How I Prevented a Chronic Health Condition From Ruining My Writing Career

Frequent migraines. Feeling weak and ice cold most of the time. Severe insomnia. Significant, and sudden, weight gain. Constant pain. Multiple miscarriages, and the emotional baggage that comes with each one. Ongoing exhaustion so bad I could barely drag myself out of bed for months. That was just a small sampling of my own personal hell for a few years. These health issues had the

Why You’ll Fail at Freelancing if You Suck at Math

This post was originally published on Yolander Prinzel’s blog in 2014. It was relocated to All Freelance Writing when that blog was shut down.  When you decided to become a freelance writer, you probably didn’t think those old math classes would come in handy. It turns out they will. I hope you paid attention. Not understanding basic math can cost you dearly, whether it happens

Calculate Your Ideal Freelance Writing Rates (and Give Yourself a Raise)

The freelance writing rate calculator here at All Freelance Writing was designed to help freelancers calculate their base rates. These would be the minimum rates you need to charge to cover the bare basics. Then you would figure out a premium based on your credentials and experience. There’s another way you can use this free tool however. And it can help you reach your ideal

Reader Question: How Much Should Freelance Writers Charge?

When you’re just getting started as a freelance writer, the issue of rates can be a tricky one. How much should you charge? Should you bill hourly, per word, per project, or under some other rate structure? Should rates vary depending on the type of project? Today’s reader question is along these lines. This new freelancer, who asked not to be named so we’ll simply

Looking After Your Health While Working From Home

I’ve had a rough couple of days this week. It started Sunday night. Between now and then I’ve had restless nights, fluttering feelings, a bit of lightheadedness, and a variety of other symptoms. By Monday morning I was imagining the worst. My husband worked from home that day just in case I decided to go into the hospital to get checked out. Thankfully it didn’t

Math for Freelance Writers: Why Numbers Matter in Your Writing Career

Today Yo Prinzel was kind enough to host a guest post of mine on her new blog, The Profitable Freelancer. Please stop by and check it out. Why You’ll Fail at Freelancing if You Suck at Math In the post I go over three areas where math can make or break your freelance writing business, along with a few tips and tools to make the

Why I Love Freelancing: Reminders

As the day quickly passes by, I realize that I’ve spent most of it staring out the two huge windows that sit in front of my desk. The snow has been falling since the early morning hours, and I’ve watched it go from a dusting to at least half a foot so far. I love watching the snow fall. It’s one of the things I

5 Money Moves to Make Before Year-End

A lot of people are focusing on holiday shopping this time of year. Personally, my workload has increased and I haven’t given shopping much thought. (I really need to get on that!) But I have thought about my finances and some things I need to do as the year comes to a close. There are tons of year-end money lists out there and they all

How to Be Better With Your Freelance Writing Income

Too bad we’re not born knowing how to deal with money. If you had a financial literacy class in high school, you were pretty lucky. For many of us, much of what we know about personal finance we learned from our parents or our own mistakes. It’s not too late to learn those critical lessons you may have missed. Here are some tips on being

Managing Freelance Writing Income and Regular Income

For most people transitioning into full-time freelance writing or freelance writing on the side for awhile, there will undoubtedly be a period of time that you’re managing two kinds of income: income from freelance writing and income from a regular job. Or if you’re a writer who’s married to or cohabitating with someone who earns a regular income, the two of you may also face

What Not to Do When Your Writing Income is Down

One of the hardest parts about adjusting to freelance writing life, and self-employment in general, is living with a fluctuating income. There may be periods of time that the projects and payments are coming in like a flood. Others, they’re as dry as a ditch on a hot summer day. What you do during those low-income months is so important because it will have a

Shifting Schedules (Again): How to Tell When It’s Time

As any work-at-home parent knows, your schedule is at the mercy of your family. The exception might be those who have a babysitter or daycare lined up, but for most of us, we have to plug along as best with we can with holidays, changing sleep schedules, summer vacations and the rest of it. Over the almost eight years I’ve been working from home, I’ve

When Your Writing Schedule Leaves No Time For Taxes

The deadline for filing a tax return this year is Monday, April 15th. That’s just seven days away! I know there are some of us who filed our tax returns as soon as the IRS began accepting tax returns. Others of us may be too busy writing (trying to make enough money to pay the tax bill?) to get those tax returns done before the

How Freelance Writers Can Be Productive With Finances

Writing is actually one of the easier parts of freelancing writing. Maybe it’s like that with all craft-turned-businesses. The tougher parts of being a professional freelance writer can be things like finding clients, having a steady stream of ideas, and managing the finances. Because I’m no fan of mulling over finances for hours, there are some things I do to make this area of freelancing

Avoid Costly Freelance Writing Scams

When you’re looking for ways to make money from writing, you’re bound to run across a few scams. Some may actually sound promising – after all, the marketing materials are written by people who are good at writing. But, a well-written sales page, filled with promises, guarantees, and testimonials doesn’t necessarily indicate a legitimate product or service. You haven’t worked hard to earn a living

Working from Home? You Might as Well Be Your Own Boss!

