13 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Become a Freelance Writer
When I tell people that I make my living as a freelance writer, one of the first questions I get is, “How can I become a freelance writer?” It seems like everybody and their mom is trying to get into the freelance writing game these days. Search the phrase “freelance writing” on Google and you’ll get thousands of results on how to become a freelance writer, work from home, travel the world, etc. (most of them from people trying to sell you something).
But the truth is, being a freelance writer is difficult, especially when you’re just getting started. I belong to a Facebook group for freelance writers and time and time again I see people introduce themselves and then fall off the face of the earth.
Why? Because freelance writing is NOT for everyone. Most people quit before they even make their first grand.
Don’t get me wrong: I love my work. I love my flexible schedule, that I can travel, work with clients, and I love actually sitting down to write every single day.
Think you want to become a freelance writer? Here’s a few reasons why you might want to reconsider and pursue a different path instead.
WHY YOU SHOULDN’T BECOME A FREELANCE WRITER
1. You Don’t Love Writing
You don’t necessarily need incredible writing skills to become a freelance writer, but you do need to love writing.
Because guess what: you’re going to spend A LOT of time doing it. Last week, I spent 13 hours writing for clients. Does that sound fun to you?
It doesn’t matter if you got A’s or B’s on papers in high school and college. Did you actually enjoy writing them? Or did you wait until the last possible second and bullshit your way through them?
If you aren’t completely obsessed with writing and don’t want to do it for at least 3 hours every day, then a career in freelance writing isn’t for you.
If you’re not prepared to write for at least 3 hours every day, maybe don’t become a freelance writer.
2. You Only Want to Write
If writing all the time sounds great to you, just hold it right there. If you want to become a freelance writer, you’re going to have to do a hell of a lot more than just write.
Freelancing is like running a small business and you’ll need to wear many different hats.
You’ll be your own marketer, salesperson, web developer, project manager, and bookkeeper. As you grow your business, you can outsource some of these tasks, but when you’re first getting started, it’s all on you.
If you just want to write and do absolutely nothing else, maybe consider becoming a staff writer for a publication or working as a copywriter for an agency.
Hopefully you look cute in hats, because you’ll be wearing a lot of them as a freelance writer.
3. You Don’t Have a Niche
When you’re starting out as a freelance writer, you must choose a very narrow niche for two reasons:
It may seem like a good idea to take any writing gig that comes along. Money is money right? But you’ll do your best work if you write about a topic you know from the inside out.
Marketing yourself is so much easier if you only need to market one very specific skill set. Think of it like this: If you have a craving for barbecue, do you go to a restaurant that has one barbecue dish on their 5-page menu or do you go to the place in town that’s famous for its barbecue? Of course you’re going to pick the famous barbecue joint every time. It’s the same way with marketing yourself as a freelance writer. Instead of being a generalist, you want to be THE person to hire when someone needs a freelance writer in your niche.
The general rule of thumb for choosing a niche is to pick a topic where you can leverage your experience and interests in an industry where you can easily find your clients. For example, I chose beauty as my niche because I already worked in the beauty industry. I knew about the category and already had some contacts.
You need to know some things to become a freelance writer. Otherwise, what will you write about?
4. You Don’t Have a Portfolio
You won’t be able to book any clients without a freelance writer portfolio. If you don’t already have clips to show, you’ll have to write them on spec (meaning you’ll write them without any guarantee that they’ll be used or you’ll get paid).
I recommend starting your portfolio with three pieces in your niche to demonstrate your writing skills. Pretend that you’re writing for your ideal client and show the world what you can do.
Then find a place to post those clips! It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. I had my first writing portfolio on Behance before I built my own website and created my copywriting portfolio.
If you want to make one, check out this post on how to create a freelance writing portfolio.
Your portfolio is where you show the world what you can do. Do you have one?
5. You Don’t Love Learning
If you want to be the best freelance writer you can be (and get paid accordingly), you’ll also need to spend a lot of time learning. Expect to read blog posts and books in order to learn how to write better, grow your niche knowledge, and figure out how to run a business.
6. You Just Want to Make a Bunch of Money
Sure, having the freedom to travel or work from home is definitely appealing to anyone who is thinking about becoming a freelance writer. But honestly, freelance writing is not the best way to make a ton of money.
Freelance writing is a service-based business, which means it’s difficult to scale. You are selling your service and your time is limited. Once you have a full client roster, you can really only grow by raising your rates. Technically, you could move to an agency format and outsource some of your writing work, but then you’re not really freelance writing anymore.
If you’re just looking for a quick buck, I urge you to try a product-based business model like Amazon drop shipping.
If you dream of diving into your own bank vault like Scrooge McDuck, freelance writing probably isn’t the right path for you.
7. You’re Not Organized
Being a freelance writer means you have to keep track of a lot of details. Do you have systems in place to keep everything in order once you’re busy? When you have multiple clients, how will you handle their emails so you don’t miss anything? How will you keep track of your income and expenses so you can do your taxes? How will you make sure you complete all your projects on time?
If you’re a person with 2,400 unread emails in your inbox and no idea of how to use a spreadsheet, you’re going to have a hard time running a freelance writing business.
