Be a Freelance Blogger

Make REAL money blogging for hire.

By

How Much Freelance Bloggers Earn: The Surprising Truth

How Much Freelance Bloggers Earn: The Surprising Truth

You must have wondered, “How much money could I make from freelance blogging?”

And I’m betting you’ve already got an idea in your mind of how much freelance bloggers earn.

What do you think, is $100 per post a good rate? What about 20 cents per word?

Think bigger. And, more important, think differently.

As a freelance blogger, it isn’t just your income that matters. The amount of time and effort you put into your business is crucial to determining how well-paid you really are.

It’s simple: if I asked you to choose between a job that pays $50 per hour for 40 hours per week, and one that pays $100 per hour for 20 hours per week, which job would you pick?

Yeah, I thought so. 😉

No matter which job you choose, your pay works out to $2000 each week. I’d choose the one with fewer hours, too. And we’d all be earning a six-figure income working part-time!

So, um, why hasn’t that happened yet?

Well, I have a confession to make: my average hourly rate is above $100. But I spend less than 20 hours per week freelance blogging, so I’m not super-rich.

You can earn more than me, if you want to. Many freelance bloggers do, especially if they work at it full-time.

How to be a high-paid freelance blogger

How much do you charge for a blog post?

When I first started freelance blogging, I had no clue how much I ought to charge.

Worse, I didn’t know whether my blog writing skill was above or below average, so I wasn’t even sure about comparing myself to the professionals whose rates are listed on freelance websites.

In other words, I had no idea what I was doing.

So I did what a lot of new freelancers do: I figured that if my hourly rate was at least as high as my last day job paid, then that would be fine.

My first blogging job paid $50 per 500 word post, and I was OK with that. I’d seen some other bloggers being paid a lot less.

After a while, though, two things became clear:

  1. There were worse writers making better money than me online. Lots of them.
  2. If I wanted to make more money, all I had to do was demonstrate my mad blogging skills and then ask for more money. If those writers could do it, so could I!

The moral of this story? Know your value, and never be too chicken to ask for it.

Know your value (to other people)

You need to know the value of your work, out there in the world. How do you find that out?

There are a few places you can look up rates for freelance writing work, but if you’ve ever tried to research this before, you’ll know that few include rates specifically for freelance blogging.

So let me say this straight:

$300 or more for a relatively short post (under 1000 words) is a fair rate for an expert freelance blogger.

A short post should ideally only take you two or three hours to write, leaving your hourly rate around the $100 mark and your annual income over $100,000 if you blog for 20 hours each week.

If you provide something extra with your blogging service –your own photos and video clips, promotion on your social media, original source interviews—then you can charge more.

And if you’re an expert in more than freelance blogging, your value is higher still. There are some blogs in my free Ultimate List of Better-Paid Blogging Gigs that pay a few hundred dollars for a single post on a specialist topic (and some pay up to a thousand dollars or more).

How to become a freelance blogging expert

Those clients who are happy to pay hundreds of dollars per post: do you know why they pay more?

They’re paying you to know what you’re doing.

Some new freelance bloggers jump right in and make $300 or more from the very first post. Others take time to build up their skills, experience, and confidence before they start to make more money.

Educating yourself about the art and science of blogging is part of your job as a successful freelance blogger. You’ll need to understand the business side of freelancing, too. People call me a freelance blogging expert, but I’m still learning every day.

To become an expert, all you need is practice and the ability to learn.

No set of rules dictates precisely how much experience you need. One facepalm-simple way to find out is to put yourself forward for a selection of freelance blogging jobs that interest you. If you win a gig then you know you’re expert enough!

Any relevant specialist knowledge or experience you have is valuable to the people doing the hiring. Price your work according to the value you bring to each project, and never be afraid to ask for what you’re worth.

Don’t be a starving writer

Now, I’m not suggesting that all writers are destined to be broke. But some types of writing give you predictable regular income that works out to a decent amount per hour, while others don’t.

A traditional novelist or non-fiction author might spend an age researching before submitting a book proposal. If they get accepted and paid an advance, they have to go and write. A lot. Then when the book’s published, they do a huge amount of marketing for months, and hope it sells more than a handful of copies.

For a freelance blogger, on the other hand, online research is the norm. Other writers can take weeks or months to research their next piece, but you can research a short blog post in no time if you know how to search the internet efficiently or talk to a few people via forums, email, or social networks.

