The Art of Writing as a Business

Writing is an Art Form that a lot of People aspire to, only a select group does well and even fewer are profitable. If you are one of those that have the desire to be a Writer or have already taken the first few tentative steps down the long winding Path of writing you have to ask your-self a serious Question. What kind of Writer do you want to be?

Is writing and the sharing of your thoughts and interests, the introduction of your Pearls of Wisdom or the induction of your creative genius enough reward for you? In that case you may just be an avid writer who gleams the greatest joy of seeing his or her work published. A dearly beloved hobby that brings you the exquisite enjoyment of an hour or two well spent. You have no desire to make this your full time occupation and don't want to have to write instead of doing it for the love of words.

Perhaps you have decided that you want to make an income from your writing, but still believe that you must labor under the strain of finding jobs, struggling to pay your bills etc. The image of the "starving Artist" who can only produce with a frazzled mind as so often Hollywood seems to portrait it. Then again you could be a Freelance Writer that has decided that this is your full time job and you will make ends meet. You are writing every spare moment you get and hope for a favorable response to each Query letter or email sent. You will make it, squeak by no matter what. You are determined.

However, if you are the type of Freelance Writer, who has a passion for Writing but also realizes that Writing is not just a job but a career, that you are an Entrepreneur and you have to run your writing as a Business then you are like me.

I have had the desire and the dream to become a fulltime Freelance Writer and Artisan since I was little. I wanted to tell my stories to the world and show others how I saw the World through my Art. I have tried several times, only to fail miserably. Several facts stood in my Way. Now at age 37, after many tries and errors, reading hundreds of books on the subjects and scrapping the last bit of courage to start again, I have found the ingredient that was missing. It was in front of me all the Time and I was overlooking it, because I was in turn each of the first 3 Types of Writers right along with a deep seated fear of success, a view that was none to kind of my Talents and three kids with wide open mouth who I had to feed. I had no space for error, no confidence and no support system.

If you are like me just starting out, allow me to share with you some of the things I have already learned and that have given me a head start.

To be successful you have to be able to run a Business!

I would like nothing more then to sit down for hours each day and do nothing but writing. Each time I have finished an Article I am as excited as a puppy at play. I read and re-read the Article making sure it says exactly what I am trying to bring across. I submit the Articles to whichever Venue appropriate and then hope that it will be received with open arms. Now before, this is where I stopped. I wrote, I edited and I submitted the Articles. You could find me waiting more or less patiently for the results to come back to me from the Editors, Greeting Card Companies, online publications etc. It was no wonder that I failed. My Records were abhorrent, I had no Idea how much money I was making, was surprised constantly when I ran out of Writing Utensils and in general was disorganized. Every available moment was spend writing. If this seems normal to you then you may run eventually in to the same Problem I did.

The reality is that your writing career has to be handled as a Business in order to make it profitable. What does that entail? It means you have to be able to keep basic Records, start and maintain a Client Database, be your own Research Department, become adept at marketing, advertising and yes even at law. That isn't all, but only the broad spectrum of your responsibilities.

Where or how should you start?

Start off with a nice clean Journal or Notebook. On the front write Business Plan and Record. Yes, you have heard me correctly, in order to be able to run your Entrepreneurship you have to have a Business Plan. I would suggest that you have two separate ones set up. One for a short term goal lets say 6month and one for a five Year Goal. You are more likely to achieve your Goals if you see yourself accomplishing one of your Goals at a quicker Rate. Most of us get discouraged quickly.

What all goes in a Basic Business Plan?

Required Income: In Order to figure out how much money you have to make each week, month or Year you have to take all your obligations (Bills, Groceries, Mortgage etc), Taxes (about 30%), Savings (you want to make sure you set aside for meager days), Insurance (as a Freelancer you don't have a Insurance Plan through a company), Retirement (yes, you too will get old one day), Marketing Costs, Clothing, Vacation Money, Child care (which means anything from toys to camp), Office Supplies etc. Don't get discouraged when you see how much it adds up to. I would suggest you even count some extra spending money in for yourself. Don't forget Travel Expenses either.

