becoming a freelance writer

[gael123]

I asked the IChing, "could I prosper and develop as a freelance writer?" I am currently torn between that life path and continuing to try to pursue permanent academic employment. But as any of you in this sector will know, jobs are hard to find - and what's more increasingly being an academic feels like working for an anxious business. I'm very torn. I don't like the idea of being completely without a job title and a place in the world, if I am honest, but I know enough to know I feel oppressed by the kind of work academics are required to do. I am single and I think for at least a few years I could pay my bills by more freelance work, but I am also concerned it would be a bad choice. It pulls me towards it though.

Ambivalence!

I am a Gemini, no surprises.

In answer to my question, I received this

Hexagram 1

Changing lines 2 and 4

changing to hexagram 37

I would see this as mirroring back to me some aspects of my situation. It seems to say, "keep hovering, but know your intuitions are carrying you where you need to go." It also seems to indicate to me that in the end I might be pulled into a more engaged, less freelance life. I did wonder what people felt about these lines.

Many thanks.

 

[Trojina]

In line 2 I think things begin to manifest, to become real, so being freelance is no pipe dream, it's real.

Yes you can prosper....but may need to leap first (1.4)

I'm seeing the 37 as your subject area and your place within that field of writing. I have no idea about what kind of writing it is but 37 here would indicate you give thought to where your work belongs...how you contribute to it. 37 is a system, like a family unit. If one were a music writer/reviewer one would need a niche for example.

You seem to have a niche (37) already....Go for it...while remembering the most important thing for working as a writer is finding your place, your niche market.

I say that whilst knowing nothing of writing for a living. Line 2 is just manifesting....to find the courage to go forth look to what your 'family' is here. I think it's your area of expertise, your market, your readers....your publishers....it's like a family if you think about it.


1 is pure creativity and of course it needs a field to manifest in....it can't make something out of thin air. You need to find your place (37)....then you can create and prosper.

 

[pocossin]

Could I prosper and develop as a freelance writer?
1.2.4 > 37

No, you cannot. An academic background is the worst background for a freelance writer. Academics learn to express themselves in a mode that is incomprehensible to the rest of humanity, and you will find it hard to escape such habits. Anyway, Have you discovered your genius -- your unique viewpoint on life that compels you to write? And do you have a portfolio of already written articles or books? If you do not have a hoard, your will not flourish as a freelance writer.

Until you have been there, you do not know. Many publishers expect you to be so rewarded by having your name in print that no compensation is required. You cannot live off no compensation. Twenty-five years ago I wrote articles for computer magazines, contributing original algorithms, and had to insist that I be paid for my work. "Take the cash, and let the credit go."

I strongly suggest that you seek creativity in your day job. It's there. Dance on your teacher's desk. Elaborate to your students on the ancient philosophy and parallels in current society. Greece is an endless wonder. The academics who did this while I was in school, I will never forget. With respect to the casting, Family is inauspicious for the independent life you propose to live.

 

[Tohpol]

What an appropriate Hexagram...

H.1 The Creative.

Q: "could I prosper and develop as a freelance writer?"

Line 2: Nice and easy. Stay in touch with your intuition and don't get discouraged. There is something here that can grow. It's all in the timing...Which brings us to 4:

Line 4: Persist. A choice will have to be made how you manifest that creativity. Have you got the courage and the discernment as to how best you can use your talents?


Background: 37- the inner family or psychic complex of little "I"s which can be made to work in unison.

Pretty encouraging I'd say.

In my view, it looks quite an encouraging hexagram even though pretty much freelance ANYTHING these days is tough. Having been self-employed for almost 25 years, and reliant on the net for part of my income 12 years, it has great advantages and similarly great disadvantages, usually in terms of unpredictability, but overall I'd never change it.

Having a blog will be absolutely essential as is finding your niche as Trojina mentioned.

I wouldn't give up anything yet, but do your best to research the possibilities parallel with your current work. It may indeed mean, as pocossin suggested, finding new ways to be creative in your present job as one outcome. However, there's no reason why you can't explore more deeply the routes to freelance work. Sure, this could increase the work load in the short-term but it's worth it in the end.

