Freelance Design Tips, Tricks & Resources

Blogs and Business

By • September 2, 2007 • advice, design, freelance • Leave a comment

under2.jpgAs I start this blog, I have a few things in mind. Bear with me as I run down my list.

1. Have Fun: I wanted to have a place to rant and rave and be stupid.

2. Get Info Out There: There’s a lot of great stuff out there – and I wanted to give it a home. An easy, one-stop place for all your freelance graphic design info and resources.

3. Be Honest: A LOT of the other freelance sites out there (blogs included) are either scams or just out to turn a buck. I want to give relevant info, tricks, tips and resources away – FREE. I can make some money, but that’s just not the sole intent here..

4. Promote My Insane Agenda: I am passionate about design, freelancing, the lifestyle of the self-employed artist and all things arty and stupid and fun. I want a place to talk about it, complain about it, be sad, be happy, yadda yadda yadda.

5. Make a Little Bit of Dough: If you’re a freelance designer, you know that having supplemental income is a good thing. I won’t make a lot here, but every little bit helps. Plus, I figure that by helping you make some cash (or giving you tools to help your business,) the great cosmic laws of karma (or whatever) will smile upon me and help me out, too. Win-win, you know.

So there – I’ve said it. Not that anyone is all that interested in why I’m doing this, but when you write it down and put it out there for the world to see, you are kind of bound to what you’ve said.

Now – get out there and make something cool. I’ m going to have another cup of coffee.

ELVIS! DESIGN! ELVIS!!!

By • September 1, 2007 • advice, design, freelance, funny, Rants & Raves • Leave a comment

Honestly – this guy had to be the greatest performer ever. When you have millions of people imitating you, you’ve obviously done something right.

I’d love to be imitated. Seems like a lot of designers and design ideology runs on parallel tracks, but I want to be imitated.

Ah – but check out Design Is Kinky. Lots of great stuff, lots of art and illustration. Very cool. Very inspirational. I think that’s what Elvis had – a lot of inspiration. Keeps you fresh.

Plus, having people write songs for you to swivel your hips to ain’t bad, either. Still trying to figure out how that works in the design field…

Freelance Design for Fun, Profit and Chicks

By • September 1, 2007 • advice, design, freelance • Leave a comment

Welcome!

With this site, I hope to impart some wisdom gained (and lost) as a freelance graphic and web designer. I’ll offer tips, tricks and resources geared exclusively for freelancers. Here, you’ll find forms that I’ve used for billing and time tracking, general contracts, links to sites that offer real resources for all your freelance needs.

There are plenty of great sources for information out there – but it seems like they’re all written for a different crowd. Freelance graphic design is a different beast from most other freelance professions, so if you’ve never lived it, you can’t really write about it. I’ve seen the peak and the valleys that every freelance designer goes through. I’ve lived it for many, many moons now – and I have some advice, some tools, and some things that will help you on your way to success.

Along the way, I’ll offer some for-pay resources. Hey – I gotta make a living, you know.

Read a little bit about what I’ve done – learn from my mistakes, and let me help you on your way to a (somewhat) lucrative career as a freelance designer.

Enjoy!

Jim