The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Making It Pay

by Sandy Antunes

Originally, I was going to write an ordinary column and tangentially mention that, oh, by the way, I've graduated and am on the market. But the web isn't about sublety.

So, I finally finished my PhD and, this fall, am officially a full-time freelancer. With that in mind, hire me!

With several published RPGs and games and a host of articles, essays, and other paid print and PDFs, I'm available to write about anything. Hire me!

If you need a part-time webmaster or site editor, an internet project manager (IPM), or even a JMU*, I'm available. Hire me!

Okay, end of pitch. A freelancer's prospects fluctuate wildly during their first few years of making it their sole income. And my primary income will likely come from a) science writing and b) teaching as an adjunct professor (the sharecroppers of academia!).

Mind you, the kill fee alone for the my recent science article on elephants was larger than the full RPG pay for any article I've been paid for. And the pay for that one article is about the same as for teaching one course three times a week for a semester. This leads to one of three philosophies.

I could take the negative stance that "RPG work isn't worth my time", but that simply isn't true. After all, not writing anything and not getting paid at all certainly isn't a good use of my time.

I could take the cynical stance that "I do the science writing so I can afford to write RPG stuff". But that's not accurate either, since I write game material even when there isn't a paying market. So to a large degree, getting paid to write RPGs is simply capitalizing on my strengths.

But my philosophy really comes down to, "I love writing. I'm a writing slut." And I love the game industry. Otherwise, why would I have spent 9 years writing a column every single month about it? That's love. It's also a lot of material, with nary a missed deadline. Plug plug.

Also, I tend to like my hobbies to be self-sufficient. For example, I build and repair guitars to cover my guitar-playing habit. Similarly, I need RPG income to cover the costs of a start-up I'm stealthily working on. So a recasting of the eternal 'can you make a living in this biz' question is, "is it better to make money doing what you love, or to sink money into an underfunded venture." I safely vote for the former.

Finally, I'm in a unique situation-- I don't need benefits like health insurance. I don't need an office. I'm a pure Form 1099 freelancer available for extended gigs.

So here you have me. I'm available for per-project writing or for part-time weekly web/project work. Got a project that needs adventures or stories or rules additions or D20 open content? Hire me! Need someone to start up your trade group, manage your web content, rustle up writers, or make your newsletter? Hire me!

Until next month,
Sandy

sandy@rpg.net

freelance

footnote: JMU = jargon maker-uper. Sorry, been filing out too many resume forms.

Soapbox: About the Industry

Making It Pay

Making It Pay

by Sandy Antunes

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Soapbox: About the Industry Making It Pay by Sandy Antunes Sep 02,2005	Making It Pay by Sandy Antunes Originally, I was going to write an ordinary column and tangentially mention that, oh, by the way, I've graduated and am on the market. But the web isn't about sublety. So, I finally finished my PhD and, this fall, am officially a full-time freelancer. With that in mind, hire me! With several published RPGs and games and a host of articles, essays, and other paid print and PDFs, I'm available to write about anything. Hire me! If you need a part-time webmaster or site editor, an internet project manager (IPM), or even a JMU*, I'm available. Hire me! Okay, end of pitch. A freelancer's prospects fluctuate wildly during their first few years of making it their sole income. And my primary income will likely come from a) science writing and b) teaching as an adjunct professor (the sharecroppers of academia!). Mind you, the kill fee alone for the my recent science article on elephants was larger than the full RPG pay for any article I've been paid for. And the pay for that one article is about the same as for teaching one course three times a week for a semester. This leads to one of three philosophies. I could take the negative stance that "RPG work isn't worth my time", but that simply isn't true. After all, not writing anything and not getting paid at all certainly isn't a good use of my time. I could take the cynical stance that "I do the science writing so I can afford to write RPG stuff". But that's not accurate either, since I write game material even when there isn't a paying market. So to a large degree, getting paid to write RPGs is simply capitalizing on my strengths. But my philosophy really comes down to, "I love writing. I'm a writing slut." And I love the game industry. Otherwise, why would I have spent 9 years writing a column every single month about it? That's love. It's also a lot of material, with nary a missed deadline. Plug plug. Also, I tend to like my hobbies to be self-sufficient. For example, I build and repair guitars to cover my guitar-playing habit. Similarly, I need RPG income to cover the costs of a start-up I'm stealthily working on. So a recasting of the eternal 'can you make a living in this biz' question is, "is it better to make money doing what you love, or to sink money into an underfunded venture." I safely vote for the former. Finally, I'm in a unique situation-- I don't need benefits like health insurance. I don't need an office. I'm a pure Form 1099 freelancer available for extended gigs. So here you have me. I'm available for per-project writing or for part-time weekly web/project work. Got a project that needs adventures or stories or rules additions or D20 open content? Hire me! Need someone to start up your trade group, manage your web content, rustle up writers, or make your newsletter? Hire me! Until next month, Sandy sandy@rpg.net freelance footnote: JMU = jargon maker-uper. Sorry, been filing out too many resume forms.