You announced your pregnancy pretty openly and I was wondering what kind of response you got from your editors? Do you think you may be getting fewer assignments as a result of this or that editors might find that you’re less dependable if you’ve been keeping sick? My husband and I are planning a family and I’m wondering how (or if) it’s going to have any impact on my freelancing career. Would you mind sharing your experience? Have you ever worried about this?
Not until now! I’m just kidding.
I did think about the professional ramnifications of announcing my pregnancy for, oh, about three seconds, and knew pretty much straight away that if an editor was going to stop giving me work because I’m pregnant, then I might as well just say farewell to that editor right now, because at some point, I’m going to go on maternity leave, have a sick child, want to take a break, whatever, and if an editor doesn’t understand that reality, then it’s not going to be a fruitful relationship.
And truth be told, I wasn’t expecting to have a difficult pregnancy (who is?). I expected to continue working at full capacity until the baby popped out and then between feedings. (Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.) And while I do have somewhat realistic expectations now, I also do know that my work means a lot to me so I’m one of those people who usually finds a way to make it work. And I have been putting in almost as many hours as pre-pregnancy, even if I’ve been pretty unwell five days out of seven. Working makes me feel better.
My experience with editors has been that not one, not a single one, has had any problems giving me work and most (especially the ones who have children of their own) don’t think it’s a big deal at all. My editors don’t think I’m less dependable because I haven’t been less dependable. When I’m unwell, I lay low, but no one really sees that, so while most of my editors know that I’m expecting, most of them aren’t privy to details and hence don’t know how I’m feeling on a given day. And really, why would they care? As long as I’m doing the work I’m supposed to be doing, sending in ideas, being communicative, they don’t have any reason to see my situation as any different.
I think pregnancy will have the same effect on your career that any other major life change will and it’s totally dependent on you. If you need to cut back on how much work you can do, then sure, editors will take that cue from you, but if you don’t, then I don’t think anyone will even notice. If anything, I’ve had some wonderful interactions with some of my editors, one of whom actually expressed shock that I’d be willing to take on as much work as I’d asked for (four pieces a month) and then dumped it on me very happily when I said that I was up for it. You might not be, and you know, I honestly don’t think anyone’s going to judge you for it.
I haven’t yet considered how I’m going to handle maternity leave, which is of course, a bigger consideration because I may choose not to work for the first couple of months or I may decide that I’ll simply scale back. I’m pretty honest (and friendly) with my editors, though, so I’m be fairly straightforward and let them know in time whatever it is that I choose to do.
A lot of women I know worry about how they’re going to get back into freelancing (or work in general) after a baby, and the more I’ve thought about it, the less worried I am. Most people, editors included, totally understand that you have a life outside of work and are wonderfully flexible when it comes down to it.
As with all things freelancing, in the end it all comes down to relationships. I’ve always been straightforward and honest with my editors and for the most part, that’s exactly what I get back.
Good luck in however you choose to handle your personal situation!