Success at writing takes something special. Or completely bizarre. It takes a willingness to take things into your own hands, to rebel against what we’re told, to be that little adolescent that is unwilling to accept what all the grown ups of the world tell us. That’s why I started this blog, because that’s how I view this whole writing career - a quiet rebellion against what we’re told leads to security and success.

So I’ve talked for awhile. I’ve got a back catalog of thoughts at this blog about quiet rebellion. And one thing I learned along the way? There’s a lot of you out there that think similarly. You plug away at writing as a career and/or passion despite your self-preservation instincts, despite advice to the contrary, and many of you have found your own definition of success along the way. Now it’s your turn to speak.

I’m calling all of you writers and creatives that have engaged in quiet rebellion, and I want your posts, articles, links and ideas. I want QRW to feature your posts, articles, links and ideas as a way to demonstrate the power of quiet rebellion. You in?

Here’s what I want:

• Manifestos. Why is being a rebel important to being a writer? Tell us your thoughts.
• Career Case Studies (otherwise known as “Freelance Reality Dose.” You got a story about how looking at things in a different way has enhanced your writing career? How it made the difference in a writing project? Write it up.
• Writers who matter. Got a writing role model/mentor who did things his/her own way, and taught you to do the same? Write it up.
• Resource Review. Know a blog/book/expert we should be paying attention to? Tell us about it.

Why would you want to contribute to QRW?

• Cus it’s cool.
• Cus you can get some of that all-important exposure, with links to your website/blog/social media accounts.
• Cus you can help other writers.
• Cus it’s cool.

Email me at amy@wayfarerwriting.com with questions, comments, or posts that are ready to go.

Let’s do this.

So all you astute and lively readers will have noticed a little slackass-ness to the posting in the last month. An apology for you junkies - momma had to get her shit together on this end! It happens, especially in this oh-so-delightful clusterfuck of a time we call the recession. Gots to focus on paying some bills, and ensuring that paying the bills will continue to happen.

But that’s not all, of course. As is wont to happen at the change of the year, one reflects on things that have happened, and things that have not. I was pleasantly surprised at my year-end accounting to find bigger success than I anticipated with the freelance writing biz in 2008. But I was also struck (read: pissed off and depressed) by how little I have advanced in my other big dream and goal - my creative fiction writing. Glancing around at what ate up all the time I could have devoted to said book, I seized upon the time I spent at QRW. And I wondered: is it worth it? Am I wasting my time and detracting from a greater goal? Should I (gasp!) quit something to make room for something else?

I contemplated it. I thought about tossing QRW to the curb, despite a year’s worth of goodness and some cool folks met along the way. But my inner rebel won’t allow it. It reminds me that I am making my own path, and have been for three years. It reminds me that I’ve built a strong business from nothing, that I’ve created a novel (that, sure, needs some work) from nothing, that I’ve crafted a (smallish but big on the awesome) community here that I love. I’ve done all that. So I can keep working to build my dreams, in my own way, on my terms.

What this all means is I’m still here. I’m going to be posting less, but giving more. A lot of what we read in the blogosphere, and especially the writing world, is rehashed crap that doesn’t help anyone. I don’t want to contribute to that. I want to create something unique and useful, to myself and to you lovelies. And I can do that if I write one or two kickass posts a week instead of five shitty ones.

So what will you see at QRW going forward? More of the stuff you like - snark, sass, some humor, some guts, some tales from the business and creative writing front, and general quiet-rebel-writer-ness. I won’t restrict myself or spoil the fun by setting out more guidelines than that. I’ll be sharing my writing journey with you, and provide a means for you to share with us. That’s what a blog can do. That’s the value it can bring to my work, and to yours.

Hope you stick around for the ride.

Now that we’re back into the regular grind, I find myself not as refreshed as I had hoped after a long winter vacation. So now’s the time I turn to you, my dear readers, for some input.

I’ve been blogging for a year now, and during that time have had fits and starts of motivation and dread. Just as I’m sure many of you understand, sometimes I love blogging; sometimes it feels like an absolute drain on my time.

As I start the new year I’m thinking about time more than ever. Wouldn’t it be better to devote the time I spend blogging to writing my books? There’s never enough time, and if I spend a day writing for my clients, and then add in writing for my blog, I’m cashed. I never have the time or energy to devote to my creative writing.

On the other hand, blogging has been very valuable to me in many ways, and probably will continue to be. I’m reluctant to give that up, but can’t see a direction that will be a good compromise.

What do you think? Any advice for this situation? How about thoughts in general: When does blogging enhance your goals, dreams and time, and when does it detract? Why do you blog, and what do you get out of it?

