Interview with Peter Bowerman
By Alyice Edrich
Copyright © 2002

When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?

While I was always a good writer growing up, I never thought too much about the possibility of making a living at it. In the early 80s it became more of a consuming thought, but like most people, I couldn’t figure out how NOT to starve at it, which I wasn’t willing to do. Then I discovered this field in the early 90s and the light bulb went on. And incidentally, I had actually never written anything for money or even publication before about 1990.

Why did you choose to become a commercial freelance writer versus that of a novelist or fictional writer or someone who simply writes books and articles?

Needless to say, making a real living as a novelist, author in general or magazine article writer is, at best, an extraordinarily iffy proposition. I had no interest in just "getting by" as a writer and I didn’t want to simply work at a job I hated just to live and then write at night. I wanted to make a good living, one that allowed me to comfortably make a mortgage payment, to drive a decent car, take several nice vacations a year, have a healthy bank account and regularly invest for the future. PLUS (I was very demanding…) the time, freedom and flexibility to really enjoy life. Most writers who heard all that, I’m guessing, would ask me for some of what I was smoking. Yet, commercial writing has allowed me to do all that.

What exactly does a commercial writer do?

Commercial writers write freelance for corporations or other business entities like ad agencies, graphic design firms, marketing companies, PR firms and others. That means marketing brochures, ad copy, newsletters, direct mail campaigns, web content, speeches, trade articles, video scripts and about a zillion other types of projects. Because the business world generally has a lot more money than magazines or other organizations that might hire writers, the pay is considerably higher than in those fields.

Hourly rates range from $50-100 or more, with the average being $60-75. And unlike magazine writing, which can entail vast open-ended time commitments for low flat fees (translation: LOW hourly rates), in commercial writing, all time is billed and at much higher rates.

Why would someone outsource, or hire an outsider, instead of using someone within his or her office?

In the last decade, and of course, the past few years as well, two huge trends have sculpted the corporate American landscape: downsizing and outsourcing. It’s a lean mean business world out there, and corporations across the country and around the world are doing more with less. Fewer people, fewer resources, smaller budgets. The creative, marketing and communication departments are being scaled back or eliminated altogether.

Consequently, many organizations rely on freelancers heavily to get their work done and not just because they have to. There are many solid benefits of dealing with freelancers: no salaries, vacation time, sick days, health insurance or benefits. In addition, a company pays for only the time they need when they need it. Not to mention that a variety of talent can ensure a consistently fresh writing perspective, often a challenge with full-time staff writers. Contrary to what you might read in the paper, downsizing is not this uniformly negative development by any stretch of the imagination. The accompanying outsourcing has created some phenomenal opportunities for the independent and entrepreneurial-minded out there.

As a commercial writer, I imagine that you have to make a lot of phone calls to companies and present your skills while offering your services. What tips would you offer others looking to get into this field, when they haven’t even landed their first assignment?

Making the calls is critical even if it’s not something that most writers (and creative types in general) are excited about doing, myself included! But understand that, in the eyes of those prospects, you are NOT some irritating telemarketer. If you pursue this business, you'll be a professional marketing a valuable and needed professional service to other professionals. Period. Granted, the people who you'll be calling, more than likely, won't have the need for your services, or may not have the time to talk to you. But, they do view you as a fellow professional. Why else would you be earning $60-70+ an hour?

What tip would you offer someone wanting to follow-up with a client without sounding pushy or in your face?

Professionals don’t need to get pushy or in-your-face. It’s totally unnecessary and counterproductive to building a business. More importantly, they’ll either need your services or they won’t. Or they’ll need them at certain times and not at others. At the end of every contact, always get permission from a client to follow up again and determine an interval acceptable to them-- one month, three months, whatever. I promise they won’t have a problem with it.

Often, people come into the field of writing feeling as though this field is highly over-saturated, and the competition is too stiff. What are your feelings on this?

There’s plenty of work in the commercial arena IF you’re a decent writer and willing to make the calls and otherwise let your market know you’re out there. And I discuss a variety of strategies in my book. One strategy I DON’T recommend are the job boards like Monster.com, guru.com, workaholics4hire.com and others where you bid on projects with a zillion other writers which of course, drives rates down to nothing. In my opinion (and many others), they’re a waste of time.

That is NOT a substitute for making the calls (sorry). More importantly, if you look around and watch trends and decide that it’s not a good time because of this reason or that reason, you’ll never be successful. Hey, if a bunch of people choose to decide the field is saturated (which it isn’t), fine with me. It’ll just be more work for the rest of us. Don’t mean to be harsh, but that’s the reality. Your life truly IS what you make of it, NOT what "trends" make of you.

You also write ad copy-- what is your secret for presenting a piece that has the reader WANTING to purchase that item or service?

It’s all about "audience" - which is really true for any piece you’re writing. Understand who the audience is, what their hot buttons are, what kind of language will speak to them (and you find out all that by asking a lot of questions of your clients), and then write to that audience. But, for all those folks out there who aren’t sure they can write snappy ad copy and think that they have to succeed in this business, know that ad copy writing is one tiny segment of this business. You can make a ton of money in the biz and never write an ad. There are plenty of other project categories as mentioned before.

