What to charge?

[Bluebug32]

I found a few threads on pricing for freelance, but nothing hit my question on the head.

My full time writing position was recently eliminated and I reached out to an old colleague who offered me freelance writing work. She wants to know what I should charge, and I don't have any idea. I've only done freelance magazine writing, which pays by the word. She wants an hourly rate. How is this assessed? Obviously I need decent pay right now, since this will be my primary work, but I also don't want to overstep and ask for too much. What's a fair price for a writer whose been working for five years in the field?

[Bushrat]

I didn't even know that there are hourly wages for freelancing...seems strange. Can you ask someone else who works for the publication what they are getting, or just ask your old colleague what their rates are?

[Silver King]

...What's a fair price for a writer whose been working for five years in the field?
At least fifty dollars per hour, more if you're an expert in the "field" you'll be covering.

[michellek]

Ask yourself what price you would accept as a flat fee. Estimate the hours then send it to her.

[Bluebug32]

Thanks, it's hard to tell because I'm not sure how much work I will have or how long it will take. It's freelance education-related work, not magazine. How do people generally figure this out?

[mamakat]

Bluebug,

I'd check writer's market for their copywriting rates. They offer suggestions for low/med/high ranges.

$50/hour sounded right to me. I used to copywrite for businesses and often charged $50-60/hr, though I sometimes did work for a non-profit and made min. wage. It varies.

HTH!

[JNLister]

One rule of thumb is that, to take account of your costs plus the time you spend on non-paying work (admin, marketing), you need to charge double what you made as an employee.