So you want to become a freelance writer? Great idea! Writing for a living allows you the freedom and flexibility to work when and where you want. But like any business, launching a freelance writing career takes time and effort.
In this comprehensive guide, I’ll share my best tips for starting and growing a successful freelance writing business from scratch. With the right strategy, you can go from no clients to a full schedule of paid writing gigs.
Why Freelance Writing is a Smart Career Move?
First, let’s look at why freelance writing is an appealing career path for many:
You Can Work From Anywhere
One of the best parts of freelance writing is the location independence. As long as you have a laptop and internet connection, you can work from a coffee shop, co-working space, or the comfort of your home. No more wasting time and money commuting to an office every day.
You Choose Your Own Hours
Another major benefit of becoming a freelance writer is having control over your schedule. There’s no boss telling you when or how much to work. You can choose to work typical business hours or mix things up to suit your lifestyle. The flexibility is ideal for night owls, early birds, and people who prefer taking lots of small breaks throughout the day.
Endless Client Opportunities
All types of businesses need content written, from blogs and eBooks to website copy and newsletters. This steady demand means there’s no shortage of freelance writing jobs for qualified candidates. You’ll never be bored writing about the same old topics and industries.
Make Money Doing What You Love
For people who enjoy writing, freelancing provides the opportunity to turn your passion into a profitable career. Even better, you can specialize in your favorite topics and genre of writing. Be sure to focus on your interests and strengths when choosing writing niches.
Unlimited Earning Potential
Unlike a salaried employee with a fixed income, your freelance writing rates and monthly earnings are uncapped. The more clients you can handle and hours you can work, the more money you’ll make. Many top freelance writers earn over $100k/year.
How to Start Your Freelance Writing Side Hustle
If working as a full-time freelancer seems too daunting, consider starting as a side hustle first. Here are some tips for launching a freelance writing side business while keeping your current job:
- Set up your freelance writer business after work hours and treat it like a part-time job. Block off 10-20 hours each week for freelancing.
- Start small by taking on 1-2 clients on nights/weekends. This allows you to get experience with freelancing without much risk.
- Stick to short, simple projects like blog posts and web content that are quick to complete. Avoid time-consuming projects like eBooks or printed materials.
- Be upfront with clients about your available hours and set proper expectations. Don’t take on more work than you can reasonably handle alongside your full-time job.
- Consider specializing in industries relevant to your current job. For example, an accountant could write finance articles while a teacher could write education content.
- Use vacation days strategically to work on large projects or handle client meetings. Check with your employer about rules on freelancing related to your industry.
The key is pacing yourself, choosing suitable projects, and not overcommitting your schedule. As your side business grows, you can scale back your other job and eventually transition to full-time freelancing.
How to Get Your First Freelance Writing Jobs
Once you’ve decided to take the plunge into freelancing, the next step is landing those critical first clients. Here are proven ways to snag your inaugural paid writing gigs:
1. Tap Into Your Existing Network
Start by reaching out to your personal and professional connections. Let friends, family, colleagues, classmates, and social media followers know that you’ve started freelance writing. Offer them a discount on your services. Building off existing relationships is the easiest way to get testimonials and referrals for future clients.
2. Attend Local Networking Events
Look for both general small business meetups and writers’ networking events in your city. Be sure to come prepared with business cards and an elevator pitch about your freelance services. Follow up with any promising leads and share writing samples to get the conversation going.
3. Search Freelance Job Boards
Websites like Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer have tons of clients looking to hire writers for all types of projects. The competition is stiff, so really polish up your profile. Focus on niche topics to stand out from the crowd. Use relevant keywords and be detailed when applying to increase your chances.
4. Pitch to Blogs and Websites
Find guest posting blogs, online magazines, and websites in your niche and pitch article ideas tailored to their audience. Having published clips will make you appear more qualified to future clients. Build a diverse writing portfolio with pieces from a range of industries and publications.
5. Offer Free Writing or Discounted Rates
To get your foot in the door with a client, offer to write a one-off blog post or employee profile for free. Be eager and flexible to prove your skills. Once they like your work, it’ll be easier to negotiate ongoing paid assignments. You can also offer discounted rates to your first few clients and raise them steadily as you gain more experience.
The goal with your early clients is building a portfolio and reviews so you can demonstrate your value to future, higher-paying clients.
Key Skills to Succeed as a Freelance Writer
Now that you’ve got some clients booked, it’s time to deliver quality work. Here are the essential skills every successful freelance writer needs:
1. Strong Writing Abilities
This one’s obvious—excellent writing skills are a must! You’ll need impeccable grammar, engaging style, and ability to adapt your tone for different audiences and assignments. Brush up on AP Style and Chicago Manual of Style. Know the nuances of different content types, from website copywriting to long-form blogging.
2. Research and Interviewing
Top writers have superb research skills to create accurate, insightful content. Know how to efficiently find statistics, expert opinions, historical information, and pop culture references to sprinkle in. You’ll also need to interview sources if a client requests original quotes.
3. Time Management and Discipline
Freelancing requires tremendous self-motivation. You must be able to stick to deadlines and get work done without someone managing you. Don’t take on too many projects at once. Block off writing time in your calendar and learn to avoid distractions.
