The Business of Freelance Writing
When I was in my first two years of college working toward a business degree, a professor once told our class that entrepreneurs should have at least three years of living expenses saved up before they start a business.
As a young student still earning minimum wage on two retail jobs I wondered how in the world anyone could ever save up enough money to start a business and have living expenses too? Still, that professor's advice, as well as other advice, mentoring and experience in the corporate world came in handy when I wanted to start my freelance business. I may not have had 3 years of living expenses saved up, but I had a reserve, which every entrepreneur needs.
And I had a jump on many other writers who come into freelancing with English, journalism or communications degrees. All fine background for writing, but it provides little experience on actually how to run a business. This is where many freelancers are doomed.
I'm no numbers wizard, but I had that leg up - and I still made a lot of business errors. It took me about 6 years of freelancing to get all of my home-based business ducks in a row.
That's why I developed my Business of Freelance Writing online course for beginners who don't want to waste years trying to figure it all out.
Here's a description of the course, which starts on January 15:
The Business of Freelance Writing:
You’re ready to make the leap into freelancing. You have the talent and you think you have the tenacity, but do you have know how to run a business? The ‘free’ in freelancing doesn’t mean that you give your writing away for free. Unfortunately, many writers only want to be creative and don’t want to deal with the business end of freelancing. Have you thought about how you will market yourself? Where is your office going to be? Have you written a business plan that outlines your short and long term goals? How will you track your queries? Do you have a plan as to how you’ll get through the dry times financially? How will you invoice for your services? What will you do if you’re not paid? Do you need an accountant? This 4-week class helps you establish your business so you can concentrate on writing and achieve your goals.
See more at www.writeforyou.biz or email me at fivecoat@kcnet.com
posted by Kerri Fivecoat-Campbell at 7:22 AM
1 Comments:
What a great idea! Although I'm sure more than a few people wonder how I made the leap from a math major to a freelance writer/editor, I consider the few years I put in to a full-time accounting job invaluable to my entreprenuerial success. To this day, I stil do my own taxes and handle lots of other details I would otherwise have to pay someone else a hefty fee to do for me or spend a LOT of valuable time learning how to do my myself. On the three-year fallback, I've always heard six months, but I suppose the more you can save up, the better.
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