Guest Post: Writer’s Worth & Success

About a year ago, Paula Hendrickson promised to write a guest post for me.

Like the rest of us busy writers, her work got in the way. Then we both forgot. Then she’d remember, but something else would crop up.  Then the idea just wouldn’t appear.

This week, Paula had some time. And an idea.

Let’s just say it was totally worth the wait. Paula, who is one of the biggest cheerleaders of my once-annual, now retired Writers Worth Month (the “month” part was her idea), decided to revive the theme of writers worth for her guest post. And I for one could not be happier.

Thank you, Paula. I’ve always appreciated the little gems of wisdom that come from you in conversation. This post is another example of wisdom you can take to the bank.

What does ‘Worth’ Mean to You?

by Paula Hendrickson

In the past year or two, I’ve written dozens of 100-word professional updates for a major entertainment trade publication. No matter how well known each person is, I need to ask what they feel their biggest accomplishments have been in the past year.

Some seem surprised when I follow up by asking what metrics they use to measure success: How much money was involved? Did it set a precedent? Did it make headlines? Was it overcoming a big challenge? Was is a passion project? Some other reason?

It’s been encouraging to see how few of them use monetary benchmarks to measure their successes.

But how does that apply to freelance writers?

As freelancers, we could stop fixating on how much projects pay per word, per hour, or per project and start asking ourselves what worth each project brings to us—and what worth we bring to each project.

What would you list as your top accomplishments of the past year, and how would you identify them?

Did you land an exciting new client? Did you sell a poem? Did one of your articles win an award? Did you write a press release that boosted sales of your client’s product? Did you finish that novel you’ve been working on for the last three years? Did you learn something valuable from accepting a particularly challenging assignment? Did you sell an article about a topic you really wanted to cover?

While I’d rank the opportunity to write several pieces of advertorial copy for a streaming service among my top accomplishments of the past year, I’d also include the fact that I finished a script that has since been entered in multiple screenwriting competitions.

The first paid and paid well. The second was a labor of love. Both were worthy accomplishments.

[bctt tweet=”#Freelancewriting pros: What do you consider career accomplishments?” username=”LoriWidmer”]

Thanks to the encouragement of Devon Ellington and Sharon Hurley Hall, I even entered a short story contest—short stories have never been my strong suit—and to my utter amazement, my story placed among the top 10 finalists (along with Devon’s story). I didn’t win the top prize, but I received $25 and became a little more comfortable with descriptive writing.

It was worth the effort, not for the $25, but for what the experience taught me about my own abilities.

Sometimes little accomplishments mean the most

One of my steadiest clients since the pandemic began has been my neighbor, an MBA candidate who doubts her writing skills. She hired me to copyedit her assignments before she submits them. Most are between 50-300 words and only take about five minutes to edit. She studies the changes to learn what weaknesses need improving, so each assignment requires a little less editing. She pays $10 per assignment (more for editing papers), which might not sound like much, but breaks down to about $120 per hour.

That’s pretty good, especially considering I can easily fit those quick edits into even the busiest of workdays.

That’s worth my time—and more.

Not only am I helping my neighbor gain more confidence in her writing skills (she loves it when there are only one or two minor corrections and I say she didn’t give me much to work with), I’m also getting a crash course in marketing and international business. That’s far more than I expected when I agreed to edit her assignments.

Recognize your own worth

By looking at your accomplishments objectively, you begin to understand what it was that made them worthwhile projects. Then, you can consider how those accomplishments reflect the worth you offer current and potential clients.

If nothing else, one thing I’ve learned from writing so many annual updates is that anyone can trumpet their successes to whomever will listen. But the wise person knows the difference between financial success and true worth.

Fellow freelancers: What would you count among your biggest recent accomplishments, and why?