Focusing on your personal branding efforts can guide your freelancing career and assignment choices as well as let people know who you are and what you care about. But many look at it as a guide, not a rule.

I identify myself a journalist who champions female friendships, and who often writes about roller derby, grief, and being hearing impaired. I’m known for these topics, but they are by no means a limitation on what I choose to write about, or what assignments I decide to take on.

This self-perception does often influence what I choose to include in my email newsletter, which I send out every two weeks. Each email contains links to any bylines I had in the last 14 days as well as to articles I read and enjoyed.

Subscribers learn more about the topics I am interested in, and I love it when I get email responses or Facebook posts from readers who want to make sure I’ve seen that video of Santa using American Sign Language with a child, or a beautiful personal essay about losing a parent.

My newsletter also provides a way to promote the book I’m working on about learning to play roller derby. Every time I publish a piece and an author bio links readers to my newsletter, I get a small bump of new subscribers and it helps expand my personal branding efforts. These subscribers have the potential to turn into fans — meaning when my book gets published down the road, I’ll have a built-in fanbase of people excited to consume it. (If you’re an author, looking for tips on author branding, check out this article.)

I spoke with the freelance writers behind some extremely successful newsletters to get new ideas for using email marketing to build and further the reach of your personal brand. In this article, we’ll look at 4 newsletter best practices:

• Inbox Respect
• Audience Loyalty and Personal Branding
• Creative Freedom
• Consistency

Newsletter Best Practices #1: Inbox Respect

Freelance writer Ann Friedman, perhaps the queen of the personal email newsletter, began the Ann Friedman Weekly in March 2013 as a way to keep track of what she produced and consumed each week.

In fall 2015, she surpassed TinyLetter’s subscriber limit and transitioned over to the system’s big brother, MailChimp.

“Eventually it will cost me,” Friedman, who made a deal with MailChimp to provide her first year free, said. “With MailChimp you pay depending on how many subscribers you have. At this point I have almost 23,000 subscribers, which will not be super cheap.”

In December, Friedman began offering a premium version of her newsletter to subscribers for a fee of $5 per year. She also began selling ad space at the bottom of Ann Friedman Weekly, similar to theSkimm’s advertising model.

While Friedman said it’s impossible to say if she’s gotten additional freelance work as a direct result of her newsletter, she feels it can’t be hurting her odds.

“Doing lots of work contributes to me getting more work,” said Friedman. “There’s a cumulative positive effect: The longer you write and the more you write, the more known you are, and the more assignments you get. Sometimes my editors will reply to the newsletters, which is a good thing to have when you’re a freelancer living on the opposite coast.”

She said she doesn’t believe in adhering to a narrow rubric of what she will and will not write.

“There are many things I’m happy I’ve done that I wouldn’t have said yes to [based on those confines],” she said. “But there’s not always a lot of thought that goes into whether I will pursue or not pursue something. The newsletter fits with a lot of my [anchor] statement, and aligns well with my underlying values. One of the important functions it has is that it’s a space I own completely. If I want to change it, I can. It’s something I built myself.”

But then there’s the million-dollar question: How does someone like Ann Friedman grow her email newsletter list?

“I believe very, very strongly in not adding people automatically,” Friedman said. “People do that to me and it’s a huge pet peeve. I know it’s cliche to say people’s email inboxes are sacred, but it’s like barging into someone’s house unannounced, or at least onto their porch.

“Make a really great newsletter that is not self-serving and count on people to evangelize. [One thing I do is] quote people who evangelize for me, as a thank you for doing so.”

Newsletter Best Practices #2: Audience Loyalty and Personal Branding

Liz Galvao also thanks vocal supporters in her funny newsletter.

“I send a tweet every time I send a new email, but your voice is only amplified by other people online,” Galvao said. “Other people spreading the word [is crucial].”

Galvao, a freelance writer, started her newsletter in May 2014 as a way to try out a new platform and have a creative outlet.

“I write a lot of stuff in a character voice or something from a ridiculous point of view [for Reductress], or music reviews that are not about me at all,” she said. “This was an outlet that was me writing for myself, and a way for people to get to know me as a person, and not a satirical voice.”

She commended Marc Maron for being an example of someone who shares with his audience in an authentic, personal way with his podcast, WTF With Marc Maron.

“[On top of doing interviews] he is talking about what’s going on with him,” said Galvao. “That keeps me subscribing to it. It’s not just self-promotional, there’s original content in there too.”

Galvao’s focus on personal branding is also reflected in her newsletter, whether she’s planned it that way or not.