Speaking of that, how good of a writer do you have to be to do well in this business?

You DO have to be a decent writer. No one’s going to pay you $75+ an hour if you’re lousy. Well, they may once, but you certainly won’t build much of a business! But, if you know you’re a good writer and you’re not the only one who thinks so, you shouldn’t have much trouble making a go of this business.

And here’s more good news: There are plenty of industries, such as healthcare, banking, manufacturing, insurance, high technology that simply need clear, concise copywriting that just doesn’t have to be a work of art. If you are much more talented, you’ll get into the fun creative arenas like ad copy and edgy CD-ROM scripting, amongst others.

How do you feel about people starting out writing for free, to get a few clips under their belts, then turning to paying markets?

I suggest that in my book, along with strategies for pulling it off, like doing pro bono work for charities, arts organizations and start-up companies. Or you could team up with graphic designers, also starting out and do some pro bono work together or even simply collaborate on "creating" a portfolio with fictitious companies. It’s a great approach.

What is it about writing that you love the most?

I love the lifestyle that this field affords: being able (once you get established) to get up when I want to, go to bed when I want to, take a day off or vacation when I want to and never ask permission of anyone. In terms of the business itself, I thrive on the variety. Every day is different. I love that and have to have that.

What is it about writing that you dislike, but do anyway?

Well, I’m not crazy about the phone prospecting, but I do it and once I get into it, actually enjoy it. And once you’re established, it’s not something you have to do constantly.

It has now been eight years since you embarked on a career as a commercial writer.  How has your life changed?

In every way imaginable and some I never could have imagined. From an unfulfilling sales career to successful writer, author of a pretty good book that done very well and seems to be helping a lot of people, a lifestyle in terms of freedom and flexibility that most people would kill for. We’re talking "unrecognizable" from my previous life.

In your book, The Well-Fed Writer, you mention that people can "sleepwalk their way to a $30,000 a year career as a commercial writer." Is that before or after expenses?

What expenses? Paper, legal pads, pens, business cards, maybe a few post card mailings? If you work out of your home, this is one of the lowest overhead businesses out there.

Would you mind giving a rough estimate of what a day would look like for someone earning $30-50K a year?

No such thing as a typical day. But it might include making calls, perhaps sending out information/samples to prospects you’ve spoken to (or steering them to your online portfolio-- vastly preferable!). Maybe you’d be meeting with prospects, working on a few projects; it really varies.

I love the acronym you use in your book: FITS! Freelancer Isolation The Syndrome… whether one works from home or is simply a stay-at-home parent, we all experience the ISOLATION syndrome. What is one of your favorite ways to de-isolate yourself?

I make myself get out three to four nights a week (and
usually for lunch) whether it’s to get together with friends, go to social functions, professional meetings, you name it... Doesn’t matter what you do as long as you get out AND try to get around others!

I notice that you also offer mentoring sessions for $100 an hour. May I ask how you came to that figure, and how your mentoring sessions has helped others?

Compared to professional mentoring rates in similar or related fields, it’s a very competitive rate and actually a good bit lower than many. My mentoring clients are across the spectrum. I’m working with established writers transitioning to commercial writing or trying to get their marketing efforts focused. I’m working with new writers who need a critique of their samples and general start-up advice and encouragement. I’d invite people to visit the Mentoring link on my website and click on "Mentoring Testimonials" at the bottom to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth.

If someone was looking for a mentor and could not afford your $100 sessions, where might you send them?

Depends on what they want mentoring for. If it’s for critique-writing skills, I suppose they could go to an English professor or a journalist. As for not being able to afford it, who knows? It’s about making an investment in your professional future. If $100 helps you make many thousands of dollars over time by providing some insights, perspectives, or knowledge you didn’t have before, was it worth it?

When one is searching for a mentor, whether paid or not, what tributes would you have them look for in a mentor?

Patience, generosity, compassion, ability to push
someone a bit beyond their limits and a positive
attitude. That’s a good start.

Finally, if you could leave our readers with one word of advice, what would it be?

Don’t put corporate America on a pedestal (little chance of that happening these days…) and by that I mean, don’t think you’re not good enough to play in their arena just because you haven’t done this kind of work before. There really IS so much bad writing out there getting circulated on a pretty wide scale. If you’re good, I promise they need you and you can truly make a difference for them.

Thank you so much for your time!

Thank you, Alyice.

Book Recommendation:

I love Bowerman’s style! His conversational style has the reader believing he’s in the very same room, thus holding the reader captive. I truly believe that one can accomplish his or her goals in life, while spending quality time with family, friends, and leisurely fun and throughout this book, Bowerman shows us how! He’s honest, forthright, and realistic. The Well-Fed Writer takes us where other writing books leave off… the actual process of earning a decent living using the written word. 

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