Jane Corn is a fervent reader…and writer. A freelance writer, her passion for books helped drive her to be one of the top reviewers on Amazon.com, allowing her access to the exclusive Vine™ Program (where select reviewers are given access to free merchandise), pushed her to Powerseller status on eBay, and is the focus of one of her many blogs, Booking Along (a book review blog). Her magazine writing has won her national awards, and she manages a widespread online presence, including social networking sites and her blogs. She can be found online at Associated Content, her online rare bookstore and of course, at Booking Along.

JB: Jane, you’ve done so many things—eBay auctions, freelance writing and editing, and a lot of Amazon reviewing. Do you have a particular focus? Do you self-identify as a writer? A reviewer? A blogger? None of the above?

JC: I think of myself as a “Jack (or Jane) of all trades”, I guess. I was a freelance writer for a long time and that brought in good income. At some point, however, I needed to make a choice, brought on by circumstances. We had the opportunity to adopt a little boy, aged 5, and I knew I would have to make changes to do so, as he had special needs and the “window of opportunity” for adoption would be open for a limited time. I had to choose to stay on the career track, full speed, or rein things in a bit. I decided to compromise and have never looked back. Now I’m building up career speed again.

At the time, we already had two children but I was working my schedule around their school, usually and making a solid living as a writer, having built up a rep. I was a health specialist for the local city magazine and had calls from editors regularly for other publications.

Right now, I am a writer, reviewer, blogger and social networker, getting paid at some sites and am plugging away, looking for some major advertising support. I tend to believe that if you do what you love and do it well, you do get the support and rewards, in time. Mostly, I think of myself as someone who works hard but I don’t see what I do as being ‘just’ about the money. I have had over 11,871 “helpful votes” on just over 938 reviews so clearly I have a readership at Amazon. I’m proud of that.

JB: Does the wide range of activities you pursue ever fluster you? Would you recommend such a broad scope for other freelancers?

JC: The wide range of activities does get overwhelming sometimes. I think freelancers need to figure out their strong points, focus on their goals and then have a game plan. Is money and making a living their primary focus or are they content to compromise and bring in “supplemental income” ? Are they working on networking or gaining skills? Do they want to balance home and work? These are the questions that need to be asked, among others.

When I wanted to make a living from freelance writing, I set a monthly income goal and focused on that, making sure I produced enough articles to get paid the amount I wanted, after taxes. Right now, I’m branching out into other areas, so I am exploring a wide range of possibilities. I am limited somewhat because of time restrictions and my need to juggle my family commitments, caring for an aging parent and a special needs child. But, always, I feel compelled to write, network and support reading and writing. I feel I’m on the right track because I have enough work to have the luxury of turning down some work. I figure I must be doing something right and I know I am influencing people. It isn’t just about the money but about my whole life, the entire picture, and my sense of satisfaction.

JB: What do you think of eBay as a vehicle for a secondary income? What challenges did you face selling books on eBay?

JC: For a long time, eBay was was an easy moneymaker for me, when fees were low and there was less competition. I was there when things were still pretty young, almost in on the ground floor.

You ask about my main challenge there. That would be listing too much in the beginning and trying to ship 100 books per week by myself or with the help of my husband and young son. It was a recipe for burnout! Since then, I’ve adopted a different business model and am just getting back into eBay, slowly, focusing on higher priced and rare books, where I can sell far less and still make good money. One book, for example, sold for well over $700 and that one book took the place of 10 or 20 lesser priced auctions or fixed sale price items on ebay. With the increased fees, I see this type of business model as a necessity for a profitable business there, unless one has a proven product that sells in massive quantities with a high profit margin. Books generally don’t do that.

JB: How did you become one of the top reviewers on Amazon?

JC: I became a top reviewer on Amazon by writing over 900 reviews over a period of time, building up to the top 100s in rank (last time I looked, I was number 106). I’m an avid reader as well as someone who watches a fair share of new movies, listens to an eclectic blend of music, etc. I reviewed nearly every book and CD I bought and I built a readership.

Now when I write a review, there are generally people who read them within a day or two, readers who look for my reviews. I’m flattered by having a regular readership and I’m also pleased by the number of readers who write me to tell me they enjoyed a review. One author, Steve Weber, even used my blurb on the cover of his book, aptly named Plug Your Book. While I didn’t get paid for reviewing on Amazon, as I rose higher in review status, more authors clamored to have me read their books. Finally, Amazon has just opened an innovative new program for top reviewers called Vine™, where they send free products to top reviewers, including electronics. This has been a great way to review items I might not buy (even as I type this, I’m using a free Logitech Mouse I got from Vine™ and it has made the use of my laptop much easier).

JB: What’s been your experience with Amazon’s Vine™ Program? Do you have any tips for talented freelancers looking to become product reviewers?

JB: Amazon’s Vine™ Program has been a wonderful reward after years of slogging away, writing reviews, for no pay. It isn’t exactly lucrative but the free merchandise is a nice perk. There are limits to how many items a reviewer can get per month. At first, we could get three items and now I believe they are limiting it to one item a month. As might be expected, the electronics and high-priced items go quickly but I enjoy reviewing books so that hasn’t been an issue.

I was lucky enough to get a wireless mouse and a camera for my laptop, very nice! My favorite Vine™ products remain books, however. The Year of Living Biblically was a fun read and I recently reviewed The Redskins Encyclopedia, which came today.

JB: How does your blog fit into your overall freelancing business?

JC: My blog and my freelancing business work well together. I get jobs and inquiries from both, as well as review copies and I am about to link back to AC (Associated Content) another site where I write, from my blogs. I do some minor advertising on other blogs as well as the Blog Catalog. Somehow all of this gets me a fair number of views and regular job offers for writing or editing. I have also had a large number of articles featured at a site called Gather which has also segued into the other sites nicely and results in gift certificates for writing there. I’ll be leading a live chat there for a book called The Turtle Trader later this month, an investing book.

JB: What advice do you have for freelancers looking to follow in your footsteps?

JC: My advice for freelancers would be to be clear about your focus and goals and maximize your “footprint” on the Internet. Get free advertising whenever possible and link to your pages from sites where you are likely to get lots of views. If at all possible, use free promotional tools like Digg, Facebook and even MySpace to get the word out.

Here’s an example of how my goals and marketing strategies changed: when my primary focus was to bring in “X amount of dollars” per month, I devoted myself to writing for local and national magazines, including Indianapolis Monthly, Weight Watchers, Parenting and many others. I had regular assignments and could depend on income. That was my priority - then. I made sure I sent out regular queries, produced ideas, had regular assignments and kept going in that routine. My goal? Income to supplement my husband’s salary.

My main goal now is to bring in enough income to meet basic needs for our family but also to build a career as a writer and to work on my own book, so the income focus is lesser now, even as I have branched out into many areas. I do think that being versatile and exploring other types of work is good for writers but there has to be a choice to decide whether one is working primarily for the money and career advancement or whether there are compromises to be made depending on family and other issues. Family comes first for me now but I keep my work out there and am developing other niches so that I can find a way to keep a steady income while maintaining maximum versatility.

To sum it up: determine your goal (whether to make money, write a bestselling book, network and/or build a new business) and then develop a game plan and marketing strategy. Network with others and build a support group.

The rest will follow - or it always has for me. I do believe strongly in social networking. A contact on MySpace led to one assignment and I get review copies from people who read my blog, my Amazon reviews and my work at Gather so each part of my online world connects together.