Freelance Writing Direct with Estelle: Conversations with authors, journalists, agents, novelists, memoirists, niche writers, publishers, writing teachers, assigning editors and media experts.

In this episode Estelle Erasmus and Sherry Paprocki speak with Andrea King Collier. Andrea is an award-winning author, journalist and photographer based in Lansing, Michigan. Much of Andrea's work focuses on health equity and health policy. She is an award-winning essayist and memorist. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, Essence, O the Opera Magazine, AARP magazine, Next Avenue and many others. She is the mother of two adult children and her favorite title is "GoGo" to two sweet grandsons. In this episode: How Andrea arranges her writing schedule to take off memorial day to labor day. Pitching and gridding your stories. The power of networking with other writers. Tips for freelance writers to propel them forward in their careers Connect with Andrea King Collier: Email: andycollier11@comcast.net Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andrea.collier Send us an email: freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com Connect with Estelle: Website: https://estelleserasmus.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@estelleserasmus Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/estelle.sobel.erasmus/ Connect with Sherry: Website: https://sherrybeckpaprocki.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paprockisherry/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sherry.paprocki Twitter: https://twitter.com/sherrypaprocki If you've enjoyed our podcast, please leave us a review. Reviews help bring our podcast in front of more people. We want to hear from you. For questions, ideas for future episodes, and thoughts on our episodes, email us at freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com.

In this episode, Estelle Erasmus and Sherry Paprocki speak with Richard Eisenberg. In January of 2022, Rich "Unretired". Rich is a freelance personal finance writer and editor and co-host of the "Friends Talk Money" podcast. Most recently, he was managing editor of Next Avenue site, and editor of its Money & Policy and Work and Purpose channels. He is author of How to Avoid a Mid-Life Financial Crisis and The Money Book of Personal Finance and lives in New Jersey. Before working at Next Avenue, Rich was Front-Page Finance Editor at Yahoo!, Special Projects Director/Money Editor at Good Housekeeping, and Executive Editor at Money Magazine. He is the author of "How to Avoid a Midlife Financial Crisis" and "The Money Book of Personal Finance" and lives in New Jersey. He spends his newfound free time mentoring, volunteering, and spending time with family and friends. In this episode: The definition of "Unretirement" How to freelance after retirement, and available writing and writing related gigs The skillsets writers need writing for online publications Tips for having open conversations with an editor about expectations, from both sides of the publishing wall Richard's experience writing a viral article Connecting podcasts with other work as a multi-passionate writer Connect with Richard: Twitter: https://twitter.com/richeis315 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardeisenberg Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/reisenberg1 Email: RichardEisenberg@usa.net Friends Talk Money Podcast: https://friendstalkmoney.org His viral article: Sorry, Nobody Wants Your Parents' Stuff https://www.nextavenue.org/nobody-wants-parents-stuff/ What You Said About 'Nobody Wants Your Parents' Stuff https://www.nextavenue.org/told-us-nobody-wants-parents-stuff/ Think Nobody Wants Your Parents' Art? Think Again https://www.nextavenue.org/think-nobody-wants-your-parents-art-think-again/ His MarketWatch column: https://www.marketwatch.com/author/richard-eisenberg Send us an email: freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com Connect with Estelle: Website: https://estelleserasmus.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@estelleserasmus Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/estelle.sobel.erasmus/ Connect with Sherry: Website: https://sherrybeckpaprocki.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paprockisherry/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sherry.paprocki Twitter: https://twitter.com/sherrypaprocki If you've enjoyed our podcast, please leave us a review. Reviews help bring our podcast in front of more people. We want to hear from you. For questions, ideas for future episodes, and thoughts on our episodes, email us at freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com.

