It’s funny how you meet people by chance. Sara Hodon is one of those people.
Sara got in touch with me last month regarding an article she’s writing — she needed some input. She’s smart, articulate, and a good freelance writer. That’s when the light bulb went off for me — what a great opportunity to bring a new voice to Writers Worth Month.
Writers, meet Sara Hodon.
Q: How long have you been freelancing?
Sara: Since 2003, in varying degrees.
Q: What’s your area of focus?
Sara: I do a lot of writing for trade publications.
Q:How were those first few years of freelancing?
Sara: They were interesting. They were a good learning experience because I accepted anything that I was offered, so I got to try a lot of different styles. I was right out of college and looking to supplement my income. It took some time to break into magazines, mostly because I wasn’t sure how to go about it. I met a full-time freelancer through my writers’ group and she was so helpful as far as answering my questions or making me aware of potential markets. I really owe a lot of my early magazine writing clips to her guidance.
Q: What’s been your toughest challenge? Why?
Sara:Freelancing has largely been a side gig, so juggling writing with whatever my day job has been at the time, plus my other responsibilities. I think I’ve gotten much better at making it a priority just as much as anything else on my to-do list, but I’ve definitely had to make room for it at times.
Finding work is an ongoing challenge, but I’ve been writing for trades for some time, and I’ve been fortunate to work with a number of publications for quite a few years. Every so often I’ll search for new markets and reach out to new editors, and the lack of positive responses can be discouraging, but I try to focus on the positive responses I get.
I’ve tried branching out from just writing articles and doing more copywriting, but that hasn’t been as successful, so I mainly stick with articles. Of course, interviews remain the biggest challenge—both finding the sources at times, and then actually getting to speak with them. It seems to have gotten tougher over the past few years because we’re all so pressed for time, so I always appreciate when a source is responsive, engaged, and has some great things to say!
Q: What was your a-ha moment – the event or circumstance that shifted your perspective or had you changing the way you do things?
Sara: I wrote full-time for six months when I was between jobs. It was the scariest time of my life, but I supported myself almost solely through writing (I was teaching college at the time, too). I’d been questioning my writing mojo, so to speak—Could I really do this?—but all of a sudden, I was doing it. I think it brought a whole new level of professionalism and commitment to my writing that hadn’t been there before. Prior to that, it had just been a kind of fun side job that I did for extra money—when it was my primary livelihood, I took it much more seriously very quickly.
Q: If you could tell new freelance writers one thing to help them build a better business, what would that be?
Sara: Put a monetary value on what you do—don’t work for free if you can help it. Taking on an occasional (and I do mean occasional) pro bono gig isn’t terrible, but if it involves almost the same amount of work that you would put into a paid project, then why not seek out that paid project? No matter how prestigious the website or publication, be wary of any client or editor who says they’ll pay you in “exposure”. Think about it—will that “exposure” keep your lights on or put gas in your tank? Not that I know of.
I would also encourage new writers to not be afraid to follow up. Editors and other business folks are busy. If you make initial contact with them, whether through in-person or virtual networking, a query or LOI, or some other means, don’t lose that contact. Over the past few months I’ve reached out to a number of editors I’ve worked with in the past but fell out of touch with for various reasons, and that’s led to some very positive responses which will hopefully turn into assignments in the not-too-distant future. And don’t worry too much about being annoying or a pest—if you strike the right balance of persistent and professional, chances are the editor or client will appreciate it and be excited to work with you, especially if you’ve worked well with them in the past.
Writers, what was your a-ha moment?
10 responses to “Writers Worth: Meet Sara Hodon”
Always nice to meet a fellow freelancer. Thanks for sharing Sara's story, ladies.
Loving this interview series! It's great to hear the perspectives of all different kinds of writers.
Ditto–KeriLynn's comment. Thanks, Lori!
Sara, welcome to the Writers Worth family. So glad to meet you. Do you have any plans to go full-time with your freelancing?
Sara, thanks for telling your story!
Writers, Sara's post will be on the blog tomorrow, so please be sure to give her some comment love then, too.
Nice to see you here, too, Sara!
Lori, I met Sara on this blog! Indeed she is a talented, go-getter writer. Lovely to know more about her background.
Sara, I can't wait to read your post tomorrow!
Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone! I've been reading Lori's blog for some time and appreciate the opportunity to "meet" you all!
Cathy–I'm expecting a baby this summer so i'm certainly not ruling it out. Oh, the flexibility!
Paula–thanks!
Ashley–thanks for the great comment. I hope to see a post from you this month!
Monetary value — because if you don't respect your worth, no one else will either!
Great interview, Sara!
"No matter how prestigious the website or publication, be wary of any client or editor who says they’ll pay you in “exposure”. Think about it—will that “exposure” keep your lights on or put gas in your tank? Not that I know of."
All exposure brings is a cold and a court date. Don't ask me how I know that.