First Paranormal Investigation Today

I'm very excited to announce that Returned and Restless Paranormal Research is doing their first full investigation this evening.  Stay tuned for evidence, articles, and the accompanying documentary.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/244547468920472/

Free Quick Publishing and Social Media Tools

Where have I been?!

Getting back into the Bloggospere feels good, and much less stressful than the past few days.

I've gotten my first official freelance assignment on oDesk, and I've been diligently trying not to screw it up.  It is not quite what I'd expect, I'm writing articles and posts on Pick Up Artists (PUAs), dating tips, and more on the art of seduction.  Not the easiest job for a guy with a girlfriend, but I've read The Game by Neil Strauss, so I'm not completely lost.

Plus, I've got pretty decent game myself. . . for a writer I suppose.  But for a guy with a girlfriend it wasn't quite what I expected to be writing on.  However, it is fun and will make a little money each month, so I am far from complaining.

I wanted to update everyone who read my article on different freelancing platforms that oDesk does work, I undershot the competition and made a rediculously low bid on a project that was supposed to span 6 months.  I can watch as I clear my two articles a day, and $3.00 goes into my account.  More importantly, other employers can see these earnings, and also view feedback I get from my current employers.  As long as the money keeps coming, and I don't make any errors with the guy's backlinks, all should be well.

Tip: When you are new to a freelance platform like oDesk, your work history is nonexistent and you may have to make some sacrifices in the beginning to help get better pay later.  So don't be afraid to bid $8.00 on a multiple month project, it gets attention and can transfer into a payment per article situation that is much less ridiculous.  Use the absolute best writing sample you haven't published (I keep one around for all kinds of applications requiring a work sample).  Other than that, best of luck to you.  Just do whatever it takes to get some hours or some bucks on your account.  It'll put you a world ahead of anyone who hasn't found a gig yet.

So that is about it.  I may be writing less frequently, freelancing and building three websites, but I'd still like to hear what is working for others, and what people would like to see on Freelancing For Freedom.

And now comes everyone's favorite part of the blog. . . The Free Stuff!


NorthSocial is a site providing free apps and add-ons to get your Facebook marketing in gear.  It has tools to motivate followers to join, like, and buy your product or service, as well as get people coming back to your page and interacting more with you, and your community.  Try it out, and if it's great (or not) add a comment about your experience.  Connecting your Facebook and receiving periodic updates are all optional and opt in only.

Trafford Publishing is offering a free self publishing guide that everyone should take a look at.  While they do email it to you (meaning you will probably get some sort of period emails from them even if you opt out of the monthly newsletter), you can always block them later or keep receiving if they are useful (i.e. not complete sales pitches but offer advice for writing and publishing).  To get the eBook follow the link in the email they send, choose to download the .pdf, then when it opens in your browser right click>save as> and put it with your eBooks.  It is a bit salesy, but it makes some good points about the benefits of 'going indie' and how the world of publishing is changing.  It's not too long, so give it a shot.

Want to give back? I just started a Facebook Fanpage for the paranormal group I founded called Returned and Restless Paranormal Research.  I'd love to have some more followers and 'Likes' so if you get a couple seconds, feel free to check us out and give us the ol' thumbs up.  It'd be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Returned-and-Restless-Paranormal-Research/165595010194861

Online Jobs and Telecommuting Watch Dog: How My Role Changes As I Learn More

My Initial Intentions

I started this blog with a million things in mind: how to help people like me, with superb skills, that wanted to work from home or wanted advice for their existing business on the wide ocean tides of the Internet, websites that offer opportunities, and strategies to market oneself in ways that are free.

I've come head-on into a collision with my best intentions.  Many of the programs I research and use myself don't end up in money in the bank for my readers, but countless hours refilling out resumes, for nothing.

Maybe I'm just a little down on my bathrobe business casual mentality; that if you have brains and skill you can make rent, or whatever, with your wile and guile and a little know how from a blog dedicated to not only your success, but the success of the person writing it.  No paychecks coming from lying and selling you shit that doesn't work, now is there?

The bottom line is that I'm making this post as self therapy in a way, and also as a warning that working a non-traditional 9 to 5 can be demoralizing, unscrupulous, and downright a waste of time.  So let us carry on and look at the details.

oDesk and it's protection of contractors: to sign an application through this company you must abide by the following code:

1. oDesk does not offer mediation or arbitration services. 
   
