The Productive Muse

In truth, people can generally make time for what they choose to do; it is not really the time but the will that is lacking.

-Sir John Lubbock, English Biologist and Politician (1834-1913)

You may write for a living, but are you really writing?

When I was freelancing full time, my main concern was earning enough money to pay the rent, make my monthly car payment, cover the rest of the bills, and live comfortably. And if you consider success as a full-time freelancer as the ability to pay the bills and keep the lights on month after month, I was a success. In fact, given the fact that the bulk of my full-time freelance career occurred during the start of the current economic crisis, I would consider my ability to earn a living as a full-time freelancer an extraordinary accomplishment.

And I’m proud to say that I know quite a few writers and editors who still are defying the odds and still doing quite well, despite current economic conditions and all the news about struggling media outlets. Under normal conditions, freelancing takes a certain brand of tenacity, fearlessness, business sense, and moxie. But the writers and editors who are successfully freelancing full time in this current business climate are some of the toughest people you’ll ever meet.

I’ve made a successful living as a writer and editor in one form or another for the past 20-plus years, but even though I freelanced full time for about three years, I never got around to doing the kind of writing that I really longed to do.

Photo credit: Julianne.hide, Flickr

Sure, I’ve written a book, but I ghostwrote it for someone else. And while I have done some creative writing along the way, I’ve never taken the next step and sent it out into the universe anywhere. The last time I did that, I was in high school. There are a few poetry awards in my past, but after high school, I didn’t make a practice of writing anything in iambic pentameter very often. After all, how many people do you know who are able to make a living writing poetry these days?

So I took another more practical career path and have a long string of technical training manuals, HR policies, press releases, marketing pieces, news stories, and trade publication articles to show for it.

It’s the functional writing—the practical-pay-your-bills type of writing—that has allowed me to earn a comfortable living since I graduated from college. And for that I am very grateful. I’ve been truly blessed because I have been able to spend my entire career doing what I love most—writing, editing, and reading. In fact, much of the time it hardly feels like work at all.

But now that I am no longer freelancing full time—now that I spend the bulk of my days in a traditional office job—I no longer have the same old excuses to not do the kind of writing I want to do. I no longer have to accept assignments that don’t make my soul sing just to pay the bills. I now have the financial freedom to write whatever I feel like writing. I can spend my spare time writing essays and a memoir if I want to.

So given my new freedom, why has it taken me six months to start doing the kind of writing I really want to do?

It all boils down to one thing: Fear.

It’s one thing to write an article about some business topic with quotes from other people. But it’s quite another to write a story or essay inspired by your own experiences—something that is completely original, and not reported. The kind of writing I’m talking about involves full disclosure, imagination, and an investment of time that may ultimately yield nothing and go nowhere. There’s fear attached to that. Because I don’t like to waste time or feel like I’ve been unproductive. And being the practical sort, I’ve always backed away from essays and more creative writing because there never seemed to be enough assurance that the time I spent would amount to much—financially or otherwise.

So in one sense, there is less financial risk involved in freelancing this time around as a part-timer. But at the same time, there also seems to be more at stake—what I’m attempting to do is something I’ve never done before.

I’ve never taken the risk of telling my own stories. I’ve always told someone else’s.

But now, I’m writing my own story line. Where it will go, I have no idea. But hopefully, I’ll like where it ends up.

Hello again dear readers! I’m finally back after a long, long hiatus.

I started writing The Productive Muse several months before I started blogging about freelance writing for b5media.com on The Golden Pencil. I quickly realized that I couldn’t juggle both blogs, so I let this one sit idle, thinking that someday I might dust this one off and start writing again.

Then back in February, I accepted a full-time position as a marketing and communications manager for the economic development arm of the regional chamber of commerce. It was a tough decision to leave full-time freelancing, but it was absolutely the right call. I love my new job, and have not looked back since. The opportunity could not have come at a better time in my career.

But I will readily admit that I’ve missed freelance writing these past few months. Not the chasing down checks part, but the writing and editing part of the business.

Photo credit: Markus Rodder, Flickr

My slow journey back to part-time freelancing actually started a few weeks ago when the subscriptions for this blog and my Web site came due. I seriously debated whether or not to fork over the cash. When would I have the time to freelance for crying out loud?