Because freelance blogging is usually an ongoing gig, you get to know your clients and topics so well that you never run out of ideas. Sometimes, you aren’t even expected to pitch stories anymore but simply write them up and submit them, knowing they’ll be accepted.

You can write faster on these familiar topics by now, so you earn more in less time. And with a steady flow of income from your regular ongoing projects, you don’t have to spend so much time chasing new clients.

If you look at a lot of successful freelance writers like Carol Tice, or entrepreneurial bloggers like Tom Ewer, you’ll notice that they’re making several thousand dollars each month through freelance blogging in addition to their income from other writing projects.

My point is this: you can make a good income from freelance blogging even if you only work part-time. All it takes is a commitment to learning your craft.

This is your freelance blogging career. Now let’s take it somewhere awesome.

Get help with your next steps

I want you to succeed as a freelance blogger. And to help you do that, I’d like to talk with you live and one-to-one about how you can take a step up in your freelance blogging career (yes, even if it doesn’t exist yet).

There’s no way I can do that for every person who reads this post, so I’m offering it as a special free gift to just 3 people. All you need to do is leave a comment on this post, and I’ll choose 3 winners. Bonus points for radical honesty.

Here’s what you get:

  • You’ll spend an hour with me on Skype or phone, talking over your freelance blogging career and getting my advice on how you can move forward from where you are now to where you want to be.
  • If you’re within travelling distance, you can come and meet me in person and we’ll have cake!
  • Plus, the least experienced of the 3 winners will get a bonus prize: a free copy of Tom Ewer’s excellent ebook, Paid to Blog, to help keep you moving after our session is over.

This contest is now CLOSED, but you can get your own freelance blogger mentoring session here.

Feel free to leave a comment anyway – I’m still reading them! How do YOU feel about how much freelance bloggers earn?

Photo: Tax Credits

Yours Free: $13,355 in Blogging Gigs

If you're keen to make money blogging, you'll love the Ultimate List of Better-Paid Blogging Gigs -- it gives you details of 75 blogs that pay $50 to $2000 per post. Enter your email and I'll send you a free copy, plus my money-making toolkit and other useful stuff.

Comments

  1. Hi Sophie!

    Am excited to wear the bookmark tab out for this site! 🙂 This is a great motivating first post – especially for someone like me, who can’t exactly handle the majestic beauty of being both a starting college student AND artist. Please throw my hat in the ring for receiving your mentoring.

    1) Right now I’m at the geeky stalling stage – reading and reading and reading and planning and planning but still overwhelmed about the best way to dive in and ensure my target results.
    2) If I were an athlete, you would be my Michael Jordan mentor. You are doing exactly what I want to do and I believe talking to you will give me the sophisticated perspective I need to know whether my current freelance blogging plans are solid and realistic. I’ve got a plan of action, but much of it is influenced by common internet “what you should do” advice that you, I think, would know is baloney or not as a professional freelance blogger with so much experience. In addition to knowing if my plan holds firm, I’d love to talk to you about being a freelance blogger and skills you believe newcomers entering in should have (I know you’ll talk about that here, but to get an “early bird” special about it would be awesome!).

    I’m already a regular at Carol’s site, Linda’s, Copyblogger’s, etc. and think this site, like those, hits a much-needed sweet-spot. Thank you for launching and can’t wait to read more (even if I might disappear into lurkdom)!

    Best,
    Mecca

    • Thanks Mecca, and nice work snagging the very first comment on a freshly launched blog! 😀

      You’re entry is in – good luck!

  2. Thanks for the mention, Sophie! And for encouraging writers to ask for fair pay.

    No doubt you’ll get a lot of “Whaaaat?” reactions to the idea that $100 is a fair short blog post rate. But I can vouch that it is…and that many markets will pay more than that.

    • Thanks for stopping by, Carol! And for your tireless support of freelance writers – your advice certainly helped me to get this far. Yep, the more expert bloggers voice their concerns about rip-off pay rates for inexperienced freelancers, the better. Maybe I’ll poll all the top freelance bloggers so we can figure out our average rate…

      • As a confirmed “need more step-by-step instructions, and informative data is Good” person (see Kolbe.com) , I’d welcome that information. Maybe with charts and graphs and arrows (LOL)?

    • Specialized markets, yes, but that’s not the pay generalists can charge at the outset.

