Passing on (Most) Low Paying Assignments

Writers often debate whether low paying assignments ever make sense. When you sort through the arguments made for possibly taking a low paying assignment, they usually fall into the following camps:

• good exposure for future work


• Foot in the door with a client


• Still offers acceptable hourly rate


• Chance to place a story you can't place elsewhere


• Creative opportunity you can't get elsewhere


• Chance to do a type of work you haven't before


• Chance to plug a book or other project


• Perks make it worthwhile


• Need the clip to break into a higher paying market


• Nothing else you could do with some writing


• It's good exposure


• Can use as paid research for other stories


• Money comes quickly and at a good time


• It will make me an expert on the topic

There is some potential value in any of theses reasons - on rare occasions. But before jumping into a low paying assignment, consider whether you are talking yourself into a bad idea. I've seen a lot of writers given reasons from here to Sunday and back why low-paying pubs made sense. But sometimes this is simply rationalization from people who are afraid to go after larger markets. So be sure to take a big dose of self-honesty and of realism to see if your reasoning really does hold up. Here are some questions to ask:

• Foot in the door with a client What are the chances that you'll actually be able to move up to better assignments from the client? Or will you be seen as a certain type of writer not suited to the quality needed for more lucrative work?


• Still offers acceptable hourly rate Will this distract you from better paying work that you need to meet your monthly goals?


• Chance to place a story you can't place elsewhere How important is it to write this particular story? Can this publication really offer the impact that you tell yourself you want?


• Creative opportunity you can't get elsewhere Will you be able to invest the time necessary to do a good job? Are you diverting your creative energies from more realistic projects?


• Chance to do a type of work you haven't before Are you getting diverted from the work you should be doing? Are you building a skill or knowledge area that actually will serve your business?


• Chance to plug a book or other project Are the readers the potential audience for this other project?


• Perks make it worthwhile If you did higher paying work, could you afford to pay for the perks yourself?


• Need the clip to break into a higher paying market Are there intermediate markets that might pay better and provide a more recognized clip?


• Nothing else you could do with some writing Might there be a better market worth waiting for? Are you spending time writing things that have little financial value?


• It's good exposure Will your potential clients actually see this writing?


• Can use as paid research for other stories How likely is it that you will sell other, better-paying stories on this topic? If there is a market, why not start with better paying publications?


• Money comes quickly and at a good time Are you getting distracted for the real issues of whether your overall client mix and financial processes are good?


• It will make me an expert on the topic Will you gain large amounts of specialized knowledge from writing one or two articles? How many clips do you need to write about the subject in higher-paying publications? (Hint on the last one - you shoudln't need more than two or three.)

I'm not suggesting that lower paying assignments never make sense. Just be skeptical when you're listening to a sales pitch - whether it's coming from someone else, or from inside your own head.