Journo-Ed

Jeff Sonderman, a voice a respect a great deal (and whom I cite often in my research), offered a few musings on The Atlantic Write-For-Free-Gate. Sonderman buried his interesting contribution at the end of his post, where he asks a pretty provocative question: Is freelancing dead?

Will there ever be a secure living in freelancing full-time, in an age when so many other writers are happy to publish for free? Or do writers need to accept that their skill must be leveraged into other income opportunities like book deals, speaking fees, etc.?

As someone who has done a good bit of freelancing — but never made it my full-time source of income — I’m not sure how to take Sonderman’s question. I can’t say I fault his logic.

The Web has killed many things that used to be staples — I’m looking at you, Travel Agent — is the freelancer on the path to a similar fate?