Stop selling your time for $10!

I've kept up with this thread on and off...so please forgive me if this has already been answered, but where exactly are these high-paying writing gigs?

I set my rate low and people still think it's too high.

I send queries to magazines. Definitely not as many as I'd like to send out; my time doesn't allow for a lot of unpaid query and research work.

I look frequently for full-time staff work at Detroit-area ad agencies and other businesses. They want qualifications I don't have, such as a degree in Journalism and 5+ years of on-the-job experience.

I do regular Google searches for sites that look they even remotely be in need of writers and send them queries.

I am disappointed in myself for not finding decent writing work. I've been seeking a steady writing job for the last five months. I'm truly afraid that I will have to dismiss my goal of a career in writing and settle for being a person who enjoys writing as a hobby.

Okay, now...how'd this turn into an oh-woe-is-me post?

Sorry for the negativity, but I am frustrated right now. Maybe I just need some chocolate.

 

Well for starters, you can look at the writers' markets a few of us are posting daily (I'm actually putting the posts for today together now, so they'll be up later today - just as an example, all for today in the forum I believe are at least $1/word).

www.sixfigurewriters.com
www.myspace.com/sixfigurewriters
www.allfreelancing.com (highest paying markets, but you need to register)

$.05 per word is in no way too high if your work is quality and you have a decent portfolio / experience. You can do much better than that. You just have to stop targeting the webmaster market as your primary client base - people here do pay that and more though (I know a few of the writers in our network make that or more from some webmasters who know the value of their content).

The transition from one market to another isn't always easy. You do need to find time to keep sending queries until your name is out there and you're networking more to get other leads. Until you get a steady stream built up, it very well could mean a few weeks to a few months of spending extra hours at it... but nothing good in life comes easily.

Jenn

 

Thanks for the encouragement, Jenn, especially when all I did was complain about things.

Okay, it's a new day. I've got my bushy-tailed and bright-eyed attitude back.

 

I'm inclined to agree with you although your articles are only worth what people are willing to pay. Having said that, to sell an article for peanuts is crazy. You would be better off working in a fast food restaurant!

 

My gf's brother is a reporter and makes good money writing about football.
I know nothing of the game, but she says his work is good. I get most of my
from online sources and rarely look at newspapers. What surprises me is how
poor the standard of writing in tabloid newspapers is, compared to the work of
many bloggers online, who often "write for free".

 

The dollar is scary low and i have to transfer it to THB and that one is scary high now i make less then before can we change to Euro

 

The person who said supply and demand rules is spot on.
But it also depends alot on the expertise of the writer and the level of expertise needed in the article.

I can write an SEO'd article on just about any topic in 15-30 minutes, depending on how much research I do. These articles may not be on par with say a doctor writing an article on heart disease - but if you want that expect to pay big $$
At this rate, I can net around $20-$40 per hour, not too bad and it's work Im happy to do on occassion.

At the end of the day, the good article writers will be able to charge what they like as people come to realise their level of service outshines others.