Hi there,
I'm interested if you are. I've been on my own for almost 3 years now in San Francisco. Most of the work is print, with a growing portion of wine packaging, along with several web projects lately. For me, the big help has been referrals. I've had to really foster client relationships, and they've turned me on to new business, or vice versa. Drop me a line to chat more.
thanks,
Casey

Hello!
I too am interested if you are...I have been on my own since 2003 when the company I worked for went out of business. I have been in the printing industry since 1991 and I think this book is such a great idea and I am SO looking forward to its release!
By the by, the email address provided has been bouncing back to me:
----- The following addresses had permanent fatal errors -----
Is this the correct address??
Cheers!
Anita Z.

I'd be happy to share my experiences if it will help someone else. I started freelancing in July 2007 when my employer downsized 600 positions. I've learned a lot and am still learning. The HOW FORUM has been a treasure of info. I became an LLC in January for financial and legal reasons. To free up time for design I hired a bookkeeper last month (my CPA is thrilled!). I also need financial reports to gauge my busines success (still learning to read and use them). My niche is print design, but am branching out with the help of fellow freelancers in the area. The business side of this journey has been the most challenging (am hoping to learn more at HOW in Boston!). I'm in the process of designing my website. Contact me if you're interested. This book sounds extremely helpful.

Hey Cathy,

I’ve been full-time freelancing since January 2007 and would love contribute to your book Freelance Design in Practice. I can share advice on:

Accounting/invoicing system
Setting fees, taxes, contracts
Managing workflow
Freelance frustrations, argh!
Anything else you might need . . .

Thanks!
Jill

Hi Cathy,

I am a freelance designer based in Mumbai, India.
I am happy to share my experiences designing in India.
I did my undergraduate studies and worked for a year in the United States and then moved back to Mumbai post 2001. After giving up my full-time job, I set up my own studio two years ago and in the process of revamping my website, which should be ready very soon.

Please do give call if interested on +91 982 146 9791 or email (temporarily) on visual_dialog@yahoo.com.

Thank you
Bhakti

After more than 15 years working for design agencies, as well as in-house for a mall developer, I became a freelance designer and started my own business, Over the Edge Design in 1996. Work at home with small children, as a single mom no less, has been a challenging, yet incredibly satisfying experience. Great vendor relationships, good friends and associates in related industries, networking, and word-of-mouth have been the mainstay of getting clients and building my business. My past clients include DMG world media, and working with Food Network, just to name a few.

2 years ago now, one of my associates, in web development and internet marketing, asked me to help him start a new company, Official Web Store. After much consideration, I moved my company and family to Columbus, OH to begin the endeavor.

Now into our 3rd year of business, with Over the Edge Design still taking in a bit of work, and Official Web Store thriving, I am now also doing contract design work for National Auto Care helping Official Web Store and it's parent company, JMP Answers create the advertising and collateral for an application they created that has brought service contract sales to the internet and is changing the entire industry.

Freelance and contract work have given me the power to do all of this, and allowed me to raise 3 beautiful girls, now 15, 11 and 6) and be around for them, as well as grow my knowledge and experiences beyond any I could have imagined.

If you would like to talk more, please email me and I'll provide you my direct contact information.

Sincerely,
Juls Calcagni

I've been freelancing for over ten years now and, although it's been a roller coaster ride financially and emotionally, it has afforded me the quality of life I wanted. I have a daughter whom I've been able to keep out of day care and when my husband got a great job opportunity in Las Vegas I was able to move my business from it's NYC base without losing more than 10% of my clients.

I was able to get a few clients in the PR industry who then moved between companies and nicely took my name with them. I have enjoyed a steady stream of work because of these collaborative relationships I have created with other industry professionals who need great design. Some of the other professionals I have partnered with are political consultants, publishers, employee benefit consultants and investor relations professionals. These partnerships have also allowed me to work on some large named clients that are usually reserved for large agencies.

I also have some very reliable freelance help as well as an assistant who helps with administration, traffic and production - she basically allows me to raise my daughter without much outside help. I would love to share some of the methods I used to make this work and some of the things I would love to improve, taking time to improve my own web site and promotional material for example.

Please contact me if you would like to talk further.
Thanks
Sue Hoffman

Hi,
I am interested in participating. I`ve been working on my own since 1998.I am from Mexico and somehow I have survived the worst econimic crisis of Mexico , getting preagnant and now with a 16 month old baby.
In 2000 I founded my company Atmosphera Design which consisted of me and a part time graphic designer. Almost all clients work because they`be been referred to me by other customers, and that is the best way for me to get new clients.
I self-published a mexican cook book in 2002 -bilingual_ My job was to plan the book, get the investors, get the recipes, design it, I did the illustrations and directed the pothography. It sold out in less than a year.
For me, I`ve found that working on my own has helped me to learn things form the business point of view and that encourages me to start my new endeavor:
www.chico-chihuahua.com which is a web site based on a cartoon character I created.Eventually I want to move all my projects to the children`s industry and expned most of my time working with Chico Chihuahua.
My company web site is www.atmospheradesign.com

Thanks
Blanca Ruiz

I've been freelancing in various capacities for over 10 years. I'd be happy to share some thoughts on what I've learned over the years, strategies that have worked for me as well as challenges I've faced being a solo designer. I'm one of those designers who loves (and understands) the business side of things and I think this has helped make me a success. Please be in touch if you want samples of my work - I don't have many examples on my site. Thanks for the opportunity. --Marissa Strassel, Chicago.

Hello, I have been running a freelance design studio in Toronto for over 10 years. It has been a challenging and rewarding time balancing an ever changing work landscape with being a single father of four children. The disciplines of the studio include print and web design, audio and film production, photography and just starting to incorporate 3D work as well. With our creative tools improving constantly it is both difficult and exciting all at once keeping our abilities sharp and our minds open to the endless possibilities. Love to speak with you more if you like.

best regards,

Robert DiVito