The contest: Second Annual Breakthrough Novel Award Contest sponsored by Amazon and Penguin. Last year’s Grand Prize winner, chosen from a field of 5,000 entries, received a publishing contract and $25,000: Fresh Kills by Bill Loehfelm.

The official contest site has all the rules, summarized succinctly by Daily Writing Tips:

Eligibility
The contest is open to legal residents (13 years and older) of the following countries:

Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada (excluding the Province of Québec), China, Denmark, Finland, Germany, India, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, Malaysia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Romania, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, the United States (the 50 states and D.C.), and the United Kingdom.

Employees or relatives of employees of the sponsoring companies are not eligible.

Entry
Fiction: unpublished novel by one author (No short stories. No poetry, No previously published work. No collaborations. No illustrations.)
Language: English
Length: 50,000-150,000 words

Deadline
Submissions will be accepted beginning at 12:01 EST on February 2.
Submissions window will remain open until February 8, OR until 10,000 manuscripts have been received.

Check it out!

• How to Feel Completely Unrefreshed After the Holiday Break
• QRW Wants YOU!
• How to Let the Recession Kill Your Business
• Gettin’ Personal and Gettin’ Rebellious

Now go have some freakin’ holidays!

Hate deadlines, and want to passive aggressively boycott them like Peter skips work and bills? Well, hell - step right up and learn how to miss deadlines and alienate paying clients every time!

• Don’t keep a handy list of deadlines. If you cared about your reputation and providing good service to clients, you would want to keep a master list of projects and deadlines, a calendar to guide you as you plan your weeks and months. But you want to get all Joan Jett and don’t give a damn ‘bout your reputation. Forgo the list and keep it all in the noggin. Never fails, right?
• Continually underestimate the time needed to meet deadlines. If you wanted to meet deadlines and actually deserve the cash money that results, you would want to keep track of how long specific projects and assignments take you, and use that information to plan ahead for future projects. Foock that. Take every assignment that comes your way, then don’t start on it until a few hours before deadline.
• Don’t plan ahead. Do it all at once. If you wanted to meet deadlines and, I dunno, get high by huffing the praise that results from a good product, you would want to plan each step of your project. Break it out into sections, and do a little bit each day to keep on task. But staying on task reminds you of your Catholic school upbringing and “idle hands,” so you give it a wet willie and the bird.
• Don’t warn clients about potential problems. If you realized your writing business was a service, and wanted to provide stellar service to your clients, you would keep them updated. You would ask questions when needed, let them know about delays and snags as they happened, and generally keep them involved. But why let those nosy bitches into yo’ bidness? The only contact should be some sweet talk to get the client in the mood to sign a contract, and then some haranguing when they don’t pay. Yeah.
• Keep mutual expectations unclear. If you were a freelance writer that delivered on promised deadlines, you would ensure that each party knew the what, how, why and particularly when of the partnership. But damn – they’re gonna get what they’re gonna get, and they should be happy with it! You’re a writer!

So that’s it! The key to missing deadlines is to slack, communicating to clients and peers that you’re just trying on this career and could care less about longevity. Say goodbye to happy clients and money for food, but dammit – you can’t be rushed! You have principles! And follow these tips, and you’ll have a shitty reputation combined with a hungry tummy!

Like this post? Aw…*blush* Why not sign up for free updates from the QRW via email or RSS? And don’t forget to tell us what you think in the comments below…

Meryl was kind enough to tag me for a nifty meme, and I will happily reveal some of the oddities that make me a QRW. But I’m going to go further. I’m going to add to the questions, with some Q&A on writing, freelancing, and creativity. Cus that’s what this blog is all about. So let’s do this.

Fantastic Four Questions:

1. Four places I go over and over and …over:

• The bathroom
• Subway (the restaurant, near my condo yo)
• Subway (the Chicago Blue Line, Chicago Ave stop)
• Bookstores (it’s a sickness)

2. Four folks that email me regularly:

• Clients (those lovely creatures)
• People who want to sell me penis enlargement products
• My family members that are actually on the interwebs
• University of Iowa. Yes I went there. Yes I loved it. But dudes, you already got all my money! No more! NO MORE!

3. Four places I like to eat:

• Chipotle. You saucy temptress you, I would eat your burritos everyday if I had unlimited funds and no fear of a burrito gut.
• Niu - a fantastic sushi joint (Streeterville, for you Chicagoans)
• Melrose Diner - a 24-hour diner with glorious food for all moods, hangovers, and tastes (Boystown/East Lakeview)
• Chicago’s Pizza. Cliche, I know, but damn, the stuffed pizza is orgasmic.

