So now that the blessed date is drawing near (less than two months and counting), the reality of finances has been slowly but surely creeping into my mind. When I started this blog in May, I mentioned that I was going to be as honest as possible about the financial realities of freelancing full time. I have thus far, but for the most part in hypothetical, and approximate terms. Lately, that fuzzy and undefined idea of living job to job has taken a sharper definition, and I am no longer waxing and waning about it: I am starting the distasteful process of calculations.
For example: if my share of the rent is $550 then I need to produce about 37 articles per month at a rate of $15 a piece. That is doable – I could do 2 a day Monday through Friday the whole month and that would be fine. But wait! There is a snag here, it doesn’t take into consideration the taxes I will need to pay on my earnings, which I need to self-remove because I will be self employed. I have heard that you need to keep about 30% reserved for Uncle Sam, so that means that I only get to keep $10 of each $15 article I write. So really, I would need to 55 articles a month, producing at a steady rate of 3 per day.
It is the taxes thing I am afraid is going to get me in the end – I feel like it will be very easy to conveniently forget about it until tax time and then shout a string of expletives when I see what I owe. Similarly, I feel like it will be very hard to part with 30% of each paycheck consciously, and very easy to say “oh I’ll take a little more of my paycheck this month and make it up next month.”
ugh. That is a battle I will have to fight with myself constantly, I am sure.
But I am heartened by the fact that I have had some great luck recently finding freelance work, and now almost have too many gigs for the time I have available to do them…just kidding! I don’t care if I sleep 4 hours a night, but I will take any and all freelance work that comes my way with a smile. It is so refreshing to actually get some! I feel like the ball has started rolling, and I hope it continues, and this will be a bit of a snowball effect.
The only sad part is that my novels have been sidelined while I try to build a freelance reputation/resume, and I really want to be spending some time on them.
I just have to keep reminding myself this crazy triple life isn’t forever. Someday, and someday soon, I will have more control over my time and be able to spend more of it on the projects I choose, not what my managers choose for me (counting down, oh I am counting down…)
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Just wanted to say HI. I found your blog a few days ago on Technorati and have been reading it over the past few days.
As a freelancing/entrepreneurial writer that has been self employed for a year now, I find the best way is to amass all your earnings per week (or two weeks, or month) and then (just as if you were getting a paycheck) do “payroll”, and pay yourself, less a 30% deduction, which, yes, is the recommended withholding amount.
Frankly, I’m too afraid of taxes to do anything else–I also recommend starting a separate account to filter your self payments through, whether your freelance money is coming in through paypal or what. Having a dedicated account where the only ins and outs are pay ins and pay outs definitely makes for a more clear and easy tax time!
Best of luck with the triple life!
xxAC