I'm excited to welcome Lisa Griffin to my blog today to share with you some tips on how to find freelance work. I'm over at the IWSG blog talking about critique group etiquette.
Ways
a fiction writer can find freelance work online
There
are many opportunities to start a career as a writer. To implement
most of them, the
freelance home writers need to use
all their skills. A freelance writer is a person who writes texts
without entering into an employment relationship with any company or
publishing house that acts as a small entrepreneur or an independent
contractor.
You
can engage in freelancing on an ongoing basis, turning writing
activity into a source of livelihood, or use it as a part-time
supplement to income from the primary job. Also, you can do it for
fun, or you can sharpen your skills by adding a list of competencies
to your resume. This article outlines the basics that will help you
make it easier for you to get a job if you are a freelance fiction
writer.
1.
Set a goal and work on your skills.
If
you plan to engage yourself in journalism and write for an online
newspaper, allocate as much time as you need to earn a decent living.
This means that you may have to work early in the morning or in the
evenings, using any free minute, even on weekends. This first and
foremost practice will test your strength and motivation. Be ready to
be paid hourly, but remember to constantly improve your skills to
increase personal rate.
2.
Be active in the writing environment.
There
are many groups and associations of freelance writers around the
world. Become a part of them to get acquainted with other authors,
get practical advice and strengthen your positions as a
self-sufficient writer. A quick Internet search will help you find a
local organization operating in your area. Look for a group that
conducts meetings, workshops, arranges interviews with guests and
provides recommendations on writing, publishing and marketing
products, contacts with various publishers and their Internet
counterparts. Membership in such organizations can bring you
recognition and diversity of future orders.
3.
Start organizing your portfolio.
It
is essential to illustrate your skills in the portfolio
to attract potential employers. Beginners
can start writing small free articles for non-commercial sites. Thus,
you will be able to engage in the professional activity and most
importantly get the material published under your name, which you can
show to potential employers and customers. You need such a portfolio
for them to take you seriously and offer you a job.
Start
collaborating with well-known websites
or blogs that allow you to publish articles on a voluntary basis.
Contact their owners and explain what you want to do for the
portfolio and would like to write something for free, if only your
name was
mentioned as an author.
4.
Set up a blog
Why
look for best paid blog writing jobs, when you can set up your web
page? If you are experienced in freelance creative writing, you have
probably written a bunch of articles and long reads. Gather them in a
blog.
If
you are a beginner in a writing field and looking for
freelance
writing jobs from home,
you can start a blog, where you can share own thoughts and ideas.
Tell people about teaching or learning and develop own memorable
style.
If
you are an editor, you can still come across a job in blogging. Look
through popular blog pages, advice bloggers to edit and proofread
their texts.
5.
Start looking for copywriting work.
Once
you feel that you are capable of writing like a professional, think
about what you would like to write about and start communicating with
people. Find publishers you'd like to work with, and read their
guidelines. Do not write queries and articles that cannot be
published due to non-compliance with the required conditions. It's
like going to an interview without having studied the affairs of the
company which you want to become your employer. Conduct market
research and form your target. And be sure to send a request to major
publishers before sending a finished article, unless you are willing
to spend precious time on material that will never be published.
Lisa
Griffin
is an author for https://customwriting.com/
and blogger. This successful woman knows a lot about how to stay
motivated and inspired. Lisa is always ready to give opportune advice
and provide assistance. Lisa’s motto is “It’s hard to beat a
person who never gives up.” She loves traveling and expanding her
horizons. Working with people is Lisa’s real passion.
