Posts filed under 'Events'
Hey, Seattle… I have a couple of free two-day passes to give away to BizJam Seattle 08, the second annual indie business conference being put on in West Seattle on July 9th and 10th by the social networking site Biznik (value $390)! Read on to see how you can win one…
But first, I wanna say, this ain’t yer mama’s biz conference. (Biznik’s motto is “Business networking that doens’t suck” — need I say more?) The first day of the conference is devoted entirely to using social media to grow your biz. The second covers nuts and bolts like raising your rates, negotiating killer contracts, and making sure your website doesn’t suck. (Schedule here.) There’s also an evening shindig on July 10th at the Little Red Studio in downtown Seattle, complete with aerialists, an improv act, food, and booze.
Since I’ll be leading a BizJam session called So You Wanna Be a Published Author? A Primer in Selling Your First Book on the 10th, the good folks at Biznik gave me these “scholarships” to pass along to aspiring and current anti 9-to-5ers in need. To win one of these free passes:
- Email me a short note with your best sob story about your financial woes, boss from hell, freelance struggles, or any other compelling reason why I should give you one of these free passes.
- Swear on your first client’s life that you will go to at least one day of the event and not blow it off. If you have a day job, that means calling in sick.
- Get me your entries by 10 a.m. PST Tuesday, July 8th, which is when I’ll be selecting and notifying the winners — who by the way, will get a nice plug on this here blog, complete with a link to their blog, website, Flickr page, or any other URL they want and a pic of their shiny mug, products, or logo.
- Remember to give me your email address. If you’re a lucky winner, I’ll get you the free conference pass via email. Piece of cake.
Enjoy the fireworks tonight, and try not to lose any fingers!
July 4th, 2008
Hey Seattleites! My Seal Press comrades Emira Mears and Lauren Bacon — authors of this fine book you see to the left — will be in town this weekend for a book reading. The scoop:
Where: Elliott Bay Book Co (map)
When: Saturday, May 17 @ 4:30 pm
What: Book reading and signing, prizes, and a lively Q&A
I’ll be there. Will you?
May 15th, 2008
In honor of Valentine’s Day, I bring you this interview I did with Judy McGuire (Seattle Weekly Dategirl columnist) on love in the workplace for nine-to-fivers, freelancers, and temps alike. Judy’s hot-of-the-presses book, How Not to Date, which features more women and men behaving badly than a Jerry Springer show, had me guffawing out loud. Whether you’re looking for the perfect antidote to this incredibly meaningless holiday, need a few tips on how not to behave around potential paramours, or are happily shacked up but could use a good laugh, I highly recommend it. And if you’re in New York or like getting your giggles by web radio, check out Judy’s east coast events and weekly broadcast.
Q. I can see how screwing your boss, your underlings, or anyone else on your immediate team could come back to bite you in the pants. But what if you hold lust in your heart for someone you don’t interact with on a daily basis, like Darcy in Accounting or Dirk in Marketing? Should you go for it? Any tips as to how?
A. I had a long-term relationship with someone I started off sharing an office with, so I don’t really go in for that whole “don’t poop where you eat” way of thinking. Sure, it might get uncomfortable if things don’t work out, but if you look at the bright side, the resulting drama could entertain your coworkers for months.
Sadly office party season has ended so you can’t do the tried and true drunken lurch under the mistletoe, but there’s always happy hour. Invite your intended out, ostensibly for a group happy hour, but “forget” to ask anyone else. This works best if you can catch him or her while they’re on their way out the door (thus assuring no pesky tagalongs).
Q. Any departments you should never, ever, ever touch, not even with your Mother’s vajayjay? (I’m thinking HR might be a no-no.)
A. Mining the Human Resource department for tail is definitely a bad idea, but I think fooling around with anyone in the IT department is far worse. Those techie types can hack into your email, which is a no-win for any dater. In the beginning, he can read all the mushy crap you’re telling your girlfriends about him — thus costing you any pretense of game — and then after you break up… well, that can be even worse.
