Freelance Writing

Whenever I started getting into writing about 5 years ago. Everyone always told me that I should start freelance writing. I knew what this meant in the most general terms. You write for someone else and get paid for it. Sounds simple. After reading through the chapter, there is more to think about than just writing and getting paid. I really did not realize how difficult the the industry is for freelance writing. One point that I thought of while reading this chapter was you don’t really have a set job schedule. If you have a job to go to everyday, you have that sense of structure. Freelancing as a job allows you to create your own schedule, which I believe to be a blessing and a curse. If you are a very self-driven and self-motivated person, then I think that freelance writing could be something fantastic for you, but if you aren’t, I think it could be something someone who doesn’t have those traits, I think that you could really struggle doing this type of work. Another blessing and curse that comes out of freelance writing is you get what you put into it. Literally. The only way you can succeed in this type of environment is to create really good content that people enjoy reading and stuff that makes a name for yourself that allows you to obtain more jobs in the future. Another thing you have to think about is what if you don’t have the opportunity to create content and get jobs? Or you can not find a job? That is a very realistic part of being a freelance writer. You have to stay looking for jobs and really stay sharp on that point of the job because that is really your only way to be successful at it. Before reading this chapter I never really thought about any of this. Then it streams into having a place to stay, eating, taxes, and things like that everyone takes for granted. Since that is your source of income, you have to really be sharp and know exactly what you are doing to get into it, in my opinion.

 

 

 

Fantastic

When I was reading the assignment I did not believe that this story would have the effect on me like you said it would. Carol I stand corrected. What an unbelievable piece of literature. This is probably the best piece I have read for this class. What struck me after I was finished reading it was that he was able to convey his message in such view words. The piece isn’t very long, but wow, it is very much to the point and definitely does a fantastic job portraying the story to the reader in such a way that the reader felt like they saw this entire thing unfold. Being able to write in such a short and precise manner I think is what makes a writer great and obviously by reading this piece he does that throughout the entire thing. Another thing that I really enjoyed about the story is how he was able to make the reader switch points of view throughout the piece. He was able to bring different people into the story and be smooth when he transitioned from person to person. Tackling many different viewpoints and people while writing a story is very difficult to do and have it come off well. My favorite part had to be the end though. The way he closed out the piece was perfect. It didn’t leave me wanting more or wanting less, it was just the perfect amount of “whatever” you want to call it. The quote from the gravedigger did a fantastic job of bringing the story together and creating a sense of ease throughout the entire piece.

 

Mrs.Kelly

Wow. What a sad piece to read. What that woman was going through must have been awful. It is amazing that she was able to fight for as long as she did. Things like this happen once in awhile and sometimes even though the doctors are top notch, sometimes there just isn’t anything more they can do. The doctor doing the surgeries on Mrs.Kelly obviously did everything he could to save her life but those brain surgeries I feel like are the hardest to predict the outcome of. As for the writing of the piece I really can not believe this won the Pulitzer prize. I think to win such a prestigious award it needs to come down to obviously the story that you have, but also the way it was written. Personally, I am not a huge fan of how this was written. I think if it was normally written it would be so much more powerful than how it is structured right now. Obviously it is a very powerful story within itself, but when I was reading it, it come off and felt really choppy to me. I mean I got the story and understood everything, but I think it could have been relied a bit smoother in my opinion. I was really surprised that he decided to write the story and run it still after she died. That was a very shocking move and if I was the family of Mrs.Kelly I am not sure how I would have taken it.

 

Elevator Pitch

My elevator pitch experience was a bit different than my classmates. To start off, I thought and still do think it is a great assignment, stressful, but very good and it needs to be done. Being able to pull something off inside one minute is extremely difficult and really is a skill. When giving an elevator pitch, you are not only selling your product, but also yourself. You could have a fantastic idea, but if the people that you are selling it to do not believe in you, then there is really no point. My elevator pitch was given just to our professor instead of in class because I have a bit of a stomach bug as I sit here and write this post. So my experience was sort of like a job interview which I do not want to say is harder, but it is a bit different than pitching to the entire class. I think that having the experience of doing it one on one is important as well as giving it in class. I really enjoyed the assignment and am glad I did it because it got me to attempt to perfect a skill that I thought I already possessed and that is talking to people.

 

 

Hiro 88 Sushi & Sake Grill

Finally down to my final review! This place I am about to mention is a Japanese Sake and sushi grill, much similar to Blue, but instead of Americanized, it is very authentic in regards to what they serve overall on the entire menu. A close colleague of mine told me that a Japanese friend of his recommends this restaurant over all other sushi places in the Old Market area as well as Omaha in general. This restaurant is called Hiro 88. A truly more authentic take to Japanese cuisine, Hiro 88 allows customers to have a multi-cultural experience that you really do not get at any other Japanese sushi restaurant in town. Priced similarly to Blue, but the quality of the raw fish all the way to the sake bombs is fantastic. They have two happy hours, one mid-day that is great then they have another that they call, “reverse happy hour.” Reverse happy hour ranges from 10pm-12am and the menu is honestly massive. They have an extensive menu to being with but in comparison to Blue, the happy hour menus are way bigger and more extensive. The drink menus are great with a long list of drafts and cocktails that are made in house with fresh ingredients. They have a fantastic alcohol selection as well. If I were to recommend any place on this count down my first one would easily be Hiro 88. With a friendly staff and great atmosphere, whether you are meeting a friend, colleague or having a family meal, you can not go wrong with Hiro 88. Check them out here and thank you for reading!

