Boost Your Writerly Biz in 2023
Being an author, as well as a freelance writer ‘for hire,’ means I am often up until midnight trying to meet a deadline. Such is the life of many other artists I know. The other side of the coin to this blessing of using our creative passions to earn a living wage. We juggle an array of projects for the freedom to do what we love daily as an occupation.
Without a doubt, I work hard. But putting pen to page—or rather, my fingers repeatedly upon the keyboard—feeds my spirit, plus literally keeps the pantry stocked in my house. This also means that no matter how much I catch myself proclaiming the contrary, I operate a small business. And so do you if your writing generates a viable income.
Approaching professional goals from this perspective may be the fresh outlook needed to help you simplify, sell and scale your way to more success in 2023. A solid starting point is acknowledging what you don’t know about entrepreneurship. For me, determining pay rates and managing money better are two areas I continually seek out expert tips on via podcasts and books.
Here are my top picks for getting your mind (and biz) “money right” over the next 12 months:
- Hello Seven Podcast: “We Should All Be Millionaires” author Rachel Rodgers consistently takes a deep dive into the limiting mindsets and behaviors that often hold us back from using their ideas to reach life-changing profit margins.
- Side Hustle Pro: If learning how to launch or monetize a podcast is on your bucket list, add Nicaila Matthews Okome’s weekly show to your “must listen” list ASAP.
- “Get Good With Money” is the bestselling debut by financial educator and Brown Ambition podcast co-host Tiffany Aliche. It is a must read for anyone wanting to attain a debt-free life or squirrel away enough cash to ditch the day job.
For advice on how to make more cash using your writerly mojo or promoting your published work, I suggest tuning into these two podcast gems for helpful hacks on navigating—and networking within—the publishing industry:
It also wouldn’t hurt to peruse a local library or bookstore for the following titles to soak up additional guidance on generating more revenue as a freelance reviewer, journalist, copywriter or author:
- “Scratch: Writers, Money, and the Art of Making a Living” (edited by Manjula Martin): A masterly compiled collection of essays by written by authors at various stages of their careers. Which is why the next time you’ve gotten one too many rejections in a row, this is the book you’ll be grateful is on the nearest bookshelf.
- “Will Write For Food” is the modern primer on starting and sustaining a career writing about food and beverages. (*Side note: Many of the tips author Dianne Jacob shares are also equally applicable to travel writing.)
- “Before And After The Book Deal" by Courtney Maum: Landing an agent and a traditional book contract may be the dream you’re striving for. But Maum candidly shares how the treasure at the end of her rainbow had more than a few strings attached.
- Welcome to The Writer’s Life: Paulette Perhach’s expert tutorial on how to launch and maintain a sustainable writing career.)
And when you’re in need of a reminder that self-care for creatives is crucial to the quality of our craft, finding time to brainstorm, workshop and commiserate with other writers should get bumped to the top of your “to do” list. Participating in a virtual “write-in” or a taking a class in a new genre you’ve been wanting to explore could be the key to discovering a trove of fresh ideas that catapults your career forward in a capacity you have yet to imagine.