Author Cara Siera Launches New Official Website

Cara Siera now has a new official website. Check it out: Cara Siera Professional Writing & Editing Services

Original Recipes Featured on Chef's Blog

I love to cook, and for some time now I've had a cookbook in the works. That's why I was very excited to have several of my own recipes featured on Foodini's Chef's Blog.

Check it out and learn to make an easy, three course gourmet meal at home!

Now Accepting Proposals for Content Writing and Editing

Every business needs content. What is content? It is the written words on your website, your business card, your brochure, your menu, or your catalog.

Content plays an extensive role in how customers and clients view your business. Poorly written content with mistakes and typos will cause customers to seek services elsewhere. High quality, informative, engaging content will keep them coming back to you again and again.

Outshine the competition with professional written content by longtime writer Cara Siera. If you've already got the written material, let Cara polish your business image with professional editing and proofreading services.

For a free project consultation and pricing estimate, email Cara today at carasieraphotography@gmail.com.

Need more info? Check out Cara's full resume and portfolio.

Are Brokered Firms Devaluing the Freelance Writing Industry?

If you search the internet for reviews on brokered writing firms, or "content mills," as they are often called, you'll find a myriad of posts from disgruntled writers whining about scams and scanty pay. You'll hear tales of favoritism in assigning writing gigs, unpredictable "droughts" of client requests, and meager pay below minimum wage. Yes, these things can happen. But consider one writer's refutations to common claims about this sector of the writing industry.

Claim No. 1: Content mills devalue writer's work.

If you're a devotee of Peter Bowerman's The Well-Fed Writer, you may very well believe that getting paid 1.4 cents per word is squandering the good name of content writers everywhere. We're supposed to bank a minimum of $50.00 per hour, right?

Proponents of this claim assert that companies will stop respecting what writers do and stop paying higher prices if they can get the content they need for peanuts. I disagree for three reasons.

1. There will always be those who appreciate quality. When companies use content mills, they often know very little about the writers of their content, and some mill writers are, sadly, second rate. However, when a company uses a mill and youimpress them with superior work, they are likely willing to pay a higher price to have you work for them in the future. This can be a successful means of networking.
2. There will always be those who are too cheap to pay $50.00 an hour. This is one reason why mills are no threat to established freelancers. Many of the companies who use content mills are small, new, or not interested in paying higher prices for superior work. Mills advertise to a slightly different demographic than professional freelancers.
3. Freelancers themselves are responsible for upholding their niche. Every good freelancer knows that during negotiations, it is important to let a client know just how much time and research is involved in their project. Why? Because clients often don't know how involved good content writing can be. It's our job as freelancers to remind them. Then, they'll see why are prices are what they are. This is also why freelancers typically offer a rate per job, not per hour.

Claim No. 2: I'll never make it as a writer at content mill wages.

This may be true. I've written mill articles for - sigh - as little as $5.00 an hour. That's not even minimum wage! But, I also went into freelance writing with the understanding that I'd have to work my way from the bottom up.

Consider an example. Did the Apple CEO Tim Cook, successor to Steve Jobs, waltz right out of college and into the Corporate Executive Officer's suite? By no means. He first had to climb the corporate ladder at IBM. Similarly, a freelance writer shouldn't expect to land on easy street, making six or more times minimum wage, the first time he hands out resumes. Consider the brokerage firms as an analog to your entry level job at the local burger joint, only you're dropping blog posts instead of french fries.

The bottom line: No doubt about it, content mills definitely have their downsides. While brokered firms may not be your first choice for bread and butter, they are a good means of transitioning easily into the freelance writing industry. They also make a good filler for those times between more promising jobs - steady, albeit smaller, income if you're willing to engage in a professional version of "busy work."

Originally published on Linked In on December 30, 2016.

Check Out the Maple Street Project

Read Cara Siera's latest blog, The Maple Street Project, to learn how to benefit from nature and enjoy life, even in the heart of the city.

Cara Siera Photography Now Available on Redbubble

Do you love the stunning nature photos and meaningful still-lifes taken by photographer Cara Siera?  Her work is now available on a number of products from Red Bubble, including stationary, wall art, phone cases, and more.

Heartsblood

Heartsblood

By Cara Siera 

Oh, this is the real thing, all right

The other was thin, like water

Or like a cold fog

This is different.

It’s tangible.

It has thickness, length, breadth, material

It’s yielding but as firm as the flesh of my heart

It’s viscose, like heartsblood

Heartsblood oozes from it, in fact

Giving it life

It is heartsblood.

And heartsblood doesn’t scab over

When you’re wounded

It oozes, creeps on out

Turning blue then black

As it is deprived of vital oxygen

And then you die.

