[dachris]

It depends on the type of your contracts - there's also longer-term contracts out there (at lower hourly rates).

You can do any mix of those (if you can find them) - ideally, you've got long-term contracts that cover you basic income needs, and do short-term contracts or product development on top of that.

Regarding the feast or famine cycles - you need a very healthy cash cushion.

And speaking of health, that's a risk in itself. Long-term health issues that prevent you from working as much as you need to will drain your cushion.