      And, at the beginning you will spend far more than an hour on a short post. It will take over a year of writing for you to get used to writing a blog post that fast. Most good posts require research unless you are already an expert on a topic. Most bloggers have to research the topic.

    • Being a beginner in financial negotiation if not in freelancing-at-the-$50+-level, I’m curious about that point. Recently, a potential client asked the what-do-you-charge question early on, and when I said “maximum $150,” she immediately replied “more than we can afford–thanks anyway.” This was no content mill, either: it was a business that (I found when I asked, as I no doubt should have in the first place) would have easily gone as high as $85. Who wants to weigh in on what you’ve found the most effective response to questions about your rates, particularly from people who are still at the comparison-shopping stage?

      • I tend to quote a range rather than a single figure. For example, if you said “this will cost between $75 and $150 — I’ll need more details to give a precise quote”, you’d give yourself an extra chance to find out the budget. (Make sure the low end of the range you quote is still a rate you’d be happy to work for!)

  3. Hi Sophie,
    I love your emails and have been looking forward to the blog launch. After spending four years flirting with all areas of Internet related money making, I get quite a few emails every day. (Somebody must be selling it!). But I genuinely look forward to, and read yours.
    You are living my dream. I just left a very serious and well paid job in Australia to pursue my passion of becoming a freelancer as I travel the world. You are an inspiration and I hope the website takes off for you.
    All the best,
    Adam 🙂

    • Adam, thanks for taking the time to comment! I’m glad you’re having fun so far, and I wish you the very best of success. But dude, if I’m living your dream, why don’t you enter the comment contest to win an hour’s guidance toward living it yourself? ;P

  4. Another great article Sophie! I have seen a lot of bloggers over the years, and your content is decently up there with the best. Somehow you manage to be so real, yet captivating at the same time. I honestly look forward to every email and post you put out.

    Also, I will email you back tonight. Thanks for the reply!

    Rob

  5. Sophie,

    I love this site! And no, this is not me just sucking up to win the prize. 🙂

    I have never done any freelance blogging, but I do have my own blog (andrewgilmore.net) which I have been working really hard on.

    I would love to learn how to get started freelancing, and how to improve my own blog.

    • Thanks Andrew, it means a lot to me that you like what I’ve put together so far! Your entry is in – good luck!

  6. Hiya Sophie,

    I came across your site after reading one of your posts over at Carol Tice’s site (which I love).
    1) I’m a blogger (5 years now) ready for the next step. I’ve read tons of books, websites, etc and I’m ready to get paid more for my writing.
    2) What I hope to learn is how to use my professional work experience (non-blogging) to leverage it into higher paying blogging jobs part-time. I know I’m worth much more than I’m getting paid right now and I’m ready to go get it! Thanks so much!

    Heiddi

  7. Congrats on the launch Sophie! (Finally!)

    Great post to start with — I’m looking forward to seeing what’s next. Thanks for the mention 🙂

    • Thanks Tom, I’m kinda looking forward to seeing what’s next myself! 😉 And thanks for donating a copy of your ebook to help one of these commenters in their freelance blogging career, too.

  8. I’d kill to make £60/$100 per hour and be able to do it for 20 hours a week, week in week out!

    Right now I am finding it very hard to find people to pay me even $30 per hour writing. I’ve setup a little website to promote myself, I’ve done an Odesk profile and I’m checking Pro Blogger each day but nothing is happening apart from the odd article here and there.

    I did buy Tom Ewers book but have not had time to read it.

    Thanks, Joe

    • Hey Joe, make the time to read Tom’s book if you’ve already bought a copy – it’s pretty comprehensive. To take a step up the pay scale, you need good clips and an idea of where to find the type of clients that are right for you. (More on that later.)

      Your entry is in – good luck!

  9. Hi Sophie,

    Great Post – and great idea! I detest how little writers are valued in the market – and often this leads to people undervaluing themselves. Thanks for helping make this different! Keep it up!

    • Hi Megan, thanks! Your support means a lot to me, so I’m glad you enjoyed the post. I hope that freelance blogging will help my readers stay out of debt, but if anyone has personal finance questions I’ll point them in your direction!

    • Megan, it’s not that we’re not valued; it’s just that there are so many of us trying to make it. Everyone knows that. It’s basic supply and demand: the more people are offering a service, the less that service is valued. It becomes like the American expression “a dime a dozen.”

