Skills You Need As A Freelance Writer (Other Than Writing Ability)
I spent a few minutes browsing some freelance websites before writing this, and they gave me the idea for this article.
Most people try freelance writing, maybe make $10 and then quit. Or they’ll think that writing is too much work for too little return, or wonder when the money is going to roll in. They’ll probably work for a content mill and find that the people that hire them are taskmasters who want more in less time for less money.
A lot of writers quit. Not because of their skills at writing, but because of a lack of other skills. I’ll write about those in this article.
#1: Work Ethic
Writing is a great skill to have. Copywriting is a really useful skill to have.
Unfortunately, it’s a time-consuming skill. If you practice, then you can write pretty quickly. I average between 1500-2000 words an hour when I get into a good, flowing state of concentration.
However, if you want to write a book and you can write 2000 words an hour, you’re still going to have to put in twenty-to-fifty hours to write a 40,000-100,000 word book. There’s no way around it: To be a writer, you’re going to need to put time in and do the work.
I struggle with this sometimes: I am a hobbyist computer programmer, so I like to try and automate things. You’re never going to be able to automate good writing. A lot of the following tips are by-products of a lack of work ethic.
#2 Time Management
We established above that writing takes time. That’s unavoidable. Unfortunately, if you’re writing for clients, time is something you could always use more of.
Most writers are terrible at writing to deadlines. If you can write a 500 word article in 24 hours, then you are in the small minority of writers that can do this. I’m not kidding. If you doubt me, go and hire a freelance writer on Fiverr and give them a short deadline with a topic they can’t copy and paste that will also need research.
You’ll get many excuses. You can’t afford to have excuses as a freelance writer.
#3: A Thick Skin
I’m no Hemingway or Dickens. I’m not the best writer in the world, and I freely admit I probably won’t ever be. That said I’m far from the worst writer in the world. In fact, I’ve written hundreds of thousands of words for clients all over the world, and even more for myself. (The exact figure is in the millions.) I get paid to write, and therefore, logically I must be a pretty good writer.
Not according to some people.
It doesn’t matter how good you are at writing, you’re going to have clients who tell you that your work is worse than their three-year old’s. you’re going to get people who give you one-star reviews and you’re going to get people calling you names and telling you to rewrite your whole project again and again.
Some of the biggest writers in the world have been called complete hacks, so you’re not getting off lightly.
Whether that’s right or wrong, you’ll need a thick skin to be a freelance writer.
#4: YOUR OWN PROJECTS
Something that’ll help you massively when you’re dealing with difficult clients and general petty tyrants is to have your own projects. When you have your own projects, you’re less outcome-dependent on any one client (because you have other income sources,) you’re gaining experience and you’re learning new things and improving your skills.
Who knows? You might launch a project that means you don’t have to take on clients at all unless you want to.
#5: Long-Term Goals
Your writing is your business. Your client is not your business. If you stop writing tomorrow, your clients won’t care. They’ll find someone else. If you can’t break-even as a writer, then nobody is going to bail you out.
If you sit around earning peanuts without a long term goal, then you’re doing yourself a disservice. I know, I’ve been there. (I still get complacent.) I didn’t start looking for other opportunities until I started getting into trouble on a freelance site – it was at that point that I realised I’d been stupid and considered a freelance site my only source of income.
Don’t do this. The future must be in your mind and hands when you write as a freelancer.
#6: Ability to Detach Yourself From The Outcome Of A Project (Or Client)
I’ve sort-of stated this above. Sometimes you’ll have clients who hire you to do projects which are doomed to failure.
Sometimes, you’ll be involved in a project which is poorly managed.
Sometimes, you’ll work for a scammer who won’t pay you.
You have to think of your future and how each project fits into it. When the project is done, you need to move on. If a client is difficult, you need to move on. You shouldn’t get emotionally invested in these things unless they are crucial for your future.
#7: General Knowledge
Writing as a freelancer generally involves taking on projects which you’re not familiar with. Very few writers write about writing. Instead, they make their money writing about technical subjects.
With a lot of projects, you’ll not know much about the product or person you’re writing about. You’ll have to do lots of research. This process is a lot faster if you already have a lot of general knowledge.
Books are cheap, knowledge is cheaper thanks to the internet, and you can learn all sorts of cool and applicable stuff just by reading.
#8: A Folder Of Crucial Information
I’ve had to learn this the hard way. Get a spreadsheet and open it up. Write down all the projects you’ve worked on. List their titles, your pay, your client’s name and the date you’ve done the work. List anything else that’s interesting. Put all your files in a folder on your laptop. Print them out if that’s any use. Keep backups.
Come tax week, having to re-do research or just when you’re trying to spring-clean your computer, you’ll thank yourself. Trust me!
#9: Rudimentary People Skills
I do practically all of my work sat at a computer in my home.
I talk to most of my clients through email.
I’m a pretty heavy introvert at the best of times.
I you’re a freelance writer, most of those things will apply to you to in most cases. You’re still going to need people skills though. They’ll get you referrals, they’ll get you good reviews and they’ll get you more money in the long run. Why?
Because most people are useless when it comes to interacting.
The other day, I had a client send me a query email.
No please.
No thank you.
They asked for a discounted rate before knowing what the rate even was, then they proceeded to not tell me what I’d even be writing about.
When I didn’t respond I got an even ruder email. (This was four hours later… and not anywhere near working hours.)
This is from a person who wanted to be a customer. No people skills.
When I’ve hired people, I’ve gotten people who deliver nothing, people who deliver something I haven’t asked for and people who’ll make up a million excuses for not delivering on time. Trust me, if you can do all of those things and say “please,” “thank you” and “sorry” (when you’ve done something wrong,) then you’re way ahead of the curve.
Final Thoughts
These things are simple, but sadly they are almost unique selling points. If you get these things in order, you’ll be a more efficient and a better writer than most writers. You don’t even have to improve your writing to benefit from these improvements. They’ll pay off on their own.