Income Goal Met

That income goal I set for myself? I’ve met it. It involved sleepless nights, lots (LOTS) of pitching, and the belief that I could most certainly do it.

Now I’m going to go work on my dream project for the next one month, worry-free. And maybe even do that thing when you lie down and close your eyes– what’s it called?– oh yeah, sleep!

The crazy part is that I’m still just inches away from spiralling into debt. Why? Because I’m not going to see all this money together, and some of it, not for a couple of months. Thankfully, all these clients are tried-and-tested, so the money will come. Eventually.

Butt, Meet Chair

Two deadlines in three hours. When will I learn?

Keeping the Balance

It’s difficult sometimes, to keep a balance between the things you want to be writing, and the things you write for money. I’ve struggled with this often, as most of you know, and have erred on the side of chasing only after my dream projects and ignoring the work I should be doing to pay the bills.

That is, unfortunately, no way to make a writing career. Especially not a freelance one.

You can’t write only for love because you will be forced by that lack of income to take up full-time or part-time jobs that will take you away from your writing.

You can’t write only for the money because you’ll burn out, be dissatisfied, and realize at some point that this isn’t why you became a writer. .

Balance.

I’ve learned the lesson. 2008 will be different.

What They Tell You

Years ago, an astrologer told my father he would never go abroad. My father took it as a challenge and eventually lived three years in London, and traveled through several more countries.

Thirty years later, an astrologer told me pretty much the same thing. I am my father’s daughter. I’m living abroad.

Taking a Stand

I sent a Letter of Introduction to an editor a while back, and she checked out my clips and credentials and told me she was impressed. Then, she wrote to me with an assignment, and get this– said that the first article is unpaid and quoted a per word rate from the second one onwards.

Say what?

It’s bad enough that they ask newbies to do this, but an experienced freelancer with five years of experience? Is this the level of respect we can command after living in poverty, busting our asses, and wondering if we can ever afford sushi? I was so damn pissed. And I showed it.

Wrote back to tell her I’m not working for free and come to think of it that pay rate sucks, so thanks, but no thanks.

She wrote back and said she’d pay that original fee for the first one, and double that for the second onwards.

I didn’t really care much about this assignment by this point, so I told her no, double from the first assignment. And you know what? The language in your contract seems to me like you’re saying you can kill this article anytime without compensation. I want to get paid even if the article gets killed, and if it’s not to your satisfaction, I will do rewrites, but if it’s still not satisfactory, you have to pay me 50%.

She came back with a yes.

It’s Quite Simple, Really

You write 4 articles a month at $200 per piece, you make $9,600 a year.

At $400 a piece, you make $19,200 a year.

At $1,000 a piece, $48,000 a year.

And $2,000 a piece? $96,000 a year.

Being a six-figure freelancer doesn’t look too tough now, does it?