Time to get back to basics on this whole writing career thing. And what better place to begin than this article from freelancewriting.com?
by Laura DeCesare
Between 2014 and 2019, the number of working freelancers increased by 64.9 percent. In fact, freelancers now represent approximately 35 percent of the world’s workforce, and 75 percent of them say that they wouldn’t do anything else for a living.
Those new to the idea might be wondering: what’s a freelance writer, and why has this career choice become so popular? Just as importantly, what’s in it for the hiring company?
What Is Freelance Writing?
Freelance writing describes a unique work arrangement between a company and an independent writer. In most cases, the company hires a freelancer for a particular project. Unlike a traditional employer-employee relationship, the company generally doesn’t pay benefits or deduct taxes. Instead, the freelancer figures all of that out for themself.
If you’ve worked with independent contractors, there are some similarities. The contractor pays their own taxes and has to find their own health insurance, receiving pay only for work done. The difference is that an independent contractor tends to work with one company long-term and get paid by the hour, unlike the freelancer who juggles multiple clients and more often gets paid by the project.
What Do Freelance Writers Do?
Freelance writers create all kinds of printed content. Some are short-form — less than 1,000 words and intended for quick consumption online. Freelancers that create short-form content might produce tweets, social media ads, or even short blog posts.
Freelancers can also create long-form content, which ranges anywhere from 1,000 words to as many as 10,000 words or more. Examples include white papers, ebooks, and longer articles. Done well, long-form content can be a huge asset to a business because it builds credibility, engages users, and gets more shares than short-form content.
There are freelance writers with experience in all types of specialty content, including:
- Grants
- Resumés
- Speeches and presentations
- Press releases
- Magazine and newspaper articles
- Technical writing (how-to guides, manuals, etc.)
- Video game content
- Video scripts….