Blog Archives

Free Databases on Subscription Genealogy Websites

Posted on October 17, 2016 by Dana McCullough

Did you know most subscription-based genealogy websites make some of their databases available for free? They do this so you can get a taste of what using their site will be like. The databases they offer range from very narrowly…

Personal Library Apps for Genealogists

Posted on September 22, 2016 by Dana McCullough

Got a huge collection of genealogy books, as well as other books and movies? It might be time to consider using a personal library app to keep track of them. In the September 2016 Family Tree Magazine, my article in the…

Build Your FamilySearch Tree Tutorial

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Dana McCullough

If you’re looking for a place to house your family tree online, consider the FamilySearch Family Tree. This tool on the free genealogy giant website FamilySearch.org lets you build your family tree as part of a world tree, which allows…

A Year in the Life of a Freelance Writer and Editor

Posted on December 30, 2015 by Dana McCullough

Last year, I wrote a blog post about the projects I worked on the prior year because I often get asked, “So you’re a freelancer. What do you really do?” This year, I’m continuing this new tradition of taking a…

7 Tips for Interviewing Sources Via Email

Posted on September 18, 2015 by Dana McCullough

No matter what writing project I work on—an article for magazine, a blog post for a university website, or even researching to write a book—some sources just prefer to answer interview questions via email. While interviews in person or via…

Tagged with: family history, freelance writing, genealogy, higher education communications, interviewing, writing tips
Posted in Writing and Editing

Alumni Magazine Writing: The Value of a Liberal Arts Education

Posted on June 30, 2015 by Dana McCullough

In the latest Mount Mary Magazine, the alumnae magazine for Mount Mary University in Milwaukee, I was asked to seek out research about the value of a liberal arts education and showcase in a magazine feature article how this particular institution…

3 Things I Learned While Editing the Unofficial Guide to Ancestry.com

Posted on April 10, 2015 by Dana McCullough

Last year, I had the wonderful opportunity to edit Nancy Hendrickson’s Unofficial Guide to Ancestry.com. Before editing the book, I thought I knew Ancestry.com pretty well, especially since I often used it in my freelance work for Family Tree Magazine…

Tagged with: Ancestry.com, family history, freelance editing, freelance writing, genealogy
Posted in Genealogy/Family History

Wonderfully Unexpected Finds on FamilySearch.org

Posted on March 3, 2015 by Dana McCullough

I think FamilySearch is my official favorite genealogy research website. It seems like every time I visit their site I end up staying up way past my bedtime and finding new information about my family. Last year, I was taking advantage of Ancestry.com‘s…

How to Know It’s Time for a Career Change

Posted on February 2, 2015 by Dana McCullough

Two years ago I made a big career change: I gave up my full-time job with benefits to become a full-time freelance writer and editor. As I’ve talked with my friends throughout the past couple of years, many of them…

Tagged with: career advice, freelance editing, freelance editor, freelance writer, freelance writing
Posted in Writing and Editing