What it means to be a freelance writer
“As a freelancer you’ll be your own boss!” “You’ll work exactly how many hours YOU want to work!” “You’ll enjoy more free time!”
If reading fantastic, over-embellished claims like this on different writing websites has got you all starry-eyed about becoming a successful freelance writer, all I can say is – it’s time for a reality check.
What you’re going to read here will be somewhat like the fine print that comes at the bottom of advertisements which others may want you to gloss over, but which I think deserves your close attention. Yes there is an element of truth in those statements I referred to earlier. But what they tell you is not the whole truth. There are conditions attached to all that nice-sounding stuff.
So read on for the fine print linked to a freelance writing career.
You won’t really be the boss
Fed up of your boss in the office? Are you looking at freelance writing as a career because now YOU’ll be calling the shots? No matter how tempting that may sound, the truth is, if you write for clients you’ll soon find that your clients, the ones who pay you to write, will be your boss.
So now you’ll be working not for one boss, but many bosses. All with needs of their own, all having a claim on your time. They set the deadlines for completing the work they give you, and when you’re starting your career as a freelance writer, they will also decide how much they will pay you.
The flip side is, it will be in your own interest to keep your clients happy. The more you honour deadlines, the more willing you are to accept urgent work, the harder you work to give them the kind of writing or content they want, the sooner you’ll be on the path to a successful freelance writing career.
Happy clients are a boon, and the best means for advertising your writing services. They will recommend you to others and bring in new business for you.
Be prepared to work hard and for longer hours
As for that other misconception – You can work only when YOU want to work – that too is a half-truth. Yes, you won’t be required to observe the normal 9 to 5 working hours routine. As a freelancer, you could stop setting an unearthly waking up time on your alarm clock, and enjoy the freedom of getting up late.
But that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to set the exact number of hours you’ll be working daily, or the exact timings for your working hours. Some days you’ll have to be prepared to work more than 8 hours, maybe even 12 hours in a day or more.
On the other hand, there’ll be days when you won’t have any work on hand. But those days won’t be like paid leave where you get paid even without doing any work. As a freelancer, if you don’t work, you don’t get paid. It’s as simple as that.
And if you’ve set a target for how much you want to earn in a month from freelance writing, you’ll have to continuously make efforts to see that more work comes your way. New assignments won’t fall into your lap without any endeavour on your part.
And when work from clients dries up, you’ll have to use the ‘free’ time to send out query letters, pen articles to submit to different publications, and then hope they’ll be lapped up by the editors.
Be prepared to wear multiple hats
One more reason why you’ll be working harder as a freelancer than as a salaried employee is that you’ll be solely responsible for doing everything it needs to keep your cash register ringing.
You’ll be your own typist, researcher, copy editor, book-keeper, cashier, accountant, marketing person… Besides this, you’ll have to make time to explore newer opportunities for freelance writing, check and send out emails, make and receive phone calls, organize the stuff on your desk and keep your computer files in order, and if you’re the lady of the house, unless you’re earning enough to employ several maid-servants, even squeeze in time for cooking and housekeeping.
Keep distractions away
There will be times when you’ll be exhausted thinking up fresh content for your articles and then typing it out, sitting for hours in front of your computer. But however tired you are, however tempted you may be to take a break, when you have work on hand you will have to stay motivated and stay on the job.
If necessary, you have to be prepared to sacrifice watching your favourite TV serial, or the telecast of an exciting match. Sometimes you may even have to cancel an outing you had planned. To become a successful freelance writer you will have to exercise strong will power to keep distractions like these at bay.
The recipe for success is hard work
Nevertheless, once you have made enough contacts and clients and have a reasonably good amount of published work to your name, the going will be a whole lot easier. But getting to that stage will need a lot of discipline and perseverance.
Even if you want to only write as a hobby rather than for earning a living off your writing, you will still have to persistently look for writing opportunities and be prepared to face rejection of some or a lot of your work.
So now you know exactly what you could be up against if you’re thinking of donning the mantle of a freelancer. But, as someone who has been there, done that, let me tell you, if you love writing you’ll be able to take all the initial hard work, all the multi-tasking, all the sacrifices, in your stride. After all, these are not drawbacks, but stepping stones towards a a successful freelance writing career.
Finally, check out this juicy quote from Britain’s Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher: I do not know anyone who has gotten to the top without hard work. That is the recipe. Well, the harder you try to perfect this recipe, the sweeter will your success be.
Psst: Just drop me a line at veenawrites16@gmail.com, and I’ll email you my FREE e-booklet titled: Free Online Resources for Writers. It’s a compilation of helpful online resources every writer needs, freebies I found by scouring the internet and which I have personally found to be very useful.
Bye for now… and don’t forget to pass the word around to your friends who might be interested in a free online freelance writing course for earning money from freelance writing.
