06.24.11

How to Start a Freelance Writing Career

My guest blogger today is the talented Nicole from Defining Moments. She has some great advice packed into this post if you want to jump start that freelance writing career. Since I love to discuss WAHM topics, this fits in the TMC Network perfectly. *And after you read this awesome post, be sure to check out her blog today since I am guest posting on hers! I’m talking all things blogging and social media related, two other topics that I know this community loves!*

When my oldest daughter was born in 2005 I started my “career” as a stay-at-home mom. At first, I reveled in the beauty of lingering coffees watching the Today Show. But after awhile, the mundane nature of changing diapers and talking to a babbling baby started to take its toll on my brainpower and my morale.  So, I began a part-time career as a freelance writer. As I type this, I have several regular writing jobs for print publications and it’s just enough to keep the ol’ Mommy-brain from creeping in too often. It allows me a sense of professional accomplishment amidst the chaotic life that I live with twins under the age of two and a wonderful near six-year-old daughter. Additionally, it supports my writing conference attending and stiletto obsession. So how do you get going with your own paid writing opportunities?  Well, I’m here to share what I’ve learned so far. I am by no means the guru of freelance writing, but I have found a way to support my shoe addiction nonetheless. 

1) Master the Art of the Query: A query is a brief pitch to a publication sharing what you have to offer them in the way of an article. Many publications like to see clips along with your query to see who has published your work before, so when you don’t have clips available, you must sell yourself with a fabulous query. The most important element of a query is tailoring it to the publication you are pitching so do your research! Look at past issues, become aware of what has been published in the last year – those are the ideas you should not be pitching. Find out the names of the managing editor if it’s a smaller publication. If it’s a larger one, there are editors for different sections of the magazine so you need to be attentive to that and pitch to the appropriate editor. Make sure that you are looking at a current copy of the magazine’s masthead to ensure you have the most recent name because editors tend to change frequently.  

2) Start Small: I started out with a small local publication. I pitched them an idea for an education article because that’s where my professional background lies and they gave me a shot. I have been featured in every issue since then. The small, regional publications are the magazines that are most likely to take a risk on a new writer. Starting out pitching Parenting Magazine or O Magazine isn’t likely to yield a response if you have yet to gain some experience. Just like anything else, you have to work your way up one article at a time.  

3) Write What You Know: Use your expertise from life as a stepping-stone for becoming a freelance writer. Whether that’s experience from a career pre-children or a parenting article based on a personal parenting experience, start with something you are knowledgeable about. If you’re writing what you know you’ll feel more comfortable and your writing voice will be more authentic.  Your editors are more likely to trust you with a topic you have experience with rather than one that you don’t at the start of your writing relationship. 

4) Be Flexible: I have managed to build some wonderful working relationships with my editors because I have been flexible. By being open to article changes such as tweaking the focus or the deadline of an article, you begin to build a reputation for being adaptable. Once you build a positive working relationship, you will find more assignments coming your way as well as more creative control due to the trust you’ve built by meeting the needs of the publication. 

5) Check Your Ego: This goes hand in hand with flexibility. You might be a fabulous writer, but you are not the editor, so it’s important to honor their role and allow them to make changes as needed. It’s important not take it too personal. Each publication has certain goals to meet in the way of word counts, page counts, advertisements and layout. Sometimes it’s a simple layout issue that requires a change to your article. It’s important to realize you will see some changes to your work. With that in mind, if significant changes are made and you are genuinely feeling as if your “voice” was altered, you should feel comfortable enough to voice your hope that the editor might confer with you first on such drastic changes. But, pick your battles. When you are just starting out as a writer, a big ego isn’t going to fare well.  

6) Sometimes Free is OK: An online presence is key to building your marketability in the writing world, especially if you have book plans in your future. Your online following and presence can make the difference between getting assigned a regular column or not. It can mean a book deal or no book deal. I contribute in a variety of places, some of which is for free. I do this because I gain writing experience, I gain an additional online presence and I learn so much from those who are many steps ahead of me. The teacher in me is ok with trading writing for a learning experience. But with that in mind, I set limits and you should too. I have a number of set hours I’m willing to contribute to writing for free and I don’t take on more work than that time allows.

So don’t be afraid to write for free – choose carefully, set limits and you’ve got a win-win for both you and the site editor. You begin to add to your portfolio while you are in the beginning stages of your freelance goals. Free is not forever, it’s simply a place to start to build your reputation as a dependable writer who provides quality work. 

