What is Freelance Writing? And 3 Things You MUST Know

We spend a lot of time inside Location Rebel Academy teaching members exactly how to become freelance writers. 

We’re over a decade into this site (I’ve been doing this a long time).

So for us, freelance writing (and everything that goes with it) is pretty familiar. But, for people who want to start freelancing, their first question is usually what is freelance writing?

And, all too often, it gets ignored or glossed over in favor of other freelancing topics — how to get clients, how to build a writing habit, and everything else.

Yea, we’re guilty of it too.

And that’s something we want to fix here. There’s a lot of confusion around freelance writing. It’s understandable because it’s a really broad term that covers a lot of stuff.  

So, let’s get back to the basics.

Everything You Need to Know About Freelance Writing in 5 Minutes

Want all the basics of becoming a freelance writer summed up in 5 minutes? Then this is the fast-paced video for you.

What is freelance writing?

Simply put: freelance writing is getting paid to write.

That part is pretty simple. Being a freelancer means you aren’t on a company’s payroll in an official job role.

So, if you work a 9-5 job and your job is writing the company’s blog, you’re a writer, but not a freelancer.

On the other hand, if you get hired by a company to write their blog posts and get paid by them, you are a freelancer (and a writer too, obviously).

As a freelancer, companies, agencies, other blogs, etc., hire you to write for them. That role can last for a single gig that takes you two hours, or you could work for a whole year on a massive project — and everything in between. 

So many people enjoy freelancing because they have the freedom to pick and choose clients and gigs.

Some freelance writers have 3-4 long-term writing clients they work with every month for years. While others love working on a bunch of different projects with various clients, so things never feel stale.

Freelance writers can get paid per word, per hour, or project — it all depends on how you want to set your rates.

Every industry needs freelance writers — music, HVAC, nursing, pest control, finance, SaaS tools, pets, real estate, interior design, insurance, industrial office furniture, and so on.

The opportunities are endless. 

There is no right or wrong way to freelance. It’s all about what works best for you and your business. 

What are the most common types of freelance writing? 

What kind of writing can you get paid to do? Pretty much anything! 

Freelance writing covers a massive spectrum of work. This is where many aspiring freelancers start to get lost. Basically, any written communication you can think of will fall under the umbrella of freelance writing.

Here are a few examples of different freelance writing projects:

• Blog posts
• Social media posts
• Company Emails
• Newsletters
• Sales pages
• eBooks
• Writing guides
• Landing pages
• Technical instructions
• Magazine articles
• About pages
• Reported articles
• Resumes
• Case studies
• Press releases
• Whitepapers
• Reports
• Speeches
• Video sales letters
• Direct mail sales letters
• Radio/podcast ads
• Podcast descriptions
• Social media ads
• Editing freelance writing work

This list could go on (and on). 

Everything you see in that list falls under the general umbrella term of freelance writing. Inside LRA, people ask how is freelance writing different from blog writing or copywriting? The answer is blog writing and copywriting are types of freelance writing.

For example, a copywriter is a freelance writer. They just offer a different type of writing than a blog writer or resume writer.

Check out how to become a copywriter.

Something else that confuses people is ghostwriting. It’s another type of freelance writing. All ghostwriting means is that when you write something, like a blog post for a company, they publish it under someone else’s name instead of yours. 

Check out how to become a ghostwriter.

What are the best types of freelance writing jobs for new writers?

Ok, let’s say you want to get into freelance writing and start from scratch. Are some types of freelance writing roles better than others for beginners?

If you’re just starting out these are some of the places we’d consider looking for work:

Here’s a quick rundown of some other good starting points as well:

Blogging:

This is by far the most popular type of freelance writing. A client hires you to write a blog post for them. You can ghostwrite blog posts or write them under your name.

Ghostwriting:

In the B2B (business to business writing) world, ghostwriting blog posts, guides, and whitepapers is very common.

Email writing:

Clients hire you to write a series of emails called campaigns, like a welcome campaign. These are more sales-focused. Some clients may want you to write a monthly or weekly newsletter.

Copywriting:

Copywriting is writing that gets people to take action, usually buying something. Sales letters are a common type of copywriting but copywriting also covers email campaigns and social media ads and posts too.

Editing:

Freelance editing or proofreading is another type of remote writing job too. Writers need editors to help make their writing better. Writers or brands hire editors to go through the content and make sure it looks good, has no errors, fits the required tone, etc. 

Getting started with freelance writing

As you start your freelance writing career, blogging is often the path of least resistance. From there, it’s all about building your skill set, getting better at writing, and a lot of time marketing your services doing things like sending out LOIs and applying to freelance writing jobs on various job boards that don’t suck. 

It’s not always the easiest road. There are ups and downs, but becoming a freelance writer can be a pretty amazing career. You’ll get a ton of flexibility, the freedom to make your schedule and pick your clients, and have some awesome experiences. 

Want to get started freelancing? Check out this post: how to become a freelance writer.

So hopefully, by now, you can answer what is freelance writing. If it’s something you want to try, we’ve got the resources to help you get started. 

Sean Ogle

Sean Ogle is the Founder of Location Rebel where he has spent the last 12+ years teaching people how to build online businesses that give them the freedom to do more of the things they like to do in life. When he's not in the coffee shops of Portland, or the beaches of Bali, he's probably sneaking into some other high-class establishment where he most certainly doesn't belong.