Just Say No: Freelance Markets to Ignore

During the last few years, there’s been an explosion of content mills like eHow, Livestrong, and Demandstudios. The content for the site comes from writers who work “for cheap,” at least if you consider $15 or so for a 500- or 600-word article cheap. I sure do.

Freelancers deserve to be paid, and paid well, for their work. Sites like these which pay a ridiculously low amount are not going to help you build a successful career as a freelancer. The writing quality on the sites ranges from middling to poor, and your work there isn’t likely to be taken seriously by editors and clients. And think of your opportunity cost--the time you’re wasting working for tiny checks could be spent pursuing higher-paying clients.

When I see an ad on Craigslist with a general headline like “seeking writers,” often it's an ad for one of these mills. These companies are not looking for professional freelancers. They’re looking for would-be freelancers, writers who are desperate to get published and think it’s worthwhile to do it for $15 a pop. I hope that’s not you.

According to my recent survey, 14 percent of freelancers are writing for online publications, with another 8 percent blogging for pay. That doesn't mean writing for cheap, though.

There are thousands of paying markets for web writing, with new ones are cropping up all the time. The most recent edition (2011) of The Standard Periodical Directory, the largest directory of U.S. and Canadian magazines, lists more than 63,000 magazines, journals, newsletters, and newspapers. More than a third--27,927 magazines--have electronic versions as well and 6,554 publications are available in electronic format only. That’s a lot of potential markets that need freelancers.

The Web’s explosive growth means that companies, nonprofits, and millions of websites have been created, and many of those websites need writers. No, some don’t pay well. Some don’t pay at all. But others do, and companies launching or updating their sites often hire web-savvy writers to provide copy, and experienced bloggers to produce compelling posts.

If you want to make money writing for the web, forget the sites that pay pennies or offer you “exposure” for your articles. (Why would you want exposure? People die from exposure.)

Instead, look for well-funded websites that pay a reasonable amount for your work. Most of the Web writing I've done has paid $1/word, which is comparable to print markets. Rates have fallen in the last couple of years, but I think it’s fair to expect at least $0.25-50/word for your work. (Your mileage varies? Please comment below and let us know what you're being paid for online work.)

Bottom line? Say “no” to content mills--so you can say “yes” to higher-paying, more promising markets.

Six Reasons to Specialize: Guest Blog Post on Ebyline

I built a freelance career from scratch, but it took me about 18 months to really gain momentum. One reason I finally got my freelance feet under me was that I started specializing in health, fitness, nutrition, and bridal (I'd recently gotten married and had a slew of story ideas) subjects.

Specializing made me work more efficiently and create a memorable identity as a writer--so much so that my first book, Ready, Aim, Specialize, was written to help freelancers develop their own lucrative writing niches. So it's not surprising I just posted about Six Reasons to Specialize on Ebyline's blog for freelancers.

Coming soon: advice for every would-be entrepreneur; writers to avoid--and why; and another royalty statement, decoded.

Boost Your Value: or, Why You Must Learn Something New

As a freelancer, your career is in your hands. So is your career development, which means you should be continually learning new skills to attract new clients and better serve the ones you already have.

For example, until last year I had only worked with traditional publishers. When I decided to publish a POD book, I spent several weeks learning about its pros and cons, and evaluating POD companies (I eventually went with CreateSpace). Now I can advise ghostwriting and coauthoring clients about the advantages and drawbacks of POD and traditional publishing, as well as e-books. That helps set me apart from other ghosts and makes me more valuable to clients.

Fore more on expanding your skills, check out Susan Johnston's excellent post at ebyline on 5 skills that make freelancers more marketable.

And consider what tools you should add to your freelancing toolkit. As the publishing industry changes, your clients' needs will change, too, and you must be able to address and meet them.

Good Advice for Every Freelancer: Never Say Never

I never expected to become a ghostwriter. In fact, the first time I heard about the idea of collaborating, my knee-jerk reaction was “no way!” Turns out I was wrong.

It’s been almost ten years since I first heard Sarah Wernick speak about how she got started as a coauthor. Wernick’s first book, Strong Women Stay Young (with Miriam Nelson, M.D., a researcher at Tufts University) was a New York Times bestseller and launched her successful coauthoring/collaborating career. During a panel at ASJA’s annual writers’ conference Wernick talked about how she identified potential clients, wrote book proposals, and then wrote the books with the experts after they sold to traditional publishers. She wrote one book a year and made a six-figure living doing so.

I still remember sitting in the conference room and thinking, “Wow, she’s making a lot of money!” Yet my next reaction was just as strong. I didn’t want to spend a year of my life toiling away on someone else’s book. No thanks.

