Welcome to the age of technology, where anyone with a keyboard and a general grasp of their ABCs can call themselves a freelance writer. The difference between a successful freelance writer and those who fade into obscurity is as simple as which one is better at hawking their wares to the public. In other words, who has better marketing? Pure writing talent notwithstanding, any person who has ever taken on an entrepreneurial endeavor knows that being able to advertise your product and get publicity is the other half of the battle.

For a freelance writer, the foundation of your advertising and publicity will be your website. I highly recommend that you purchase a unique domain, although many a well-known freelancer has operated exclusively from a blog maintained by the likes of Blogger and WordPress, arguably two of the most widely-used blogging platforms. My website, Trina L. Grant's Professional Freelance Writing is hosted by Microsoft Office Live. Office Live gives you one domain name for free for one year. After the year is up, you do have to pay a subscription fee, but if you decide to go with your name, as I did, you will find this invaluable as your home site. You may have other sites, but I advise you to keep your own name as your permanent domain. This domain name defines your business. It is you. It defines your web presence. You can have up to five different email addresses under one domain name with Office Live, all of them ending with "@yourname". The domain names ending in .com are most popular, so it can be difficult to find the exact domain name you want. You may have to settle for a domain name that contains a hyphen or numbers, if part of the name is common. You also have the choice of going with a .net domain, or .org, among several others.

You should definitely have at least one blog, and contribute to it at least once a day. Darren Rowse of ProBlogger says when he started blogging, he started by posting at least once a week. Now, he says he does it at least four or five times a week. I personally recommended every day, but this is just a practice in personal discipline, and, I believe it keeps the artistic juices flowing. Several blogs on several different hosting formats would be best. I currently have three blogs on Blogger, one on WordPress, one on Microsoft Windows Live Writer, one on MySpace, one on StumbleUpon...I could go on and on. The point is, while they are all in various stages of construction and usability, I have several places where my name is being seen, and they show off my writing skills on various topics.

Another way to get your name out there is to follow the blogs of other freelance writers, and others who specialize in whatever your niche is, and make regular commentary about their posts. Keep in mind a few points, however.

• Be respectful, follow the usual netiquette. Don't harass others, or be rude. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. What would be the point of blogs and commentary if there was nothing to debate, to discuss? You won't make your point by being belligerent, or using threatening language, which includes using ALL CAPS. If you have spent more than five minutes online, you know everybody hates it. It is just not cool. You sound stupid. You lose points for your side, not to mention damaging your credibility.
  
• Don't rant. Again, you are entitled to your opinion, but you want to have a point, not just a theme. You desire to have a voice, but, if you want to be allowed to be a guest blogger, remember that you have to present yourself as being somewhat intelligent, with something to say that has a purpose. You want to convince other people to see your point of view, not beat them into submission.
  
• Be able to back up your points. Use citations and certainly give credit where it is due. Use examples and references.

After you have been a regular, articulate commentator, some blog owners will regularly invite others to post as a guest contributor. Definitely consider this as a way to get your name and your web presence established. Do not think of it as being the opener for the more famous guy, or giving away your services. Think of it as a guest spot on a popular radio show. Think of it as an opportunity to have yourself associated with a well-established person in the writing industry. Think of yourself as blessed. If you have been following a certain blog that you particularly like, and have regularly been posting thoughtful, eloquent commentary, then consider emailing the blog owner and asking them if they allow others to be contribute guests posts. Let them know that you have regularly contributed valuable dialog, and that you are a follower. You will have a byline. You will still get credit for the words typed. Think of the traffic that you may drive your own way, from the readers of the already established blog. You will network with other writers, an invaluable use of your time.

Volunteer your skills. A lot of freelancing gurus will tell you it is a mistake to give away your time and talent. That, in my opinion, is relative. I am just now getting involved with the American Cancer Society. By offering my writing services, I hope to provide free help for a much needed cause while getting some valuable experience. I am also volunteering my services to the church my family has begun to attend. It is a very small Christian church in the rural community that we live in, and we are part of an effort to build the church family again.

Think of the free advertising from another perspective. Every type of industry, and most businesses and especially large corporations have some kind of account set to the side for donations and charity. This gets the company's name out into the public, and gives them a good public persona. Plus, people will generally be glad to help you after you have established some kind of business relationship with them by volunteering your time and your product or service. The extra experience will give you some much-needed practice working with clients that will be invaluable when you have "real" clients who pay. You will also find that working in different aspects of the community will broaden your horizons, so to speak, and open new doors to ideas and opportunities for writing.

As always, you definitely want to be querying, submitting, emailing, and writing all the time. Opportunities for work are usually not going to fall in your lap. Just like every other entrepreneur, you are going to have to promote yourself and your talent, and "work it". Many freelancers give up after a short time because they do not get any "hits". The problem may not be with the writing, but with the advertising. You have to present yourself as a genuine business in order to gain and keep clientele.