“My knee jerk reaction is, No, I don’t think about my brand!” she said. “But I definitely do. With the newsletter, it just sort of worked out that that the stuff I am including is relevant to what I’m interested in.”

One unexpected benefit of starting a newsletter is creating a built-in audience of readers who look forward to getting her missives.

“You have all these people who get to know you and are used to hearing from you week after week,” said Galvao. “When you send them links to things you wrote, people are more invested in sharing that. There’s a loyalty to the people who subscribe.”

Newsletter Best Practices #3: Creative Freedom

Suzanne Wilder started I Heart Words in 2015 and has enjoyed the thrill of receiving replies from fans and signups from readers she’s never met.

“It’s not a conversation but there’s that possibility for dialogue to come out of it that doesn’t necessarily happen with a blog post,” said Wilder.

“It feels more direct than just posting on my blog. [With Facebook], it’s such a crapshoot of who sees what you post. And with blogging — can you capture someone’s attention at any given moment? When something is in their inbox, there’s more likelihood of someone reading what you’re sending them.”

Her newsletter has a literary focus, but like her personal brand, she doesn’t stick to this as a hard and fast rule. She also includes recipes and gifs, or commentary on TV shows and documentaries.

“My main goal is really just to share interesting things that I find and things with the word and literacy and language bent,” Wilder said. “But it’s not purely literary.”

While her newsletter doesn’t generate income, it does provide plenty of creative freedom and help her personal branding.

“I don’t make any money from my blog, newsletter, Twitter or Instagram,” Wilder said. “There’s not a stake in me losing or gaining readers. Not like fashion or lifestyle bloggers. I don’t have to ask myself, Will I alienate a reader or a sponsor? It’s just a creative outlet for me.”

Newsletter Best Practices #4: Consistency

The women who send Two Bossy Dames every Friday have seen massive success with their email, but lately, they’ve chosen to double down on their social media presence, as well.

Margaret H. Willison and Sophie Brookover started their pop culture newsletter after experimenting with a weekly hashtagged Twitter roundup in the style of Bim Adewunmi’s #Bims10Things.

“Doing a Twitter hashtag roundup seemed like a very low-key way to raise the profile of our project and figure out if this was really something we could do once a week,” said Willison.

The two decided they could, and their newsletter has ballooned thanks in part to a ringing endorsement from NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast, on which Willison is a frequent guest.

Still, the pair also credit their social media savviness with the growth their newsletter has seen. Not every newsletter must be anointed by top podcast brass if its sender is willing to take the time to schedule additional content.

“We are both huge fans of the social media tool Buffer, which allows you to collect material in binges and then release it gradually in scheduled posts,” said Willison.

“The last few months we’ve worked hard to keep our Buffer stocked with good material and it’s really worked out. We’ve only really been tending to it since July and our [Twitter] follower count has increased 400 percent at least.”

“If Buffer would add Tumblr to its supported channels, we would be unstoppable, basically,” Brookover added.

Two Bossy Dames is co-written by two people but has a very clear, consistent voice.

“I don’t think we have ever decided not to share something we otherwise thought was great because it wouldn’t be ‘on brand,’” said Willison.

“The closest we’ve come to that is the discussions we’ve had about addressing more serious issues in the newsletter. We’re both politically engaged people. [But] we take pride in rejecting the idea that it is somehow wrong to care about both rubber bands with little bow accents and the ramifications of systematic racial violence and marginalization.”

Beyond that, the newsletter’s growth has been pretty organic, mostly through word-of-mouth endorsements and podcast appearances.

Brookover said that while the success has been fulfilling to see, one of the best parts about creating a newsletter has been the people they’ve met (virtually) along the way.

“I think one of my favorite things about running Two Bossy Dames is that it’s introduced us to smart, sharp, excellent women who have told us that we inspired them to start a side hustle of their own,” she said. “It sets up this great feedback loop of enthusiasm and encouragement.”

What to do next?

If you exercise your creative freedom and post consistently, you’re bound to grow your personal brand. No one looks at the world quite like you do. Then, if you respect people’s inbox, and show loyalty to your audience, your brand and newsletter will thrive.

An email newsletter can be what you want it to be, and it can be as much a reflection of you as a writer as you care to make it.

If you’re thinking about starting one, try signing up for a handful to get a good sense of what you like and don’t like. If you already have one, consider ways you can use these best practices to guide your content.

Want to start your own newsletter? Check out the best email platforms to start your newsletter.

