Blast From the Past-2 Craigslist Edition

From the old Work in Hell blog,

Asking For a Job via Billboard...Tyler Perry...Really?

For those whore are not familiar with the "magic" that is Mr. Tyler Perry, he went from a series of dead-end jobs to homelessness to the mega-movie man a.k.a. Madea (also known as Big Mama in most southern/urban families).  He has managed to take Hollywood by storm with stories that borderline tired Black stereotypes, weak storylines and sometimes, sub-par acting.

Part of the reason for the latter is that he is known to bring on anybody to be in his films.  While he did an excellent job of exposing veteran actresses Kathy Bates and Cicely Tyson to a new generation, I wish he would slow down with the projects (movie, stage and TV) which he has released at breakneck speed for almost a decade now.

Now, like him or not, TP makes a lot of money for Lionsgate Studios so this is the main reason he is given carte blanche on a lot of projects.  So as a businessperson, what's wrong with going after the top dog to add a little something to your wallet?

According to Racquel Bailey , $1500 investment can go a long way.  Hear her story on Essence.com and see the video courtesy of Rhymes with Snitch is below.

Writer Watch: Tips on Getting More Done

If you're like me and write to pay the bills, you may find yourself overloaded from time to time.  One way to lighten things is by prioritizing the job/clients by getting the larger (or better paying) out of the way first.   
But what if  you could use those smaller jobs to break up the writer's block and get a little pocket change, you ask?  
Here are a few writing tips from my good friend, Crissy at IndieBizChicks.com

Writer Watch: What is a PITA anyway?

Not long ago, my mother coined this term as an acronym for Pain in the Ass.  The funny thing is that my mother got this from a member of her church and when I sometimes think of people past a certain age, I don't think they would still use profanity.  Though this is mild for my mom compared to 25-30 yrs ago.


Well, I've got my PITA.  I may have mentioned this person at least once before.  They have a product that is nice but it's a hard sell in this economy.  There's not enough authoritative information to back the claims and it's not entertaining on its own.  However, she wants Perez Hilton/TMZ blog traffic.


So I create posts on her limited inventory and throw in a couple of related advertorials.  No problem but the marketing companies say that there is not enough diversity on the blog for her brand to participate. So we throw informative articles in the mix, which are no different than what the competition is doing.


I created a short video that was informative and kind of cute and less than 30 seconds.  Later, she creates a long video with no voiceover that only shows off her place of business. *yawn*

The catch is also that I would love to do more for this product but her cap of 5 weekly hours is stifling.  When I asked for an increase along with the reason, she pretty much refused. I haven't ended the contract because she was one of my first clients when I had to do this full-time.  These days, I've got larger contracts from people who know what they want and don't mind sparing the expense.

Sounds very familiar of my days as a temp.

Assignments that asked me to do just about everything, had no history or high turnover were the ones that paid pennies.  On the other hand, known organizations that had defined rules, were public and pretty reasonable when it came to letting people go, were some pretty nice salaries.  

Of course, there were exceptions in over 20 yrs of working but this situation here is a grim reminder that I may need to end this relationship.  She won't term me because no one working in that range will write, act as an online marketer and take the time to explain their actions in laymen's terms for what she's paying.


If you say it all adds up, not really.  Even I were to max the hours every week, it barely pays my gas bill. :(

Branding From Hell - RHOA Edition

As a hard-working woman, I both hate and love the "wives" franchises.  And I mean all of them from Bravo, VH1 and even not-quite-a-bride on TLC.  It's mindless entertainment that apparently is making a lot of money for a lot of people.Courtesy of Mediatakeout.


Oh yeah, don't click the link if you were on the verge of trashing the diploma or degree that did NOT get you the job you want.


Anyway, there's no denying that the art of celebrity is defined mostly by social media.  Though no one could have predicted that the words 'Tweet/Follow Me' would have so much meaning, only a fool would completely underestimate the power.


While I will admit that not every formula works for every brand, it would take a 40+ y.o. stripper with a loud mouth to bite the hand (or bird wing) that REALLY feeds them.