If it could get in my way yesterday, it did. I sat down at seven am to get my NanoWriMo writing done. By nine it was obvious that wasn’t happening. I was interrupted six times, then the phone started ringing. Sorry Mom, I have to go. Then some banking and other essential errands at noon. I came back home fully intending to get tons accomplished. Right. The printer ran out of ink (at least the Canon would warn me) in the middle of a print job. It couldn’t wait – I was putting together my portfolio. I thought I’d wait until three and get it. Then the phone rang. It must have been relatives-bug-your-self-employed-relative day. I sat down again to put words to Nano (so to speak) and my daughter came home from work. Luckily, she knows that look I get when I’m stressed, and she disappeared. I got my quota done and then some, and managed to send out three LOIs and two queries.
One thing I’ve noticed is that client work comes in cycles. You’ve probably noticed that July and August are often like the Sahara in terms of projects and clients returning your calls. November and December are much like that, too. There are trends with every client type and project type that can be planned for. Here’s where to look when the droughts arrive:
Magazines in the summer months. Magazines are still flush with budgets mid-year, so if other client work is dropping off, send out some queries or ask your favorite editors for some assignments.
Corporate writing in the fall. Something about September and October makes corporations buckle down and get back to business. Perhaps they’re working on a fiscal-year budget, or perhaps they have to show quarterly results somewhere along the food chain. Either way, get in touch with them in September.
Ghostwriting and editing in January. Thank heaven for resolutions! January is a great time to pick up book writing/editing gigs from those who fancy themselves writers. They’re fresh off their resolutions and ripe for the picking.
April and May for press releases. There’s something to be said about conferences and trade shows in the spring. It brings out the newsy-ness in clients who want something – anything – to announce. Get in touch with them prior to the shows (see my post on working a trade show) and line up the press release/trade show communications work now.
April, May and June for college catalogs. I’ve worked with one college client that has tended to work on their catalog the same month it’s due, but even that system is being changed. Reach out to colleges and universities before the end of the spring semester to be considered for help on the catalog or other marketing materials.
October and November for spring conferences. We’ve talked about it already, but reaching out months ahead of the trade shows and conferences gets your clients thinking about preparations, and shows you as someone who’s on top of the planning.
What trends have you noticed? Where do you look for work when your usual sources go silent?
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