How to Start a Freelance Writing Career

Starting a freelance writing career is not as difficult as you might think. With the advent of the personal computer and the internet, becoming a freelance writer is easier than it was even ten years ago. There are all sorts of opportunities for budding writers to take advantage of that in the past were not available. Read on to learn how you can start a freelance writing career.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A computer
• Word processing software
• An internet connection

1. Put together a portfolio of work. While it is best if the work in your portfolio has actually been published somewhere, it is not realistic to assume that you will be published as soon as you make the decision to become a freelance writer. That being said put together some examples of your best writing so that you have them when they are asked for.

2. Put up a website devoted to your freelance writing career. Put samples of your writing there, as well as your contact information and rates. Putting a small picture of yourself is also a good idea.

3. Start a blog. Blogging is one of the easiest ways to break into freelance writing. Bloggers everywhere are being paid to blog these days. The key to getting these jobs is to already be an active blogger.

4. Learn how to write key word content articles and then apply for such jobs online. Writing for eHow is an example of such a job.

5. Devote some time each day to learning the craft of writing and practicing it. This is important if you intend on becoming a freelance writer for the long haul. The writer that doesn’t grow and learn will have a harder time finding freelance writing assignments.

6. Network with other freelance writers online. There is a very large community of freelance writers online these days, and networking with them is a great way to find out where the jobs are and learn more about your craft.

7. Subscribe to newsletters about freelance writing, and that have freelance writing job listings. This will give you a better idea of what kinds of jobs are out there and what you should be focusing on in order to get these jobs.

8. Apply for at least two or three new freelance writing jobs a week. The more jobs you apply for the more opportunities will come your way.

Tips & Warnings

• Get your freelance writer’s website indexed on the search engines as soon as possible.
• Purchase an easy to remember domain name for your freelance writer’s website. Just like having a web host who doesn’t use forced ads on your website, having your own domain name shows you are serious about being a freelance writer.
• Update your website with new writing samples periodically because you will grow as a writer and your samples will improve over time.
• Keep the format of your website simple. Fancy buttons and writing aren’t necessary. The easier it is on the eyes, the more likely potential employers will come back to visit, and stay when they do visit.
• Be willing to accept lower paid assignments to begin with. As you learn and grow you will be offered more substantial pay for your work.
• Don’t let a rejection slip discourage you. All freelance writers have their writing get rejected at one time or another, this is normal and can be for reasons that have nothing to do with your writing style and everything to do with your piece just not being the right fit at that time.
• Don’t put your home phone number or address information on your website. This can lead to crank calls, and leave you open to online predators of all kinds. Instead get a free voicemail number, and use a PO Box or don’t put an address at all.
• Don’t pay to get access to freelance writing job lists. There are dozens if not hundreds of scammers out there who would love nothing more than to bilk you out of your money. Nine times out of ten, any job listings found on a website that you have to pay to get access to, the same job listings can be found for free elsewhere.
• Don’t quit your day job until you have established yourself as a freelance writer and have regular assignments coming in, and or regular clients who use your services, otherwise you could find yourself in very tight financial circumstances.

[chrismoore]

on 6/26/2009 Thanks for the info. I needed a place to get started.

[Sidhartha]

on 11/4/2008 excellent information.

[reginapaul]

on 1/12/2008 I have thought about writing for Hub Pages, I'm planning on doing so, just haven't made it over there yet. LOL

[WriterGig]

on 1/9/2008 Thanks for the ideas! Have you tried writing for Hub Pages? I wrote an eHow about it if you want to learn about it. :) I think it has a lot of potential for a side writing gig.

[WriterGig]

on 1/9/2008 Thanks for the ideas! Have you tried writing for Hub Pages? I wrote an eHow about it if you want to learn about it. :) I think it has a lot of potential for a side writing gig.