Required Reading: 7 of the Best Books for Freelance Writers
This article was originally published on Colleen Welsch - Freelance Writing Coach.
It probably won’t surprise you that as a freelance writer, I am also a big fan of reading books. When I want to learn something, I read a book about it. Podcasts and courses are great and all, but for me, there is nothing like the deep dive into a subject that only books can really provide.
If you learn the same way, let me share with you my absolute favorite books for freelance writers. These are the very same books I read when I was starting my freelance writing business to learn how to find clients, operate a business, improve my skills, and get my head right.
1. On Running Your Business & Getting Clients: Book Yourself Solid by Michael Port
This book was recommended to me before I launched my freelance business and boy am I glad that it was!
Book Yourself Solid is basically the Bible for running a service-based business. This book will teach you how to price, market, and sell your services to others, all without being cheesy or spammy. If you have no idea how to start a business, read this book.
Selected quotes:
“The process of booking yourself solid isn’t about how to please as many people as possible. It’s about how to convey your own unique message to those who are waiting to hear it. That can’t be achieved with personal branding that’s been watered down in an attempt to appeal to everyone. It can be achieved only through bold, no-holds-barred self-expression. It’s about being uniquely you and standing for something—in a big way.”
“We don’t get contacts, we don’t find contacts, we don’t have contacts; we make connections with real people.”
“Marketing and sales isn’t about trying to persuade, coerce, or manipulate people into buying your services. It’s about putting yourself out in front of, and offering your services to, those whom you are meant to serve—people who already need and are looking for your services.”
2. On Managing Your Money: Profit First by Mike Michalowicz
I have just one complaint about Book Yourself Solid, and that is its lack of solid information on how to handle your money. That’s where Profit First comes in. Profit First shows you how to use a super simple bookkeeping system that will keep you from overspending (a major issue for many new service-based business owners).
I read this book two years into my freelance journey and I wish I would have read it sooner. Thanks to this book, I now actually have money in the bank and I no longer need to worry about where my money is going. I was also inspired to dump my worst clients (the ones that paid peanuts and drained me of my energy), which gave me space to find new clients who paid better and were more fun to work with.
Selected quotes:
“All revenue is not the same. If you remove your worst, unprofitable clients and the now-unnecessary costs associated with them, you will see a jump in profitability and a reduction in stress, often within a few weeks. Equally important, you will have more time to pursue and clone your best clients.”
“When less money is available to run your business, you will find ways to get the same or better results with less. By taking your profit first, you will be forced to think smarter and innovate more.”
“Perfectionism kills every dream—better to just start.”
3. On the Art of Copywriting: Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy
Ironically, there are a lot of shitty books out there about copywriting and content writing. Unfortunately, I’ve read most of them.
Even though this book is over 50 years old, David Ogilvy’s advice on copywriting is still the best. If you’re not familiar with him, David Ogilvy is basically the grandfather of modern advertising and copywriting. His advice is solid gold for aspiring freelance writers. Plus, there is a lot of valuable information here on how to interact with clients and market yourself.
Selected quotes:
“You cannot bore people into buying your product; you can only interest them into buying it.”
“In the best establishments, promises are always kept, whatever it may cost in agony and overtime.”
“If you can make yourself indispensable to a client you will never be fired.”
4. On Wealth Mindset: You Are a Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth by Jen Sincero
If you’re new here, let me just tell you that mindset is absolutely key for a successful freelance writing business. It doesn’t matter how skilled you are at copywriting without it. If you don’t have your head on straight, there’s no way you’re going to go far as a freelance writer!
That’s why I love this book. It’s basically an introduction to the law of attraction and wealth mindset in a writing style that’s entertaining and easy-to-digest. Jen Sincero is so funny, but she also has a lot of incredible advice.
I guarantee this book will inspire you to take the reins and start living your baddest, boldest life! And once you do that, the money follows automatically.
Selected quotes:
“Desperation repels, gratitude attracts. When you’re desperate, you’re stuck in the worry that the money’s not there and that you need to get it rather than knowing that it’s already here and there’s no need to get anything. Remember, money is currency and currency is energy. When you switch into gratitude mode and focus on feeling grateful for all you have and all that’s coming your way, even if there isn’t any money anywhere in sight at the moment, you strengthen your faith that the money will be there for you and align yourself energetically with this belief, and you will start manifesting the very things and opportunities you’re grateful for.”
“Temporary failure becomes permanent defeat only when you say so.”
“Practice patience. Notice when you’re getting uptight or grouchy and remember: You can’t rush the Universe. Don’t try to pull open the flower. It all blooms according to plan. Breathe, relax, stay the course, and lighten up.”
