Familiar markets are shrinking, magazine and newspaper readership is down and publishers are closing ranks. Imagine two mice which live in a maze and find a delicious cube of cheese in the same corner every day. Until one day the cheese isn’t there and the mice are faced with a choice: keep going back to the same spot hoping the cheese will return or find another corner with cheese. Has your “cheese” shrunk or disappeared altogether? You can either hope that things go back to the way they were before, or you can search for new opportunities.
Writing in a recession requires flexibility and creativity.
Flexibility
If you have worked in a particular niche, now is the time to diversify.
Consider different types of work. If you write articles, try copywriting. If you write short stories, consider writing resumes. Not only will you find entirely new markets to explore, you’ll have a chance to find entirely new talents.
Don’t discount online publishers. Writing for online markets may not pay as much as traditional publications, however, the sheer number of outlets for writers makes up for the lower pay. Focus on quantity versus quality.
Pay for post – Review products and receive $5 – $20 per post. If you have a blog, you can sign up to view PPP offers, sign up and then write about the product or service. If your posts meets the stated requirements (word count, etc) you collect the fee.
Blogging has become more lucrative with more advertisers searching for consumers on line. Even if you don’t have a blog, there is a market for online content. You can sell articles to others with standard rates of $5 for a 250 word article. While that doesn’t sound like much, it is possible to write 3 to 4 articles an hour.
Ebooks sell well on line, especially non-fiction, how-to books. Consider writing and marketing your own ebook, or ghost writing books for others. You can earn .05 to .10 per word, with projects ranging between 5000 – 10000 words. This rate includes research, writing and editing.
Creativity
Consider the topics that are most important to readers during these tough economical times. People want to know how long the recession will last, ways they can cope during tougher times and when the recession will end.
Employment – Top Careers, Self Employment and Interviewing
Financial Advice – Investing, Saving and Managing Debt
Home – Cooking on a Budget, Entertainment, Simplification
Travel – Cheap Thrills and Best Buys
Now think of any personal experience, skill or knowledge you possess that gives you a unique perspective on any of these topics. Your experience in the subject area often counts for far more than your experience as a writer.
My family experienced lean times long before the current recession struck. A creative way to use my personal experiences would be to write about free or cheap alternatives to services and products. For example, I use our local library which loans books, books on tape and movies, rather than buying. My family watches a movie each Saturday night which we rent for $1.00 rather than going to the theater. We use free phone access online, free bill payer, watch cable television online and buy second hand tools and sporting equipment. I could write a dozen articles based on my approach to saving money.
Think about what people need to know to survive the recession and give it to them in an informative and personal way. Be flexible and creative and keep writing in a recession. One day the markets will turn around and you’ll be in a great position to increase your revenues.