I think that the hexagram indicates being sensible and pragmatic regarding personal goals but it certainly doesn't exclude unfurling the wings of creativity at the appropriate time.

 

[gael123]

Thanks so much for your response, Topal, and you too, Trojina. I find them extremely lucid and the detail you give really helps me think about it.

If one wants to step out and do one's own thing, one gets a lot of negative reactions. I've noticed this.

Pocossin, thanks for sharing your experience. I appreciate your honesty. Rest assured that writing for a specialist audience is exactly what I would like to escape, and I don't think my mind has yet been hardened to the point where I can't change. In fact, I have written two published novels and have an agent for the next. I still don't think I'm a genius, though. Far from it.

Thanks again to everyone.

 

[poised]

increasingly being an academic feels like working for an anxious business

Hate to tell you, gael123, you have no idea how anxious a business can feel until you work in publishing. Yes I did for decades, and I'm talking about the big leagues. The business is basically disappearing; unless you really do not need to earn a living, you would be taking a big chance.

1.2 counsels, Dragon appearing in the field. It furthers one to see the great man.

1.4 described by Jim DeKorne: "Although hesitation and uncertainty are implied, one is counseled to take action when it is appropriate to do so. This implies that you are on the right track, but that certain self-confidence is required. The line can sometimes just portray a confused situation."

I suggest you keep your day job. If your academic field is not interesting to a general audience (business, clinical psych, etc.), you will be venturing outside your area of expertise. Maybe you can, but first query publications you'd like to work for and see what they are looking for and how much they pay. If you want to write books, look at exactly what the few large legit publishers still in business are publishing now. You have a lot of homework to do in terms of market analysis and financial realities.

You might think about writing a magazine article "on spec." Do your best, send it around, and see what happens. Will at least be a learning experience.

I wish you the best.

 

[Trojina]

She isn't talking about working in publishing, she is already a writer.

There just isn't anything in this reading that says not to go ahead except the caution Topal gave here

I wouldn't give up anything yet, but do your best to research the possibilities parallel with your current work. It may indeed mean, as pocossin suggested, finding new ways to be creative in your present job as one outcome. However, there's no reason why you can't explore more deeply the routes to freelance work. Sure, this could increase the work load in the short-term but it's worth it in the end.

You said

If you want to write books, look at exactly what the few large legit publishers still in business are publishing now.

She said

In fact, I have written two published novels and have an agent for the next.

I think she knows the score.

 

[poised]

Yes, true, but he posted that info as I was writing mine. And if he thinks getting into publishing is going to be some kind of change away from anxiety -- well good luck with that on virtually every level.

"Being a writer" IS working in publishing.

Other than that,

 

[gael123]

Many thanks to everyone. I actually do appreciate the life advice and I realise I have given a bit more info as it's been going along. I agree that the reading is actually quite positive and encouraging, and I appreciate the input that points that out to me. I will always keep some kind of other work going (teaching too) in order to support myself financially but - as I said in my first post - what I'm really concerned about is a feeling of not belonging, of not having a place or status in the world. I know that sounds shallow but I have worked hard in my life to get some stability and yet I also feel oppressed by it. I think that's the ambivalence that I am asking the Iching to help me with, and some of what you've said about the hexagram has helped me to see that it is about working out your right relationship with the idea of the group and the collective.

Publishing is a mess. I have huge problems with it as an industry. My first novel was rejected 14 times for not being enough like some other novel which had sold well. Sometimes I feel they may as well be selling soap. Thank you Trojina, you're right, I am not an ingenu in this. If I did it, I would have made very sure I had enough financial stability while ceasing to work full time. It is the sense of not having a stable source not just of income but actually of support which would trouble me.

Being an academic these days is very, very difficult to do creatively. I could dance on my desk after hours but honestly it would feel more like a nervous breakdown than a moment of creative self-expression.

 

[Tohpol]

Publishing is a mess. I have huge problems with it as an industry. My first novel was rejected 14 times for not being enough like some other novel which had sold well. Sometimes I feel they may as well be selling soap. Thank you Trojina, you're right, I am not an ingenu in this. If I did it, I would have made very sure I had enough financial stability while ceasing to work full time. It is the sense of not having a stable source not just of income but actually of support which would trouble me.

