Freelance Cafe

New Website

2011-08-09T12:15:00.000-07:00

We've moved! Please visit us at freelancecafe.org.

self-employment disability insurance

2009-02-17T16:30:00.000-08:00

There are only two things I miss about working in a regular office job (besides regular interaction with the rest of the working world, of course).

1) IT - Tech Support. I can't even count the number of hours I've spent tearing my hair out over some computer problem that an IT department could fix in minutes. Or how many hours I've spent on the phone with obnoxious "help" desks that are horribly misnamed. My own personal IT department is number one on my freelance wish list.

2) HR. Granted, HR departments can be a big pain in the ass, but generally, they help you get paid, on time, and work out all those little details like taxes, benefits, vacation time, and personal/medical leave. I had a baby last May, and I just assumed that because I work for myself, I wasn't entitled to any kind of maternity or other medical benefits, even though I pay hefty self-employment taxes. Turns out freelancers do qualify for maternity benefits under the Paid Family Leave program (part of State Disability). Only hitch is that you have to pay for related but separate California’s Disability Insurance Elective Coverage. (Essentially, you pay in a certain percentage based on what you make, and if you go on leave, you get back a certain percentage of what you would be making if you were working. The rates are pretty reasonable and the benefit certainly seems worth it.)

I have no idea how I was supposed to know this. It's not like I could sit down and have a meeting with myself about the benefits available to me as a freelancer. I suppose when I became self-employed I should have done more research about what was available to me and what wasn't. But mostly I was just trying to get PAID (and keep my equipment running.)

Now I know. And hopefully someone else can benefit from my lack of foresight.

http://www.edd.ca.gov/Disability/Self-Employed.htm

how may I help you?

2009-02-13T09:56:00.001-08:00

I'm trying to figure out how this site can best serve freelancers. My original idea was to create a go-to place for people looking for freelancers in various fields. They could come to the site, scroll through the links on the right, find the freelancer that best meets their needs, and contact the freelancer directly.

The other option is to make this site an overall resource for freelancers - using the lists on the right to link to resources for each field - how to sites, pitching and pricing guidelines, funding and awards opportunities, legal advice, inspiration, etc.

mediabistro.com and others are already doing this, though you definitely have to do a bit of searching to find the information you're looking for. I would like this site to be more straightforward.

Ultimately, I would love to include both links to freelancers and links for freelancers, but I fear that would be too much information for one page.

Thoughts?

CPA workshop

2009-02-12T15:13:00.001-08:00

We had our first official workshop Tuesday night - a tax presentation and Q & A with freelance CPA Jason Stallcup. It wasn't a huge crowd - about 15 people - but I have to say I'm thrilled with how it went. Jason did a fantastic job of presenting tax information in an interesting, informative, and accessible way. The workshop attendees were totally engaged, asking lots of questions. And the location - Sandbox Suites (owned and run by another freelancer on the list) was perfect. But most importantly it was an example of the Freelance Cafe group working. It was a presentation for freelancers, by a freelancer, hosted at a co-working space owned by a freelancer. Love it. I hope this will be the first of many events like this one.

And if you need help with your taxes - call Jason!

Jason Stallcup, CPA
415-215-0639.
jason@jasoncpa.com

Also, if you're looking for a workspace, check these guys out.

Sandbox Suites
123 10th Street, SF
info@sandboxsuites.com
p: 415-659-8197

new website

2009-02-08T09:28:00.001-08:00

For those of you who saw the old freelancecafe.org website, you'll understand why I made this change. I know there are better options than a blogger blog for a website, but this is what I know and I'm sticking with it for now. If anyone feels like kicking down about $10k for a real website, let me know.