But at the last minute, I decided to renew both subscriptions. If only to keep one foot in the freelance world and to keep my options open. In this economy, it’s anyone’s guess as to what’s going to happen or what’s around the corner. No matter what your job or how secure you may think you are, it’s always a good idea to have a Plan B, and even a Plan C, and D. And my theory has always been that it’s good to have more than one stream of income coming in the door—even in the good times.

So today, I updated my Web site, dusted off this blog, and rejoined Freelance Success—the online forum that helped me take my freelance career to the next level when I originally joined about two years ago.

At this time, I do not know what freelance assignments I will pursue. But the good news is that I now have the freedom to go after the ones that I really want to take on. One of the downsides to full-time freelancing—especially in an economy like this one—is that you sometimes end up taking on assignments and gigs that you might not consider otherwise because of financial reasons. Speaking for myself, there were times as a full-time freelancer when I took on assignments or gigs simply to keep the lights on and food on the table. And that is one reason why I never seemed to get around to doing some of the freelance writing that I really wanted to do—like writing essays, for example.

I know that some lucky people like David Sedaris have managed to carve out a nice living from writing essays. But my impression is that very few people are able to make a living writing them. Now that I’m not having to chase down checks from clients, I can afford to do more writing for pure pleasure—and that is exactly what I’ve found myself doing in the evenings. In fact, I am now 10,000 words into what is looking more and more like a memoir.

Where that project will go, I have no idea. But it almost doesn’t seem to matter.

What matters is that I am writing again, just for the pure pleasure of writing. Which is where this journey began in the first place.

Hello Readers!

I apologize for not posting for a few weeks, but as some of you may already know, I’m now the editor at The Golden Pencil, a b5media.com blog about freelance writing and building a successful freelance writing business. So please visit me at The Golden Pencil for all the same kind of freelance writing and business tips that you have been enjoying here.

As for this blog, please bear with me and stay tuned. I will be heading in another direction with it soon.

Thanks!

Jenny

A few of you already know that one of my regular clients experienced a round of layoffs last week, and that due to budget cuts, my workload took a big hit as well. And while I’ll still be freelancing for this client on a regular basis, there will be less work—and you guessed it, less pay.

I also know my situation is not unique. I’ve heard other freelancers talking about publications scaling back assignments, reducing word counts, imposing moratoriums on hiring freelancers, and in some cases, folding altogether. Times are tough everywhere—whether you’re a freelancer or a full-time staff person.

After receiving the news about this particular client a week ago today, I felt horrible for my full-time colleagues who were caught completely off guard by this sudden turn of events. And I also experienced a lot of anxiety about my own financial situation. But after talking to others who have had similar experiences, my fear about the situation gradually turned to excitement this week. Because here’s the reality: this client kept me so busy at times that it was difficult to pursue other more lucrative assignments. And on a few occasions, I know that I traded better-paying opportunities for the security of that regular monthly paycheck.

But I’m happy to report that after a week of intensive marketing, I am swamped with work. And it’s clear to me now that I eventually will be in a better financial position now that I’m doing less work for this client on a weekly basis. One opportunity that presented itself this week will pay more than twice as much per hour if I am selected to do the job (and it looks promising). And another client I just started working for is already talking about providing me with a bigger title and more pay than I’ve ever had as a full-time freelancer.

So aside from the need to constantly market and diversify, what have I learned from all this?

• When a door closes, a window opens. It’s a cliché, but it’s so true. Sometimes certain situations have to end or change before there is room in our lives for something better to come along. In my case, I now have more time to pursue other assignments and opportunities. And in a very short period of time, I’ve convinced myself that not only am I going to be okay, but that I’ll probably be better off financially and otherwise now that I am going to be doing less work for this particular client.

• Don’t get too comfortable. It’s okay to be content to some degree, but I think it’s dangerous to get too comfortable. Situations change, and clients come and go. If you start to get too comfortable, it’s possible you’re not seeing all the opportunities available to you. In my situation, I had grown very comfortable with this client—too much so. And with those nice regular gigs, it can be very easy to get lulled into thinking that the work is always going to be there. I’ve learned (or I should say, relearned) that a certain amount of change is necessary for the viability of your business. And if you’re not experiencing enough change, it’s a good idea to push yourself into some new directions—before you have to.

