The Savvy Scribe

Send us Fan Mail

How do you get a byline and the interest of the editors in a publication you love? Let’s hear some tips from my guest, Amber Petty!

Key points in this episode:

– Amber shares how she got into freelance writing rather than her background in arts

– Some of her favorite publications she has written for

– Pitching and how to do it right

– Great places to pitch

– What is a byline

– How to gain the interest of the editors and readers

– How to overcome writer’s block when pitching

– How many times should we be pitching

– What’s the response time from the editors

– How pitching works

– How to get your first gig when you don’t have work samples

About the Guest:

Amber Petty is a writer/teacher in Los Angeles, who’s written for the New York Times, Parade, Greatist, Bustle, Thrillist, MTV, and some less fancy publications. In addition to writing, she helps creatives break into freelance writing and get bylines in fun places like Vox, Vulture, Polygon, Huffington Post, and lots more.

Connect with Amber:

Website
Instagram

Additional resources mentioned in the show:

–  Go to Amberpetty.com to download her free resource - a list of 250 publications that pay for your writing. It includes the masthead or submission info for places in a wide range of niches. 

– CovertKit 

– Ulysses – if you are doing different types of writing or you just want a space that’s not on Google Docs or just kind of a separate space for it, download it on your phone and on your computer, and it saves automatically.

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

Nothing feels better than when your contract is signed and your client is ready to go forward with work! How can we make ourselves look stellar from the start? By having documents ready to go, the client can move faster with upcoming work. Today, I am going to give you 6 documents you should always have on hand as a freelancer. In this digital age on hand means in a folder on your computer, Google Drive and/or a CRM that holds files, I like HoneyBook.

Documents you always need on hand for clients:

• Rates sheet
• Proposals
• Contract
• Invoice Template

Connect with Janine:

LinkedIn
Facebook
Instagram

Additional resources mentioned in the show:

• Honeybook
• IRS W9 form

More episodes related to freelancing!

• Episode 190: What Should I Put Inside My Contracts?
• Episode 171: How To Get Started With Freelance Writing – Back To Basics
• Episode 156: The Power Of Community
• Episode 150: Top 10 Tools For Successful Remote Working
• Episode 151: The Writer’s Guide To Getting Organized

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

Freelancing can bring a lot of advantages but can it can be challenging, too. Listen in as my guest, Laura Briggs shares her tips on how to prevent freelance burnout so you can enjoy your work!

About Laura Briggs

Laura Briggs is a three-time TEDx speaker, freelance writer, and the author of five books, including the Six-Figure Freelancer. She used to be a 7th-grade teacher, and she was in a Ph.D. program at night. She suddenly realized that she didn’t see herself doing that same thing for 30 years in a classroom and just collect that retirement. She literally Googled how to become a freelance writer and gained several longest clients. Freelancing is something that she always seems to come back to, and she fell in love with it.

Key points in this episode:

• How Laura started her freelance career
• How she fought freelance burnout over many years of freelancing
• Her tips to prevent freelance burnout
• Things she hates to deal with as a freelancer
• Reasons why we experience freelance burnout

Connect with Laura:

LinkedIn

Facebook

Instagram

Resources mentioned in the show:

• Operation Freelance – a program that educates and trains military spouses and military veterans with the tools, skills, and strategies as they start their freelance careers.

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

Finding evidence-based research to use in our writing is essential for standing out in the health writing space. Knowing how to find sources to help patients distinguish real information pertinent to their diagnosis can be tricky, but I’m here to provide three ways to access and find sources for free! 

Tips inside this episode!

• Check your hospital library – when I was writing papers for my BSN, I would often use the library and rarely saw anyone else inside. You may also be able to access library resources through the hospital intranet.
• UpToDate is an expensive subscription, but if you’re a hospital employee, you can ask the librarian for a home access.
• Websites such as WebMD, Healthline, and other credible sites ending in .gov or .org are great for sourcing.
• BONUS tip: if you’re looking to interview someone as a source, check Facebook groups related to that area and you’re sure to find someone willing to be interviewed.

