I have been considering doing this. If you are a freelancer, how is it working out for you in addition to writing fiction?
Do you freelance in addition to writing novels?
- Thread starter Billie Bird
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I do. I write and do graphic design to pay the bills while I work on my novel. Sometimes I find it difficult to shut off the work writing mentality and slide into my novel, so what I finally started doing is writing on my novel in the morning and working in the late morning and afternoons. I find it less difficult to make the transition from novel to work than from work to novel.
I feel beyond lucky, though, to be able to work from home so that I can focus on my book for good chunks of each day.
I feel beyond lucky, though, to be able to work from home so that I can focus on my book for good chunks of each day.
No, I have no interest in free-lancing. I have a nice mindless job that lets me save all my intellectual and creative energy (such as it may be) for my fiction writing, and I'd hate to squander that energy on other writing.
I'm trying to, although I'm finding it hard to balance writing-for-money with writing-for-fun. I also have a full time outside job, which further complicates things. I'd like to eventually earn all my money through freelancing or novel-writin', but I'm not there yet.
What works best for me is to work on my novel FIRST, to say to myself, "Okay, I'm going to write 500 or 1000 words in Tigerlily, and then I'll go on to work stuff." I can almost always plow through work writing even if I'm tired or cranky, but I need a fresh, clear mind for creative/fiction writing.
What works best for me is to work on my novel FIRST, to say to myself, "Okay, I'm going to write 500 or 1000 words in Tigerlily, and then I'll go on to work stuff." I can almost always plow through work writing even if I'm tired or cranky, but I need a fresh, clear mind for creative/fiction writing.
I've tried and found my energies (and output) are best when I focus on either freelancing or novel writing, but not both at the same time. If I weren't a SAHM, both types of writing might be easier to manage simultaneously, but as it is something's got to give.
Good luck!
ETA: I should clarify that the freelancing I'm referring to is querying/submitting articles and essays to various publications on a regular basis. That I don't have time or energy for. But I do balance my own writing with the "freelancing" I do through my writing and editing business.
Good luck!
ETA: I should clarify that the freelancing I'm referring to is querying/submitting articles and essays to various publications on a regular basis. That I don't have time or energy for. But I do balance my own writing with the "freelancing" I do through my writing and editing business.
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I did the freelance bit for a while and eventually gave it up. It has occurred to me that doing some magazine articles that relate to the topics relating to my novels, might be a way to bolster sales. As others said, it takes energy away from the books, which is my primary focus. So color me undecided.
Yes, I do. Freelancing is my day job, so if I don't write articles, I don't eat.
Writing articles and writing fiction are such different matters that I don't have any problem doing both in the same day. It's more challenging writing fiction after a day when I've done a lot of researching for the articles, because my head will be tired from all the new info.
Writing articles and writing fiction are such different matters that I don't have any problem doing both in the same day. It's more challenging writing fiction after a day when I've done a lot of researching for the articles, because my head will be tired from all the new info.
I've played around with the idea of freelancing, but I think I want to avoid more time in the chair. I think I'm better off balancing out the novel writing with something more physical. Maybe I'll be a personal trainer?
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Freelancing is my day job also. I write content for websites. I write for pay Monday through Friday, then try to write creatively on Fridays and at least once on the weekends.
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I freelance, but usually for writing magazines--The Writer or Writer's Digest--so I'm writing articles about topics I'm thinking about anyway. There's something self-contained about writing an article that's a nice break after the unknown territory of a novel. Plus you get paid much more quickly.
I write for Suite101 each week while writing my novels, not because it's a primary source of income, but because I have other interests to write about. 
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