Already have your own email newsletter and want to learn how to grow your list?

A blog post on author Josh Fruhlinger’s site has the scoop.

Kickstarting a debut novel

Fruhlinger’s debut novel, The Enthusiast, came out in late 2015. It has more than 80 ratings and 20+ reviews on Goodreads. It’s available in hardcover, paperback and as an ebook… and it was funded by a very successful Kickstarter campaign.

Fruhlinger’s blog post says it all: “I Kickstarted my first novel, sold 1,319 books and made $4,369.14 (so far) — and so can you (maybe) (under fairly specific circumstances).”

His initial goal was to pay himself for his time writing the novel, since it would, in theory, eat into his potential freelance-writing earnings time. He was more than successful in this endeavor, and his goal of $6,666 was met – and far exceeded, totalling more than $20,000. Fruhlinger was able to put this extra cash toward tasks like printing costs, editorial assistance, design and promotion.

Dealing with unexpected emotions from crowdfunding

However, this influx of cash from patrons almost immediately led to some major guilt.

“The actual process of writing the novel took a lot longer than I thought,” wrote Fruhlinger. “This was very stressful to me; I felt like I was letting all my backers down, and with the very, very large amount of money I raised being very, very public, I worried that people would think I had scammed everyone out of an awful lot of cash.”

Still, he finished his book, and is happy with the final product.

In his post, he offered some learned lessons to those who might be interested in trying their own campaign to fund their novel.

Lessons learned from Kickstarting a book

• The secret to a successful Kickstarter doesn’t start with Kickstarter. A large number of his backers were already fans of his work and his site. Tap into your audience! If you don’t have an audience, build one.

• Write your book first. Fruhlinger noted that this would have drastically cut down on his anxiety.

• Do your best to estimate costs in advance and be conservative. Printing costs turned out to be more than Fruhlinger expected.

• Professional services aren’t cheap!

• Don’t bet on big sales if you don’t need to. Fruhlinger noted he’s been left with more leftover stock than he would have liked. Consider print-on-demand.

• Offer your backers big-ticket items. “People who are backing you are likely to be invested in you and want you to succeed, so a personal touch like that is something they’ll enjoy and appreciate,” he said.

After reading about Fruhlinger’s experience, it’s easy to see the appeal of crowdsourcing.

I’ve used Indiegogo before to fund a creative project, and while my campaign was successful, there’s still some complicated feelings that can come from asking for, and being given, financial support. Strings can feel attached, even when they truly aren’t. I have built a good base of loyal readers, but I still don’t think I would feel comfortable asking them to pay for the creation of my first book.

What do you think — would you do a crowdfunding campaign for your novel?

Stand-up comedy is its own art form, but there are so many lessons to be learned from those who do this kind of performative and creative writing. Whether it’s how to write, where to write, or how to edit, so much of how comedians work also applies to how those who write essays and other nonfiction styles work.

Here are seven things nonfiction writers can learn from the world of stand-up comedy.

1. Find a system that works for you

“A couple hours will go into actual pen-and-paper writing, my most portable way to do it,” said Caitlin Weierhauser, a comedian living in Portland, Oregon. “I have such severe ADD I found that writing on my laptop was mostly surfing twitter and Facebook. With pen and paper, I have that immediate ability to reference back to stuff.”

For a weekly show, Weierhauser spends a couple of hours preparing material, but those hours are scattered. She keeps two notebooks: a smaller one containing setlists, and a larger one for longform writing and assembling material.

A physical notebook seems to be common for those in stand up.

“My notebook looks like a crazy person’s diary,” said Laura Sanders, a New Orleans-based comedian. “It’s half setlists where I work on order and make a playlist for a set. A lot of pages are quick ideas I never get back to. Some look like paragraphs you can read and see a complete thought. Other parts are lists, joke ideas. Segments. Some of it I’ll see later and say, oh that’s not funny at all.”

Curtis Cook, a comedian who recently moved to L.A., has been doing comedy for six years and keeps color-coded notes to himself in his: “If it’s blue, it’s word-for-word [what I’ll say on stage. If it’s black, it’s an idea. If it’s orange, it’s stream-of-consciousness.”

Meanwhile, Alex Falcone, a Portland comedian, prefers digital tools like Evernote and Google Docs.

“Make the barrier to entry as low as possible,” Falcone suggested. “Make a list you can look at later. I use Evernote to create ideas, a separate notebook for jokes I move a joke over to its own note. And then I use Google Docs for larger and longer projects.”

