Being Freelance

Lisa Emmington is a freelance instructional designer (or as her newly SEO'd website puts it, a training course designer) based near Milton Keynes.  She's been freelance almost her entire career, starting out as an IT trainer back when Apple Macs were a mystery box on people's desks, and has reinvented her business every time the market has shifted underneath her - from face to face...

Zoe East has never had a proper job. A work experience placement at a big TV channel that felt old-fashioned and sexist put her off the traditional route before she'd even graduated, so she went freelance instead and never really looked back. That was over ten years ago. She started with whatever work came along. The niche found her gradually: charities doing meaningful work, heritage and cul...

French creative Émilie Chen had what she calls her dream job: senior designer at The National Theatre in London, working on posters she'd dreamed about since university. Years later though, it had turned sour in the studio, her mental health took a hit, and she gave herself 8 months to start saving money and figure out her next Act.  What got her there wasn't a clever strategy. It was pe...

Adrian’s been a successful freelancer for 21 years. But in the past 7, his definition of framing success has changed. For the last seven years, Adrian has also been an unpaid carer for three immediate family members. He talks honestly about what that's meant for his business - the travel he's had to give up, the networking events he can't get to, the inquiries he's had to turn...

Melissa  spent over a decade in PR & Comms. She was good at it but she was drawn to the ocean. So she started pitching dive magazines on the side, moved to Mozambique to volunteer with a marine conservation charity, and when the pandemic sent her home, decided to go all-in as a freelancer rather than look for another job. Still it was PR work she was picking up but frustrated by.  “I just want...

How does a creative side project turn into a decade long freelancing business working with the biggest names in pop culture, like Disney, Pixar, Marvel, DC Comics, Lucasfilm, Warner Bros and Sony Pictures? All good super-heroes have an origin story. And this interview tells the series of events that took Doaly from working for a company in Birmingham, England, to the front page of comic covers see...

It's a question Steve Folland gets asked a lot: as a freelancer, is it better to have a company name or use your own? In this compilation episode, Steve digs deep into 11 years of the Being Freelance podcast archive - pulling together voices from guests including brand copywriter Mark Grainger, branding expert Bhavini Lakhani, copywriter Graeme Piper, illustrator Dan Bailey, social media cons...

Jessica Hartshorn was trained as an illustrator, but unable to get work as one she went in another direction. Jessica spent the next 16 years working in museums and galleries. But the itch to illustrate never went away. So she set up a secret Instagram account and started painting again without telling a soul. Seven years on, she's a successful illustrator, freelancing with museums, galleries...

New episodes with fresh freelancing stories coming very soon. But as Jess Bruno said on her episode of Being Freelance: "Content can always blood wait". JOIN THE COMMUNITY You're not alone being freelance.  Come and hang out with your BFFs (Being Freelance Friends). beingfreelance.com/community   NEW TO FREELANCING? THERE'S A COURSE FOR YOU! The Being Freelance course is made f...

Charles Commins handed his notice in at his pub management job with no plan and no business.  His partner gave him one month to figure it out. All he knew was that he wanted to love his job. Seven and a half years later, he's an award-winning freelance podcast producer whose almost entire client chain traces back to one decision: making a football podcast about Northampton Town. That podcast...

Perryn Ryan didn't set out to become a freelance illustrator.  After a degree in computer information systems (to keep her parents happy), years in tech,, and a long stint in the fashion industry, she eventually gave herself permission to just... draw stuff she liked. Nothing serious. Then a stranger with a million followers re-shared her work, the enquiries started flooding in, and a freelan...

Laura Whitehouse didn’t follow the usual path into graphic design. While studying archaeology and anthropology (told you) at university, she started designing posters for student theatre shows. At first for free, then for £20 here and there (or sometimes just a pint). What began as a creative outlet quickly became the foundation of a freelance career. Thanks to word of mouth clients and the help o...

