Virtual Staffing Assistant ( VA ) Jobs

I wrote a short post about virtual staffing companies sometime back. Last couple of weeks, I have been pretty much focused only on freelance writing and writers. Sorta playing to the base, you know. You keep your base happy, and you can govern with a 51% majority. Unless reality intrudes and your virtual concepts and mandate get washed away by a tidal wave of democratic reality.


Never before have I have felt so totally like an ignorant klutz on visiting a website. So am I living in a virtual world or are they?

Anyway, that's another story. From now on, I promise to make posts keeping not only the base ( starving writers ), but all sectors of freelancers on the net in mind - Transcriptionists, translators, data entry typists, virtual staffing assistants, CSR's and even good-for-nothing bloggers. So, here's today's listings solely for virtual staffing assistant jobs, contracts and freelance gigs, VA directories, etc. In short, all the tools you need to start your own virtual staffing business.

Virtual Staffing Jobs :

Craigslist virtual staffing assistant jobs - Even though these posts get filled up very fast and you might be reading backdated entries, these are mostly companies who keep hiring virtual assistants. So it wouldn't do any harm to send off an email application.

What you will need to get a real virtual assistant job ( Huh! ):

1. An internet phone software which allows you to recieve and make calls inside the United States from your PC ( if possible for free ).
2. A virtual fax number which allows you to send and recieve documents from and to fax machines.
3. Fast typing speed.
4. This one is optional, but does give you a lot of credibility, which you might need if you don't have prior experience as a virtual assistant. Get yourself certified by the "The International Virtual Assistants Association" (www.IVAA.org).

Do some googling, set yourself up the right software ( don't spend money on it just yet ), maybe get certified. Then start sending applications to companies and employers in the list above and in the previous post about virtual staffing companies.

Successfull VA's seem to call it their business rather than a job or a gig or a contract. They are certified, have a website which lists their experience, expertise and references. In short, a website is good way to sell yourself as a VA to prospective employers. You may find the employer through job boards, in which case you just refer him to your website, instread of sending a resume or the employer may find you through search engines. Hence the term "Start your own virtual assistant business".

Here's a couple of examples which might give you a good idea of what you need to do:

www.allisonlane.com
www.wilsonva.com

And once you have a good website, you might want to add your link to a few directories which list virtual assistants:

IVAA members directory ( It costs money to be a member. You decide whether it's worth it or not. )
UK virtual assistants directory
Canadian Virtual Assistant Connection
Virtual Assistant Directory

Blogger Jobs Nov 2006

So is it a weblog or web log or we blog? And if it's just a blog, what happened to the we? Guess when you're talking to yourself, there is no we, huh?

But even if you get one of the paid blogging gigs, it's better than talking to yourself on your own blog. What? I don't fall into that category. See, if you're reading this, I ain't talking to myself and if you're not, then you don't know that I'm talking to myself. Uh...Maybe I need to get some therapy....

There's not enough blogger jobs for a weekly post, let alone daily posts. So I'm starting this monthly blogger jobs post, in addition to posting any available blogging gigs in the daily freelance jobs posts.

Most visitors and posters on blogs are bloggers themselves. I don't see how scratching each others' backs will help anyone go pro other than trying to trick Google and Yahoo into throwing you a few bones.

Take a look at these jobs. You never know...

Blogger wanted for online chat meeting ( Craigslist SF Bay )
Movie blogger wanted ProBlogger Jobs Board
Looking for fashion blogger Craigslist SF Bay
Alternative energy blogger needed Craigslist SF Bay
Freelance blogger wanted Craigslist Miami
Blog and forum poster Craigslist SF Bay
Honeymoon blogger Craigslist Honolulu
Political blogger wanted Craigslist DC
Political and tech blogger Craigslist Orangecounty
Asian mag looking for bloggers Craigslist Manilla

Obviously, some of these blogger jobs might not be available by the time you click on the links. But still...happy blogging.