He also combines these tools, linking to Google Docs within Evernote.

“I like systems,” said Falcone. “It’s sort of procrastinating, but it’s still helpful. You can reorganize them and still feel like you’re working.”

2. Practice your process

“The optimistic goal of writing every single day,” said Falcone. “As a practical matter, it’s probably writing jokes three or four times a week. I also write a bunch of other things, so often making time for just stand up goes on top of writing a column or a radio piece.”

Still, Falcone said, the more he writes, the easier the process gets.

“Everything evolves a lot,” he said. “When you’re doing a lot of it, like any muscle, it’s easier to do some more. Your brain creates more ideas when you’re performing more.”

Make frequent writing easy by always having the means to do so anywhere.

“I just always keep my notebook with me,” said Sanders. “It comes in minute or two-minute intervals. I want to tell you it’s so much more time than it is. Sometimes it’s when I’m sitting and watching another comic.”

3. Find a productive spot

Just like other writers, comics’ preferred places to write can vary.

“I usually write at my house and very rarely go to a coffee shop.” said Cook. “Sometimes I want to pay attention to other performers at open mics so I will do a lot of writing there, too.”

“When I do sit down and write, it’s a lot of sitting with my notebook in a coffee shop and reading the news to see if it brings anything,” said Sanders. “A lot of jokes come from hanging out with people. Writing is a lot more interactive for me.”

“I’m a big coffee-shop fan,” said Falcone. “I’m much more productive there since there are fewer distractions than at home.”

Falcone said he tries to block off an hour or two first thing in the morning at a coffee shop. He usually starts by going through tapes from the last couple days’ shows and finding edits to make.

“Then I’ll go through five jokes that aren’t doing what I want,” he said. “Then I go through new jokes, or notes I wrote in my phone. I’ll see if any of those want to become a joke today.”

That series of steps usually takes about an hour and a half, Falcone said, adding that it’s equally important to get new material and get in front of an audience quickly.

“What you’re writing gets worse the more you write if you’re never taking it outside,” he said. “If the audience doesn’t like the premise, it’s done from the get go. You gotta take it out in front of an audience.”

4. Give yourself a writing prompt

Weierhauser emphasized the importance of using writing prompts to get ideas moving.

“If you ask me to recall a funny story, I will think that nothing funny has ever happened in my whole life,” she said. “But if I put a filter on top of it and can be like, think about weird or funny things that have happened in regards to ‘X.’ Then it’s easier to parse through that stuff. It’s like a writing prompt. Then I’ll apply my comedic voice to that. Through rewrites, you can go back and cut out details that don’t really matter, or make an elaboration.”

Similarly, Sanders encouraged writers to try new experiences to help generate material.

“My favorite jokes have been exposing myself to things that aren’t stand-up and trying it,” she said. “Comedians say ‘yes’ to weird opportunities. There’s situations where you’re like, I’m gonna expose myself to a lot of stimuli and that’s gonna kickstart my creative process.”

5. Allow for free writing and brainstorming

Just get something down, these comedians insisted.

“Make it really easy to write down bad ideas,” said Falcone. “My philosophy is, if I think of anything, it’s going to go somewhere. It might be a joke that turns into a radio piece. It’ll find a place where it can live. I’m always afraid it’ll be the last idea I ever have.”

Weierhauser likes using a list technique to write.

“That’s the way I wrote a bit for [a radio show],” she said. “I wanted to pitch an idea about ‘lady weapons’ to give commentary on this completely unnecessary gendering of products. So I listed all the things I could think of, in rapid fire, that I identified with women or womanhood. Then in another column I wrote all the weaponry I could think of. Then I found ways to connect them, and that’s how you end up with nun chucks – for nuns.”

If anything, just write something short to show your efforts. When new jokes aren’t happening, find other outlets for your creativity, said Falcone.

“If I don’t feel like writing new jokes, I can work on a script instead,” he said. “As long as I’m working on something, that’s fine. I have other projects, and every idea has to go into something. These are puzzle pieces.”

6. Listen to yourself: Use audio to your advantage

Many comics listen to recent performances to inspire a new writing session.

“I’ll bring my notebook out onto the back porch and listen and take notes of those sets and things I liked, things I hadn’t organically written down or maybe delivered a different way,” said Weierhauser. “I’ll star them or slash them in my notebook.”

Sanders said she tries to record every set and make notes later.

“You can feel audience reactions when you’re performing,” she said. “But what’s useful is your [editing] after the fact. The first draft always sucks. I can listen to other comics and suggest tags for them when they get off-stage. But I can’t do that for myself. Listening to a recording helps me come at my work as an outsider.”