4. Business Sense
Running a freelance writing business requires some entrepreneurial skills too—like marketing yourself, negotiating rates, invoicing, etc. Set up your business legally, maintain records, and ensure you’re following tax/insurance requirements.
5. Knowledge of SEO Writing
Many clients will expect you to optimize articles for search engines. Familiarize yourself with keywords, metadata, SEO-friendly content structure, link building, and Google best practices.
Learning these core skills early on will ensure a smooth and successful freelance writing career!
Mistakes to Avoid as a New Freelance Writer
When starting out, it’s easy to make some rookie mistakes that hurt your growth. Here are some top pitfalls to avoid as a new freelance writer:
1. Taking on Too Much Work
In an effort to make more money quickly, some writers overload their schedule with work. This leads to rushed, poor-quality writing and unhappy clients. Make sure to leave room for lifes circumstances and contingencies that may come up. It’s better to under-promise and over-deliver.
2. Not Having an Online Portfolio
Clients need to see writing samples before hiring you. So set up a professional website, blog, or LinkedIn profile to showcase your published clips, testimonials, and experience. This gives clients confidence in your skills.
3. Not Using Contracts
Always protect yourself by using agreements that outline payment terms, scope of work, deadlines, and policies. Verbal agreements often result in confusion down the road. Contract templates can be found online.
4. Not Charging Enough
When starting out, it’s tempting to undercharge for your work. But low rates attract less serious clients and devalue your worth. Research standard freelance writing rates based on factors like project length, your experience level, and content type.
5. Taking on Unrelated Writing
It’s great to expand your skills. But avoid spreading yourself too thin by accepting work unrelated to your core niche. This makes you appear less of an expert. Try to keep your services targeted to build authority.
Following best practices from the start will set you up for freelancing success!
Long-Term Tips for Growing a Lucrative Writing Business
Once you’ve gotten your feet wet, you’ll want to continually expand your freelance writing career. Implement these strategies for long-term growth and income:
1. Specialize in a Profitable Niche
Choose a niche like finance, healthcare, or SaaS and become a subject matter expert. You can charge much higher rates and attract better clients when you demonstrate deep industry knowledge. Avoid content mills and seek out direct clients.
2. Raise Your Rates Strategically
As you gain more experience, prestige, and speed, increase your rates incrementally. Never sell yourself short. Benchmark against other successful freelance writers to know your worth. Don’t be afraid to negotiate or say no to lowball offers.
3. Get Referrals From Current Clients
Satisfied clients who already trust you are likely to refer additional work your way. Ask them to recommend you to other businesses and connect you to contacts that may have writing needs. A referral is much more valuable than a cold sales pitch.
4. Promote Yourself on Social Media
Platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, and Medium help you connect with potential clients and showcase writing samples. Post regularly and engage with authority figures and brands in your niche. Quora is great for demonstrating expertise too. Consider investing in ads on these platforms to reach new clients.
5. Get Published on High-Authority Websites
Landing writing gigs with industry magazines, major blogs, and other popular sites will instantly add to your prestige and expertise. Having an impressive portfolio of online clips makes you much more marketable to high-paying clients.
6. Hire Subcontractors Strategically
To maximize your earnings, hire subcontractors to take on projects if your schedule fills up. But avoid becoming just a project manager passing off all the work. Use subs only for specialized or overflow assignments while you handle the majority yourself.
The more you promote yourself, gain prominent portfolio pieces, and focus your niche, the more your writing business will thrive.
Tools and Resources for Freelance Writers
Here are some handy tools and resources every freelance writer should have in their toolbox:
- Grammarly: This app catches grammar, spelling, punctuation, and style errors in your writing. Helps you deliver clean, polished work to clients.
- HubSpot Blog Ideas Generator: This nifty tool generates hundreds of blog post title ideas based on any keyword or topic. Perfect for writer’s block.
- Hemingway Editor: The Hemingway app analyzes the readability of your writing and helps you simplify sentences. Useful for breaking wordy habits.
- Productivity Planner: Stay on track with deadlines, schedules, and goals with a paper or digital planner tailored for creatives.
- Online Invoice Creator: Apps like Freshbooks, Invoice2go and Wave allow you to quickly create, customize, send, and track professional invoices.
- Online Writing Communities: For improving your skills, gaining knowledge, and networking with other writers, join communities like Scribophile, Reddit’s r/freelanceWriters, and ProBlogger.
- Backlink Checkers: Monitor backlinks and SEO metrics using tools like Ahrefs, SEMRush, and Moz. Useful for clients requesting SEO-optimized articles.
Investing in tools that make you more efficient, organized, and connected will really pay off in the long run!
Ready to Launch Your Freelance Writing CarGuest Posting in 2024: Advance Tips and Tricks for Maximum ReachBest Way to Use Pillar Pages and SEO Topic Clusters for Improved SEO Resultseer?
Starting a successful freelance writing business takes commitment, perseverance, and a strategic plan. But with hard work and smart moves, you can build a lucrative and rewarding writing career on your own terms.
Use this comprehensive guide to position yourself for success in today’s freelance market. Avoid pitfalls, learn the ropes, and implement proven growth tactics.
Before you know it, you’ll have a thriving business doing what you love—writing!
Also read: 50+ High Paying Guest Posting Sites for Freelance Writers
