A Freelancers Journey, Part One


Today it begins.

I have always known I was a freelancer. The phrase my family uses to describe me is "not a nine-to-five-er." That said, nine-to-five does carry some not-so-romantic but comforting benefits. Health insurance. Travel reimbursement. Gas mileage. A regular paycheck.

But alas, I'm the daughter and granddaughter of entrepreneurs, and I'm also of the "ownership society."

I love to write. No such thing as retirement--writing is who I am. But with that ideal and that passion comes every writer's downfall. Running a business. Getting paid.

We right-brained people with our horrendous filing cabinets and hard drives/Zip drives full of e-mails have to spend time organizing, like any businessperson. I had a conversation with a fellow writer/content provider in which we both confessed neither of us knew how to charge for our services. Although University of Southern California master of Professional Writing Program does give great training in the business side, most writing programs in my experience don't teach marketing, recordkeeping, fee-charging, and work-for-hire contracts, let alone publishing contracts.

Today while tracking two possible freelance jobs (I'd like to give a plug to David Copeland's Freelance Daily, http://freelancewriters.blogspot.com/, a terrific daily newsgroup with tons of freelance leads, also PayingWriterJobs, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PayingWriterJobs/, AbsoluteWriter, http://www.absolutewrite.com, Writers Weekly, http://www.writersweekly.com, and of course, my local paper, http://www.thedesertsun.com/), I found my e-mail inbox inundated with back and forth e-mails. While I admit my e-mail organization system resembles my filing system at times, I finally wised up.

On my computer, in Windows, I have a folder with subfolders for e-mail. I created a separate directory, "freelance". Then I assigned every potential or actual freelance job its own folder with a client identifier number where appropriate and otherwise the name of the client/publication.

I also created a Work For Hire agreement today. My own--usually when I work with a publication I'm required to submit an invoice. However, a publication you have a relationship with is different from a client that doesn't know you and vice versa. This is new ground for me. I've signed three book contracts, entered into three royalty agreements and two bona fide collaboration agreements, signed screenplay, magazine, fiction, and poetry release forms, sent more contest applications than I can count...but my own Work For Hire agreement...now I feel I've passed the "novice" mark and can proudly call myself a full-time freelancer. Freelance entrepreneur.

No.

Writer always works. To quote Harlan Ellison's business card, "I write."

But will I stay organized?

Continued next week...

Kristin Johnson is co-author of the "highly recommended" Midwest Book Review pick, Christmas Cookies Are For Giving: Stories, Recipes and Tips for Making Heartwarming Gifts (ISBN: 0-9723473-9-9). A downloadable media kit is available at our Web site, http://www.christmascookiesareforgiving.com, or e-mail the publisher (info@tyrpublishing.com) to receive a printed media kit and sample copy of the book. More articles available at http://www.bakingchristmascookies.com

MORE RESOURCES:
RELATED ARTICLES
How to Write Your Op-Ed Piece
Op-ed articles, also known as opinion/editorial articles, are a great way for aspiring writers to publicize their work and, in exchange, receive an amazing amount of publicity for free. You can write an op-ed piece and get it publicized provided you follow these simple rules.
Book Publishing Contracts For Writers: What Should I Look Out For?
Dave, I just got a contract for a book from a publisher that I haven't worked with before. These long, tedious legal documents just befuddle me, however! Would you mind spinning through this and seeing what you think about the terms and clauses herein? Here are my thoughts on this contract.
Pairs/Groups Of Words Often Confused - Part 2 of 6
BAITED, BATEDBaited usually refers to traps or snares. When the reference is to someone who is hardly daring to breathe, the correct word is always bated:"She watched with bated breath.
The Write Habit: How to Strengthen Your Writing Muscle
Writing is a muscle that needs exercise to stay in shape.I realized how true that saying is when I took what I called "a well-earned break" after I finished my first novel.
Basic Word Processing Tips for Writers
Word processors are so widely used now that I tend to take it for granted that most writers know how to perform basic tasks (e.g.
Writing Query Letters
A QUERY LETTER is written to an editor or agent to describe a piece of writing to ask if they'd like to see it. It is sent in lieu of an unsolicited (unasked for) manuscript.
How New Authors Can Keep Their Manuscripts Coherent
In large publishing houses, many manuscripts penned by first-time authors, never make it past the "first reader" who for all practical purposes is a gatekeeper of sorts. This person's job is to weed out manuscripts that do not fit certain established submission criteria.
Have You Tested Your Plot?
Creative Writing Tips -Our plotting stage is our testing area.Everything in the plot should be tested for its effectiveness before we put in into our stories.
Do I Have To Be A Good Writer to Market My Own Business?
Many of the most effective low-cost marketing strategies require writing. What can a small business owner do if they're not much of a writer? Can they still market their business themselves on a shoestring budget?Marketing is a form of communication.
Making Freelance Writing Niche Types Fit: A Few Niche Types by Definition and Description
Our Freelance Writing Needs DefinedWe must make freelance niche types fit our needs, wants, values and lifestyles, and we also must make ourselves fit freelance niche types. Of our waking hours, we work more than we do anything else.
Get An Attitude About Your Writing
(This excerpt is taken from my new writing workshop Writing To Sell In the Internet Age.)Writer John Clausen, in his excellent book about freelance writing: Too Lazy To Work, Too Nervous To Steal, recommends that you get an attitude about your work.
Plotting By Personality - Work With Your Natural Instincts
What's the best way to plot?Quick answer: the best way to plot is whatever works best for you. After all, we're all different.
Spiritual Journaling
Whether you keep a separate spiritual journal or just want to add your spiritual postings in your regular journal, you will want to read this.Personal journaling supports our development and growth.
6 Ways to Toot Your Own Writing Horn
You know you've got writing talent. Others enjoy your work and you've even sold a few things.
Critique Groups - The Good, The Bad and the Ugly
What do people expect when they join a writing group?The list of anticipated benefits includes friendship, constructive criticism, support, encouragement, help with editing, inspiration, and advice on everything from plotting to possible markets. These expectations may or may not be met.
How to Build A Success Freelance Career (Part 1)
In the current job market, many editorial workers have turned to freelancing as a matter of survival. I receive many queries from applicants regarding how to go about freelancing.
Whose Story Is It?
Whenever you sit down to plot a story (or even to think about a story) one of the first things you have to ask yourself is this: "Whose story IS it?"It seems like a simple question - but your story can succeed or fail depending on how you handle this. Told from the wrong point of view, a story can founder before the first chapter has come to an end.
How To Cut the Clutter and Win Readers
Most of us hate housework.Nevertheless, even the most hopeless slobs amongst us would agree that we love having a clean, organised house.
Overcome Writers Block with Snake Dancing
Writer's block! Even columnist Dave Berry has it. He admits that at least 30 times a day when writing his humor column, he gets up from his computer to sip his Pepsi to divert his attention when he can't think of what to write.
7 Reference Books for Your Desk
I hate to admit this, but I rarely get an original idea. That's bad for a writer.