In this short compilation episode, Steve revisits conversations from across 11 years of the Being Freelance podcast archive to explore what actually happens when freelancers specialise in a niche. Full of stories of how these freelance creatives found their niche and the impact it had. You’ll hear: THE IMPACT OF NICHING How specialising can make marketing simpler and sales conversations easier Why...

For years, Mark Grainger’s freelance business ticked along nicely. Referrals. Word of mouth. Repeat clients. And then… things went quiet. In this episode, we explore what happens when the reliable stream of freelance work slows down. And what it really takes to respond proactively rather than panic. Durham-based freelance brand copywriter Mark shares how he: - Repositioned himself from a company n...

This is the first time I've done this as an episode. A quick behind the scenes of what I'm up to with my own freelancer business - as a freelance video and podcast editor.  If you'd like to go even more behind the scenes, check out my freelancing life vlog on YouTube . If I'm going to pay for an advert for my services, there's something I need to do first... And you can do...

Laura has been a professional graphic designer for over 20 years, but her freelance journey began in 2008 after the birth of her first child. With daycare in Manhattan costing more than rent, Laura started piecing together freelance work from home; juggling projects from a tiny dining table in a fourth-floor walk-up. Freelancing wasn’t always smooth. But eventually, after settling in Massachusetts...

Cold outreach can often get a freelance business started.  But in this episode I propose even those of us years down the line don't give it the cold shoulder. When you need to bring in clients, maybe a period of cold outreach, or even a consistent long term pattern of it, could be exactly what warms our business back up again. Cold emails. Cold calls. Reaching out to people who didn’t ask to...

Katie Chappell is a freelance live illustrator based in the UK - and her story takes some unexpected turns. After being sacked from a graphic design job, Katie slowly built a freelance illustration career through side jobs, teaching guitar, working in retail, and even becoming a nanny abroad. A 100-day drawing project helped her find confidence, momentum, and visibility - and eventually led her in...

As freelancers, it’s easy to spend most of our time in the business - delivering client work, meeting deadlines, keeping things ticking over. But if we never step back, time has a habit of running away from us. We can be swept along on a current of what people ask us to do, not thinking about if it's where we want to be heading. This episode is a little different from the usual Being Freelanc...

From an overworked designer posting “a visual diary” on Instagram to running a multi-stream creative business, Itzel Islas has built a freelance life entirely on her own terms. After almost a decade in apparel design, she started illustrating for fun - and quickly realised people loved her colourful, playful style. “Little by little I started creating art… and then I started getting clients throug...

Freelance market research consultant Katie Tucker shares how being intentional - with her time, energy, and choices - helped her build a freelance life that truly fits.  From walking away from a corporate job for a family adventure to launching her freelance business Product Jungle and writing excellent business book Do Penguins Eat Peaches?, Katie opens up about patience, priorities, and the real...

From choreographing dance routines and directing a TV show at a South African megachurch… to running her own freelance business - Lineo Kakole’s journey into branding was anything but traditional. When no one would hire her after she quit her job, Lineo started sharing passion projects on Instagram. From there, she built her creative identity design studio, Get Ready With Me , around beauty, strat...

When Jess Bruno left her corporate job in marketing, to help with managing her chronic illness - she had no idea freelancing was even an option.  It was her mum that made her realise all the free marketing advice she was giving to her friends should be worth paying for. The next time they called asking for help, it would cost £25. Since then, Jess has built a six-figure freelancer business. And wh...

From finance lawyer in Malta to FinTech copywriter in Edinburgh — André Spiteri’s freelancing story is full of risk, reinvention, and real talk. In this episode, André shares how he went from a corporate job he hated to building a sustainable freelance writing business.  He talks honestly about the pressures of starting out, the mindset shift that came with success, and why the freedom of freelanc...

PODCAST SPONSORED BY RIVERSIDE: High quality audio/video recorded online www.beingfreelance.com/riverside It’s free to get started - use code BEINGFREELANCE to save 15% on a paid plan    ABOUT THIS EPISODE Ben O’Brien, known to many as Ben The Illustrator , returns to share how his freelance journey has evolved since his first Being Freelance appearance back in 2018 . From losing all his travel in...