By Beverly Burmeier, chair of the content selection committee

As Jennie said, thinking about producing a collection of essays was way easier than actually doing it. Once the wheels were in motion, we found every aspect took longer than anticipated. But being professionals, it was important to have an end product we were proud of, and the time it took to reevaluate every aspect was well spent. All FLX members who worked on the book in any capacity did so as volunteers.

More than 100 essays, with a limit of two per person, were received by the Content Selection committee during the two-month submission period. We had already determined that the book should contain no more than 30 in order to keep production manageable and to maximize public appeal. An outside person, not a member of FLX, was hired to receive the essays, maintain a master list, and forward essays anonymously on a rotating basis to members of the committee: Beverly Burmeier, Amy Paturel, Meredith Resnick, and Gwen Moran.

First the committee set up criteria (which was published in the FLX newsletter) and developed a point system for evaluating the essays. Essays were read by one reviewer, passed along to a second reviewer if the score was at a certain level, and sometimes read by a third reviewer before a decision was made. Believe me, we agonized over many of the essays, reading and re-reading many times, asking for opinions from other reviewers, and sharing thoughts about how the essays would fit into the book’s theme of relationships.  There was much back and forth; no one hesitated to pass along any essays they were unsure about.

This was a very time-consuming task, but we knew it was extremely important to select essays that fit into the stated mission of the book. We also wanted to be sure the essays covered a broad spectrum of relationship topics and weren’t too dreary (we had a lot of “death/dying” stories).  While we knew the Editing Committee would work its magic in the next phase, it seemed prudent to select essays that would need a minimum of editing.

Even after narrowing our selections, we still kept discussions going. Here’s an excerpt from an email I received from another committee member towards the end of the process: “As for me, I really liked 27, 30, and 33.  I would recommend removing 28 and 31. I’m not crazy about 32 either.”  Everyone’s opinion was valued and taken into account. Finally, we divvied up the essays into the appropriate categories and came up with catchy names for subheads in the book.

Despite the time involved and sometimes sense of floundering we all felt, this was a valuable experience. All the essays came from experienced writers, and many will find homes in other venues. A couple (including one of mine) were withdrawn during the process because they were accepted for publication elsewhere. I’m proud to have had a part in producing Fits, Starts, and Matters of the Heart and hope all FLX members will support the book.

Buy a copy of Fits, Starts & Matters of the Heart.

The freelance writing business is clearly picking up. Just this week, two people have posted about new books. One travel writer is pleased to be blogging for Atlantic. And several people are trolling for source ideas for assignments they’ve gotten in the last few days.

This time last year the forums were full of complaints and tales of slow business woe. But this year on all the forums, including the Corporate forum, writers are talking about new opportunities and contracts with new clients. As one writer said, “Things are looking bright for the second quarter — knock on wood.”

One of the most interesting things on the forum this week is contributed by a savvy blogger and author who was interviewed on the Today Show last week — a marketing achievement that many would like to emulate. She wrote a fascinating and detailed explanation of how she managed this feat, including just being available on a moment’s notice. It encouraged the rest of us to aim high.

A few months ago, we surveyed FLXers as they gathered 1099s in advance of paying taxes. 51 percent said their income from freelancing was between $40,000 and $74,000 in 2009. Another 22 percent said they made more than $75,000. Decent  incomes, especially considering that most of us work from our spare rooms.

64 percent said their incomes declined last year, while 35 percent reported an increase — despite last year’s media meltdown.

I’m predicting that things are going to be even better this year as both publishers and freelancers get a grip on new business tactics and ways to succeed in this changing media world.

Freelance writing used to mean taking an isolated assignment from a publication, writing it, sending back the finished product and hoping that the check would arrive soon.

