Freelance Writers: Back up your Work!
I cannot stress this point enough: if you are a freelance writer, you need to backup your work on a regular basis. This is not the first time that I have said this, and it probably won’t be the last. The reason that I keep harping on this is that I am always hearing horror stories of freelancers who did not do this. Even if you are not a freelance writer, you will still want to back up your work as much as possible.
If you neglect to do this because you think you are invincible, you could be in for a big downfall soon enough. What would you do if you suddenly lost an entire project that is due in a few hours? While you can only hope that this never happens, you would not be the first person to be dealt this cruel hand. But guess what? If you backup your work, it is safe to say that you will not lose any part of your project.
There are many things that can happen that can cause your work to be suddenly deleted. This can include anything from a hard drive malfunction to the power suddenly going out in your office. Just a couple weeks back I was in the midst of a 2,000 word feature article when the power blew. Was this a big deal? It wouldn’t have been if my work was backed up. But since I just started the project that morning, I had yet to save it anywhere. The result: losing two hours of work and being forced to start over at step one.
If you are going to take your freelance writing work seriously, make sure that it is always protected against unforeseen incidents. I know this is easier said than done (see my story above) but it is a very important part of your business. The only thing worse than losing a project that you worked so hard on, is losing a client because you could not deliver their work on time.Â
