Making money from writing

wordsfan

I really wanna be a writer, however I also need money to live on. Currently on benefits and worried about making the move. Also wondering if there's employers that like short stories and pay fairly promptly to keep me going till the novels finished? thanks

chocsessential

You could try some of the job bidding sites like People per Hour and Getafreelancer.com. I got quite a lot of work on Getafreelancer.com writing 500 word travel articles. The pay is not great and they expect the work to be done pretty quickly but it's a good way to get writing experience. You can write articles on pretty much any subject.

wordsfan

Thanks chocs I'll look into that. I mainly wanna be a fiction writer and have a kids fantasy novel on the go as well as several short stories, however I've done some "column" style work for local publications which have been received well, so I'll try that.

Sazzyukrafc

I'm a professional Journalist and have extensive writing experience, some freelance and some full time. If it's the freelance way you want to go, I recommend getafreelancer.com and elance.com for small projects, I've had some decents bits of work from both websites. If you want to be a full time employed writer, it is obviously less likely to be fiction and more content based roles, and you'll also need more experience for that.

Just to let you know, some of the projects on those websites pay really bad while others quite good, I found that some people were willing to do the work for hardly anything, which is a pain when I'm trying to earn a living doing it. Also, remember that you will be up against other people with a lot of professional qualifications, skills and experience.

chocsessential

It's true to say there are some very, very low payers on Getafreelancer.com and this is mainly because people will offer to do the work for ridiculously low rates. If you look at the standard of writing of some of the bidders you'll be surprised that they ever get any work at all. Nevertheless, if you have a good standard of English you will become more in demand and people will start inviting you to bid which means they like they are impressed with what they have seen. When you do good work your employer/client will write a good review, and this will be seen by other potential employers/clients which means more work offers will come in.

wordsfan

Thanks guys. I'm a single mum with ocd and intermittent agoraphobia, so looking for something I can do from home. Can't travel to do interviews etc. I do however have my English degree and have as i said, previous work which has been well received. I will try the sites mentioned and let you know how i get on. Thanks again

wordsfan

Just re-reading, any other sites you'd recommend? also price quotes on getafreelancer are in $ how does that work for those of us in uk?

JennyJewell

wordsfan wrote: »

I really wanna be a writer, however I also need money to live on. Currently on benefits and worried about making the move. Also wondering if there's employers that like short stories and pay fairly promptly to keep me going till the novels finished? thanks

Don't know if this is of any help to you at all but do you enter writing competitions at all? They normally advertise these in libraries or online if that's easier for you? I'm just thinking that it could get your name out there and get your work published and noticed?It's all good experience and you will also have a deadline to work to with a goal at the end of it whether it's publication, financial winnings or both
I hope that's helped
Jenny

JennyJewell

Forgot to say - good luck
Jenny

JennyJewell

Ooh my memory is useless today,lol! Also meant to say that if you are entering competitions I think you could stay on benefits while working on your writing Oh and also what about women's magazines? I'm sure they publish short stories if they think they're good enough - not sure if they pay or not? Might be an idea to send a couple off and see what response you get
Best of luck
Jenny