4. Four places I’d rather be right now:

• The couch, watching some tee-vee
• A dive bar with my live-in lovah, good music, and our crazy friends
• Shopping in Wicker Park/Bucktown (with unlimited funds)
• On an European tour, hitting up the UK, continent, and venturing on into Russia

5. Four TV shows I could watch over and over:

• Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• Lost
• Veronica Mars
• Battlestar Galactica

Quiet Rebel Writer Questions:

1. What do you love about writing, and hate about writing?
I love the zone. No matter how fleeting it is, the moment when you realize you’re writing something pretty kickass, that you are an actual (gasp!) writer, and that your dreams might be attainable, is delectable. I hate that the zone is a little bitch, appearing rarely and for painfully short periods of time. The bitch.

2. What writers do you admire/draw inspiration from?
Margaret Atwood. A phenomenal talent in writing characters, driving plot and blowing my mind. Also: Cormac McCarthy, Octavia Butler, Toni Morrison, Lionel Shriver, and many more.

3. What writing rules do you like to break?
Oh, kids. So many. My favorite? Always contact magazines with queries. I’m a big fan of letters of introduction as an alternative to back-breaking, little-ROI traditional queries, and have gained many clients as a result.

4. What are your favorite words, and what words do you hate?
I love the words, as Word Porn aptly demonstrates. But unfortunately the words I use most often are not unique or learned. Sweet, awesome, fuck. That is my trinity. But bigger words I’m digging today include diatribe, dalliance, and dastardly. Words I hate? Moral. Tolerate. Sarah Palin.

5. How do you take a break and indulge yourself?
Heh heh heh. I get down and dirty, indulging myself with…um…chocolate. Reading. Watching TV. I’m lame.

So now! I invite YOU to tangle with the QRW version of this meme. I won’t tag folks, as that can be seen as a burden for some. Instead - post the answers on your blog as you see fit. Post them in the comments below. Tell us your thoughts to the Fantastic Four questions AND/OR the QRW questions! Get nutty and enjoy.

Like this post? Well hell, pardner, sidle up and sit a spell! Tell us whatcho think below, and why not sign up for that there QRW feed through RSS or email?

Now we turn to the best of the blogosphere over the week:

• Daily Writing Tips gives us 50 Incorrect Pronunciations That You Should Avoid. I felt all smart and superior going through the list until I hit a rough patch. I put the emPHAsis on the wrong syLLAble and now I feel silly.
• Nathan Bransford reminds us to rein in the desperation when querying agents. Because evidently some writers just want to worsen the odds and make it impossible to get published.
• “I’m not trying to be mean, but…” Ever notice how that invariably ends with something mean? Like “I’m not trying to be mean, but your ass looks like a hippo’s in that dress?” Bill Brohaugh has his say on the issue.
• The Urban Muse talks up the WOW Holiday Guide for Writers, and gives us all lust-worthy ideas.
• I dig the Word Nerd. She likes gallimaufry. The Word Porn sovereign melts inside.
• English Fail Blog consistently makes me titter like a tittering school girl. And this kind of tea reminds me of my school girl days. “You’re so sweat,” my schoolmates would write. Ah, the teenage morons.

What’s that you say? You want something more? Perhaps in a funny persuasion, but well-written funny? Oh my dears, I deliver. The best humor is well-written humor. And so I give you a musical:

Jesus Christ!

With that, I bid you adieu. Have lovely weekends, and blog at you again next week, when we explore more writers that matter, freelance reality, and more!

Like this post? Gee, thanks mister! Why not sign up for free updates from the QRW via email or RSS? And don’t forget to tell us what you think in the comments below…

But will the recession kill your freelance business? It sure will! Just follow these tried and true, business-killing, asinine maneuvers, and you’ll be on your way to failed freelancers’ purgatory!

Slash your prices. That’s right kids, it’s a fire sale and everything must go! That custom brochure you were selling, with deep branding analysis and personal touches, for a highly reasonable and putting-food-on-the-table fee? Will anyone gimme $5? Sure, you could maintain your fees to communicate your solid, unchanging, unyielding, undeniable worth. But instead, why not cut those fees to the bone and communicate your utter desperation?

Lower your standards. So you like writing for marketing firms, or legal blogs, or medical practices, eh? No time for preferences and qualms now, folks! Start trolling on eLance and Craig’s List, and get used to sending blind resumes to ads like this:

Searching for Article Wrtier: Looking for someone who writes magazine articles. This is a non paid project but it will give you exposure.

