Deb Ng of Freelance Writing Gigs recently had a great post, “
Print vs. Web: Why the Two Will Never Be the Same.” It’s still interesting to me, even in this era of Web Content as King, how many people still think a writer only goes for web to get a career started (or as a last resort).
People are usually pretty surprised when they hear my print experience (yeah, I’ve written for pretty much every print medium). I did 15 years hard time as a newspaper reporter, and I have written for national magazines and even did a book (only to be told after I was done that there’s not a big enough market for the corner of France and Spain I wrote about).
I finally cut the cord entirely with print a couple years ago, and I’ve never looked back. I still to this day talk with journalists and freelance writers who still see print as The Ultimate, particularly a sweet spread in a major national mag. Or they think a book is The End All, Be All. Usually, they say it’s just because they “like to see their name in print.” Um, OK. Print that web page then.
Personally, I have been doing the nasty, naughty web writing thing on the side for a long time. Instead of it just being a dirty little habit, it’s finally grown to the point where you can make a buck and focus on web writing.
I don’t have to cover night meetings about which chair the local goverment should buy, or churn out daily junk 8-inchers for well over 40 hours, just on the off chance they might actually let me have a spare 10 minutes a week to work on a real investigative piece on something that matters.
I don’t have to waste 90 percent of my time begging magazine editors to think about thinking about letting me write for them. Oh, and hey it would be really cool if you pay me for that piece sometime this decade.
Now when I want to write, like now, I just write. Instant gratification. And if I want to see my name in print, I click “print.” Done.
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Who pays you? What about health insurance?
There are lots of great web writing jobs out there. That’s where all my income is coming from now, and I’m pretty sure I’m not alone. You can also self-publish an awful lot easier (and cheaper) on the web and keep all revenue. The only big problem is the need to work so hard at self-promotion.
Health insurance is a major issue, but it’s the same problem if you’re freelancing for print. I think health insurance is also a problem for employed people (there are plenty of companies out there with either horrible and pricey insurance or no insurance). Health insurance is a problem that cuts across fields of business and work, and it’s a major crisis. It’s extremely difficult for all freelancers/self-employed people.
Nice to read this post, Kelby, because I sometimes feel guilty that I’m ignoring print media – I did a bit of work there but then got into blogging and it pays the bills a whole lot more reliably! I like knowing in advance where my money’s going to come from and that it will more or less keep coming. It’s not my entire income because I also teach two days a week (I’m not sure I’d stay sane if I was always in front of the computer) but you’re right, there’s plenty of potential.
Thank goodness for me I’m writing from Australia where the health insurance thing isn’t really a drama at all; I guess I’d think twice if I was to freelance in the US.
I read this with great interest. I write for both print and online in my selected area of expertise. I also have a journalism degree, and I got tired of writing junk. I also got tired of corporate America. The online writing jobs are out there if you look for them. Good post.~~Dee
Funny, I’m one of the ones who started web writing (I like that so much better than “blogging”) to start a career. Then I found out how much I love it. I adore it. I even dream about it! I still want to write a book, and I’m a long way from financing my mansion from the web, but I did do a paid review last week! So I like to think I’m on my way up.
Thanks for this post! It’s really great!
Wendys last blog post..Hi. My Name is Wendy and I’m an Addict