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Just realized that January 1st was my ten-year freelancing anniversary.
Had left my day job of twelve years and was excited to give comics a go. I'd set aside enough money that even if I got no work, we'd be able to survive for a year. All my freelance earnings at the time came from lettering comics and things started strong. I had too much work!
Two months in, we had an assessment on the condo we lived in that was, almost to the dollar, the amount I'd saved to survive the year. Our cushion was gone, but that was okay because I was getting a lot of work.
And then, all of a sudden, it was like someone turned the tap off. All my work dried up. For two months, I had NO lettering work, no leads. To top it off, one of my biggest clients (a manga publisher) stopped paying.
For the rest of the year, I had barely any work, we were falling behind on bills and I was fighting to get paid thousands from one publisher -- who was STILL sending me work, promising that their money troubles were temporary.
I had so many anxiety attacks throughout this period. Managed to limp through until 2013, when I ended up taking a part-time job back at the place I'd worked for 12 years. Managed to get back on my feet a little, but the job was only for a year.
This cycle would repeat for years. Going freelance was one of the most liberating things I've ever done, but also the scariest and most stressful.
I don't really have a point here. Just reliving the last ten years, 60% of which have been terrifying.
I don't really have a point here. Just reliving the last ten years, 60% of which have been terrifying.