Want to guest post at Theta Mom® for the Network? I am currently accepting submissions, full details can be found on the Network page.
{ 55 Comments }
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Comments

  1. My 3 Little Birds
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 4:38 am

    Thanks for this post. I have been thinking about starting this process myself so I truly appreciate your advice! Queries and research require a whole other skill set than the actual writing. I’d love to see an in-depth post on that subject.

    Reply
    • Nicole @MTDLBlog
      Twitter:
      says:
      June 24, 2011 at 5:28 am

      There’s a great book on Query writing called “Query Letters that Rock” it was a great resource for me when I started! As for a publication – look at your supermarket magazine racks – the ones with the free pubs – that’s where I found my first opportunity. They are paid for through their advertising, so even though it’s a free magazine, they have a budget for their writers. :-)

      Reply
  2. Sorta Southern Single Mom says:
    June 24, 2011 at 4:57 am

    Great advice! Definitely some things to think about…

    Reply
  3. Bonnie says:
    June 24, 2011 at 5:08 am

    Great advice and lots of sound tips for anyone considering a freelance writing career. I really appreciated reading this today!

    Reply
  4. Kerry Ann (aka Vinobaby)
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 5:32 am

    Thank you for sound advice. I am hoping to start freelancing and the concept of how to “break in” can be very intimidating. Time to learn how to write a proper and effective query.

    Cheers.

    Reply
  5. angela
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 5:32 am

    Thanks Nicole! Freelance writing is something in which I’m interested, but it’s always seemed so daunting. Your advice was helpful and broken down into manageable parts, so that it doesn’t seem like such a high wall to scale.

    Reply
  6. Alison@Mama Wants This!
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 5:52 am

    Thanks Nicole, lots of great tips here!

    I haven’t got a solid intention in mind to write freelance, but I’m open to the possibility, which is why I’m contributing for free to an online blog for international parents. It is indeed a great experience as it challenges me to write in the style required, which is not my usual for my personal blog. It also keeps my writing & my mind sharp. Am glad to see here that I’m at least on the right track!

    Reply
  7. FranceRants says:
    June 24, 2011 at 5:58 am

    I have always wondered about this and your information was quite helpful.
    Thank you!!

    Reply
  8. Practical Parenting
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 6:41 am

    This is exactly what I needed to read right now. Great advice. I love the thoughts on starting small and setting limits on writing for free. Thank you!

    Reply
  9. Missy @ Wonder, Friend
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 6:51 am

    Great tips! I’m re-launching my freelance career and it’s essentially the same as starting from scratch. I haven’t worked – in an official, for-money – sense in almost six years. It’s daunting to start all over again, but exciting, too.

    Thanks for sharing your expertise!

    Reply
  10. Tisha | tMedia
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 7:19 am

    This is terrific advice Nicole. I started out writing when I began getting requests from small companies and blog networks via my first blog. I did a lot of work for the “mills” and got fed up with the horrendously low wages, so I began the process of searching out private clients.
    I’ve gotten enough business to keep me encouraged and seeking out more venues and it’s a great feeling to get a proposal accepted. Work can sometimes be sporadic though, so I still work for a couple of the higher paying content networks to fill in the gaps.

    Your tips are wonderful and I’m glad you talked about setting guidelines for doing a little free work. It’s made me rethink some of the outlets I stopped writing for and how it could benefit me if I continued with them on a limited basis.

    Thanks for a great post and my food-for-thought for the day! :-)

    Reply
    • Nicole @MTDLBlog
      Twitter:
      says:
      June 24, 2011 at 1:29 pm

      You’re so welcome! It definitely takes a lot to get enough work to make a “salary” we can live on, but starting small will eventually get us to our goals. I’m so glad this post was useful to you!

      Reply
  11. Kristen @ Motherese
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 7:35 am

    Hi Nicole – Thank you for this thoughtful post and for being generous enough to share your expertise with the Theta Mom community.

    I too am in the process of launching my freelance career and I am grateful to you for summarizing so briefly and eloquently the information it has taken me hours to find elsewhere.

    Thanks again, Nicole, and thanks to Heather for hosting this great post!

    Reply
  12. tracy@sellabitmum
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 9:04 am

    This is such a great post and really has inspired me to try! Thank you for this great info. xo

    Reply
  13. Leighann
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 11:57 am

    I love how realistic this is!!
    Thanks nicole.

    Reply
  14. Christi
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 12:48 pm

    Thank you for this article. The timing is perfect! I was just telling my husband last night that I want to find out what’s involved in doing freelance writing.

