While I’m on vacation this week, I’ll be rerunning some of the best WordCount posts of the year. Look for new posts, including my predictions for the top digital media personalities to watch in 2009, starting January 5. Happy New Year!

Today’s reruns: how writers can beat the recession.

Top 10 digital media trends of 2008

Make money writing about the financial crisis

Freelancers find creative ways to save, grow during bad times

The WordCount bad economy survival kit

Going freelance in a down economy

Freelancers’ strategies for prospering in bad times

On Thursday when I got the Industry Standard’s weekly e-newsletter, which always runs 1 or 2 predictions at the very top of its other news stories, and read their guess that the Dow would fall below 9,000 this month I thought “No way.”

Then it happened. That very day. For the first time since 2003.

I am finally and officially worried.

And if I’m worried, I have to assume a lot of other self-employed writers are too.

So I put together the WordCount Bad Economy Emergency Survival Kit. In it you’ll find a hit parade of WordCount blog posts about what writers can do to ride out bad times. It includes some of the most popular posts I’ve written this year, based on the number of page views received.

Happy reading. Here’s hoping the market recovers next week.

Freelancers’ strategies for prospering in bad times - Suggestions from a variety of freelancers about steps they’re taking to strengthen their businesses this year.

Going freelance in a down economy – Susan Johnston’s choice to leave a full-time job to work for herself coincided with the start of the current down turn. Read how and why she did it in this guest post from the author of the popular Urban Muse blog.

Marketing your freelance business in bad times – Advice from a marketing expert and assistant professor of business at Oregon State University about what self-employed writers can do to promote their services.

Bad times are good for new media’s business news writers – While more newspapers are trimming their business sections, business news Websites are popping up all over the place, giving freelancers who cover business more places to pitch.

10 things freelancers can do to save money in a bad economy – Although I just wrote it this week, this post on simple things you can do to cut costs and save money is already proving popular – and has elicited some great comments.

10 things writers can do right now to feel better about the economy – More advice, this time on simple activities like updating your resume, joining social networks and calling editors, that could boost your sales.

Taking my own advice on beating bad times – How I’m practicing what I preach.