Being a Professional Freelance Writer (Part Three)
Selling yourself vs selling your work
In some circumstances, you will be required to sell yourself as a writer to a potential employer or client, while in others you will need to sell your writing. The first possibility will usually require a cover letter, a resume or curriculum vitae, and a writing portfolio or samples; the second circumstance may warrant only the portfolio or samples. It’s likely that if the position will last a long time because of the length of the project or if it involves ongoing work, you will be selling yourself, not just your writing talent. It means that on top of creating a portfolio, you need to make sure your CV is kept up to date. Practise your answers to interview questions too.
Commissions vs submissions
Depending on the publication, some people or businesses expect you to pitch ideas to them before they commission you, while others expect you to submit completed work directly. You should determine the publication’s preferences before contacting them, as they will likely disregard your attempts otherwise.
For pitches and commissions, you need to learn how to write a pitch. The style of the publication is a good indicator for how your pitch should look, but no matter what, it’s always good idea to sound open and professional. Outline your ideas briefly, make it clear that you are aware of the publication’s specifications and style, and inform the contact that they are welcome to ask you any questions. Be careful with commissions though: often the intellectual property rights of a commissioned piece will belong to the publication, not the writer, so be careful.
For direct submissions, make sure you are familiar with the work that has previously been published by the person or business in question. There’s not much point submitting your sci-fi story to a fantasy anthology.
Freelance writer blogs and websites
There are many places that you can find writing work. There are websites and blogs designed specifically to collate freelance writing opportunities from across the globe in a range of different styles and genres. A quick Google search will reveal a long list of them.
Some of these jobs are seeking ghost writers—people to produce pieces of writing for financial gain, without their name being placed on the end product. If you are seeking ways of using writing to pay the rent, this is an option, but if you are looking to make a name for yourself, becoming a ghost writer might not be the best way to achieve it.
Individual publications
If you’ve found a publication—hardcopy or digital—that you like or that you think matches your style, you can pitch or submit to them directly (depending on what they prefer). Find out their contact details and get in touch with them. There’s nothing to lose!
Forums
There are plenty of forums out there with people, businesses, artists, studios, and publications seeking writers. They put up listings with the details of what they’re looking for and you can contact them, explaining why you suit the job. These opportunities are definitely worth looking out for.
It might surprise you, but Twitter (and any other social media, really) is laden with opportunities. Be sure to follow any of the magazines or organisations you’d be interested in writing for or working with, as they might just tweet about a vacant position. Try to follow writers that are known for sharing these openings as well, improving your chances of stumbling across them.
Networking
This ties in to networking, yet another way of finding opportunities and jobs. The more writers you get to know—not just as people you follow online, but as people you actually interact with—the more you turn your social network into an actual network. These people get to know you and what you like, and start showing you opportunities that you might not otherwise see. Your network can keep growing: you find writers who know other writers, and you add them to your network, expanding it until you have a vast number of professionals and hobbyists that you can ask for advice. These people might even become your co-workers or business partners one day!
The most important thing when it comes to finding work as a freelancer is that you need to start looking. Put aside some time every day to search for opportunities; you might be surprised at what's out there waiting for you.
Being prepared (Becoming a business) »
Showing off (Creating a portfolio) »
Getting employed (Pitches and finding work) »
What are you worth? (Rates) »
Signing on the dotted line (Contracts) »
Being able to pay the rent (Invoices) »