Customer Reviews

Ready, Aim, Specialize!: Create Your Own Writing Specialty and Make More Money!

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

and Ready, Aim, Specialize! tells you how. James-Enger shares the details, resources, and secrets you need to know about the top ten freelancing specialties: health, business and finance, parenting, travel, essays, diet, nutrition and food, technology, fitness and sports, profiles and features, and home and garden.

If you're not sure which area is for you, just read the first chapter. A simple exercise tells you where to focus.

In "Tales from the Front," James-Enger interviewed over 50 successful freelancers from each specialty for their tips and success stories. These interviews are like having personal mentors who tell you the most important steps to take as you pursue a new area.

Each specialty chapter also includes the nuts and bolts on how to crack the market and a large list of resources. Where do business writers find their experts? Find out in chapter seven. Should travel writers take complimentary trips from travel agencies? Read what the specialists think in chapter 10.

Every freelancer trying to make a living writing should read this book. Why? James-Enger knows what it takes to thrive (she has a six-figure writing income!), and this book leads you step-by-step from everyday generalist to successful specialist.

After reading this book and employing the techniques she recommended, I made my first freelance non-fiction sale...on the first try. Since then I've dogeared and highlighted this book, which has lead to more than ten assignments and a solid beginning to my freelancing career.

Thanks, Kelly, for a great book!

I've been a part-time freelance writer for a number of years, and I think I've been fairly successful at it. However, I have to admit that Kelly's book really made me stop and think about what I was doing. Not only did it give me the confidence to try to make my writing a full-time job, her practical advice has provided me with a way to do it. Though I thoroughly read through her book a few times, I still find myself picking it up again and again, and it's finally got a permanent spot on the bookshelf over my computer desk. I recommend this book to writers like myself who have wanted to write full-time but weren't sure if it was even possible as well as those who want to start a freelance writing career.

OK, so you want to be a writer? Here is the book you are going to start with! You will find crisp, fresh advice from an author who walks her talk. Ready, Aim, Specialize shows you specifically how to build a successful writing career.

You are going to learn how to get interviews, get interviews with EXPERTS, and learn how to get from interviews...to print...and paid.

The text is up to date and will be a resource you will use every week in your career as you break into the hottest markets!Kelly James-Enger shows you how to win in a challenging field!

Kevin Hogan, Psy.D.
The Psychology of Persuasion: How to Persuade Others to Your Way of Thinking

If you're a new writer and would like to focus on a few specific areas, then "Ready, Aim, Specialize!" will benefit you. In addition to advice specific to ten or so genres, each chapter features a helpful list of print and internet resources; if you are an experienced writer you'll probably be familiar with them already, as well as most of the information James-Enger imparts throughout the book.
If you are a brand-new writer and are seeking information on freelancing as a whole, look at "The Renegade Writer." But for those wanting to focus on health, travel, parenting, etc..."Ready, Aim, Specialize!" will give you your money's worth.

Kelly James-Enger thoroughly explains how to earn a living as a freelance writer. She begins by explaining the value of specialization, and then shows writers how to use their education and life experience to choose their own specialities. She follows these opening chapters with an insightful chapter that helps demystify the murky realm of queries. The subsequent case study is a practical and highly useful outline for freelancers who require a clear understanding of the steps involved in getting an article published. Finally, the chapters on ten hot markets serve as a useful guide to specialization, pointing out the rewards and challenges associated with each specialty. James-Enger has not only written a lucid and well organized text, but has anticipated a host of questions commonly posed by freelance writers. Whether your quest is improved productivity or a new career as a freelance writer, this book is for you.

Kelly James-Enger is one of those rare writers who also knows how to share her success with others who strive for a career in freelance journalism. Her book is filled with solid tips on how to break into the marketplace and then create a solid niche for your work. One of her most important messages is to "believe in yourself" - and she is right on target! Bottom line is: If we want people to value our skills, we must first show that we value ourselves. (Review by: Marion E. Gold, author of the "Personal Publicity Planner: A Guide to Marketing You" and "Top Cops: Profiles of Women in Command.)

I have read and re-read this book - most recently with a highlighter and sticky tags. Now I have it front and center on my bookshelf for easy reference. I'm not a newbie writer (10 years as a freelancer), but I was all over the place, and needed to focus. Kelly's concepts have been a big help in that direction.

The thing I like best about Kelly's book is that she walks her talk. I saw her byline five times in women's, fitness, and writing magazines during a 30-minute wait in my dentist's lobby. And these are publications that I know are high-paying. It gives me confidence in what she writes about the business of writing.

She also has a helpful e-zine (sign up at her Website, www.KellyJames-Enger.com), and does seem like a very nice person, to boot.

If you're not getting published as often as you'd like, or making as money as you'd hoped, I'd encourage you to give Kelly's ideas a shot.

Kelly James-Enger shows readers how to effectively start at square one and move to the rank of respected writer/author. The conversational tone of the book is casual enough to put the reader at ease while simultaneously motivating her. If you ever have the chance to hear her speak, take it. She finds ways to impart practical advice in humerous yet useful ways. Rarely do you find someone whose genunine interest in her students is so evident. Kelly is like the one college professor who was so entertaining and energetic that both the material and the class stayed with you years after you earned your degree. Five stars, definitely!!!

Very disappointed in this book. Contrary to it's description, it does not help you develop a specialty of your own, but describes a bunch of pre-existing specialties. The book is really just a collection of magazine quality articles covering the only the very basics of each area. There are entire books written about writing in the subjects of the various chapters that are far more useful as books about writing than is this one. This book could only be useful to somebody who needs the obvious pointed out to them.