| Today it begins.I have always known I was a | | | | AbsoluteWriter, Writers Weekly, and of course, my |
| freelancer. The phrase my family uses to describe me | | | | local paper, I found my e-mail inbox inundated with |
| is "not a nine-to-five-er." That said, nine-to-five does | | | | back and forth e-mails. While I admit my e-mail |
| carry some not-so-romantic but comforting benefits. | | | | organization system resembles my filing system at |
| Health insurance. Travel reimbursement. Gas mileage. | | | | times, I finally wised up.On my computer, in Windows, I |
| A regular paycheck.But alas, I'm the daughter and | | | | have a folder with subfolders for e-mail. I created a |
| granddaughter of entrepreneurs, and I'm also of the | | | | separate directory, "freelance". Then I assigned every |
| "ownership society."I love to write. No such thing as | | | | potential or actual freelance job its own folder with a |
| retirement--writing is who I am. But with that ideal and | | | | client identifier number where appropriate and |
| that passion comes every writer's downfall. Running a | | | | otherwise the name of the client/publication.I also |
| business. Getting paid.We right-brained people with our | | | | created a Work For Hire agreement today. My |
| horrendous filing cabinets and hard drives/Zip drives full | | | | own--usually when I work with a publication I'm required |
| of e-mails have to spend time organizing, like any | | | | to submit an invoice. However, a publication you have |
| businessperson. I had a conversation with a fellow | | | | a relationship with is different from a client that doesn't |
| writer/content provider in which we both confessed | | | | know you and vice versa. This is new ground for me. |
| neither of us knew how to charge for our services. | | | | I've signed three book contracts, entered into three |
| Although University of Southern California master of | | | | royalty agreements and two bona fide collaboration |
| Professional Writing Program does give great training | | | | agreements, signed screenplay, magazine, fiction, and |
| in the business side, most writing programs in my | | | | poetry release forms, sent more contest applications |
| experience don't teach marketing, recordkeeping, | | | | than I can count...but my own Work For Hire |
| fee-charging, and work-for-hire contracts, let alone | | | | agreement...now I feel I've passed the "novice" mark |
| publishing contracts.Today while tracking two possible | | | | and can proudly call myself a full-time freelancer. |
| freelance jobs (I'd like to give a plug to David | | | | Freelance entrepreneur.No.Writer always works. To |
| Copeland's Freelance Daily, a terrific daily newsgroup | | | | quote Harlan Ellison's business card, "I write."But will I |
| with tons of freelance leads, also PayingWriterJobs, | | | | stay organized?Continued next week... |