So I wrote off the idea, pun intended--until years later, when I realized that if I wanted to keep writing books (and I did), I couldn’t afford to spend so much time marketing and promoting them. I coauthored a successful book with Ellie Krieger, R.D., got serious about collaborating with experts on their books, and started ghostwriting as well.

So never say never. When I started freelancing full-time on January 1, 1997, I started my Novel. The novel. The novel I had dreamt of, fantasized about, and consoled myself with for years. I’d written short stories (none of which were ever published), but my goal had been to write a novel since I majored in writing. And I got fourteen chapters down before I abandoned it. My next two attempts, novels which I started January 1, 1998, and January 1, 1999, also failed.

I was crushed. I couldn’t pursue my dream--I couldn’t even finish a novel, let alone get it published. I was a failure.

I couldn’t admit that to anyone for a long time. Finally I told one of my oldest friends, Abby, who I’d met in my first fiction-writing class about my failure. “I just can’t write a novel,” I admitted.

Abby has been meditating, doing yoga, and embracing a Zen approach to life since I can remember. She was quick to contradict me. “You just can’t write a novel right now,” she said.

It barely registered at the time, but she was right. Another year passed before I felt the urge to write fiction again. What was different this time? Well, I wasn’t just venting about my misspent years as an attorney (although once again my book featured an unhappy female lawyer). I felt more passion for this book, and I finished the draft in four months, and finished the final draft in 364 days. (I’d given myself a year to write it.) That novel (Did you Get the Vibe?) sold to the second publisher I contacted about it.

Imagine if Abby would have said, “Yeah, you’re right,” when I said I couldn’t write a novel. Or, “What’s the big deal? Most people can’t.” Or “Well, I didn’t think you could.” I couldn't write a novel at the time. But I could--and I did--later.

So be careful what you say about your freelance career. And never say “never," "I can’t,” or even, “not for me,” without adding “at least right now.”

***Thinking that maybe "right now" is the time for you to get started ghostwriting? Check out Goodbye Byline, Hello Big Bucks: The Writer's Guide to Making Money Ghostwriting and Coauthoring Books (Kindle version).

The State of Fulltime Freelancer's Work, 2011, take two

Last post, I shared the latest results of what types of work freelancers are doing today. At the top of the list are writing for the Web (15 percent), writing for consumer magazines (12 percent), writing for businesses/corporations (11 percent), and editing (10 percent).

In addition to the 14 specific types of work I asked about, I had an "other" answer where I asked writers to share other tasks they do for pay. Those include:

• teaching online writing classes
• proofreading/copy editing
• public relations
• translation/research
• project management
  
• articles for educational publishers
• market research reports
• SEO research
• social media promotion planning
• meeting summaries
• policy documents
• consensus reports
• writing for government

I was surprised at the diversity of this list, but these are 13 more types of work freelancers are doing to make money in an ever-challenging economy. Consider adding one or more of them to your freelance repertoire.

When to Draw the Line with a Client

Any businessperson knows that it takes more time to nab a new client than to get an assignment from someone you've worked before (assuming you did a good job, of course). And I've posted before about simple ways to turn a one-time client into a regular, like making your deadlines, staying on their radar, and thinking of ways to make their job easier.

But there are things you should never do to get or keep a client, and I agree with Jennifer Brown-Banks' post on the subject (the seven deadly sins) at ebyline, a new site designed to hook up publishers and freelancers. Accepting poor treatment, badmouthing your competition, or working for too-low fees (three of her seven deadly sins) wind up hurting you--and your job satisfaction--in the long run.

The State of Fulltime Freelancer's Work, 2011

I reported last week on some of the results of the 2011 Freelance Income Survey. Today, let's take a look at what types of work we're doing. With 191 results in (remember, you can still take the survey or ask your freelancing friends to), here's the type of work freelancers are performing for clients today. (The question asked what types of work did you paid to do in 2010/first six months of 2011):

• 15 percent are writing for the web (excluding blogging)
• 12 percent are writing consumer magazine articles
• 11 percent are writing for corporations/businesses
  
• 10 percent are editing (all types)
  
• 9 percent are writing trade magazine articles
• 8 percent are blogging
• 8 percent are writing custom magazine articles
• 5 percent are writing for nonprofits
• 5 percent are writing newspaper articles
• 4 percent are writing their own books/book proposals
• 3 percent are ghostwriting
  
• 3 percent are reselling/reprinting previously published work
• 3 percent are speaking/teaching
• 2 percent are writing academic magazine articles

Compared to last year's results, fewer freelancers are writing for consumer magazines and more are writing for the web and blogging for pay. (I'll post soon about blogging for bucks, and why you should.)

Of course freelancers are doing other jobs for pay, too. I'll report on the "other" types of work we're making money from--you may come away with some great ideas for your freelance career.