5 easy steps to become a freelance writer in Ethiopia [2022]

A freelance writer?produces different types of content for a wide range of clients across diverse industries. Some freelance writers specialize in a particular niche, while others may write in a variety of categories, including fiction and nonfiction.

Working as a freelance writer has attractive benefits,?including flexible working hours, location independence, and the ability to build a business doing something you love.

How to become a freelance writer

1. Decide what type of freelance writing you want to do

There are a variety of freelance writing opportunities out there. Step One to building your freelance writing business is deciding which of the writing you are going to pursue. Some of these are:

Copywriting

Copywriters create content intended to produce a specific action from the reader. These writing gigs can include sales pages, email marketing, landing pages, white papers, and more.

Content Writing

Content writers produce content meant to share valuable, relevant, and entertaining information in order to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience.

Professional Blogging

Professional bloggers write for their own or others blog websites to reach a certain audience within a certain niche.?

Ghostwriting

Ghostwriting is produced by one writer, but published under someone else’s name. Ghost writing includes blog posts, articles, books, and more.

Journalism?

Journalists write about news or other current events information. This type of writing includes newspaper articles, editorials, magazine articles, youtube videos and interviews.

A great place to start is, to begin with something you love or write about an industry in which you have fairly known.

2. Work on improving your writing skills

Even if you are a good writer, there is always room for improvement. Read extensively and take courses. Every language is vast and it is a never learning path. There is a lot to learn about sentence construction, vocabulary, avoiding fillers, including evocative details and much more from reading other people's writing. Read things relevant to your professional niche, but also read widely outside of it to grow as a freelance writer.

And ofcourse, the best way to learn is by doing. Write constantly and read your writing aloud to catch errors. The more you practice, the more you will improve.

3. Build a Portfolio

A writer portfolio is a curated collection of writing samples that show your strengths and range as a writer. A well-presented and current writing portfolio is extremely important for your freelance writing business. Focus on finding new clients and building up your portfolio.?

If you’re stuck on what you should write about, make a list of your passions, or areas you have experience or expertise in.

4. Write great sample work

Before you can progress any further you’ll need to create sample work which becomes your portfolio. Many writers publish online on their own blogs, or as guest writers for other blogs and online magazines. Share your work with family and friends at this stage, to start to get feedback and develop a reader base.

When you start to send out pitches for paid work, you can use your sample work as a resume to show what you’re capable of.

5. Learn to sell

The ability to write is one skill, but the ability to sell yourself as a writer is something else entirely. If you are going to make a living in the highly competitive world of freelance writing, you must learn the art of sales. In the new digital arena, the ability to sell is a premium skill. It is a skill you need to do to thrive.?

Especially when first getting started, you’re likely going to need to do some cold pitching. Part of selling yourself as a writer and pitching your story ideas involved learning how to highlight the benefits of what you have to offer to clients

5 skills every freelance writer should have

Organizational Skills

You’ll have to keep track of all your projects, client information, pitches sent and content schedule for your work.

You need to develop a writing routine to organize your articles. Having a system in place for your projects is key to growing your business. You don’t want to make a mistake or forget to do something.

Content Marketing

If you want to become a freelance writer then you need to know content marketing. An understanding of content marketing is important because that’s how businesses use content to market their products or services.

Task Management Programs and Editing softwares

Since you’re running your business on your own, you need to keep track of everything.Tools like?Google Sheets,?Trello,?and?calendly?help you keep track of your projects, deadlines, and income.?

Editing your writings using AI based programs like with Grammarly and Hemingway will remove your errors and save you time.?

Flexibility

As a freelance writer, you have to wear as many hats to become successful. You need to step outside of typical freelance writer duties. You might be expected to help with other digital marketing tasks like writing blog posts or graphics designing. So it is very important that you are flexible and adaptable.

Communication skills

It’s extremely rare that freelance writers work solo. In fact, freelance writing requires high level collaboration, leadership, and team building. Communication skills are key to all of that. a freelance writer should be able to clearly communicate, both?in writing and orally.?

Learning how to become a freelance writer and building a successful freelance writing business is challenging, but do-able. Always be willing to learn and constantly upgrading yourself.

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