If you have been thinking about starting a career as a freelance writer, there may be a number of key factors that are attracting you to the job. The thought of having the ability to control your income, set your work hours, work from home and be your own boss can sound ideal to most who struggle with a 9-to-5 job. In fact, being able to write for a living can sound amazing to most, and you may be eager to find someone who will pay you for your writing talents. Before you get started pursuing a gig as a freelance writer, however, you may want to consider some of the downsides of the job.
Unstable Income
As a freelance writer, you are an independent contractor. You will not receive a salary or even a regular paycheck in many cases. Some weeks you may get paid by numerous clients for the last month of work you did, and the next few weeks may bring in barely any more. Further, the ability to find regular work can be a challenge in itself. The competition for the best freelance writing gigs is fierce, and you have often have to be willing to work for less than what your talents demand in order to stay busy. Some freelance writers have found regular clients to work with and enjoy relatively stable income, but others struggle financially.
Conjoined Work and Personal Life
Working from home sounds like a blessing, but once you start actually spending day in and day out in front of your computer, you may grow bored and tired of the gig. You may begin to feel alienated from the rest of the world. If you work at home with roommates, parents, kids or anyone else, you may grow tired of their constant noises and interruptions while you are trying to work. Further, many freelance writers have difficulty separating work from their personal life. This may be due in large part because of the fact that your workplace and home are in the same place. You may see your computer sitting in the room and remember that you had some work to finish up, and you may forsake relaxation in order to get your work done.
Work Objections
In addition to these common issues, another issue that some freelance writers find frustrating is dealing with work objections. When it comes to writing, the quality of work expected of a client can be difficult to determine. Some clients may want you to churn out a piece worthy of being printed in the best newspapers or magazines in the world, but they may not provide you with adequate instructions or compensation. Sometimes, your tone or wording just isn’t quite what they were looking for. They may ask for revisions, and in an effort to please them, you may oblige. Sometimes, you may oblige repeatedly until you realize that you simply will never be able to please a particular client. The result is that you not only lost your time writing a piece that they won’t pay you for but you also lost a significant amount of time on revisions, too.
The fact is that freelance writing really is an amazing job, and most people who are freelance writing as their full-time job would not dream of doing anything else for a living. However, you should have a realistic expectation of what a day in the life of a freelance writer may be like. Every job will have its challenges, and freelance writing is no different.