Q. What if you’re a temp or contractor who’s going to be out of there in three months? Do the same rules of office chastity apply?
A. But being a temp is like being bisexual — it simply widens your dating pool. Who cares if you’re banging the boss if you’re onto the next job in two weeks? What is it my Nike sneaks are always telling me — “Just do it!”
Q. Many a nine-to-fiver meets their romantic match not at work, but through it — a coworker fixes you up, or your eyes lock across the color copier with that sweet young bike messenger. We work-from-home types miss out on all these potential cubicle hookups. Any suggestions as to how we, too, can exploit our jobs to get laid?
A. Even if we’re lucky enough to work at home in our PJs, most of us still have to either talk or email with other humans. I’ve found that married people are almost always anxious to fix a sister up. They’ll try to fool you into thinking that they feel sorry for your sad single self, but really, your uncomplicated, uncommitted sex life is utterly fascinating to them, so let them have at it. The only problem being is that they’re going to want details. “Wait, you didn’t meet him until ten! At night?!? Did he kiss you? Did you guys, you know, do it?!?!”
That can get kind of annoying, but if you’re the indiscrete type anyway, it’s a small price to pay. Plus, spilling dirty details will inevitably spice up your tragically married friend’s sex life, so you’re really just repaying the favor.
Q. You’re a freelancer who’s lucked into an invite to her star client’s annual holiday party. Do you teetotal, or is it okay to have a glass of wine or three and hit the dance floor?
A. Um, you’re asking a woman named McGuire whether or not you should drink? I’m afraid I don’t understand the question.
Want more McGuire? See her live in NY next week. Listen to her on the radio every Friday. Read her hilarious blog. And by all means, get her book!
February 6th, 2008
WHAT: I’ll be joining Hedgebrook alum Randy Sue Coburn, Roberta Gregory, Kelly Malone, and Lynne Varner in a Seattle reading this week, which Hedgebrook is calling “Writing and the City: Making a Living/Making a Life.” I’ll have some copies of The Anti 9-to-5 Guide on hand, in case anyone needs to pick one up as a holiday gift for Cousin Emily or Aunt Marge. But I’m going to read something else, maybe the essay/story thingie I have in this anthology. Or perhaps some naughty bits from here, if there are no kids around. I also hear that Hedgebrook plans to have a short discussion about regional and national resources for women writers (grants, residencies) after the reading.
WHEN: Thursday, December 6, 2007, 6:00-7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Seattle Public Library, Lake City Branch, 12501 28th Avenue NE, Seattle
ADMISSION: Free!
December 2nd, 2007
Not sure how to beef up your freelance client list? Or how to find a freelance client in the first place? I can help. Starting Tuesday, October 16, I’ll be teaching a four-week online course through the Editorial Freelancers Association, called Cultivating Your Client List (scroll down to second class in list). I offered this class last fall, and now it’s back by popular demand.
Here’s the course description:
Most editorial freelancers will tell you they get their clients by word of mouth. But the savviest freelancers know that harvesting clients is the fastest route to success. In this class, we’ll discuss ways to develop a niche, target dream clients, weed out deadbeats, and shamelessly self-promote (even if you’re an introvert). Whether you’re a writer, editor, indexer, or designer, this course will show you how a little planning and chutzpah can go a long way toward growing your client list.
The lessons I’ll be posting online (in a nifty Yahoo! group, where students can ask questions at their leisure!), cover these points and then some:
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Exactly what makes a “good” client?
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And how do I go about finding them?
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How about weeding out the duds?
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What details should I stipulate in my contracts?
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How do I cold-call a company I want to freelance for?
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When should I follow up (and how can I do so without sounding like a stalker)?
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What should I do if a client changes the project parameters, or stiffs me, or goes out of business?
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How should I structure my freelancer or contractor resume?
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How else can I promote myself on the cheap?