She added that listening can help her generate better, funnier word choices.

“It’s the difference between having an ordinary joke, and making it so well done,” Sanders said. “The first time I tell a joke, it never has those beautiful words in it. Later I can ask myself, is there a better verb I could be using?”

It helps with rhythm, too.

“I’ll have a very dedicated rhythm but when you listen back you realize you can punch up the volume at parts or vary the pace,” Sanders said.

Maybe not all essayists wish to record themselves reading their work, but reading and re-reading can only help.

“I don’t like to record, so I take a lot of notes at the end,” said Cook, adding that good editing decisions come from these notes.

7. For motivation? Use deadlines, or let yourself work on other things first

“All my motivational tricks involve shame and embarrassment,” said Sanders. “I liked having a group where we challenged each other to have 15 new minutes of material each month. I’m very deadline oriented.”

Cook suggested working first on what you’re most excited about at any given time.

“When I’m writing something specific, I am already excited and motivated,” he said. “But if nothing’s been going on, I feel a pressure to write.”

Falcone recommended visiting a list of bad ideas and digging into it to make something good.

“A blinking cursor is the worst,” he said. “That’s when I’ll go to my notes. I’ll take my bad ideas, or edit stuff and expand on it. I have a list of things I should someday write about, for when I’m not feeling great.”

There are no bad ideas, Falcone said.

“When I teach writing, I tell people to keep a list called ‘No Bad Ideas, I’m Brainstorming,’” he said. “At some point, you’ll go back to your list and something there will be useful.”

Some final words of advice

“Divorce your ego from your writing,” said Weierhauser. “Be as objective as possible. Ask yourself, is this funny to listen to? Is this entertaining?”

“Be around people, and not always around comedy,” said Sanders. “A lot of times, I’ll get in a wormhole of only reading books about comedy. Instead, I’ll watch a new documentary about bullfighting/rodeo. You can learn about comedy all day, but it’s important to read things that are just good writing. Go see shows that aren’t just stand up. Aim your work toward a general audience.”

What’s your writing style? Have you ever tried writing comedy?

My site is a simple WordPress one, and I pay $26 per year for my domain name, MerylWilliamsMedia.com.

If you don’t have a domain name on lock yet, don’t wait.

My only purchasing experience has been through WordPress, but there are several sites that sell domain names, and several platforms with which to easily build a basic, great-looking site.

(Ed. note: Frequent readers know we love Bluehost!)

I’ve outlined for you the things you’ll want for your online portfolio, ranging from items you absolutely must include, to things that are pretty much gravy. I’ll also go over some general tips for the creation and maintenance of your site.

Let’s take a look:

The basic must-haves

1. An “about” page

Introduce yourself to your visitors with a photo and a few paragraphs about who you are, what you do, and what you can do for them. The tone of mine may be a little more casual than you want yours to be, and that’s fine — allow your tone to match your writing voice.

2. A contact page or form

Make it obvious how visitors can reach out to you. My site has a simple WordPress-generated contact form, typical to what you find on most sites.

It’s also important to let people know how they can hire you! If you’re a freelancer, whether or not to list your rate is a very personal choice, but at least make it clear what amazing services you offer to get the ball rolling. I have a services page to highlight my social media and personal-brand consulting.

3. Some of your best writing samples

You’ve got the visitor’s attention, so this is your time to shine. Pick the best of your most recent work and link to it. You might consider using visual elements, or you might prefer a simple list of bylines and publications.

Just make sure you’re really proud of the work you display on this page.

Nice-to-haves

1. Up-to-date info about your latest projects

I recently started a podcast and am seeking representation for my memoir, so I’ve got information on both of these projects on my site. That way, visitors see everything I’m working on, but can pick and choose which they’d like to know more about.

2. Links to your social media accounts

If you’ve got ‘em, link ‘em — Twitter, Instagram, your Facebook author page, etc.

Because I work in social media for my day job, I’ve got a separate page all about mine, but even if you just link visitors to your accounts on your “contact” page, that’s a great step forward. Editors and other potential clients want to see what you’re interested in online. If you make it easy for them to follow you on social media, they’re more likely to pay attention to you online.

3. Testimonials

Here’s a page where you can collect all the awesome things editors and clients have said about you. If you haven’t collected that feedback, it’s not too late — make a list of people you feel comfortable asking for a short, two- or three-sentence testimonial and reach out to them.

