By Cathy Merlo, AAEA Member, Freelance Writer
Cathy Merlo says taking daily walks, traveling and being an active member of AAEA-The Ag Communicators Network inspires her to find new topics to write about on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. A freelancer since 2015, we asked Cathy to delve into the somewhat mysterious world of freelancing—how she dealt with great success and considerable challenges. Below are her answers.
Why did you become a freelancer?
To be my own boss, have more independence and flexibility, and work with more diverse subject matter and people.
What drove you to continue freelancing as a career during those first few years?
The key driver in those early freelancing years was the need to generate income! I took on all kinds of writing projects, big and small, to get established. But every little bit helped.
Did you ever experience a “lucky break” during your freelance career?
Getting hired by Calcot, Ltd., the cotton marketing cooperative, in 1979 was my luckiest break. I went from being a part-time sportswriter to a full-time business communicator. I had interviewed for the Calcot job a year earlier but didn’t get the position. Then I got hired by our local daily newspaper to cover sports. When Calcot reached out to me again a year later, I was more experienced. So, I was better prepared when opportunity called. Even so, I still consider being hired by Calcot a lucky break. That job taught me so much about the business world, agriculture, cooperatives, international trade and more. It opened doors that brought me clients and projects when I decided to go freelance. I often say that all roads in my career began with Calcot. To this day, I still cross paths with people who remember me from my Calcot years and return my calls or emails because of it.
What are some lessons you have learned throughout your career?
I try not to think of my life or career in terms of mistakes. I’ve learned something good from everything, especially the unhappy experiences. I’ve repeatedly been pushed outside of my comfort zone. I’ve been a newcomer and an outsider. I’ve been humbled. I’ve learned what not to do. As a result, I’m better for all those experiences. They’ve led me to have more respect for people who run their own businesses and more empathy for those who stick with an unsatisfying job because they have to pay the bills.
What are the biggest challenges of being a freelancer?
People may be drawn to the freelancing life because they like being independent or calling their own shots. But that independence often comes with a sense of isolation. For me, working from home every day can be a little monotonous unless I’m facing a deadline or deep in writing a story. So, to keep the isolation demons away, I take quick breaks from my office. I might take my dog for a walk or do a quick non-writing chore or run an errand. Those activities shake up “the little gray cells,” as Hercule Poirot says, and reinvigorate my return to my computer. Travel, whether it’s a few days at the beach or a week or two out of state, fills me with new ideas so that I’m usually eager to return to work. Also, being part of AAEA keeps me tuned in to what other ag writers are doing, which helps motivate me.
(Courtesy: Harlen Persinger)
How do you define “successfully freelancing?”
If you have as much work as you want, if you’re earning enough to pay your bills and save for the future, if you’re pleased with the articles you’re writing, and enjoying the clients you’re working with, then I’d say you’re a successful freelancer.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
The best freelancing advice I ever received came from my accountant when I first went out on my own. He recommended I set up a separate checking account and credit card to be used strictly for business, to make it easier to track expenses for tax purposes. He instructed me to get a business license. He advised me to set aside 30% of every check I received to pay taxes and save for equipment or other business needs. He set me up on a schedule to pay quarterly taxes. And he strongly recommended I open a Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) IRA and fund it regularly. I heeded his advice, and I am so glad I did.
Can people retire after a career as a freelancer?
Make sure you fund a retirement account of some kind through the years. Also pay your taxes so you’ll qualify one day for Social Security benefits. It may not matter when you’re younger, but as you get older, knowing you’ll have those income streams will be important. They’ll allow you to streamline your workload as you get older, if you like. You can focus on projects and clients you enjoy. And rejoice that you don’t have to give up your writing or photography if you don’t want to. You can pursue editorial projects or try new forms of writing long after other people have retired and are looking for ways to fill the retirement void.
What are some of your favorite articles / stories you wrote during your career?
Trying to pinpoint a single best work is hard, since I’ve written so many things over the years. Some aren’t online, like the corporate history I wrote for Calcot after I’d been freelancing for a couple of years. I think that book has some of my best writing. In 2020, I wrote a story for New Holland’s ACRES magazine that I was pleased with, about the growth in producing olives-for-olive-oil in California. And in late 2019, I wrote a column for The Bakersfield Californian called, “Remembering a brother, a neighbor and the Vietnam War.” It was a personal piece, written not on assignment but because I was moved to share a little history after discovering a letter in my late brother’s scrapbook. Here’s the column: COMMUNITY VOICES: Remembering a brother, a neighbor and the Vietnam War | Opinion | bakersfield.com.
Cathy Merlo has been a freelance writer since 2015. She served as Western editor for Farm Journal Media from 2004-2015. Her career also includes 12 years as communications director for Calcot, Ltd. and a year as a sportswriter for The Bakersfield Californian. Merlo holds a Master Writer Award from the American Agricultural Editors Association. She earned a master’s degree from the Professional Writing Program at the University of Southern California and a bachelor’s degree in English from California State University-Bakersfield.