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Freelance Writers - What did you do to improve your writing?

by HawkPrecision
30 replies
So you would get paid more and be demanded by clients?

Any tips and advice welcome.
#freelance #improve #writers #writing
  • Profile picture of the author lotsofsnow
    You can listen to Mozart while writing.

    That creates the "Mozart Effect".

    Here is a piece that produces this effect:
    Sonata In D Major For Two Pianos, K. 448 - I. Allegro Con Spirito mp3 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
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  • Profile picture of the author Henry B
    You need a collection of swipe files from the best copy writers.
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    • Profile picture of the author HawkPrecision
      Originally Posted by Henry B View Post

      You need a collection of swipe files from the best copy writers.
      Swipe files? What is that? Sounds interesting to say the least.
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  • Profile picture of the author Joe Benjamin
    I'll shine a little light on it for you:

    First, a bit about why I qualify to help you a bit here:

    I was a copywriter (using words to SELL and MARKET) for...
    2 - 3 years.

    Basically, my job was to make clients more money than
    they paid me to write it.

    I get money upfront with little risk, they bear most of the
    risk but stand to make more money overtime because of
    my work for them.

    I've made *thousands*.

    I don't say this to *brag*. I have nothing to brag about. I
    know copywriters who are 10x my level of skill with 5x my
    level of experience who make 20x as much money.

    Point is...

    I've been down the path you *think* you want to go and
    believe I can give you a few insights to help you make the
    decision best for you.

    First, *The Good*...

    #1. The money is pretty damn good.

    #2. It NEVER get's old.

    #3. You could live comfortable writing for a living.

    #4. You will never STARVE. On your last dollar? No biggie.
    You have a lifetime skill you can fall back on.

    #5. All you need is a laptop and a free Wi-Fi connection.

    #6. If you enjoy challenges and puzzles. You'll enjoy it.

    #7. You can take your skill and use it to build your own
    business (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!)

    Secondly, *The Bad*

    #1. In MY experience, I've made the MOST money copy-
    writing.

    Writers are a dime a dozen. Majority of 'em make nickels
    n' dimes.

    You just won't see that problem with good, even decent,
    copywriters.

    So, if you want to settle for article writer. That's fine. Just
    know you'll be figthing an uphill battle for higher fees.

    #2. It's mentally and psychologically exhausting. Writing
    is NOT as easy as most think.

    I've come away more exhausted writing than I have 9 to
    5 job (which is one of the reasons I stopped, even though
    the money is good)

    #3. It's Tough As Nails.

    It helps if you have a *knack* for writing in the first place.

    Not required. Nor necessary. Just *helps*.

    Overall...

    the positives FAR outweigh the negatives.

    Even if you quit writing for others, you can take your own
    skills and apply it to building a list, writing your own email
    copy, own salesletters and products, etc.

    This is a SERIOUS commitment of your time and resources.

    Don't just see this as a quick payday gig. It's not.

    Sky's the limit.

    Be Smooth.
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    • Profile picture of the author John Jonas Phil VA
      Originally Posted by Joe Benjamin View Post



      Writers are a dime a dozen. Majority of 'em make nickels
      n' dimes.
      I agree that there are a lot of writers out there but not all of them are good. If you know you're good, charge accordingly. People nowadays are willing to pay for good writers after being burned by Penguin and Panda for using bad writers.
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  • Profile picture of the author Epic Write
    Hi HawkPrecision,

    Just by reading a lot and participating in online discussions would improve your writing.
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  • Profile picture of the author RyanGillam
    I kept writing and writing. I listened to any criticism that came my way and then tried to make myself better the next time I wrote by taking into account this feedback. As a result I have only ever had 2 unhappy clients in a few years.
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    http://ryangillam.com/ryan-gillam-ltd-writing-services/
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  • Profile picture of the author owenlee
    Look at how the others write...

    Practice make perfect
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  • Profile picture of the author Mogly
    I started a blog and after maybe 4 months of writing I've learned SO much.
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  • Profile picture of the author Beverley Boorer
    If you know your writing is good with no poor grammar or spelling errors, and if you can write without repeating yourself or offering a whole lot of fluff, then the best way to get paid MORE for your articles is to move OFFline. That is, choose companies that are about the topics you do wel in writing about and email to ask if they need a copywriter. State your fees and don't be afraid to ask for $25 or $50 per page. Offline clients know the value of copy; online clients think you should write for next to nothing.
    To be demanded by clients takes a while; you have to build up a good reputation. When your first client pays, ask them to refer you to their friends.
    hope this helps
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    • Profile picture of the author Shadowflux
      The best thing you can do to improve your writing is to read. Read anything you want and read often. Writing a lot is good too but reading is really important.

      As for getting paid more, that's about how well you sell yourself regardless of talent.

      As for being in demand, that's how well you market your service, regardless of talent.
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  • Profile picture of the author Beverley Boorer
    hmmm I realise I didn't exactly answer your question, Hawk Precision. You could take an online writing course to improve your writing. Always take note of how other good writers do it. If you know a teacher, ask if they would go through something you wrote. Mind you, many younger teachers these days cannot spell properly. You might have to find one of the old school teachers from the days when all school work was checked for spelling and grammar and not just English grammar.
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  • Profile picture of the author verial
    If you want to get more clients MARKET YOURSELF.

    If you want to get paid more LEARN NEGOTIATION SKILLS.

    If you want to become a better writer WRITE.

