Freelancing for Journalists

Freelancing for Journalists

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Freelancing for Journalists
Freelancing for Journalists
How to earn no money and take time off

How to earn no money and take time off

Funding a five week summer holiday

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Freelancing for Journalists
Aug 23, 2024
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Freelancing for Journalists
Freelancing for Journalists
How to earn no money and take time off
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Photo by Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦 on Unsplash

Our most popular premium newsletter this year was all about money. Last month Emma shared how she made £6.5k in one month. It was a fascinating insight into a dizzyingly busy month and a great example of the ebbs and flows of freelance journalism.

This month we want to open our books on a contrasting scenario. How do you take off an extended period of time every year and not earn any money at all? Every summer I take off three to five weeks. This coincides with the school summer holiday and enables me to have a really good break, some time with the kids and crack on with languishing DIY tasks like decorating and sorting the garage.

This year I will earn no money from the middle of July to the end of August. In effect I have taken five weeks off. Yet I am still paying the bills, going on holiday and squirrelling away funds to cover my tax bill and pension. I also have around a week off at Christmas, another week at Easter, and then a half term or two across the year.

In today’s newsletter I explain just how I fund my annual summer break, and the amount of money coming in and out of my bank account. As the main breadwinner in the household I can’t rely on anyone else, so I have to plan my finances carefully.

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