Just like with a letter of recommendation, give them plenty of time, but I bet you’ll find that editors who love working with you will be quick to respond with some kind words. Return the favor by linking their name to their portfolio or Twitter account.

4. A professionally-done head shot

You should have at least one photo on your “about” page, but if you’ve got the cash, it might be nice to spring for a professional photo shoot.

Or, find a camera-savvy friend and barter for writing services (or dinner). A clear, recent head shot can keep you recognizable in your field.

Pure gravy

1. A downloadable press kit

I don’t have one of these yet, but I’ll want one down the road for when my memoir gets published. A press kit will usually contain a press release about your book, your author bio, book information, a sample chapter, promotional images and author head shot and, if available, blurbs about your book from respected readers and reviewers.

2. A blog or newsletter signup form

If you blog or would like to, knock yourself out right here — it’s a way for visitors to see your recent writing and what interests you. However, if you don’t want to blog, don’t force yourself. It can be a lot to keep up with and distract you from your paid writing projects, unless it’s what you’re passionate about.

Instead, what I’m passionate about is the personal newsletter I send out to readers and fans, linking them to the work I’ve done in the last two weeks, along with articles and pop culture I’ve enjoyed in that time. Because of this, and because new subscribers add to my writer fan base, I have a page on my site devoted to getting new newsletter readers.

3. A multimedia experience

Again, it’s gravy, but a video introducing yourself to clients might be nice. Or, if you’re a podcaster or interested in audio projects, read and perform one of your pieces aloud and host the audio on your site. Even an attractive photo display or slideshow can help you stand out.

A few additional tips

1. Link to other parts of your site throughout

Linking to other pages within your site will make it more likely that visitors will stick around longer to see more of your work and services. My “about” page links to various pages within my site, as well as to outside articles.

2. Use a clean, simple layout

A busy-looking site can easily discourage visitors from sticking around, and you want to make sure the different areas of your site are easy to access.

3. Keep tabs on the data available to you

Check your stats to see what visitors are most interested in, and, if the information is available, how they found you. This can be done through your site host’s statistics and/or through Google Analytics.

Your portfolio is what you make it, and know that once you’ve got the basics, you can always build up the other stuff later.

Just try to keep it up to date, and review its sections once a quarter to ensure you’re always showing off your most recent and best work!

Writers, what’s in your online portfolio?

There’s a compulsion to share, and to hear what others think of this thing you’ve created from your own genius brain. But, it can be a lot to ask of your friends and family, and even the most willing of readers might not have the time to get a critique back to you as quickly as they (or you) would like.

Luckily, there’s a whole host of online resources for writers to share work, and to pay it forward by critiquing the work of others. Some critique communities are even free to join and participate.

However, with the resources below, it’s expected that you give feedback just as often as you seek it. Be prepared to make a time commitment!

1. Critters

This resource has been around for 20 years, which is notable, considering the Internet isn’t much older. Within a week of submitting their science fiction, fantasy, or horror pieces of maximum 20,000, writers receive 15-20 critiques.

The site encourages new writers to learn not only from the feedback they get, but to learn from the process of giving critiques, as well.

“The ultimate goal of Critters is to help improve your craft, not only by having your work dissected by other members, but also by learning to dissect your own work (by, of course, dissecting others),” reads the site. “The value of the latter is often overlooked by beginners.”

Critters is entirely donation-funded.  

2. Ladies Who Critique

Ladies Who Critique will help you find a writing partner, free of charge.

All levels are encouraged to join, and the group isn’t limited to women. Search for a partner by genre or experience level and send a message if you find someone who sounds great. “Think of it like a dating website, but ‘The One’ is your perfect critique partner,” suggests the site.

To start, check out the Writers Coffee Shop forum for posts by those looking for partnership.

The group’s blog is not up to date, but its archives contain author interviews, querying advice, and more.

3. You Write On

This site may look a little old-school, but it’s full of great resources.

Here, members can upload their short stories or novel excerpts, and another user is randomly assigned to read it. Once your piece has five reviews from users, it enters the site’s chart system.

The site states that collective feedback provides writers with a diverse overview of what’s working — and maybe not working — in their pieces.

Membership is free, as You Write On is sponsored by Arts Council England.

4. Inked Voices

This Brooklyn-based site is big on facilitating the formation of writing groups.

Through Inked Voices, users can search through groups looking for new members during a free two-week trial. If you find one you’re interested in, you can reach out to that group’s leader to join. After you’re linked up with a partner or group, users who pay a membership fee can privately share work and offer critiques.

