Five ways to give your writing career a fresh start

Whether it's the New Year, the new school year, or simply a new you, there are times when writers tend to start over or re-focus on their writing careers. Here are five ways to give your freelance writing career a fresh start.

1.  Clean Out Bookmarks, RSS, or Other Blog Feeds

As a freelance writer who works virtually, your blog and writing friends are your virtual water cooler. Make sure the blogs you visit regularly are nurturing you. Do you get actionable steps? Do you find valuable freelance writing jobs? Are you active in the genre? Consider adding one or two new blog feeds, perhaps in a genre you'd like to explore, or maybe the blog of a editor or publisher, as opposed to writer's blogs. The new perspective is very helpful!

2.  Polish Off Your Reading List

I'm not sure I "believe in but I do know that unread piles of books, magazines and papers sitting around my office make me nervous. And anxious. A fresh start entails catching up on your reading list. Magazines like Writer and Poets & Writer are excellent selections to read monthly for fresh ideas and new instruction, but they don't do you any good if they pile up and cause anxiety. Stay caught up! It feels so much better.

3.  Polish Up Your Resume

Update your resume so that it's ready to send off when you see that juicy copy writing gig. Add not only freelance writing jobs that you've recently completed, but also style systems that you've mastered, books that you've reviewed, or new skills that you've learned.

4.  Pare Down Your Pitch List

Many writers have some kind of list or way that they track ideas they'd like to pitch to magazines or newspapers. What would happen if you pared down that list? What would happen if you concentrated solely on your very best ideas? How might that improve your career?

5.  Catch Up All Recording Activities

Whenever a writer asks me how to set rates, I insist that they know about how many hours a project takes them. If you haven't already done it, set up a simple spreadsheet in which you record project and hours. Of course, all writers should also have a record of expenses out versus revenue in. Catch up all of these recording activities so that your new start is as fresh as can be!