Increasingly, freelancing is a lot more entrepreneurial, challenging and fun. Here are four FLX entrepreneurs who are making money in innovative ways:

• Two years ago Jennifer Maciejewski, a Georgia-based writer and editor, turned to fellow Freelance Success subscribers to launch CitiesOnTheCheap.com, now numbering 60 affiliated websites that offer alerts to retail and other local bargains. Within a year the sites took off with enthusiastic participants earning revenue based on Google Adsense and direct ad sales. Today, each site is independent, but shares information and links that boost traffic.
• Jodi Torpey started as a business writer, found it unfulfilling and turned to writing about gardening. She published a conventional book on a gardening topic, but found that whole process dull and unprofitable. These days, she’s publishing her own e-books and selling them on her website.
• Kathy McCabe used to be a travel writer and newspaper travel section staffer. Today, she’s the editor and publisher of DreamOfItaly.com, a subscription newsletter for people who are serious about spending time on Italian soil.
• Jen Miller has turned a guide book, The Jersey Shore: Atlantic City to Cape May, into a marketing blitz for herself and the region she knows best.

Writing for somebody else can be satisfying. It’s a kick to see your own byline. But this kind of work can be even better. As Jodi Torpey says, “”It’s so much fun to open up my e-mail and see a note from PayPal.”

For many people, one of the toughest parts of running a writing and editing business isn’t finding work, it’s quoting a price.

A potential client asks what the charge will be for a few hours of work or months of effort. A freelancer figures out the scope of the project, calculates what the job will cost at her hourly rate. Goes back to the client and lays out the quote.

And the silence is deafening. Send it via e-mail and nothing comes back in return. Offer it over the phone and there’s moment of silence, then the client mutters, “I’ll get back to you” – and you know it won’t happen.

How to effectively quote and close the sale is something we talk about often on Freelance Success. Here are six tips from the people who are better at it than the rest of us.

1. At the beginning of the negotiation, ask what the budget is. That simplifies the discussion.
2. Lay out the scope of the work and explain thoroughly why the job costs what it does. That makes it easier for the potential client to understand what she will be paying for.
3. If the client seems shocked by the quote, ask her, “What are you expecting to pay?” The client certainly has a number in her head, even if she’s reluctant to say it. Encourage her to say what it is.
4. Explain what’s good about hiring a professional. If necessary, offer to change the scope of the project so it is less costly.
5. If the gap is still too big – the writer wants $5,000 and the client doesn’t want to a penny over $500 — walking away will save everybody time.
6. Keep it cordial.  Failing to reach a meeting of the minds on this job doesn’t mean the end of what could be a beautiful relationship. Follow up with a thank-you note and ask to be kept in mind for the next assignment.

Is Writer’s Market in print or online worth the $30 or so that it costs?

We’ve been discussing that on the Freelance Success forums. Some people find having a book on the shelf listing publications that buy freelance material to be useful. Others say the book is out of date before it goes to the printer and the Website isn’t adequately updated either.

If you’re not familiar with it, Writer’s Market is a doorstop-sized book and accompanying Website that lists contact information and submission guidelines for more than 3,500 markets, ranging from consumer magazines to trades, newspapers, greeting card companies and literary publications. It has been around for more than 50 years and before the Internet when long-distance phone service was appallingly expensive, it was a fundamental tool for anyone who wanted to earn money freelancing.

Today, it’s not essential, but it can help a writer identify markets that otherwise wouldn’t have popped into her head. It also can be useful to track down editor contact information. It doesn’t include editor e-mail addresses. If it did, it would be super useful, but I’m not expecting it to. Even services like Cision, which charges almost $4,000 a year for single-user access to its editor contact database, can’t keep up with editor staff changes.

What Writer’s Market does do is help identify e-mail configurations. For instance, almost all editors at Hearst Corp., which publishes everything from Cosmopolitan to Veranda, have an e-mail address that follows this pattern: firstinitiallastname@hearst.com. It used to be that you could find those configurations on magazine Websites, but lately many magazines have gone out of their way to hide all e-mail addresses. So knowing the publisher’s standard configuration can help a lot if you’re trying to query an editor who is new to you.

The last time I bought Writer’s Market I bought a used copy for about $2 at one of those remainder bookstores. The fact that it was out-of-date and didn’t provide access to its Website didn’t matter enough to motivate me to pay the full freight. When I cleaned out my office last year, I threw my copy in the trash because I hadn’t used it in at least a year. But if I were new to the freelancing business, I might have hung onto it. You can waste a lot of time tracking down contact info.