RSS

Category Archives: Freelancing

Blocked or Lazy….Same thing Really…

30 Jun

It’s been a while since I have written for this blog. Health issues have kept me from doing any serious work and now I am just getting to a point where I can jump back into the deep end of the writing pool. I apologize for my absence.

One of the things that I have been dealing with since my butt hit the chair again in procrastination at it’s worse. Being in poor health taught me the joys of sitting on the couch binge watching television shows that I would not have otherwise watched…Wynonna Earp is really good by the way…. Getting back into the chair has been painful enough with the heath issues making it physically hard to do BUT getting motivated has been equally as tough. I found myself last week declaring to a friend that I was “blocked”…I’m fibbing…I’m just being lazy.

When you have had your writing interrupted from any reason it is often hard to get back into the flow of things. Writing means you have to show up and if you have spent any time at all on a couch in a haze of pain pills and television it can get even harder. The easy way is to tell yourself, “one more week and I’ll be ready” but the long and short of it is…it’s now or never.

My health issues are not resolved yet but the writing is helping me focus on the work rather than the pain. I am still finding myself on the couch but now it is with my computer with the television off. I said all of that to say this…if you have a life issue that takes you away from your writing, don’t allow it to do so for very long because the longer you stay away…the harder it is to get back. If you have to write in smaller blocks but write because it is a muscle that needs to be exercised. As for me…I’m back and I have to tell you…I really have missed you all!

 

© The Writer’s Advice, 2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

 
1 Comment

Posted by on June 30, 2022 in Business of Writing, Editing, Freelancing, Healthy Writers, Inspiration, Writing, Writing Tools

 

The Friday Writing Pebbles #9

23 May

th

Like throwing a pebble into the water some writers put advice out into the ocean of hopeful newbies hoping the ripple effects will reach them and they will learn a thing or two. Fridays here at The Writer’s Advice is pebble collection time. I will post some of the pebbles of wisdom I discover and I encourage you all to do the same. Each Friday we will help each other. So here are mine….show me yours!

© The Writer’s Advice, 2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on May 23, 2023 in Business of Writing, Freelancing, Publishing, Writing, Writing Tools

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Writers and Disappointment go together like PB & J

05 May

disappointment

I write this after a very disappointing experience. I took on a ghosting job, worked on it for over 7 months only to have the client stiff me after they received the first draft. The client is sitting nice – they essentially have the “work” while I sit here at my desk feeling like a one legged man in a butt kicking contest.

This isn’t the first time a client has stiffed me and, sadly, it won’t be the last. For some reason folks feel it is okay not to pay the writer much of the time. I think that perhaps if we had some protections in place this might not happen so much. Sure we use contracts but sometimes those aren’t as good as the paper they are written on. They are supposed to be legal and binding but we all know that taking a client to court is expensive and, chances are, they still aren’t going to pay you.

Here’s the thing though…should I stop taking on ghosting clients now that I have gotten stiffed? No, I should never quit because as much as some folks will screw you there are others who truly need your services. I like to think that this client will have to deal with karma in the end. Good things don’t come to people who do things like this. It still doesn’t take the sting out of it though.

My advice to those of you who ghost write or are thinking of ghost writing….be careful. Make sure that you are covered at every turn. Use a contract, get your payment in increments and make sure that you deliver the first draft in person. My mistake this time was not doing that. I e-mailed the client the first draft on the promise of a payment which never came. Writing is a tough business, perhaps the toughest in terms of getting the respect you should but it is worth it in the end. You do have to learn to live with some disappointment though so understand that going in. Remember…one dragon at a time.

 

 

© The Writer’s Advice, 2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

 
2 Comments

Posted by on May 5, 2023 in Freelancing, Writing, Writing Tools

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Freelancing – A Pain in the A*& But Sometimes Worth it

05 Mar

(Writer’s Note –Article owing 3 of 4)

Ok, I’ll come out of the closet…I’m a novelist and I freelance. There, I did it. Wasn’t as painful as I thought it was going to be. Let’s be honest, without freelancing, a lot of us writers would be working from behind the garbage bin on 71st and Lex. Freelancing makes the bills between those royalty checks and personally, freelancing kept me in Twinkies for quite a while.

While the idea of being a freelance writer is kind of romantic and all, if I’m honest (and I usually am unless there is a deck of playing cards involved) it is not the easiest way to make a living. For some stupid reason there are a set of basic problem areas that we have to traverse from the get go.

  1. It’s hard to find freelance jobs -Yes there are boards out there (I have listed what I consider the better ones below) but you are competing with thousands of other writers for these jobs. You have to be quick and consistent to use these.
  2. Low pay – This is by far the most frustrating aspect for me. Working for peanuts is not something I want to be doing 40+ into my writing career however sometimes those little jobs will get you a loaf of bread.
  3. People don’t actually want to pay – Sadly, I know a whole lot of writers who get scammed and I have, in fact, been scammed myself. If you take a job, do that job and then discover that the person isn’t going to pay you…you are not alone. It happens a lot. Stick with the reputable boards.

These are just a few of the issues freelancers face. (I won’t even get into the tax part of the nightmare)Before I scare you away though, let me add that there is some satisfaction to be found in freelancing too. If you are consistent and careful about where you accept jobs from, some of those freelancing jobs can make the difference in lean times and let’s face it, we are all in lean times right now. My advice is to stay away from Craigslist when seeking freelance jobs, stick to the tried and true job boards and always, always follow through when you find a freelance job that pays. There is money to be had but it will take some work.

The following are a few of the job sites that have proven to be good one for freelancers. If you know of others add them to the comments…we can all use a little help from time to time.

 

© The Writer’s Advice, 2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

 
1 Comment

Posted by on March 5, 2023 in Freelancing, Writing

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 
%d bloggers like this: