"Is Freelancing Right for You?" Responses

What are the advantages and disadvantages of working independently?
Working independently has it's many advantages and disadvantages. For people who enjoy spending time on their own and attempt to stay away from social interactions freelancing is a great job. Freelancers are able to create their own schedules. They can sleep late, take lunch whenever they want, and choose their place of work. Working alone does have it's disadvantages, though. Help in writing pieces is not as readily available as it would be in an office and loneliness often haunts a freelance writer. This is why it is important to seriouly think about the pros and cons of a freelancing job before you begin.

How does your occupation/ position/ or status affect your potential opportunities or career direction?
One of the main points of "Is Freelancing Right for You?" made was that freelancing is a very difficult occupation to begin. Freelancing is an uncertain job, writers do not have a set schedule and publishing does not always come quick. That is why it is important to continue with your previous job until one is absolutely certain that money will be coming in regularly. Some pieces are paid for upon publishing, meaning that even though a piece was written 2 months earlier, it will not be paid for until it appears to the public. This makes situations tough for a freelancer so it is important to have a back up plan and enough money to start off with incase this career does not take off as quickly as planned.

How does the frequency or infrequency of payment from freelancing affect the budget of a writer?
Freelance writers often find themselves struggling with money, especially beginners. Opportunities for pieces are usually random and their payment varies depending on who the piece is being written for. Some freelancers are paid upon publish, which makes the time between the piece was submitted and it's publish date very difficult. Freelancer's must be careful with their money and plan in advance for bill payments and other mandatory payments.

How does flexibility, organization, and discipline affect a freelancer's capacity to research, generate, and produce quality work?
Freelance writers must be very flexible, organized, and disciplined in order to produce quality work. Writing opportunities appear irregularly and freelancers must be ready to accept a job at essentially any time. Freelancer's must also be very organized in their scheduling because without having a boss to set up work schedules, freelancers are on their own. Freelancer's must be disciplined so they can get their pieces submitted on time, they can not be procrastinators. If freelancer's are not flexible, organized, and disciplined they will have an extremely hard time surviving in the business.

How does one's expertise or ignorance affect a freelancer's choice of assignment?
Freelance writers must choose their assignments carefully and they must choose topics that appeal to them. Ignorance of the writing topic only creates a more difficult, unenjoyable situation for both the writer and their future readers. It is important for freelancer's to choose topics they are familiar because it shows greatly in their writing if they do not know what they are talking about.

Should you say no to an assignment? Why or when (at what point)?
Freelancer's should always feel free to say no to an assignment, especially if it is a topic of no interest or knowledge. It is important to write about what one wants to because it is obvious in the piece if a writer was uninterested in the topic. Freelancer's should also be careful as to when they say no to an assignment. In the beginning of a freelancer's career, when assignments are scarce, one should be more lenient in the topic of writing so that their name will begin to be known.