Marisa Wikramanayake

writer, journalist & editor ~ I help you tell stories.

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  • Home
  • Blog
  • Services
  • Journalism work
  • Editorial work
  • Events
  • Free resources
    • Perth & WA Literary Calendar
    • Women who review
  • My Patreon
  • MEAA FAQs

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  • A mug full of coffee on an open planner
    Freelancing

    How I am planning for the next financial year as a freelancer – despite Covid-19

    June 26, 2020 / No Comments

    This may seem strange to you. In a world that increasingly seems to offer little prospects for freelancers, why would I plan for 2020-2021? Or at least plan to continue freelancing? Reasons it’s hard on Australian freelancers: Closures & shutdowns of sections, papers and magazines and budget cutbacks leave freelancers with very few places to pitch to. The knock on effect of restrictions and budget cuts and shutdowns means no work for other businesses that would hire freelancers for other work. More and more in-house journalists becoming redundant means a larger community of freelancers. There is a disparity in who amongst freelancers are eligible for government support thanks to the…

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    Mentoring: the why and the how of doing it

    December 6, 2013

    Cents & Sensibility: Networking

    October 7, 2011
    Marisa Wikramanayake works on a story as a journalist and in this post showing you how to write a freelance pitch

    How to write a freelance pitch to an editor

    September 17, 2021
  • A mug full of coffee on an open planner
    Blog,  Freelancing,  Journalism

    Setting goals as a freelance journalist

    October 11, 2019 / No Comments

    How do you set goals for your business as a freelance journalist? What sort of goals are best to set? What will move your business and career forward?

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    KSP cat by Ashleigh Hardcastle via KSP Writers Centre

    Day 2: A cat is here!

    May 30, 2018
    A photograph of a microphone by Michal Czyz on Unsplash

    How my business will change for the better in 2021 and why

    December 17, 2020

    Gin & Tonic Update #3

    February 21, 2019
  • Freelancing,  Writing

    Freelance writing plans for 2017

    January 6, 2017 / No Comments

      If you have read the post on how my freelance writing went this past year, you would see that I got quite a bit lucky but also found a lot of room for improvement. The thing is, you can’t tell me that I need to improve on something because then I go get pen and paper and start planning to become better at whatever said sucky thing is. And I kind of go overboard. I would like to share this process with you so you can see how damn stupid my brain is at times and smart at other times. As my sister says “We don’t know how someone…

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    Top down shot of two people sitting across from each other a table having coffee with just their arms and cups in view

    10 Important Things You Need To Know About Finding A Mentor

    January 14, 2021
    An image of two hands writing in front of a computer screen with a phone on top of papers on a desk

    How to easily track pitches in Google Sheets as a freelance journalist

    January 7, 2021

    Freelancing Friday: A day in the life

    April 23, 2010
  • Writing

    It’s one day to NaNoWriMo people.

    October 31, 2016 / No Comments

    Thinking of doing NaNoWriMo this year? Did you only just realise that it was one week away? Don't worry, I have something that can help you plan for it.

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    The NYWF-ty List

    October 11, 2018

    Inspiration (or is there a muse?)

    April 6, 2011

    Gin & Tonic update #2: I was so wrong! AKA #maricantmath

    February 7, 2019
  • Writing

    Reader question: How much do I plan when I write?

    April 20, 2016 / No Comments

    [aesop_image imgwidth=”100%” img=”http://marisa.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/6776877812_176f899533_b.jpg” credit=”Plan B by Sebastien Wiertz via Flickr” alt=”Plan B by Sebastien Wiertz via Flickr” align=”center” lightbox=”on” captionposition=”center”] A couple of my friends are reading my novel draft as I write it. And this then leads to some very interesting questions. Am I a good novel writer? I don’t know – that’s a question for you to answer once you read what I write. But that isn’t the question I am getting. The question I am getting is usually along the lines of “Was X planned?” The general answer is “No.” I think this question arises from the fact that many people are taught, either in school or university,…

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    monochrome photo of person using vintage typewriter

    6 Lessons from a year of writing crime fiction

    February 8, 2022
    My desk in Phillips cabin at the KSP Writers Centre (c) Marisa Wikramanayake

    Day 3: So many emotions

    May 31, 2018
    A real bookshop by Elsie esq via Flickr

    27 ways to support diverse writers

    May 20, 2016
  • IPEd Con 2013,  Projects

    Twitter feed for the Wednesday Workshops

    April 10, 2013 / No Comments

    The Wednesday workshops have started. Refresh the page to keep seeing the latest tweets and photos. As always, please check the main conference blog for all the posts, tweets and photos. Tweets about “#ipedcon2013 OR #rockstarfreelancelifestyle”

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    Rapping for the 6th IPEd National Editors' Conference, 2013

    November 14, 2012
    Marisa Wikramanayake waiting to present during the IPEd Conference freelancing workshop in 2013

    Where have I been?

    May 5, 2013

    The final #ipedcon2013 Program!

    April 6, 2013
  • Projects

    The 5 Important Things I Did In Setting Up This Website

    March 20, 2009 / No Comments

    Marisa Wikramanayake lists the five most important things she did when setting up her website. She is a freelance writer and editor, born in Sri Lanka but based in Australia. Her website showcases her work, provides free tips and articles and allows you to hire her to write and edit for you.

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    The writing process, step by step

    April 27, 2011

    Foursquare for flora and fauna? The ClimateWatch smartphone app

    September 28, 2012
    Drive Me To Distraction by Caitlyn Nicholas

    Caitlyn Nicholas' Drive Me To Distraction

    February 21, 2013

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