• Clients aren’t your employers. Sometimes if you’ve worked with a particular client for a while, it’s easy to fall into a situation where your work relationship feels more like a traditional employee-employer arrangement. For a freelancer, this is dangerous thinking. Your clients don’t owe you squat—unless you have some kind of a contract or agreement with them. And you have little or no recourse if the work suddenly dries up and blows away. You are more expendable than full-time employees, and regular staffers appear fairly expendable these days—particularly in the media industry. For me, it’s important to remember that one of the advantages of being a freelancer is that I don’t have employee-employer relationships. I can work for whoever I want to, or decline work if I need to. And while I aim to please my clients, I’m ultimately the boss of my own business—and I like it that way. It’s why I will never go back to work in a regular office or shadow the door of cubicle again. The “free” in “freelancer” should really stand for “freedom.” Freedom to choose who I want to work for, when I want to do that work, where I want to perform it, and how many hours I want to work each day.

• Seek support. Freelancing or self-employment can be very solitary. And for the bulk of my freelancing career, I was very isolated and had no contact with other freelancers. And then as a result of an article I did for mediabistro.com, I had the opportunity to talk to some more experienced freelancers who urged me to look into a couple of online freelancer communities. I was reluctant at first, but decided to give it a shot. Boy, am I glad I did. I have met so many wonderful people through Freelance Success, upod, and a couple of other online freelancer communities. And last week in the middle of my darkest, scariest, panicky hours, all those friends were there for me, sharing their own experiences and offering some great advice. So if you’re working in solitude as a freelancer or self-employed person, stop! Get out of your turret and meet some other professionals who do the same thing for a living. The friendships you’ll make and the support you’ll receive will be well worth it. And you’ll probably wonder (like I did) why you didn’t reach out before.

So tell me, how have you turned some recent obstacles into opportunities in your business? Write to me at hrbizwriter@gmail.com and tell me all about it!

After witnessing the 777-point drop on Wall Street yesterday, it was hard not to feel some fear about my financial future and what it all means for my relatively young business. And judging from a couple of freelance writer forums I belong to, I certainly wasn’t alone.

But worrying doesn’t do any good. It just keeps you fixated on the problem. So after allowing myself a little freakout time, I decided to focus on the solution. Obviously, I can’t fix our Humpty-Dumpty economy or control the nightmarish plunges on Wall Street, but I can control my outlook and what I choose to focus on today.

So here’s what I’m choosing to focus on right now:

1) More marketing. I am sending out more letters of introduction to new markets and editors, building my Web site, and developing a more formal marketing plan. Each week, I will have a different marketing focus. For example, this past week, I’ve focused on sending out letters of introduction to custom publishers.

2) Diversification. Regular gigs are the most comfortable because they’re known quantities, but it’s never good to get too comfortable or to assume that the regular gig will always be there. So instead of focusing on what seems most familiar, I’m forcing myself to venture beyond my comfort zone. I already know that I can proofread books, write magazine articles and news stories, and copyedit magazine articles. But I bet some area hospitals need occasional help with their newsletters and that some local business owners need a little PR help. Exploring all avenues and saying yes more often is a good idea—especially right now.

3) Nurturing relationships. It’s easier to get work from an existing client than it is to find a new one. So I’m focusing on nurturing the relationships that I already have and checking in with clients and editors who I haven’t heard from in a while. This approach has worked twice this week.

What about you? What are you choosing to focus on right now? Shoot me an e-mail at hrbizwriter@gmail.com and tell me about it.

The wild ride on Wall Street in recent weeks is a good reminder about the importance of diversification—not only in your 401(k), but also in your freelance portfolio. Of course, diversifying often means moving beyond your comfort zone. But continuing to do one kind of work with a limited number of clients in this kind of economy is the equivalent of shoving your hard-earned cash underneath your mattress and hoping for the best.

Familiar assignments may seem like safe bets now, but in the long-term, failing to expand beyond the familiar could prove deadly for your bottom line and your livelihood. In an economy like this one, your freelance business is most likely to survive if you have a mix of different kinds of work from a variety of sources and markets. Here’s the reality: some of your best clients may not survive this economic storm—particularly if they are associated with industries that are struggling right now. So you want to limit your exposure to companies and industries that might be experiencing slowdowns and budget pressures by diversifying your freelance portfolio.

My freelance portfolio includes a nice mix of writing and editing assignments, regular gigs, and one-off assignments. I write for a variety of media outlets— including a radio station, a couple of trade publications, a company that supplies content to a variety of online sources, and others. I also edit books and articles for several publishers. And I’m pursuing magazine assignments, corporate work, and other opportunities.

