17 Secrets of Keeping
Your Clients and Yourself Happy
as a Freelancer Writer or Editor

1. Honor the First Commandment of Successful Freelance Writing or Editing: Meet deadlines! Start early, so the project doesn't become the monster in the closet, and you don't end up working weekends or all night to meet the deadline, thus doing less than the best you can do. The antidote for writer's block is simple: Fanny in chair, fingers on keyboard, start typing. Write almost anything at first; just start writing.

Many editors and managers would rather work with a mediocre writer whom they know they can count on to meet deadlines than an artiste who pleads writer's block or sick relatives. They've heard all the excuses numerous times. Plan for the unexpected, and if you have to pull an occasional all-nighter to meet a deadline, do it. But you'll stay saner and your work will be better if you finish your draft in time to let it gel, then hone it one last time.

2. Practice rigorous self-discipline. This ties into the first one. If, because you work from home, you sleep in, take too many long lunches or leisurely walks, or think freelancing is mainly a great way to spend more time with your kids, keep your day job or consider another career. Many freelancers need babysitters or daycare providers during their working hours, just as those who work in offices for others do. To keep up with your work and to keep the mindset that reminds you that you're working and this is your business, not a pastime or sideline, you must adhere to a schedule and routine. Yes, you can set your own hours, but once you do, stick to them.

3. Cut 1/3 and you'll make your story three times better. Okay, maybe editing your draft that much will make your story only twice as good, but unless you're an experienced wire service or newspaper reporter (and even if you are), most of us need to edit to make our stories lean and clean. Five or six revisions is about average for magazine articles, two or three full passes for corporate work. For Web copy, you'll be smart to try cutting as much as half of what you wrote in your first draft.

Always remember the time-honored advice to writers: "Kill your darlings." Meaning: If you're enamored of a phrase or word, that's probably the one that borders on florid or is at least self-indulgent. Cut it.

4. Do thorough, reliable research. You can be a truly creative writer, but if editors can't trust your research and feel confident in your ability to track down information and sources, word will get around among editors, and you will not get repeat assignments.

5. Ensure absolutely accurate work. In journalism, editors want to know that you double-checked facts, know how to conduct a good interview and to use quotes accurately and well (too many is as great a mistake as too few), and that you know how to tell a story that holds the reader's attention. Your story must also be fair, balanced and accurate, so it's defensible against critical responses from readers. In the corporate world, it's also important to verify facts, test Web links, check spellings of names and double-check any data.

6. Don't make editors edit or managers manage. The less editing your work requires, the more editors and managers will value you and the more often they'll call. It typically takes a time or two writing for a particular publication or company and working with a given editor or manager to be able to mold stories or copy that fit what they want. But you can increase the likelihood of this early on in three ways:

• Make sure you're thoroughly familiar with your client's style or voice, content or marketing strategy and audience.
• Get thorough instructions about what they want you to do and not do.
• Keep in touch before deadlines and right afterward, especially if the project takes an unexpected turn because you discover something that neither of you had anticipated.

7. Cultivate relationships, because that's what all business is based on. Editors and managers give most assignments to writers and editors they've already worked with (either in their present positions or their previous jobs) or to writers recommended to them by other writers, editors or managers. Thus it pays to cultivate relationships with other editors and writers, too, and to continually expand and nurture your network. That network of colleagues is also critical for reducing the isolation inherent in freelancing, as well as for tips and input from others who understand the nature of your work. That gives you advantage of hobnobbing with coworkers, just as those with staff jobs do daily.

8. Get it in writing. Most tales of woe that independent contractors tell would have had different endings if they'd had a written agreement that clearly stated the scope of work, deliverables and conditions of each assignment clear and that covered all the bases, including rates, copyright, payment policies and deadlines. If your client doesn't offer a contract, send them your own letter of agreement. Remember, too, that contracts are negotiable.

9. Get a steady gig. Just as houses need to be built on solid foundations, you need a base to support your business. For some, that's a part-time job until they're making enough to let that obligation go. Even then, those who thrive, not just barely survive, have clients they work for repeatedly. Steadily is ideal.

10. Develop a viable mixture of work. Very few freelancers make it by doing just one kind of work or working for one kind of client. Even the IRS doesn't like you having just one client. Only you can decide what works best for you, and you learn that only by trial and error. It's important to know when to cut your losses when the nature of the work or the person you're working with clearly isn't working for you. As you gain experience, it's also vital to let loose of less lucrative work, so that you can free up the time to move up to the next level — even though that usually means a temporary loss of income.