Freelance Jobs 18th Nov

Get paid to watch videos ( website posting )


News and Analysis, Technoscience and Cyberculture, Celebrities and Cyborg Anthropology. Uhh...ok. Let's get on with the jobs...

Web content writer

Article writer wanted

Web content writer for online radio station

Bloggers for music news

Freelance tech writer wanted

Keyword optimization for articles

New York city blogger job

Freelance copywriter wanted

Writer to write about and for writers

Strategery for Staying The Course

Even if you're doin a heckuva job, doesn't mean that you ain't goin to get a thumpin. Uh...What do I mean? Nothing much. Just wanted to use some Bushisms and make a whole sentence which makes some sense. Obviously the strategery ain't working, but you got to stay the course. Maybe it'll make adsense®, even if doesn't make sense.

Is strategery an actual Bushism? Meaning, did President Bush invent the word strategery? Nope! It was a comedian who did.

Anyway, what I do mean is that there's a couple of things you can learn from President Bush and his Iraq adventure:
A - You're doing a lot of things. Some of them work and some of them don't. What you need to do is work out which one is working, dump the rest which are not working and focus all your time and money on the one which is working.
B - It needs a lot of perseverance and staying the course. Some days it'll work, other days you'll feel like you're an insignificant speck of dust in the scheme of things, but you put your head down, stay the course and follow the strategery. Course, you have to be sure that the strategry is sound, and it's gonna hit the bullseye, sooner or later.

What's all this bloviatin got to do with freelance writers? I refer you to this post "A Penny For Your Prose". First time I read the article, it just seemed like sound advice. After Madonna, the author of the article, posted a comment, I re-read the entire piece, and it's astonishing how many things I missed in the first read.

For one, she mentions a bunch of publishers who pay budding writers and authors. I did a bit of googling and a couple of useful links are posted below. Secondly, and the main point of all this bloviating, is that you have to write and submit. Write and submit. Write and submit. Every time your article is published, you get paid in some form - whether it's three jars of honey, a linkback to your site or in hard cash. In the end, it all adds up. So what I'm going to do is change a few gears and increase my writing output. If it looks good, I'll be looking for cash. If it's crap, I'll sell it for chocolate or a linkback. So either I get cash or traffic, which in the end make for good adsense®. How's that for strategery?

Thank you Madonna and thank you President Bush, for the inspiration for this post.

Ok. Here's the links:

Writers Resource - TheMarketlist Online

Thema - Submissions

Freelance Jobs 16th Nov

Web link description writer - Click Here
Writer for Technical User Manual - Click Here

Translator ( English to English ) - Click Here
Comment: That's US english to UK english.

Computer needs human web content writer - Click Here
Comment: I knew machines couldn't win the war!

Literary journal looking for submissions - Click Here
Article writer for working women - Click Here
Another mag looking for submissions - Click Here
Freelance Technology Writer - Click Here
Trailer Park Cooking Show Writer - Click Here

Write For Cash

I know that most of you are already freelance writers, probably much better than me. But there's so many publishers and site networks and portals and vertical portals and blog networks and paid content and article sellers on the web, that I thought it might be a good thing to list all of them in one place. It's not possible that you're writing for all of them ( you might be if you you're one of those aliens from a Spielberg film with a couple of heads and a few dozen hands ), so this list might come in handy in case you're looking for new freelance or contract writing jobs.


www.twoheadedblog.com deserves a link because firstly, he's the only writer with two heads ( sorta ) and secondly, he's also a tree hugging librul ( at least for the next 5 years ), when at age 35, he plans to become a conservative. Nice timing, huh? He'll be a conservative just in time to see Jeb Bush become the Prez.

Anyway, I'll list here all the places on the net where you can get paid to write ( some of whom have paid me a lot over the last few years and some of whom I'd like to see pay me a lot over the next few years.) So, here goes nothing:

About.com - Be A Guide
Pays upwards of $500 USD per month. Hard work, hard to get, hard to maintain and ferocious competition. But once you get the hang of it, you can get sweet checks worth $1000-1500 USD every month. The company was recently acquired by the New york Times company, so you'll be part of a very prestigious network.

