This point really jumped out at me: "I've learned that chasing the paycheck results in lower earnings. I worked hard for a handful of clients. I was so focused on the paycheck that I didn't focus on finding more clients and building a career."

That's where I'm at right now. I have a handful of steady clients, and that's made me kind of complacent about reaching out to new ones. But my goal as a freelancer is to write for national design publications, and that's not going to happen if I don't send queries!

Thanks for the great post.

Georganna, I'd believe it. I want to bottle your experience, in fact. I had heard that getting judgment in your favor is vastly different than getting actual payment. It makes me think going through collections may make more sense.

And thank you. I have been called a whippersnapper in years. LOL

Mridu, excellent advice! If you're not interested in what you're doing, you might as well work at the local fast food place. 🙂

However, I did learn early on that even if you take a publisher to court for non-payment and receive a judgment in your favor, you may never be paid and be out the court costs. So, I've never sued anyone after that experience, and I've never needed to.

Oh, until recently when a client stiffed me $200, but that was my slip-up for underestimating the time a developmental critique would take and failing to bill a large enough amount in advance.

Almost 70 and still learning!

Lori, how did you put together your contract? Did you cobble something together from several that you liked, or did you have a lawyer draw one up, or a combo of things?

And I thank God for the support of the writing community. Super bunch of people – yourself included. 🙂

Wendy, so true. I followed a few that spewed out the "here's EXACTLY how to do it" advice, or never showed that they were fallible just like the rest of us. I prefer to show the entire picture – how else do we learn?

Amen, Paula. Losing one client doesn't make or break you. Well, unless you had only one client, in which case you have two problems – no more work and no marketing skills. LOL

I can't believe how the rates have stayed the same, either. I don't see it getting better, either.

The worst thing I've learned is how little the average per-word article rate has changed in at least 60 years. (I wish I could find that 1950s Writers Market I bought at a book sale!)

Back in the beginning, I followed a couple of writers blogs. Those particular ones always shared the fluff and stuff. The positive aspects of their career. There never seemed to be any bad experiences for them. I kept envisioning them walking around with tiaras and royal crowns on their head, while I had the jesters hat. I felt pretty much alone, since I struggled and they never seemed to.

Eventually, I found other blogs where I saw the good AND the bad. A huge weight seemed to have lifted. To know that there were more people, like me, who didn't have the royally perfect career made all the difference.

Like you, in the beginning I got easily flustered when something would go wrong. Now, it's just a part of the business that you have to deal with, even though you sometimes want to scream.