Many freelance guru’s point out that not all the freelance work exists in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. There’s plenty of work to be had in your own locale due to local magazines, newspapers and small businesses. Thanks to Craigslist, I landed a freelance contract with a local website and software applications company.

I have been working for this small business since the last week in April and I have learned a great deal about small business, marketing and the family-owned small business in particular. I’ve come into contact with a lot of clients who want and need different things. They all want to increase revenue but many are still in the dark about their web presence and how software applications can make them more efficient.

Your perception of your writing skills or lack of them really emerges as you begin to writing content about everything including locksmith services, fire extinguisher sales and service, Christian childcare, insurance adjuster training, patio covers and landscaping.

When it’s all said and done, you wonder how you made any of these services sound interesting to someone not in the field.

If you find yourself with an opportunity to write locally for the businesses that cater to your neighborhoods, you may surprise yourself with the contributions you can make to those businesses and your metropolitan area. Good Luck.

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As writers we often hear the advice to write what we know. I may have started out that way but I often quickly find that my stories move into unknown territory. My first novel was differently based on experience but it wasn’t based on my experience alone. I added many layers that were not part of my own biography.

What made me come to this conclusion has to be when one of my clients wanted to know if I knew anything about commercial landscaping. I had never written on this topic before and we’ll see how I do when the assignment begins tomorrow, but my response to him was, “I didn’t know anything about the other projects you’ve assigned to me.” Lucky for me every one of those assignments went off much better than expected. I never thought I would be writing about a Christian childcare center, patio cover company, two locksmithing businesses, watch repair, an appliance repair business and a fire safety corporation. Not only have I written about those things, I’ve done a pretty good job at it as well.

Thanks to research and some critical thinking about what people want and what they expect from an interaction with any of these businesses has been my guide.

So the next time you wonder if you can write about something, remember that you really don’t know until you try. Certainly research is huge, but how you translate that research into relatable experience that causes people to connect is the real test.

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A few weeks back I spent several weekends watching the entire six seasons of Sex and the City. Several of the episodes had a writer’s commentary. We’ve all heard of director’s cuts and commentaries as well as actors sharing their two cents. But, this was the first time I had a chance to hear a writer talk about the writing of an episode and how it fits in the overall series. Instead of a commentary panel, it was the actual episode with voiceover from the Executive Producer and writer, Michael Patrick King.

The commentary was very useful because unlike others, King discussed what was written from dialogue, setting and characterization and also matched up the director’s interpretation of what the writers created.

King also discussed symbolism in the behaviors of the women and how it changed over time as well as their challenges. Its what made a good series and frankly it is what made the show much better than the book.

As a writer, I enjoyed how King illustrated how the actors personified different emotions and character traits in performing the characters. Things like having Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker)’s hair change lengths and colors as well as her battle with smoking and her weakness with Mr. Big.

King also talked about how each of the women represented different view points in society on any given topic they would discuss around the table or on their walk through the city.

Since setting isn’t my strongest point when writing, it really helped to hear how a writer made it another character in the story. New York is definitely the fifth sustaining character in the series, but because like the women it is always there.

Want to grasp greater depths in your writing? Think about how it would play out in front of a camera, because while your books may not have pictures, your readers will being picturing your story in their heads.

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If you enter any kind of self-employment scenario after having been employed for many years, it is very difficult to break free of the “aim to please” mindset. Sure, the circumstances are similar. If you want to keep your job, you make your employer happy. If you want to keep your business afloat then you make your customers happy. But there is a difference. Customers are happy when you deliver on your promises and ecstatic when you give a little bit more. Employers want to get the most out of you regardless of your pay scale. In business, more services equal more revenue. This is not necessarily the case in an employment situation. In fact, most employment contracts are written broad enough to allow employers to tack on more duties without having to pay you more. We’ve all read phrasing to this effect, “The following list of job requirements include but are not limited to the following…” or “Additional duties may be required at the discretion of the company based on its needs”.

