Freelance Writers Manifesto

There are a few copywriters who are absolutely stupendous at what they do. There are even fewer who are prepared to take the time to share that knowledge with others. I love it when they do because it makes the world of copywriting just that little bit nicer to be in. In the bargain, we can all learn. In fact, it’s amazing what you can learn from some of these websites. Don’t tell anyone, but lots of the tips and techniques are actually stuff that you’d have to pay a lot of money to learn if you purchased a copywriting course.

No matter how long you’ve been a copywriter, it’s never too late to see what others are doing and maybe introduce some new techniques to your repertoire.

CopyBlogger

Brian Clark’sCopyBlogger is one of my all-time favorites. This is where I head when I have a few moments to spare and I want to be sure of picking up something useful.

Just look at some of these titles from him:

Copywriting 101
Do you Make These Mistakes When You Write?
Ernest Hemingway’s Top Five Tips for Writing Well
SEO Copywriting 2.0
Do You Recognize these 10 Mental Blocks to Creative Thinking?

Michel Fortin

Another site that I set great store by is Michel Fortin’s blog on ‘copywriting, marketing and life.’ Michel is considered by many to be the #1 Internet copywriter, so if you want to write for the Net, this is the place to go.

Here’s an example of the gems you’ll find over there: How to Hook (More) Copywriting Prospects

The World Copywriting Institute
You can’t go wrong reading David Garfinkel over at the World Copywriting Institute. A few minutes every day is all it takes to absorb David’s cutting-edge and insightful tips on copywriting.

Here’s a pick from his many great posts: It’s the Most Amazing Thing About Copywriting Knowledge

Even if you don’t have the cash to enroll in a copywriting course, there’s no excuse for not spending a portion of your time learning your craft. From studying these websites you’ll find links to other good ones too.

Please comment on this post and digg us. A stumble would also be much appreciated.

Here is an Excerpt from Elmer Wheeler, essential on persuasion. Reading this can give your copy a serious injection of effectiveness. Try it and let me know. Please stumble it, or add it to your favorite social marketing sites. I really appreciate it. Oh, and if you comment, you’ll get a link.

Except for a small percentage at the top, freelance writers are known for not charging full whack for their services. Let’s take a tongue-in-cheek peek at what the results mean for the average writer:

10. You’re beginning to resent the work you used to love–your home office is starting to feel like that cubicle you gave up in order to achieve your freedom.

9. A job stocking shelves at the local supermarket is starting to feel like easy money right now.

8. Your laptop has several keys missing and hangs in a heartbeat; you really need a new one but you keep thinking to yourself ‘just one more project…’

7. Your clients keep giving you a million ’small’ projects that take up so much of your time you can’t take the thirty minutes-or-so it would take to scout round for some better paid work.

6. Your idea of weekend fun is scrambling to finish a project so you can get paid.

5. The only kind of raise you’ve seen lately was when you took your laptop up to the roof to get some sun.

4. When you get a new client they ask how much you’ll charge for their project and you answer. After that they want you to start as soon as possible–there is no intermediate discussion.

3. Your standard of living is going down–not up. You justify not replacing your car because you work at home and don’t drive that much, and your wardrobe because hey, you work in your sweats.

2. You lay awake at night sweating with worry in case you get ill, since you can’t even think about health insurance right now.

1. You suggest an increase in a client’s bill and they start talking about their other freelancers who aren’t suggesting any such thing.

What can you do?

1. Add up all your bills for the year, including rent, food—this should be good food that will nourish your body and your mind, utility payments, Internet connection. Don’t forget to include sufficient health coverage as well as an estimate of what your taxes might be. These are basic necessities for a freelance worker.

2. Add up how much it will cost you to replace essential items (like a new laptop, a new car and a new wardrobe). Include the cost of a week’s holiday and a handful of weekend breaks throughout the year.

3. Divide the resulting figure by 12.

4. Add up the number of hours in a day you can be comfortably productive. This isn’t likely to be more than about six–writing is emotionally draining, being a creative activity.

5. Divide the amount you need in a month by the number of hours you can work. That’s the amount of money you need to charge per hour in order to achieve the kind of lifestyle you deserve. You should even add a percentage (say 5 percent) to cover any emergency, such as an illness which will leave you unable to work for a while.

6. Resolutely bill your clients at the new rate.

7. If you get any clients querying your new rates, point out to them that they’ve enjoyed your excellent services at a discount rate thus far, but that you need to make some changes in order to continue to operate.

8. Start looking around for some new clients.

9. Prepare yourself emotionally for a new and exciting phase in your career.

10. Realize that stepping outside your comfort zone (sorry, hugely overused phrase) can have hugely positive results.

Anyone who works on a freelance basis is going to come up against deadbeat clients at some time or another. Sometimes it seems that we hit a run of bad clients though, and everyone is either dragging their feet when it comes to paying up, or they don’t want to pay at all.

This is the very reason why so many freelancers demand a proportion of their fee upfront. Problem there is that in a dog-eat-dog world, clients are understandably reluctant to part with their money to a freelancer they’re never worked with previously, before they see any work, and before they know what kind of work they’re going to get.

It can be a serious problem and this has wrecked more freelance work relationships than anything else.

I’ve just discovered a solution. It may not be for everyone, but I think it’s a really great idea.

Escrow.com is now offering a solution. Get an account with them, and you can have your client pay your fee into the account for release once work is completed. You can also use it to buy goods and services, which puts you in a safer place when you want to purchase anything online.

Leave me some feedback if you think this is a good application, and if you think it would help you run your business.

There are as many writing courses out there, and it would cost us a fortune if we signed up for them all. I’m always amazed at how much you can learn at absolutely no cost whatsoever if you’re web savvy.

I found this the other day, on YouTube. It’s not among the best writing vids I’ve watched, but there are some valid points to be learned.

I’m dying to know!

I’ve had a tremendous amount of traffic through this blog lately, and it surprises me because I’ve been sidetracked with other things, and to be honest, I’m ashamed of how I’ve let Freelance Writers Manifesto go…

But if you’ve been coming in here regularly, or even if it’s your first visit, please, PLEASE, take the time to leave a comment. Tell me who you are (use a nom-de-plum if you want), tell me what you think, and above all, tell me what it was you were hoping to see here. This will help me a great deal to make this site the hub it was intended to be.

Oh, and you’ll get a lovely link back to your site for your trouble. I know you know it, but just let me remind you that those links can really help to increase your online presence.

Also, if you offer services as a writer, sign up on our directory page so that we can make that into the resource it was meant to be for writers and the people who hire them.