Re: FWD: Too good to be true?

[John Renish <John_F_Renish -at- NOTES -dot- SEAGATE -dot- COM>]

Anonymous User, who has apparently fallen into a bed of roses, wrote:

<snip>
PS Recommendations on books or web sites on beginning this kind of
venture are welcome, too!
</snip>

Kent, Peter. Making Money in Technical Writing. 0028618831. $16. 95. Arco
Publishing, 1997. Paperback, 280 pages. This book covers just about
everything you need to get started as a freelancer, including references to
books on tax and legal considerations. It assumes you want to freelance but
contains a chapter explaining why it might not be for you. Excellent
no-nonsense advice and generous bibliography.

Further note: I'm a happy captive who no longer does much technical
writing, but I have been a contractor and have friends who are now or have
recently been successful freelancers in technical fields and technical and
business illustration. The best piece of advice I can give any contractor
is that after you're well-established and have more work than you can
handle, _your rates are too low_. It's easy to fall into the trap where you
think you can maximize your income by lowballing--the opposite is true, and
your family will thank you for both an improved bottom line and your
availability for Little League games and the like.

OTOH, one friend maximizes his income by hiring other freelancers at a
lower rate than he charges. Some might consider that practice faintly
odious, and others might consider it perspicacious and a useful
service--certainly his contractors do. He continues to work a 70-hour week
because his goal is to retire by the time he's 54. Another guy I knew
marketed the services of ten writers, handled the payroll, billing, and
collection, and still worked only about 20 hours a week while drawing a fat
salary and lots of perks from his closely-held corporation. Do whatever
works, but don't forget work is not the goal, only a means to enjoying
life.

hth,
John_F_Renish -at- notes -dot- seagate -dot- com, San Jose, California, USA
My comments represent my personal views and not those of my employer.
"No one on their death bed ever said, 'I wish I had spent more time at the
office.'"
--H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

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