I went freelance in order to pursue my dream of becoming a full time writer. Previously I had been an editor at a children's publisher and was sick of commissioning other people to write books that I wanted to write myself. But there were quite a few things I had to really think about before I took the plunge.

Sister, Sister

Sister, Sister

  1. The main one for me was money. The thought of going from regular income to sporadic income, not knowing when the next job might land on my desk was scary. I also had to take into consideration that I might earn a lot less so I tried to save a buffer for when I handed in my notice. I got some financial advice on taxes too. Freelancers have to pay their own taxes instead of having it skimmed off the top of their wages. Boring I know when you want to spend it on nights out or a pedi, but it's a good idea ask a tax accountant how much you should save a month in order to avoid an unexpected tax bill. Oh yes, also get an accountant! They can guide you through the shark-infested waters of doing your own accounts: what's claimable, what isn't. Do not leave it until the last minute when that return has to be handed in (me). Once I had an accountant, I really did just leave it all to him and it was one worry I let go of. Apart from adding up (and finding) those pesky receipts - you still have to do that!
  2. I realised a girl could not live off writing alone while scratching around trying to make it, so in order to ease myself gently into the choppy waters of freelance writing, I made sure I lined up some editing and project management jobs. I put feelers out into the publishing world well in advance letting people know I was going freelance and was pleasantly surprised when I got work! I wanted one regular client that I knew would always use me so that when times were leaner, I had that to fall back on. In the end, I sourced some PR work - not what I was trained in but it was twice a week regular income and that topped up the shortfall I felt in quieter weeks. This left me time to write too.
  3. Knowing the industry, and knowing how long things can take to get commissioned I had to have a book deal before I gave up my old job or what was the point? If there's a chance for you to do what it is you really love along side your day job, do it, because you need to be doing it before you take the next step. It just makes the continuation process much easier. Once you are in the flow, stepping off the cliff isn't as scary.
  4. One of the thoughts I had when prepping to go freelance was this would make it easier for me to fit work around having a family. Publishing is a very female dominated industry anyway, and very flexible, but I thought I wanted to be there for school pick ups and drop offs without getting stressed. Writing would afford this. Yes I would have less money, but I wouldn't be paying someone to have them in the holidays when I worked full time, so it kind of made sense to me. I work in the evening, when they are at school and when they are here if I time it right. They were here while I wrote this, though I used a fish wife voice to ask (shout at) them to be quiet!
  5. Where was I going to work?? That was a big concern for me. I was used to my own quiet office and the routine of getting up for work and going to a different space. I set aside a desk in the spare room and made that my workstation. But not everyone has a spare room, especially if you're in a house share and you will be actually working from home rather than contracting. Also, if you are never at home during the day, you have no idea if you have noisy neighbours playing loud music or the constant drilling of houses being done up, road works - all that can drive you crazy, so think about using the library as somewhere to get work done efficiently. You are bound by their opening times so ideally getting there when it opens ensuring you get a good desk is the same as going out for work. Obviously if your work isn't quiet (being a freelance PR and talking on the phone with clients) the library isn't ideal - make friends with the kitchen table to start with. Because I now have kids in every room and a lodger in my office, I work at the kitchen table. It can be frustrating as I have nowhere to put paperwork, but it forces me to be tidy and keep everything in one folder. And no one is here during the day. It's only after years of discipline that I am able to work anywhere, even at afterschool clubs in the waiting area. Sometimes you can get a load done in forty minutes at gymnastics!
  6. I never had a web site when I first went freelance because I was a writer/editor. It was lurking in the list of things I needed to think about, however only really established authors had them at the time. But now with the advent of social media and the ramping up of the internet, even Grumpy Cat has a web site! Social media and the internet are platforms for all of us to find more work. This time round after a career break, I really had to think about it seriously and have now covered all areas of social media (because it is also free) and eventually sorted a web site that I love. Learn to love hashtags. Look at what other contemporaries are doing on line and see how you could adapt it to suit you.
