I moved into contracting when I moved to the US so I could juggle different projects at the same time. Sometimes I was working – and billing – three clients in the same week. This was at the height of the dotcom boom when freelancing made you big bucks. Oddly enough, now that the economy is tanking, many Technical Writer are moving into freelancing to supplement their incomes. Here are some ways to determine you daily rates if you decide to go freelance.
Using LinkedIn To Find Technical Writing Contract Work
I’ve had some reservations about LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/in/ivanwalsh) and didn’t join up until last year. Most of the technical writers I spoke to didn’t seem to get much return on the site and looked elsewhere. I should add that most of these were job-hunting and looking to make quick connections. For them it didn’t work.
Are Daily Rates for Technical Writers Starting To Improve?
In December, I looked at the daily rates for technical writers and others in the tech comms industry. At the time daily rates for technical writers are down to $30 per hour in some places in the Bay Area. However, maybe things are starting to turn around. In Ireland (Euro HQ for most US IT companies) Google has announced 150 new jobs, many in technical roles. So, is the tide starting to turn?