The Fast Track to Freelance Success Includes Networking and a Strong Portfolio

5 Steps to Accelerate Your Writing Career

If you are entirely new to writing, first thing’s first. Educate yourself. Make sure you know what good writing is; brush up on the basics and expand your vocabulary. When I say expand your vocabulary, remember that you should write in a way that the common man cannot understand you; I say this so you will be more capable of clearer thought and expression. Pay very close attention to what you read in magazines and online. Study writing that has been published and get to know what is good. Sign up for some newsletters published by writing websites and check the calls for submissions and job boards on those sites regularly. Invest in a few books about the types of writing you are most interested in.

Diversify. Learn how to write for business, and offer a broad array of services. My service list includes brochures, flyers, newsletters, web content, press releases, sales letters, copywriting, training manuals, employee handbooks, editing, research, and even life stories. If a client hires me to write a newsletter or other marketing piece, I offer to do their mailing for them. Be creative in what you can offer. How-to writing books are available for these topics.

If you do not have published pieces to offer as samples, (many prospects naturally will want to see your work) ask business people you know to let you do some work for them and charge them a nominal fee, or just charge for the printing. Do this just in order to form a portfolio of your work. Or, you can create mock samples. It is favorable, of course, if you have some actual work to share. In order to compile samples, it might be worth your time to do some work for free. But only do this long enough to establish a portfolio! I also recommend, if you are to write for business, an investment in some sort of publishing software.