Yesterday my friend Ashlie and I were talking about Christmas cookies and such, and I brought up a mass gift idea that I’d heard of a few years ago. It’s based on Oprah’s annual Favorite Things show in which everyone in the audience goes home with whatever Oprah loves that year–beautiful stationery, a panini press, a cashmere sweater, environmentally-friendly cleaning products, or you know, a car.

The Favorite Things gift bag idea is one in which you get everyone on your list the same gift–a bag of your Favorite Things, or at least things that make your life easier and more enjoyable.

Sadly, I don’t have time to do that this year. Besides, my shopping is done. But, if I were to assemble a a goody bag of things I love for each of my closest friends, here’s the collection of gifts I would curate:

1. A Netflix subscription - Well, you can’t quite put this in a bag, but it’s a major step up from the video rental store days. There are varying subscription levels, and if you have a Playstation 3 or XBox 360, movies can be streamed directly to your television.

2. A bottle of Tangent Pinot Blanc – I tried this one at House Wine in Austin a couple of weeks ago. It’s nice and light, great to pair with Manchego, my favorite cheese splurge, or to just sip without a food pairing.

3. Chocolove Toffee and Almonds in Milk Chocolate – Yum, it is love indeed!

4. No Mo Skeeters Spray from Texas Medicinals – Though I haven’t seen many bugs lately, I have neither forgiven nor forgotten the nasty Austin summer of 2009. This stuff kept the mosquitoes off, without all the chemical junk.

5. Post It Flag/Highlighter Pen – Write, highlight, and stick a Post It on there! This is great for students, teachers, and for readers who enjoy abusing their books.

6. Method Wood for Good Surface Cleaner – Housekeeping is not as fun as chocolate and wine, but this cleaner takes makes me feel like I’m taking good care of my heirloom furniture and preserving the newer stuff. It removes dust pretty easily, and gives wood furniture that just-polished, happy look.

7. A six pack of Mirror Pond Pale Ale from Deschutes Brewery – What I know about fancy beers could probably fit through the eye of a needle, so I can’t really describe this one, but Vic loves it. We get it at Central Market or Thom’s Market here in Austin.

8. A can of Blue Diamond Bold Salt ‘N Vinegar Almonds – Like Salt and Vinegar potato chips, but slightly healthier. Blue Diamond’s Wasabi Almonds are also tasty. Either flavor would pair nicely with the beer mentioned in number 7.

9. A Luon Headband from Lululemon Athetica – What are all these strange words, you ask? I don’t know–branding. What I can tell you is, though I wouldn’t consider myself a runner just yet, I have been running quite a bit the past couple of months. I even completed a 4 Mile Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day. These headbands come in a several fun colors and prints, and keep your hair in place and the sweat out of your face during a jog.

10. How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman – I love Bittman’s simple, fresh approach to cooking. He’s the Minimalist, the NY Times columnist who regularly publishes articles such as Corn, Transformed in So Many Ways and 101 Simple Salads for the Season. Bittman’s book taught me how to boil a chicken and what to add for the perfect stock, plus what to do with both chicken and stock. Whole chickens had always overwhelmed me, but this book makes the kitchen (and the chicken) a little more approachable.

My visit home to San Antonio was a productive and relaxing one, and I’m back with a couple of new recipes. You might try one of these for New Year’s, or really for any occasion. The first recipe features one of my all-time favorites, smoked salmon.  The second recipe combines cinnamon, sugar and butter with crescent rolls and cream cheese. If that’s wrong, I don’t want to be right.

I served this to keep everyone happy while waiting for Christmas dinner: Smoked Salmon Spread, a recipe from the Barefoot Contessa. My version featured a little extra horseradish. Also, I chilled the dip for about 24 hours before serving it to give all the flavors time to get happy.  Is that a Junior League myth, or is overnight refrigeration actually necessary? To serve the freshest food possible, or to let things marinate? There is sound logic behind each option, but you can only choose one. It really is a continuing debate in my head.

Just when I thought I had sampled every cheesecake variation in existence, my second cousin Amber showed up to Christmas dinner with something new. I later found the recipe just where Amber said I would–on the Kraft Foods website, and here it is for you: Sopapilla Cheesecake. This is evil and must be destroyed. Hopefully it won’t sabotage too many resolutions when I serve it to friends for New Year’s.

What did you discover over the holidays? Any recipes to share?

Hi all,

I just checked my blog stats and it looks like I still have readers even though the writing has slowed down, so thank you.