Adapt, Inc. - Get Paid to Blog
Graded pay based on the word count of your blog post. $300 USD cap per month ( not that you'll make that much...). Still, it's good money for blog posts.

Suite101 - Freelance Writers
Get paid for your articles based on the number of page views. Pays $2 USD for 1000 page views. Again, it's debatable how much you can make. Far as I know, they ain't paying so much now. But still, if you can generate traffic to your own articles....

Wisegeek - Contact Wisegeek

I'll have to complete this post later. Got a few pending "works of art" to take care of. If you have any links to add, be my guest.

Update: Ok. Let's get on with it.

WriteForUs - Uhh..Login?
Yeah. Yeah. I'll update the link if / when I find it. But don't hold your breath.

ExpertVillage - Become An Expert
There's a bit of history and background information about this one. Personally I haven't signed up, but that's only because I'm not an expert. Neither do I do videos. All I can do is type, and then some. Anyway, it's your call.

HowToDoThings - Become An Expert
At first glance, it may not seem like something you want to do. But it gets really interesting later on. Believe me.

Bloviatin

Taking a break today from the usual schedule. No articles, no emails, nothing except pure blogging. And since I'm free, I'm going to take the chance to catch up on the news. Been reading all the news and bloviations on the net for a few hours. Rove flunked Math, Bush took a thumpin and Nancy Pelosi is measuring drapes ( BTW, did ya know that Pelosi and Steny Hoyer were going Salsa dancing together in 1991? ). Meanwhile, 150 people were kidnapped in Iraq and Japan is quaking after a quake set off a Tsunami warning. So what's new? I have only one question - When does Rumsfeld get his Medal of Honor?
Silly twits that they are, the Yahoo answer guys deleted the question. But Google being what it is, there's always the cache.



It's really very, very funny. Have a look - Ironic Times

Update: Having nothing to do is a pain in the butt. I don't feel like going out, and I've read Newsweek, WashingtonPost, NYTimes, Time, Salon, sundry blogs and TownHall ( just in case some conservatives are feeling unloved ). Plus I've been refreshing Google news like every 5 minutes. Finally I'm back here and so here's some of today's freelance jobs:

Transcription gig - Click Here
Website Editor and Copywriter - Click Here
Comment: Nice gig. If you have the experience and time. I'm gonna apply.
Online retail firm looking for copywriter - Click Here
Writers, Photographers and Cartoonists Needed - Click Here
Blogger and Editor for Video blogs ( vblogs )- Click Here
SEO copywriting - Click Here
Comment: Application sent!
Uh..Blogger wanted...I think...Cause they say if you have done blogging before, that's a plus..Whatever... - Click Here
Book researcher ( writing assistant ) - Click Here
Comment: The book writer sounds like he's been in the sun too long, but if he's gonna pay you...


If you're "witty, prolific, positive, creative, articulate, intelligent, innovative, captivating, unique style, detail oriented, engage reader, picture painting, fresh perspective, able to work with deadlines, peek peoples interest (cliff hanger), willing to, ethically/legally, do what ever it takes type attitude, passionate about our company and its drive+mission+motivation, willing to collaborate/mastermind within/outside the team to come up with fresh ideas, able to move people emotionally into a space of immediate action through their writing"...
then you can Click Here.
Comment: How do you "peek" peoples interest ? They really need a writer, huh?

Freelance Jobs 15th Nov

Writing ain't beans. You need to sweat on it. You write. Then you rewrite. Then you look at your brand new masterpiece. Then you tear it up. Smoke a cigarette. Take a break. Work up the courage to start again. Then you take the first draft, make a few changes here and there and it looks pretty good now. Then you send it off and you're feelin pretty good.


http://www.literaryagent.co.uk - Expert help for newbie writers. How to get published and advertise your writing services.

Time goes by and these small, tiny niggling doubts begin popping up. Did you do a spell check? Never mind, let's do it again. While doing the spell check, you realise the last paragraph on the last page of your masterpiece might as well fit in just below the first paragraph on the first page. After around 20 minutes of hacking and ripping and cutting and pasting, you have no friggin idea where your article starts and where it ends. So you give up on it, and let the chips fall where they may. Where's that cigarette?

