Ever have one of those days where you just want to rip someone a new one?

Me too. Regularly.

Yesterday I was happily browsing along, applying to gigs. I sent an email to a potential client, (showcasing my rockstar writing skills) and moved on to the next job application.

Later in the day, I checked my email, to be greeted with a nasty reply about sending unsolicited email, the consequences thereof, and potential legal action.

HUH?

I fired off a quick but hateful response, pointing out that I paid for access to a list of jobs, had applied to one of them, and this was not my fault in any way. I believe the word asshole was used.

Ok, the word asshole WAS used – several times.

Then I thought better of myself, saved the email as a draft, and went to make a pot of herbal tea.

Later, feeling a bit calmer, I returned to the email.

I redrafted a polite reply <the word asshole was NOT included> explaining that I was feeling pretty upset by the situation myself. After all, I pay a yearly fee for access to writing jobs, and I had assumed that those jobs were all…um….people looking for writers.

My mistake.

List owner’s fault – not mine.

So, that was the gist of the email.

I recieved a response at the speed of lighting from the client who’s email had been on the list, apologizing for his  grumpiness. Apparently nasty news in the mail and a flooded email inbox had made him a bit snarky.  Again, the word asshole was used. As in, “Sorry, I was an…”

Crisis Averted.

Today, I got an email from the same gentleman, offering me work.

The moral of the story?

Don’t call people assholes. Even if they’re behaving that way – could just be a bad day.

The real moral?

Be professional in all your business communications, or it’ll bite you in the….

Once you have your writing samples, it’s time to get a website. Potential clients will want to see your rates and learn a little bit about what you offer. Setting up a website is the best way to show off your services quickly and easily.

The easiest way to do this is through a blog, unless you have some web design skills. Blogger and Wordpress both offer free platforms that you can use to get started. Once you’re more established, you can move your site onto its own domain, or pay a designer to build you a site. But for now, free is the way to go.

Set up a site with a brief writing sample, a page of your rates, and some information about the services you’ll be offering. If you don’t know where to start, check out the forums at wwww.wahm.com or www.warriorforum.com – a search for “writers” or “writer rates” should turn up some good information. You could also use your favorite search engine to check out what your competitors are charging.

At this point, it is also a good idea to set up an email account devoted to your budding writing business. It looks far more professional to have an email dedicated to business, and it eliminates the possibility of a business email getting lost amongst your personal messages. I’ve used gmail with great success – it’s web based, and allows you to work from anywhere.

If you’re interested in writing for web-based clients, the first step is to build a file of writing samples to refer them to. Potential clients will want to see your work, to ensure that they are getting a quality writer with a good grasp of the English language in exchange for their money.

If you don’t have a website set up (most new writer’s don’t), you can set up samples one of two ways. The first is to write one or several articles and manually email them to potential clients. I did this for awhile with good results. It’s tedious, but it works well to get the job done. If you choose to do this, be sure to save the file in a format everyone can open, such as word, a .txt file, or open office (a free download – if you don’t have this program yet, check it out, it’s great.)

The second method, which I switched to and prefer, is to set up an Associated Content page and refer clients to it. This way, you make money from your samples, while allowing clients to see a portfolio of your work. It’s a win-win situation.

As you build your business, it’s wise to consider working up additional samples, such as a sample short report and a sample ebook, if these are services you plan to offer. Clients always want to see samples of exactly what they’ll be paying for – be prepared to show off your skills to woo them whenever necessary.