December has been a whirlwind month for me. I finished an eight-month-long project of teaching English to a group of Cuban refugees and finished my yoga teacher training program. Wow, that sounds almost like a sentence from one of those over-the-top Christmas letters. No bragging here though–I’m just explaining why I’ve been MIA.

Also, I’ve been thinking again about the direction my blog will take. When I started blogging, I had just begun my freelance writing adventures. Now, the economy has definitely affected the freelancing world. Survival of the fittest it is, and those who thrive on days spent checking the job boards and sending out queries are doing well. For those of us who prefer a sharper focus on a smaller number of projects, and who frankly don’t like being salespeople, well, business has been a little slower.

The transition I’ve experienced in the past month has been good for me, but I’m not sure it qualifies me to write about how to be a freelance writer. But, that was only part of the plan for this blog anyway.

I also like sharing my cooking and yoga adventures, and am planning to do more of that soon. With all this activity, I actually haven’t been in the kitchen much lately. And, I learned so much in yoga teacher training that my head is spinning, or as someone in my class said recently, my third eye is about to explode. You get the idea. Yoga is a much larger world than I ever realized, and I hope to begin sharing each juicy morsel of my yoga studies with you soon, once I have digested a little more myself.

In the meantime, thanks for continuing to visit the site. As always, feel free to comment away and let me know what you’d like to see on this blog next.

Happy Holidays and stay warm!
Jen

image courtesy of stock.xchng

Good morning, all.

I hope everyone fell back successfully this morning. If you want to spend your extra hour reading, I’ve got some picks for you this week:

For Writers –

• In Tough Times, are You Keeping Your Thinking Tough? – at the Well Fed Writer Blog
• 50+Ways to Improve Your Productivity as a Freelancer – at FreelanceSwitch
• Where Have all the Freelance Writing Jobs Gone? – at Copyblogger

For Everyone –

• What is Rhetoric? – at Writing Forward
• How to Bring Consciousness to Internet Surfing – at Everything Yoga
• Making Corny Dogs at Home – at Homesick Texan

Other Cool Stuff –

A Novel Idea
November is National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. WordPress, the host of my own little blog, is participating by encouraging we bloggers to post a bit of a novel each day. I’ve always thought Chick Lit could be a fun, interesting genre to write, so who knows–I may try busting out a serial novel this month.

Cheap Eats in Austin
If you’re a fellow Austinite and want to continue your lifestyle of frequent restaurant trips while being nice to your budget, check out my new favorite site, FrugalFeaster.com. You’ll find specials listed by day, as well as a list of restaurants offering half-price appetizers.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

This week, I’ve been writing about the process of getting started with a new client and how to educate clients on the process. Check out the first and second posts in this series. Today, the final post:

Step 4: The Timeline and Expectations Discussion
Again, many clients have not worked with a freelancer before, so they will not know how to manage their relationship with you. That is why it’s important to communicate about this in the beginning. I start out asking my clients when they would like the project completed. Some may say “by next Wednesday,” while others are more general. I have had clients whose concern is only that a project is completed by the end of the year.

One thing all clients have in common is they don’t have much time to manage you. So, I take the deadline they give me and chart out a timeline, planning specific dates to send a draft in, receive the reviewed draft from the client, and so on. Telling the client that you will manage the timeline and then actually doing it is generally a huge relief to them.

Step 5: Actual Project Time and Project Completion
Does the client want to hear from you every day? Do they want you to disappear until the project is completed? Are they okay with you calling any time you have a question? The Well-Fed Writer has blogged about the importance of “being forgettable.” Check it out and decide if being forgettable is your style, or if you want to be in regular communication with your client during a project. Then, let the client know what your style is, but ensure her that you’ll be available whenever she has a question.

Also, let the client know what to do once you submit the project for review. Do you charge for rewrites? Do you include one complimentary rewrite in your rate structure? Every writer should decide and let the client know before the project gets underway. Also, when will you invoice the client? Some invoice on a regular schedule (e.g., every two weeks) while others wait until the project is completed. Once you have sent the invoice, be sure to thank the client for her business and mention that if she is happy with your work, you would appreciate any referrals she could send your way.

Working with a freelancer can be a murky and sometimes worrisome process for a potential client. To ease these concerns, and to get repeat business, it is important to first be clear about your own writing process, how much you charge and how much you communicate with a client during the course of a project. Then, clearly and briefly outline this process for the client and stick to it. In the end, the client will be more comfortable working with contractors, and this will make business better for all of us.