What does your freelance portfolio look like? How do you plan to diversify? Here are some suggestions:

1) Specialize. Is there a skill or area of expertise that would set you apart from other freelancers? Are there magazines, book publishers, companies, or other sources that provide or need content about your area of expertise? For example, I capitalize on the fact that I’m a certified human resources specialist and target my search for assignments accordingly. Building a brand for yourself can help establish you in certain markets.

2) Shoot for a mix of short- and long-term assignments. If most of your work is coming from one-off assignments, you might want to seek out long-term, ongoing gigs that can provide a steady stream of work and income. Knowing how much you’re pulling in from month to month is a real bonus. By the same token, relying solely on a couple of long-term gigs also can be risky because more of your livelihood is dependent on fewer sources.

3) Keep an open mind. If most of your income is coming from writing assignments, you might want to consider taking on some editing projects. Or if you typically focus on magazine articles, you might want to consider focusing more of your efforts on trade publications. Have you always written for media outlets? Why not try your hand at a little PR work? The important thing is to branch out into some new areas—you will never find new streams of income if you continue to do what you’re doing right now. Explore the possibilities.

4) Mix up the clients. Is all your income coming from magazine publishers right now? Depending on the publications, your work may be slowing down due to declining ad revenue. Focus on establishing income streams from a variety of sources—magazines, book publishers, trade publications, online media outlets, newspapers, established blogs, corporate assignments, and others.

5) Say “yes” more often. If you’ve typically turned down certain types of assignments, consider saying “yes” next time. The assignment may not be something you’d normally seek out, but it could lead to another opportunity that you would want down the road. For example, I took on an assignment a few months ago that I normally would have refused due to the low pay rate. But I opted to say “yes” because the assignment allowed me to write about an area that I knew would give me the experience I needed to pursue similar work in higher-paying markets. The assignment also led to a fairly steady stream of work, and in my world, steady is a good thing.

What about you? How do you diversify your freelance portfolio? Shoot me an e-mail me at hrbizwriter@gmail.com and tell me how you do it.

If you’re waiting for your muse to show up before you start writing, you’d better start looking for another way to pay your bills. Start writing first, and the inspiration will follow.

I actually learned this lesson on a treadmill at the gym, long before I started working as a full-time freelancer.

Several years ago when I was trying to get back into shape, I decided that the most important thing was to get in the habit of going to the gym. If I could just get in the habit—get out of the house and physically get to the gym every day—I could eventually increase the amount of time I was spending there. So I told myself that I only had to go for 10 minutes, and if I really wanted to leave after that, I would give myself permission to leave and not feel guilty about it. Well, the gym was on the other side of the town, and even before gas creeped up to $4 a gallon, it seemed ridiculous to drive across town and then turn around and go back home after 10 minutes. I think I only did that once. But here’s what I found out: once I started moving, once I was on that treadmill, my desire to work out grew with each step. Eventually, I was spending an hour and a half at the gym every day and it was no big deal.

Writing is the same way. I’d love to tell you that I experience a wonderful jolt of creativity before I sit down to write every day. But that’s not the way this writing business works—not in my world anyway. And I’m going to bet that every other writer who successfully makes a living as a freelancer has discovered the same basic truth: You don’t have to be inspired to start writing or to write an inspired piece. In fact, I find that inspiration often comes after the first few paragraphs. And just like each step on the treadmill, each word that I type increases my desire to write more.

Sure, there are days when I get up and I can’t wait to sit down and start writing. I love those days, and I always look forward to that wonderful state of flow when they arrive. But honestly, most days around here are downright ordinary. And for me, an ordinary day means that I have to take the next right action—sitting down and committing to write—before I really “feel” like it, before my muse shows up.

The feeling follows the action, not the other way around.

As Jack London once said, “You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.”

Got a tip to share about how you get your muse in gear? Drop me a line at hrbizwriter@gmail.com and tell me about it.

Last spring, I joined an amazing writer’s forum called Freelance Success—a supportive, tightknit group of freelance writers and editors from all over the world. It was in this forum that I first heard about Lori Hall Steele, a Michigan-based freelance writer and single mother of a 7-year-old son. I have never met Lori in person, but I feel like I know her. You will too if you read her essay in The Washington Post (please go read it before you read the rest of my post).

Several months ago, Lori was diagnosed with Lyme Disease, and as her symptoms have worsened, doctors now believe she also has Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Her health has declined so much that she has been unable to work for several months. Now, she’s bedridden and requires a ventilator to breathe. You can read more about Lori and her situation on the blog that a few of her Michigan friends have created.