    But know one thing: Being a good writer does not necessarily make you a desirable employee. Many clients care more about other things.
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    • Profile picture of the author Brandon Bell
      If you want to improve your writing, you need to do the following:

      Omit needless words! Omit needless words! Omit needless words!

      You should also study copywriters like John Carlton, Gary Bencivenga and Robert Collier.
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  • Profile picture of the author J Bold
    There's good advice here which I won't repeat but that I agree with.

    Whatever kind of writing you're doing, one of the best things you're doing is to write more. The more you write, the better you will get.

    Pretty much the same with anything really. You may reach a plateau where you will only get slightly better after hitting a certain mark but until you reach that point, just keep going and going until it gets better.
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  • Profile picture of the author denysapu
    Writing with good feelings without any sense of boredom. Also seeing how other top writers are work, not to cheat, just for looking some inspirations.

    edit: don't offer your self at too low "pricing"
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    Don't worry be happy!

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  • Profile picture of the author laurencewins
    Read, write, practice. They are all good suggestions.
    Build your business. The only way you will get better is by writing and getting new clients. I have been writing for nearly 4 years and I started out slow and small and now I charge more and get more work.

    I am not a copywriter. I write and rewrite articles, do resumes, ebooks and I also offer proofreading services.

    You need your own website so you can start developing your brand.
    Work out exactly what you can do and can't do and focus on the "can dos" for now but the more you diversify, the more clients you will get.
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    Cheers, Laurence.
    Writer/Editor/Proofreader.

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    • Profile picture of the author fluffythewondercat
      I started out as a baby human, learned to read, learned to understand what I was reading, learned to distinguish good writing from bad, learned why some writers can break the rules and why others can't.

      I waited until I had something to say. Only then did I become a writer.

      "We would be together and have our books and at night be warm in bed together with the windows open and the stars bright."

      Hemingway can get away with run-on sentences. Odds are you can't. Not if you want to be good.

      One more from _A Moveable Feast_:

      "You expected to be sad in the fall. Part of you died each year when the leaves fell from the trees and their branches were bare against the wind and the cold, wintery light. But you knew there would always be the spring, as you knew the river would flow again after it was frozen. When the cold rains kept on and killed the spring, it was as though a young person died for no reason."

      fLufF
      --
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  • Profile picture of the author Raydal
    I think that the question asked about writing and
    not just the narrow field of copywriting.

    Apart form reading in the field that you want to
    write about (content, knowledge) you also study
    books on the subject of writing. A few of my
    favorites are:

    On Writing Well by William Zinsser
    Writetight by William Brohaugh
    How to be your own best editor by Barry
    Advice to Writers by John Winokur
    Movies in the Mind by Colleen Mariah Rae
    The Elements of Style by Strunk & White

    -Ray Edwards
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    • Profile picture of the author AndrewCavanagh
      Learn direct response copywriting.

      In other words learn to write sales letters, emails,
      optin pages, reports that convert prospects into
      paying customers.

      When you're creating real sales for your clients
      they can afford to pay you a whole lot more.

      And because there's a LOT of skill in becoming a
      good direct response copywriter when you get to
      a reasonable skill level you can start charging
      substantial fees.

      Think in the $1,000 to $5,000 range for just one
      direct response sales letter.

      You'll have to do the hard yards to get to that
      skill level though.

      Kindest regards,
      Andrew Cavanagh
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  • Profile picture of the author Nicole K
    If you want to improve your writing read the best books on the subject that you are interested in. Keep reading one book at a time and over the course of time you will notice better feedback coming in for your writing.
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  • Profile picture of the author usmanuk
    Read content, and spend a lot of time speaking with people from all walks of life.
    Reading is great, but interacting with people who have skills you don't gives you so much information, you pick up body language, tone, eye contact, you can implement what you learn from a person into your book personality.
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  • Profile picture of the author mikemeth
    I remember I read some guides on writing faster and more quality and it really helped me, don't recall the name of the book
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  • Profile picture of the author erwin78
    Hi everyone,

    I sign up for a newsletter for writers!
    Just have a look around and find the best

    I also have a email course from ezinearticles

    And the best one just write!

    All the best

    Erwin
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    My blog http://erwinmentel.com
    Or http://stabilitate.com/wealthandhealth

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  • Profile picture of the author Randall Magwood
    I learned from scratch. When i started i didn't have the money to advertise, so free marketing was the only option. Then i just started doing article marketing. Started writing more and more and now i'm proficient with it. I write anywhere between 5-10 articles a day. Helps me to remain effective with my article writing skills.
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  • Profile picture of the author HawkPrecision
    Thanks, guys.

    I'm in this for the long haul, no matter what; I just wish the pay was above minimum wage, lol.
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  • Profile picture of the author donhx
    In my experience, most people do not value writers. After all, everyone can write, right? 8) Most people, especially in IM, do not know good writing when they see it and are willing to work with cheap offshore people and think that is good enough.

    I still ghost write books and do other writing projects, but I focus on writing and marketing my own books and videos. If you can write books and write sales copy, why would you want clients?
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  • Profile picture of the author TimothyTorrents
    Read a lot of books and write more! Practice makes perfect.
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  • Profile picture of the author writeaway
    I read a lot and I LOVE to write-I can't spend a day without writing tons of stuff. Writing is like BREATHING to me. I can't live without it. That's my secret sauce. Everything else is a bonus.
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