This post has been sitting around as a draft for more than a month. Whatever.
I’ve decided that I don’t want to be a freelance writer. Even if the effort-to-pay-ratio were better, I still wouldn’t want to freelance. I’m not interested in the kind of writing that brings in freelance money. (What’s lucrative? Business writing of various kinds.)
I want to write to entertain, which means that I’m competing with a million other kids who can turn a phrase. We all want a slice of the limited pie. I have to figure out how to make myself prominent, how to jostle to the front. Consumers must be convinced that my work is valuable.
The original subtitle for this website described me as an “independent writer”. That’s still how I identify. It describes my outlook, both practically and philosophically: I’d rather control the whole process, without catering to anyone else’s strictures.
Obviously I can’t completely do that. For example, I don’t know how to build a website, so mine is made with Blogger. I don’t know how to make printer ink, so I buy it. The list of things that I can’t do entirely by myself is endless. Even when it comes to the simple writing, I need support. One or both of my parents will read each first draft; often Alex does as well.