Making Business Sense out of Writing

One of the biggest challenges that I face as I schedule work is balancing when I’m going to get paid. Often, assignments that pay well (or at least better than most) are fairly drawn out. This means that I may be spending a lot of time working, but only be getting paid a portion or an advance of the project’s final fee. This is the nature of the business and it goes without saying that this scenario drives writers to get up everyday and sit down to work.

What this leaves us with though, is the need to do some short projects that can be turned over quickly while we are planning and formulating larger projects. I’ve found it to be a good idea to keep several clients in my mix who always have short work and who assign, approve and pay quickly. I always make sure I do the highest quality work for them because, when I get in a crunch and need to generate some dollars quickly, they are always there for me. I realize that I won’t ever get rich writing for them, (and they aren’t getting rich by publishing my stuff) but together we’re developing a symbiotic relationship that makes it possible for all of us to do what we love:

Write and Publish.

Updates

I’ve gone ahead and removed the portfolio links from the sidebar. All links to published work can now be found under the PORTFOLIO tab at the top.

Is Copywriting Recession Proof?

As businesses continue to buckle down and prepare to ride out the worst of the economic storm, I’m forced to examine the current status of my own enterprise. Is the copywriting business recession proof? My initial gut reaction is to look at the forecasts and say “Oh crap, I’m in a lot of trouble.” I’m afraid that companies will be spending less on fresh content and will just be trying to hold on until the storm clouds pass. (and they always do).

On the other hand, I’m fairly certain that there are a number of companies/entrepeneurs out there who see this time as prime opportunity to capitalize on a market that will see competition diminish significantly. If that is the case, then I’ll be fine.

What this may require however, is a willingess to be flexible, and the patience to pay attention to new cottage industries that spring up as a result of the fear that is captivating the majority of the capitalistic world.

I’m not folding up shop yet.

Clips and links

I’ve added several categories of links to the page this morning.  They are not exhaustive, but I think they provide a fairly good representation of what I have done and what I am able to produce.

1. Lifescript.com articles. I’ve included 4 links here. If you wish to see more of the project that I did for them please go to lifescript.com and type my full name into the searchbar at the top of their main page.

2. doityourself.com articles. Again, I’ve included 4 links here. I have published approximately 50 articles with doityourself.com and the rest can be found by running a search at their main page.

3. Simple Living America. I contributed a chapter to this book which is currently rising up the charts at Amazon.com. Liz Pulliam Weston at msn.com names Get Satisfied on March 10, 2008 as one of the five recent money books to change your life. A link to the book’s homepage, as well as my bio for the marketing, is included to the right.

A good place to start

It seems as though this is as good a place as any to stash links to my published web work. I’ll be giving this address out as a place to view samples when I query.