Image courtesy of stock.xchng

This week, in series form, I am addressing the question I get from many new clients: How does the process of contracting with a freelance writer work? Indeed, it is difficult enough for clients to manage their in-house staff at times. Clients want you to help them find the easiest, most effective way to work with you. Yesterday I wrote about Step 1, and today I bring you the project discussion, plus the widely-feared rates discussion:

Step 2: Project and Process Discussion
Either via phone or in person, this is where I set aside 30 minutes so the client can really discuss the scope of the project, and often, the history of other similar projects. Presumably, we have already talked in general terms about the project, but usually once a client decides she wants to work with you, she will tell you about other projects she has in mind as well. Be sure to take notes during this discussion and ask whatever questions you have. Also, as mentioned yesterday, this is a good time to let the client know how your process works.

Step 3: The Rates Discussion
Once we’ve discussed the project itself, as well as any other projects the client may need help with in the future, it’s time to talk rates. Most clients I work with are okay with waiting until this point in the process to talk about money, but if they ask about rates earlier, definitely tell them how much you charge. I will write an entire post, or possibly a series of posts, on rates later on, but for now I advise you to decide on a number you won’t budge from before you begin negotiating. Then, agree on a rate and on the scope of the project and get it in writing. Most of my clients have not provided a contract and it has been up to me. Again, most people are not used to working with freelance writers, so getting it in writing may be your job. I recommend Kristen King’s contract template.

Freelance Writing Jobs did a poll last week on rates, so check out that post and the comments to find out what others charge for their work. In most cases, I have found the rates discussion to be a very easy one, and the majority of my clients have felt that my rates are fair.

Next post: the Timeline and Expectations Discussion. For now, would you like to see a series on rates and discussing rates with clients? What do you find to be the most challenging part of this process?

Image courtesy of stock.xchng

Over the past few months, when working with new clients, many have expressed to me that they have never worked with a contract writer before and they are not sure how the process works. To me, this is a perfect opportunity to discuss expectations–both theirs and mine–and, though this may sound ambitious, define a workable process for contract writers that follow me.

There are a number of misconceptions about the writing process. Some are fearful of it, and that’s why they’re hiring you. Then there’s the other end of the reverence spectrum–those who feel you should be able to “churn out” web copy, bios or whatever you are writing for them overnight. Both of these misconceptions are not the way we want people to see writing, so it’s valuable to discuss the writing process.

More important, it’s essential to discuss your writing process. When assigned a press release, do you write it from start to finish in one sitting, give it a quick edit and then hit “send” to turn it in? Or, do you write a draft, let it marinate for a day or two and then send it off? These are questions you should be able to answer for yourself and for your client.

Over the next several days, I will present a series on outlining the process of working with a freelancer. Here is the beginning:

Step 1: Clips and References – I send my prospect clips and references so she can decide if I am a good fit for the project she has in mind. This is where it’s important for a freelancer to have a website set up, so that clients can review samples, testimonials and other information. As she reviews the clips, she is free to let me know if she would like to see samples of other types of writing (e.g., press releases, whitepapers). If the potential client decides to work with me, we set up a time to chat about the project, rates, timelines and expectations.

Next post: the Projects and Rates discussion. In the meantime, what do you feel is important when sending a client clips and references to review? Do you send clips you already have in your portfolio? Have you ever written a sample, per a potential client’s request, for that specific project?

Image courtesy of stock.xchng

A few weeks ago, Parker thought it was a good idea to eat part of a plastic toy. Without going into detail, I will say it was clear that he was processing it and there wasn’t too much to worry about. Still, I took him to the vet.

Everything ended up being okay with Parker, but during our time in the waiting room, I met a man who had taken his dog, a Boston Terrier, in because he had fed the dog grapes. Later, he learned from a friend that grapes are toxic for dogs.

Parker

I had never heard that before, and as soon as my own doggie drama was over, I Googled it. Well, it turns out grapes and raisins are indeed bad for dogs.

Parker loves to hang out in the kitchen when we cook, and he does get some treats from time to time. He likes raw asparagus as much as a bit of red meat. But, now that we know raisins and grapes are off limits, he will not be getting any of those.

Good morning, all.

After several months of trying to keep up with Foodie Friend Jen, Writer Friend Jen and Yoga Friend Jen, I am exhausted. So, I’m trying something new. Now I will be coming to one place to share experiences with cooking, yoga, freelance writing and whatever else comes my way. So far, I have written my “About” page, so check that out. I’ve also added all my favorite links to the right. I don’t add just any link, so I think you’ll like the ones I’ve chosen.

My other blogs are still linked here. If you look to the right at the “More from Jen” box, you’ll see those old, well-categorized posts, so feel free to visit.

In the meantime, if you have any requests or specific things you’d like to see me write about, let me know.

Jen