Browse the All Freelance Writing collection of freelance business articles below.
This section covers the business side of freelance writing, from finding better clients and choosing a specialty to setting rates, growing income, and making smarter decisions about how you work.
Whether you’re just getting started or trying to strengthen an established business, these posts focus on practical realities, not vague freelance motivation.
This week’s “short share” is an infographic from Brian Scott and FreelanceWriting.com. It presents common examples of publication rights freelance writers might come across while negotiating contracts. This is important information to know. I meet new writers all the time who assume that copyrights automatically transfer to clients simply because they’ve paid for the end result. That isn’t the case. Contract language has to be
Earlier this year, Lori Widmer stopped by the All Freelance Writing Podcast to guest co-host an episode on everyday marketing for freelance writers. Our chat ran long, so some segments had to be cut. That included a ten-minute segment about writing for content mills. We also touched on a simple tactic for finding better gigs and leaving mills behind — something Lori calls “stealth marketing.”
Last week I received a reader question from Shirley Gazenski. She’s in an interesting position — torn between past samples in three distinct specialty areas. She wanted to know if I had any advice for her, and she agreed to have my feedback posted here in case any other community members find themselves in a similar position. Let’s start with her past work. Shirley has
For this week’s short share, I have an infographic for freelancers. This one looks at some of the pros and cons of freelancing, and it was presented by GraphicDesignDegreeHub.com. While this was published back in 2013, I’m curious if you see if your own freelance careers are reflected in the data. Which side do you fall on? Did you get into freelance writing because you wanted to?
“The best freelance writing jobs are almost never publicly advertised.” This is something I’ve pointed out countless times over the years. Yet one of the biggest questions I get from new writers is “where do I find gigs?” The best gigs aren’t usually advertised for a few reasons. Clients already have contacts that can refer qualified writers. They prefer to search for a writer on
Every year Lori Widmer of Words on the Page hosts Writer’s Worth Month. In Lori’s words, the mission of Writer’s Worth Month is “to reach freelance writers and help them gain confidence in the value of their skills.” In other words, it’s about helping you earn more and build a more successful writing business. To do this, Lori features a series of posts — both
Freelance writing is largely about the big picture. As you gain experience and build your professional reputation and visibility over time, you earn more money and freelancing becomes a more stable income source. That said, the big picture doesn’t motivate everybody. Sometimes you need to see changes now to convince yourself to even stick with this freelancing thing. If that sounds like you, you’re in
I can’t remember where I read it now — maybe on a blog, maybe on Reddit. But a few days ago I saw someone complaining about international freelancers. In this case they were talking about freelance development work and all of the competition they faced from overseas. This is something I see all the time. But then the conversation flipped. People weren’t only complaining about
Today’s reader question comes from Leigh Schrom: “Where do you locate publications that accept freelance work? Is the “Writer’s Market” the best source?” Writer’s Market is a source, and certainly a place you can start. But while it looks extensive as far as writer’s market directories go, the markets there still only represent a small portion of publications that work with freelance writers. And because most writers are
When you’re just getting started as a freelance writer, the issue of rates can be a tricky one. How much should you charge? Should you bill hourly, per word, per project, or under some other rate structure? Should rates vary depending on the type of project? Today’s reader question is along these lines. This new freelancer, who asked not to be named so we’ll simply
It’s no secret to experienced freelance writers that having a specialty can simplify marketing and lead to much higher paying gigs. Clients are willing to pay you a premium for industry or niche expertise, especially those in higher-end pro level markets. It’s your specialized knowledge that lets them help clients brand themselves as authorities in their fields. Now some freelance pros specialize in types of writing rather
Episode 9 of the All Freelance Writing Podcast is now up. You can listen below or check out the show notes on the episode’s page. I’d like to thank Cathy Miller of Simply Stated Business. She joins me as the guest co-host for this episode. We chat about freelance ghostwriting for businesses, including the benefits of it, how you can find ghostwriting clients, and how
Note: This post is my first audio post. You can listen to the audio version at the end of the post. In the near future, you’ll be able to access this and other audio posts, along with the All Freelance Writing Podcast, by visiting FreelanceTheater.com. Lately I’ve been chatting with KeriLynn Engel about her freelance writing business, and the issue of anxiety came up — specifically
If you want to move beyond low paying freelance writing jobs, you need a solid marketing strategy. Where many writers go wrong is putting all of their attention on marketing tactics — using social networks, guest posting, or writing query letters for example. While tactics are important, you can never use them to their full potential if you don’t have an underlying strategy and marketing message. That’s
