5 Essential Resources for New Freelance Writers

If you begin your freelance writing career focusing on this particular list first you'll find that exploring these freelance writing jobs can answer a lot of your initial questions. You may feel like you're adrift in the sea but the truth is that most first-time freelancer writers want to know the same things you do, right off the bat: How much money can I make? What kind of work is available? What will I be writing? What do jobs pay? How much experience do I need? What kinds of samples of my work will I have to show? This list of freelance writing job sites is a great place to start exploring exactly what kind of work is out there and how it lines up with your skill-set, background, and portfolio. 

Unless you're a trust fund kid and you're in the game strictly for the love of the work, then the question of money is often the number one thing that will come to mind when looking for freelance work. This is the main difference between contract work (you're assured a certain amount of money every year) and freelance work. These examples of writing rates should prove useful to most new writers. 

Your resume, or some variation of it, will always be the first thing you're asked for once you really dive into this career path. While may only be a one-page document, it is a very important one-page document. If you don't have any clips or samples of your work, don't fret. Most new writers decide to take on some short-term projects to bulk up their experience. If this is not an option for you then bite the bullet and take on an assignment pro-bono so you have a good sample of your work. If you go this route, pick a case or organization that you believe in because the topic will be easier to write about. 

After a request for your resume, you'll most often encounter a request for some samples of your work (often referred to as clips). This resource links to some basic information about creating and presenting your clips. Be sure to select your best work, not necessarily your most recent work.

This book is short and gets to the point without wasting a lot of time. Spend an hour or two perusing it and you'll be on your way to understanding all you need to know about the business side of freelance writing.