There’s a lot to be said for freelance writing for websites on the internet. However, if you’re a freelance writer, you may not want to ignore the benefits of writing freelance content for magazines, newspapers, and trade publications.

• The primary benefit of writing for print media, depending upon the media you’re writing for, is you could earn considerably more for your work. Obviously you want to be paid well for your writing. Sending article ideas into consumer magazines is your best bet; they typically pay more than other types of magazines. Read More…

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Freelance writers find many avenues to ply their trade. Whether writing for newspapers, magazines, trade papers, or the internet, their goal is the same. They want to be able to find gainful jobs to help pay the bills. Many are finding out about the benefits of writing freelance content for the internet.

Having a website where you can showcase your own freelance writing is one benefit of being a part of the World Wide Web. You have a location to publish your writing instead of having to send query letters to magazines, newspapers, or trade paper. It also cuts down on waiting for the approval or rejection letters to come through the mail. If you’ve ever sent out a query letter, you know how nerve wracking the wait can be. Read More…

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When you first started out in freelance writing, you may have been eager to accept any paying position you could get, regardless of how little it paid. Now that you’ve been writing for a while, you may think you still need to do this type of article. Well guess what, cheap articles aren’t worth your time.

You know how much money you need to make either per article or per hour to meet your financial obligations. Spending time and energy on assignments which don’t pay much is defeating the purpose of freelance writing from home. If you’re going to be a freelance writer, you want to be paid what your writing is worth.

Think of it this way, writing an article that doesn’t pay much takes time away from pursuing your own writing. It keeps you from marketing your website and skills. And ultimately it isn’t going to pay the bills. Read More…

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There’s no doubt that owning your own freelance writing business provides certain freedoms virtually unavailable to the 9-5 ers.  As a freelance writer, you have the ability to work when you’re most creative and most productive, even if that’s from midnight to four in the morning!  You have the freedom to choose the types of projects you work on and whom you work with.  You can also pack up your laptop and work from just about anywhere on the planet.

That means you can saunter over to the coffee shop, plug in and work on your latest project or, like two writer friends of mine, you can head to France or Czechoslovakia for a few months and earn while you play.

Of course not every freelance writer can accomplish this feat, it takes a few steps and characteristics.  To achieve this level of freelance writing freedom you must:

Be motivated. If you’re summering in France and trying to still be productive it’s going to take a certain amount of discipline and structure and of course since you don’t have a boss peering over your shoulder telling you how and when to get it done, you must be motivated to accomplish this for yourself. That means creating your own work schedule and sticking to it.  Of course, because you’re your own boss, you can decide if that means working two or three days a week or two or three hours a day.

Be prepared. Wherever you’re going, you must make sure you have the resources you need.  If you’re a writer for the web, then you’ll need a good internet connection and of course your computer or laptop to work from.  If you’re a travel writer then you simply need your camera, a notebook to jot down your travels and experiences and quite likely a computer for you to write on and save your content.

If you’re a copywriter, which is the most lucrative type of freelance writing, then you’ll also need to make sure you have telephone or cell phone access so you can communicate effectively with your clients.  Many clients are completely happy to communicate via email however some prefer the phone and if they’re paying you thousands of dollars per page then it’s best to be available when they wish to speak with you!

Use technology. Finally, a few technologies can make your life of freelance freedom incredibly easy. I strongly recommend having an autoresponder in place which informs anyone who contacts you via email immediately.  This gives them the professional courtesy they deserve and it buys you 24 hours or so to respond – very helpful if you’re playing in France or swimming in the Aegean Sea.

I also strongly recommend some type of efax system so you can easily fax documents to clients if needed and an automated payment system like Paypal so you can receive payment.  If people are mailing you checks you cannot cash them until you return home from your trip, however Paypal can issue money directly to a debit card and you can spend your hard earned cash wherever you are.

That’s it, that’s all you need to achieve the highest level of freelance writing freedom – motivation, the right resources for your particular line of work, and a few technologies to make life easy.  So, where are you going to take your freelance life?

Posted under Articles and Tips, Freelance lifestlye