When I was just starting out as a freelance writer, I found and tried out many gigs via Craigslist and other websites. Some of them were great. I wrote for magazines, nonprofit groups, medical websites, general blogs, parenting sites, children’s gaming review companies, and research organizations. I even ended up with some work in a book. But I also applied to some pretty seedy places that ended up being not-so-great.
I’ve worked for people who wanted to pay me pennies—literally pennies, not pennies per word! I’ve written samples for companies who wanted more and more “free” samples before paying me. I wrote for one company who didn’t pay me at all but used my work anyway; I accidentally stumbled upon it and then demanded payment months later. I’ve learned a lot along the way, and I’ve developed my own set of rules to keep myself sane. I know these rules wouldn’t work for everyone (such as my no more ghost-writing rule), but they do for me.
One of my rules deals with Craigslist. It’s not really a rule, so much as a general thought I’d like to share with everyone: if you end up on a creepy string of e-mails or phone interviews with someone on Craigslist and you start to feel uncomfortable, quit immediately. Don’t worry about being polite; just hang up or block the email, whichever is applicable.
This is not even in regards to the guy who wanted me to write for porn sites (which I actually considered, believe it or not, before I got sick to my stomach on the first day). This is in regards to the man who posted about a research project regarding hazing, which sounded legitimate and interesting. It turned out that he was a pervert who only wanted to discuss his own penis with me.
He went about it in a roundabout way, and I kept trying to steer the conversation back to the job details, deadlines, payment, and things like that. Instead, he kept pushing until I finally stammered about having to go make dinner and politely ended the conversation.
Now, having worked for myself for several years, I’m getting much better at weeding out such nonsense. There is no way in hell I would tolerate such a discussion, and I wouldn’t hesitate to hang up on someone sexually harassing me over the telephone. As a freelance writer, you aren’t as well protected against such things in the workplace as many other companies that actually hold seminars on such subjects (though the rate of harassment at work is incredibly high, of course, and all of its forms are unacceptable). You must stand up for yourself and refuse to be treated in such a way.
This isn’t to say that only jobs on Craigslist are like this, of course. Just be wary of every inquiry, every application, you send out. Don’t give out your personal information until it’s time to do your paperwork, and listen to your heart when it starts to tell you if something is fishy. It’s probably right.