Course logistics:
When: Tuesdays, October 16 through November 6 (four online sessions)
Where: Your computer
Fee: EFA Members $125 / Nonmembers $150
Register: Here
Questions? Contact me
September 10th, 2007
I finally updated my Events page. Here is what’s coming up…
June 21, 2007 - Talk and Q&A on boosting your freelance career
WHAT: “Career Advancement for the Self-Employed”
WHEN: Schmoozing at 6 pm, dinner at 6:30, talk and Q&A at 7
WHERE: Hale’s Ales, 4301 Leary Way NW, Seattle
REGISTER: Online or by voice mail, (206) 781-7315
Sponsored by the Association for Women in Computing
June 24, 2007 - Panel on getting published
WHAT: “Publishing: From Literary Journals to Magazines,” at the June 21-25 Writing It Real writers conference
WHEN: 3:15 to 5:15 pm (on a Sunday!)
WHERE: Harborside Inn, Port Townsend, WA
REGISTER: Email conference@writingitreal.com
July 9, 2007 - Talk and Q&A on boosting your freelance career
WHAT: “How to Cherry-Pick the Best Clients and Grow Your Freelance Business”
WHEN: 6:30 to 8:30 pm
WHERE: Richard Hugo House, 1634 11th Avenue, Seattle
REGISTER: Free for interested editors; just show up!
Sponsored by the Northwest Independent Editors Guild
August 4, 2007 - One-day book publishing workshop
WHAT: “Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Publishing Your First Book (But Were Afraid to Ask)”
WHEN: 1 to 5 pm (on a Saturday!)
WHERE: Richard Hugo House, 1634 11th Avenue, Seattle
REGISTER: Email registrar@hugohouse.org or call (206) 322-7030
Fall 2007 - Four-week class on freelancing
WHAT: “Cultivating Your Client List” online course
WHEN: Exact dates TBA
WHERE: Your computer!
Offered through the Editorial Freelancers Association
October 6, 2007 - Panel on flex and freelance work
WHAT: Seattle Women’s Summit
WHEN: Exact time TBA
WHERE: Seattle University, 901 12th Avenue, Seattle
Sponsored by the Seattle Women’s Commission
To stay updated about future anti 9-to-5 events, subscribe to my mailing list.
June 20th, 2007
Just a quickie to say that I’m headed down to Portland (OR) this a.m. for two Single State of the Union readings. I’ll be joined by the book’s editor, Diane Mapes, and several of the book’s contributors. Though I’m reading from my story “House Without a Spouse,” if you come to either event I’ll be happy to answer your anti 9-to-5 questions before or after the reading.
The deets:
Monday, June 11, 7 p.m.
Powell’s Books at Cedar Hills Crossing
3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd.
Beaverton, OR
503-228-4651
Tuesday, June 12, 6:30 p.m.
In Other Words — Women’s Books and Resources
8 NE Killingsworth St.
Portland, OR
503-232-6003
June 11th, 2007
…Martha Early of EarlyGirl Designs, purveyor these amazing jewels. Here’s her tale of workplace woe, which she promises me is true.
I was a junior attorney at a slimy personal injury firm. The paralegals won a radio contest about why they wanted to throw their boss (the head attorney — biggest cheese of all) out of a plane at 20,000 feet. The prize was a free skydive for the boss. He acted all brave on the radio but told me in private that he was terrified of heights and I had to go in his place — or else. On the morning of the skydive he faked a back injury and I went. While being broadcast on the radio to the whole city, I crash-landed and sprained my ankle. He didn’t care.
Oh, the irony: A Personal Injury Legal Peon sustains an injury trying to save the (Wimpy) Big Cheese of Ambulance-Chasing from his own bodily harm. Priceless! Thanks for sharing, Martha, and have fun at BizJam. And thanks to everyone else who sent in their job horror stories.
June 7th, 2007
If you already are or long to be self-employed and live in the greater Seattle area, you’ll want to know about BizJam, an indie business conference/party happening all day and night this coming Saturday, June 9th. The event is put on by the fine folks at Biznik, an online/offline business networking group that rocks the tagline “business networking that doesn’t suck.” (Here’s some press on Biznik in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.)
