Also know your targets! One club I represent has a Festival once a year with one main concert, so there will be one headline act and one support act, plus we put on a mid-year concert, and monthly sessions. The rest of the Festival weekend is filled with ceilidh, Open Stage, workshops and other events. So what I'm saying is the chance of appearing as a paid artiste are fairly low in this set-up.
But another club I go to has a different act and floor spots every single week from September to June, so there's maybe more chance of appearing there if you're any good.
So target those places that have more employment opportunities.