling on. I do change it from time to time as well. Here are a few examples you could use:

• Read my latest blog post at
• Find out my opinions on [insert topic] at
• Get the latest insider news on [insert topic] at

There are loads of examples and variations you could use for your own writing blog.

If you send emails to some people more than others, it pays to change the signature every now and then to stop it from getting stale. If people are used to seeing the same signature for your writing blog all the time they’ll get blind to it. Change it up every now and then though, and they’ll sit up and take notice again.

Remember that your writing blog is an advertisement for your writing too. Let’s say you’re regularly emailing clients and potential clients and applying for writing jobs left, right and centre. Having a signature that points towards your writing blog will guide the potential client to take a look for themselves. This will automatically tell them a lot about you and what you’re capable of. Many writers will tell you that their blogs have won them all kinds of different jobs and contacts – even though the topic of their blog had nothing to do with the actual jobs!

If you can home in on the best reason you can find for people to visit your blog, you should announce that reason in your email signature. If you want more footfall to your writing blog, you need to focus on finding ways to announce your blog to people – just like your email signature.

It’s a common enough feeling, since having a writing blog means putting your own thoughts and feelings on the page. But then that is generally what a lot of readers will read your blog for – they want to know what it’s like to be a writer and much more besides.

Personally I love having a writing blog.

Do you have your own writing blog?

I remember being very excited at starting to blog for the first time. I had a sticky start with a free blog that was eventually got rid of (by the blog network I was on) for having an affiliate link in it. Shame on me! At least I think that is why it disappeared; I discovered they don’t bother replying to emails to tell you why you strayed off the path.

Anyway that’s a different story. I realised that if I wanted a writing blog I could control 100%, I needed to have my own domain and hosting. And let’s face it, neither of those things costs very much.

Don’t put off starting your own writing blog – the sooner you do it the sooner you can get the benefits from it.

There are lots of benefits too; I listed as many as I can think of here, but you can probably think of more:

• you get to share your writing experiences with other writers
• you get feedback and interaction with other writers
• your writing blog can be monetized in various ways to provide another stream of income
• you can find clients directly through your blog
• you can show potential clients what you are made of and how solid your writing skills are
• you can gradually start to reach a bigger audience – something you wouldn’t have been able to do before

I think those are the main plus points to having your very own writing blog. There must be more. I know I have found clients via this blog who I wouldn’t have found otherwise, and because I also have a professional website under my own name, I can direct people there if they want any more specific information about hiring me.

So am I glad I got started on my own personal writing blog?

Absolutely! I have noticed a steady increase in readers and visitors over time (thank you!) and while it may not always be visible on a daily basis the visitor numbers have definitely been moving up month on month.

Hopefully this will all provide you with some encouragement for starting your own writing blog. Believe me, it’s worth it in ways you may not realise straightaway. If you are a new writer and you haven’t got any clips to show people when you apply for work, it’s good to be able to direct them to your blog – especially if it has a reasonable amount of content on it. It can bring you work, clients, colleagues and much more besides.

What will your writing blog bring you?

I am writing this blog post at 10.14pm.

Do you get overwhelmed when you think about writing for yourself? (photo credit to nkzs at http://www.sxc.hu/profile/nkzs)

I have completed all my other work for the day and taken some time off in between those jobs as well.

And now I feel able to get a few moments in to contribute to my own blog – but only now all my other work is completed.

The thing is, by the time I actually sit down to write a blog post it practically writes itself.  Not literally obviously – although sometimes I wish that were true.  No, what I mean is that I have already thought through the topic and planned everything out in my head.  By the time I have got it all down on paper (or in this case, on my screen) everything is sorted and it takes minimal editing to bring it to the stage of getting published.

And I think this method of writing causes a problem at times.

I mean, look at today – it’s well into the evening and getting towards my bed time and I am only just now writing a blog post.  Is this the best method for doing things, or am I putting my own work behind that of my clients?

I give my client work a very high priority and this is as it should be – after all, they bring in a good income for me.  But this doesn’t mean I shouldn’t set aside any time for my own writing either.  And if truth be told, if I could sit down and get on with writing a blog post (or an article to promote one of my own sites, or any similar task) before starting my client work for the day, it wouldn’t take long to do it.  No more than half an hour or so at most, I should think.

So I may give this method of writing a try.

After all, by the time I get to the end of my working day it is all too easy to think, oh I’m tired, I’ll quit now and get on with writing that blog post tomorrow.  But this doesn’t get me to where I want to be.  It doesn’t result in any advancement towards some of my personal goals.

Watch this space – I may just be back soon to start writing about my progress with putting a tiny bit of myself first….

Yes there has been a bit of a gap between this post and my previous one.  But things have been busy on the writing front.

It has made me question whether trying to slot my writing blog somewhere into my day is really the best way to do things.  Do you have trouble fitting in your own tasks when it comes to the rest of your writing?

Of course, client work must take priority.  But there is nothing wrong with trying to find a way to fit certain other tasks into your working day.  And that is why I have decided to start the week with a blog post, instead of adding it to the bottom of my list.  You see, when it sits at the bottom of the list it is easy to leave it out and push it onto tomorrow’s list instead.  That is not going to happen today, as this is the second thing I have done, after a spot of editing to get me into the swing of things for the day.

I am still adding the final touches to my professional writing website, to be aimed at clients, so it is very near completion and will be launched soon.  Ideally it would have been launched by now, but the last thing I want is to launch something that isn’t fully ready.  So keep an eye out for it; I will have some promotion work to do once it does finally get rolling.

You can look forward to more blog posts coming soon as well – and if there is anything you would like to see me blogging about, do let me know.  Meanwhile it’s back to my first selection of articles to be written today…

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Hi there everyone; well it’s been a busy week here with lots of work for regular clients, some new work from new clients and a viral infection to top it all off with!

I’ve also been exploring some other blogs recently and one of them did a recap on some of the most popular posts they had published recently.  I thank them for the idea and if I can remember who did it I would mention them by name!

Anyhow, here are five popular posts you may have missed in recent weeks on My Online Freelance Writing Career:

1. Here’s what 5 days of hunting for online writing jobs can get you (good for motivating you to start that writing job hunt)
2. 5 reasons you should think about becoming a professional blogger (good for starting down a new avenue of writing perhaps?)
3. Why HubPages can be very good for your bank balance (good for the fact that it was the very first guest post on my blog, from Julie-Ann Amos)
4. Making good use of your bookmarks toolbar (good if you don’t actually use it!)
5. Why regular tweeting is good for all writers (good if you are considering getting started on Twitter)

So there you go – five top posts with five reasons for reading them.  A bit of a stroll down memory lane but worth it I think.  Keep on writing!

And don’t forget you can subscribe to my RSS feed to make sure you don’t miss a single blog post in future.  There is plenty more coming soon.