I am finally a freelance writer

It happened. I wrote an article and I was paid to do it. Albeit, I was only paid $10 and the article was small (300+ words), but any writer will understand that it’s a big deal to finally get paid for your work, especially when an opportunity for ongoing collaboration may be involved!

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You can find the article in question at the Tutor’s Field website, where I recounted my experience studying abroad in England. It’s so strange seeing my own work posted on another site – and listed anonymously too!

But how did this freelancing come about!?

Last year I made it very clear I was having trouble even joining some freelance sites (a.k.a Upwork), which continue to maintain (even years later), that they are flooded with ‘too many writers’.

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After months of trying and multiple attempts to verify my account using a number of different strategies recommended to me by other Upwork freelancers (thanks so much for your help btw!) they still refused to let me join. Suffice to say, I absolutely recommend you avoid them unless you desire to have your confidence shattered again and again… because there are so many other great sites you can try instead!

I recently read about a blogger who received their ticket into the freelance writing world through a website called AirTasker. I immediately signed up, submitted a few pitches and won my first job within 2 hours!

And that my friends, is how I became a freelance writer. Yes, literally as simple as that. Okay, so there may have been a tiny bit of luck involved, but it just goes to show that all you really need to do is find a freelancing website that will work for you.

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121 thoughts

  1. Congratulations Milly! I’m sorry to hear that you had such a bad experience with Upwork. I joined a month ago as a writer and have had nothing but luck. I thought this was the case for everyone but I guess I was wrong.

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  3. Congratulations Milly! I also must thank you for suggesting Airtasker. I have recently created a profile on Upwork and have sent in a few proposals but haven’t heard anything back. Being my own boss is a dream of mine so any tips and suggestions are such a heartwarming interaction for me

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  5. A good start for you, Milly! Congratulations. It’s not a smooth voyage, as far as I’m concerned but don’t be daunted. If you love writing, every challenge is manageable. In my experience as a freelance writer for 2 years, I just could not solely rely on writing gigs and incomes. I had to find another source of income to make a living. But that didn’t matter because I did what I love. Keep writing!

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  7. Congrats, I know how frustrating it can be . I have also tried lots of site (fiver ,upwork ) but didn’t work for me so I decided to leave it at that . hopefully someday I’ll be lucky as you

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  10. Pingback: I am finally a freelance writer — The Cat’s Write – a_craved_aura

  12. this amazing, actually i also tried approving my account in upwork and i ended up creating my own freelance website few days ago called RUSHprime.com. and i would recommend someone to create their own site too

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    1. You don’t need a degree to be a great writer, so you can definitely become a freelance writer if you put in the hard yards and start building a portfolio. Future clients want to see examples of your freelance work, not necessarily your qualifications (although it does help!)

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    2. you don’t need a degree to become a freelance writer. what you need is the desire/love to write, some basic knowledge about English grammar and punctuation usage, some creative talent to write original, interesting and information-rich content, and the motivation to consistently pitch editors good ideas they wouldn’t resist buying into. if you do these consistently, you would get to a point where you have consistent freelance work and earn at least hundreds, and most probably thousands of dollars per month

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      1. Thank you so much for that information it’s really encouraging because writing has saved me mentally in so many ways. I believe in the power of the pen. Iv been blogging for a bit and I’m really enjoying it so I wanna take it up a notch

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    1. Oh you’re in the same boat as me! Well $3 is still $3 🙂 After the service fee, I technically only received $7.80 for my article. It was still nice when the money landed in my account. First time I’ve ever been paid for my writing (in any shape or form). If you decide to have another go this year, good luck and hope it goes well! I think I might bow out graciously for now haha

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  26. That must be so exciting! I just read your article on stats- I get excited if ANYONE reads my words, let alone 6000? But you’re right- it’s not about the stats. I write because I just have to. End of.

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  27. Congrats! I am in the same boat and so excited for you!! wooohooo! Upworks has yielded nothing for me in over a year so I’m stoked to try the site you recommended. thank you!

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  34. Congratulations! It may be starting at $10 but hopefully this the beginning of a great career for you! I have been considering going into freelance writing for a while- have you got any tips for approaching it?

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  45. Well done Milly – dad and I very very proud of you. I remember so well that trip abroad and you arriving with NO WINTER CLOTHES!! that’s a story in itself lol xx mum

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  49. Sounds like you had a great time in England. I can just picture you wearing a sheepskin coat, hiding behind snowmen as snowballs whizzed by. I couldn’t get the first link to work but when I tried the second…shazam there I was watching you pull that bag uphill, slipping and laughing at the same time. Congrats, great piece.

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    1. Thanks for letting me know about the link – not sure why it wasn’t working!

      Yes I had an amazing time! I loved the cold weather. I can still vividly picture myself lugging that bag up the path, which had turned to ice because of all the people and snow. At times we had to drag my bags through the slushy side snow on the grass!! It’s funny the things that stick with you 🙂

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  51. Congrats, Millie! If you’re open to more suggestions, I’ve had good luck reaching out to digital and traditional marketing agencies and asking if they’re looking for content and copywriters. Often they don’t have writers on staff but need to generate content for their clients’ sites and blogs. Keep up the great work!

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      1. You are so welcome! I also want you to know that you were one of the very first bloggers I followed before I joined the blogosphere. I’ve always enjoyed your writing and appreciate the many writer’s tips you have shared. ☀️Erika

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  56. Congrats, Milly. It really is a good feeling to get paid to write. My “professional” experience was writing an operator’s manual for a device I helped design and build in a lab. Now it can’t be near as thrilling as actually getting paid to write – the actual job (I was an engineering technician), but it did feel good to see my name on the completed manual.

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  63. Congratulations Milly, I have earned part or all of my living variously as a staff or freelance writer for decades. A word of caution or advice, if you prefer: Pursue the writing projects you are most passionate about. (We want to see those books published) and don’t slide down the trap of chasing only the sure-things. I was looking at an unfinished manuscript this morning, untouched during the past 54 weeks of busy ‘freelance’ writing. I will work on it today, I decided. $10 is rather low – but it is the symbolic nature of the payment. Again, congrats!

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    1. Thanks Jonathan 🙂 And yeah don’t worry, I don’t think freelance is someting I’ll do for long – and even then only the articles I enjoy writing. I did get asked to do another article through AirTasker, but it looked like hell and not worth it – so I pulled out. Luckily, the one I ended up doing for Tutors Field only took me about an hour to write and edit. Not my best peice of work, but as the article was only $10, I didn’t want to spend hours and hours perfecting it (when I could be working on my novels instead). I promise I’ll get those books published soon!

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