Can You Really Write for a Living?
There is a common misconception that all writers who write for a living (besides, like, Stephen King) are poor. The starving creative stereotype is harmful, particularly for new writers. Why? Because if you believe that you will be poor as a freelance writer, then you will be poor as a freelance writer.
But I am here to tell you that you can do so much more than survive as a freelance writer. You can thrive! Keep reading to learn how much I make by writing for a living, and how you can make a living as a freelance writer.
CAN I WRITE FOR A LIVING?
Yes! I truly believe that anyone can write for a living. All you need are three things:
Decent writing skills (which can be acquired)
An entrepreneurial spirit
The belief that you can write for a living!
I believe that most aspiring freelance writers who aren’t able to make a living with their writing are missing those last two pieces. So let’s talk about them.
As a freelance writer, you’re not just a creative. You’re also a business owner. You’re the CEO of your writing business. So if you don’t know how to run a business, you’re going to run into a lot of problems.
The good news is you can learn how to become a better entrepreneur by reading books, listening to podcasts, or taking courses. And once you get the hang of it, you may find that being an entrepreneur is fun! I certainly do.
The other thing you need is the belief that you can do it. This is where manifestation comes in.
You create your reality with your thoughts. You need to believe that you are already a successful freelance writer to attract success to you. Here’s a simple way to do it:
Find a quiet, comfortable space to sit or lie down (I lay on a yoga mat in my family room).
Put on some calming meditation music and set a timer for 10 minutes.
Close your eyes and visualize what your life will be like as a freelance writer. Get specific, and fill in as many details as you possibly can. Once you have the vision in your head, allow yourself to feel how you’ll feel when you’re a successful freelance writer. Dig into those feelings. This will raise your energy vibration and attract success to you.
I know this sounds crazy. A year ago, I would have thought the same thing too. I started practicing manifestation meditation in only January 2020, but since then I have bought a house, hired my first employee, and created my first course (amongst other successes).
I am telling you, this stuff works. Try it for 21 days and see if your reality doesn’t start changing!
The first step in attracting success: believing that you are already a successful freelance writer!
IS WRITING A GOOD CAREER?
Yes, writing can be a very good career! As a freelance writer, you have an incredible amount of job security. You have more security as a freelance writer than you do working in a traditional 9-to-5, and here’s why:
1. Over 10 million blog posts are published per day. Per day! The internet is growing at an exponential rate, which means that companies need more fresh content than ever before to keep up.
Most businesses don’t have a dedicated blog writer on staff, which is why they need you, the freelance writer, to help them out!
Trust me, there is plenty of work out there for freelance writers. There’s enough for all of us to make a living writing.
2. Writing cannot easily be automated. The field of AI (artificial intelligence) is growing, and many people’s jobs are at risk. But if you’re a freelance writer, your job is not one of them.
3. By diversifying your income streams between multiple clients, you have better income security than you would have with a full-time job. If you lose one client, you haven’t lost all of your income. But if you lose your full-time job, all of your income is completely gone.
4. You can have a better work-life balance as a freelance writer than you could have at a regular full-time job. As a freelance writer, you can charge significantly higher hourly rates than you could charge in a full-time job, which means you can make more money and work less.
For example, at my last “real job” I made $58k per year (which is a bit less than I will make this year). But I worked over 40 hours per week and only had 10 days of vacation, which means that I worked about 1,960 hours a year. So, my hourly rate was around $29 per hour.
So far this year I have made around $60k and worked 595 hours, which comes out to around $100 per hour. That includes all the hours I’ve spent working, not just the time I’ve spent on client work. This number is actually low for me, but I’ve been working a lot on creating my freelance writing course, and I haven’t yet received any compensation for that.
I’ve made the same amount of money and worked a third of the number of hours. Not to mention I had a 50-minute commute to get to that job! Now my commute is just up the stairs.
Imagine what you could do with all that extra time!
As a freelance writer, you’re the CEO of your own business!
HOW CAN I MAKE A LIVING FROM HOME WRITING?
There are many different ways that you can write for a living. You can write fiction and self-publish on Amazon. You can write resumés for high-powered executives. You can ghostwrite memoirs. The sky’s the limit!
However, for most people, I recommend that you start with writing blog posts. Blog writing is the easiest service for new freelance writers because they’re quick and relatively easy to write. Plus, there is a huge demand for blog posts, as we’ve already covered.
If you want to write for a living, start with these three steps:
Choose a freelance writing niche.
Create a freelance writer portfolio.
Start cold pitching!
It is that simple.
Of course, fear gets in the way. That’s why the first module of my freelance business course is devoted entirely to getting your head right so that you can get out of your head and start doing the work.
Besides putting you in the right headspace to make your dreams a reality, my course will also teach you how to:
Master the art of sales
Market your writing business
Find new freelance writing clients
Manage multiple projects at once
Do your taxes
Manage your finances
Hire subcontractors and contractors
Negotiate and write contracts
Create proposals
Break into freelance writing when English isn’t your first language
Improve your writing skills
And much more!
If freelance writing is your dream, invest in yourself, and let the Universe know that you’re serious. When you believe and you put in the work, that’s when the magic happens.
You don’t have to take my course, but I encourage you to start taking steps on making your dream a reality. You can make a living as a freelance writer. And if you don’t believe in yourself, I believe in you, buddy! If I can do it, you can do it.