Often, editors and clients will ask to see samples of your writing. They may also be called clips or a writing portfolio. What happens if you don't have previous work? Does that mean you cannot submit your work or win the client?
Not neccessarily. You can create a portfolio even if you've never been published or had a paying client. You will want to have a basic portfolio before you start seeking work.
Know What You Will Write
Before creating a portfolio, decide what kind of writing you will do. You may want to do some research to see what is popular and what sells and pays well. Take into account what type of writing you are good at or interested in learning. This may require you to take some classes.
Create Samples
Once you know what you will be writing, create samples. If you are focused on one type of writing, like sales letters, write 4 or 5 to include in your portfolio. Use a fictional business that you are promoting.
If you will be writing in several areas, include 1 or 2 examples of each one. Choose topics that you are knowledgeable about and write on them. Your portfolio may include a couple of web content articles, 2 blog posts, a sales letter, and a press release.
Put Your Portfolio on Your Website
Put all of your writing on a website created for your writing business. When you approach a potential client or editor, submit relevant samples of your writing but include a link to the entire portfolio.
If you find a potential writing job and none of your samples are appropriate, take the time to write a new one. You can add it to your portfolio for future use.
Submitting samples that aren't relevant will lessen your chances of winning the client or job. Take the extra time to write a sample that showcases your knowledge and skills in the correct area.
A portfolio is a neccessary tool for freelance writers. Take the time to make yours stand out.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Friday, March 9, 2012
Create a Winning Profile
One of the most important things you can do to advance your online writing career is to write an outstanding profile. If you choose to use bidding sites like Elance or oDesk, you will have to create a profile to participate. However, creating a profile is beneficial for whatever writing you plan to do.
Your profile should do three things:
1. It should introduce you as a writer to potential clients. Your profile should tell something about the kind of writer you are, what you write, and what experience you have. This will help clients decide if you are right for their project.
2. It should show who you are as a person. While your writing abilities are the most important aspects of your career, people like to hire real people. Do your interests fit with what you write? Do you have real-life experience on the topics you cover?
3. It should gain you writing jobs. Your profile should be so compelling that clients want you to write for them. It is an advertisement for your abilities. This advertising is done by meeting the first two points.
How do you write a great profile?
You start by listing your skills that are relevant to writing. Any previous work experience or volunteer efforts should be listed. Any life experience in areas where you plan to write should also be mentioned. What you don't say is just as important as what you do say. This is not a Facebook or online dating profile. Don't mention that you love cats and have three of them unless you plan to write about cats.
Three tips to create a winning profile:
1. Use powerful words to describe yourself. You might want to study up on writing great resumes, and look at some of the wording that is used. Instead of saying you wrote articles for an organization, you might say you wrote "compelling content" or "creative sales pages."
2. Find as much experience in your background that is relevant as you can. This may include writing for a school newspaper or editing a work newsletter. Anything that will make you stand out should be included. At the same time, don't lie about your qualifications, because it will be obvious when you submit your first article to the client if you don't really have the experience you say you do.
3. Add a portfolio. This is essential to getting clients. People don't just want to hear you tell them what you can do; they want to see what you have done. If you don't have previous work to show, write some now. If you want to get work writing press releases but haven't done any before, write one for a fictional company. It will show your abilities, which is what the client wants.
You may be wondering where to post this outstanding profile if you aren't using bidding sites for work. You can create a blog or a website that includes your profile for others to see. A profile is one of the basic keys to getting work on the internet.
Your profile should do three things:
1. It should introduce you as a writer to potential clients. Your profile should tell something about the kind of writer you are, what you write, and what experience you have. This will help clients decide if you are right for their project.
2. It should show who you are as a person. While your writing abilities are the most important aspects of your career, people like to hire real people. Do your interests fit with what you write? Do you have real-life experience on the topics you cover?
3. It should gain you writing jobs. Your profile should be so compelling that clients want you to write for them. It is an advertisement for your abilities. This advertising is done by meeting the first two points.
How do you write a great profile?
You start by listing your skills that are relevant to writing. Any previous work experience or volunteer efforts should be listed. Any life experience in areas where you plan to write should also be mentioned. What you don't say is just as important as what you do say. This is not a Facebook or online dating profile. Don't mention that you love cats and have three of them unless you plan to write about cats.
Three tips to create a winning profile:
1. Use powerful words to describe yourself. You might want to study up on writing great resumes, and look at some of the wording that is used. Instead of saying you wrote articles for an organization, you might say you wrote "compelling content" or "creative sales pages."