Here's today's freelance jobs:

Political, legal and international relations writers - Click Here
Comment: I know for sure I could crack this gig. But I'm afraid I don't want to mix blogging and politics - Not any more. Very toxic combination.

Writer for Latin mag - Click Here

A model, who's a writer herself, wants you to write about her for a writing gig she got to write about herself. If you can figure that out, Click Here

Quips writer wanted - Click Here

Web content writer - Click Here
Comment: It says editor, but I don't see it. Looks like a simple writing gig.

Entertainment Magazine seeks Freelance Writers - Click Here

Wanna write about and for writers? Click Here

Commercail fishing writer? Click Here

Freelance writers - Click Here
Comment: Ad seems normal, but somehow seems a little above board. Sending an email won't hurt, but...

Copywriters needed - Click Here

Online mag looking for contributing writers - Click Here

Blue Blistering Barnacles

Dunno why I just remembered Tintin and captain Whatshisname, but that's what I feel like. I have never, ever done so much research for a single article. I must have scanned wikipedia, google and God knows how many other sites and directories for tiny tidbits.


Uhh...I dunno what it says on the site about the Captain, but I'm sure it ain't pretty. If you know French, you might want to read for some comic relief.

And, that's not all - The more I search, the more I realize that I'm way outta my depth. I'm just beginning to understand the subject matter and write on my own without referring to other sites for spelling, dates and other stuff which an expert on the subject would know offhand.

I also finished writing the article ( just need to go through all of it again ), and what I'm doing now is basically reading other similar articles on the web and I realize how amateurish my article sounds. Really needs more time, but since I blew 4 days, I have no choice but to submit as is. And hope for the best. And pray. And worry.

Crap. How do I manage to get myself into these impossible situations? If my article is accepted, that only means Groundhog day week-in and week-out. If the article is rejected, I'm probably gonna end up drunk. So take a pick.

On to today's freelance jobs:

If you can do Chinese translation, but do not want money, but you want a massage which is not sexual in any way, you might want to Click Here.

All right. All right. That was the first job I bumped into. Not my fault.

Typist wanted ( data entry gig ) - Click Here

Tech / Internet / Business Writer wanted - Click Here

Web copywriter wanted - Click Here

Beauty, style, fashion, shopping, etc. article writers wanted - Click Here

Academic Writing / Research Assistance Needed - Click Here

Prolific Writer wanted - Click Here

Freelance Jobs 12th Nov

I'm gonna get screwed. I've been procrastinating everyday about writing an article for which I had one week. Got 2 days left now. It's funny how your mind can come up with up highly plausible arguments for postponing things which you find you don't want to do - First you want to update your blog, then you're sick, then you're recovering, then you have to do some urgent shopping......I'm thinking of bailing out. It's a highly lucrative writing assignment, but if the first one is causing so much heartburn, I wonder if I can do it week in and week out. Appreciate your 2 cents on this. I'm leaning towards bailing out, but I'm scared I'll regret it afterwards.


WordsOFWellness.com - Vertical portals or vortals on topics related to wellness - Physical, spiritual, financial and lots more.

On to today's freelance jobs ( mostly for freelance writers with a couple of translation and transcription gigs ):

Humanist magazine seeks articles and book reviews - Click Here
Comment: Nice mag. Nice gig. If you can get it.
Short Story Writers - Click Here
Writers wanted - Click Here
Web Writers Needed - Click Here
Freelance content writers - Click Here
Transcription gig ( handwritten to digital ) - Click Here
Outdoor Bloggers - Click Here
Comment: Doesn't mean you blog with your laptop sitting in a cave next to Osama. Means you blog about things outdoor.
Writers wanted for leadership and career articles - Click Here
Website Monitor / Maintenance Job ( Work at home ) - Click Here
Nice gig: No pressure and not much to do. But I reckon the position will be filled up very fast.
Translators wanted ( many languages ) - Click Here
Article writers wanted - Click Here
Comment: Seems a bit fishy, but if you're getting paid....

