what is freelance Writing? A beginner Guide

  

 

How to Start Freelance Writing Step one: Create a Portfolio.

No, you don’t need professional writing experience to become a freelance writer. All you need to know is how to write decently well in English.
 
If you don’t have any professional writing experience in your niche, you can create your samples on spec. On spec means that you won’t be paid for your work.
 
All you need to do is create three samples for potential or imaginary clients in your niche. You don’t need to have any contact with these clients (as long as you’re clear that you weren’t commissioned to create these pieces).
 
The only condition? These samples need to be awesome. Potential clients will be hiring you based solely on your portfolio, so make sure you take the time to create something truly impressive.
 
Then create PDFs of your samples and place them in a Google Drive folder. When a potential client asks to see your portfolio, send them a link to this folder.
 
For more info, read How to Create a Freelance Writer Portfolio (With Absolutely Zero Experience).
 
How to Start Freelance Writing Step two: Start Cold Pitching

Forget freelance job boards. When you’re a beginner, it’s almost impossible to get work through freelance writing job boards because there’s so much competition! Hundreds of writers apply for each posting, and most of them are offering incredibly low rates. It’s a race to the bottom, and we’re not about that here.
 
That’s why I recommend cold pitching. Cold pitching is when you reach out to a potential client with whom you have no previous relationship and pitch them your services. This is a great way for new freelance writers to get their foot in the door because there’s virtually zero competition. That means you can command your rates. Plus, you can pitch clients you’re truly interested in working with, which makes working so much more fun!
 
And here’s the great news, buddy: I’ve already come up with a cold pitching template to get you started. So make sure you grab your cold email pitch kit!
 
To learn more about cold pitching, read Cold Pitching 101 for Freelance Writers.
 
PS: A lot of freelance writers ask me how to find potential clients. I’ve got all of that covered inside my self-guided course for launching and running a sustainable freelance business. Become a member of The Freelance Writer’s Guide to the Galaxy here!
 
 
WHAT DOES A FREELANCE WRITER DO?

Freelance writers do a lot of things, including:
 
Write articles on media websites.
 
Write blog posts for businesses.
 
Offer copywriting services for businesses, including branding, website copy, email copy, sales pages, and more.

 
Provide ghostwriting services for authors and memoirists.

 
As a freelance writer, your days will include client work as well as lots of time working on your business. Tasks included in working on your business include bookkeeping, organizing projects, answering emails, pitching to potential clients, and marketing yourself.
 
In my freelance writing course, I do a deep dive into what all of these terms mean and how to do them. Plus, I show you how to stay on task and manage all your work. Most aspiring freelance writers are adept at writing, but it’s the business end of freelancing that gets them all muddled up. So I show you how to show up, get organized, and get stuff done so you can grow your business and live the life you want.
 
 
 
 Ensure you have the tools of the trade.

You will need a laptop or a desktop computer equipped with a writing program, a task management program, and photo-editing software since freelance writers often have to include images with their content.
It is important to set up a website to showcase your writing samples, a business email account, a phone, and a video conferencing account. You will also need a bank account and an online payment service account to receive remuneration from your clients.

 Understand current writing conventions.

There are different conventions to follow for different types of writing. In online writing, for instance, it is typical to include helpful links to other articles and use headlines and short paragraphs to make content easily scannable. The way you write and format a blog is different from how you would write and present an academic paper.
You will need to know how to research an array of topics and cite your sources. It is also important to know how to catch readers' attention and write in a style that will keep them reading until the end.

 Work on improving your writing skills.

Even if you are a good writer, there is always room for improvement. Read extensively. You can learn a lot about sentence construction, vocabulary, avoiding fillers, including evocative details, and much more from reading other people's writing. Read things relevant to your professional niche, but also read widely outside of it.

Write constantly and read your writing aloud. The more you practice, the more you will improve.