I have more episodes that will help you find sources for your content writing!

• Episode 183: Research And The Right Way To Do It With Katie Momo
• Episode 172: How To Simplify Content Creation With Jen Liddy
• Episode 150: Top 10 Tools For Successful Remote Working
• Episode 144: Create A Process For Your Content That Can Be Replicated

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

Today’s episode is about ghostwriting tips with my guest, award-winning book writer, Dr. Cindy Childress. If you’d love to consider this niche, join us to hear her 3 time and money-saving tips today!

About the Guest:

Dr. Cindy Childress is an expert ghostwriter and book editor for entrepreneurs who want to write books that make money and impact. Her business, Childress Communication, won two Gold Awards with the International Business Awards 2021, Company of the Year in Business or Professional Services and Company of the Year in Media and Entertainment. Her clients got on to achieve bestseller status, give Ted Talks and win book awards, sign book deals, and more!

What’s inside this episode!

• 3 time and money-saving tips
• How Dr. Cindy pursued writing
• How she entered entrepreneurship
• How the process of book writing works
• Important questions to ask when writing a book
• What are ghostwriting interviews

Connect with Dr. Cindy!

Facebook

LinkedIn

Instagram

Visit her website, https://cindychildress.com/

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

There are a lot of resources out there for introverts who need to sell (and you will if you want clients), but for today’s episode, I am going to answer your question: “should I use a script for my discovery calls?”

What’s inside this episode!

• Two things I need to have to clients
• Some things to remember when going on a call with a potential client
• Using a script during a discovery call
• A recap of the last 5 discovery calls I had and what my clients said on those calls

Connect with Janine!

LinkedIn

Facebook

Instagram

Resources mentioned:

I am revamping my course Plan, Produce, Profit so please watch out for the new content, tips, and skills that I am going to tackle during the sessions. If you’re looking for some scripts to use, we have lessons and scripting inside my course for nurses who want to become freelance writers. Want to learn if building a freelance nurse writing business is right for you? Join me on my upcoming webinar, How to Start & Grow Your Freelance Nurse Writing Business in 2023! 

I have more episodes related to doing your discovery calls!

• Episode 179: How To Approach Discovery Calls
• Episode 180: How Many Discovery Calls Do I Need?

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

Today, we’re talking about things you should put in your contracts. If you’re a member of the Plan, Produce, Profit course, you’ve heard me talk about contracts many times, but why are we so scared about them?

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. I’m a nurse. But all this information I obtained from different lawyers. This is not legal advice. Please take this with a grain of salt. Know that it’s something that you should put inside a contract, but when you finally get a contract together, it’s important to maybe get it looked at by a lawyer so that you know it’s legit. 

What’s inside this episode!

• The importance of having a contract
• How to overcome your fear of creating contracts for your clients
• Essential things you should never forget to put in your contracts
• The benefits for you and your clients in having a contract
• A tool you can use for creating and sending your contracts

Connect with Janine!

LinkedIn

Facebook

Instagram

Resources mentioned:

Manage your projects, book clients, send contracts, proposals, and invoices, and get paid using Honeybook — and avail 20% off for one year using my referral code!

I have more episodes related to having contracts!

• Episode 59 – Easy Steps To Create A Contract Process With Damion Jenkins
• Episode 4: Getting Paid as a Freelancer

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

Today, we’re talking about why every business needs a website. My guest, Thomas Uzuegbunem, joins us today in this exciting episode of The Savvy Scribe podcast!

Key points we’ve discussed:

• Why every business needs a website?
• What kind of businesses need websites?
• Some website-building platforms to try out
• How to have a website
• The best platform to use if you’re looking to implement SEO strategy in your website
• Comparing website-building tools
• He suggests a better website tool for content management
• Basic yet essential things that must be added to the website
• Website design tips: fonts and colors
• Where to buy a domain
• What domain variation to choose
• What makes a website easy to navigate

About the guest:

Thomas Uzuegbunem is a registered nurse in Oklahoma and currently works in GI. His expertise is in ICU mental health ranging from inpatient to outpatient, all sorts, from pediatrics all the way to like geriatrics. He is the owner of NurseMoneyTalk and also hosts the NurseMoneyTalk, a podcast that talks about a nurse’s career, struggles and life. and the Nursing Student podcasts. He has another podcast which is The Nursing Student podcast which talks about all things nursing school and what it takes to become a nurse. Thomas aims to help nursing students become nurses and excel in their career and their nursing life. He thought of doing something different in the middle of his nursing career which eventually led him to the trail of building websites.