Writing Jokes For Money - Part II

Prequel

Joke Writers Help!!

Just call 911 ( You did agree to listen to my jokes, right? )

Practical lesson in Standup Comedy

Let's get down to business:
"Two Sisters Reunited After 18 Years in Checkout Line" Why is that funny? Uh...Never mind. I think I need to start a seperate jokes blog..

1. BBC - Getting Started in Comedy - Comedy is notoriously difficult to quantify, and even the most successful comedians and comedy writers would struggle to explain why a joke is funny. But there are tips to take note of and pitfalls to avoid, as Martin Trenaman and Matt Leys explain.

2. Joke Writing Resource Centre - A brief look at how jokes are written, recommended books with reviews, writing for greetings cards, successful lyric writing book and software programs to help you write and drawing cartoons.

3. 7 Ways to Improve Your Joke Writing - You can learn and improve upon your joke and humor writing skills, regardless of genre. As Mills adds, "Every joke is a story with a beginning, a middle and an end."

4. How to Write a Joke: The 7 basic joke forms - Structurally speaking, joke writing problems are exactly the same for anyone trying to get a laugh.

Here's a few available gigs for joke writers:

Urban Sketch Comedy Show Seeks Writers - Click Here
Comedy writers wanted - Click Here
African American Comedy Sketch Writers Wanted - Click Here
Writers Wanted - Click Here


"John Kerry met with Ralph Nader. Both sides of every issue were discussed. And then, Nader spoke." -Jay Leno
I think I wanna do a sequel for this post...

Writing jokes for money - Part 1

A few years back, I was a nerd sitting in my mom's basement chatting online with other nerds sitting in their respective basements. I was told to get a life and a real job. The reason I mention this at all, is because it just struck me how attitudes have changed towards people who make their living online. Even people who have very little or no interaction on the net now think it's pretty cool when I tell them that my computer feeds me.

Course there's a relative aspect to all this - Compared to a Google employee who works from home, I'm trailer trash. Anyway, what I'm trying to say here is that it is no longer a risk to base one's career on trying to earn money online. Hold on, hold on...Don't quit the day job just yet. I didn't mean it literally. Just a manner of speaking...

On to something a bit more specific and related to freelance writers:

Breaking your head over a title for your next article? Click here.
Guaranteed to send you into a tizzy of inspiration and ideas heaven. Else money back. Oh! Sorry - You ain't paying me squat. No deal.

Duh! One would think that Google is bound to know the answer as to whether a blog can make money or not. Well, think again:
Q: Blogging for revenue ( No Answer, 3 Comments )

Just one more crack. I promise. Then we get on to the jobs. Sorry, I can't get you a job freelancing

Ok. On to the jobs:- Today's niche focus - Writing jokes for money. Here's a list of resources, available gigs and of course, the jokes ( C'mon...How do you expect me to write about making money from jokes, if you don't wanna listen to the jokes? ).

Hold on to your hats for part II.

Freelance Jobs 10th Nov

Web Writers Needed - Click Here

Freelance content writers - Click Here

Freelance Editors Needed - Click Here

Got blog? - Click Here

Writer / Researcher - Click Here
Comment: If you fit the bill, and you get the gig, you might be busy for quite some time.

Get Paid to Rant About Books - Click Here
Comment: I've been doing so much reading about book reviews since yesterday that I'm quite hazy about which links I already posted. But, just to be on the safe side, I'm posting this one again.

Internet Start Up / Business Writing Opportunity - Click Here

By the Y... - Click Here
Comment: I have, um.., nothing to say about the needs of the gal, but I do have one question - what's Y... stand for?

Tic Tac Toe Players - Click Here
Comment: Duh. And then you ask me why jobs are being outsourced out of the US. With nitwits like this hanging around on the net wasting their time, it's a wonder the US isn't a third world country already...

