Freelance Writing Business

Launching a Freelance Writing Career

Written by Kathryn Lang for Gaebler Ventures

Freelance writing can be the perfect opportunity for an entrepreneur. Everyone writes. It takes finding the right tools to turn an ordinary activity into a career opportunity.

Everyone is a writer. It is just that not everyone makes money writing.

Entrepreneurs that want to launch a career as a freelance writer should understand the uncertainty of the occupation and the paths for developing income.

Step one – before taking the plunge into freelance writing an entrepreneur should determine talent. Is there writing ability that the freelance career can be built upon? Some entrepreneurs may be naturals when it comes to writing, but all writers will need to continue to train in the field and expand on writing techniques.

Step two – freelance writers need to develop a niche for writing. How can a writer find good content?

•  Make a list of all activities, jobs, or responsibilities that are currently carried out by the entrepreneurs.
• Make a list of all the education or training that has been obtained over the years.
• Make a list of all the hobbies, interests or activities that have been enjoyed or are currently being done.
• Make a list of all natural gifts, talents or abilities.
• Make a list of all anything that has been of interest to the entrepreneur.
• Ask others for any ideas about areas where the entrepreneur excels.

These are the areas where a freelance writer can begin pursing writing opportunities. The entrepreneur is not limited to the things that are already known. The ability to research can open up worlds of new opportunities.

Step three – freelance writing pay can be sporadic at best and non-existent at worst. Entrepreneurs that are launching fulltime freelance writing careers should set aside enough money to be able to pay three to six months of payments.

Step four – there are freelance writers making money writing their own materials and those that make a living writing for others. Both paths can be equally profitable.

Writing for self: using blogs to advertise products or services, selling products through personal websites, and creating classes, eBooks and other marketable materials are all ways for the entrepreneur to creating a writing career.

Writing for others: websites are always looking for writers to contribute content. Every printed (and online) publication needs material to fill their pages. Freelance writers are becoming a major part of the publication world.

Step five – finding jobs can be the toughest part of launching a freelance writing career. The internet has made it easier to find guidelines for submitting materials and has also opened up new fields for employment. The best way for freelance writers to find opportunities is to ask for those opportunities. Anytime a website or publication catches the attention of the writer, the writer should contact that publication and ask about freelance opportunities.

Step six – the most important thing that an entrepreneur can do to launch a freelance writing career is to write.

Becoming a freelance writer allows an entrepreneur to make choices in office location, work hours and even the direction of opportunities. Setting out to become a freelance writer can be a little scary, but there is a writer in everyone. Developing the right tools will help the entrepreneur when it comes to launching a freelance writing career.

Kathryn Lang is a professionial writer and motivational speaker. She enjoys writing about a wide variety of business topics including youth businesses and finance.

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