      Probably the best way for us to become more valued is to become absolute experts at what we blog about, and also very good writers. Not all of the tens of thousands of writers out there are good writers. I tell myself every day to become a very good writer and I won’t be a dime a dozen.

  10. Sophie,

    Yes, I agree. It is possible for bloggers to make $50 or even $100 (or more).

    Whether a company is blogging to provide useful content to its market or to boost Google rankings following major algorithm updates (or both), its blog posts must be higher quality in the past. Punctuation and spelling are a very small part of the job. Today’s posts require research and accuracy as well as an understanding of the company’s customers and their interests.

    -Diana

    • Thanks for your support, Diana. I agree, it’s important that freelance bloggers understand what makes their skills valuable if they want to become highly-paid experts.

    • Forgot to mention those things but yes, market research alone will take that small post to well over an hour.

  11. Hi Sophie,
    I have two blogs and I don’t earn any income from either of them. I’d like to improve my writing so I can feel confident to go for paid writing gigs.

    • Hi Cathy, thanks for taking the time to comment. Confidence is vital, and can only come from inside us. Your entry is in – good luck!

  12. Congratulations, Sophie! I think it says a lot about you when I want the career you have, but I can’t help but be extraordinarily excited for you and your new venture. Even without the the blog site up yet, I considered you to be an expert.

    I absolutely want to be considered for your brainstorming session for a couple of reasons. First of all, you are completely down-to-earth. Somewhere along the way, I think a lot of folks forget that there are real people with feelings and emotions behind these bright screens. I don’t think you have forgotten that. That’s just me being totally straight up. I just haven’t encountered the goodwill and camaraderie with a lot of other writing and marketing experts. I haven’t felt as comfortable or gained as much of a rapport with other potential mentors as I have with you.

    Secondly, I definitely see myself becoming a freelance blogger at least on a part-time level. I currently only have one paid guest post under my belt (of course, I have you to thank for that), but I want to be able to come up with the ideas to do that much more often and command a lot higher rate. I also want to finally have enough expertise and confidence to submit a guest pitch to ProBlogger. That’s kind of like a dream of mine right now. I know that don’t pay anything, which really sucks, but they have such a huge and loyal following, it would be great to set myself apart as a writing/blogging expert by getting published there.

    I think what I would like to learn from you is how to pitch the sites where I don’t have a lot of expertise. Your freebie includes a lot of techie blogs that I don’t know a lot about but would really like to research and learn. I want to be able to approach them and say, “Hey, I don’t know a lot about XYZ, but I have the writing chops to get it done right.”

    Relish the launch, Sophie!

    • Thanks Willi, I can see you’ve spent some time thinking about this! Your entry is in – good luck.

  13. It’s finally here! Yey! 🙂

    First off, thanks for finally launching. I’ve been looking forward to your launch since I got your ebook. Also, thank you for being so kind and patient with answering my emails. I really appreciate it. Your replies and your guest posts actually made me take action. So THANK YOU!

    Anyway, here goes…

    1. I’m actually more determined now more than ever to become a freelance blogger/copywriter, but my confidence doesn’t quite match up with my determination. Self-doubt and insecurities keep getting in the way and I allow them. I want to be taken seriously, seriously.

    2. I’ve only been a freelancer for 8 months but I want to earn by writing and blogging topics I’m passionate about. I feel that that’s when my best comes out. I decided on a niche and I’m planning on launching a website around that (WordPress this time. LOL). I get really excited when I think about it, and I can’t even sleep and I keep outlining my plans and talking to my web designer friend although I just want a simple site. I hope to have it as both a blog that helps people and at the smae time a porfolio that showcases my work. Is that a good idea?

    So, what I hope to learn is how do you go about specializing on a niche for the purpose of becoming “the” blogger for it. It’d also be great to learn how you went about launching your site and planning your content.

    🙂

  14. For many years my wife worked as a teacher, she was happy. We had health care and a good income, we were happy. Now in the states, teachers are being attacked. As the United States ages, voters no longer have school-aged children and no longer support teachers. They’re not being mean, but with their kids in college, they don’t care as much about the plight of local schools.

    Like many states in the US, my wife’s school system started cutting pay and getting down-right nasty. They started treating teaches with contempt, anger and disrespect. After 20 years of teaching, like all the other teachers in her district, her job would face cuts and reductions. She could be fired for any reason, her health care would be reduced and … best of all … her pay would be cut. … It was time for my wife to retire.

