Finding Freelance Writing Work

Like any other self-employed work, finding freelance writing jobs isn't easy. However, if you are determined, and have a plan, then it can be much less of a challenge.

When I decided to go freelance on a full time basis, I ended up having a few sleepless nights and going over in my head which direct debits I could cancel. I also sent plenty of time trying to figure out where else I could save money, so I could make my savings just a little bit longer.

Fortunately, it didn't come to that as I re-discovered freelance writing sites. I had tried them in the past, but soon lost patience when I didn't win any projects. I guess I took the many rejections I had gotten just a little bit too personally, but when I went back to the freelance sites, I soon realised that if I was going to be successful, then I was going to have to get a thicker skin.

I also took some time out to ready other people's advice on how they secured work from freelance sites, and I read many accounts from people who had bid on 40 plus projects before getting their first job. It is just a matter of having some grit and determination and not giving u at the first hurdle. After 21 proposals, I was lucky enough to secure my first Elance project. I secured a project ghost writing a book, and I am just finishing a second book for the same client.

The work is was irregular to begin with, however, that is the nature of freelance work. I have since found that the more I pitch for work, the better I get at pitching, which means more work comes my  way every month. I also look for clients that require regular content so I can build up my client list that way.

The more clients I get, the more confident I become and the regular work makes the whole freelance writing business just a little less nerve-racking.

For now, I am working on Elance. Fiverr and People Per Hour. People Per Hour is one of my favourites as it is easier to secure work on there and they're fast at releasing funds when I've requested it

Do you have any tips for finding freelance writing work? Share your tips in the comments section below.

Writing for Expertscolumn

Late last year I joined a writing site called Expertscolumn. I wasn't very active on there to begin with but in the last few months I've made sure to write there every day.

They are honest and helpful, and have been about for a relatively long time. They offer payments via PayPal or Moneybookers and you can cash out once you've reached $5. From my experience, payments are done within a few days.

Unlike some other writing sites, articles on Expertscolumn are highly ranked on Google. I've found several of mine on the first page and this obviously helps with page views: You can read a couple of my articles by following these links:

http://expertscolumn.com/content/ways-promote-your-articles

http://expertscolumn.com/content/finding-ideas-write-about

If you would like to join you can either use my referral link which is:

http://expertscolumn.com/referral/65788e25

alternatively, you can just sign up directly at expertscolumn.com

Get paid to write your own column

Experts Column are looking for people who want to write for their site. They say that they want articles written to a high standard.  Articles need to be at least 300 words and they have to be your own work.  Payments are made once you have accumulated $5.00 and they're are made via PayPal

The site allows you to use articles that you have published on other sites provided the name credited to both articles matches so you can copy and paste an article in to this site and earn from it in two places instead of one.  However, it's advisable not to duplicate too many of your own articles or you could find yourself being penalised by Google for doing so.

You choose what you write about. It could be news related, how to..., games, health, science, news etc.

Here is a link to the Writing Guidelines:

http://expertscolumn.com/writing-guidelines

It says there that all work has to be original but their FAQ says you can publish the work somewhere else provided it belongs to you.