In the meantime, I'm hoping to make this site as useful for freelance folks as I can, so feel free to send me links to useful resource sites or your own websites/blogs and I'll add it this site.

new year, new life for Freelance Cafe

2009-01-21T10:25:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since I've posted to this blog and a lot has changed. Most importantly, Freelance Cafe is thriving on Facebook and the email list has grown to more than 150 members. We recently merged with a journalism MeetUp group in San Francisco, and the gatherings are getting bigger by the month. (We had at least 30 people at our holiday party, mostly thanks to the amazing friends-seeing-other-friends-attending-an-event phenomenon of Facebook.)

We have our first official workshop coming up on Feb. 10 - a tax seminar. And we have other workshops/events in the works. This is exciting! Clearly there are others out there who are as eager as I am to connect with other freelancers. And I will continue to do my best to make that happen.

For now, the blog is back. Stay tuned.

Freelance Cafe Happy Hour

2007-05-21T15:05:00.000-07:00

I was inspired by my friend Robin who created a monthly happy hour for folks who work in the environmental field. I've been to his Green Drinks gathering a couple times and it's impressive - 100 people or more. They now have monthly sponsors. Such a great idea.

So I've been asking around about doing a similar thing for freelancers, and it seems that there is some interest. I thought Pacific Coast Brewing Company would be a good spot, and I've set the first one for 5/31. The Freelance Cafe Final Thursday gathering for lonely independents like myself. A step in the right direction. Pass it on.

it has a name...

2007-02-28T14:01:00.000-08:00

So apparently my idea is called "co-working" and it's not a unique idea by far.

Dave Gilson sent me this BusinessWeek.com article about "co-working facilities" popping up all over the place. I've logged some of them in previous posts, but there are a number of new ones that opened in 2006.

There's even a coworking wiki to help coordinate people and coworking facilities across the country and abroad. But there's still not one in Oakland.

Also check out this slide show of alternative work spaces connected with the article.

Chicago Manual Online - group rates

2007-02-28T12:47:00.000-08:00

Another resource to offer members - group discounts for the Chicago Manual of Style online. I'm sure there are similar sites/discounts for AP and other style guides.

Small user-group prices:

2–5 users	$25.00 per user if the group subscribes by September 30, 2007
6–10 users	10% discount – $22.50 per user if the group subscribes by September 30, 2007
11–15 users	15% discount – $21.25 per user if the group subscribes by September 30, 2007
16–20 users	20% discount – $20.00 per user if the group subscribes by September 30, 2007

NYC Writer's Room

2006-12-12T11:37:00.000-08:00

An Urban Writers' Colony in New York City

Rob Gunnison put me in touch with Doug Merlino - a fellow j-school grad who is now working as a writer in NYC. He works out of a place called the Writer's Room . It's been around since 1978 and was founded to create an affordable workspace for writers of all kinds.

Here's what Doug says about it.

"I love the place I work... Basically, you apply for membership and, assuming you are accepted (you send them a resume and some references), it costs $100 a month to work there. It's basically a big room with cubicles and a separate kitchen and phone area. You keep your stuff in a locker and, when you come in, grab a place that's free to work."

He also told me about another similar place called The Paragraph. This place was founded by two women who wanted to create a work environment similar to what they had in grad school. YES! Their space is gorgeous - I need to find out how they funded it. They also do special events, round tables, etc.

And here's yet ANOTHER one in Tribeca - The Village Quill. Apparently the waiting lists for these places get so long they have to keep opening new ones.

Finally - Doug pointed me to this NYT article that basically proves the value of these kinds of work spaces. So very encouraging.

oakland workforce development

2006-11-13T16:06:00.000-08:00

Oakland Workforce Investment Board - a city organization helping employees and employers get matched up in Oakland. On the surface it sounds like a lot of dysfunctional city bureaucracy, but maybe there is something here. Need to look into it further.

same idea, different clientele

2006-11-09T17:29:00.000-08:00

TWO ROOMS - A work space for freelance moms. Or at least it used to be. Their website is still working but it looks like their physical space is closed for the time being. I wonder what happened?

