While there are some very successful writers, such as Stephen King and J.K. Rowling to name a few, the image of a starving writer may seem more realistic. Before deciding if being a freelance writer is in your future, one question needs to be answered. How much do freelance writers make? After all, you need to know if you can pay the bills with your new career.
While some professionals get paid per page, the more common method is per word. The per-word rate varies dramatically. At the lowest end, writers can earn as little as $0.01 per word. Others make $1 per word or more. What does this range actually mean to you?
How Much Do Freelance Writers Make?
Before we dig into the actual numbers, be aware that your freelance writer income will be based on:
- Your experience
- Your clients
- The number of hours you work
Does this mean that you’re destined to earn a penny a word? To make $40,000 per year at that rate, you’d need to write 4 million words per year. That’s more than 333,000 words per month or 11,000 words for all 365 days. Is that a realistic workload? No, it’s not.
According to Ziprecruiter, the average freelance writer income for 2024 is close to $48,000. The range was $15,500 to $68,500.
Before you get anxious and give up before you start, be aware that I made more than the lowest figure working part-time when I started 17 years ago. My highest income well exceeds the Ziprecruiter number as well. Meaning, I think these numbers are low.
Ultimately, though, you’ll get out what you put in. There aren’t shortcuts.
Finding Freelance Writing Jobs
When you are starting out, you need to keep in mind that income will fluctuate dramatically. If the idea of giving up the stability of a salary or regular hourly work is intimidating, rest assured that you are in good company. Money is essential, so it may seem impossible to get comfortable with the idea of freelancing full-time.
I understand this, and I’ve been there, too. Writing for a living sounded amazing, but it seemed pretty much impossible if you weren’t a young adult living with your parents. However, you can overcome your nerves and maintain financial security when you diversify your freelance income with a variety of writing jobs and the right strategy. Learn more about launching your career.
Whether you have one salaried job or one writing client, the bottom line is that 100% of your income is coming from a single source. If you get laid off from your salaried job or lose your one and only client, you’re out of luck. When you have multiple gigs, however, it’s less stressful and devastating to lose a client.
I didn’t feel comfortable leaving my finance career for writing at first. I had a mortgage and three young children. My spouse brought in some money, but we needed both incomes to cover everything.
When I had five clients and worked with a few writing mills that yielded additional profits, though, the idea of NOT writing full-time seemed absurd. Why would I continue slaving away in a desk job for someone else when I could pay the bills working for who I choose and on the projects I choose?
From your vantage point today, being a full-time writer seems impossible. You’ll have a different vantage point a few months from now.
Finding Regular Writing Clients
Now, finding new clients is easier said than done, but keep in mind that you may have the same clients for years. You could spend the next few months looking for stable jobs, and you may not have to look again for years.
I’ve been working for several of my clients for over a decade. We’ll go over strategies on finding freelance writing clients here. The time and effort that you put into finding clients and nurturing professional relationships with them will be well-rewarded over the years.
Content mills will likely be your bread-and-butter earlier in your career, but it’s important to consider branching out beyond client-based income.
Consider it like investing your money. You can mitigate risk by investing in multiple stocks from different sectors. You can further mitigate risk by investing in bonds, CDs and other assets in addition to your stocks.
So, your goal may be to have multiple clients as well as income from other sources. These other sources can be both active and passive income streams. For example, you may get secondary income from an ebook. Perhaps you monetize your blog or sell a few digital products while also working for your clients. Rest assured, though, if you are a good writer, you can turn your skill into money from a variety of sources.
The Value of Small Jobs
You may be inclined to turn away a small project for a $20 blog, but that blog may be the first of many for that client. If not, you may get a referral out of it. If nothing else, you’ll have a great piece to add to your portfolio. Wondering how to make a writing portfolio? Download this free sample portfolio
When you’re starting out as a new freelance writer, every job gives you valuable experience. There may be a few that you want to turn away. Overall, though, work. Value experience over profit at first.