Be a Freelance Blogger

By Sophie Lizard 266 Comments — Last updated June 3, 2017

Feel the Fear and for F*ck’s Sake Get Over Yourself [$100 Prize!]

How many posts are there about fear on this blog?

How many about confidence? To most people, confidence implies an absence of fear, so it’s pretty much the same topic.

And, oh, you’ve felt the fear. You feel it and hurt under it and let it drag you down into this swamp of self-doubt so you don’t get as much done as you know you could. When you do take action, you take it so nervously it hardly makes any impact.

That’s why there are a bazillion self-help books and blog posts about courage and bravery and confidence and self-esteem and assertiveness and “fake it til you make it” and it goes on. I’m stopping there.

Listen, I get it. It’s kinda scary when you’re not 100% sure what you’re doing, or if it’ll work. In blogger mentoring sessions, I often spend time reassuring my students that yes, they’re doing this right, they’re doing fine, they should keep doing it and aim a bit higher next time, nobody’s going to mind, the universe will not implode…

I get it.

But here’s what YOU might not be getting:

It doesn’t matter. Your fear is irrelevant.

Freelance bloggers, it’s time to get over it and get freelance blogging.

If you have a genuine phobia that makes it extremely unpleasant for you to even think about writing a blog post or sending an email to a potential client, you’re excused. [And you should probably get professional treatment to make your phobia easier to manage.] I know if my laptop were swarming with spiders, Arachnophobia-style, I wouldn’t get any work done because I’d be too busy hyperventilating.

But if you’re just a bit scared… then you need to get past, through or over that feeling. [Read more…]

By Kelly Gurnett 7 Comments — Last updated May 20, 2017

21 Unusual Ways to Find Blog Post Inspiration

There are plenty of questions I hate fielding from people when they find out I’m a freelance blogger (such as, “Why don’t you write for a newspaper?”). But at least I’ve developed canned responses for most of them (such as, “Because print is dying and traditional jobs make me murderous, Uncle Frank.”).

The one question I’ve yet to figure out a good response to, however, is one which on the surface seems fairly innocuous: “How do you come up with ideas?”

This is is because I myself don’t really know the answer to this.

I can say it helps to have a working knowledge of the publication you’re writing for, a sense of what has already been covered (and converted well), and a healthy heaping of creative spin to make your approach new and noteworthy. It also helps if you’ve gotten enough sleep, had enough caffeine, have nothing else stressful going on in your life, and are Seth Godin. (The man is so prolific it’s unnatural).

But even possession of all the above (minus, of course, Seth Godin) isn’t enough to ward away those times when the ideas Just. Won’t. Come. Some days you’re a wellspring of potential pitches and some days the well runs dry, but if you want to succeed as a freelance blogger, you have to find ways to prime the pump no matter what condition it’s in. Because your clients want content, and their schedule doesn’t revolve around your “aha!” moments.

When you find yourself at a loss for blog post ideas, here are 21 ways to step outside your stale, obstructed brain and jumpstart your creativity. Whatever topic you’re covering or audience you’re writing for, these hacks can be tweaked to fit your needs — and the timeframe you’re working with. [Read more…]

By Bernard Meyer 9 Comments — Last updated April 8, 2017

5 Easy Ways to Get Paid Faster as a Freelance Blogger

We all know: freelancing blogging is great. You’ve got your freedom, you’re doing something you’re passionate about (most of the time) and you’re proud of your work (most of the time).

You put in the hours, a little bit of elbow grease, a whole lot of energy, and you send off your post to your client, along with your invoice.

And then you wait. And wait. And two weeks later you check your bank account, and then you wait some more. And then two weeks after that you get an email saying it will come in two more weeks.

Sound familiar? Even if you’ve got your invoice basics covered, late payment is unfortunately a part of life for freelance bloggers.

Luckily, there are ways to minimize the likelihood of that happening to you, and there are things you can do today to help you get your invoices paid faster. [Read more…]

By Lauren Tharp, BAFB Managing Editor 6 Comments — Last updated April 1, 2017

How to NOT Be Your Freelance Blogging Client’s Fool

Yes, I’m aware of the date. No, this post is not a joke. In fact, it’s as serious as they come.

I couldn’t resist doing a post about “fools” on April Fool’s Day. After all, there are so many ways clients can make fools out of us freelance bloggers.

Sometimes we play the fool when a client refuses to pay. Other times, we’ll be made a fool when a client keeps piling on work that we didn’t sign on for. Or maybe, you’re that sad fool whose had the misfortune of working for an abusive client? Ah, yes… the saddest fool of all, perhaps.

Well, it’s time to take a cue from Cinderella and become “Nobody’s Fool.” (Feel free to play that song in the background while you read this to get in the proper mindset).

The Client Who Makes You a Fool by Not Paying

This is one of the most common ways a client can make a fool out of a freelance blogger. It happens, on occasion, to even the best, most established freelance bloggers. It’s nothing to be ashamed of… but it is irritating as all get out.

The first step is not to panic, or let rage consume you. You absolutely must stay calm.

From there, try resending your invoice, with a little reminder that it’s past due.

Still no response? Then it’s time to send your client a carefully-worded e-mail about the situation.

Try something like: [Read more…]

By Sophie Lizard 213 Comments — Last updated March 27, 2017

Your Freelance Blogging Plan B [How to Survive When Plan A Turns to Shit]

“Oh, holy fuck. Fuck fuckitty fuck fuck….”

