How Writers Are Coping with the Downturn in the Economy

“Over 12,000 writers have lost jobs over the past two years. Many are now competing for fewer assignments as magazines and newspapers either have closed or reduced the frequency of publications,” says author and American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) member Caitlin Kelly. Kelly is now “reaching out to new print clients across the country while pursuing new areas, including web-based content creation.”

Although NATJA member Linda Kavanagh says her “writing assignments have been cut in half, many publications turned into bi-monthlies, editors fired, and that I have to work with new contacts from week to week, I’m delighted that my public relations company is experiencing about a 30 percent increase thanks to hospitality industry clients.” To keep her columns going, Kavanagh “supplies a few freebies. I feel that the writers who keep the most active and stay in contact with editors/publishers, will be the ones to get the paying jobs when they are back. Publishers appreciate dedicated writers.”

ASJA member Beth Levine—a successful freelance writer for over 20 years—has recently been brainstorming in order to remain solvent. She recalls, “Before this falling economy, my dips were generally minimal, with 80 percent of my income from magazines and newspapers, and 20 percent from corporation and public relations work. The percentile split has changed during the past year with magazine work next to zero. As a result, I’ve had to ramp up my corporate work. Fortunately, I have a solid background in public relations and marketing, but still, I feel like I have to reinvent myself in very little time.”

“The present economy has actually helped my ­recently launched online travel magazine (www.francerevisted.com), notes Gary Lee Kraut (NATJA). Besides supplying advertising space, Kraut accepts articles, and says that his magazine “attracts readers who have found that their usual magazines or newspapers no longer are willing to invest in travel pages.” Although he pays a low fee to writers, Kraut believes that “the magazine, in offering assignments, is especially helpful for those who have found that print publications are no longer able to give them the freedom to write about and explore destinations and themes that truly interest them. My web site has been able to keep its head high, and those of its writers as well.”

To cope with several lost clients, Margaret Haapoja is writing for a new online newspaper sponsored by a local public radio station. I scour the newsstands for new magazines to query, and am fortunate in specializing in gardening topics. In this age of ‘green’ environment there’s more interest in articles about growing vegetables and flowers.” 

Maxine Sommers (NATJA)—a travel writer for 26 years—has definitely been affected by this economy. “I’ve never seen anything like this, and clients I usually work with say budgets have been cut or are non-existent. This year, my main newspaper (circulation 100,000) has been cut to the bone. Fewer articles that are pitched are being accepted. I’m trying new outlets, but the sound of silence rings loud and clear. Time will tell.” On the other hand, Nancy Monson (NATJA) believes she has been fortunate so far because her writing and editing “is so diversified, although I’ve had trouble getting magazine assignments. Editors are slower than usual to assign and are using more inventory than before, while some of my smaller, regular magazine outlets aren’t assigning at all. I’m definitely concerned about the future.”

Entertainment Writer/Blogger Jane Louise Boursaw (NATJA) previously wrote for consumer magazines and their web sites, but over the past few years, most of her work has shifted to blogging. “As magazines have gotten thinner or closed down, blogging and online work has picked up steam. Blogging isn’t a passing fad, and whether you’re monetizing your own blog or blogging for another company, it will be around for years to come. I’ve worked hard over the past year to diversify the type of work I do, which is helping me during this down economy. I blog about the entertainment industry, write a family movie column, teach an online blogging class, and do occasional print and web magazine work when it comes my way, but I don’t seek it out. The way I stay afloat during these hard times is to keep a lot of different types of work in the mix. That way, I’m not panicking if one thing goes sour.”

Lisa Collier Cool (ASJA) has discovered that being optimistic and persistent can pay off big-time although, like others, she’s finding it more difficult to get work. “I’ve had to be more aggressive in following up because, with smaller staffs at magazines, editors are swamped and take longer to respond or don’t reply at all. Now I’m casting a wider net, and sending more queries and letters of introduction to custom magazines and places that run advertorials, including newspapers and organizations’ publications. As a result, I broke into 3 new markets so far this year.” When Cool encountered a dry spell, she used the time to create a web site to showcase her work. “That really paid off,” says Cool. “Recently, an editor I knew years ago but who I had lost touch with, found me via the web site and gave me a $7,800 assignment. I’m also doing everything in my power to ‘rejection-proof’ my queries. Instead of just proposing one way to a story, I suggest two or three options, so if the editor doesn’t like one approach, she can see other ways to do the story.”

Nancy Pistorius (NATJA) refuses to take ‘no’ for an answer. “If the editor points out something negative about the idea, I shoot back a solution. I also have friended my editors on Facebook and LinkedIn, then post if any of my articles are published so they can see what I’m up to. This keeps me on their radar. In today’s economy, my motto is ‘I will write anything that anybody will pay me for.’ I write for a wide variety of outlets, and find myself working harder than ever, with more freelance assignments.”

Tim Leffel (NATJA) hasn’t seen his income and workload dip much. He’s thankful he “saw this coming years ago. That’s when I scaled back my work for consumer print publications. For the past few years I’ve mostly written for other people’s web sites, my own sites that get ad revenue, and trade publications. I’ve built a business and a brand instead of relying on assignments from editors that would likely be gone a year later, or from newspapers/magazines that would be in trouble as soon as the economy turned. This is a great time to be an entrepreneur, but a terrible time to be a generalist freelancer who has always relied on print article assignments.”

There is no doubt that these are troubling times for everyone. On the bright side, writers interviewed are resourceful, proving with perseverance and diversification; they can find new ways to keep money flowing in.

Arline Zatz is the award-winning author of Best Hikes With Children in New Jersey (The Mountaineers); 30 Bicycle Tours in New Jersey (Backcountry); New Jersey’s Special Places (WW Norton); New Jersey’s Great Gardens and Arboretums (WW Norton); 100 Years of Volunteer Wildlife Law Enforcement in New Jersey (NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife); and Horsing Around in New Jersey (Rutgers University Press). Her features and photographs appear nationally in newspapers and magazines. She can be reached via web site: www.funtravels.com.