Freelance Writing Guidelines for Starters: How to Make a Good Career

Put together samples of your best work to show prospective clients

Obviously, in order to make a career as a freelance writer, you will need to pick up your first client. In the writing business, reputations can be very important; therefore, if you have a portfolio of work to show clients, you can demonstrate your expertise for the job.

Of course, if you’re new to the profession then you may not have a big portfolio; however, a portfolio doesn’t have to be made up of only work that you have been paid for, instead, it can include any other pieces of writing that you may have done. Whether you have a good essay that you wrote at school or any samples that you may have written for blogs or other free websites, these can all be used in your portfolio until you start having examples of paid work.

Acknowledge the needs of clients when applying for work

Whether you are applying for work on one of the many freelancing websites on the Internet, or you are looking for clients privately, it is important that you acknowledge the needs of the client when writing a proposal. As tempting as it may be to say how excellent you are as a writer, this does little to inspire confidence in a potential client - nobody is going to say that they are bad at what they do, so saying you’re good at it means very little without proof.

If you can demonstrate that you understand the needs of the client then they are more likely to instigate further communication with you. If you do not show an understanding of the requirements of the piece of work, then the potential client is unlikely to want to hire you, as they may not believe that you will be able to do the work according to their expectations.

Maintain impeccable levels of communication with those that you work with

When you do start winning jobs, is important for your career that you maintain impeccable levels of communication. This means answering emails in a quick and timely fashion, as well as providing updates on the work that you are doing.

Don’t sell yourself short

Finally, it is important that you do not sell yourself short. It might make sense to take on low-paying jobs when you first start out, in order to make a name for yourself. However, once you have your first couple of jobs under your belt, you should think about raising your rates to a level that you feel is acceptable.