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"Freelancing can really help you decide whether or not you want to have a go at it full time."For many of us, freelancing *is* full time.

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oh, i think you maybe confused I'm talking about actual news sites like engadget and gigaom.

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good article! :)

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Thanks for spotting those typos. I don't really proofread the stuff I write for the blog to the same level as my commercial work (which I send to a proofreader). Why? I don't get paid for it! However, you're right, it is ironic to make mistakes in a paragraph about proofreading and I'm a little chagrined.

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"Read lots. I mean LOTS. I subscribe to about thirty magazines in my field and every time I fly I buy five magazines that I would never normally read. I also get a dozen emails from mailing lists every day and look at a lot of websites each morning."I agree with that the most. Reading is huge. I've been trying to work on my writing a lot recently and I think that reading other peoples work is hugely important. Especially reading stuff you wouldn't normally read. Digg is a great tool for this because it has a ton of articles from different sources that will give you a different look at writing styles. Science, politics, tech articles, sports. You can go from NYT op-ed to a blog made by a 15 year old in 30 seconds flat. They all give a slightly different feel. Another thing that has worked more than anything else for me is grading papers. I'm a teachers assistant, so reading over papers for spelling and content forces me to be a better writer. Also, going back to a stack of your old writing and fixing content structure and spelling really helps too. You'll see stupid mistakes and remember them once you sit down to write again. Thanks Kevin

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Does anyone know of a comparable American website similar to the London one that was linked to in this article? I think it is hard to determine American rates, issues, and facts based upon the United Kingdom sources. This is an American sourced website after all. Good information though, good ideas, and perspective. I would give this an A grade.

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