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Malaclypse
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14 Oct 2008, 12:02 pm

I write a lot and would like to make money off of it. What's the best way/s to go about that? What safety measures should I be wary of? And so forth.

The only thing I know is to contact a publisher and send away drafts, or to publish my stuff online, perhaps on a blog.
What publishers would look most kindly on newcomer science fiction writers and the like? Do I have any other lucrative options than the two listed above?

I don't necessarily want to make money directly; more get a feel for how appreciated my work might or might not be, so just making myself noticed is an option.

I'll appreciate any input, especially from experienced people. Thanks in advance!



PilotPirx
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14 Oct 2008, 12:10 pm

If you don't care about money, you can just publish it for free on the web.

Otherwise I would recommend getting a job as journalist. It's not sci-fi, but gives you lots of experience writing about everything. Forcing you to write good texts about something you're not interested in should boost your ability to write about the things you like. (In my experience, and I read a lot, most of the writers with a good feeling for language worked in that area.)


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Malaclypse
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14 Oct 2008, 12:18 pm

Thank you for the tip, PilotPirx! Since I am not confident about being able to get any work done when I'm around people due to sociophobia, got any tips on how to be a journalist from home? And do you have any elaborated tips on how to get noticed if publishing online, aside from letting friends spread the word?



PilotPirx
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14 Oct 2008, 12:38 pm

Malaclypse wrote:
Thank you for the tip, PilotPirx! Since I am not confident about being able to get any work done when I'm around people due to sociophobia got any tips on how to be a journalist from home?


True, that's a problem for journalism. At least in everyday journalism you may have to do lots of interviews. But maybe you can write for science magazines, where you can do research at home. But I guess such jobs are difficult to get.
But I'm not in this business, so I just threw some idea in. From my own experience I would guess, that your social phobia may disappear (to some extend at least) if you have something "to do" with the people. I don't like parties and smalltalk, but I can feel quite confident if for example I talk about my work to customers.
It's different to go to people not knowing what to talk about or having a list with questions you want to discuss.

Malaclypse wrote:
And do you have any elaborated tips on how to get noticed if publishing online, aside from letting friends spread the word?


Sorry, no good idea here. Just google around. I guess there are quite some sites that offer to publish texts for free. Maybe some scifi fan sites would do it. The at least would have some readers interested in that kind of text.


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NocturnalQuilter
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15 Oct 2008, 12:04 pm

It is said that the best writers are also the best readers. Most of what you need to know as a green writer has already been published ad nauseum in books about How To Get Published.
I am a columnist for a local magazine- I write about food and food culture. I also read tons about the same topics to get an idea where my skills lie.
Talk one-on-one with other published writers.
Take a free-lance writing job (that is what I do) so that you can write when you want.



YowlingCat
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15 Oct 2008, 4:53 pm

http://www.online-writing-jobs.com/

You'll have to decide whether the offer is legitimate, but most are.