When you are in business for yourself, whether you run a business of one or more, the thought process can be very different. A business peddling products may do well to offer free samples or provide “value-added” extras to entice repeat business. As a freelancer, more is just more for the client and may become a drain if the price wasn’t set properly to begin with.

Here’s a perfect example. As an employee, I always pushed myself to give more and go the extra mile in the hopes that it would be considered when it came time for raise evaluations.  I would do my best regardless, but when raises are based on performance, you’re enticed to push yourself a little harder. When I went freelance and finally landed a regular gig, I wrote over one hundred articles at $13 apiece.  I know many veterans would scoff and label me green, but I figured I had to prove myself and over time the articles could be produced rather quickly because they were formulaic. Suddenly the article storm ended but just as suddenly they began again but this time I was commissioned to write a handful of articles at $150 apiece. This was a much improved proposition. I thought, “I made it. I’ve proven that I can write well and now I am making above industry standards because of it.” Then out of nowhere, I began receiving offers for those $13 formulaic articles again. I continued to do those figuring that the higher priced articles would be less frequent. Then suddenly, I found myself in a position no freelancer wants. I kept getting those formulaic articles but they were becoming less formulaic.  All the articles were the same length so it had nothing to do with word count. It had everything to do with the skill required to write the non-formulaic articles.

As a professional, I took my fee since I had already agreed to it, but began to inquire about the differing pay rate. The differing articles were offered by the same company but handled by two different content brokers. The $13 lady would keep me tied up and I would possibly not see another $150 article. I had to politely and professionally withdraw myself from this racket.  

As a full-time writer in an economy where random $13 articles don’t pay the bills, we have to think like a business and know when to seek clients elsewhere. You can rely on volume and sell knock-off product at a fraction of the price or you can rely on quality and sell the real deal for what it’s really worth. I’ve always preferred quality over quantity.

Shortly after that, the same client returned to me a short time later offering articles at a more respectable payrate. When you’ve proven your worth it, it’s rewarding to claim what you deserve.

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Many veteran freelance writers will tell you never write for free. That is excellent advice unless you are writing for yourself or you’re trying to break in with no clips to show prospective clients. If you are really that fresh, it may be necessary to write for free at least at first. I landed my very first freelance assignment more than ten years ago. I just didn’t know it at the time. I started out writing catalog copy for a medical supply company. They didn’t sell cotton balls or tongue depressors, they sold engraved coffee cups, pens, lumbar pillows (to target chiropractors) stationery, appointment reminder cards and the like. I was paid hourly but I was a vendor not an employee. I worked part-time while earning my English degree.

My next experiment with freelance writing involved an assignment I landed on a job bidding website. No, not the one you’re thinking…:) It was Rent-a-coder.com, and I landed a job writing how-to business articles. The client wanted me to write articles on how to start various businesses. In most cases he had a chunk of information and I just had to retool and polish it. Sometimes that meant cutting it or expanding it. I landed that gig without a freelance writing credit I could provide electronically. Sure I had the catalog copy writing experience, but it was in print and I didn’t have a scanner. So I quickly wrote an article on how to propose telecommuting to your employer and I provided a low bid due to my inexperience.  “Due to my inexperience” is a loaded phrase because I ended up winning the bid to write ten articles for $30 with no regard to word count. A deal that was ridiculous for nearly ten years ago, but sadly rather common these days with writers competing for jobs around the globe.

He liked my work and offered to provide more opportunities at the same pay rate. I thanked him for the opportunity and moved on, because frankly, it’s about more than just landing a gig, it’s about claiming the value in all you do. Writing for free in certain circumstances feels like a good idea. At first, whether it is for publicity or landing that writing gig, it seems like fun brimming with anticipation but it quickly becomes monotonous and degrading.