Client Management: No Clients - no Money! You need to set up a Data Base with a reliable contact list. Keep a good Calendar handy for Business Meetings etc. Get to know as much about the specific quirks, likes and dislikes of your Clients. You want to be able to present them with your best possible work which fits their particular Market. If Magazine A doesn't like purple spotted puppies and the Editor of Magazine Q doesn't like being addresses as Miss you may be well advised to make a note. You appreciate your clients business, have your management set up that they can see it and feel appreciated.

Cash Flow: How much available cash do you need to have liquid at all times? Depending on which Market or company you work with you may not get paid until several month down the line. Others will pay you the next day. How reliable is a client when it comes to payment? All these questions need to be in your Business Plan. There is a difference between Net Worth and Liquid Income. Get yourself familiarized with the differences.

Marketing: If writing is your Bread, marketing has to be the Butter. You can have the best Articles in the World; if nobody sees them they are worthless. To get Clients you have to get yourself known. You have to go out and find new Leads constantly. While keeping your trusted Clients happy, you also have to find new Blood for you to submit to. The publishing World is constantly changing. Markets die out while others spring up new. Don't ever put all your eggs in the same Basket. The more your Name is known in the right circles and held in high regards, the better chances you have to make it big. Remember, not everyone was to agree with your opinions, but you always have to act professional.

Sales: This is where the rubber meets the Road. How many Sales do you have to make to meet your financial Goal? How do you go about making a Sale? Good marketing and client management, a good product and hopefully you have a Sale. Being a Salesperson is not for everyone, but as a Writer you need to learn how to sell your-self.

Time Management: Time is one of your dearest commodities as a writer and here too you need to learn to manage it wisely. Instead of setting all your time away for writing you need to figure out how many hours a week you will need for Research, Marketing, Clients, Travel and of course writing.

Strength and Weaknesses: Which Areas are you strong in already. Perhaps you have a natural talent for PR. Writing Press Releases, meeting People; setting up Business Meetings is easy for you. You can advertise with the best of them, but when it comes to Time Management you are lost. On the other hand you are methodical to a fault you can calculate every Penny or second of the day out, but when it comes to meeting People, making that Pitch that can get you the sale you freeze up. By recognizing your strength and weaknesses you can either a. educated yourself better in that field and maybe learn some simple tips and tricks to get over your weaker areas or b. outsource or trade with someone else. Perhaps you know someone that is an absolute genius at setting up your Marketing Campaign, but can not write a Press Release for his own Business (your strong suite) why not trade services?

Now you that you know what needs to go in it, how do you set it up?

Write it all down. Once it is on paper it becomes a. a Business Record and b. more real to you. We often can follow a Plan much better once you can pick it up and read it over again. Let's say you have figured out you need to make $4000 a month to make ends meet comfortably (don't imagine you can live on Macaroni and Cheese every day). Now you have to calculate how much you have to make an hour to make it happen. You also have to figure out how long you give yourself to meet that goal.

How do I calculate how much I have to make an hour?
Figure out how much time you have available each month to work. If you take an average of 4.3 Weeks a month you have approximately 21 working days available. Now you have to take at least 4 days away for marketing and about 2 - 6 days for vacation, holidays, doctor visits or whatever else my creep up. If you are able to work fulltime at your writing career, you take whatever amount of days you have left and multiply this by the hours of work you can put in daily (normally 8 - 10 hrs a day). Now you have the amount of hours you can actually sit down and write. Take the amount you have figured out and divide it by the number of hours you have available to write. Draw a big breath in and then look at the figure. This is how much you have to make an hour. I am warning you ahead of time, the number will scare you at first, but remember you don't have to make it over night. Give yourself a reasonable amount of time to hit this goal.

