Diversify Your Writing
Ok, humor me a little, because I'm definitely not someone who should be using money management analogies. But, you know how financial planners always say that there's safety in diversifying your portfolio? Well, I think the same is true for writing.
Now, I know that you come here to read about Freelance Writing issues, but honestly, that's such a diverse field in itself. We've already established that freelance writing can often be broken down into two main categories, based on the organization of the National Writers Union. You can then add in other types of writing, like fiction, poetry, and etc. This is a great career for that very reason.
Here are the top three reasons why you should diversify:
- Multiple streams of income. Who doesn't like the sound of that? If you sell an article, get a poetry grant, and write a newsletter all in the same day, I'd say that's a good day.
- Less likely to get bored. This is especially true for those of you out there who have a short attention span like yours truly.
- Less likely to get burned out. This is something that I'm personally dealing with right now, and it has been somewhat helpful for me to switch up genres.
Your thoughts? Are you a diversified writer?
Absolutely. Diversity is the key in so many ways. I recently served on a writing panel that discussed freelance writing. Many of the panel members doubted the ability to make a decent income freelance writing. However, these were writers’ who were not willing to step out of their genre to take on other work. They were very miffed when I disagreed with them and pointed out that money could be found in lesser known writing jobs (like writing help files for software). I’ve done some bizarre writing jobs in my time that have paid way more than my fiction and poetry.
Aslo it’s worth pointing out: the Web offers writers a whole array of opportunities to earn that are outside of the traditional scope.
For instance, one can create blogs and authority sites that not only deliver great writing, but promote affiliate products for commission and generate ad revenue. This allows a writer to build a completely (or nearly) passive stream of income to supplement their project-based income.
I agree with both of you. Timothy, though, I have found that that particular road often leads to a lot of work- not so passive. I’m probably going about it wrong, though, I’m not an expert on that:)
Diversity was the key to the beginning of my success as a freelance writer. For many years, more years then I care to think about, I was stuck in a rut (no pun intended) writing for adult publications. It was a steady source of money but it was not the kind of writing that I really wanted to be doing. I wanted to be writing about photography, electronics, auto mechanics, home repair and maintenance, science, etc. The problem was that I had no clips so getting editors to look at my material was a real problem for me. Then I discovered writing for online sites specializing in those topics. The pay per article was not great, but they published my material and that provided me with the published clips that I needed.
I just went through a week-long online conference, and everyone said it’s hard to sell yourself if you don’t have a set brand — like you write about health and travel and zombies (Man, that’s a book right there). They said you should focus on a niche.
I make a VERY good living as a full-time freelance writer – because I’m diversified. My 1,000+ published pieces include articles, reviews, stories, poems, stories, essays, product copy and greeting cards. I also do ad copywriting, ghost writing, editing for books and mags, PR writing and consulting. I’ve written two women’s humor books for McGraw-Hill, and my third book, “The Writer’s Digest Guide to Query Letters” comes out this December. I’d love to compare incomes (or career happiness!) with anyone who says you shouldn’t diversify!!
Diversity is the key… I started my freelance career writing about jukeboxes and pinball machines. That led me to jobs penning film reviews, covering the world of NASCAR, writing about “Star Wars” and authoring features about autograph collecting. This coming March, my book of interviews with Hollywood character actors will be published. Wildly different interests = big opportunities for writers who can work outside their comfort zone.
Hi have trouble with this issue because I find it hard to build up a resumé that shows that I am qualified and experienced but also diverse. For example, there are a lot of jobs (editor, columnist) that I have missed out on because my portfolio is too diverse. I now try to focus on one topic that interests me each month and throw myself into research. That gives me a few clips on one area. In the future, I can always return to any of those topics to expand, and always have ready clips for publishers. I do think it is vital to keep diverse to prevent your writing from getting stale.