Successful Freelancer Spotlight: Jen Miller

Good Monday morning readers! Today, I am putting the spotlight on Jen Miller, a freelance journalist, blogger, and author who lives in Collingswood, New Jersey.

Jen’s work has appeared in The New York Times, Woman’s Day, Allure, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Psychology Today, Poets & Writers, Wired.com, Men’s Fitness, the New Jersey Monthly, and others. She also is author of a book called The Jersey Shore: Atlantic City to Cape May, and the author of two blogs—”Book a Week with Jen” and “Down the Shore with Jen.”

Before taking the leap into full-time freelancing four years ago this January, Jen edited a regional magazine called SJ Magazine. Prior to that, she worked in public relations for the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

Today, I have asked Jen to talk about blogging, how she has used it to promote her book, and how it has opened some unexpected doors in her freelance career.

How long have you been blogging? What do you enjoy about it?

I started blogging in July 2007 at downtheshorewithjen.blogspot.com. I started the blog as a way to promote my book, The Jersey Shore: Atlantic City to Cape May, but started blogging while I was writing the book. It was a great place to write about the book-writing process, and to put out information about things that I knew wouldn’t be in the book.

Can you tell me a little bit about your blog, “Book a Week with Jen” and how you came up with the idea for it?

I started bookaweekwithjen.blogspot.com last fall after I got dumped. I had read about people trying to do a set number of things in 365 days, and I wanted to try something similar. At the same time, I was getting frustrated with trying to write book reviews as a freelancer. Not only was less space available, but I found myself only reading books that I could write about, so I started the blog as a way to counteract that. I finished the first “book a week” series in seven months.

You also have a blog called “Down the Shore with Jen.” Can you tell me about this blog and how this one got started?

In summer 2007, I was writing the manuscript of what would become my first book, and I needed a place to write about all those things that didn’t quite fit in, and where I could vent about the book-writing process. Writing a travel guide is a laborious and tedious task, so the blog was a different outlet. I had no idea that it would take on a life of its own. I’ve gotten e-mails from people who said they rely on it every week to figure out what they’re doing down the shore that weekend. A family from Massachusetts apparently was such a fan of the blog that the kids begged to go to one of my book signings in Avalon this summer while they were on vacation. Who knew!

Some writers have a hard time justifying starting a blog—they take time and they often do not involve pay. Do you think all writers should have a blog?

This topic has benefited from a blog. The great thing about the Web is that it crosses all borders. If someone from California has fond memories of the Jersey Shore, they can still find and buy the book by just typing in some key words in a search engine. It’s been a the perfect way to promote the book to a very niche audience.

I only tell people to blog if they have something to say. I could probably have a general interest “Hey, here’s Jen’s blog!” type thing, but I didn’t see anything unique about that. I put some personal stuff into my shore blog, and that’s OK because of the title “Down the Shore with Jen.” But a general interest blog? I’m not sure it would find as big an audience.

How have your blogs benefited your freelance career? Have they led to paying assignments? What about any other opportunities?

The shore blog has helped position me as an expert about the shore. Of course I had the book, but the blog was easier to find through search engines, and I told my editors about it. I’ve already been assigned shore articles for Summer 2009, in part because editors found out about me and my book BECAUSE of my blog.

I’ve already made more money on freelance assignments about the shore than I have so far from the book, writing about the shore for The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, New Jersey Monthly, and USAirways magazine, among others. And that was just last year. Now editors are coming to me. I don’t think I’d have been nearly so successful freelance-wise in writing about the shore without the blog. I’ve been surprised of late by PR people who are pitching me stories for the blog! It’s great that I’m on their radar, and I usually try to turn those into paying magazine or newspaper articles.

The book blog is different. I still feel like I’m doing that for myself, though I don’t think it’s a waste of time. It’s a place where I can almost doodle about how I react to a book, and it produces a lot of ideas. I just finished book 4 of 52 of round two, and I already got two article assignments based on the reading.

Any advice on where freelancers should look for well-paying blogging gigs?

Ask clients you already have. If all goes well, I’ll be starting a blogging gig soon for a magazine I’ve written for since I started freelancing. Once I saw that they redid their website and added blogs, I asked them if I could start my own.

Do you have advice for people who are considering starting a blog?

Don’t get too caught up on the details or the finer points of blogging because—let’s be honest—not many people are reading it from the get-go. Read other blogs, and try new things. I think your style is something you figure out as you go along.

Many people—including some freelancers—find it difficult to find time to read for pleasure. How do you make time in your busy schedule to read a book a week?

I don’t have cable! Seriously, it leaves for a lot of reading time. I also take a book wherever I go. I teach two nights a week, and I’m always reading on the train.

Aside from being well-read, how has reading a book a week benefited your writing and your freelance career? Any unexpected realizations?

Sometimes I’ve chosen a book just because I wanted to write about it. I did that with the first book in the latest go-round, which is about karaoke. Why not? And I’m writing an article that includes karaoke. It’s been an amazing idea generator. Just forcing yourself to read more will bring out new ideas.