Which brings me to this ( Warning : This has nothing to do with telecommute jobs or freelance writers... ):

Third World Workers Need Western Jobs
I'll quote the paragraph which makes me want to puke, if preferably onto the above author's face:
"The issue of child labor has long been a flashpoint in the globalization debate. As repellant as the notion of child labor is, the harsh truth is that a Western company that stops using child labor in some Third World nations does not change the economic conditions that had those children working in the first place. Nor does it change the local cultural standards that accept and expect child labor. Unfortunately, in many corners of the globe, closing the factories and sweatshops to children often just seals for them a far worse fate."



How low can someone fall in order to justify some preconcieved notions? I'm not going to argue about this point by point or provide links to prove him wrong because it's not necessary. All I want to say is that if something you do is right and truthful, you never, ever have to be ashamed of doing it. Is there a single - Just name me one - company which says that "Yes, we do employ child labor, and what we're doing is right"? You won't find one. I wish someone would wake up the klutz who wrote that article and ask him to take a good look in the mirror.

Book Reviewer Jobs

Do you want to pay someone for the honor of reviewing their book(s)? Click Here

Yeah - That's right. They expect you to pay them $25 for letting you write reviews about their books. Now I've seen it all.
Note: This is a joke, ok? This is not a job or gig. If you applied for a review job with the above link, then you need help:


Hope Clark offers the serious book reviewer 70+ publications that pay for book reviews.

All right - I'm sorry. Just making up for lost time. Here's the jobs - 3,060,000 of book reviewer gigs - Click Here. Lemme know how it goes. Bye...

Ok. All right. Calm down. Here's the jobs - Honest:

Chicklit Review Writers Wanted - Click Here

Book Reviewers Assignments - Click Here

Book Reviewers Wanted - Click Here

Manuscript Reviewers - Click Here

Book Reviews Needed - Click Here

Writers and Reviewers Wanted for E-zine - Click Here

And one more - Wanna get $100 for reviewing movies? Click Here

Related Resources:

1. How to write a book review - Click Here
2. One more "How to write a book review" ( just for backup ) - Click Here
3. And in case the above two links didn't help, here's some 57,900,000 more links on "How to write A book review" - Click Here

P.S. : Please read the friggin book before you review it.

Freelance Jobs - 9th Nov 2006

You know, when I started blogging, I had it all planned out. I divided my work into two categories - Short term and Long term. Short term where I get paid for some small stuff, like short articles or reviews or blogging or whatever. Pay ain't something to brag about, but it keeps the wheels turning. And Long term is like where you have to put in a lot of time and effort, without seeing any immediate returns, but lots of castles in the air. Meaning that I was doing both, the short term work keeping me motivated and the long term work giving me hope that one day....Anyway, what I'm saying is that I'm in way over my nose. I have a sore throat, the short term work is piling up and the long term projects just keep getting bigger and bigger. Plus, the Democrats took the Republicans to the woodshed in the US congressional elections, Novell throws Linux users to the big bad shark, uhh...Microsoft and Britney Spears files for divorce. WTF is going on?? Show me some love, huh?


LiteraryAgent.co.uk - literary agents critique book publishers and authors information for aspiring authors and writers

Today's Freelance Jobs:

Contract Writers - Click here.

Grant Writer - Click here.

Coffee Lovin Writer - Click here.
Comment: Yeah, yeah - I know! Perfect gig, huh?

Web content writer for ethnic online dating - Click here.

Short Article writers - Click here.

Vegetarian Blogger Jobs - Click here.
Comment: I've been piling on bloggers in the last few posts, so I'll give this one a pass. But it's really begging for a snark.

Toast writer wanted - Click here.
Comment: I decide I don't want to crack any jokes today and this is what happens. Darn!

African American Poetry Mag ( female )- Click here.

Case Study Writer - Click here.

Internet research, short writeups and Blogging gigs - Click here.
Comment: Sounds good, but there's a small alarm bell clanging somewhere deep inside. I could be wrong, but be careful, huh?

Freelance Online Writers - Click here.