Inked Voices also offers many online resources, a forum for users to ask questions, and audio lectures on writing.

While no free version is available, those who choose Inked In can either pay $10 per month or a flat fee of $75 for one year of membership.

5. Critique It

If you already have folks in your network who are willing to read and critique your work, Critique It might help you share it with them. This tool, like Google Docs, lets readers leave comments and allows multiple users to collaborate on the same item.

But unlike Google Docs, it also allows audio and video feedback as well as multiple file formats. “Drag and drop images, video, text and audio files into Critique It and use the same tools to provide and review feedback — regardless of type,” the site boasts.

It isn’t a sharing site in the same sense that most of these others are, but it’s a tool that could be used to facilitate sharing with writers you meet online. It appears to be popular with academics, too.

6. Scribophile

This might be the site most writers have at least heard of: Not only does Scribophile offer writers the chance to get detailed feedback on their work, but it also offers a bunch of free resources like free tutorials and a members-only forum.

Its writing academy section tells new writers how to format a manuscript, and sheds light on commonly-made screenplay mistakes.

A free account allows writers to post up to two works of up to 3,000 words at a time, while a paid version has no such limit ($65 per year, or $9 per month).

7. Critique Circle

Critique Circle has been helping writers since 2003.

Depending on how active the site is, you may have to wait a week or two for your work to be posted — only a certain number of stories are shared each week. Once a piece is listed, members can read it and send the author feedback during a window of one week.

Writers on the site earn credits for submitting critiques, and credits in turn help them get their own work listed. Stories of any genre, up to 5,000 words, are welcome. Poetry may not be submitted but may be posted for feedback in Critique Circle’s forums.

There are two levels of membership: The premium level costs $10 per month and offers users access to their own story queue and forum, full access to online tools, and more. Signing up for one or two years can bring your membership cost down to about $3 per month.

A premium gold membership available for one or two years, breaks down to about $7 per month. These users receive all premium benefits but also enjoy an ad-free version of the site, access to additional readers, and an unlimited messages inbox.

8. Absolute Write

Here’s a bonus: Absolute Write is a forum for writers. Although it doesn’t offer a formal critique program, you’re likely to meet some interesting writers who are willing to partner with you. The forum is very active, so if you post there, you’re likely to get several responses quickly.

No matter where you choose to share your work, it’s always best to keep in mind the golden rule of the internet (and, you know, of life): Treat others the way you’d have them treat you.

Not everything you read is going to be 100 percent up your alley, or to the level of craftsmanship you prefer. However, it’s crucial to keep your criticism constructive, not destructive.

For more critique resources, check out our list of 40 places to find a criqitue partner.

Where do you go to get feedback on your work?

The question might fill you with anxiety as you try not to add up the minutes you spend on Facebook and Twitter.

How can you make the most of your time when you sit down to work?

Many freelancers get paid for their work on a project basis, regardless of how long it takes to complete tasks. But many must keep track of billable hours in order to be paid. And still others want to keep track of their time for personal accountability.

No matter how you slice it, time is money, and the two are intertwined for every freelancer.

Whether you rely on your desktop computer or like to take your work on the road with your tablet or phone, there are tons of tools available to help you track your time.

Are you ready to learn about some of our favorites — and pick out one or two to try? Here we go.

1. Freshbooks

A favorite of creative entrepreneur podcast Being Boss, Freshbooks boasts a time-tracking cloud-based tool that’s accessible across multiple devices.

If a client calls, you can open the app on your phone and start the timer to make sure you don’t lose any billable minutes on your project. Freshbooks then pulls all unbilled hours into an invoice for you.

In addition, multiple team members can access the same account, and you can even invite your accountant or bookkeeper to check in on your progress.

Bonus: The intro video for the app version features a delightful animated singing squirrel.

Cost: You can get a free 30-day trial. Paid memberships range from $9.95 to $39.95 per month for four different tiers of service.

2. Harvest

Harvest might just win in terms of accessibility. Per their website, “Your team will get up to speed fast and can track their time however (and wherever) they want — on their laptop, iPhone, Android, or even on the Apple Watch. Simple and quick time entry means there’s no excuse not to track, and you’ll have the data you need to bill accurately and budget wisely.”

Harvest generates reports to help you keep projects on time and within a budget you’ve set.

Writer and editor Sara Kaplow used to use Harvest at her company and appreciated the way it lets users switch back to a client or task.

