Freelance writing is a kind of career option where an individual is working for money on his own and not being employed by a company or any organization. These writers provide written text as per the needs of their clients. It can be work from home or in any rented space office. You have to do hard work, and need good time management skills and you should have the ability to Hustle and find new things. Once you build up a steady client-based system this can be a rewarding career option.
Seeking education and training
To become a freelance writer you don’t need any formal degree. But if you are starting as a fresher you have to educate yourself in some way so that you can do quality work. If you are a person who doesn’t have time or money to get a degree from University then you can go for online courses which are more affordable than doing formal degrees. And you can also work your way through the home. If you are planning to do a degree in college then you can consider formal studies which can help you to achieve your goal.
Start with a staff job
There are so many websites and Publications that hire fresh writers and you can get a full-time position. You can go and work close to an editor or any other creative writer who can help you to make a better writer. If you are working for any digital Publication so you are bound to get some SEO training or other requirements.
Start pitching and marketing yourself
If you want to be a freelance writer you have to start writing. You have to start pitching your work to publications. If starting as a fresher writer, for sure you don’t have any published professional work. There are so many other ways to showcase your writing talent.
Showcasing work online
Pitching can become more effective if you start linking this to an online writing portfolio where editors can check your work. Making a great portfolio can help you to get opportunities and to showcase your talent. If you want to take the step in this, you can start doing blogs and start writing daily to practice. This will help you to grow your experience for your work. Creating blogs also gives the editor more samples to check about your skills and your pitch. Your blogs can convince the editor and he can know what kind of work you do. The editor will not look at how perfect your blog is but they will look at your skills and the level of creativity. Having a website of your own can make you feel confident and try to post good content on your website and social media accounts so that any editor can explore you and learn more about.
Networking
Networking looks like a big deal, but never overlook any opportunities for writing which are coming to you. And always get ready to actively work to increase those opportunities. Everyone needs a written work sometimes. Never think that this is a small opportunity or this is an opportunity that you don’t want to take. Always be ready to stand out in any circumstances, because it increases the chances of more opportunities in the future.
Figure out a way to get paid
When you are freshly starting as a freelance writer it is not that easy to get paid. When you get a client and have completed your promised work, you have to find a way to get money from them into your account. Some freelancers get paper checks or online payments. If you are a new freelancer you can keep it simple by creating a PDF and email it to the client and ask them for payment via any easy-to-use system. Once you feel confident and make sure that you want to continue with freelancing then you can move to software that can create the invoice for your payment and it will also help you track your payments.
Be aware that it is not glamorous work
The work of a freelancer is to copy a website and do SEO work, posting blogs, that are not interesting or something people dream of. You have to work hard with these things to pay your bills and manage your expenses.
By: Varsha Yadav
Also Read: 9 Pros And Cons Of Freelance As A Career