    Only problem was that I was trying to finish my masters in software engineering. Eeks … one of us needed to work!

    My first degree is in PR, but I’ve never really worked in that field. I work in the corporate world as a software engineer. But, as the wheels came off the US economy, my position was in jeopardy. While I was not fired, I was told that my position would end. My bosses, at Ford, were great. They kept finding money to keep me on … but eventually … my nice job was over.

    I used the time to return to college. … but now neither of us have a job.

    My wife and I can both write. My wife has written 12 books for teachers and they love her stuff. I’ve written seven Kindle books. And while the experience was great, the books are not really making any moola. I want to be able to get writing gigs.

    I am open to going back to the corporate world … or not. Can you help Sophie?

    I’ve been on some interviews and done well. I’ve turned down offers that were crappy, but at least I’m getting offers. But I’d also like to see if I can cultivate a thriving writing business. If I get a corporate gig, great, but I still want the extra income to go back to school. Job or no job, I think having a great writing business would give both of us the freedom to choose what to do with the rest of our lives.

    So … I’d like to know where to look for writing gigs that BOTH pay well and have the highest chance of getting repeat business. I hate the prospecting part. I think we both would like blogging jobs were we could write a post a day (not necessarily to the same blog). If they could be $50-$100 / posts, that would be a good start.

    I have no writing contacts to start with. So my wife and I need help to see, where to prospect, how to pitch, and where the are the best places to get REPEAT work. I know lots of sites tell you how to get one-off jobs, but that is just not efficient.

    So there you have it, more than you wanted to know. But now you know what I /we are looking for. I’ve seen your reviews on the freelance sites and, Sophie, you are a machine! You’ve got tons of writing gigs and great reviews. I/we wanna be just like you. … but without all the pain that you must have gone through to get were you are today.

    – Eric

    • I wish you the very best of success, Eric, and your wife too. With your corporate tech experience and her teaching knowledge, you should be strong candidates for all kinds of writing projects. Your entry is in – good luck!

  15. I’m new to the freelance blogging scene and your emails are helping me understand the opportunities and motivating me to build my craft. I have not been paid to blog and am eager to talk with you about the opportunities out there. I have lots of ideas but need some direction sorting them out and creating a gameplan & next steps.

    I work full time as a Manager of Customer Service but long for the day when I can focus on writing/blogging & inspiring people through words.

    I hope I win a conversation with you.

    • Deanne, I know where you’re coming from. I worked as a marketing & customer service manager before I started freelance blogging, too! And yep, figuring out exactly *what* to do is a big hurdle. Your entry is in – good luck.

  17. Sophie! Fantastic launch post!

    I agree with everything here and I take it a step further. It applies to ANYTHING. There are people who make money ‘farming’ fake gold in a digital world and selling it for real money. They know their value and they charge for it 🙂

    I’ve gone through this myself, in my early years I gave my value away free just to earn ‘friends.’ Then I charged a pittance so I didn’t scare people away.

    Now I charge a premium because a 15min, open-minded conversation with me can 180degree your life 🙂

    Keep ryzin’!

    • J-Ryze, awesome to see you here. 🙂
      You’re right, value perception is the big show. We all want to be valued, but most of us aren’t prepared to pay the price of becoming truly valuable. [Oh. I think I just got myself a new catchphrase!]

  18. Hi Sophie,

    Great start, the anticipation has been killing me!! I started blogging about the middle of last year when I moved to a different country to work, and suddenly found myself with evenings by myself in a strange place! So far it’s paying for itself, but not exactly making me rich.

    Your mention of charging what you get for your day job amused me though, because I clearly still need to look harder for writing that pays as well as IT consulting in a very specialist niche! If you can mentor me on that one I’d be very grateful 😛 (not trying to be smug though, after all I am away from home the majority of the time as a result).

    My intention with my blogging is to find something to fill the gaps between the IT gigs though, and kind of smooth out the income graph a bit. I’d be delighted to get some pointers on how to sniff out those more specialist writing opportunities 😀

    Looking forward to reading some more, keep up the good work!
    David

    • Hey David, thanks for the comment! I firmly believe that whatever you’re making in your day job, someone’s prepared to pay you more than that to write about it. The market for thought leading, technical IT blog posts is small but lucrative, just like your niche itself.
      Your entry is in – good luck!

