freelance writing

Writer’s Wisdom 76

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Juggling Act

When you write for a living, you will probably cram your schedule with as much writing as you can, and many projects at once – some short-term, others, long-term assignments.  A lot of time can be spent in projects that do not generate enough income.  Learning to decide which projects to put aside and which ones to pick up is not as easy as it seems.

While a project may give you instant rewards, another will reward you much more in the long run.  Also, you may have to put aside your favorite project to handle a more profitable one.  Or you might have to cut a project to a few days a month, if that project is not generating what you want – and sometimes, cut it altogether.

This is why writing for a living is like a juggling or balancing act – you have to be balancing projects and deciding which ones to give a priority, which ones fit your needs at the moment, and which one to drop or revisit later.  Timing is also important, as a project that may have seem profitable initially, may not be, if you are spending more time in it than you originally planned.

Poetry

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To start the kick-off of Inkspeare Poetry Month I will post my latest poems.  I’m far from being a poet, and my poetry does not follow any rules.  So, think of it a freestyle poetry – if there is such a thing.  To view some of my poetry, please visit the tab Totally Inspired on this blog.

Writer’s Wisdom 75

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Pricing your content

There is no right or wrong here, in my opinion.  It comes down to what works for you and the time that you are willing to spend on a project and at what cost.  As a freelance writer, and independently employed, it is up to you to choose the type of work you want to do, and price it according to your needs.  There is a lot of competition in writing, and sometimes, it comes down to grab the assignment that will put food on the table.  However, you have to decide the amount of time that you are spending on a project, and if it is worth it.  Is that time better used to get other assignments that will pay better?  I have seen very low offers for work – as low as 20 cents for a 100 words … It may not appeal to some, but to others, it will make a difference.  The time that you will spend writing that 400 word article (or any other project) at that rate, is what you should weigh.

When pricing your content, take your personal needs into account, as well as the going market price for writing projects.

Writer’s Wisdom 74

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Selling Content

As a freelance writer, especially if you are doing it full-time, you have to get creative to bring the bacon home.  Article writing can be a good way of supplementing your income.  You can also take on blogging to add a few dollars to the pot of gold.  Whatever you decide to take on, there is one thing that is essential – selling your content.

Assuming that you have material that is original, interesting,  informative, and free of errors, the next step will be to see how you can get money out of it.  I already mentioned PLR packages on my earlier post, a way you can use to market several articles on one topic.  You can search online for writing sites that will pay you for views and clicks on your articles, or you can take on blogging assignments, or sign up with sites that will hire you to complete writing tasks.  Some of these gigs may become long-term gigs, if you are good at it.

Another option is to sell your content on your website or sign up with a site where you can post your content for sale.  You will have to share a percentage of your earnings with the site, but that is part of using their services. 

Promoting yourself in social networking sites, your blog, your web, and placing ads in the newspaper or around the community or colleges, is another way to sell your content.  Send proposals out to prospect clients.  Sell your content to magazines or newspapers.  Local publications is a good way to start,  although these last two venues are full of competition.  This is a characteristic of freelance writing in present times.  The internet has opened a whole new side to freelance writing, and many writers – good and bad – are taking advantage.

If you are going to sell your content, make sure that you approach clients in a professional way and that you take pride in your work, by fulfilling your part of the deal as promised.

Writer’s Wisdom 73

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About Private Level Rights packages

Mostly known as PLR packages or bundling, these are articles on a theme that are sold together, such as ten articles about gardening.  Due to the fast request and search engine hunger for content, these packages have become popular.  Many freelance writers will bundle a few articles and sell them as a package.  PLR packages can be packs of 10 -20-25 articles. 

Packaging your articles will allow you to sell them faster to interested buyers and also to play with the price, as it is easier to price a package than sell one article.  You may or may not discount the price, it is up to you.  If you feel that your single articles are not selling fast enough, maybe you should try bundling them instead.  This can also be applied to any other artistic material you may have such as photography or e-books.  Test the waters and see what best works for you as a freelancer.

Writer’s Wisdom 57

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Taking your writing to the OR

Snip, snip – the painful process.  Editing and cutting out after many words  is a task that many writers dislike, but a necessary one.  Whether you are writing a novel, or a smaller piece,  there will always be words to rearrange, eliminate or change.  It will only improve what you have written down.  See?  written down, there is no need for the down in the previous sentence, that must be eliminated.

Some writers prefer to edit as they write, or as they finish a chapter; others just write and edit later.  Whatever works for you, as long as you improve your piece by taking off what doesn’t belong.  Readers prefer material that moves at a fast (but not too fast) and consistent pace – writing that flows.

I tend to use too many words and have to be aware of not tiring the readers, or boring them.  I have been guilty of reading a book and skipping paragraphs and pages that contain “a lot of the same.”  I am sure we all have been there and that is a good example to make the point.

So snip snip and don’t be afraid; you may be proud of that sentence, but maybe you can use it on another piece or further along.  Don’t be afraid to take your writing to the operating room.

Writer’s Wisdom 56

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Writing for profit

We can all agree that freelance writing is not glamorous and you will not become a millionaire .  Unless you are a published author, or best-selling author and novelist, your chances of making a lot of money writing are slim.  You can make a decent income, but forget the millions, at least at the beginning.  Despite this crude reality, you can learn to prioritize your projects to make the most of your money.  Learn to pick the assignments that give you the most income while enjoying the craft.  Spending more time on these projects, and less on the ones that take more time and pay less is a way to help your pocket.  However, that does not mean that you can’t write for the pure love of it.  Leave some time available for those writing projects that you love to do but that do not generate much income.  Balance is key.