2. Find as much experience in your background that is relevant as you can. This may include writing for a school newspaper or editing a work newsletter. Anything that will make you stand out should be included. At the same time, don't lie about your qualifications, because it will be obvious when you submit your first article to the client if you don't really have the experience you say you do.
3. Add a portfolio. This is essential to getting clients. People don't just want to hear you tell them what you can do; they want to see what you have done. If you don't have previous work to show, write some now. If you want to get work writing press releases but haven't done any before, write one for a fictional company. It will show your abilities, which is what the client wants.
You may be wondering where to post this outstanding profile if you aren't using bidding sites for work. You can create a blog or a website that includes your profile for others to see. A profile is one of the basic keys to getting work on the internet.
Friday, March 2, 2012
Where to Start Your Online Writing Career
The internet is an easier place to break in with your writing than magazines or book publication. That being said, if you want to make money with your writing even on the internet, you will have to learn the correct style and what is expected for the type of writing you will be doing.
Give it Away for Free
No one likes to give things away for free, but it can be beneficial to allow your writing to be published without pay. It gets your name known and allows you to get critiques from others to help you improve. This is especially beneficial for web writing. There are numerous places where you can see your writing published on the internet. Some of the most popular ones are Hubpages and Squidoo. While they don't pay you to write for them, you can earn money from page views. Of course, it can take a long time to get to that point, but in the meantime, you will be getting comments from others who write on those sites. This will help you grow as a writer.
Consider Lower Paying Sites
Look at sites such as Yahoo Contributor Network or other sites that pay you a small fee to publish your work. It will not be enough so that you can quit your day job, but you will be able to say you are a paid writer. With sites such as these, the benefit is the experience you will get as a writer. You will learn more ao bout what works and what doesn't work and how to edit your articles.
Don't Forget Contests
Put a search in Google for writing contests and you will find thousands of listings. Sort through these and you will find some that suit your style and don't cost a fortune to enter. Sometimes, you can even get feedback from these contests about your work. That is worth more than the prize money if your goal is to be a published writer.
Look at Outsourcing Sites
Sites such as Elance and oDesk have projects and writers who bid on those projects. You can often find jobs that interest you that you can get paid for. It's not easy to get started and the pay is often low, but you can make a decent second income from these sites. I wrote an article titled How to Get Work as a Freelance Writer on Bidding Sites Like Elance and oDesk. It details how to set up your profile and how to bid on jobs and tips to help you get them.
I don't recommend trying to make a full-time living with these sites, even though some people do. At the very least, it's a great way to start your writing career and let you experience writing for someone's specific demands.
Becoming a successful online writer takes time. Each of these steps is a way to get you exposure and help you learn more about your craft. With patience and persistence, you can become a professional online writer.
Give it Away for Free
No one likes to give things away for free, but it can be beneficial to allow your writing to be published without pay. It gets your name known and allows you to get critiques from others to help you improve. This is especially beneficial for web writing. There are numerous places where you can see your writing published on the internet. Some of the most popular ones are Hubpages and Squidoo. While they don't pay you to write for them, you can earn money from page views. Of course, it can take a long time to get to that point, but in the meantime, you will be getting comments from others who write on those sites. This will help you grow as a writer.
Consider Lower Paying Sites
Look at sites such as Yahoo Contributor Network or other sites that pay you a small fee to publish your work. It will not be enough so that you can quit your day job, but you will be able to say you are a paid writer. With sites such as these, the benefit is the experience you will get as a writer. You will learn more ao bout what works and what doesn't work and how to edit your articles.
Don't Forget Contests
Put a search in Google for writing contests and you will find thousands of listings. Sort through these and you will find some that suit your style and don't cost a fortune to enter. Sometimes, you can even get feedback from these contests about your work. That is worth more than the prize money if your goal is to be a published writer.
Look at Outsourcing Sites
Sites such as Elance and oDesk have projects and writers who bid on those projects. You can often find jobs that interest you that you can get paid for. It's not easy to get started and the pay is often low, but you can make a decent second income from these sites. I wrote an article titled How to Get Work as a Freelance Writer on Bidding Sites Like Elance and oDesk. It details how to set up your profile and how to bid on jobs and tips to help you get them.
I don't recommend trying to make a full-time living with these sites, even though some people do. At the very least, it's a great way to start your writing career and let you experience writing for someone's specific demands.
Becoming a successful online writer takes time. Each of these steps is a way to get you exposure and help you learn more about your craft. With patience and persistence, you can become a professional online writer.
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