Often prospective clients will ask for a free writing sample. Make your decision on a case by case basis. You can tell if the client is trying to narrow down an in-box full of prospective writers or if he/she is simply trying to get good content. If trial sample is short say, 200 words or less, and it won’t take heavy research or a long time to write, give it a whirl if you really want the gig. Otherwise, look for a client who can make a decision based on your fantastic clips.

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The culture of human nature is so complex due to the various shades of gray. Marketing my writing skills and fettering out legitimate project leads are a huge part of my day to day tasks. Some days are better than others with a healthy list of potential job leads. However, every job seeker, entrepreneur or salesmen has that moment of desperation, where they momentarily consider a project, a job or a potential buyer they might not normally consider. Sometimes it leads to a big sale. (Think of the rich guy who walks into a high end store wearing polyester lime green pants and an orange checkered shirt–he’s not wearing a 3-piece suit or flashing a Rolex so he’s probably not going to buy anything right?) Other times it leads where you might expect. It leads to nothing at all or a lot of grunt work not worthy of your time.

I had one of those moments last week. I saw an ad for a company seeking writers. The company claimed to provide research reports, book reviews, dissertations and essays to business and students. It sounded like the writer could pick and choose the projects they’d prefer to complete. Immediately I felt a sense of immorality in this offer. I’m that kid who wouldn’t “share” my homework with those who failed to complete their own. If they made a genuine effort to do their homework and just got stuck on one question, that’s one thing. But those kids who rather play video games or watch television than do their homework didn’t get any help from me.

Anyway, I filled out the form figuring I could complete the assignments for companies only. Let someone else write student essays if they wanted to, but I wasn’t going to do it. The company replied that my writing met their criteria and that if I was still interested I would need to write a new sample to ensure that the level of writing from my portfolio was indeed my own. All over the website there was strong language to deter plagiarism. Did anyone see the irony here? Once it dawned on me, I could not continue. This company was so concerned about plagiarism, yet they are provided term papers to students. It’s never said that these student clients would submit the papers as their own, but common sense would indicate that’s the purpose for these papers.

It goes to show just what the written word can accomplish. It can sway your thinking or cause you to interpret reality differently based on what is written or left to interpretation. In all your endeavors, make sure you analyze what’s not being said or written as well as what is.

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In Marta Acosta’s contemporary paranormal romance, The Bride of Casa Dracula, blood-lust, jealousy, first class wedding skepticism and thematic hints of chicklit stories past abound. Milagro De Los Santos is a hot Hispanic freelance writer on the fringes of the rich and famous vampire society with only a series of wedding rituals, a loyalty agreement and a vow of pre-marital celibacy standing in the way of her marriage to Oswald Grant—gorgeous son of a prominent, wealthy vampire dynasty and successful plastic surgeon.

When Milagro repeatedly finds herself crossing paths with an ex-lover, the man responsible for her extra-vampire abilities, and his sister—the woman put in charge of making sure Milagro follows the vampire council’s restrictions to the letter, Milagro feels her white plastic-mini wearing style is cramped. Milagro goes from feeling restricted to sensing her matrimonial fairytale has turned into choose-your-own-adventure novel with someone else making the decisions—but who?

While I liked the idea of Milagro’s superpowers, I didn’t find her to be a likeable character. The story in general had only a sprinkling of Hispanic cultural references. The rest of the book’s characters didn’t make any better of an impression.

While some of the twists were interesting, the attempted murder toward the end just seemed a little too extreme to be a natural believable progression in the novel and most of the attempts at humor did not spark.

Knowing that Milagro’s story and her growth spans three novels so far and The Bride of Casa Dracula is the third in the series, it earns three sable seals.

