I've been volunteering this for too long, how do I start charging?
I've been copy editing/proofreading/developmental editing for way too long for free (4-5 years). At first it was just for fun and passion of it, but when I realized I enjoyed it as a job, I thought I could try to build a portfolio and start charging. The problem is: nobody ever published. Most of the people who seek this kind of work for free have little to no commitment to actually publishing. I'd eventually get ghosted, or the author would just say they lost the passion in the project.
I then switched my strategy to try my luck charging for it. I thought I'd start very very low, to compensate for my lack of portfolio. This brought on my second problem: companies won't hire me without a portfolio, and freelance jobs either are AI scams or think I am an AI scam.
I am exhausted of trying to get my foot in the door in this industry. I actually enjoy the work and have time and experience doing it. I love building relationships with authors and helping them publish. How do I do it??