In this episode Estelle Erasmus and Sherry Paprocki speak with Jeanette Hurt, an award-winning author, culinary historian and TEDx speaker. She has written 15 books, including The Unofficial Aldi Cookbook, Drink Like A Woman, Cauliflower Comfort, and Wisconsin Cocktails. Jeanette also regularly contributes stories and recipes to dozens of magazines, websites and content companies. When she's not writing her own books, she works as a skilled ghostwriter, who helps coax stories, garner inspiration and hone the words of would-be authors and experts. As a recipe developer, Jeanette loves delighting family and friends with her latest experiments in the woodland retreat that she shares with her architect husband and their son. When not testing whiskey sour recipes or walking around the aisles at Aldi's, you can find her hiking the Wisconsin woods with her rescue chihuahua great pyrenees mix. In this episode: Pivoting your writing throughout your career. Becoming a TEDx Speaker Working with Co-Authors with different backgrounds Creating boundaries and feeling valued with co-authors and partnerships How to stay on track with your projects Watch Jeanette's TEDx here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEgD5wJJKkM Here's a link to her recent books: Dehydrating https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/709767/dehydrating-by-jeanette-hurt/ Wisconsin Cocktails, https://www.amazon.com/Wisconsin-Cocktails-Jeanette-Hurt/dp/0299328805 Join ASJA: https://www.asja.org Connect with Jeanette: Website: http://www.jeanettehurt.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/ByJeanetteHurt Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/byjeanettehurt/ Send us an email: freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com Connect with Estelle: Website: https://estelleserasmus.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@estelleserasmus Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/estelle.sobel.erasmus/ Connect with Sherry: Website: https://sherrybeckpaprocki.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paprockisherry/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sherry.paprocki Twitter: https://twitter.com/sherrypaprocki If you've enjoyed our podcast, please leave us a review. Reviews help bring our podcast in front of more people. We want to hear from you. For questions, ideas for future episodes, and thoughts on our episodes, email us at freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com.

In this episode, Sherry Paprocki and Estelle Erasmus speak with Jack El-Hai, the author of 14 books. Jack writes nonfiction books, longform narratives, podcasts, and the free monthly Damn History newsletter for writers and readers of popular history. He covers history, medicine, science, crime, and anything else that hooks him and he thinks will also hook his audience. Jack also helps physicians learn how to use creative writing to avoid stress and burnout, connect with their patients, enjoy the pleasure of creation, and enjoy the satisfaction of publishing their work. In addition to his newest book The Lost Brothers, he has written The Nazi and the Psychiatrist, Non-Stop: A Turbulent History of Northwest Airlines, and The Lobotomist: A Maverick Medical Genius and His Tragic Quest to Rid the World of Mental Illness. His articles have appeared in Smithsonian, The Atlantic, GQ, Wired, Scientific American Mind, Topic, Longreads, The Washington Post Magazine, and many other publications. Several of Jack's nonfiction stories have been optioned for the screen and stage. He frequently gives talks and leads workshops on the topics of his books as well as on the craft of nonfiction writing and the benefits of creative writing for physicians. This episode covers: How Jack went from writing freelance articles to tackling writing books. How Jack has sold his stories for adaptation. Signing options and understanding option fees. 4 tips for how a writer can get involved in options and movies Website: https://www.el-hai.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/Jack_ElHai Send us an email: freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com Connect with Estelle: Website: https://estelleserasmus.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@estelleserasmus Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/estelle.sobel.erasmus/ Connect with Sherry: Website: https://sherrybeckpaprocki.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paprockisherry/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sherry.paprocki Twitter: https://twitter.com/sherrypaprocki

