My First Year as a Freelancer: Income Breakdown - #56

Treyton DeVore

November 5, 2022

Welcome to The Loaf - making money & business more approachable for creatives & freelancers

Good morning 🍂

Switching it up this week with a piece of Breadheads* branded merch:

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creator crumbs

Creative Business: What It's Like Being a Full-Time Creator

This blog from ConvertKit dives into 9 different aspects of full-time creator businesses.

Some of my favorite takeaways:

67% of full-time creators started growing their audience more than three years ago
Professional creators put out an average of 4.4 different types of content, with top formats including social posts, email, blog posts, and short-form videos
79% of creators didn’t have a full-time employee, 69% didn’t have a part-time employee, and 45% didn’t work with contractors

Money: How Much I Made in My First 12 Months as a Freelance Writer & Designer (Full Breakdown)

I started freelancing last year and through my first 12 months of both writing & design, I made $54,666.

This article breaks down how I became a freelancer, my first year income, and three things I would've done differently.

💸 starving artist grants

An exciting update on the Grant Program mentioned in last week's newsletter:

After talking to some tax people & friends, I decided that the best route for me to go in this journey was starting my own nonprofit.

There's a lot that went into the decision, but on Monday October 31st, Piertree Provides became an official entity.

There are still a few more applications & things I have to do to become a full-fledged nonprofit, but we're well on our way.

We've already had nearly $8,000 worth of grant requests submitted and if you would benefit from a small grant, please submit this form.

Funds are reserved for those pursuing creative careers or working on creative projects.

A few examples from applicants so far:

$500 to replace old equipment & upgrade softwares to create a documentary
$1,000 to fly overseas to complete a photography project
$250 to upgrade freelance portfolio & join a gig community
$750 to help cover living expenses to pursue freelance work

I can't wait to start reviewing applications & issuing funds, but I'll keep sharing updates here as I work to get the nonprofit up & running so that all of this can be possible.

Watch the 3 minute explainer