Online Publication seeks Staff Writers - Click here.
Comment: Please read the friggin small print at the bottom of the ad before you apply.

Copy and Write This

Nice pic, huh? If you're in the Netherlands and want some copywriting done, pls click pic to visit 'Kant copywrite' or somethin like that.

Anyway, a coupla days back I wrote about SEO copywriting. Wish I had read the following page before writing that article:

PerceptionEngine.com

If I had bumped into this page a few days back, I wouldn't have had to write about copywriting. I would just have needed to copy and write.

I'm quoting two full paragraphs for those who don't want to read the full article:

"What are the Benefits of Writing an Article for Your Site?

I send you a free toaster in the mail. Nope, just kidding. When you submit an article to PerceptionEngine, you maintain sole ownership of your literary work. You are merely giving me permission to publish it on my website. This means that you can publish your article elsewhere on other websites while it's published on mine, and you can have your article removed from my website at any time for any reason. I'm not a thief, your intellectual property will not be stolen.

In addition, you get free publishing (I put it up on my site), free maintenance (I pay for hosting), and free advertising (I show visitors where it is). You can also advertise your own website in your author's profile. I regularly utilize search engines to ensure that your material is not plagiarised or reproduced without your consent, so I will help to protect your work."

What strikes you after reading that? I'll tell you what didn't strike me - The pain that normally comes after reading a full page and finding out that the cheapskate wants your article for free.

All he's saying is that you get a byline, same as every website which does not pay writers. But he's saying it in such a way that it takes away the pain and the urge to close the window. Makes you pause for a second. God knows how many writers have decided to submit their articles in that brief pause. This is not writing. This is Copywriting.

Again, if you're lookin for today's jobs, that'll be coming in a short while in another post. HA!

Freelance Jobs - 8th Nov 2006

Freelance Writer ( Shakespeare ) 450$ - Click Here

Article writers ( Investment banking and Private equity ) - Click Here

Writers for Music, Art and culture - Click Here

Lifestyle Mag looking for feature writers - Click Here

Personal finance/Consumer credit Writer needed - Click Here

B2B/B2C writer needed - Click Here

Ghost Writer - Click Here

Get ready for some bloviating by yours truly in a few hours. But before that, I gotta do some work, for a change, like writing an article. Deadline is coming closer and I'm starting to sweat a bit. Just a tiny little bit. Nothing I can't handle. I hope...

Ghost Writers

I am, in effect a ghost writer because I sell articles for money, rather than name. I'd like not to be a ghost. I'd like to be a full warm blooded human writer with both money and name, but the evil publishers have banned me to the realm of the hooded writers who recieve only the money and someone else gets the credit.

It burns my heart when I see my articles credited to some nobody, but if I start taking credit for the work, it is my stomach that will be growling. I'd rather let my heart burn than let my stomach growl.

Source: http://www.happinessonline.org/LoveAndHelpChildren/p12.htm ( That leads to an alleged speech about the allegedly ghost written book by Queen Hillary about how the entire village raised Chelsea. )

Ghost writers come in a few mutant varieties:
1. Writers who get partial credit ( say somewhere in small print, at the bottom, where no one can read it.) This would be the kind of gig where you write an autobiography of a celeb or politician who hasn't read or written anything for the last decade or so.
2. Writers who really do not exist. Meaning the publishing house invents a writer and gives the writer credit for the collective work of a lot of writers.
3. Writers who get no credit whatsoever and are compensated purely in terms of money. This would be the kind of category where myself and other, uh..undernourished artists fall.

Since I'm making a living out of this practise, it would be foolish of me to nitpick about there being an element of deception in ghost writing. Does it hurt anyone? Well...Think about it. I write an article on credit scores or debt management. I do a lot of research and finetune the article so that it really looks like I know what I, meaning the author, Not me..uh, anyway...is talking about. End result? Any visitor to the site where the article now resides is going to be impressed and will be more than willing to pay a few bucks to hire the site owner's services.