I’ll be leading a one-hour workshop on how to ditch your day gig at BizJam. But that’s only one fiftieth of what’s happening at the event. There are a 20+ other workshops and panels for bootstrapping business owners scheduled too, on topics like radical accounting, raising your rates, lining up your own benefits, writing a killer business plan, blogging, raising your Google rank, guerilla marketing, creating an accountability group, and the ever-popular more. BizJam also features a swanky catered lunch, a fashion show, 300 other local indie pros to rub elbows with, and an evening bash — complete with booze, DJs, and an aerialist.
Here’s the BizJam schedule. Here’s where you register for the daytime event, the nighttime soiree, or both. And here’s the time and location for each:
8am to 5pm - Youngstown Cultural Center, West Seattle (View map.)
7pm to 2am - New Little Red Studio, South Lake Union (View map.)
As an added bonus, BizJam has given me one half-price registration coupon for both the daytime conference and evening bash ($65 value, which means instead of paying $130 for the whole shebang, you pay just $65!). And I’d like to give it to one of you! So we’re going to have ourselves a little online raffle-slash-storytelling contest. The ground rules:
- Email me your best 100-word-or-less story about the absolute worst job or worst boss you’ve ever had by 6 p.m. Pacific time on Wednesday, June 6th.
- Entries that look excessively long (obviously several thousand words, despite my request for just 100) won’t be read.
- If you have questions about the assignment, please post them in the comments below so others can benefit from them.
- Remember, your (short) workplace tales of woe in my inbox by 6 p.m. PST this Wednesday, June 6th. Late entries won’t be read.
- All ages and genders and job situations welcome, of course. You don’t have to be a business owner to enter — or to attend the conference and/or evening shindig.
- I’ll notify the winner by email on Thursday, June 7th and post the winner’s name — and story — to this here blog that same day.
Good luck, people!
June 4th, 2007
Confession: Usually five days in NYC has this nature girl clawing at the subway walls, dying to get back to the mountains and sea. Not this time. I soaked up every minute — and enough pizza and corned beef to last me till winter. In fact, I found myself in some trendy little East Village eatery one night with three other Seattleites who were also on VK and I couldn’t stop thinking, “Why are we not eating deli at this very minute?! WHY, GOD, WHY?!” (Needless to say, I was still starving by the time I was done with my fancy $25 French entree.)
For those of you who don’t know, I’m from the Tri-State Area (BonJoviLand, to be exact), which means I had piles of people to visit in NYC: my dad, my high school friends, my college roomies, a couple pals from my bad old days in NY publishing, and on and on and on. I had a blast seeing high school pals Heth and Jed rock the Union Square subway station. I was tickled to reunite with writerpal Beena, who I met at Hedgebrook, and happy to see Seattle expat Nina (sorely missed in the NW!) in her new Brooklyn hood. I was floored when my freaking prom date showed up at one of my readings. (Dude, where’s my corsage?) And I’m ever grateful for all the people who rallied to see me read at the supercool Bluestockings on the Lower East Side and BookCourt in Brooklyn, which made for a fab last chapter of my book tour.
Another highlight of the Big Apple was meeting so many email buddies — from fellow Single Staters Judy McGuire, Rachel Kramer Bussel, and Susan Shapiro to Anti 9-to-5 Guide interviewees Janet Rosen and Heather Swain. I also loved that I could just email a magazine editor I write for (or hope to write for) or an agent recommended to me by a friend and set up a coffee date, literally in a New York minute. I left the city thinking, “Damn, 3000 miles isn’t soooo far… I need to get out of my house more often… I need to come back here twice a year… Must keep a toe in the NY publishing pool…”
What about you? If you’re a freelancer who does a decent chunk of business in another time zone, do you travel periodically to score some face time with your clients and contacts? Does it boost your business when your contacts suddenly see your bright smiling face rather than just your email handle? Inquiring minds wanna know.
May 19th, 2007
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