  19. Hello there Sophie!

    I have just read your post with great interest as I really don’t have much idea about blogging but I do feel I have a lot to say.

    I work two dead end jobs and have for about 5 years and have grown both weary and bored as a result with my work life.

    My passion, as my “under construction” basic web page suggests- is the magical arts. I’m working on that career path as well but find it difficult with work requirements.

    So I’m reaching out into the blogosphere in hopes I can start blogging as a way out of the dead end jobs and as a way to provide me more TIME so I can work on toward promoting myself more as a magicia. And mind reader and obtaining more gigs.

    I would love to replace my current income (from both jobs) with blogging income and I think it would also aid me in many ways with my magic career as magic is a form of artistic expression as is blogging.

    Late last year I sought out several magical mentors and am improving that aspect of my life and now I’m looking for a blogging mentor. Perhaps it’s you:)

    Lastly, I would say that ai think blogging would provide me the remote job I also desire so that I can venture to see my family more, specifically my sister and her husband and my two nieces (ages 5,2) so that I relocate and be a much larger part of their formative years:)

    Thanks for the opportunity to express myself, and have a sensational day!

    Dave

    • Hi Dave, I think you’re the first magician blogger I’ve met! It sounds like a lot of fun, too. Your entry is in – good luck!

  20. 1). After launching my own blog 6 weeks ago, I dove in and went full-time blogging by working as an assistant to a more well-established problogger in my niche – partly so I could support myself doing what I love to do, writing, but also so I could learn how to run a successful business behind a blogging platform.

    So far things have been great. I can pay the rent and write all day. Peachy. However, I charge $10/hr – which is a starting point but if people are getting paid $100/post for a 500 word post, something I write several times over in a 10 hour workday (I generally write around 2-3k words a day, including email sequences, posts, etc), then I’d love to learn how to advance up the totem pole a little bit.

    Because I refuse to produce anything less than my best work at all times. And my best work is very high quality.

    2.) So in my chat with you, I’d love to learn how to correctly leverage my writing talent – my capacity for shipping thorough, quality work daily – and start earning more so I can stop eating so much dang oatmeal and maybe go out to eat every once in a while, for goodness’ sake 😉

    Thanks Sophie!

  22. My friend, Amanda Abella, posted your info on your FB for her blog/business Grad Meets World. So I decided to pop over. 😀

    1. Where you’re at right now with freelance blogging:
    I recently started a new blog, in order to funnel the type of writing I’d like to be a platform for a business later on. I also have had another blog since March 2011 that is really just a compilation of my thoughts and things I run across on the internet. I’ve done a good bit of guest blogging because I initially read that that’s a good place to start to get your work noticed. But I haven’t had success in getting paid for my blogging. Like another comment reported, I’ve been on the ProBlogger website (I used to check it daily) and haven’t had much luck in getting any of the positions.

    One position I really wanted, the guy took almost four weeks to make a decision and he didn’t choose me. In another situation, I tried elance at the push of a friend, and achieved very little success from that. So I stopped attempting to freelance write since I seemed to have no idea what I was doing. o.o And now I’m back at your site, ready to give it another go!

    2. What you hope to learn from your chat with me:

    My goal is to learn scripts to use to pitch bloggers and websites so that they can pay me to write for me. It seems many blogs want writers, but so few are willing to pay for content. This is troublesome. How do I target paying markets and have them showcase my work.

    And I also want to learn about building and showcasing a portfolio: I can write about pretty much anything, but my blog is all over the place. How do I prove to websites and bloggers that I can tackle their content, even if I don’t have years of experience in that topic?

    Thank you! Looking forward to working with you!

  23. Hi Sophie,

    I’ve spent a number of years scouring the internet for fresh perspectives on blogging, content creation, and marketing, but I hadn’t really gotten serious about pursuing freelance blogging as a potential career until late last year. I’ve launched my site, and have developed a bare-bones business plan, but didn’t know where to go next to start growing my audience until I stumbled upon your Ultimate List of Better-Paid Blogging Gigs.

    I have close to 50 blogs I follow on a regular basis, and I have to say you consistently provide some of the highest quality posts in my my feed. I can’t wait to see and implement your blueprint for success! Thank you for all your hard work, and I look forward to connecting with you soon.

