A Great Research Site For Any Niche Or Topic

If you are a writer, writer's block is bound to take it's toll sooner or later. Do you find yourself, going through the same old re-hashed information? Just can't decide how you want to approach a particular topic? Are you tired of using the same old sources that never seem to be updated? Well, regardless of your topic I have the 411 on the perfect FREE research site that is sitting right under your nose.

I can't take credit for this treasure. A member site I belong to shared this information with me and it is just too good to keep to myself. The site is http://google.books.com . All you have to do is to enter your keyword or phrase and....bam...you get a list of books...not articles, but well researched books on that word or topic.

Most of the books will have a limited preview link. You get to browse through sections of the book like the Table of Contents, or sections relating to your keyword search. You can't read the whole book, but you often see quite of chunk of it...enough to get your creative juices flowing and give you some ideas on what your next article or e-book might be.

Article Marketing: The Best Free Marketing Tool

If you have an online business, or a brick and mortar business that has an online presence, I'm sure you have heard the term " content is king". If you haven't, you will. It refers to the insatiable quest for knowledge and information; the main reason why we flock to the world wide web.

You can load your website with good quality, relevant information...the kind of information your target market wants to hear or learn more about. This sounds great, but it won't have people flocking to your site...you have to let them know that you are there.

There are quite a few ways to do that, but the most effective FREE way to draw people to your site is through article marketing. Helpful, informative, quality content delivered without hype or a sales pitch. People will read your article, like what you have to say, and want to know more about you and what you have to offer. It's a trust thing. You are giving them information they want without asking for anything in return. It works!

Of course it's not that cut and dry. There are such things as keywords and search engine optimization (SEO) techniques, but the bottom line is that you can write or have written an article pertaining to your line of business. Submit it to directories. If done correctly, people will read it, like it, and visit your website by following the link you are allowed in your by-line. No stress, no pressure, no hard sell. Just free traffic to gain maximum exposure for your product, service or business.

Article Writing: Free Tools To Help You Find What People Are Searching For

Writing articles for clients is basically cut and dry. They tell you what they want, you do the necessary research and write the article. Writing articles in your own name to be published, however can be quite another story.

You can write about topics that are always popular like finances, health, making money and relationships. People always want information on those topics. You just need to put a unique slant on information that hasn’t been sufficiently covered and you are own your way to producing a good article.

On the other hand, topics that are currently in the news,and considered "hot" will draw a lot of attention, but you have to jump on the information quickly, because as soon as it makes news, the 15 minutes of fame starts counting down. Here today and gone tomorrow.

Three great places to get free, accurate and timely information on the most current news events are: Google Trends, Yahoo! Buzz, and Yahoo!omg!.

Yahoo! omg! provides current (within hours) celebrity news and gossip. Yahoo!Buzz is great for finding out what is happening in the United States and around the world. It shows the top ten searches as well as adding commentary and helpful background info. It contains an Index Buzz, Up and Coming Buzz, and Top Buzz.

Google trends offers a look as which searches and queries Google users have been recently looking for. It gives you a great side by side comparison graph, so you can compare different keyword searches. Google Trends also offers Hot Trends which shows the top 100 searches people are checking out NOW.

An example of the "hot trends" as of thirty minutes ago are all related to the Super Bowl. People are searching on: How old is Bruce Springsteen, e street band, santonio holmes, macgruber....all things you saw or heard if you watched the game.

Free is always good and rarely found. So if you need a good idea for an interesting, current, newsworthy article or web content check out Google Trends and Yahoo! Buzz for updated , solid information.

Ghost Writing and WordTracker G Trends

Ghostwriting requires mastering tricks of the trade. Keywords are an important part of the ghost writing business and any available help is much appreciated. You may have heard of the free wordtracker tool to analyze keywords. I want you to know that there is an even more powerful tool to help you analyze the profit potential of keywords which provides way more value than listing keywords and long-tailed keywords.
Word Tracker G Trends will show you how many competitive sites have your keyword and how many visitors the site receives each day. The closer to less than 30 thousand sites and the potential for more than 100 visitors per day gives you the recipe for a profit producing website.
You may not reach the numbers exactly, but the closer you get….the better your chances for profit are expanded.
If your job is to provide keyword rich articles, then using Word Tracker G Trends will be your ticket to profitable keywords and phrases. The more information you have…the better you can write keyword rich profitable articles for maximum profit potential.

Is Ghost Writing Recession Proof?

I've asked myself this question over the past couple weeks and still don't have a clear answer. In the freelance writing business, there are two things you can always count on: The first being Internet marketers "generally" think freelance writers are willing to work for practically nothing(until they figure out they can't do it themselves). The other being right before the holiday season, jobs are hard to come by, but pick up right before new year.

With all that being said I experienced the pre-holiday lull, but more interestingly, offers for a barter relationship and a partnership with a complimentary non- competitive online business. Times are tough, but so far freelance writing skills are still in demand, but some potential clients are thinking of creative ways to pay for the services. The next few months will be interesting to say the least....stay tuned.