5. On Persistence: The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph by Ryan Holiday
As a business owner, you will experience setbacks. You will fail, but the way you bounce back from failure will determine how successful you are. This book will teach you how to reframe obstacles as opportunity, drawing from historical examples.
All of Ryan Holiday’s books are amazing, but this one is my absolute favorite. This book also serves as an introduction to stoicism, an Ancient Greek philosophy that’s very popular with successful business people, particularly in Silicon Valley.
Selected quotes:
“There is no good or bad without us, there is only perception. There is the event itself and the story we tell ourselves about what it means.”
“Choose not to be harmed—and you won’t feel harmed. Don’t feel harmed—and you haven’t been.”
“Remember that this moment is not your life, it’s just a moment in your life. Focus on what is in front of you, right now. Ignore what it ‘represents’ or it ‘means’ or ‘why it happened to you.’”
6. On Creativity and Inspiration: Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
Elizabeth Gilbert’s meditation on creativity made me realize that creativity is truly unlimited, which is an important thing to understand as a freelance writer. After all, you can’t just sit around waiting for inspiration to show up. You’ve got deadlines to meet and bills to pay!
This book made me feel so fortunate to be a creative person and to have a paying outlet for that creativity because it is through creation that we are truly in touch with the magic of the universe.
Selected quotes:
“The universe buries strange jewels deep within us all and then stands back to see if we can find them.”
“You want to write a book? Make a song? Direct a movie? Decorate pottery? Learn a dance? Explore a new land? You want to draw a penis on your wall? Do it. Who cares? It’s your birthright as a human being, so do it with a cheerful heart. (I mean, take it seriously, sure—but don’t take it seriously.) Let inspiration lead you wherever it wants to lead you. Keep in mind that for most of history people just made things, and they didn’t make such a big freaking deal out of it.”
“You do not need anybody’s permission to live a creative life.”
7. On Productivity & Focus: Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport
There are also about a million books on productivity and focus. Most of them are quite toxic, pushing a “hustle 24/7” lifestyle. Here at Casa de Coco, that’s not what we believe.
In this book, Cal Newport talks about why work is good for our brains and how it actually makes us feel happier and more satisfied. That sounds good, right? There is also tons of great advice on how to get in your flow and get shit DONE.
Selected quotes:
“If you don’t produce, you won’t thrive—no matter how skilled or talented you are.”
“What we choose to focus on and what we choose to ignore—plays in defining the quality of our life.”
“If you keep interrupting your evening to check and respond to email, or put aside a few hours after dinner to catch up on an approaching deadline, you’re robbing your directed attention centers of the uninterrupted rest they need for restoration. Even if these work dashes consume only a small amount of time, they prevent you from reaching the levels of deeper relaxation in which attention restoration can occur. Only the confidence that you’re done with work until the next day can convince your brain to downshift to the level where it can begin to recharge for the next day to follow. Put another way, trying to squeeze a little more work out of your evenings might reduce your effectiveness the next day enough that you end up getting less done than if you had instead respected a shutdown.”
FINDING THE TIME TO READ THE BEST BOOKS FOR FREELANCE WRITERS
Now, hold up. You might be thinking, “That’s nice and all, but I don’t have time to read books.” The hell you don’t! I read 64 books last year and it’s not because I don’t watch TV or go on social media. Here’s how to squeeze in more books:
- Read before bed. Turn off the TV and put away your phone. The blue light from screens is known to interrupt your sleep patterns and reading is such a great way to wind down. Oh, reading makes you fall asleep? Well, that’s a good thing! It might take you a while to finish a book, but at least you’ll be sleeping better and reading more.
- Buy a Kindle. Most hardcore readers are hesisitant to try a Kindle, but once you try it, you’ll never go back. Why? Basically, it’s easier to read a Kindle. Because you can adjust the font size and swipe through pages so easily, it streamlines the whole reading process. Plus, you know the annoyance of trying to balance an enormous hardback book on your chest while reading in bed? With a Kindle, that hassle is no more. All books weigh exactly the same and a Kindle is easy to slip into your bag to read on the go.
- Read when you’re bored. Waiting for a friend to show up to coffee? In line at the DMV? Sitting in the waiting room at the doctor’s office? Bust out that Kindle and start reading, baby!
- Try audiobooks. When I really need to get some reading done, I download a book in ebook and audiobook format and go to town. You can listen to audiobooks while cleaning, exercising, driving, or wandering around the neighborhood aimlessly (as I do). My best friend has three kids under the age of seven and yet she still manages to read around 40 books per year because she listens to audiobooks. There are truly no excuses!
Do you have a favorite book for freelance writers? Let me know in the comments!