Savvy writers and freelancers all know that it's who you know, not what you know!

A solid contact book is a huge asset for journalists, copywriters and content writers and this week Rachel and Lynne talk about how to find and nurture your contacts - and how to organise them so you can find the right expert at the right time. 

This podcast is sponsored by our good friends at Rounded, easy accounting and invoicing software, made just for Australian freelancers and sole traders. It’s everything you need to make freelancing easier! Find out more at https://rounded.com.au/ 

The Folk CRM system Rachel talks about is here: https://www.folk.app/

The Source tracker on Rachel's List is here: https://www.rachelslist.com.au/toolkit/product-category/freelance-trackers/

Rachel's List is: https://www.rachelslist.com.au/

Rachel's own website is: https://rachelsmith.com.au/

Lynne's website is: https://www.lynnetestoni.com/

This week - the end of our financial year - Rachel and Lynne talk about fatigue. Ever since we spoke to Madeleine Dore about the cult of productivity, we've been mindful of not ignoring our fatigue levels and trying to be kind to ourselves. We recognise when we're at our best and when we're just pushing through  to feel a bit ahead the next day. 

We share our tips about how we stay fresh, relevant and how we both avoid burnout.

This podcast is sponsored by our good friends at Rounded, easy accounting and invoicing software, made just for Australian freelancers and sole traders. It’s everything you need to make freelancing easier! Find out more at Rounded.com.au.

Rachel's List is here: https://www.rachelslist.com.au/

Rachel's own website is: https://rachelsmith.com.au/

Lynne's website is: https://www.lynnetestoni.com/

Building a personal brand may sound a bit 'ick' to some writers, but it is a vital marketing tool for your freelance business. Branding expert Emma Lovell takes the awkwardness out of branding with her fun and practical approach. She is Rachel and Lynne's guest on the podcast this week, showing why creating your personal brand is important and how it can bring you more business - and the right clients. 

Find out more about Emma through her website: https://lovellycommunications.com/

Rachel's List is here: https://www.rachelslist.com.au/

Rachel's own website is: https://rachelsmith.com.au/

Lynne's website is: https://www.lynnetestoni.com/

We're long-time fans of Madeleine Dore, a writer and interviewer who's spent five years asking creative thinkers how they navigate their days on her popular blog Extraordinary Routines (and podcast Routines & Ruts). And in this episode, we chat to Madeleine about what she's learned from the project and the book it inspired: I Didn't Do The Thing Today. This lively episode delves into a completely different way to think about productivity, and freeing yourself from productivity guilt in general.

Psst! Don't forget to head to the blog at Rachel's List to win one of 3 x copies of Madeleine's book (winners announced Friday, June 24!)

More about Madeleine

• Extraordinary Routines https://extraordinaryroutines.com/
• Madeleine's website https://www.madeleinedore.com/about
• Win the book! https://www.rachelslist.com.au/blog/holding-things-lightly-an-extract-from-i-didnt-do-the-thing-today-a-giveaway/
• Buy the book https://www.booktopia.com.au/i-didn-t-do-the-thing-today-madeleine-dore/book/9781922351500.html? 

After a successful career in high-profile magazines, including as editor of the Gourmet Traveller Wine magazine, writer Kayte Nunn turned her hand to commercial fiction. Now with seven books published, she shares her journey with hosts Lynne and Rachel talking about making a living doing what she loves and why writing novels is all about the long game. 

Connect with Kayte via her website: https://kaytenunn.com/ and pre-order her new book, The Only Child, due out in September.

• What marketing managers need from freelancers
• How freelancers can add value and gain more work
• How to develop your freelance offering to be even more appealing to large corporates and companies

Get in touch with Therese via her website: https://www.theresetarlinton.com/

or connect via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/therese-tarlinton/

We share our top six tips on how to start and build your own writing business. 

We talk about building a network, optimising digital marketing, branding and developing your website, why you shouldn't be fussy, being prepared and professional, and the importance of community.

Some of the tips we mention are:

Calendly, https://calendly.com/

The episode with Katie Hull on Google my Business is https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/why-content-writers-and-other-freelancers-need-a/id1478510876?i=1000519719074

The episode with Emma McMillan on great website content is https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/creating-great-website-content-with-emma-mcmillan/id1478510876?i=1000554021064

Rachel's List: https://www.rachelslist.com.au/

Kate Toon's membership list is here: https://www.clevercopywritingschool.com/membership/

This week, Rachel and Lynne return to their occasional series of interviewing successful freelancers, with their chat with Lucy E. Cousins, who specialises in health and wellness and has her own successful content agency, Remedy Content. Lucy shares her journey in magazines and journalism, as well why she focuses on evidence-based science in her health articles and why she always adds the 'E' in her name. 

Find out more about Lucy here: https://www.remedycontent.com.au/

or on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/lucyecousins/

Links to apps and ideas mentioned in this episode:

Brene Brown talking with James Clear on her podcast https://open.spotify.com/episode/1FCDXnrrXo9d7VTTX7bi4E

Atomic Habits https://www.booktopia.com.au/atomic-habits-james-clear/book/9781847941831.html

Forest App https://www.forestapp.cc/

Focus tool on Macs https://support.apple.com/en-au/guide/mac-help/mchl613dc43f/mac#

TeauxDeux https://teuxdeux.com/

Imagine spending your days coming up with recipes, baking and taste-testing and photographing your creations for your blog. Sound good? How about making a living out of doing that? Well, that's just what Jess Holmes from SweetestMenu.com does with her days - after a career as a copywriter and content designer for brands such as Flight Centre, Intuit and News Corp. In this episode, Jess talks to us about: + her journey from in-house writer to recipe tester and food blogger + how the pandemic helped her blog grow + balancing the need for SEO and also doing posts she wants to do + how she makes a living from food blogging + how advertising works on blogs and the numbers you need to get started + the social platforms that have been the most helpful in growing her blog and traffic + what she outsources, and much more. More about Jess Find recipes on her website  Check out Jess's Pinterest Follow her on Instagram