Freelancing…
The decision I made long ago that I’d better do something else because I couldn’t make money at writing to feed a family was a good one. That might not sit well with aspiring young writers. Admittedly I’m just one datum in a very large statistical pool of writers. And I have to qualify the statement: the writing I’m doing now is not profitable enough to support a family either.
That said, there are other ways besides novel writing that a writer can use to make a living: ghost writing, editing, advertising, science writing, and so forth—a lot of companies employ people who know how to write because most of their other employees don’t. Especially in the more technical fields. You can’t read the instruction your doctor wrote on your prescription, but the doc’s handwriting is only the beginning of his bad writing skills. Many scientists and engineers are lucky to communicate via speech; their writing skills often make you wonder how they passed high school English, let alone college level.
Unfortunately none of these jobs pay much and benefits are usually terrible, especially if you work for a company that outsources writers to big corporations. In our illiterate society (just sample the usual text messages), a literate person should be royally treated, but that’s not the case. Unlike most people, I read the scrolling comments on TV news reports; they’re often illiterate, by which I mean it’s hard to figure out what the person wants to express. I see tweets from famous (or infamous) people on Twitter (yes, I’m there, but I’m not famous…or infamous); they’re often illiterate too. Literacy takes hard hits from many directions and many sources.
Freelancing of one form or another can be a good source of income as the world becomes less literate and spirals down toward complete illiteracy. There are enough people out there who want writers’ skills—their products, ideas, and dominance of issues. The global market still requires intelligent expression…for now. I don’t know how long that will continue. Freelancing includes most of the detailed writing activities I’ve mentioned, and more (even a poet can find employment writing humorous greeting card couplets). Unfortunately, having success with freelancing is a bit like having a successful book: You not only need to produce a quality product; you also need several examples of such products in your portfolio to establish your brand.
I’ve never freelanced or employed a freelancer (discounting those people I use for my self-published books—editors, formatters, cover artists, and publicists), but I’ve been told by many writers that it’s the only way to make a living as a writer. Illiterate celebs need ghostwriters. Think tanks and lobbyist orgs, both containing illiterate people, employ writers to clean up their messes. A CEO’s speechwriter can become that CEO’s go-to person (although that might become a permanent position). Illiterate politicians need writers of literate position papers. And so on.
Again, these might be transient opportunities. Literacy is under attack in America and elsewhere in the world. Like most anything else that it touches, high tech adds to that assault. But for now, there are ways to make a living as a full-time writer. If you don’t like the idea of freelancing, though, don’t leave your day-job. Unless it already involves writing.
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Comments are always welcome.
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Around the world and to the stars! In libris libertas!