The main idea (from their website): "Parents work and children play at a facility designed to meet the needs of the growing population of freelance workers who are parents – a group that requires flexibility, professional resources and childcare. Our mission is to provide a comfortable and complete work environment for parents, with quality childcare on site, to give parents and children the room they need to be creative and productive."

Childcare + Office Space - their tagline "You work, they play."

brothers with money

2006-11-08T12:48:00.000-08:00

Knight Brothers 21st Century News Challenge

My brother found this. They have ALOT of money and very open guidelines. But their deadline is December 31!

thinking WAY ahead

2006-11-08T12:28:00.000-08:00

PacificCare Foundation - I heard an underwriting message about these guys on KQED. They are a health care provider that gives grants to various organizations... not exactly useful at the moment but worth filing away.

help from politicians?

2006-11-08T12:00:00.000-08:00

While it looks like Aimee Allison is not going to defeat Pat Kernighan in the District 2 City Council race, she still might be a helpful ally in developing a small business in Oakland.

From her campaign website :

Support Small and Local Businesses
• Adopt a plan to attract retail that will include development of key neighborhood business districts like the Grand Lake, Eastlake, Chinatown, and 23rd Avenue
• Encourage Oaklanders to develop independent businesses
• Provide marketing and promotions grant and loans to merchant associations
• Encourage successful, well run small businesses to open a second or third site in Oakland (e.g. coffee shops/restaurants)

how could i forget

2006-11-08T11:55:00.000-08:00

The Grotto - home of Po Bronson and other freelance superstars. It's an amazing organization with one major problem - it's exclusive to folks who are already relatively established in the freelance world.

Here's an article by Po Bronson about writer communities.

this one is fun

2006-11-08T11:47:00.000-08:00

NaNoWriMo - These guys sponsor National Novel Writing Month, challenging folks to write a 175-page novel between November 1 and November 30. But more than that, they are trying to create a community of writers who would otherwise be alone in their rooms/offices/local cafes. The founder, Chris Baty, is an Oakland-based freelance writer.

other resources and possible supporters

2006-10-27T16:59:00.000-07:00

Craigslist Foundation - the non-profit branch of craigslist which provides resources and workshops for other non-profits. My friend Wendy knows the Executive Director, Darian Heyman. They do a non-profit boot camp every year in SF and NYC. I missed it this year, but I might make it a goal to attend the SF camp next summer.

Incubator.com is not exactly the kind of support I'm looking for, but who knows... maybe we can draw these hi-tech/startup-focused investors over to the non-for-profit side. Plus, this organization is based in Rensselaer, NY, so maybe they'd be willing to make an exception for a hometown girl. (Or maybe we can skip the whole non-profit thing and go for the big bucks!)

Here's google search for "bay area incubator." I haven't had time to look through these carefully yet.

And here's a google search for "east bay incubator." Some good stuff in here about local businesses.

EastBay Works is primarily a career search organization, but there's some good stuff here about starting your own business.

Oakland Chamber of Commerce - I don't think my idea will be as appealing to Mayor Jerry Brown as, say, a shiny new big box store, but he's on his way out anyway... This site includes a Small Business Resource Directory.

money, money, money

2006-10-27T15:50:00.001-07:00

I know there are a lot of places that give money to non-profits - the trick will be finding a good match. Here's the beginning of a list of possibilities:

Saratoga Foundation (for women)
Charity Navigator - matching givers with getters
National Endowment for the Arts (long shot)

possible locations

2006-10-27T15:20:00.001-07:00

My favorite space is at 23 Grand at Broadway. It's next to Front Gallery, down the street from Luka's TapRoom, and right across from a soon-to-be completed apartment/retail space currently called Broadway Grand. It's 2000 square feet and costs $3500/month. I have no idea how reasonable that is for the size. Need to do more research here.

