Not that I HAVE a young apprentice, but if I did, this is the advice I’d give her (while speaking like a master Jedi).

I didn’t learn this lesson in freelancing as early as I probably should have. The first article I ever sold was a classic example of beginner’s luck. I wrote an essay, emailed it to the editor and took a nap (these were my college days, after all). By the time I woke up the editor had responded.

So, why call it beginner’s luck? For one, I spelled the editor’s name wrong in my initial email. Not only was I lucky that she happened to be at her desk to read my misspelled email right as I sent it, or that she wasn’t so swamped with other submissions that she read mine right away, but she was also kind enough to overlook my blunder. In her response, she misspelled my name (point taken) before telling me she wanted to buy the article.

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