But bear in mind that one key to success for most businesses is diversification. Remember what your mother taught you: "Don't put all of your eggs in one basket." A good image to keep in mind is that a stool won't stand with fewer than three legs. The trick is balance. Too many things in the works or pulling you in different directions, and you become frazzled and fragmented, rather than focused. Too few, and your position is too tenuous.

11. Remember the 80/20 rule of marketing. That means 80 percent of your work will come from 20 percent of your contacts (or less). When you're just starting out as a freelancer or in slow periods later on, you need to spend 80 to 100 percent of your time on things that will generate income, or marketing. At least one query letter, prospective client contact or follow-up call a day is a good goal, that's the minimum if you have no current assignments.

Even when you're well-established, the most successful freelancers still set aside one day a week or an hour or two a day to keep in touch with clients, send out proposals or promo, and submit expense reports, all to protect their cash flow. Keeping up with billing for services and expenses prevents the sudden realization, after completing current projects, that you've let your cash flow dry up. Let your invoices lag very far behind your completed work, and you'll face a dry spell of up to six months before cash starts coming in again. Repeat: If you don't market continually or do something to keep work coming in, it's as deadly as missing deadlines.

12. Never work for less than you need to earn to make ends meet. First, you've got to figure out how much that is. Factor in all of your overhead, from phone to insurance to savings, and be realistic about how much of your time each week or month is truly likely to be billable hours. For most of us, that's often only about one-third of the time we actually work. Consider, too, what the going rates are for the types of services you offer and where you live, because regional rates vary widely. Don't sell yourself nor other writers short by settling for less than breakeven rates. Not only is that volunteer work for the client, it rarely pays off in any way. Position and conduct yourself as a pro, and people will think of you as one and pay you accordingly.

13. Monitor your cash flow constantly. Calculate your monthly expenses, all of them, and keep enough assignments going that you have at least three times the amount of your monthly expenses in receivables at all times. Minimum. If you have to hustle and work 16-hour days and weekends for six months to make that happen — which you probably will — do it, because the payoff is not only the money but the relief of anxiety. Nothing makes creative juices dry up faster than worrying about how you're going to pay your rent or mortgage next month.

One more tip about money that will sound foo-foo and New Agey, but, in my book, is as good as an Eternal Truth: Do not let let yourself succumb to fear when a contract is ending or when you don't know where your next project is coming from, nor how soon. When those what-ifs, doubts and "I can't afford..." thoughts seep to the surface, STOP right then and contradict them. Repeat reassurances or affirmations to yourself and make confident statements outloud to others and to yourself as often as you have to until you sincerely believe them. If you start to slip into the quagmire again, reassure yourself again. Yes, I'm serious. It works! No matter how understable or even reality-based it may be, you absolutely cannot afford to let your self-doubt show through during interviews nor become too paralyzed by anxiety to keep going after new work.

14. Keep your expenses and debts low. Freelance income is often erratic, so you can't afford to live on credit cards or spend all of what comes in when it comes in. Prudent folks set aside 40 percent or more of everything they make for taxes and savings. Pay cash. Think of my friend Susan Heinlein, a marcom copywriter, who explained to me one day that the lovely new tile floor in her kitchen "cost only two brochures." Put a price tag on what you want, then get those assignments, get the checks, and you can get what you've been wanting.

15. Allow yourself daydreaming and downtime. Don't forget to take time to exercise and just daydream or do simple tasks that let your mind wander. Physical health fosters mental health, which is as essential to your work as meeting deadlines and mastering your skills and software. What we tend to think of, guiltily, as downtime is really the time that we need to reflect, re-evaluate and solve problems with projects. Take good care of your body, mind and spirit and let things gestate, so they'll be more fully developed and viable.

16. Know your limitations. Don't take on more work than you can handle in a normal work week. When you're experienced enough, hire others to help you with the projects or tasks that aren't absolutely essential for you to do yourself, whether that means hiring an editor or a bookkeeper. However, always monitor any subcontractors' progress and procedures regularly and always check their work. It's your reputation and livelihood that are on the line, plus it's your commitment and responsibility to your client.

17. Adopt an attitude of gratitude. As much as we grouse about the vicissitudes of the freelance life, there are many who envy our creative and intellectual challenges, freedom and autonomy. Rightfully so. If you'd prefer the security of a "real job," get one, or keep the one you've got.

At the least, set a time limit on negative thinking. Like it or not, you're in the sales business, too, and any successful salesperson will tell you that your own attitude is as important as what you're selling and to whom. If you know, in your gut, that freelancing is the right route for you, be thankful that you know that and have the experience and opportunity to do it, and just get on with it.