 

 

 

Blue Sushi & Sake Grill

Now, I completely understand that $12 all you can eat sushi is not for everyone. I think that Tokyo is geared more towards the “bang for your buck” college students, but needless to say there are two other places that offer a slightly higher quality, as well as a higher price point. The second sushi restaurant and bar is Blue Sushi & Sake Grill. On there website, Blue claims that they are a restaurant “unites creative ingredients with energetic vibes, premium cold sake with happy moments to give you a fresh and fun new way to experience sushi.” I agree with that statement. I’ve been to Blue a handful of times and I really like the vibe and atmosphere that they have created. They have a lower level that is more formal and then upstairs at the top of the restaurant they have more of a lounge area that is very casual. The wall graphics are awesome and give off a very fun and happy vibe. Upstairs in the lounge is where the happy hour takes place. The happy hour at Blue I rate at about a 6/10. The reason being is that it is still pretty pricey for a happy hour. The quality of sushi and the presentation on the plate is very good, but I still feel like they could do a better job on the overall pricing. Blue to me is more really for the show, but it is good quality as well. But trust me, I understand sushi is expensive to begin with, but Tokyo and the other restaurant that I will mention in the 3rd part of this review have GREAT happy hour deals. To learn more about Blue and make a reservation, you can go to the website here.

 

Tokyo Sushi

When coming to Omaha, a lot of people ask, what is there to do? Where is there to eat? Why should I come to Omaha? Now, these 3 very general questions are asked a lot and do I think you should come to Omaha strictly for sushi? No. But, I do believe these are 3 places that I highly recommend trying if you happen to be in the Omaha area. In Omaha, the Old Market area is a cute, European-esc part of the city that attracts tourists for a multitude of reasons ranging from horse & carriage rides to sushi bars. I have hand picked 3 of the most well-known sushi restaurants and bars at 3 different price points for your next trip to Omaha. The first one that I’m going to bring up is the lowest on the price scale. It is called Tokyo Sushi. If you want that bang for your buck type of sushi, with surprisingly good quality. A very laid-back and casual atmosphere so a fantastic place for lunch with a friend, colleague or family member. The one thing about Tokyo that stands out to me is how they deal with the lunch hour. From around 11-2, they have a deal that is $12 all you can eat. Trust me, you can throw down A LOT of sushi. Me and my roommate go on occasion and we are full for the entire day, it is a great way to relax and have a nice meal over the lunch hour. The servers are friendly and the restaurant is very clean. I would rate it a 8/10 and I take into consideration price point, overall quality, and then how friendly the people are. This is the lowest restaurant on my price scale so please read my next blog for the review on the moderately priced option! You can check out Tokyo here.

 

 

This week vs Last week

I will be honestly, I did not enjoy the pieces of writing as much as I did last week. These pieces were not as compelling as the ones I have read previously. The ones that we read previously had so much detail and made me feel like I was actually there and I knew the people that were in the stories that were being written about. Although having said that, the stories that we read this week were interesting in themselves. They were feel good stories and I think that they would be very popular to your average reader. I however, just wish there was more detail in regards to how it was written.

Kickstarter

Before this class, I never heard or dealt with Kickstarter. With that being said, I have actually had a lot of friends that have used gofundme, which is another website that basically does the same thing. The only different I can really point out is that most of the gofundmes I have seen, they are a bit more for individual purposes such as service trips, self-funding projects, trips abroad, and things more of that nature. I think after looking at the examples in class, we see that Kickstarter is more for businesses.

 

Starting a successful crowdfunding campaign is very tricky. I think the biggest thing to raising money is being relatable to people and having them believe in the cause you are trying to raise money and awareness for. As the the Coolest, that was a pretty good idea that I think a lot of people that live on water bought into. Usually, you associate people that live on the water to be wealthier than most, so donating to a business like this really does not make a big deal to them, as well as spending $400 on a cooler. I also think that they go very creative in regards to what they were giving away to people that donated.

 

In contrast to how well the Coolest did, the Mudtails Kickstarter, I honestly think it just was not a good idea. And with that I think the idea was all over the place. When we watched the video in class, it just did not make sense to me and I think that was the case for a lot of the class. I mentioned earlier in this post that to have a successful Kickstarter that you need an attention grabbing idea, and for me, this just was not it.

Profile Writing

After reading both of the articles for this week as well as reflecting back on the “Dear Nate” profile piece, I can honestly say I did not know how to write a profile piece until now. I honestly thought that a profile was like an interview, but now I see it as more of a story giving you a look into how someone is or was. A personalized story. I’m taking their words and making into an art piece that is to be enjoyed by other people.

Both pieces I thought were great, but I had a bigger connection with “The American Male at age 10” than the “Mr.Rodgers” piece. The use of imagery and the creativeness that I got from the American Male was fantastic. I could really picture myself as if I was there as well as if I were that kid in the story. I felt like I was experiencing what she was writing first hand and in my opinion, that is exactly what writing or good writers should strive to do. The other piece seemed more like an interview to me. I mean, we are still talking about two fantastically written pieces of writing, just one appealed to me over another. I am very thankful that our assignment to read both of these pieces because I was really in the dark on how to properly write one of these type of pieces.