Writing online isn’t for the faint of heart; however, these 5 things make things a tad easier
Hello, brand new, casual, or occasional writer on the internet: there are some things I have been meaning to tell you, and now is the perfect time.
So, now that you’re serious, what should you know?
1. Regulatory ID (Passport Preferably)
A regulatory ID, passport preferably is non-negotiable as identity proof, online.
No matter how much you feel your country’s passport is your right and should be issued to you for free (and on-demand), pay for one — and keep it up to date.
It’s the most respected online identity type (even if the passport itself isn’t worth much, offline)…and you’ll be asked to repeatedly prove you’re who you say you are.
2. Your Website
It’s tempting to keep renting free spaces like Medium and Substack and while doing so, forget to build your own house.
While the above options are great — and free, you’re only a tenant and can get evicted, anytime (or anywhere else you don’t own, for that matter).
Remember Trump and Twitter (now X?)
Your website?
It’s yours for life — and you’ll own it for as long as you wish to keep it.
Don’t worry, hosting a website is dirt cheap today — and within a few minutes, you can get a WordPress theme running on it, beautifully.
Don’t remember this part too late.
3. A Universally Accepted Payment Means
Sorry, your local bank account has several limitations, limits that just won’t cut it when it comes to the online world.
Since you expect to be paid for your writing craft, it makes sense to set up your payment means, immediately — and choose universally accepted payment options.
PayPal (and Stripe) work great for this and Payoneer/Wise give you a local bank account in most countries around the world, especially where PayPal isn’t accepted.
4. A Chromebook
Don’t let the Apple fanboys draw you into their self-imposed prisons: nothing beats Andriod and the freedom it ensures.
Though a Chromebook isn’t strictly an Andriod device (it runs on an OS called ChromeOS but you have access to the Andriod Play Store), it remains the epitome of freedom, simplicity, minimalism, and security — ideals ALL writers crave.
It is the ‘Substack’ of computers!
5. Cloud Storage (And a Secure External Drive)
You’ll find out soon enough that you’ll need to work remotely, usually, away from your primary computer, and will need the files there.
You’ll also discover that you need to keep your files and work safe, just in case…this is where cloud storage comes in (hello Google Docs!)
Then again, a backup (secure) external drive is always a great idea for additional offline backups, and for those files you’d rather not upload to the clouds (you know them!)
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