“It must be nice.”
“So what do you do all day?”
“Do you ever miss having a real job?”

Those are just some of the things I’ve heard people say to freelancers over the years. The truth is, freelancers often wind up working more hours than most employees. They don’t get paid days off or sick days, and they don’t usually have others to help with billing, marketing, social media – you know, the stuff most corporations have teams to handle.

In a recent post on Freelance Strategist, freelancer Dawn Papandrea takes it further, asking other freelancers to relay some of the more annoying things people have said to them. It’s an entertaining – and enlightening – read:

Really Annoying Things People Say to Freelance Writers

What are some of the more insulting, maddening or annoying things you’ve heard – or said yourself?

As a blogger, you’ve likely thought about monetization at some point. Should you have advertising? Should you participate in affiliate programs or sponsored opportunities?

I recently hosted a Twitter-based Q&A with Susan Getgood of BlogHer on how to beat blog burnout. One of Getgood’s suggestions was to think about monetizing before you start a blog. But even if you already have a blog, it’s not too late to think about monetizing – and it might actually be easier once you’ve established a following. You can read a recap of my chat with Getgood here: Tips for Beating Blog Burnout.

For some good, concrete tips on monetizing, check out a post by Carol Bryant, PR manager for BlogPaws and a frequent media contributor, on the ASJA newsletter The Word. In it, Bryant discusses how to monetize, the tools of the trade, social media plans and more. You can read Bryant’s post here: How to Monetize a Blog.

Are you already monetizing your blog? What are some of your tips and best practices for other bloggers?

With fewer and fewer print outlets – and more shutting down every day – writers are competing for work in a smaller market then they were just a couple of years ago. What does this mean for writers? And how can they continue to find work in a shrinking market?

Some writers, like Katrina Woznicki, have embraced writing for the Web.

In an informative article, Maintaining Hope in a Changing Publishing Industry, Woznicki explores how the industry is changing, and how she is adapting.

The key, she says, is to know how to pitch to those outlets, and to have a good story -- which is really the case regardless of whether you're writing for a print or online outlet.

"Above all," she writes, "I try to remain flexible and to always keep my eyes and ears open for good stories."

You can read Woznicki’s full post on The Freelance Strategist here.

Good news: 2013 means more -- and better -- work for content creators.

That's one of the takeaways from Content in 2013: What's Next for Freelancers and Publishers?

This insightful blog post from James O'Brien, an NYC-based writer and a correspondent for Research Magazine, looks at what freelancers and publishers can look forward to this year.

Among the predictions:

• an increasing emphasis on visual and multimedia content;
• more IP challenges;
• more investment in tools, technology and people.

Read the full piece on The Freelance Strategist and then let us know what you think. What are your predictions for content creators and publishers for 2013?

Image via ltlmagazine.com

Welcome to Freelance Focus, dedicated to helping answer your questions about the freelance life. If you would like to submit a question about any aspect of freelancing -- from getting assignments and connecting with editors, to freelance contracts and tax issues for small businesses -- let me know. I’ll reach out to our network of writers and experts to find you the answer.

This week’s question comes from a recent graduate who is dipping her toes in the freelance waters: “I have some hesitations about putting my work out there. If I have a story idea to pitch, how do I protect it? I don't want to put out what I think is a great idea and have that publication steal it and have a staff writer do it. So, what do I do?”

U.S. copyright does not protect ideas, although it may protect the way ideas area expressed.

However, for the most part, editors are not in the business of stealing writers’ ideas, says Leslie Levine, freelance writer and author of “Wish It, Dream It, Do It: Turn the Life You’re Living Into the Life You Want.”

Levine says most ideas are not as original as the writer thinks they are. It is, rather, what a writer can bring to that idea – the angles, the experts, etc. – that make it unique.

“It’s up to the writer to come up with something that can only be done -- and done well -- by that writer,” she adds. “If a pitch is anemic (short on substance) but has the germ of a good story, the editor might run with it, only in the wrong direction.”

Linda Formichelli, a full-time freelance writer who has written for more than 130 magazines and websites and has co-authored eight books, agrees.

“I teach a magazine writing class where students come up with ideas,” says Formichelli, “and it's amazing how many of them come up with the same ideas – and, of course, they all think their ideas are totally unique.”

If you are certain your idea was stolen, and if you can prove it, you can politely ask for an idea fee, says Formichelli. “I say ‘politely’ because you never know if the magazine outright stole your idea, or if somehow there was a mix-up and your idea was assigned to the wrong person.”

You should also cross that publication off your pitching list, adds Formichelli, “unless they come forth with a pretty good idea fee and apology.”

Levine, on the other hand, wouldn’t necessarily ask for an idea fee.

“I would try to learn from this experience and then move on,” she says. “We’re all selling something, whether it’s our own ideas, our writing, whatever. A little diplomacy can go a long way. That doesn’t mean a writer shouldn’t look out for herself, but, like other areas of life, it’s good to know how and when to pick your battles.”

Have you been burned pitching an idea? Tell us about it in the comments below. What did you learn from it, and what advice do you have for other freelancers?

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