Freelance Isn't Free
Freedom isn't free goes the song. Well, freelance isn't free either. But for many freelance writers it can sure feel like it. Freelance is from the medieval mercenary warriors, who offered their service to the feudal lords and noblemen. One source put it best:
"These freelancers might have gone into the battlefield for the silly reasons the feudal lords and noblemen had. Often the reason for a fight might have been some property dispute or women. The freelancers might have killed each other for the noblemen, who might have sat in their colossal mansions joking about the freelancers who died for their cause." I have a mortgage to pay and wife and daughter to support, so my reasons are definitely over a property dispute and women.
I'm not a full-time freelance writer. Yet. But I'm sharpening my lance and searching for the right feudal lords to fight for. I'm not willing to fight for their cause, but I'm willing to write for their cause. I'm not willing to die (or starve) doing it either. The medieval hired guns (okay, swords) knew that the battle wasn't their battle. But fighting it was a matter of commerce. I fight; you pay. And for writers, I write; you pay. In both cases there is an element of risk and the possibility for demise. Freelance warriors probably weren't known for their brains but for their brawn, but freelance writers should be known for their brains and only their brawn in their capacity to withstand rejection and the pressures that true independence and freedom afford them.
So where can I go to find my noblemen? There's no Noblemen.com but there is Elance (Elance.com), the largest freelance job board, with vWork and oDesk in hot pursuit. Free and paid plans from $10-40 per month are available. I can upgrade, downgrade or cancel at any time. Each plan allows me an allotted number of "connects" to Elance's posted 30,000 jobs. Most are not jobs I'd be interested in, since they wouldn't involve writing, but there are small and large businesses looking for writers to write articles, manuals and press releases. There are publishing agents and other publishing businesses looking for proofreaders. There is work. But I have to post my qualifications and expertise and then bid on the job. I can offer my services at an hourly rate or a per-job rate. Either way, though, I have to sell myself and win the job. What is exciting about this service is that I have access to the clients who are looking for qualified writers to whom they can outsource work.
Running my private investigation firm for 27 years has provided me with the opportunity to understand about risk, being a self-motivator, a self-starter, a person who can't afford to re-define mediocrity for excellence. Self-employment is freelancing. In my private investigation business I had clients. As a writer, the publisher is a client, albeit a middleman, for the consumer (the reader). The self-discipline needed to be self-employed doesn't change much to being a freelance writer, only the skills used to provide the product and service.
I'll close with a Shameless Plug: I'd like to make it known that as a freelance writer, I would enjoy the opportunity to work for the lords and ladies of the pen--for you writers out there--who may need a book edited or proofreading. These are valuable services that will make your books, stories and articles better and more marketable. Proofreading and editing is more than finding punctuation, spelling and grammatical errors. I can help you focus your piece by bringing perspectives to it that encompass accuracy of content, story impact, pacing and rhythm, and continuity. These are not platitudinous offerings but skills I've developed over years of writing, re-writing and critiquing writers' work.
If you have a project you'd like to discuss with me, e-mail me at Tom@TomEubanks.com and I'll call you. I'd enjoy being your freelance warrior. Yeah. Your Lance-A-Lot. Okay, Guinevere, your pudgy Lance-A-Lot.
Posted by Tom Eubanks at 9/15/2010 10:09 AM 
Categories: Writing Services, Rhyme or Reason, Marketing Yourself
Tags: Working It Proofreading Shameless Plug Essay
Categories: Writing Services, Rhyme or Reason, Marketing Yourself
Tags: Working It Proofreading Shameless Plug Essay
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