Starting your Freelance Writing Career Pitfalls to Avoid
When you are ready to start your freelance writing career, you must avoid many pitfalls if you wish to be successful. As a writer, you are focused on being published or being paid, and this can easily cause you to skip over some of the finer details of being a professional freelance writer. Here are some common things that you should avoid when you are first starting your new career.
1. Do not think that you will be starting at the top of the freelancing food chain. As a new writer, you have not proven yourself, and you cannot command top rates. While you do not want to under value your skills, you have to be prepared to initially work for far less than you are worth to get your foot solidly in the door.
2. Do not wait for work to come to you. Go out and find the work. You must work to find work. Send out query letters, search for writing opportunities, place bids on freelance websites, and even be prepared to write through some content mills to support you while you look for better paying writing jobs.
3. Do not be short sighted. You probably have a good idea as to the type of writing that you want to do as a freelancer, but you have to be willing to step out of your comfort zone from time to time, and this is especially true when you first start out. Maybe you abhor the idea of bidding on jobs through freelance websites or grabbing low paying jobs from no-bid freelance sites, but you should be doing these things for a few reasons. First, it allows you to practice your craft. Second, it gets you paid. Third, it gets your name out there. Freelance writers often use their writing skills in ways that they never dreamed of in order to get their careers going in the right direction. The key is to take these lower paying jobs while working to get those higher paying jobs.
4. Do not spend all of your time learning about freelance writing. You can read an entire library full of books or websites full of content on the topic of freelance writing, or you can start writing books and articles to fill those libraries and websites. Also avoid spending too much time in freelance forums talking to other writer's about writing. Instead, close out those sites and do some actual writing...even if you are not yet receiving pay for it. Take action.
5. Do not work all of the time. If you do not take breaks, or days off, you will suffer from burnout sooner rather than later. Most freelancers work out of their homes, and this makes it very easy to fall into the habit of working all of the time. Make sure that you have a set schedule for working, and that when those hours are over that you move away from the computer to do something else.
Freelance writing is a very rewarding career, and it can be quite lucrative. However, if you are not careful, you can essentially end your own career as a freelance writer before you ever really get started. Take things slowly, and realize that each time you place a bid, write an article, or accept an assignment that you are taking another step towards a successful career.