Adding to the stress of fighting her medical condition, Lori also is on the verge of losing her home. And while she’s received emergency funds from ASJA (American Society of Journalists and Authors), the amount is simply not enough to cover her expenses. A number of people from Freelance Success and ASJA are independently trying to raise funds for Lori so that she will not lose her home. Some of us also are participating in a blog-a-thon for her. And if you blog, please consider placing a post about her situation on your site.

I know that times are tough for everyone, but we are asking people to consider donating $25 (or whatever they can) to help our friend Lori. If you would like to help out, please visit the blog that her friends have set up for her to make your donation.

A friend of mine who has one of those white-carpet, nothing-is-ever-out-place houses confessed to me one day that she hates cleaning, but is too cheap to hire a maid.

I knew her husband wasn’t doubling as a the cleaning lady, so I asked her how she managed to keep such a clean house. Her secret? She sets an egg timer for 15 minutes at a time, cleans at a frenzied pace until it goes off, and then she reads, sews, or does something else. After a 20-minute break, she sets the egg timer again and off she goes. She repeats the process until her house is clean and everything is in its right place. Since I loathe cleaning, I decided to give this method a shot. I went out and bought an egg timer and then used it the next time I was having problems motivating myself to fold the laundry or do some other mind-numbing chores. Amazingly, it worked. And I’ve continued to use this method ever since.

Then one day while I was struggling with a deadline, I had an idea. Why not use my egg timer or the alarm on my phone (set to the sound of a crowing rooster) to jumpstart my writing process? Now, I use this trick whenever I have deadline pressure and fingers that seem frozen on the keyboard.

I don’t know if this timed approach would work for everyone, but it definitely works for me. Here’s why: I can do anything for 15 minutes, and knowing that I have permission to stop after that short burst is sometimes all I need to get words flowing onto the page. Usually, I only have to set the egg timer or crowing rooster alarm once. At the 15-minute mark, I’m usually still writing and would rather not take that 20-minute break after finally reaching that state of flow.

This method also seems to work because it temporarily silences my inner critic/line editor who seems to think that it’s a good idea to delete most of what I write in favor of that elusive, better phrase. But with a timer ticking away, there’s no time for me to delete one sentence for every two that I write. If I want to beat the clock, I simply have to keep the cursor moving forward, bearing in mind that I can go back and dust up any prose if needed later.

Using a timed approach also is helpful when I’m trying to assess how long I’m spending on certain assignments. If you’re doing this for a living like I am, you have to approach it like a business. So if I’m getting paid a flat fee for an article, am I spending so much time on it that I’m actually earning pennies? Most businesses would go broke with this approach. So this is useful information to gather for yourself. Of course, this does not necessarily mean that I spend more time on better-paying assignments or that I simply stop working on an assignment after the timer goes off. But it does help me track my time and work more efficiently. And if it’s consistently taking me too long to do assignments for a particular client—especially given the rate that they’re offering—I then have some business decisions to make about whether to accept future assignments, ask for an increase, or simply continue doing the work because it may lead to better-paying gigs later.

How about you? Do you use a timer or alarm when you write or work on assignments or do you find that another method works better for you? Write to me at hrbizwriter@gmail.com and tell me about it!

Sending out queries or letters of introduction (LOIs) to clients is probably the last thing most freelancers feel like doing in the middle of a bunch of deadlines. But experienced freelancers will tell you that if you want a steady stream of freelance dollars flowing into your bank account, you have to keep marketing—even when you feel like you can’t fit another thing into your schedule.

Easier said than done. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m still learning how to maintain my marketing mojo in the middle of my busiest workweeks. During the last couple of weeks in August when I was trying to meet several deadlines in a very short timeframe, my efforts at self-promotion amounted to more intention than action.

So last week, I tried to put the one-woman marketing machine back in gear. Each day, I focused on sending out at least one letter of introduction, query, or follow-up e-mail to new and existing clients. I also revived an Excel tracking spreadsheet that I have used to track all aspects of my marketing process—type of communication (e.g. query or LOI), date, details about the query or LOI itself, the editor I sent it to, that person’s title and contact information, and any developments related to the query, LOI, or follow-up e-mail.

How do you rev up your marketing efforts? One query, one LOI at a time.

What about you? How do you market when you’re busy? And how do you get your marketing mojo back? Send me an e-mail at hrbizwriter@gmail.com—I’d love to hear from you!