Yahoo recently announced that all of its remote workers must either find their way back into an office or they should quit. Legalities and unemployment eligibility aside, this may very well mark a turning point for those of us who choose to work at home – that is, those of us who are at the whim of an employer. Stable work-from-home jobs aren’t always as

Freelance Writers: Tips for Paying Estimated Taxes

Ah, taxes. It’s almost all you hear and read about this time of year, but we freelance writers have been thinking about taxes all year long. That’s because we, along with other self-employed workers, are required to pay quarterly estimated taxes to the IRS four times a year: in January, April, June, and September. If you’ve ever paid too little or *gasp* not paid at

3 Cardinal Rules of Working with Kids at Home

There is not much easy about our job unless you compare it to something like digging ditches or building a skyscraper. But that at least wears out your body rather than your mind. At the end of a day wrestling obligations to kids and careers, my brain is tired. I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels mentally split almost constantly throughout the day.

What To Do With Extra Writing Income

Is your freelance writing business netting you more money than what’s needed to pay the bills? It’s not a bad problem to have. Here are some ways you can spend that extra money. Make sure you set aside enough for taxes. If you’re earning more than you expected, you may also owe more taxes than you expected. Update your estimated tax calculation and set aside

What We Can Learn from WAHM Writers

We all know that the work-at-home-mom (WAHM) writers aren’t considered the upper echelon of the writing community. If you didn’t know that, you’ve never read about the cost-savings to be had by tricking desperate WAHMs into providing ultra cheap articles in a particular forum’s Special Offers. Well, as a few of us here can tell you, having children and enjoying a professional writing career are certainly not exclusive entities, and even

Book Review: The Freelancer's Bible

You may have heard of Freelancers Union, a nonprofit organization for freelancers, contractors, and independent workers. Sara Horowitz, who founded Freelancers Union, has released a comprehensive guide to freelancing – The Freelance Bible – that’s everything the title suggests. Sara’s accolades includes being named a MacArthur Foundation “Genius” fellow and one of Forbes’s Top 30 Entrepreneurs. Packed With Information As you’d expect of any book

A Primer on Taxes for Freelancers

Every worker, freelance or not, is undoubtedly familiar with income taxes: the percentage of your income that’s paid to the Federal, state, and sometimes local government. (The rest of this post speaks primarily on Federal taxes.) When you’re full-time employed by an employer, the employer will typically withhold taxes from your pay. They send the withholdings to the IRS on your behalf. But, when you’re

Start Your New Writer’s Year Right!

Just an hour or two ago, I made my first folder of 2013. It was a small thing – clicking on “Create New Folder” and filing away some work – but it made the point in my mind nicely enough. This is a new year. It’s time to start this one off correctly, because it’s much easier to continue a good routine than it is

Time To Create a Financial Organization System

Another calendar year means another fiscal season for freelance writing businesses.  It’s a great time to organize your finances. You may have had an ineffective organization system last year, if you had one at all. No matter what you did last year, the start of 2013 is a great time to tweak your old system or to create a new one. When I talk about

Clients We Love to Hate

I love my clients. I don’t want you to think I’m a total jerk for getting up here on this proverbial soapbox and bashing the people who routinely buy my services. I’m not bashing them. I have no reason to – in fact, I’m suddenly thinking of dedicating a post to what makes them so amazing, but that’s not as much fun to write so

Managing Finances Without a Guaranteed Paycheck

If you’ve freelanced at all before, you probably already know: there are no guaranteed paychecks in freelance writing. I often tell my family and friends, particularly those who dream up things for me to do during work hours, that my pay is tied directly to my productivity. I don’t write, I don’t get paid. It’s not like a desk job where you clock in, stay

Redefining Your Writing: Cleaning Up Your Career

Your personality, preferences and skills influence all of your decisions, and that includes your writing career. Most of us who have our own careers in writing would have a hard time living with a set income again. If I need some extra cash, I take on an extra project, for example. You can’t do that if you’re salaried. Jenn’s recent post on her ambitious goals

Financial Goals for 2013

This is one of my favorite times of year, not because it’s the holiday season (that part is actually more stressful than enjoyable), but because it’s the perfect time to reflect on the past year’s progress and make plans for the upcoming year. I like to start doing this earlier in December, that way I’m ready to put the plan into action at the start

6 Invoicing Tips for Getting Paid Lightning Fast

When I was a beginning freelancer, a late invoice often meant the difference between making rent and begging my (very nice, I must say) landlord to waive the late fee. We’ve all been there – some clients pay you within the hour, some clients send a check right around the 30-day mark, and some clients conveniently forget to pay at all. But sometimes, late payments

The Business of Freelancing: Disregard at Your Own Risk

Every now and again I’m caught off guard by the nature of this industry. I might not have been involved in the world of online marketing and freelance writing my entire adult life, but almost eight years in the field is enough to give me a rather cynical perspective on a lot of things. That being said, an experience this week took me aback and