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What is a Freelance Writer?
By J. Martin, Poet/Writer

To the writing world, a freelance writer writes for magazines or newspapers. They receive a fee based upon the number of words or price per written piece and time involved. Freelancers contract their work independently via telecommunication.

To the layman, writers represent a world that is only for the glamorous, namely Hollywood. They envision a novelist such as Alice Walker, Dean Koontz or James Michener. At some point in their careers, they too may have freelanced. Now their novels are sought after by big producers such as Spielberg, Pollack or Bruckheimer.

Like those other not-so-glamorous freelancers, I seek to write for the love of the art form as well monetary gain. Upon telling someone that I am a freelance writer, I get a funny look followed by a settling “ Oh! ” It was because of these reactions that I felt it was time to set the record straight. People have misconceptions about freelance writers. They do not have any idea what we do.

Writers get bad reputations as freakish nerd-types that are tied to their computers. They are labeled as starving artists, lazy or lacking in professionalism. Consequently, they are not taken as serious competitors. They may as well be daydreaming , because no one is going to pay them what they are worth.

As a writer, my profession is a serious undertaking. I write on a contractual basis for businesses or individuals. I write everything from articles to press releases and beyond. I also do my own marketing and promotion.

Make no mistake, it takes great skill, courage and determination to become a freelance writer. It also takes a bit of luck. Most freelancers are grossly underpaid and their work often overlooked. Because the market is vast and ever changing, it becomes necessary to find a different niche or combine other services, such as graphic art or photography. The biggest push for writers now are grant writing and technical writing. Both areas require some extensive training. These career fields are not easy to get into, especially in the higher echelon of pay.

Freelance writers are a rare breed. They are born with the natural talent; they just have to discover it and perfect it. This a lone could take years. A writer knows this and yet is patient enough for the moment of truth. Whether you read a line in a newspaper, an ad in a magazine or laugh at a joke on television, just remember they were all probably written by a freelance writer.

 

Art Embraces the Past
By Juanita J. Martin

Eyes of long ago,
relate desperate tales of industrial reign,
in a grand house of history.
Through magic of an artist’s medium,
artifacts take another breath of life, in the New Millennial Age.
Myriads of concepts blend, to accentuate a simpler style and place,
that’s impervious to the span of time.

 

 

Art and Artifact:
New Perspectives

Public Exhibit
March 12 - June 25, 2005
Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum
© 2005

 

 

 

Destination:
The Future... All Aboard!

By Juanita J. Martin

The future is calling us to unknown regions. There are untapped resources, miracles to be unveiled and mysteries to be solved. Are we ready to answer the call? The future for women is bright and hopeful, despite the telltale signs we see everyday.

Breakthroughs in medicine, healthcare and industry will help us along the way, as we discover things to reinvent ourselves, our land, and rediscover the energy that fortified this country’s resolve. With the addition of a brand new history-making stem cell research institute, the potential for cures for disease are hopeful possibilities. It also brings with it a whole new arena of career opportunities. Savvy entrepreneurs, many of them women, are the future of tomorrow’s business. More women are CEO’s of companies, although they still lag behind in numbers to their male counter parts. In the future, this number will be even. More companies are providing women with childcare and flexible hours. Online training and virtual offices will make it possible for women to care for small children and still run an office or take on a new career from home. More women are the inventors of today. Women are inventing products to help the busy woman business mogul simplify her life. Quick meals, easy kitchen gadgets, hair products and beauty products run on infomercials all night long. Necessity is the mother of invention. After all, it was a woman and a mother whom invented the diaper. Technology has and will continue to become more user friendly and reasonably priced. These are things that women love besides style and convenience. Everything from cell phones to PDA’s are at our disposal. Women today buy these gadgets more than men use to. Cell phones are a girl’s best friend in the 21 st century.

In some ways, we have not reached our potential in this deeply divided democratic society. We are still plagued with heart disease, aids, cancer, domestic violence, racism and social-economic disparities, despite our technological gains. Technology alone will never solve all of our issues. Issues in the next 100 years will be the same and worse, if the faces of democracy and leadership do not change. In addition, women in the not- so – distant future will have to be concerned with extreme heat and poison from a non-existent protective layer, no health insurance, no pensions, purchasing solar power, possibly purchasing air to breath, purchasing androids or robots, and perhaps permanent home- schooling, in lieu of traditional schools because they may not exist, due to lack of funding. I believe the future of women and the United States, lies in the first woman President. She will be a pivotal point in reaching true and total equality and a step in the process of changing things that impact the lives of women. This is our hope to some degree. Hopefully she will be sensitive to the needs of all women in general than the current administration. I believe that we will have such a President, whether it’s Hillary Clinton, Chelsea Clinton or whomever. Are we ready for an African-American President? Why not? Shirley Chisholm took a chance in a time when it was not popular to be a black woman senator, let alone a black woman senator with a strong opinion running for the highest office in the nation. Perhaps it is time. Maybe I might be the one. What do I see in the future? As I travel the countryside leading to it, I see more women-owned home-based businesses. I see more women in high positions in city, state and federal government making 6 figure incomes. I see women being recognized for inventions and advancements in medicine like never before, such as women finding the cure for aids or cancer.

I see the future economy become a paperless system altogether. I see us moving toward a moneyless system where coins will be obsolete. I was in a place recently where a candy vending machine only accepted credit cards. If I had unlimited power, I would rid society of its ills including underlying hate and racism, homelessness, unemployment, violence, gangs, pollution, hunger and diseases. The women working toward a more viable future are our own local heroes, like myself whom volunteer in their communities. Our teachers, nurses, mothers and friends have the courage to stand up to a society whom can be cold, indifferent, perhaps prejudice at times. They are not ready for change. Sometimes society is not ready for the diverse population that surrounds them. Diversity is not always reflected in the hearts and minds of all people. If this were true, would we still be revisiting legislation from 40 and 50 years ago, to try and reverse decisions that our parents and grandparents fought and died for? Many of them were women fighting for equality for poor working families. As we work toward this future, we must have the same passion and insight our sisters before us had. We must believe in our hearts and minds that we can not only make a difference, but a positive, permanent change, that will have an effect on society as a whole. Not only do we need to have open hearts and minds, we must educate ourselves to become better and stronger than our competition. We must bond together as women, just as we did when we were children. We organized our time and we shared with each other. Now as adults, we have to organize our future so we can be the first to share in the profits, build a legacy for our children and be in control of our own destinies. Why should we allow someone else to make the rules, when they are not sure of the game they are playing?

Just like before, we hold the future of women in our hands. Most importantly, it’s what we do with that future that really counts. Even more so, we as women are the future literally and respectfully. We have to be the leaders. How do accomplish this? We have to be flexible. We cannot be like a rubber band though. We have to be assertive and on point at all times and firm in our decisions and convictions. We have a voice; we must use it to create a future that is fair, trustworthy and color-blind. We must have a future that is fair in practice of law, finance and government. We can no longer allow the powers that be placate us with their stodgy, inconsistent and irrelevant ways. The future will constantly move and adapt and we must be able to do the same.

- 2005

 

 

 

The Artist in Me

My canvas is my soul for I paint with words;
my brush is my pen that flows across the page.
Each time that I speak or write,
a masterpiece is created;
a Picasso of ryhme; a Rembrandt of reason.
My muse provides colorful undertones
that mask the ills of society.
With bold intellect, I blend majestic landscapes
with brilliant kaleidescopes of imagery.
Untapped regions, full of possibilities are
transcended and transposed into
exuberant collages of elegance without end.

- published in Artes,
a paper of the Vallejo Artist Guild