Freelance Writing Blog

What You Can (& Should) Say to a Freelance Client

Posted on April 14, 2022April 14, 2022 by lwidmer

A close relative of mine is a stickler for obligations. That’s good. And bad. See, if a doctor’s office hands her an appointment time, she accepts it, even if it means rearranging her entire life to make that appointment. It never occurs to her to say “That won’t work. What other days do you have?”…

Your Freelance Client Magnet

Posted on April 8, 2022April 7, 2022 by lwidmer

What does a successful freelance writing career look like to you? Ask a hundred freelancers and you’ll probably get that many different answers. Success could be something as lofty as making enough to retire by age 50. It could be making enough to pay the bills and bank a little. Or it could be working…

Countdown to Freelance Success

Posted on April 4, 2022April 1, 2022 by lwidmer

Maybe it was the poster on a forum who was asking for advice on whether she should update her 19-year-old manuscript before publishing it. Maybe it was the writer I met recently who, despite being a career veteran, couldn’t make ends meet. Maybe it was the Twitter connection who shunned all advice and clung to…

How to Lose –and Win– at Freelancing

Posted on March 23, 2022March 23, 2022 by lwidmer

I call this post A Tale of Two Writers. A friend of mine knows of a writer who, on the surface, should have made a serious killing the last two years. The writer in question –let’s call her Writer #1 — has a background in healthcare, senior care, aging, wellness, and medicine, among other things….

1 Career-boosting Freelance Shift

Posted on March 18, 2022March 17, 2022 by lwidmer

In talking with a writer chum yesterday, I realized the difference between successful freelancers and those struggling to get a writing business going in the right direction. Actually, it’s just one difference. There are plenty more, but this one is a biggie. It’s also a difference that had me struggling at the beginning of my…

3 Shifts to Put the ‘Free’ Back in Freelance

Posted on March 11, 2022March 10, 2022 by lwidmer

Sometimes you come to your breaking point. Sometimes when that happens, you break. Or sometimes you find a way through the stress and you vow to make changes so that you don’t reach that breaking point again. Oh, those best laid plans, eh? We freelancers suck at taking care of ourselves. It’s true. We put…

8 Freelance Writing Biz Hacks

Posted on March 7, 2022April 6, 2022 by lwidmer

If only I had some quick hacks that could improve my freelance writing business! said every writer everywhere. Today’s your lucky day. As I slow my business pace in anticipation of an eventual retirement, I’ve had some time to reflect on how arrived at this point in my career. And I’ve been happy with what I…

5 Ways to Unstick Your Freelance Writing Career

Posted on February 22, 2022February 21, 2022 by lwidmer

I saw this question on Twitter yesterday: What advice would you give a freelance writer who is stuck at their next career step? They’re not new & not an expert. Not making pennies, but not making enough. Haven’t we all been there? We get the credits built up, get client relationships solidified, find our rhythm…

3 Truths About Writing Advice

Posted on February 17, 2022February 18, 2022 by lwidmer

Forgive me if I’m repeating myself, but some of you need to hear this. Hell, I’d argue we all need to hear this more often than we do. And thanks to my dear friend Cathy Miller, we got a wakeup call recently when she retweeted this post. Cathy’s social media lessons form around the same…

One Freelance Ask You Should Never Make

Posted on February 10, 2022February 9, 2022 by lwidmer

It happened to me last week. Twice. To be fair, it happens to plenty of established writers pretty regularly. I’m no exception, believe me. It comes from friends, but mostly it comes from strangers. It’s unpleasant no matter who it comes from. I’m talking about someone asking for my “overflow” work. Let’s just skip the…

Paula Hendrickson

February 10, 2022

I don’t recall anyone ever asking me for overflow work, but I’ve sure had a few ask for my contacts.

I don’t mind sharing contacts with someone I know well and who I know will pitch an idea to an editor, very professionally, and who’s already covering the entertainment industry. But I won’t share contact info with people who just think it would be cool to write about entertainment or interview celebrities. To them, the most I’ll do is tell them how I broke in by contacting the editors with good ideas and a big stack of clips to show I could do the work.

One person tried to covertly get me to share my contacts at Variety. She pretended she had written there too, and wanted to see if we had worked with the same people. I searched her name in Variety’s massive database and her very distinctive name didn’t show up once. Big surprise. She now spends most of her time coming up with creative ways to separate beginning freelancers from their money.

1. lwidmer
  
  February 14, 2022
  
  I remember that person, Paula. She’s been “enhancing” her resume for a while now. Writers unwilling to investigate will be taken in, but it’s not that hard to figure out when someone is fudging the experience.
  
  I will share contacts with a writer friend who has a good reputation. I probably sent things your way as they appear, and I know a number of writers I’ve passed along opportunities to. However, I draw the line at “Hi! My name is …. Please give me the contact info for your client.” Hey, if it’s a magazine editor and I know you, I’d share that. But these asks to handle work for my clients or hey, just tell me who your client is and I’ll ask if they need more writers — not happening.
2. Cathy Miller
  
  February 18, 2022
  
  I’ve been asked for both, Paula. Once again, lazy marketing comes to the forefront. My first reaction when someone asks for my contacts is to think, “Seriously?” Like you, if it’s someone I know and trust (like Lori), I am happy to share. I’ve shared Lori’s name with contacts for the commercial side of insurance as my strength is the employee benefits side.
Dava

February 15, 2022

I’ve given and received lots of referrals over the years, but they are intentional. Building a network has been a crucial part of my writing career. My relationships tend to be long, giving all parties the opportunity to get to know one another thoroughly enough to know who might be good for what referral. If I ever reach a position of needing subcontractors (highly unlikely since I don’t have a good or rigid marketing program in place!) I would offer that work to people from my network who I trust. Not random strangers in my email, or LI message inbox, or Twitter DM.

People are so weird. That guy will probably end up being one of the folks who moan and wail about how impossible it is to make money as a freelancer.

1. lwidmer
  
  February 15, 2022
  
  Dava, your last sentence is everything. The ones who put the least amount of effort into this are the ones who complain loudest. I’ve seen it on forums I will no longer frequent (too negative, and they’re addicted to that negativity). It tells me that these are writers who are doing a few things wrong — not trying beyond job boards, not being consistent with what they try, chasing every next money-making approach ….
  
  What they’re not doing: putting the hard work into it. You nailed it!
2. Cathy Miller
  
  February 18, 2022
  
  Right on (or maybe write on), 😉 Dava.