If you’re a creative writer with a notebook full of stories, you might want to consider selling your work online – even if you’re just writing for fun. More and more people are turning to digital media to entertain them, and if you’ve got a talent for telling tales, you could specialize in creating fiction for online platforms like Wattpad, Amazon Kindle, or Apple iBooks.
This is one of the many jobs you can do from home, and the freelance writing gigs aren’t the only ones – you could take on various odd jobs such as editing, web content writing, or graphic design for small businesses.
To get started, you’ll need a laptop or desktop computer, a reliable internet connection, and of course, your creative mind. To learn how to write a fresh creative story, we’ve compiled a comprehensive guide on how to start freelancing as a creative writer below.
Choose A Niche
Even before you start your freelance career, you’ll want to choose a niche – otherwise, you won’t stand out from the crowd. If you’re not sure where to start, consider writing for popular platforms like Tumblr, Reddit, or Facebook – all of which can be found in our Best Writers for Each Platform guide. Alternatively, you could take a stab at blogging and see what kind of content others are searching for online.
Once you’ve established yourself as a reliable source of original content, you can branch out into various sub-niches within fiction or non-fiction. If you enjoy crafting stories about vampires, werewolves, or zombies, you could consider specializing in horror writing. For fans of the paranormal, you could write young adult or adult fiction and explore the worlds of ghosts and other spirits. Fantasy or science fiction fans could enjoy the worlds of wizards, demons, and other mythical creatures that they’ve held in their hearts since childhood.
Decide How Much You Want To Charge
Now that you’ve established yourself as a creative writer, you can start to explore the world of freelance writing and decide how much you want to charge. While there’s no right answer to this question, you can put yourself in a better position to negotiate by establishing a price point first. It’s also important to keep in mind the type of client you’re trying to attract. If you want to attract independent, wealthy, and somewhat tech-savvy clients, you could aim for six-figure payments or higher. If you want to land gigs with companies, you could ask for a modest rate – perhaps even zero-dollar payment if you produce enough content fast enough.
Set Up Shop
Depending on your preferred style and pricing, you could set up shop either in an office space or anywhere with a wifi connection. If you’re operating from home, you’ll need to invest in a really good audio speaker and some decent headphones so that you can work uninterrupted. If you’re a stickler for details, you could also buy a good desktop or notebook computer along with various other office equipment like a fax machine, scanner, or copier. Now that you have all of this, you can start to work on establishing yourself as a professional.
Get To Know The Industry
Even though you might be freelance, you’ll still need to abide by many traditional newspaper writing practices. To start, you’ll need to familiarize yourself with different journalistic styles and practices – something you can do by reading reputable publications and taking journalism classes online. When you’re ready to sell your work, you can also look into specialized marketplaces for freelance writers and journalists where you can find buyers and publishers for your content. Finally, it’s essential that you become a better writer by constantly engaging with highly-regarded publications – even if it’s just for the prestige associated with being a published author.
Get Client Work
Once you’re ready to start freelancing, the first thing you should do is get some client work. Even if you’ve been writing for fun, you’re still an apprentice – and thus, not a professional – until you can demonstrate your ability to write persuasively for different audiences. If you want to get started, try pitching to local companies or individuals in your area and see what kind of work you can get. Once you have a few pieces of established work, you can take your pick from there.
Build A Reputation
Another important step towards becoming a professional is establishing your reputation. As a freelance writer, you’ll be judged not only on your ability to write, but also on your ability to follow instructions and provide a quality product on time. Establishing and maintaining a good reputation takes time, so don’t expect instant gratification. However, once you’ve built enough of a track record, you can take your time and enjoy the fruits of your labor.
Join A Society Of Writers
If you want to take your career to the next level, you could consider joining a society of writers. These are groups of authors who meet regularly to discuss their craft, promote new work, and generally enjoy each other’s company. Many societies of writers have open membership, which means you don’t have to be a member to attend meetings or contribute to the group’s newsletter. If you’re a fan of short stories, you could look into joining a writing circle – although these aren’t entirely limited to short stories.
Get A Resumé Or CV Ready
Depending on where you plan on applying for freelance work, you could prepare a resumé or CV. A resumé is a professional’s résumé – i.e., a summary of your work experiences, special skills, and educational background. A CV is a shorter, more personal version of a resumé, and is used as a first impression piece by employers when they’re deciding whether or not to interview you for a position. If you’ve been writing for a while and think you’re ready to take the freelance plunge, you can prepare a resumé and start applying for writing gigs in no time. Just make sure to include all of your relevant skills and experience in both pieces.
Create And Maintain Business Cards
Along with establishing your reputation and CV, you’ll want to prepare business cards. A good business card should be designed with your chosen niche in mind – something that will make others interested in your work. If you write for a small business audience, you could design a card that highlights your expertise in the field. If you design web content, you could use your card to showcase your design skills. If you write for the academic world, you could prepare a card that makes your expertise in the field obvious to anyone who reads it (i.e., a card that’s not blatantly promotional!).
Once you have your business cards ready, it’s time to start marketing yourself – by word of mouth, of course. Use your cards to introduce yourself to other writers and journalists in your area. You never know who might be interested in your work, and all it takes is one quality piece to land you your first major client. With a little bit of luck and some aggressive networking, you could become the go-to source for your chosen topic.
As you start to establish yourself as a freelance writer, you’ll want to keep all of this in mind so that you don’t end up wasting your time with unproductive activities or falling into a career-limiting habit. By creating content for online platforms, you might be able to make enough money to support your family and live the life you always wanted to live – but only if you put in the necessary work. Good luck out there.