Breaking Into Freelance Writing – Don’t Let Fear Stop You

By Karen Cioffi

Thinking of breaking into freelance writing, but feeling overwhelmed?

Unless you’re an established freelance writer, it’s easy to feel that way.

Maybe the thought of ghostwriting or editing a book seems daunting. Maybe the thought of writing articles and submitting them to magazines on a regular basis seems intimidating.

Well, freelance writing doesn’t have to be overly time consuming or difficult . . . or frightening.

Rather than taking on large projects or feature articles, you can find smaller, less intimidating work. The main thing is to get started.

There are lots of types of writing, aside from feature articles. You can write greeting card content, fillers, anecdotes, short articles or blog posts, letters, jokes, and more. There are many opportunities to write for money.

But, getting started and maintaining any business takes action. Procrastinating and ‘doing nothing’ is a sure way to NEVER reach your goals.

Dreams, well intentions, and even plans won’t get you from Point A to Point B without action. 

So, no matter what genre you’re writing in, or want to write in, take the steps to move forward.

Once you decide you really want to start a writing business, you will need to put time and effort into creating and building it. To do this, to move forward, start with these 4 steps.

1. Write on a regular basis - even if the writing isn’t meant for publication.

You’ll need to hone your skills – practice helps do this.

In addition, it’s a good idea to read ‘good’ copy and content. This will also help you develop and sharpen your writing skills.

2. Copy the masters.

Another trick to keep you moving forward while you query for jobs is to actually type effective copy and content written by pros.

This strategy helps train your brain to recognize good writing and will help you to emulate it.

But, a word of caution here, this is only a practice strategy – you cannot use another writer’s content for anything other than practice. That would be plagiarism.

3. Find resources to take advantage of.

You may be thinking that you just don’t know where or how to start.

That’s understandable.

The writing arena is broad and can certainly feel overwhelming when first starting out. But, there are a number of programs, classes, job boards, and other resources (free and for a fee) that you can take advantage of to guide you to gigs, publication, and sales.

Start by asking in your writing groups or ask more experienced writer friends if they know of tools and resources geared toward freelance writing.

You can also attend live conferences or online webinars. There are a number of free ones available online. In addition, you can do an online search to find resources.

There are also writing membership sites that offer lots of helpful tips and guidance.

4. Jump in - take action.

While taking the three steps above, you also need to actively look for work.

This means researching magazines for what they're looking for, querying for jobs, looking at job boards, getting your name and business out there.

And, getting your name out there means having an online presence - this means you NEED a website. And, your website needs to look and feel professional.

Don’t feel overwhelmed. Don’t let fear stop you from jumping in.

Take that first step. Then take the second, third, and so on.

If you look around, you’ll find lots and lots of opportunities out there for you to get started and move forward in your freelance writing business.

Here are 6 resources to help you get started today:

American Writers and Artists Inc.

Freelancers Union

ProBlogger Job Board

Morning Coffee Job Board

Become a Power-Blogger (Content Writer) in Just 4 Weeks

Become a Ghostwriter- Start a Money-Making Writing Business
New WOW! Women on Writing class

MORE ON WRITING AND MARKETING

12 Ways to Build Your Freelance Writing Momentum
How to Increase Your Freelance Income
Your Website and Graphics

The Business of Writing

Writing is a business. If you are a writer, what kind of business background do you need?

I have a college degree, but I took only two business classes. Decades later, I am a college student once again. I am not pursuing a degree, but a certificate. There are a number of business classes I have taken or still need to take. Some of them are: business taxes, accounting, Microsoft Office 2013, management and marketing. I am halfway to being “finished” but I plan to continue enrolling in classes. There are other related programs to pursue, and enough to keep me busy for at least the next few years.

Of course, I have also enrolled in writing classes, but those are through other entities. I need to learn more about how to write better and I enjoy learning from other writers.

What business classes have you invested in? How did they help you? What other classes would you enjoy or find useful?

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Debbie A. Byrne has a B.S. in Mass Communication with a minor in History. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and is working on her first children’s book.

 

Writing for Success

Writing is now big business. It has the world-wide 
stage, a global market. Spin-off businesses like 
tutors, publicists and agents spring up and prosper.

The writer and writing have always been  commodities 
to be marketed. The difference now is that more 
books are published per day than used to be 
published annually.

It is the best of times but also the worst of times for 
writers--and especially for those of us who choose 
to write fiction.

Difficulties of marketing fiction

Books for sale, photo by Peter Griffin, www.publicdomainpictures.net

In the main, fiction writers write to entertain, tell stories that encapsulate human experience. They have something to say--a message to share. This idea of theme pervades all successful writing.

But if you are writing to make money, you'll be very 
lucky to become one of the big hitters on Kindle, no 
matter what the marketers and publicists tell you.

You are competing against millions of books, both new and from successful authors' backlists as well as those which are sourced from the public domain, or are written to order.

So how can you make money to fund your writing?

Think about it--money is being made in copy writing, 
ghost writing and to some extent blogging or content 
writing for websites. 

Profit can be made from spin-offs--webinars, 
teaching writing courses, even writing lots for others.

But often the best money can be made at home 
through networking. Talk to librarians, local schools, clubs, businesses. Discuss courses/ visits and talks on your area of expertise. 

Offer to run a reading and writing hour in school or as 
an after-school activity, suggest a talk on self-
publishing to attract more people to the library, 
promote your services as a business writer,
enhancing staff communication skills or providing new website content on a regular basis.

As a bonus, whatever the result, you'll be gaining new experiences,meeting new people  and finding even more ideas and customers for that new novel.

 Anne Duguid is a freelance content editor with MuseItUp Publishing and she tries to pass on helpful writing,editing and publishing tips at Slow and Steady Writers The photograph is by Peter Griffin and can be found at www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=4176&picture=books-for-sale