Six Figure Writing

Hi from SueC here at Six Figure Writing! As a new reader, be sure to subscribe to my email list, and my RSS feed to get the most out of SFW. Thanks for stopping by!

I’m reading Seth Godin’s excellent book, Meatball Sundae: Is Your Marketing Out Of Synch?, and it describes the ways some businesses are attempting to jump on the bandwagon of the new tools and services on the Internet but are not quite “getting it”. They’re trying to just layer the latest thing onto their business-as-usual product/marketing/advertising models, and guess what? It doesn’t work.

There are plenty of warnings too - some for freelance writers even. I keep asking the same questions here: Why oh why do writers not take advantage of what the Internet means for communication?? - after all, isn’t communicating our business? - and then complain and moan about how they have to choose between money and writing, between what they love and a living. Hogwash. They are just lazy about breaking out of their comfort zone, and want to stick to the dreams they dreamt years ago (seeing their name on the cover of XYZ magazine? In the window of Barnes and Noble? On Hoprah?) - while the world is changing around them. Yes, the game has changed. Publishers mostly haven’t. Neither have so many writers, I read about dozens and dozens of them on the forums. Here’s a quote (apologies to Mr. Godin for the lengthy selection), he’s talking about Kevin Ryan and Brian Kehew who published a book on the Beatles - and made $300K doing it:

“What’s noteworthy about Recording The Beatles Is what the authors didn’t do. They didn’t give the rights to a traditional publisher. They didn’t fight hard for retail shelf space. They didn’t buy co-op ads with big book chains, and they didn’t try to get on Oprah..Instead, [they] managed to sell every single copy of their book (three thousand were printed) at the very profitable price of one hundred dollars per copy. And they did it by embracing the tactics of the New Marketing…

“By self-publishing, the authors were able to accomplish several things. First, they removed a substantial ‘tax’ (85 percent of the cover price) that a publisher charges to handle thing like retail distribution, advertising, printing risk and staffing…More important, self-publishing took them out of a meatball factory mindset. Instead of publishing yet another book, a book for an anonymous, unseen group of consumers who would somehow find the book they didn’t know they wanted, the authors found a book for the readers they already knew about…Recording the Beatles has generated more revenue than 97 percent of all books ever published. And unlike other books, most of this revenue goes to the authors.”

This book is an awesome read if you’re at all concerned about making a splash or even a ripple with your writing. Isn’t that WHY you are writing? To be read? To be heard? Well, now you can, where in the old-school ways of gatekeepers, it was pretty damn tough. I’m guilty of meatball thinking too, but it’s going to be a real fun ride making all the changes.

Let me know what you’re doing - or not doing - still waiting for that publisher/agent/magazine to call? Or are you growing beyond that?

Tags: freelance, godin, new marketing, web 2.0, Writing Links

written by SueC \\ tags: freelance, godin, new marketing, web 2.0, Writing Links

I wanted to update you on some “behind the scenes” work I’m doing to bring some great content to SFW. Right now I’m setting up interviews of top writers who market both online and off, but have used the Web in really creative ways to boost their income and their careers. One author writes fiction, the other writes eBooks and more content mainly for the Web. We’ll talk about their successful strategies, what works, what doesn’t. More details to come in the next day or two!

Also, I am nearly finished a special freebie for readers, a “spy” video, where I explore the websites of some successful writers, and point out what works on their sites to attract new readers, keep current readers wanting more, and generally how they promote themselves and their work. I’ll also look at what the writer’s “business” is - it’s usually not just writing! Learn how you can analyze strategies and learn from what others are doing on the Web to increase their success.

A note: Some specials I offer are released first or only to my list; I don’t always have time to post to the blog so I reach out to my subscribers first. So, if you aren’t already on the mailing list, please sign up in the box to the right. Don’t miss out!

I’m always looking for feedback, what you’d like to learn, what you want to know, what you want to see on this site. Post a comment and let me know what you think.

Tags: how to write, marketing for writers, writing ideas

written by SueC \\ tags: how to write, marketing for writers, writing ideas

The big question to answer here is: How can writers make six figures, and is it really do-able?

I see writers online making a lot more than that. And we’re going to look at what other writers are doing to get there. There are a few assumptions I have to set out here:

- Nonfiction is the mainstay of profitable writing. So, if you write short stories or poetry of other fiction, you’ll have to write (at least some) nonfiction. Fiction writing is not the fastest way to get to six figures.

- You are going to be writing for yourself as much or more than writing for clients. The only way to really make money is to create your own assets, not create them for others. (If you haven’t read Rich Dad, Poor Dad, check my list of top books, below.)

- Think strategically about your writing business. You are building a business, so you want at least a basic business plan for how to get to six figures, and by when, in your writing business. (I’ll post a sample on in the comping weeks that you can steal from.)

- Bring to your business objectives the same creativity you bring to your writing. What new ideas will create income for you? That’s what webmasters are doing: hiring writers to create content, then profiting from that content. How can you cut out the middleman? That’s the six figure question. Be creative, look creatively at what these web business owners are doing.
Start by taking a look at some of the links posted here. You’ll see example of what some writers are doing online - or folks who are hiring writers, and how the content is making them money. Make a short list: Are they using page content to sell stuff? Are they selling e-content? Are they using blogs or other frequently updated material? Are they giving away reports or other material to get people to sign up for a newsletter or other list?

What kind of writing do you do now, or could you start doing, that would fit the bill on sites like these?

Tags: fiction, nonfiction, writing business

written by SueC \\ tags: fiction, nonfiction, writing business