In today's episode, Estelle Erasmus and Sherry Paprocki speak with Dr. Juli Fraga, a psychologist and freelance writer in San Francisco. They talk about how Dr. Fraga's psychology background informs her writing. As a psychology major, Dr. Fraga was fascinated by the complexities of human behavior, especially how our life experiences influence how we relate to ourselves, as well as to others. While completing her Master's degree in psychology, she became interested in women's health concerns and worked as a graduate assistant at the Women's Resource Center where she organized outreach services focused on eating disorders, relationship concerns, and women's wellness. After studying writing and pitching with Estelle, Dr. Fraga started writing reported stories covering mental health and wellness. Her bylines are featured in The Washington Post, NPR, The New York Times, SELF, InStyle, WIRED, Glamour, etc. In this episode: Dr. Fraga's best tips for freelance writers Advice on how to collect research How Dr. Fraga perfects her pitches to editors Tips for co-authored work How to prioritize self care in the face of rejection Connect with Dr. Juli Fraga: Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/dr_fraga/ Website: https://www.drjulifraga.com Send us an email: freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com Connect with Estelle: Website: https://estelleserasmus.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@estelleserasmus Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/estelle.sobel.erasmus/ Connect with Sherry: Website: https://sherrybeckpaprocki.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paprockisherry/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sherry.paprocki Twitter: https://twitter.com/sherrypaprocki

In this episode, Sherry Paprocki and Estelle Erasmus share their stories of how they got started as freelance writers. Estelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, writing coach, and longtime ASJA member. She is an adjunct writing professor at New York University and writes the "All About the Pitch" column for Writer's Digest. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Independent, WIRED, Huffington Post Personal, AARP the Magazine, Vox, Insider, Next Avenue, GH, Marie Claire and more. She is the Special Guest Judge for Writer's Digest's 2022 Personal Essay contest. Estelle's articles for the New York Times and Washington Post have gone globally viral (with more than 500 comments on her NYT piece). She has appeared on Good Morning America, Fox News with Ernie Anastos and has had her articles mentioned on "The View". Her book WRITING THAT GETS NOTICED: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published is forthcoming from New World Library in June 2023. Sherry Beck Paprocki, started her journey as a journalism major covering politics and writing for newspapers. She is an author, a coach and an award-winning content producer. Recently nominated as part of team for a National Magazine Award. She has been named among the Folio:100, which honors the "brightest, most impactful minds in magazine journalism today," as well as being listed among Folio's Top Women in Media. She has also been the winner of at least five other national awards for writing and editing, including those from the City and Regional Magazine Association (CRMA) and the American Library Association's Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA). She now also has a goal to help solopreneurs who desire to support themselves through their talents by creating their business space in the marketplace. She believes that no two creatives have the same journey. That's one of the reasons she wrote her latest book, "Freelance Fancy: Your Guide to Capturing Spiritual Health, Wealth and Happiness Through Gig Work." She is a gifted, engaging speaker with a timely message. Estelle and Sherry share their hottest tips for entering the freelance world and working with editors, how to build a writing community and a platform, and how to handle some of the most pressing creative and technical writing challenges. Send us an email: freelancewritingdirect@gmail.com Connect with Estelle: Website: https://estelleserasmus.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@estelleserasmus Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/estelle.sobel.erasmus/ Connect with Sherry: Website: https://sherrybeckpaprocki.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paprockisherry/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sherry.paprocki Twitter: https://twitter.com/sherrypaprocki

Welcome to the Freelance Writing Direct podcast. Join Estelle Erasmus and Sherry Paprocki every week as they share short, sound bite filled podcasts, covering everything that the creative writer, freelance writer, and author needs to know to move forward in their creativity and career. Estelle and Sherry will share how the sauce is made, with tips and tricks to give you a leg up in the marketplace. The podcast will also feature interviews with authors and writers who are generous with their own advice. The pair will also share advice from their combined 45+ years of experience in publishing as editors, writers, authors, and speakers. Throughout the episodes, Estelle and Sherry will evolve with the audience, as they listen to their guests, share pitches and essays, and offer writing and career prompts. It's time to build your craft with Freelance Writing Direct. Estelle and Sherry can't wait to read what you will be writing. Connect with the hosts: Estelle: https://estelleserasmus.com Sherry: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sherrybeckpaprocki/