Notes from the Life of a Freelancer

February 27, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Freelancing can be a blessing and a curse. Many of us became freelancers because we wanted to leave office life behind. We like controlling our schedule. We like determining which projects we will accept. And we like having a limited commute, from the coffee pot to the home office. All those things are great. But freelancing has its challenges, too.

Consistency is the biggest challenge that I face as a freelancer: consistency in billing, consistency in workload, and consistency in getting paid.

Here are some articles that I wrote for Queercents about my life as a freelancer. I hope you find them helpful. And if you’ve got your own tips for making it on your own, I’d love to hear from you in the comments section.
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Freelancing Tips: How to Write a Query Letter

November 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

One of the things I enjoy the most about freelance work is the thrill of the chase. I might have a great idea for an article, but unless I’m willing to get out there and sell my wares, those ideas don’t amount to much. That’s where a good query letter comes in handy.

Before we get into the nuts and bolts of how to write a query letter, we need to talk about a very important item: Does the publication you want to write for accept submissions from freelancers?  If they don’t, you’ll be wasting you time, as well as the editor’s, if you send them a pitch.  Most publications have information on their websites about the submissions process.  You should also be able to find out if the publication pays for submissions, and what their standard pay rate is.  So be sure to look on the website before you draft the letter.

Think of your query letter as a sales pitch. You are essentially selling your skills to a potential buyer. You will need to capture the person’s attention, pitch what you are selling, and give the buyer a sense that you’re the most qualified person to be selling this product. Here’s a basic outline that will help you sell your ideas. [Read more…]

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Freelancing Tips: Will You Work for Free?

November 2, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Do you ever feel like people don’t respect your time, or that you’ve been duped into providing a client consult under the guise of a social visit? I know I do! Let me give you an example.

Last week I went over to a friend’s house for beers and chit chat. My friend works for a local nonprofit that is looking for ways to raise visibility about the agency. Since I’m a writer, my friend asked me how I typically find writing gigs, and how much I typically get paid for work. I told her about some freelancing job boards, and told that in general, good gigs pay about 10 cents a word. Everything depends on the publication, and the length of the article. I got the feeling that she was trying to assess if I would pitch some articles about the nonprofit to different publications, with the hopes that the newspaper or magazine would pick up the tab. And while I support my friend’s effort to employ every medium to pinch a penny, I also know that I need to protect my own bottom line as a freelancer.

What can we learn from this case study? [Read more…]

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Freelancing Tips: Effective Time Management

October 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of.
~Benjamin Franklin

Time is money.
~Bejamin Franklin

One of the best things about freelance work is that you set your own schedule, and you work at your own pace. Some of us are early birds, while some of us are night owls. If you prefer to spend your time burning the midnight oil, that is totally up to you. At the end of the day (or night), however, freelancers need to be very diligent about budgeting their time in order to ensure that they get paid. Here are a few tips to help you manage your time wisely.

Set a billing quota for yourself. One of the best pieces of budgeting advice I ever got came from the novel Diary of a Manhattan Call Girl, by Tracy Quan. As you might have guessed, the novel’s protagonist is a call girl named Nancy Chan. Nancy doesn’t understand fellow sex workers who struggle to make ends meet. After all, Nancy sets a quota of the number of clients she needs to service in order to make and invest her money. By sticking to her quota, Nancy lives pretty flush as an escort, who works via referral only – no street walking or internet porn for her! Who knew that a hooker could provide such sound financial advice?

In order for a quota system to work, freelancers need to set a realistic number for themselves. [Read more…]

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