Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with freelancewriting

Questions concerning freelance writing "per word" rates.

joechip — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:27:47 -0800

I'm an occasional freelance writer with a background in print magazines considering taking an online gig. What kind of pay should I ask for? From 2004-2008, I wrote book and movie reviews and conducted Q and A's for a Midwestern regional print publication with an annual circ. of around 150,000, making ten cents a word. Not fantastic, but I understood that to be an at least marginally acceptable rate, and I enjoyed the work.
This weekend I was offered a gig to churn out a 2-3000 thousand words a week for a pop-culture website (and I used to struggle to get around that many assigned a month!) Seems great, and it looks to be really easy stuff. I'm concerned, though, about the pay- it hasn't been discussed. Because of that, I haven't accepted yet.
I expect the pay to be lower than print, but I'm wondering how low we're talking about. BTW, I think the website gets a few hundred thousand clicks a month. Or is that how you even measure these things?

How do I get experience with nonfiction magazine-style writing?

iamisaid — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 17:46:22 -0800

I'm a journalism student who wants to gain experience with a particular form of freelance magazine writing, if not break into the business itself. How can I find a print or online outlet willing to give me a shot? I'm interested in the sort of long-form nonfiction found in publications like Harper's, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Esquire, Radar, etc. Literary non-fiction, as it's sometimes called - this being one of my favorite examples. At this point, I'd just like to gain some real-world experience with this style of writing, even if it's unpaid. However, I'd like to have an outlet in mind and at least some plan of getting my writing published (in print or online) as opposed to putting it on some personal blog or the like - though I am realistic about the fact that I won't be starting out at The New Yorker.

I suppose finishing a story on my own and submitting it unsolicited to various publications is one option, but that doesn't seem to be a practice many of them encourage. I have written for my college newspaper and will continue to do so, but this isn't a style of writing generally found in student newspapers due to time and space issues. I know some of you will suggest an internship of some kind, which I will be doing at some point, but this would be independent of that. More importantly, I want to start writing ASAP while I have some free time over the summer.

I did a quick search of the archives and found a few things related to freelance writing (several horror stories, natch) and one more geared towards fiction outlets, but nothing directly related to my situation.

What should I charge?

changeling — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 11:58:51 -0800

Freelance writers, help! How -- and how much -- should I charge for this book project? Several years ago, I wrote an article about the owner of a real estate development company for a now-defunct print magazine. The owner of the company is famously successful -- probably the most successful developer in the beach areas of my city. I put a great deal of thought into the article for writing portfolio purposes, though the magazine was a small, local publication.

Recently, through a mutual acquaintance, the RE bigwig tracked me down. He's putting together a coffee table photo book for his investors, with a limited print run of 100 or so, and he wants me, specifically, to do the writing. He says he's been interviewed many times since my piece, but apparently I'm the only writer who nailed what his company is all about. Flattering, random, exciting, etc.

We're talking about two to three pages of text (don't know the word count) in a book with large dimensions. Company biographies, some local history, etc. He says he's already put about 60k into the project, and he's willing to pay whatever freelance rate I quote.

But I have no idea what to charge. All my professional experience is with local print magazines and web media. Does anyone have experience with this type of freelance project? Should I go for hourly, or per word? What should I charge?

Can I interview on a cell phone?

faunafrailty — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 19:53:49 -0800

Is it considered rude to conduct a press interview by cell phone? (I'm the writer, not the subject.) I'm about to start writing some freelance articles for my previous employer. I'll try to do all interviews at night and on the weekends, but if I have to schedule an interview during my lunch hour, is it considered bad manners to conduct the interview on a cell phone?

My cell phone rarely cuts out, but I don't want to come across as unprofessional if someone can tell I'm sitting in a parking garage on my phone. Or is everyone so time-crunched these days that it seems natural one would interview someone on a cell?

On a related note, does anyone know if there's a recording device one can attach to a cell phone to record the interview. (I'll ask, of course, for permission to record beforehand.)

Thanks.

Juggling a job and freelance work

serialcomma — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 06:18:13 -0800

Do my job and freelance clients all need to know about each other? I work for a magazine, and I recently accepted an offer to be a regular monthly contributor to a website that's launching soon. I also have an offer (which I'm still considering) from a different website to write a weekly column. Neither site has anything to do with my full-time job in terms of subject matter, but the sites potentially overlap slightly in subject and audience. I'd be writing about the same topic for both sites.

What is considered proper freelance etiquette in this situation? If I accept the weekly column, do I need to let each site know that I plan to write for the other? Also, I've heard that some editorial staffers are required by their employers to disclose any freelance work. Though that isn't the case with my company, is it good form to notify them about these gigs anyway?

Experiences and advice appreciated.

Who should host my freelance writing site?

shallowcenter — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 08:38:51 -0800

I'm seeking web-hosting recommendations for my freelance writing and editing business. The specs: I'd like to post my profile (background, areas of expertise, skiill set, etc.) and some clips and contact info. I know a smidgen of HTML, but not enough to build something from scratch. A handful of e-mail addresses would be nice, too. In other words, nothing too fancy-schmancy. Clean and professional-looking are what I seek, as well as ease of use (for changing copy, uploading PDFs, etc.). Any freelancing MeFis wanna share whom they're happy with?

So, really: If I do what I love, will the money follow?

Anonymous — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 11:14:59 -0800

I recently left my comfortable position in a safe, nonprofit enclave to try the big bad corporate world and see if I could make a go of it. Three months in, the fit is pretty lousy. Ah, but I think I know what I really want to do. And yet, should I give the new place more time to see if things improve? What's that? Yes, or course, there's ... I had been in nurturing nonprofit environments for nearly a decade when I started to get the itch to challenge myself. So now I'm doing marketing work at a professional services firm's where marketing is heinously misunderstood and where the administrative staff is scared to death of making mistakes for fear of being set upon by the firm's partners. The B.S. factor is extraordinarily high, and I do not at all feel as if I'm contributing a damn thing to society.

I think I can hack the work, but I don't thrive waking up at 2 a.m. with my stomach in a knot. The new job has had one beneficial effect, though: I think it's finally convinced me that what I want to do is pursue my passion of freelance writing and editing. I've done it part-time for years, and I have clients who have told me they'd give me more work. But I've never had the stones to chuck it all, stop working for The Man, and go out fully on my own. I'm starting to realize that you really do get just one go-round here on this ol' planet, and why not spend the working life doing what I truly love to do?

The caveat: I've taken jobs before, many years ago, where I felt this same sense of dread ... but which became more palatable as I got used to them.

So ... Just looking for the hive mind's insights here. I know that there are big risks as well as potential big rewards, and I know sometimes you have to face your worst situations to come out better on the other end. Would like to hear what you guys think of my situation; and if you've gone through a similar situation yourself, how did you cope? What did you do? Many, many thanks in advance.