I once received a box of business cards as a birthday gift. Each card lists my name, contact information and the words “freelance writer.” What exactly is a freelance writer? Does it mean that I write for free? If I work, I should get paid. Isn’t that the way it’s supposed to be?

According to Mr. Webster, freelance is “a writer, actor, etc. who is not under contract for regular work but sells his writings or services to individual buyers.” Mr. Webster also defines sells as “to give up, deliver, or exchange (property, goods, services, etc.) for money or its equivalent.”

I’ll never forget that first letter of acceptance and that first check. For a number of years I’ve worked with children in the church setting, so it’s only natural that I would have children in mind if I write. At the time I was a leader in Pioneer Girls, a scouting program for girls. They announced the upcoming new magazine, Living Trails for Girls. Even though I hadn’t had any instructions in the rules of writing, I wrote a story and sent it to Pioneer Girls as a contribution to their new magazine, never expecting to be paid. Then came the letter. They liked my story and if they used it, I would receive payment. I think the reason for my success was the fact that I knew girls and what made them tick. I’d worked with them, took them on outings, and even served as a camp counselor.

With that encouragement, I continued to write and submit. Of course I received my share of rejections, but also had a bit of success. I made it as a freelance writer.

A few years later I enrolled in the writing courses with The Institute of Children’s Literature, where I learned the proper procedure of formatting and submission. I never expect to get rich on my earnings so I set that money aside. At the end of the year I add it up and use it for something special. One year a girl who had been in my Pioneer Girls group came home after serving twenty-five years as a missionary in a hot country. It was winter here and she had no suitable winter clothing. I took her shopping and encouraged her to pick out some warm outfits. Even though I wasn’t shopping for myself, I had as much fun as she did.

With my “writing” money, I’ve been able to buy books for an inner-city public school and also for a school in Cote d’Ivoire, West Africa. My heart is warmed when I’m able to do something special without dipping into my budget.

Then the recession hit and some magazines ceased publication. At the same time a few new magazines sprang up on-line, and some of these markets offer no payment. I’ve read articles by writers who state they definitely would not write for free or even for amounts as small as $5.00 or $10.00. Their reasoning is logical, especially if he/she depends on those acceptances to pay the bills and put food on the table. They can’t afford to write for free.

Since I’d always received payment for my acceptances, why would I want to write for free? Here’s why: I write because I have a story to tell. I love children and want to entertain them, teach them, and help them grow. After all, if these new on-line magazines don’t sell subscriptions or advertisements, why not encourage them? They are providing a free service.

Another important factor in writing for free, there probably is less competition and easier to build up a list of credits. Usually the editors of the on-line magazines are working a month or so ahead so I don’t have to wait a year, or as many as three years, to see my story in print.

I flipped through my files, looking for suitable stories to fit particular guidelines. Stories that had already been published could go as reprints. I’d already been paid for them. Stories that had only been collecting rejection letters and other stories that had never been submitted may finally find homes.

Even though I know a market is non-paying, when I submit a manuscript I am offering to sell it. They have the option to accept or reject it. Going back to Mr. Webster’s definition of sells, “to exchange for money or its equivalent.” Just maybe the equivalent could be the satisfaction of seeing my story in print, and more important, a child reading it.

This has never happened to me, but our beloved web editor and writer Jan Fields states that after receiving rejections for one of her short stories, she submitted it to an on-line magazine that paid very little. Later she received an offer from a company that makes standardized testing material for schools and ending up making more for that story than for any other. So you never know!

Then reality hit. Recently, I spent some time reading guidelines and theme lists. A few magazines, such as: Highlights for Children, Jack & Jill (Children’s Better Health Magazines), The Kids Ark, Story Station, Pockets fiction contest, and Guardian Angel Kids, ask for all rights or first rights. I thought of stories that I had given away for free and would now fit a theme or contest. I’d lost the opportunity to submit them to paying magazines.

Will I write for free again? Probably, but I’ll give it a little more thought before hitting the send button.