“The main thing I miss is being able to resume a task [with Harvest],” said Kaplow. “I have about 15 clients at a time, and while I try to be disciplined, if I get an email that a site is down, for example, I obviously have to address that. Harvest allowed me to pick back up. With Toggl, I ended up with 15 five-minute tasks I had to add up manually at the end of the day.”

Cost: A free version allows one user to have up to four projects for two clients. Paid versions range from $12 to $99 per month, with three levels of service available.

3. RescueTime

This tool even gets the endorsement of Alexis Ohanian, founder of Reddit.

RescueTime lets users create goals, such as spending one less hour each day on email, or it can alert you when you’ve been on Facebook for more than an hour in a day. It generates reports showing which applications and sites you use most, and for how long.

If it sounds like a depressing revelation awaits you, know that you can also block distracting sites and log highlights and achievements as they occur throughout the day. Gamify your productivity!

One downside, writes tech and design writer Shawn Blanc, is that RescueTime doesn’t necessarily care about the difference between productive social media use and unproductive distractions.

“The slight conundrum about Rescue Time’s Get Focused tab is that things like checking Twitter and email are a mixed bag,” Blanc wrote in a review. “I often use Twitter for productive work, but also it can be a time sink. So it’s not this one-to-one direct ratio where Twitter equals unproductive every time.“

Cost: RescueTime Lite allows users to set goals, get a weekly email report and analyze on three months of history. The Premium version adds on other services, like website blocking, daily accomplishment logs, more robust reports and filters, and unlimited reporting history for $9 per month (or $72 per year).

4. Toggl

Toggl brands itself as being so easy to learn, no training is necessary.

“Start out simple, and drill deeper with user rights and project setup later on,” it claims. The tool allows for an overview of billable time, team progress and live time entries.

The mobile app lets users hit a button to begin timing work, and Toggle is compatible with productivity tools such as Trello and Asana. An offline option allows you to keep tracking time without WiFi.

Toggl also has a Chrome extension for easier access and use.

“Their Chrome extension…will add a start timer Toggl button at places like Gmail threads, Trello cards, and more,” wrote Khamosh Pathak for Guiding Tech. “When you click the button, the title will automatically be imported and time tracking will begin.”

Cost: A free version allows teams of up to five to track unlimited projects. A $59-per-month business version runs time audits, locks timesheets and sends team reminders. The pro level, at $10 each month per user, doesn’t limit team sizes, and offers report sharing and sub-project capabilities.

5. Fanurio

Fanurio tracks time and sends bills to your clients. It’s a desktop-based software program, so the plus side is, you don’t pay a monthly subscription fee.

The downside: It  doesn’t seem to have an app to go along with its desktop-based program, which could be a major detractor for freelancers on the go.

Cost: A single-user license costs a flat fee of $59.

6. Hubstaff

Hubstaff is geared more toward teams instead of individuals.The user interface looks nice and easily lets you check visual data, like time spent, screenshots of worker activity, app and URL tracking to see where your employees are going online, and more.

It’s good for remote teams, as you can manage people from all over with the same account.

Cost: A free version allows one user to track time, save screenshots and view activity levels. For $5 per month, one user can track keyboard and mouse activity and manage employee payments.

For $9 per month, a user can do these things as well as track URLs, do automatic payroll, track a weekly budget, and integrate other tools like Basecamp, Github and Quickbooks.

7. TimeCamp

TimeCamp seems to have the most options for integration with other productivity tools.

Its major claim to fame is letting your employees trust themselves to get their work done: “TimeCamp allows employees to self-monitor their own productivity, especially how much time they’re losing to various distractions.”

If it’s just you, maybe you need to ask yourself how much you trust your ability to get things done.

Cost: A free version allows a single user to track time and computer usage using desktop and mobile versions for unlimited tasks and projects. A $6-per-month basic version adds on the ability to add unlimited users, export, integrate with other tools and track billable time and budgeting.

The pro version at $9 per month includes all this and more: invoicing; priority support; scheduled reports; timesheet approvals; and projects costs and billing rates.

Even if you don’t currently work billable hours, it might be an interesting experiment to see how you’re spending your freelance writing time.

Maybe writing articles and transcribing interviews is taking longer than you think, and it might be time to increase your rates. Alternately, maybe you’ll realize you’re spending a lot more time on social networking than you need to.

Either way, trying one of these tools might be worth your time.

What’s your favorite tool for tracking and managing your freelance writing time?

This post contains affiliate links. That means if you purchase through our links, you’re supporting The Write Life — and we thank you for that!