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Current mood:  awake Category: Jobs, Work, Careers
Whenever someone learns what I do for a "living," they always ask how I do it. "I'd love to work online" or "I've always wanted to work from home," etc. I always respond with, "It's not exactly what you think it is," because it isn't.
I am solely responsible for my work getting done... or not. If I have an "off" day (where I just can't bring myself to look at a monitor, or whatever), I don't get paid. And if you're thinking the same is true for you - you don't get paid when you don't show-up for work - you're half-right; freelancing has no vacation days, no sick days, no paid anything. Off-days, sick days, "vacation" days - whatever you got - you simply do not get paid for any time you aren't working. It's really easy to burnout.
Also, the recession thing hit me really hard. It was delayed, but it did come. For years now, I have been invited to write for established sites and even print outlets and have turned them down. The reason being, I get residuals by publishing on my own and there's no way to know what will "explode" and what will be a dud. e.g., If I write an article for WHATEVER.com and it is a big hit, I only get paid that one time; if I publish the article on my own blog/site and it's a hit, I get a few cents pretty much everytime someone reads it (give or take). Even at $150 one-time, I still make more money going it alone (though I admit that's a stretch; the break-even point would be more around $50-75).
Print is dead. Yes, there is more money in print, but not when you factor-in working costs. For instance, $150 for a one-time article (FNASR) is good money, except you won't get $150 once you figure the costs of postage, paper, ink, time spent in research and writing, time spent editing, et.al. All-told, you wind-up making far less than $150; these days, writers working in print are either lit majors/grads or people who like to see their name in print.
Why am I telling you these "secrets"? Like I said, it's the main question people ask me, so I thought I'd lay it out for you a little - and point people here when they ask me about it!
I am now writing more articles for sites other than those I own. Granted, I lose the residuals, but I need the money right now! I've told people for years now, no matter what they're looking-up online, there's at least a small percentage chance that I wrote some or all of it - and it's true! Sadly, there are no bylines online.
Really anyone can do what I do, but don't fool yourself: it's real work! I have a real job, even though I can do it in my underwear and make my own hours. And unfortunately, it doesn't make a whole lot of money all the time. I have worked as few as 10 hours a week and made $300-400; I've worked as many as 120 hours a week and brought home $100! Like all freelance jobs, there are periods of abundance and long droughts... Knowing how to save serves you well.
Anyway, that's what I do and I enjoy it, even if I don't always get paid as much as I should (or think I should, anyway). And yes, you can do it too, though it's best to start out small and keep your day job.
As for the websites, at this point, they make just enough money to pay for themselves (usually), which is good enough for another year or so. It takes approximately 2-3 years for a website to become "established" and I am right on that line. Once they do start turning a profit, I plan to focus on them and drop the writing gig almost entirely.
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