Being an academic these days is very, very difficult to do creatively. I could dance on my desk after hours but honestly it would feel more like a nervous breakdown than a moment of creative self-expression.

Completely agree with your thoughts.

I'd only reiterate an alternative view on the subject of publishing as a mess. I'd agree, that would be so, even ten years ago. But not now. I'd even say, there's never been a better time to get into writing/publishing. Why? Because the publishing business - like the music biz - has been going through a complete technological revolution mostly via e-books and self-publishing and blogging platforms. There are those now who have self-published, marketed, advertised and set up their own blogs and who have made a nice bundle whilst being creative to boot. Many have then got snapped up by the publishing houses. This is happening a lot.

So, while there's reasons to be very jaundiced about the publishing of old, we are in a different world now, where in some ways, the industry is having to adapt to writers rather than the other way around.

Of course, there are many "if's" and "but's" of all kinds ... but if you've published before then by-pass the publishing houses all together this time around and self-publish along with a blog platform. if your project is appealing - even to a niche audience - you'll be surprised how big an opportunity this could be.

Apologies if this is all obvious to you - I thought I'd just get it out there just in case and for others reading this thread in the future.

 

[pocossin]

My first novel was rejected 14 times for not being enough like some other novel which had sold well.

This is a standard form of expression and is meaningless. Nobody read you novel 14 times and made such comparisons. I've a cousin who writes novels, none ever published, and she has been greatly encouraged by such wording in her rejection slips.

 

[pocossin]

Thirty years after leaving college, I was surprised to learn that many of my teachers had supplemented their incomes by writing summaries of works in their field. They were freelancers. You could do the same.

 

[Trojina]

Completely agree with your thoughts.

I'd only reiterate an alternative view on the subject of publishing as a mess. I'd agree, that would be so, even ten years ago. But not now. I'd even say, there's never been a better time to get into writing/publishing. Why? Because the publishing business - like the music biz - has been going through a complete technological revolution mostly via e-books and self-publishing and blogging platforms. There are those now who have self-published, marketed, advertised and set up their own blogs and who have made a nice bundle whilst being creative to boot. Many have then got snapped up by the publishing houses. This is happening a lot.

So, while there's reasons to be very jaundiced about the publishing of old, we are in a different world now, where in some ways, the industry is having to adapt to writers rather than the other way around.

Of course, there are many "if's" and "but's" of all kinds ... but if you've published before then by-pass the publishing houses all together this time around and self-publish along with a blog platform. if your project is appealing - even to a niche audience - you'll be surprised how big an opportunity this could be.

Apologies if this is all obvious to you - I thought I'd just get it out there just in case and for others reading this thread in the future.

Absolutely...it really is a whole new era... Same with youtubers ...youngsters who just make vlogs from their bedrooms and get more viewers than well known TV shows....and then not only make a living but get rich when advertisers become interested in them because of their x million viewers.

Same with writing.. Anyone can start a blog.....Things have changed ! Publishers really don't have so much say anymore when people can just get their own work out there....

Publishers no longer decide who gets heard. TV no longer decides who gets to be a star. Radio no longer decides so much what bands become popular.

 

[gael123]

Thank you, Topal. Some of that I had thought about it but is so helpful to have it reiterated and developed - now is a time of collapse and possibility simultaneously I guess. The old system does feel decadent. Even my agent is basically in service to fashion - there's little sense of representing a writer for their own sake.

I think I'm having a bit of a hexagram 21 moment actually - just in the sense that I am feeling that nowadays we all are on this highly bourgeois treadmill based around mortgages. I feel one has to differentiate necessity and desire. I have already made the decision not to have children, as I never grew up wanting them. In return for a less biologically complete life (in one very limited sense!) I hope to have a measure of freedom from that treadmill. I don't want to hand my life over to an institution any more, but I know people who would say to that, "Who do you think you are!?"

 

[poised]

What success looks like

My first book was accepted by a NY publishing house. Received a partial advance. Went to NY to meet with advertising and promo people, had a delightful day, felt very good about prospects for substantial sales. A month later that publishing company was purchased by a very large publishing house.