   If you do the work and the employer refuses to pay, oDesk will not be able to help.

Please choose Fixed Price jobs carefully. You may want to start off with smaller jobs to reduce the risk.

Good luck!

This isn't what the brochure said, and it sure doesn't make me feel comfortable with the time I've spent doing work for others, who could just as likely not pay me for it with no consequence.

It's disheartening, I know, but the hardiest of my readers will keep pursuing it and hope that they are treated fairly, even though there is apparently no guarantee that they will be.

That's the thing about writers, they have a tendency to write no matter what.

I wanted to bring this little clip to all my readers attention, and let them know that the waters are indeed filled with piranhas.  The best way you can help other readers and help me endorse or not endorse different platforms and freelance job opportunities is to Comment, and share your experiences on what works and what doesn't.

We're all working together in a sense.  Please leave your experiences on this page so we can rule out companies that do not provide the type of work we require, and focus on how to present yourself online in ways that facilitate legitimate work, and finding jobs and gigs that put real money in your pocket.

Malware Protection To Stay Away From

FAIL OF THE DAY

There seems to be a new fad among smaller companies that offer freeware to scan your computer for viruses, trojans, you know the type.  This is what they do.  They forward all your requests to download the latest version (or download for the first time) to a site called Majorgeeks.com.  More appropriately this site should be known as MajorScams.com which is pretty much how it operates unless you get savvy about how you download your freeware.

First, when downloading from their site, make certain you read the fine print, because these freeware companies don't even have enough money to provide hosting offering downloads to thousands of people, but less NOT affiliate market browser add-ons and toolbars, mistakenly make you download some god awful computer fascist program like Norton Anti-virus, or any other way majorgeeks sets up income potential to take you, the innocent consumer of free goods, for granted.

So I'll keep this short.  You can, cautiously, get IO bit Malware Fighter, AVG antivirus, and a number of BROKE crappy scanware over Majorgeeks, but make sure when you click download, and sign your name on the digital dotted line, what you are getting.  Because companies that outsource to Majorgeeks.com have not only sub-par products, but also make their living filling your computer with advertisements and bloatware.

ATTN: Majorgeeks and all of your distributors, affliates, scumbags, ect.:  If enough people pass this message along, your game is up.  I'll do everything in my power to make sure that happens.

Sincerely, your unsatisfied customer,

Todd A. Bjarnson

Finding Fiona by Emily Ann Ward
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A writer in my writing group, the Salem Writer's Symposium, has just published an E-book, Finding Fiona.  Congratulations, and great job Emily!  I can't wait to read the whole thing.


View all my reviews

Humor in the midst of the End of Days, and a few words of advice on multiple email management

http://kamikazeearth.blogspot.com/ is absolutely one of the best sites to follow.  I know, it's not about freelancing or business or anything. . . really, that I am usually focused on and talk about, but give it a follow.  And maybe send them an email, because they are hiring writers for their blog.  Surprise!  It really was about freelancing and making dough!  

This site is filled strictly with sick, satirical stuff; mostly about the developing trouble we have gotten ourselves into over the last 10 years as a race and the End Days.  Even if you aren't a religious whack-job or an armchair theorist on the Mayan calendar, you can't deny things are pretty much completely out of effing control, showing no signs of improving, and showing every sign of becoming even worse.

Trust me, don't subscribe to the Week. I can't stop reading it, and thinking about it, and I am to the point I can almost guess what the next  week's cover story is going to be based upon the previous weeks display of hubris, stupidity, and brutality.

Either way, give http://kamikazeearth.blogspot.com/ a thumbs up, and if you got a good pair of 'em to bring humor to the apocalypse, I'm sure they'd love to hear from you.

The 5:30 in the morning Email streamlining lesson
Freelancers and small business professionals often have to present themselves in a variety of ways to a variety of people.  The best way to do this online is to have different emails, and potentially even different profiles to accompany them.  Wouldn't it be nice if you could get ALL of them in one place and have your email client organize and respond automatically to each?  Here is how to do it.

The example I'm using is Gmail, because Outlook, Thunderbird, and their ilk are garbage, pure and simple.  Useless, outdated, prone to error, difficult to maneuver trash.