Follow Thomas on LinkedIn! Check him out and subscribe to his YouTube Channel, the NurseMoneyTalk, a channel geared towards nurses’ and nursing students’ struggles and challenges where he also shares his insights to help overcome them.

I have more episodes related to website-building!

• Episode 182: SEO Basics and 5 SEO Writing Tips With Drashti Shah
• Episode 184: Should I Put My Pricing on My Website?
• Episode 149: Demystifying SEO: What Matters Today With Ryan Morgan

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

You can manage time even if it’s hard to do. Yes, you heard it right, it’s really hard to do, but you can! Let’s dive into this episode and grab some tips on how to manage time as a writer that you can implement this week.

Time… you don’t have enough of it and it goes too fast.

But in simple terms, we all have 24 hours in one day. We can all make those excuses and we can all give up.

I'd love to talk about time management and productivity. The best time management tips I will share with you come from our coworking events inside my Plan, Produce, Profit course. Inside that event, we hold each other accountable for completing tasks. Sometimes it’s pitching. Other times, it’s writing.

How to Manage Time Effectively

Whatever your goal is, we get it done on that day. But how can you implement that into your normal life? I’m going to give you ten tips not only to manage time but how I even manage my household to make the best of my working time.

1. Plan your week ahead.
2. Create repeatable tasks every week.
3. Get one of those little closet organizers for your kids and or yourself.
4. Get up early or stay up late.
5. Pomodoro all day long.
6. Start a morning routine.
7. Do not plan 8 hours of deep work. 
8. Go on walks often.
9. Power nap.
10. House ritual

I have more episodes that contain tips to help you manage time and become productive!

• Episode 44: 168 Hours In A Week – Use Them Or Lose Them
• Episode 35 – Batching Work: The Optimal Way To Productivity
• Episode 36 -When Should You Plan Your Week?
• Episode 161: Time Vs. Money With Deanna Gillingham
• Episode 98: Finding Time To Write With Emma Dhesi

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!

Send us Fan Mail

The common question I get from writers is, “how do I find clients?” I’ll be tackling this topic in this episode today, but then I want you to think of another question that you have to answer first. That is, “who are my ideal clients?”

Let’s dive in!

Key points in this episode:

• How to find clients that fit you
• Different scenarios with different ideal clients
• Ways you can find your ideal clients
• Where to find your ideal clients

We talk all about finding clients inside my Plan, Produce, Profit course when we have our open Q&A sessions.

Want more tips? Check out these episodes that share more information on how you can find your ideal clients!

• Episode 105: Identifying Your Ideal Client With Kelly Whitman
• Episode 111: How To Build A Brand That Attracts Your Ideal Client With Moriah Riona
• Episode 175: Creating A Potential Client List
• Episode 141: How To Make Your Portfolio Stand Out When Applying For Freelance Jobs With Aly Goulet
• Episode 136: Creating Leads In Your Business As A Freelancer With Craig Cannings

Welcome to the Savvy Scribe Podcast, I'm so glad you're here! Before we start the show, if you're interested, we have a free Facebook group called "Savvy Nurse Writer Community"

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and visit savvynursewriter.com to help you get started today!

Support the show

FOLLOW & REVIEW THE SAVVY SCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS

I appreciate you following me and listening today. I would LOVE for you to subscribe: ITUNES

And if you love it, can I ask for a review? Select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review.”

If you’re ready to start exploring if freelance writing is your next PRN job or even full-time, I invite you to check out the Savvy Nurse Writer Community on Facebook and the Plan Produce Profit  + Writing Skills Course to help you get started today!