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When it comes to freelancing there is a lot to be said for timing, courage and faith.  With courage, I quit my job nearly 11 months ago on the belief that I could be a freelancer. Back in November, I even planned a vacation for this month when I had know idea where the money would come from. Then last week I decided to end my temp assignment early in preparation for that vacation coming up  and a writing assignment. When that assignment was finished and I thought I’d have some downtime before my vacation,  another assignment was waiting in the wings.  I didn’t see that coming and as a freelancer, I’m not complaining! (Honestly, I could have said no, but since I am in the current cycle of feast or famine, I don’t know when the next famine is coming. )

I’ve always been a big believer in timing. What I often forget is that my timeline isn’t always in line with that of the universe. What seems like an impossibility may be a definite sure thing at a different time in the future. We fanatical organizers arrange things to eliminate any and all inconviences and discomfort. Yet it is in the inconveniences and discomfort that we see who we really are.

Would I really know that I could take on a temp job and finish writing assignments if I didn’t have the need to do so?

Would I be able to plan a future vacation during a time when money was uncertain if I didn’t first entertain that I would be able to recognize opportunities in the future that would bring the means to pay for and take the vacation in the first place?

Normally I would have never considered planning a vacation at a time when savings were dwindling and I had no idea of what my employment situation would be. Would I still be freelancing with all the work and freedom that comes with it? Or would I be forced to adhere to the vacation policies of an employer? Back in November I had no idea, but I acted on faith and here I am a week before that trip and I am more than ready for it.

The point is, no matter how we try to account for it, schedule it or arrange it, our ability to control time is an illusion. You could have every second of every day planned  and something will come up to change everything. That emergency response nature of yours is saying….”No way, I’m prepared for anything.”  Well, in order to be prepared for anything you must first believe that anything is possible.

Time still passes and what it will be for us in the future has a lot to do with how we spend it now.  How’s your timing?

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Last Friday, I did what everyone dreads this time of year. I sat down with the tax guy to review my tax obligation for 2008. In previous years, I daringly filed my own taxes using one of the leading tax software programs.  But this year with the interesting financial moves I made and having actually sold a book, I decided to hire a professional.  I had no idea how this was going to turn out.

Months ago in preparation for tax time, one thing I knew for sure. Since I was embarking on this freelance/self-employed journey, now was the time to claim and create all the legitimate business deductions I could. No waiting for things to improve before buying equipment and supplies for my writing business. No waiting to pay for and plan any writing research trips. This was going to be the best time to invest in my business and invest in myself.

So I took the classes, bought the books, invested in the websites, domain names, hosting etc that would improve my business and my writing. I even replaced my desktop and brought a laptop to use during travel. (OK, I did unintentionally fry the motherboard on my previous desktop before I purchased another…minor detail, right? Those darn memory cards and confusing memory card bays! Besides, my desktop was over seven years old.)

After it was all said and done, it looks like the tax man is going to owe me. WHEW…No matter how much I overpay durnig the year, I always fear the outcome of tax time. I’ve heard the story of overpaying taxes is like giving the government an interest-free loan, but its hard to change the mindset that if you owe Uncle Sam on April 15th, somehow you did something wrong.

Why does our culture make us and environment cause us feel this way? I’m sure many entrepreneurs don’t think of it that way at all. Heck, if you owe Uncle Sam on April 15th, maybe you are just paying back an interest-free loan?

This article started out about the tax responsibilities of freelancers and turned into a cultural analysis of our view on paying taxes. I think there’s a lesson in that alone…

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Like a timed test or a marathon, the production side of writing can really get your heart pumping and your head pounding as your breath quickens. As you push past your limits, your endurance builds and your writing muscle strengthens. Along the way, there’s a mental and physical exhaustion that others only experience on the track or the treadmill.

When you’re done or finally override the writer’s auto-pilot command, you’re exhausted, convinced that you must be some kind of masochist. Yet, even when you think you can’t write another word, ideas keep streaming in and your fingers keep tapping the keys while the rest of your body is held captive to the writing urge that overpowers everything else.

All too familiar with the writing droughts never seem to end, you ride the writing flood until wave thins out again.

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