That’s what my brain said. That’s probably what my mouth said too, but to be honest I can’t remember because I was too busy panicking.

Why?

Because my freelance blogging career took a nosedive from sweet, easy profit into the frozen, thumb-twiddling hell of I HAVE NO CLIENTS AND NO INCOME.

Plus I was the primary moneymaker in my little family and they were all depending on me to keep them housed and fed. So, y’know, no pressure. 😉

Shit happens

It was early 2012; Google had just updated its algorithms to stop crappy websites from ranking high in search results, and I’d been working 25 hours per week for a client whose websites were definitely kinda crappy. So when Google updated, those websites tanked and my client couldn’t afford to keep me.

I scrambled to pick up a couple of new clients, made sure this time that their websites were not crappy or grey-hatted, and kept on going. I also spent more than $10,000 on coaching and training programs to improve my business skills that year.

Fast forward 3 years to early 2015 and there I am, billing my clients up to $13,000 per month, owning a popular blog, working only part-time and only on projects that suit me, while planning my wedding and honeymoon.

So everything must have turned out just fine, right?

I wish.

[Read more…]

By Peter Boyle 13 Comments — Last updated March 18, 2017

How to Break Up with a Client without Burning Your Bridges

Why did you become a freelance blogger?

That’s not a hypothetical question, I want to see the reason in the comments below.

Why am I asking? Because most freelancers lose sight of why they shunned the 9-5 to chase the freelance dream.

They start out full of promise. They want to live life on their terms, build their own empire, and get paid to do what they love, write.

If we boil that down, I’d say bloggers like you place a higher importance on happiness and personal growth than simple financial gain.

And that’s amazing.

But it rarely lasts. The dreams that drove you to leave your 9-5 soon escape your grasp. And with them go your positivity, happiness, and dreams of personal growth.

You see, most freelancers I speak to end up miserable, overworked messes. They’re terrified of falling from feast into famine and end up stuck.

Stuck doing work they hate for clients they despise. Stuck being overworked, under appreciated, and wishing they had more time to explore how they can improve themselves and their business.

But their fear of losing income prevents them from doing this. And that’s no way to live.

What most freelancers fail to understand is that holding on to clients because they pay is not how to run a successful business. You are the commodity and the value of your business.

When you’re unhappy, that value drops. You owe it to yourself and your business to drop bad clients. Sure, you’ll lose some income in the short term, but you’ll be a happier, more productive you which will help with long term growth. [Read more…]

By Linda Formichelli 8 Comments — Last updated March 4, 2017

Freelance Blogging IS a Numbers Game: The Throwdown

Gary Korisko, you’re going DOWN! You too, Sophie Lizard.*

In May 2014, Sophie collaborated with Gary on a post and video called “Why Freelance Blogging is NOT a Numbers Game” that contains this tidbit:

Dashing off sloppy pitches to every blog in the universe is not the most profitable use of your time.”

Since my pet saying is “Freelance writing is a numbers game,” I’m taking this very, very personally. What, Gary and Sophie, you lookin’ at me?

Wanna see me get mad? Just watch this video: [Read more…]

By Mandy Gardner 8 Comments — Last updated February 18, 2017

10 Great Apps and Tools for the Freelance Blogger

There’s nothing better than a great app or computer program that makes work quicker, easier and more fun. From a simple alarm clock to the most specialized email management software, the right app can not only keep you organized but help you enjoy your time at work.

As a freelance blogger, you’re already familiar with the most essential programs and tools of your trade: Microsoft Word, Google Docs, OneDrive, WordPress and Grammarly. If you’re like most people, however, it’s easy to get stuck in a technological rut and stop trying out new things after awhile.

You’ve got a lot on your plate as a blogger, in terms of coming up with creative ideas, meeting deadlines and organizing your accounts, and chances are you aren’t making use of the some of the best tools out there. If you’re a fan of technological assistance, the following apps and tools could help you stay on top of it all. [Read more…]

By Lauren Tharp, BAFB Managing Editor 9 Comments — Last updated February 11, 2017

5 Steps to Take When You Lose Your Best Blogging Client

Before I became the Managing Editor of Be a Freelance Blogger, I was a reader, just like you. And I’m still an avid reader of the posts here to this very day.

One of my all-time favorite posts here on BAFB is this one on preparing for the Feast or Famine Cycle. It details how you can prepare yourself ahead of time for the “Famine” part of the cycle so that, when it comes, you won’t take as much of a hit financially or mentally. It’s great stuff!

But what about those times when – WHAMMO! – you find yourself in the “Famine” part of the cycle unexpectedly?

As freelancers, it’s not uncommon for us to be let go with little to no warning from contracts that were supposedly “steady.” It happened to me just last month! A company I was working for suddenly went under and laid off all of their employees (including me!) with zero warning ahead of time. None of us had any idea anything was financially wrong with the business until we found ourselves suddenly jobless. And that’s not an uncommon story among freelance bloggers.

First of all, don’t panic. What you’re going through is normal, and you will find another job.

After the bone-chilling realization that you’re suddenly “unemployed” sinks in, remind yourself that you’re a freelancer and that you’re never truly “unemployed.” You’re your own boss! The only way for you to be truly jobless is if you quit freelance blogging altogether. And you’re not about to do that, right? Yeah. I didn’t think so.

So, after you’ve come to grips with your new situation and reassured yourself that everything’s going to be fine eventually, there are a few steps you should take… [Read more…]

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The Client Who Makes You a Fool by Not Paying

Shit happens