Here’s an interesting thought to consider: how important is good, up-to-date technology to doing good work?

I think that if you tell yourself you need a certain computer before you can start a project, you’re a) kidding yourself and b) never going to start. The computer industry is designed in such a way that you are never content with what you have, because your up-to-date technology is never up-to-date for long.

The old rule of thumb for freelancers goes like this: for every hour of billable work you do, there’s another hour of work you can’t bill for.
It could be book-keeping, it could be marketing, it could be organizing or brainstorming. For the record, you shouldn’t be billing your clients using an hourly rate, but by charging […]

Today marks a pretty amazing milestone, at least for me.

For the first time since I started freelance writing, I’ve had to put a notice on my Services page saying that I have a full workload, and I’m not likely to take on any more work, unless I find the project personally interesting and the budget is equally interesting.

For me, getting to this point has been relatively quick; there are writers who slog at it for years, trying to fill up their billable hours with work, and never quite making it. Suffice it to say, I’m feeling a slight tinge of pride (if you think pride goes before a fall, please fall out of your chair here; nobody ever mentioned whose fall pride precedes).

But my move into freelancing was borne out of necessity, and like all of us I was desperate for work when I began. The desperation to have enough money to feed your family, fuel the car and pay the rent on time causes a sense of panic some would compare to the sensation of suffocating: gasping for more air, and not getting it. Feeling strained and closer to the end of it all by the moment.