So you’re considering starting a freelance writing career, but you don’t have any experience? No problem!
While it may seem intimidating, with a bit of hard work and consistency, anyone can turn their passion for writing into a successful freelance career.
In this blog post, we’ll show you the exact steps – from finding your first clients to building your solid online presence and perfecting your writing style.
So whether you’re a new student, a stay-at-home mom, or just looking for a change, let’s dive in and explore how to start a freelance writing career without experience in just a few easy steps!
How To Become a Freelance Writer With no Experience
1. Invest in some freelance writing courses
Are you finally ready to start making money online as a freelance writer, but you are wondering how to start a freelance writing career from scratch?
But, first of all, congrats to you for several reasons..
If you’re the type of person who is constantly learning new things, you will succeed in your career. And second, freelance writing is the most accessible side hustle to make money online.
So, if you are someone who wants to start his/her freelance writing career without experience and looking to land your first freelance writing client, your first question might be: do I need a certificate or join an online writing course?
Here’s the honest answer. You don’t need to take a writing course to make money with freelance writing. You can learn from free writing courses, resources, and some trials and errors. That’s still the method you can use.
But joining a freelance writing course can help you get a kick start in your freelance career. You get to interact with people beginning their freelance careers and help you build a trustworthy community.
A freelance writing course can help you learn from someone who is already making money from writing and know how to build a successful career out of freelance writing.
So why not learn from successful entrepreneurs to brush up on your skills and learn new skills faster? A course will save you time and prevent making some of the most common freelancing rookie mistakes.
2. Research and Choose a Profitable Freelance Writing Niche
Finding your niche as a freelance writer is a great way to accelerate your freelancing career. A freelance writing niche specializes in a writing niche or a content type.
A writing topic is what you write about and is probably the first thing you should figure out when you start your freelance writing journey—examples: personal finance, travel, beauty, business and marketing, SaaS, and Technology.
What is “content type”- it’s simply “how” you write about it or the form of your writing projects. Some examples of content types are long-form blog posts, white papers, case studies, documentation, and many more. Check out my detailed blog post about the Top 7 profitable writing niches for 2024.
Do you need a particular writing niche to make more money as a freelance writer?
If you want a steady income from your freelance writing, then yes!
Freelance writers specializing in specific topics or content types make more money than generalist writers.
There are a lot of profitable writing niches you can choose from, but the best way to choose a writing niche is to consider what you are interested in and already know.
3. Create High-Quality Sample Articles and Portfolio
High-quality Freelance writing samples are examples of your past work or your subject matter expertise that your potential client will use to judge your writing skills. A good portfolio and a writing sample will get you hired, even with no paid writing experience.
If you want to attract high-paid clients, you can start a blog and create high quilty SEO-optimized blog posts on your website.
You must be thinking – is it profitable to start a blog when you are getting started with freelance writing with no experience?
The answer is, Of course, why not! You know what? Nothing screams professional like a writer with their blog.
Having your website builds your credibility as a subject matter expert. This is an excellent way to showcase your expertise and opinions about a specific niche that you’d like to write about. What’s more, If you have a good knowledge of SEO, you can also gain traffic to your blog and consider monetizing it through ads or affiliate marketing.
Dont get intimated by having a website built from scratch all by yourself. These days web hosting has become affordable and easy to use; anyone can create a professional wordpress blog on a tight budget. Or you can also publish on free publishing platforms like medium and LinkedIn for free.
4. Research and Apply for Writing Gigs
Until now, you’ve learned all the technical aspects of how to become a freelance writer without experience.
Now comes the most challenging part of the freelance writing journey: finding legit writing jobs.
This step can be pretty tiring, but once you get into the habit of looking for freelance writing jobs, you will get comfortable with it.
So, Where can you find high-paying writing gigs?
The best way to start finding legit writing jobs is to apply to job boards and freelancing websites. Some popular job boards for writers include ProBlogger, Freelance Writing Jobs, and Blogging Pro. These sites often list various writing gigs, from content marketing to copywriting to technical writing.
You can also reach out to small businesses or websites you admire and ask them if they have any freelance writing opportunities.
Be proactive in your search for freelance writing gigs. Dont wait for job opportunities to come – seek your potential clients and pitch them your writing services.