And:

Writers Needed: If you can write on a variety of subjects and turn out content fairly rapidly, you can submit as many articles as you want. The pay is $15.00 per 800-word article (that gets accepted). I know the pay is kind of low but it quickly adds up. Let me know if you are interested.

Sure, you could keep your focus on the clients that matter to you, and continue to build relationships in your field. And of course you could enhance your product and your process to make those clients happy. But hark? Is that the shrieking cry of the financial banshee, with her never-ending refrain? “RECESSION!” Nope, better lower those standards. Because nothing builds your business and keeps it solvent during lean times like putting in more work for less pay.

Ignore Marketing. What? Market, you say? In this crap economy? Goodness gracias no. Now’s the time to sit tight, stay small, and wait for people to come to you. Sure, you could invest in your business with a tightly targeted, inexpensive email or direct mail campaign, communicating your bang for the buck. Sure, you could contact past and current clients to check in and inquire about potential project needs. But better to retract into your shell, sweeties. Recession!

Get Scrooge-y with Your Money. Reinvest your precious funds back into the business? Purchase some online classes/texts on marketing/business/writing to educate yourself? Focus your personal branding with new marketing aids? Holy fuck, are you insane? Now’s the time to be stuffing money into the mattress, babies! Sure, some might say it’s a great time to build skills, re-strategize and enhance your business image, so you can be the best damn freelancer in the world. But that’s the crazy talk of crazies.

Panic publicly. Why not just succumb to the ludicrous levels of panic beamed into your brain from the news, your concerned family and friends, and your suddenly erratic cat? It feels so good to give in…it’s like going to sleep when you’re hypothermic…all the pain will be gone…So yes. Announce on your blog that you’re going into crisis mode. Send emails to all your clients that haven’t expressed any concern about their fees that you’re slashing rates. Let that whiff of desperation become a full-on huff in your application/marketing emails. Sure, calm and collected reasoning might be the key to weathering this storm. But…the Dow is slipping/up/diving/climbing/exploding and the whole world is going to hell! PANIC!

Give Up and Search for Full Time Work. Yep, time to cash in. It’s never going to work, and it’s time to face it. Sure, you could take heart in the idea that people will always need good writers, and a recession might even mean less full-time workers and a greater need for freelancers. Sure, you could remember that you started from nothing and built up a business, a remarkable feat of confidence and skill that will keep you going through the rough times. And of course, you left full-time work for 501 reasons that still exist. But that doesn’t matter! You’re screwed. Time to go back to the world that screwed you every single day.

Follow these key steps, my faithful readers, and you will be on your way to being another recession victim!

Have your own suggestions for how to kill your business during a recession? Tell us about it in the comments, dearies!

Like this post? Well geez, how could you not?? Tell us about it in the comments, and don’t forget to subscribe by RSS or email…

“But how on earth can I contribute to QRW?” I hear your query and provide your answers:

Guest Posts:

You, too, can be a quiet rebel writer! If you’ve got a story to tell, a rule to break, or otherwise awesome post in your head, send it on in!

Ideas/Recommendations:

Writer Profiles: Know a kickass freelance writer/creative in the bloggy or real world that should be profiled? Are you a rockin and rebellious writer ready to open up? SHARE, babies!

Rebellious Resources: Want to know if a specific writing/creative book is worthwhile, or a waste of your cash money? Tell me what you’re curious about and we can review it right here. Interested in writing a review? Bring it!

Creative Community:

Us creative types are often introverts, but we occasionally need other living, breathing folks to connect with. That’s what blogs like this are for. But we can do even more.

Most creative writing groups suck, filled with pompous asses, folks that take themselves way too seriously, and intimidating setups. I’ve tried a bunch, both in person and online, and have yet to find a winner. So it’s time to form my own.

Introducing the QRW Creative Writing Group, an online group free of intimidation, anxiety, and douchebags, and full of writers like you.

If you have the masochistic desire to write creatively, you should join. If you are frustrated by other writing groups and want an open, comfortable, ass-free zone, you should join. If you are writing a novel, plotting a story, pounding out a play or poem, or even simply dreaming about doing any of this, you should join. If you like Quiet Rebel Writer, you should join.

So join up, kids! We’ll have discussion, Q&As, and also show-and-tell. If you have ideas, they’re welcome. If you have questions, cool. If you’re psyched, fuckin’ a, I am too!

Sign up today!

Final Note:

For ideas, guest posts, recommendations or other communication, email me here, or post a comment below. And don’t forget to check out the new QRW Creative Writing Group!