    Reply
  15. Leading Mama
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 1:41 pm

    So happy to find you featured on Theta Mom today, Nicole! As a freelance writer who is still working my way up, I’d echo everything you said here. This is wise advice, Theta Moms. Cheers to you, Nicole, for providing it in such an accessible, practical way.

    Reply
  16. Jen {at} take2mommy
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 1:56 pm

    I’ve worked in the publishing industry (magazines & websites) for many years. Nicole’s advice is spot on! Also I would add that persistence is key — don’t just send one query email and wait. The editors I’ve worked with truly appreciate proposals and submissions from freelancers, but they are stretched so thin that they rarely have time to check email. In my experience, it’s OK to reach out to the same editors more than once.

    Reply
  17. Runnermom
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 4:05 pm

    Awesome advice! It is my dream to be a freelance writer, but I have no clue where to even begin. Thanks for this post! Great information :)

    Reply
  18. Johanna
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 24, 2011 at 4:25 pm

    Great advice! Especially numbers 4 and 5.

    Reply
  19. Mommyfriend
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 25, 2011 at 2:07 pm

    I loved this. This year I’ve been able to do a fair amount of freelance writing and everything in this article rings so true to me. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  20. Courtney @The Mommy Matters
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 25, 2011 at 10:40 pm

    This is a GREAT post. Thanks so much for writing this and giving all of us who are just starting out in the Freelance/Writing Business a leg to stand on and a jumping off point. There is a LOT of information about freelancing online, but not any as well written and as first hand knowledgeable as this (at least, not that I’ve found).

    Reply
  21. Hair Bows & Guitar Picks
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 26, 2011 at 5:36 am

    Thank you for all your insight….I am wanting to badly to get into freelance writing. I have approched a couple poeple and did not get the news I had hoped for but I wil not let that stop me. I feel I have things to say and write about that people want to read.

    Reply
  22. Kelly
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 27, 2011 at 2:55 am

    Nicole-This is awesome!

    As I am about to embark on this line of work, these tips are really hitting home! I have been nervous about the query letter…eee-gads!!

    Thanks for the tips-will be using them! :)

    Reply
  23. mommymommymommy says:
    June 27, 2011 at 6:02 am

    Great advice! I have two friends who freelance for our local monthly magazines, and an occasional national publication. I write online for resicual, and there are paid upfront sites like Textbroker for those who want paid assignments.

    You can write articles for your church or synagogue newsletter to start, do the PTA newsletter, anything you want that will get you into the groove and work on a deadline.

    Reply
  24. Mrs. Jen B
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 27, 2011 at 7:53 am

    What fabulous advice! Thank you so much for taking the time to shed some light! :)

    Reply
  25. liz
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 27, 2011 at 9:25 am

    Nicole, this is really a fabulous post, chock full of useful tips and advice! I’m going to send people this way if they ask me about getting started in freelance!

    Reply
  26. Jessica
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 27, 2011 at 5:14 pm

    This is a great post Nicole, I really would like to get into doing some freelance work. I need to get my kids to go back to taking naps somehow so I can do it though!

    Reply
  27. Sherri
    Twitter:
    says:
    June 28, 2011 at 9:07 am

    Nicole, this is great information! So glad to see you over here at Heather’s place today.

    Reply
  28. My Traveling Troop says:
    June 28, 2011 at 11:52 pm

    I can certainly relate. I went from being a full-time journalist to a full-time mom. While I LOVE and CHERISH my role as a mom, it’s nice to be able to dabble in my passion for writing every once in awhile. So, I launched a blog and now I’m toying with the idea of freelancing too. If I do freelance, these tips will certainly come in handy! Thanks for sharing them! -Kristina

    Reply
  29. MamaRobinJ
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 5, 2011 at 9:41 am

    This is awesome. I’ve been working on freelance writing and have had a little bit of success. Thanks for the tips – sounds like I’m on the right track. Going to check out the query book you mentioned too.

    Reply
  30. Shannon Hall says:
    July 9, 2011 at 7:24 am

    Thanks so much for sharing! I’ve really been considering doing some freelance work but have been terrified to get started. Your advice puts things in perspective and may be the gentle nudge I need. Thank you again.

    Reply
  31. toi
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 13, 2011 at 9:12 pm

    Great useful post. Thanks so much for writing. I am working towards my dream of becoming a published writer but I get scared by the fact that maybe my ideas are not good enough to be pitched. I guess I have to work hard to overcome my fears.

    Reply

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