Ghost Writing is Not About Ghosts!

I guess I just assumed that ghost writer was a familiar term. Seems that I guessed wrong. I have received quite a few inquires about writing articles on ghosts, blogging for a group that "follows" ghost, and writing ghost stories. Sorry, I know nothing about ghosts except for what I saw in the movie Ghost (Special Collector's Edition) and Casper, as in the friendly ghost.

Ghost writing refers to writers that write articles, stories, poems, books etc, and sell all rights to the buyer. This means that when I ghost write an article, I am selling that work to a buyer who will then attached their name to the piece. I cannot resell, or use the piece as my own...all rights now belong to the buyer. Hence the term "ghostwriter". I write for people that can't write, need some help with their writing, or they don't have the time to complete their writing requirements.

A client once asked me if it ever bothered me to write and not be able to put my name on it...Not at all...don't forget, I'm getting paid for it. However, it is nice to see your name in print, so I do publish work in my name. I guess you need a little bit of an ego to be a writer :)

Bid Sites - Use Them Wisely

When I first got started with my ghostwriting business I was very lucky to literally stumble upon a goldmine of information called Content Chef. It literally walked me through a successful process that allowed me to build an initial client base and start my online ghostwriting business.

One of the suggestions was to use bid sites to get your foot in the door. Well, that worked, but here are a few things you need to be aware of. Most bidders are looking for the lowest bidders...period. You will work for less if you deal with bid sites, but the overall objective is to build a reputation and a consistent client base.

I found my very first client on a bid site. She is a good client and has referred others to me. It works...but be careful. If the site holds your payment in escrow until the work is finished, use that option. It is for you and the buyer's protection, the buyer may have to pay a percentage, so it is more beneficial for them to pay you directly through Paypal. Make sure they have a good rating history, before accepting a payment this way. I was ripped by two never to be heard of again "clients" after I completed their project.

Use the bid sites to get your ghost writing business started and to fill in when business is slow. Unless you like working for next to nothing, I don't recommend them as your sole source for clients.

Get Your Writing Read..Ping It!

Freelance ghostwriting has it's benefits. I get to choose my own assignments, write about things dear to my heart and many things that I know nothing about. I love to research so when I get those type of assignments I am amazed at all the information that is out there and what topics people are interested in.

A recent project was for writing eulogies...yes I said eulogies. I know it may sound kind of morbid, but the job was kinda fun. I didn't know that there was a market for such things...but there is a huge one.

In addition to ghostwriting, I also write to get published in my name. Even more fun. I don't care what anyone says...I like seeing my name in print.

Writing for online venues can be competitive and challenging. There is a steep learning curve, but hopefully once I master it, the payoff will be well worth it. I have discovered though in order to get my articles and this blog read by more people, I need to not only share and bookmark them with sites, I also need to Ping them. I don't know what exactly Ping means. But it works! After you update your blog, or get a non-exclusive article published update or ping them with the following sites so your fresh new content is out there:
Ping-o-Matic, Pingoat, King Ping

Here I Go Again!

It's Now October 13th and I just finished a big deadline. Whew! If I didn't enjoy writing so much, I would think that I was crazy. But now it has been more than a month since I last posted, and the promise I made to myself to keep this blog current has once again been broken!! I have decided to put this blog on my work schedule...to make sure I take time out to just write. This past month I completed projects on eulogies, weight loss, natural food products for the skin, short-term medical insurance, constipation and diarrhea in babies, unsafe herbal remedies and Chinese cold and flu remedies...but what I really want to write about is this upcoming crazy election and what's been going on that I have an interest in. Looks like I started....let me keep it going.

Not As Easy As I Thought

Here we are already on August 31,2008. Tomorrow is September 1st and it is Labor Day. I don't know where the summer went. One thing I do know is that being a freelancer writer is not easy. I spent the summer writing and writing and writing. Some say that is a good thing because I had clients. Yes, it is a good thing...but I need to learn to be more selective about the projects I take on considering the time needed to produce quality work.

I got so bogged down at one point, my beautiful and talented niece Taylor helped me to complete one project. She is a great writer...thank goodness, I don't know what I would have done without her.

So much has happened since I started this blog. I can't be sayn what's on my mind, if I don't key it in and publish my thoughts. So,my goal has now gone from having a blog...to actually posting to the blog. Let's start at a minimum of at least twice a week...wish me luck.

I Finally Did It!!

Welcome to my blog. My name is Cheryl Brown, and one of my goals for 2008, was to start this blog. I am a freelance ghostwriter( no..I don't write ghost stories). I write articles and proofread and edit for other people. They put their name on my work, and I get paid for it. It's a great gig,... cause I love to write, but writing for other folks, just isn't the same as writing for yourself. So, that is how the birth of this blog came about. It gives me the opportunity to write for me.
Come back soon and talk to me!