• First, pick an email to be your master account.  Use it to send out requests to send emails as your other accounts along with names or businesses where appropriate.  When prompted, put the same secondary address in the "reply-to email" option so your clients think they are talking only to one account.  This will make your master account invisible when communicating from other addresses.
• Second, verify this with your other accounts and allow the master account to conduct business under these other names.  While you are here, go into the email forwarding and forward all email to the master address.  You can also send a request to the master account to be allowed to send mail as the secondary accounts.  This may be doing the same thing twice as in step one, but it'll ensure no screw ups occur.
• Third, return to the master account, verify that you'd like all the other email messages forwarded to you, and if you sent the additional requests for the master account to act as the secondary ones, verify those as well.
• Finally, in your master account email options set up profiles for the secondary accounts (i.e. what the name is and what the email address is.  Then select a little further down to automatically respond to emails as the account it was sent to instead of the default (which should be the first profile you had for the master account when it was created).

And PRESTO, you can control as many small businesses, freelancing personas and accompanying tailored resumes, and even a scam or two all from the comfort of one giant inbox.  

While kidding about the scams, the time you will save logging in and out or logging in multiple accounts is real.  

P. S. You just might see me guest blogging on http://kamikazeearth.blogspot.com/, so keep your eyes to the sky for the mushroom cloud of my sarcasm.

Adding New Gadgets, Or Page Elements, And Using Your Blog As A Design Tool

The Challenging Switch From a Blog to a Website Can Change Your Blog's Role To Crash Test Dummy


Adding features, widgets, sharing links, comments, and forums to a website isn't all that much different than adding these features to a standard blog.  In fact, blogs such as Tumblr and WordPress are becoming so complex that the distinction between blog and complete website are beginning to blur.  But any author who wants to take their writing to the next level, and appear as professional as possible, should invest in a website.


Freelancer's Corner:  Most freelance writers maintain some type of blog, whether it is a series of notes on Facebook that interested people can read, or a more traditional LiveJournal, WordPress blog, or a Blogger account through google.  Their intention is to have an accessible collection of work to put on resumes and attract followers and credibility in their field.  But for most, despite provocative content, dedication, and even a word count in the millions, it won't get them tons of followers and won't help them get the jobs they desire.  Though it isn't free (and you know how much I hate things that aren't free), an investment in an official site that can be a new home for your blog, and link to published articles or any content you have had a hand in crafting is really a worthwhile investment.  A WWW.YourName.COM domain name will not normally be taken, and can be purchased relatively cheaply if you shop around.  1&1.com is usually the cheapest ($0.99 domain name special right now, which is UNHEARD OF), but look around for specials.

Planning a website is difficult, and using functions on your blog can help you get a good idea of where you are going before you invest the money in a website.  By adding pages with the appropriate gadget, you can jot ideas in different areas on the kind of content you want, where you want it, and how it will all be organized later on.

Many gadgets are confusing to use, and trial and error is much easier to do with a blog than a webpage involving lots of files that keep track of all the sites information, users, ect.  Getting the hang of locating the code you need, placing it on your blog, and proudly adding it as "Your New Gadget" will be common place when building a webpage.  Before making the big leap and spending around $50 for hosting and claiming a domain name, get your blog looking and feeling as much like a website as possible beforehand.  You'll save yourself money and time in the long run.

And you will do less of this: Offline development and updating.

The time I lost days of my life and almost my mind: a short story by Todd Bjarnson
Developing new functions for, or making complicated updates to, a website should ideally be done via a private host of some type, which allows designers create a mock server on their PC to experiment with the changes before copying them to the live site.  acquia.com/download is just such a product that supports the Drupal web design platform, but as far as I am concerned, neither is user friendly enough to be worth using.  I spent 15 hours (not counting the hours my tech-savvy girlfriend spent helping) trying to get Drupal to work with the local server Acquia had created, just to test run a template with no success.  I highly discourage the inexperienced web designer looking for a WYSIWYG or other webdesign program from using Drupal.  Being open source almost always means there is less help available for amateurs.  And accounts for their tech support can run $50.00/month.  Their templates are pretty flush with features, but the highfalutin attitudes of the developers and forum personas will discourage anyone who wants to get the website built and keep focused on their writing.

I've decided to give in to the hype and give WordPress a try.  It works in essentially the same way, but has a reputation for being very user friendly.

Not to mention it is popular among writers, who aren't often renowned for their more technical skills.  Imagine that?  If they were they'd be engineers and surgeons instead!