Every Recent Update

Can you make money writing for digital marketing agencies? Yes. How about easy $100 assignments, $400 blog posts, or $1,000 long-form projects, and plenty of ongoing work? Find a good digital marketing agency to work with, and it’s totally possible. In theory, here’s how it works: A digital marketing agency does all the heavy lifting to find clients in your niche. Then the digital marketing agency hires you to write content for their clients…blog posts, white papers, case studies, website content, marketing materials, etc. Sounds pretty good, right? All you need to do is find some digital marketing agencies, and you’re set. Lots of work, less marketing, steady pay. Hold on … Some digital marketing agencies have a track record for paying writers respectable rates. But some are nothing more than low-paying content mills disguised as a digital marketing agency, and we want you to avoid those. Want to write for a digital marketing agency? Check out these freelance writer recomme...

Have you ever wondered whether you could achieve your freelance dreams a lot faster if you hired a writing coach? Spoiler: You definitely could. I know because I’ve been coaching freelance writers for about 5 years now. But. There are a ton of people on the interwebs today, offering to coach you to freelance success. How do you know if a particular coach could help you, or if you’d be wasting your money? Remember, there is no official freelance-writing coach school. Anybody can hang out a shingle. Since a key part of my mission is helping writers avoid ripoffs and scams, I offer this guide to vetting a writing coach. It’s derived from my experiences on both sides of the table, as I’m not just a coach myself but have also productively invested about $20,000+ hiring coaches during my career. Yes, I know this list means you may ask me tougher questions before you hire me as a coach. I say: Bring it on. What do you need to know before you hire a writing coach? Here are 11 key quest...

Ever wonder if there’s a well-trodden path to being a six-figure freelance writer? You know…a step-by-step plan, without any twists and turns, that leads you straight to that sought-after income goal for a lot of freelance writers. If you’re just starting out or you’ve been a freelance writer for some time, you’ve probably experienced the ups and downs of freelancing. It’s part of the gig. So how do you get to be a six-figure freelance writer? Here’s the thing. There’s more than one way to get there. Everybody’s path is a little different. In fact, one freelancer almost gave up on writing for a living to teach English in Asia. And then unexpectedly found her way back. At first it was a rough and winding road that included a stint on food stamps. But she hustled. She worked hard. She got some help along the way. Last year she broke the six-figure mark as a freelance writer. And so can you. Want to be a six-figure freelance writer? Your path is this way… Meet freelance writer Ca...

What if there were some magical words you could utter as a freelance writer and earn more money? You’d probably chant those words in front of the mirror, calling on the Money Fairy to grant your freelance writer wish. But in reality, it probably sounds too good to be true. Right? That’s what I thought when I quit my job as a business reporter to be a full-time freelance writer. It seemed like every day was a hustle, and earning more money meant working more hours. But then something happened. A prospect called to see if I could do some writing work for them. I took a deep breath, and then I uttered three magical words that unlock the key to making more money as a freelance writer. Do you know what those words are? “I’m fully booked.” This might not be on your radar as a freelance writing goal. But trust me, when you can start telling prospects this, you’re on the edge of a major breakthrough as a freelance writer. Here’s what happens to your business when you’re fully booked:...

No one ever said being a freelance writer was easy. But do you beat yourself up when things don’t go as planned? Or are you doing things that set you up for failure, increase frustration, and spoil your attitude? It happens. No matter how talented you are, you’re your own worst enemy when it comes to being a freelance writer. Believe me. I know what it’s like to wallow in self doubt and negative thoughts. And while I don’t claim to have completely cured my own pessimism, I’ve come a long way on the road to optimism. If you want to succeed as a freelance writer, you need some mental toughness. You need the ability to wade through disappointment, doubt, and failure, and keep going. It’s part of the gig. But that won’t happen if you’re plagued by a pessimistic attitude every step of the way. The solution: Be an optimistic writer. You can learn to develop a positive mindset. And when you do, it can transform your life and your freelance writing business. Here’s how it’s done: Yo...

You write a pitch letter, send it off, and get nothing. That ever happened to you? Every freelance writer knows what it’s like. You crank out queries and letters of introduction to editors and marketing managers. You try some heavy-lifting techniques to engage prospects and land assignments. You even flex your writing muscles and try different approaches to crafting pitch letters. You hustle. That’s exactly what you should be doing. But your pitch has to be strong enough to get noticed. If your pitch letter is weak, it’s gonna feel a lot like working out at the gym, even though you’re not really sure if what you’re doing is working. And that’s not what you want. You want to connect with prospects, land assignments, and make a living writing. Right? If you’re not getting the results you want when you send a pitch letter, it’s time to get some help. Ready to buff up your pitch letter? Here’s a chance for a free review: Prepare for a pitch letter workout I’ve been writing...

Ready to quit your job for full-time freelancing? Hold on just a second Ghostrider. If you’ve got nerves of steel, piles of money in the bank, or you’re living rent free in your sister’s basement, go for it. Or if you stare in the mirror every day and recite this old-school pro wrestler’s mantra: “I dine on danger and snack on death,” maybe you’ve got the guts to quit your job and walk out. That wasn’t me. I’ve got plenty of hustle and freelanced on the side for years. But making the leap from a job as a staff writer to full-time freelancing felt a little too risky. As in three kids, a mortgage, pending divorce, life… Sound familiar? If you’re a risk-averse freelancer, you need to find a practical way to quit your job for full-time freelancing with the least financial impact as possible. When I finally walked away from my day job last year, I already had $4,000 in monthly freelance contracts lined up, and I’ve made more than that every month since. Want to know how I did it? He...

Are you desperate to find more good-paying writing jobs? I hear from a lot of writers who send out pitch after pitch…and hear absolutely nothing back. Crickets. Recently, I met a writer who said they had sent 800 pitch letters out, and gotten zero responses! That’s just wrong. If you never get a response to your pitches — even just to say, “We don’t use freelancers” or “We already have this topic assigned” — you’ve got big trouble. Stop what you’re doing. It’s time to re-assess. Getting off the intermediary places like Upwork, content mills, and Craigslist ads, is key to earning better rates. To do that, you’ve got to be able to target better-caliber clients you want, pitch them, and get them to say ‘yes.’ If you’ve been hearing crickets from your pitches, and you’re confused about how to change things, good news: there are basically only three things you can do to make this better. The road to a better response rate isn’t complicated. There are three big levers you can throw t...

Are you on the hunt for freelance writing jobs? If you’re not looking in the right places, you might spend a lot of time chasing tracks that lead to nowhere. Maybe you’re in a barren client landscape. Or you’re surrounded by hoards of other hunters looking for freelance writing jobs. Or maybe you took a wrong turn, and you’re completely lost. It happens. But don’t panic. All you need to do is reorient yourself and get back on track. If you haven’t seen any well-paying freelance writing jobs lately, it doesn’t mean they’re not out there. In fact, there’s more than enough to go around in almost every niche. So how do you track down good freelance writing jobs? Use these tips to find work. Happy hunting. 1. Freelance Marketing Famine? 4 Ways to Find Hungry Clients When Matt Seidholz started looking for freelance writing jobs, he went hunting in all the wrong places. He was nearly starving and down to bare bones rations. In order to survive, he had to rethink his hunting strategie...