This past month, we’ve covered how to find your motivation as a writer, determine what you want for this year, set goals, and explored strategies and tactics for client-based work. Now it’s time to talk about other freelance work and writing that novel.
Freelance Writer Strategies and Tactics
Freelancing, of course, includes writing for clients, which I covered in the last blog. But this blog will focus on the more traditional view of freelancing by writing articles, blogs and other pieces initiated by the writer. Rarely will you find client work that stems from your idea or passions. Clients drive the work from their end. Traditional freelancing finds work from the writer’s ideas.
So how do you build a business rooted in your curiosity and passion? You write and pitch. Writing from passion is the goal of the traditional freelance writer who writes articles, blogs and other self-directed pieces. This doesn’t make this type of writing better than client work, but it does put the burden of success more fully on your shoulders.
Here are some strategies to help you succeed:
Step One: Brainstorm Ideas
Freelance writers are only as good and successful as their ideas. Start by brainstorming article ideas to pitch. Write down any ideas that come to you, no matter how fleeting or unformed. The idea is to capture ideas and potential ideas. You will have time to analyze the viability of each idea later. In the brainstorming phase, write down whatever you can. Flesh out the ideas in the moment while they are fresh and can, but move on if you only have a premise. Try to list as many potential ideas as possible. Then keep the file active and add to it constantly. This file should be treated as a living document.
Step Two: Analyze Your Ideas
Once you have dumped all of your ideas into a file, it’s time to put your editor’s hat on. Look at each idea critically. Can you develop the nugget into a viable story? Could you take that one idea and spin a few different articles out of it? How much research will you need to do to flesh out the idea? Write down as much as you can about each idea and what it will require to turn it into something sellable. The more questions and details you can come up with now, the easier it will be to move on to the next step. I suggest making each idea it’s own page, either within a notebook or a computer file. This lets you develop the idea more fully than you could if it remained one of many ideas in a single document. The goal is to know how you plan to write the article, what you need in order to do that, how much time you will need, and any other details to help you pursue a sale and reasonable terms.
Step Three: Consider the Application
Once you have a better idea of what you want to do with each idea, it’s time to consider where that idea belongs. This means looking at your publishing options. Does your idea fit with a traditional magazine? If so, which ones? How would each publication change the focus of your idea? (Each publication has its own personality and purpose. In most cases, you have to align your idea with that of the publication you have chosen to publish it. Keep this in mind as you develop ideas. It may alter your idea too much, or it may offer you opportunities to create two or more versions of your initial idea and use the same research to write multiple articles/blogs.) Make a detailed list of every place you could pitch a specific idea or a variation of that idea. Don’t be afraid to include blogs, websites, and other outlets that purchase and publish independent work.
Step Four: Choose and Pitch
All that’s left is to choose the outlet and write your pitch. At this point, you should have your thesis or thrust of the article, what you need to make it happen (interviews needed, research questions, etc.), and notes on how it would fit with the outlet you have chosen. Use all of that information to craft a pitch that matches the tone of the outlet chosen and hooks the editor/publisher with the brilliance of your idea. It’s that easy and hard.
Step Five: Write the Article
Once you land the job, write the piece. This means following through on those interviews or research questions. Taking that idea and turning it into a fully fledged article or blog, before editing it to perfection, and sending it off.
Step Six: Keep Going
Being a freelance writer has its benefits and freedoms, but it never ends. You can’t afford to stop pitching even when you’ve landed a job and need to deliver. If you want to enjoy consistent income, then you need to keep working on each step in this list along the way. Be in constant motion developing and pitching ideas. That’s the best way to have a successful career writing what moves you.
Bonus Tactics:
- Keep a list of outlets that interest you. All this takes is a bit of research and digging. There are so many places that pay for writing these days. Keep a list of those places dedicated to ideas that interest you.
- Pay attention to pay scales and schedules. Not all outlets are alike. Many pay below scale and are not a great option if you plan to live on your freelance earnings. Getting paid $25 for an article that took you 16 hours to research and write is not a good return on your investment of time and energy. Also be wary of outlets that pay upon publication instead of receipt of work. It can take months to be published, which means a huge delay in getting paid. If you can afford that delay, go for it, but if not, find another outlet.
- Look for kill fees. Be sure that your time and efforts are protected. Most reputable outlets will offer a kill fee if they cancel the assignment after work has begun. The kill fee varies, but is often a percentage of the total fee promised. Be sure you know the terms of your agreement.
- Make sure you have a contract for the work. An email is not sufficient in most cases. Ask for a contract or letter of agreement (or provide one if one is not offered). This protects you in cases of nonpayment.
Novel Writer Strategies and Tactics
The strategies for writing novels are slightly different. In this field, it is all up to you. There are no clients or publishers or contracts…yet.
Novels are written on spec. In other words, you write the novel to the best of your ability. Edit it. Proof it. Make it perfect and then you pitch it for sale. This is the opposite of all other work for writers. No one else needs to work this way. Even nonfiction writers can sell a book with a query and a few sample chapters. Not fiction writers. You have to do all the work first.
If you want to take this on, then be prepared to do the work ahead of time before you can even think of pitching it and starting the publishing process, which in itself can take years. You’re going to have to be patient. Publishing, even self-publishing, takes time. It can be an emotional roller coaster, so be kind to yourself too.
Here are some strategies that might help:
Step One: Make a Plan
This is the easy part. Decide how much time you would like to devote to the task and create a schedule. It can be as loose as you want (write a chapter a month) or as intense as you need (commit to 2000 words per day). Whatever approach you choose, commit to it and hold yourself accountable. It is too easy to let years go by without results otherwise.
Step Two: Work Your Plan
This is the accountability part. If you find it hard to meet your own deadlines, find a partner or coach who will help. You could find another writer and commit to holding each other accountable. Join a writer’s group. Ask a friend to be your accountability coach or hire one. Establish consequences (you lose something or have to give up something if you don’t reach your goal). There are innumerable ways to hold yourself accountable. Find the method that works for you.
Step Three: Write
Write all the time. Writing is the only way to achieve your goal. Don’t allow excuses. Don’t let yourself off the hook. Write. And remember that talking is not writing. Research is not writing. Planning or plotting is not writing. Only writing is writing.
Step Four: Edit
Once you finish, edit your work. Keep editing it until it is the best you can possibly offer. Polish your manuscript as much as you can before you even think of pitching it.
Step Five: Pitch It
In most cases (for traditional publishing), this means pitching your story to an agent. If you plan to self-publish, find an editor to help you put on the finishing touches. If you are worried an agent won’t like your work, find an editor or writer’s group to help you get your story into better shape. Then put it out into the world, no matter how hard that may be.
Step Six: Keep Working
Once you let go of your story and put it out into the world through self-publishing or sending it to agents, it’s time to get back to work. Start the next idea. Commit to a new plan. Work the plan. Keep writing. That doesn’t mean you stop working on the other story. You will need to keep pitching until it finds a home or market your self-published book in order to get sales, but those activities need to happen at the same time as launching a new project.
I hope all of the steps and strategies in this series will help you have a successful 2022. Did I miss anything? What strategies or tactics do you use to succeed? Comment below.