Finding the right Market!
Identifying what you are good at and which Market your talents best fit in is very important. If you never have climbed a Mountain you probably shouldn't write an Article on mountain climbing. If you have a Degree in English Literature for example you are more then qualified to write about that field. For me I write what I know. I feel myself qualified as a Mother to write about parenting, I hold Relationships and their problems in high regards. I have counseled online about Relationship Problems. So Relationship oriented Magazines may be an option for me. I have never gone deep sea diving, so I will stay away from that. You get the point. Often it is better to specialize in certain fields if possible, but leave yourself with plenty of options.

Now your business plan should be pretty much set up, but you are not done yet. Now it is time to set up your work space. You have to be able to write comfortably, with good lighting and with a space that is suitable for you. Make sure that you have equipment that works well. That includes Phones, Computer, and Software etc. Make sure your Computer Desk, Chair, Keyboard are all set at a good height for you. The one thing you don't need is to contract Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Back pain and Neck Pain due to bad positioning is not beneficial either. Pay attention to your Body, it houses that fantastic Brain of yours.

Don't quit your Day job!

Unless you have at least enough money in your savings account that you can comfortably stop working for one to two years or are married to someone that is willing to carry all the responsibilities for at least that amount of time, please don't quit your Day job just yet.

I can promise you, I walk into my Workplace daily and would love to go to my Boss and tell her I quit, but the reality is that I need my income to make ends meet, finance my marketing, my websites and my programs. My husband looks at my writing as a hobby, no matter how many times I have explained to him that this is my choice of career. Until I can make as much money on a weekly basis as I make at my Day job I have to work long hours there (which happens to be during my most productive hours of the day sadly) and then several more at home at night at writing. I am fully aware that this means it will take me a lot longer to hit my goal; however it also means that I have something to fall back on. Depending on where you work, having to be at your job can be a mixed blessing. Sometimes you can make wonderful connections at your work place, find interesting things to write about and more. I personally don't have much support from my husband in the emotional department (not until he will see larger amounts of money coming in), but I do have several of my female co-workers cheering me on. Perhaps your first goal, like mine could be to be able to safely replace your day job income with your writing. I know it will take me at least 6month to a Year to accomplish it. I have set my personal Goal however for the end of the Year.

Making Connections and asking Questions.
The most successful Business People of our Time had to start somewhere. Networking is so important in the Business World. If you don't know something, ask someone. You will be surprised how many successful People are wiling to give you tips or tell you about their experience. Be willing to listen and don't be too quick to discard advice. More often then not a job can come from the strangest places.

Getting educated about Taxes.
Learning how to file your Taxes and what deductions you are eligible for is very important. Even if you are not ready to handle your own taxes it helps to know at least the basics. For example if your work place is in your home, you may be able to use part of your electric bill, your mortgage payment and your second Phone line as a deduction. Travel expenses can be largely written off. Software, Office Supplies and Business Dinners charged to your designated Business Account. You may wish to pay taxes throughout the year to avoid large payments at the end of the year.

This is only a very basic start on running your Writing Career as a Business. You have to motivate yourself to learn all there is about it, but I do hope that it has given you a bit of an Idea and a starting Point.

The following list of Books is part of my personal Reference Library. You may want to check into them and add them to yours if you so desire.

The ASJA Guide to Freelance Writing edited by Timothy Harper

Publicize your Book by Jacqueline Deval

Business Plans for Dummies

Grant Writing for Dummies

You can Write Greeting Cards by Karen Ann Moore

Writers Markets (2006, 2007)

Gotham Writer's Workshop Writing Fiction

Writing for Quick Cash by Loriann Hoff Oberlin

Making the Perfect Pitch by Katherine Sands

Handbook of Magazine Article Writing edited by Michelle Ruberg

Writing Tools by Roy Peter Clark

Building Research Tools with Google for Dummies

Pen on Fire by Barbara DeMarco-Barrett

Tax Power for the Self-employed. 2^nd edition by James O Parker Attorney at Law

Those are only a few, but I do hope that those will be a good start for you.

One last thing that is the most important advice I have ever read and heard yet. No matter what anyone may ever say to you, no matter how many rejections you may get in the beginning, no matter how many People may turn away and laugh at you. Please, if you really want this for yourself then DON"T GIVE UP!