There's another space on the corner of Broadway and Grand that's 5000 square feet and $9000/month, but I think that's a little too big/expensive. :-)

The leasee for both of these spaces is Shahla Davoudi, owner of Elite Reprographics which is on the same block. We exchanged messages a few times and I'm sure I could set up a meeting with her if it came to that. (p. 415.957.1234)

There's also a space available at 3237 Grand, right near the Grand Lake Theater. It's $1200/month and it's quite small (don't know the square feet) - right next to a discount mattress place. I went to talk to someone there and they were pretty sketchy. But I won't rule it out - especially for that price. (p. 510-432-0500)

has it been done before and what makes this idea unique

2006-10-27T15:18:00.000-07:00

mediabistro.com is probably the closest to what I would like to create. (Any name similarity is purely coincidental. If it's too embarrassingly similar I will make a change - though I rather like "Freelance Cafe" (Dave's idea)). It combines resources for independents with networking opportunities and special events/classes, and it emphasizes making connections between people who would otherwise be alone in their independent freelancers' world.

Two thoughts on how my idea is different:

1) The physical space - while mediabistro.com creates opportunities for independents to meet, it is primarily an online space.

2) I'm not sure about the focus on media. While that is what I know the most about, there are plenty of freelancers/contractors who don't work in media - for example - contract engineers. These folks have different needs and, potentially, a lot more money.

One thought on how my idea is the same:

1) Maybe I could work with mediabistro.com to create my cafe with their backing?

TechShop is a new space in the South Bay that seems really, really cool. It's kind of like the Crucible (one of my favorite places in Oakland) but it's for profit. These spots are obviously much more industrial than what I have in mind, but they do share the sense of communal resources and networking for people with like interests.

Here's a recent news story about TechShop.

Creative Growth in Oakland is a well-established program to support creative expression, but it was created for adults with disabilities. Might be a good model for developing an Oakland non-profit. It's been around since the mid 70's.

Oaklandish - not really similar to what I want to do, but a very cool Oakland-based organization that is doing great things. Might be a good partnership opportunity.

Insomnia Cafe in Los Angeles is simply a cafe, but it encourages screenwriters and other independent LA types to sit and stay all day. I love the idea of creating a space like this. Lyssa (amazingly) remembered an article that was written about it the New York Times in 2004.

AudioLuxe is noteworthy in that it's a local independent startup non-profit podcasting/training organization run by some folks I know-ish (Stacy Bond and Michael Johnson of KQED). They could potentially be a good partner/resource.

stop trying to make it perfect and get started already (aka The Big Picture)

2006-10-27T15:11:00.000-07:00

I've been talking about starting this blog for far too long. I keep waiting to have the time and energy to create a fabulous and coherent mission statement and a framework business plan to kick it off, but that doesn't seem to be happening. So I'm just going to start putting stuff up here in all its incoherent glory. We'll call it brainstorming.

The main idea - more or less - is to create a space in Oakland for freelancers, contractors, and other independents to gather with others doing similar work, and to find resources and networking opportunities to help them succeed (financially, socially, etc.) in whatever it is they want to do with their time.

Here's my very first list of possibilities for this space. (Keep in mind, this is brainstorming so there are no bad ideas, right?)

incubator for individuals with an idea
memberships
workshops
resource center
brown bags or donated lunches
gym membership and other discounts (health insurance)
individuals/artists in residence
guest speakers (author of "I don't know what I want...")
resource library
in house gallery/pro tools setup/darkroom
media center
collaborations with other local businesses - Luka's, other galleries
rental spaces for freelancers
special events/fundraisers
sabbaticals for independents

So - what now? I need comments, opinions, suggestions, links, resources - anything that will either 1) help make this idea a reality or 2) convince me that this is crazy and unworkable and that I should stick to my day job.

Ideally - each of my posts will encourage a slew of comments from you all, which will lead to more posts and ultimately that fabulous and coherent mission statement and business plan I mentioned earlier. Ready? Go!