Phone calls and messages went unanswered for a year. I didn't hear a word, my agent didn't either. What was the status of my book? A YEAR LATER, the editor-in-chief of the large publishing house called to say that he liked the book and would put it on next year's list. It was, in fact THE ONLY manuscript from the original publishing house that he would publish.

It was finally published two years after it was accepted.

The book came out in hardcover, beautifully designed, xlnt paper, a truly professional job. Everyone reviewed it. All reviews were very good-to-excellent. But sales were mediocre.

Good luck with your writing. I hope you really love the process, because results cannot be predicted.

So how does that compare with stress in the academic world?

 

[Tohpol]

Thank you, Topal. Some of that I had thought about it but is so helpful to have it reiterated and developed - now is a time of collapse and possibility simultaneously I guess. The old system does feel decadent. Even my agent is basically in service to fashion - there's little sense of representing a writer for their own sake.

I think I'm having a bit of a hexagram 21 moment actually - just in the sense that I am feeling that nowadays we all are on this highly bourgeois treadmill based around mortgages. I feel one has to differentiate necessity and desire. I have already made the decision not to have children, as I never grew up wanting them. In return for a less biologically complete life (in one very limited sense!) I hope to have a measure of freedom from that treadmill. I don't want to hand my life over to an institution any more, but I know people who would say to that, "Who do you think you are!?"

I hear you. I hope you find that measure of freedom from the treadmill - sounds like you deserve it. :bows:

 

[gael123]

Thanks so much, Topal.

Poised, I am sorry to hear of your extremely disrupted and disruptive experience with your first novel. I have heard similar horror stories from others. As stress goes, I would say that was very high.

To compare it to the academic world would be to compare apples and oranges. But put it this way. In academia, you have to have a book published to get a permanent position (sometimes not). So every time one goes through an experience like you have just described - and I have been through a similar one with an academic book - one's ENTIRE livelihood for the future is at stake. Plus, one is still applying for jobs and having to explain the book is 'in process', whcih makes it look like it might not be any good.

Then, when one has got the permanent position - and I know many people in this role - one discovers, in 90% of depts, that they are in deep financial trouble. They are desperate for government funding. They are charging their students a large sum of money to do the course, creating a difficult relationship, at times, between faculty and students. One is held to account - rightly - for one's teaching and research productivity. So student evaulations, and the peer-review process of your work, constantly affect your chances of promotion, and even of retention in post. However, there is little other positive incentive to focus on these elements, because what the dept most wants you to do is attract funding. This means finding which buzzwords, languages and trends are most fashionable at a particular time, then working out a funding proposal that distantly resembles your own interests while fitting them. Even though you know your own salary is never going to be very high, you spend nearly all your time thinking about how to acquire money for the department.

Then if you are lucky enough to get the funding, you have to take on PhD students to help you with your research. This is called 'career support.' What in practice it means is that you have to create admin or busywork in order to justify the money, which is going on your PhD students' salaries. Somewhere many years before, you had an idea for a book. But that idea has gone missing along the way, because you have had to change it so much in order to get the money to do it. And it is no longer your own project - it is about the career development of others. This is a very laudable idea, but the PhD students are actually likely to be using the project to fund as much of their own research as possible, so reports have constantly to be filed ressuring the funding body that this support is going on, most of which consist of lies. And everyone - mark my words - is stressed as hell.

After you have been through that experience and produced a book, you are ready to have the experience you just described all over again.

 

[poised]

Well, yes, that does sound like a ton of stress.

However, gael123, you can actually write, which most academics cannot. I know this from long experience as editorial director of a company that published books by psychologists.

I went back and looked at your posts at Clarity and was impressed with your writing style. If you are prepared to live without an income for awhile, I say go for it. Have fun with it, write for your readers -- and keep us posted.

 

[gael123]

Poised, how lovely to find that a thread about divination might turn into something so frank and helpful about one's life course.

It's very kind of you to offer some supportive words at this point. And thanks for reading my War and Peace of a post about academia.

I shall certainly keep you posted - and no doubt your hard-earned experience will be helpful to me, any time you want to share it.

Thank you again to everyone.