  7. It can be overwhelming wondering how you will stay motivated being freelance. And that can be one of the things people worry about - will I just sit around all day eating biscuits and watching makeover shows? Obviously money motivates you - keep that wolf from the door and that's great if you have a constant stream of work that you have to churn through. But what if you are working on an artistic endeavour without a book deal or the carrot of money, as I was when I went back to work after the children. It was like starting freelancing from scratch, only this time doing it cold turkey with no job to springboard from. I did really think about chucking it in and getting a 'proper' job. Instead I set myself a realistic deadline to finish the first draft and gave myself a target to write a certain amount of words a day. I also visualised the finished book and how I would feel when I had done it. I tried not to daydream and to stay present and write. You also have to put yourself out there and meet people. If there are networking events for people in your field - go to them. You never know where things will lead.
  8. I considered how I would cope with it just being me. Day in day out, waking up to go into the office next door, still in my slob clothes and not having chats in the staff room, no gossiping, no Christmas party (that was a biggie to let go of!) missing out on stuff because I wasn't affiliated to any company. (You can always get a pet now you work from home! Talk to them instead of your colleagues.) The fear of stuff going wrong with my new lap top I had bought and there being no onsite tech support also freaked me out. And what about the free tea and coffee and cakes on birthdays??? The lady I did freelance PR for gave me some top tips. Always get up at the same time every day - office hours. Put on make up and wear nice clothes. If you don't wear make up, at least have a shower and brush your hair! Feel ready for the day. Make more effort to see your friends, make plans and stick to them. No one should feel isolated any more working from home - with social media it's one big water cooler moment all day long if you want to tap into it. There are local tech support places everywhere - I have gone in with some stupid questions (so stupid I never got charged). Or you ask all your friends on Facebook, chances are someone is a geek and will have the answer. I have learned to love the quiet of my house while I work because by 3.30 it's total chaos after school pick up. But if you don't have a family, and I didn't for years, you get into a routine and you make it work. There will be a reason you went freelance and when you are having one of those days when it all seems pointless, remember why you left in the first place. Stop looking at your old job through rose tinted glasses and embrace the change. Corny - but it works.
  9. The thing with freelance work, and this was something I fretted about, was what if it all came at once? What if I had an editing job that clashed with a deadline of a book I was writing as well as a project I was overseeing. How do you manage all that when there's no one to delegate to? How do I say no and not get rejected for ever by the people I want to work for? I always made sure I stuck with what I was working on at the time and did a good job instead of rushing to fit more work in. Be realistic - do not say yes to something you think you will never ever get time to finish on time. Do not be afraid to say no. If they asked you once, they will ask you again. Or if they don't, you should remind them you are still there. Another thing - there are other freelancers out there. If you know of someone good, maybe it's someone you used to work with, put the work their way. Pay stuff forward, because it will always come back to you one day in one form or another. That freelancer might do a really amazing job and your client may be so grateful to you they will remember you for next time. It is better to build that allegiance than do a slack job yourself and not get asked again. We are all in this together!
  10. The question I hate so much (and I know I am not the only one), is how much do I charge for author events. It's hard determining your 'worth' as a freelancer. I had to ask around before I left work (and check out all the invoices I was handed by my own freelancers) as to how much I should charge for my time as an editor. Some companies will pay a certain amount and that's it, so you are kind of let off the hook, but others expect you to come in with a figure in mind for hourly/daily rate. Erk! Writing a book is different altogether. That's agreed in a contract, so it doesn't count here. But what does count is my day rate for doing author events. A lot of places just assume you will do it for free. This week an award-winning author flagged up an article on twitter in the Bookseller about how authors should be paid for events because it is work. I plan an event, I write it all out, learn whole chunks of text off by heart for speeches and work shops. I will act out workshops in the livingroom - all the while I am missing out on writing time, which is what my actual job is all about. Then if I am in a school all day, that is a whole day out of my writing schedule. Why shouldn't I be paid a proper wage for that? There's nothing wrong with asking for what feels like a proper wage for doing your job. If you want to start of cheaper when you are starting out, please do. But when you are doing really well, and making other people money by being brilliant, your prices should reflect that! Maybe I should take my own advice!!!

Jess Bright is the author of Sister, Sister, out now in paperback