My point - Ghost writing for web content is a wholly different ball game than ghost writing a book. Can I live with this deception? Of course. Can I sleep at night? Of course. So don't I look like a hypocrite now after making this post? Yes. Should I have written this post? Nope.

If you're looking for the jobs, you'll have to wait some more. I decided I need to make two posts a day. I'm splittin the jobs and my blather into two seperate posts. So now you know which one you want to read. Right?

Freelancers and Freelancing

Pipe down! We'll get down to today's freelancing jobs very soon. Besides Craigslist ain't going nowhere. I want to expound ( or is that bloviate? ) on freelancers and freelancing a little bit first.

A freelancer is, by definition, a dolt who finishes one job and then goes around searching for another job. Or something like that. My point is, besides being good at the job itself, a freelancer needs to be highly skilled at hunting down jobs. A normal person would hunt for a new job maybe once or twice in a decade wheras a freelancer has to do it everyday. In short, hunting for jobs is part of the job. Uh....I don't know how I ended up with that, and you can stop grinning now.

As a freelance writer, I really like the challenge of trying to find a gig and when someone accepts my services, it gives a sense of achievement. But the fun really begins when it comes down to writing the article. I mean, you have no friggin clue about the topic you have been asked to write about. You start Googling and pretty soon a routine assignment turns into a fascinating process of discovery. You learn things you never would have in any other sector. I have done research on and written articles about topics as varied as Moore's law on semiconducters, a HowTo on Backgammon, Medicare woes in the US and other equally interesting topics. This is an aspect of being a freelance writer which I love the most.

Job satisfaction is a word bandied about by HR Managers everywhere. But what exactly does it mean? For me, it means looking forward eagerly to see what today has in store for you. Am I going to write about Art Nouveau or am I going to write an essay about the feeding habits of pet rabbits? Or am I going to bloviate about freelancing on my blog? Either way, I enjoy it all. Question is: Do you?

On to today's freelance jobs:

Tech and Business Writers - Click Here

Rabbit Writer - Click Here
Comment: It's not funny, OK? It's a good gig and you can learn how to tell if a rabbit is a boy or a girl. Ok. It's funny.

Freelance Patent Research - Click Here

Blogger Job ( Nutrition Blog )- Click Here

Bilingual Translators wanted - Click Here

Content Writer wanted - Click Here

Website data entry typist - Click Here

Forgive me, but I have to go rabbit hunting, uh.. I mean, rabbit writing job hunting. Ciao.

Translation and Transcription Jobs

Translation and transcription as a career, at least for a freelancer on the internet, is not something you want to do unless you have the right tools. What this article intends to do is tell you what you tools you need, what you need to learn and where to find translation and transcription jobs after you acquire the required skills.

first up, you probably wandered in here looking for a transcription or translation job. If so, here's the transcription jobs and here's the translation jobs.

However, if you're just starting out, you should probably read on first.

Medical Transcription Jobs

Now this is a totally different issue and I would not advise you to apply unless you have a medical background - And that doesn't mean you qualify if you managed to coax out a couple of your dentist's front teeth while he was trying to pull out yours.


This is serious stuff and you have the lives of patients in your hands. If you still think you're up to it, please follow the links below:

jobs.biohealthmatics.com
www.mtjobs.com

There's a big list of companies like the two above. You can find them here.

Ok. In case you're still reading, and you think this scene ain't bad - Got a lotta jobs and pay's good. Hmmm...Only problem is, you don't know squat about medical transcription. So?

Click here. It would be impossible for me to compete with that FAQ. Read it. Follow it. Don't start spending any money just yet. Just read and learn. Then come back here and read the rest of this post.

Ok. Now that you're back ( you didn't really read it, did you? I know - It's too big. ). Here's how you can get a hands-on feel of the work involved, without spending a dime. And if you're good at it, you might even end up with a nice medical transcription gig.

Tigerfish Medical Transcription

Note: I have come up with these links after spending a lot of painful hours searching and contacting dozens of companies and rejecting every company which asked for money. In spite of this, if you are dense enough to end up paying someone to get a medical transcription job, then you really deserve to be parted of your money.