8. You’re Afraid Of Sales
You gotta hustle when you’re starting out freelance writing. I began my business by emailing beauty companies with blogs that hadn’t been updated in a long time. I made a huge spreadsheet where I tracked potential clients. Then I made it my goal to cold pitch 5 potential clients every single day. I was persistent and followed up several times, which I also kept track of in the spreadsheet. Once I received a response (which I rarely did), I had to get on the phone and convince that company to hire me to write their blog.
It was difficult and I was frequently rejected (sometimes rudely)—but you HAVE to cold pitch if you want to make money freelance writing, and you have to be consistent and keep trying to build out your client roster.
Hopefully you’re excited to send emails to strangers, because that’s what you’ll be doing every day!
9. You Don’t Value Your Time Or Skills
A lot of beginner freelance writers make the mistake of charging pennies per word through Upwork or Fiverr clients or lame freelance writing jobs.
Big mistake. HUGE.
Granted to get started, you’ll need to take a few low-paying gigs just to get some positive testimonials. Confession: for my first job on Upwork in May 2017, I wrote 2500 words for $25. But I crushed it, got that five-star review, and moved on.
Writing is, of course, a creative endeavor and you can’t be creative when you’re freaking out about money. If you’re not sure how much to charge for your services, use this simple formula:
Figure out how much money you need to pay your bills and eat.
Divide that by how many hours you work.
Add at least 25% since you’re not going to have a full roster right away.
You’ll have to charge more if you live in an expensive area, and that’s okay!
And here’s the thing: good clients pay more. People who pay peanuts will ghost you, criticize your work, and treat you like shit.
Why? Because they don’t value you. They don’t take you seriously and that’s how they’ll treat you.
Take yourself seriously and demand what you’re worth. As you build your book and improve your skills, you can start to charge even more.
Having the wrong mindset is a huge mistake for most freelancers starting out.
10. You’re Afraid to Say “No”
There will be a lot of opportunities that come your way that just won’t be worth it for you. Every time you say yes to something, you’re saying no to something else (even if that thing hasn’t come up yet).
Be clear about the kind of writing you do and the kind of client you’re looking for, and say no to everything else. You’ll be a lot happier and do better work if you fill your schedule with work that you’re excited about.
11. You Don’t Have Something To Live Off Of
Whether it’s a part-time job, a partner you can lean on for support, or a fat savings account, you’re going to need some extra cushion while you’re starting your freelance writing business.
I only made $850.07 my first month of freelance writing and I didn’t make more than $2000 in one month until my seventh month in business.
I had a small amount of savings, but with the high cost of living in Los Angeles, I burned through my savings within two months. I was so broke that I had to sell all of my furniture and drive across the country to move in with my parents in Ohio. I lived with them for 8 months hustling my ass off before I was making enough money to travel full-time (which was my goal all along).
I was so lucky to have that support system in place. Do you have something to keep you afloat while you build your business?
Without a support system, you’re more likely to say yes to shitty clients who pay you garbage rates for work you don’t even want to do. And that’s a one-way ticket to burnout city, my friend.
Also, keep in mind that your income as a freelance writer will vary wildly from month to month. Are you prepared for that?
In May 2018 I made $1837.82, but the next month I made $20,095.27. You never know when your next big paycheck is coming so it’s important to have some cash in the reserves or a nice credit limit to manage your finances.
12. You’re Not Focused
If you want to be a freelance writer, you’ll have to work your ass off—especially when you’re just starting out.
Will you be able to stay on task when you don’t have a supervisor breathing down your neck? Will you show up to work every morning and stay until closing time, or will you be tempted to procrastinate with social media and household chores?
I’ll be honest: this is one of the hardest parts of freelance writing for me. I’m either working from home or on the road and sometimes it’s impossible for me to focus.
Luckily, there are many time management techniques you can practice to help keep you from procrastinating. You must find ways to keep yourself pumped up and motivated, like having a focus playlist or listening to inspirational podcasts in your off time. If you can’t stay focused, you’re not going to make it as a freelance writer.
When you’re a freelance writer, you actually have to stay on task and get work done.
13. You Don’t Like Being Alone
It seems like everyone wants to work from home these days, but I think people really underestimate the social value of working in an office.
When I had a traditional job, I hated the pressure of having to be at a certain place at a certain time. But once I started working from home, I really missed talking to people. Like really, really missed it.
Every day at lunchtime, I texted my roommate to see when she would be home. In the evening, I basically waited at the door for her like a dog. It was creepy, but I was so desperate for human interaction that I just couldn’t help myself!
You can get around the loneliness of freelance life by working in a coworking space or scheduling more social activities, but just know that this is a very real part of freelancing and it can be a huge bummer.
Look. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t become a freelance writer at all. In fact, if all this sounds fine to you, I think you should go for it! After all, freelance writing does have some seriously significant perks. I love that I have the flexibility to wake up late and work from anywhere in the world.
But life as a freelance writer definitely has its cons. If you’re going to quit your job and go out into the Wild West of freelancing, you should have some idea of what to expect.
Need a little help getting started? I offer freelance writing coaching calls! And if that ain’t your bag, sign up for my email list for more free tips on growing your freelance writing career.