February 2012

Setting Rates in Stone

When you set up shop as a writer, you lay out a set of rates that can be used to charge for writing, typically either hourly or per-word.  While it is tempting to set those rates in stone, it might be a good idea to have some leeway in your rates to account for the difficulty level of projects, small businesses with equally small budgets, or even to give a discount for a cause you support. 

Publishing Glut

More Books, Fewer Readers

More books are being published today than ever before in human history, while fewer people are reading at all and those who do read are reading less. The result of all this is that it's much easier to get published now than it ever was before- especially with the availability of print-on-demand technology- but it's much harder to have an impact.

Have Business Cards

While you’re doing all that networking, such as at your local Chamber of Commerce meetings, it helps to have a way for people to keep your info handy.  You never know when you might meet someone who needs the services of a writer, so by being prepared with business cards, you can seize the opportunity to make a new connection and possibly a new client.

Poet For Hire

Shades of Cyrano

One way to work as an affordable writer is by writing poems for hire, something some poets have done for many centuries. Bards in medieval Wales and Ireland, for instance, composed praise-poems for chieftains, hoping to be rewarded with generous gifts. They were supposed to have the additional power of writing magical satires, so the whole procedure was really a form of extortion- noblemen would make the gifts as generous as possible out of fear of the bards' magic. The Irish bards were even supposed to be able to make the earth swallow them up if they weren't generous enough.

Careful About Contracts

"When you are ghostwriting, you give up the copyrights to a piece, typically once payment is received."

It is not uncommon to be asked to sign a contract when you are working with private clients to provide writing services.  A contract can help make sure both parties are covered and will get what they are expecting from the deal.  Typical contracts may cover payment agreements, turnaround time and the copyright status of work done.

Origins of the Word "Freelance"

This Gun For Hire...

The word “freelance” was invented by the novelist Sir Walter Scott, to describe a type of medieval warrior that really existed. Most knights and men at arms were loyal to specific feudal overlords, through an exchange of mutual obligations. Some knights and men at arms were direct retainers, working for what was essentially a wage at the lord's own castle. The modern equivalent of this would be the “company man,” working directly at corporate headquarters.