In a comment on a recent post about successful e-book sales also leading to thousands of dollars in freelance writing gigs, I responded to a comment from Amandah Blackwell. And in my response, I basically said that freelancers should treat their own projects as they would treat a client’s project, and that they should treat clients’ projects as if they were their own. Today I’d
If you’ve ever felt stuck in your freelance writing career, you might have considered working with a coach or mentor. Maybe you’ve already signed on with one. A good coach can be instrumental in helping you build or grow your freelance writing business. But the wrong coach has the potential to hold you back. I’ve seen this far too many times over the years. For
Where are most of your freelance writing clients located? If you only target local clients, you’re leaving money on the table. While some freelancers can attract more local clients than they can handle, others don’t have the same client supply in their local areas. Fortunately there’s an easy fix. Target clients outside of your town, city, state, region, or even country. Why Pursue Non-local Freelance Writing
Is your goal to finally make a living writing? Whether you’re ready to quit your day job to earn a living as a writer full-time or you’re looking to increase your existing writing income, the opportunities are practically endless. If you aren’t sure where to start, or if you’re worried that there aren’t enough potential writing gigs to go around, consider this. Just about everything
As freelance writers it’s not uncommon for us to get information online and even connect with our colleagues that way. And sometimes our circles, or at least the information they expose us to, are more limited than we realize. It’s easy to get caught up in the echo chamber, with the same stale ideas endlessly reinforced. But if you want to stand out and attract
Today I’d like to tackle a reader question from Evgeni Puzankov related to selling writing to English-language publications when English isn’t your first language. Can you do so successfully? “The question that plagues me throughout my adult life is whether one can actually make it in anglophone writing biz, while not being a native. I’m Russian and still live here. My mother sent me to
The end of the year is right around the corner. Are you ready? While you might be itching to take some time off over the holidays, December can also be a busy time for work. Freelance clients often order more to use up the current year’s budget. You’re probably at the end of the fiscal year for your writing or publishing business. And it’s time to
In an earlier post I explained how it can help to think like a boss when running your freelance writing business. In that post, I suggested conducting self-evaluations (as if you were an employer evaluating an employee’s performance). Here is a simple self-evaluation worksheet that you can download and fill out for yourself to identify some of your biggest strengths and weaknesses. The idea is
Fill in the blanks describing yourself. “I am a ___ ___.” You said “freelance writer,” didn’t you? A year ago I would have said the same thing. However, I’ve adopted a new outlook on my career that has transformed my life as a freelance writer. The two simple words that changed everything: business owner. Say it once with me. I am a business owner. Are
This morning I received the following question from Susan Brewer: “How important is it to have a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing in order to launch a writing job as a freelance writer? Or, I should say, “How helpful,” is it?” I told her the short answers are “not at all,” and “it depends what you want to do with it.” But let’s dig a
I use the baby analogy a lot when I’m talking about freelancing. So often we freelancers forget that the project means a lot more to the client than it does to us. That’s because it’s their baby. They created–gave birth–to it. They nurtured it and put in the hard work to get it where it is today. And then they realized they could only do
Let’s welcome Michael Kwan, freelance writer and author of Beyond the Margins: An Indispensable Guide for First-Time Freelance Writers, Designers, and Other Work-From-Home Professionals. Michael sent me a copy of the e-book for review, and he graciously took the time to answer some of my questions. Beyond the Margins focuses on beginning freelancers and offers a well-rounded look at the choices to be made and the work involved in building a successful
Ah, the joys of working as a freelance writer. You get to work from home, spend the day in your pajamas, have no boss looking over your shoulder, watch soaps in the middle of the afternoon, run errands whenever you feel like it, and to top it off everybody respects you. Yeah. And then you wake up. It’s funny how non-freelancers have these idealistic views
Yesterday I announced a new Tuesday Quick Tips series for the blog. Today marks the start of another series — Wednesday Resources. Every Wednesday (at least through the test period in June), I’ll either release a new resource for All Freelance Writing readers or I’ll promote a resource I highly recommend. Through June I already have new resources lined up every week though. . That
This post was originally published on June 20, 2009. But I wanted to share it again today (and update it a bit) as the issue of blogging pay rates is hotter than ever as more and more freelance bloggers come onto the scene. As some background, this was originally written in response to Kevin Muldoon’s post, Bloggers Need to be Realistic About Blogging Rates. It
In the past we’ve explored some of the problems with letting clients cross a line by treating you more like an employee than an independent contractor. For example, if they cross that line and are held accountable they could end up paying back taxes and benefits. That can be a good reason to pursue issues when clients are really employers trying to scam the system