But this is real and

The heartsblood is warm

It courses through me, through you

We share it.

It is ours and we belong to it

It gives us life and love

Because we reciprocate

It takes on shapeless forms

In the night

We grant it this power

Because without it we are nothing.

We drip with heartsblood

We are saturated in it

It is in us and of us

Originally published in the 2011-2012 edition of The Red Mud Review under the pen name Cara Carroll.

Cara Siera Featured by Brevity Once Again

Cara's third book review with Creative Nonfiction's online journal Brevity recently went up on the Brevity blog.

The Woman Who Would Be King: Hatshepsut's Rise to Power in Ancient Egypt by Kara Cooney is the fascinating true tale of one of the world's first female monarchs in a male dominated society. Read the full review here.

Hot Off the Presses: "Captivated"

Captivated

By Cara Siera

This just in...Cara Siera's newest book, Captivated, has just hit digital shelves.  Twenty-six pages of stunning full-color photographs, this coffee table volume will transport your family to far-away places and familiar zoological parks.  Order your copy today!

 

Check Out My New Blog, The Honest Traveler

Wanderlust, the travel bug... whatever it is, I've got it.

Follow my adventures--and get top of the line travel information--in my brand new blog, The Honest Traveler.

Nature Station: Relics of Earth

Since the year 2071, Nature Station Curators have battled against all odds to restore balance to the planet...

Great for Gamers  Nature Station: Relics of Earth captures all the excitement and enchantment of traditional trading card/collectible card games.  Vibrant illustrations, clever gameplay dynamics, and powerful rare cards are sure to intrigue even hard-core gamers.

Great for Learners This game is specifically designed to appeal to an up-and-coming generation of gamers as well as their educators. Public school teachers as well as home school parents will marvel at how easily learning becomes fun through the use of Nature Station: Relics of Earth in the classroom.  A terrific supplement to science and social studies courses, Nature Station also encourages critical and strategic thinking as well as problem-solving skills.

Nature Station: Relics of Earth Official Guidebook will soon be available, with backstory by Cara Carroll.  Preparations are also underway for the first in a series of middle-grade novels based on the game, Nature Station: Relics.

Be the first to get your game cards and Guidebook from IndieGoGo!

Stay in the know! Visit the Nature Station: Relics of Earth Official Website.

Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest

Life Is Stranger at Worthington High has been entered in the 2013 Amazon Novel Breakthrough Contest.

On February 13, those entries moving on to Round 2 will be announced. In the first round, everything hangs on a pitch...

Learn more about the ABNA

Check it out...

Don't miss Cara's newest project, Fabulous Weddings at a Fabulous Price. Check it out

Coming soon: Find out what lies in store for Joy, James, Laura and the gang.  Get a sneak preview of Cara's new sequel, Life Is Stranger at Worthington High: The Tesla Experiments.

Download Life Is Stranger for FREE!

For five days only, December 24 to 28, the Kindle Edition of Life Is Stranger at Worthington High will be available free of charge on amazon.com.  And remember, Life Is Stranger is always available for free on the Kindle Owner's Lending Library.  Spread the word and don't miss out on this special offer!

Cara On Author Central

Cara Carroll's Amazon Author Central page is now live.  Check it out at amazon.com/author/caracarroll.

Autographed Copies Now Available on Ebay

Don't be ordinary...add a new literary treasure to your library by purchasing your author-signed copy of Life Is Stranger at Worthington High today.

Get your copy now

Meet the Author--Cara Carroll at Art in the Park

Author Cara Carroll will be available to sign copies of her debut novel, Life Is Stranger at Worthington High, at Art in the Park on Saturday October 6.  Swing by her booth to get your copy!

What:  Art in the Park

When: Saturday, October 6, 2012, 10 am to 5 pm

Where:  J. Travis Price Park, 4155 Wilkes Road,    Springfield, TN 37172

Find out more

LIFE IS STRANGER Available in Paperback!

Cara Carroll's debut middle-grade/young adult novel, Life Is Stranger at Worthington High, is now available in paperback.  Order your copy today!

Be among the first to read LIFE IS STRANGER AT WORTHINGTON HIGH

Big thanks go to Mrs. Judy for being the first to purchase Life Is Stranger at Worthington High (Kindle Edition), and to Aunt Lesa for being the first to borrow Life Is Stranger from the Kindle Lending Library!

Click the link in the post below to get your very own copy!

LIFE IS STRANGER eBook is Live!

Life Is Stranger at Worthington High is now LIVE on Amazon.  Get a copy for your Kindle e-reader or smart phone today!  Don't forget to post a review on Amazon.com.

Get Life Is Stranger at Worthington High