Freelance Writer

Writing is my passion. I have been a university lecturer for the past few years, and am considering the acquisition of a qualification as a journalist over the coming years, hoping to make it my livelihood eventually.
I realize it will be wise to do this gradually, and only let go of my current profession as the new one catches on.
I am only wondering whether a journalist’s earnings would actually be enough to live on eventually.
Are there any journalists here who could give me insight?
Thank you.

First off, get a copy of Writer’s Market. It’ll be an invaluable resource.

http://www.amazon.com/Writers-Market-2008/dp/1582974969/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1199912440&sr=8-1

If you can get yourself a unique niche or find a publication that wants to use you as a regular freelancers, it’ll be a lot easier to make a living freelancing. Magazines and journals will be the best source of income, though they can be tough to break into – once you have a reputation, though, it’s possible to find publications that will pay in the thousands of dollars per article for larger pieces.

Newspapers may pay less in general, but can be a steady source of income while you’re establishing yourself.

I’m a part-time translator, and to get my check from a certain company I need to get a TIN. I’m not sure if I fall under self-employed or employee. [According to a certain source, employees get benefits like SSS so technically I wouldn't be one...]

SSS???

I am looking for good, experienced and affordable writers. It’s for ongoing projects.
Can you please direct me to good website where I can find them?

Thank!

Consider this company, their writers have those qualification you’ve been looking for. You are always welcome to visit their site.

I’m planning on majoring in French and History, with a possible minor in English. People have always told me what a great writer I am, and my friends frequently have me edit their papers. I really want to be a freelance editor once I finish college, but I do not want to start out in the "corporate editing world" and then switch over to freelance. Any tips on successfully doing this?

Thanks!

Some Tips for becoming freelancer editor:

- Read everything you can get your hands on. It’s good to get the feeling, “I can do that,” especially if you can. More than that, it’s a way to get in touch with excellence. So many writers declare themselves good without proving it.

- Spend an hour or so two to five days a week working over an old story to make it shorter and more interesting. What should you have done – interviews, research, vivid writing, description.

- Never edit with the spelling checker. It’s to check spelling. Don’t trust grammar checkers; they’re made for business letters and often aren’t very good.

- Be creative. There’s no rule as to what sells and when. But don’t be ridiculous.

- Know your market. What magazines print the sort of information that you write? What Web sites?

- Don’t personalize rejection. The editor who says no today in a year will take the exact same story. It depends on what the publisher needs that moment. You won’t get a critique and don’t ask for one.

A lot more tips are out there, but those are the ones where you’ll need to concentrate most of your efforts.

how do i become a freelance writer if i haven’t gotten a resume and i want to get paid.

Hey,

You can look for writing jobs at

http://www.freelance-projects.info/category/copywriting/
http://www.freelance-projects.info/category/translation/
http://www.freelance-projects.info/category/writing/

Best of Luck

I am a Politics undergraduate hoping to break into journalism. I already have some experience working for papers, but want to start writting freelance. Is there anyway to get started without joining up to a costly website?
Also are there any good free resources for freelancers?
Again thank you for your "interesting" words Wolf H. I see you failed to understand my other posting. Everything I said was completely legitimate. If you do not wish to discuss things seriously don’t answer my questions. If you feel I am wrong in anything I have said please feel free to correct me using your powers of reasoning. If you merely wish to insult me, don’t bother as you obviously don’t have the mental capacity to sustain a logical or coherent argument.

Have a word with these people, the National Union of Journalists.

http://www.nuj.org.uk/

I’ll be done with school real soon and I’ve already been dealing with clients (I do freelancing). I intend to get a day job and continue having my own clients on the side.

Do I need to register a company name if I want to continue doing this? Do freelancers generally have to register a company name?
I should add – clients are rolling in and I just want to make sure I’m not breaking the law. Thanks.

if in the UK, you do not need to register as a company. you do however tell HMRC you are self employed. you have the option to register a company name to stop anyone copying it, but thats about it. also, as long as you are not claiming any benefits, you are allowed to work as self employed for upto 3 months before telling HMRC, while you are setting up a business.

Also im am now writing for the web any suggestions?

Of course. What else can prove your abilities? How else can we determine your "style’?

is it legal to recycle one project used by previous company to another company. like designs , plans , concepts, materials or other similar stuff.

Depends on the copyright agreements and if you have given them all copyrights then you are not allowed to use them

I’m 17 and have about 2-3 years of filming and editing experience with final cut. A softball team has hired me to film and edit a highlight dvd for the team. I use a canon xh a1 which records in 1080 HD. I would be filming around 3-4 games for the team and then compiling the highlights. Whats a reasonable price to charge?

Hmm… I’ve always wondered what price to charge also, when filming events. if I were doing that same thing…

– the cost to get there (gas), the cost of a ticket (if they charged you)
– if the final product will be on DVD, then the price of 1 DVD

So, travel costs + DVD cost. Experience alone is great payment!