    Warm regards,
    Brian

  24. Interesting timing. I was just the opportunity to write my first freelance article. If they decide to hire me then I’ll be looking at about $12/article (500 words), and they have nearly an endless supply of topics to write on so I can make as much as I want each week.

    The thing I’m unsure about is how I fit this into my schedule since I already have an 8-5 that I love.

    • Ack! You *can’t* fit it into your schedule, if you value your sanity.

      $12 per post is a long way from fair. As a new freelance writer, you can sometimes benefit from low-paying work on a highly respected blog simply because it builds your portfolio, but if the sites your work’s published on are spammy then there’s no portfolio value.

      Your entry is in – good luck! And whatever choice you make about that $12 job, keep your eyes on the horizon…

      • He will probably have to take the $12 gig to build his portfolio. Paying your dues is standard in this field, online or off.

  26. Sophie, I would love to have a mentoring session with you.

    I’m a member of the Freelance Writer’s Den and the A-list Blogging Bootcamp. I’ve written for national magazines, co-written and ghostwritten books for national publishers, and I’ve den blogging seriously for about a year and a half. I’ve absolutely fallen in love with the blogging format — the instant feedback from readers has taught me more about writing in one year than the ten years of freelancing before that! But I’m still plagued by doubt. I’m trying to line up blogging clients, but I’m terrified to ask for the rates I want ($100/post). Especially in my niche (parenting), there are so many hobbyist writers willing to write for peanuts — or even for nothing. I *know* I’ve got the writing chops to be worth a lot more than that, but do I really have the blogging chops? I *love* blogging and i read obsessively on Copyblogger, ProBlogger, and similar blogs about blogging, but I feel like there are still so many things I don’t know about it. I feel like to really command those rates, I need to write on more technical topics, which I really don’t want to do. Can I ask for professional rates in a niche that “anyone can do”? Am I really that much better than all the other mom bloggers out there? That’s what I need a mentor to tell me. And if I’m not, what do I need to learn to be worth those rates?

      • Yep, I recognise that life! My little girl’s 2 years old; she likes to announce “Mummy is TRYING to WORK!” while she taps the keys on my laptop…

        • LOL!
          ~ Give her a “guest post” once in a while – the history of her improvement at grokking the world would be a fun Archive-Dive someday, and she’ll learn to read, write and spell by osmosis if you don’t add *pressure*…

          • 😀 Nice idea, Karen! Yeah, learning by osmosis runs in the family – she’ll probably be making more money than me by the time she’s 5 years old.

    • As a writer for national print media, could your work be replaced by just any Joe Public’s scribblings? Nope, because you’re an experienced journalist and Joe Public is not.

      Blogging is exactly the same. Hobby blogging is the equivalent of a home-printed fanzine; professional freelance blogging is the equivalent of a glossy magazine.

      If you’ve got the blogging chops, there are websites (I think of them as “glossy blogs”) that will pay you a fair rate. Parenting’s a competitive niche, but you DON’T have to compete on price. Build your expertise and compete on excellence instead!

      Your entry is in – good luck.

      • She doesn’t have to compete on price because she’s a well-established writer already, just not in the blogosphere. You’ve paid your dues — go for it!

      • I am SO EXCITED! So much so that I emailed you back without properly reading the instructions. Sorry about that. LOL.

        But seriously — I recently won a copy of Tom Ewer’s book, too, and I have literally never won anything in my life before now. Never. I think it’s a sign!

        I’m making my list of questions for you! Can’t wait to “meet” you!

    • hello lisa i am not a blogger at all i just started reading these posts w hen the $50 to $100 caught my eye. after reading so many of these if think that sophie is not near as qualified nor has the insight that you do lisa. i also think, well you know the old saying if its to good to be true it usually is. i also think some people like to blow smoke because it makes themselves feel better and bigger. i think the whole $50-$100 is a crock. it might happen now and then but not like clock work. thank you for your time and best wishes lisa baker

      • To an experienced freelance blogger, $50 or $100 isn’t too good to be true. I turn down a lot of $50 work because I’ve got more lucrative gigs to focus on. Lisa knows what I’m talking about–I’ve followed her career ever since she became my mentoring student, and she earns a professional rate!

  27. Hi Sophie,
    I really liked the idea you showed here in this post. Yes I earn money from my freelancing career.
    But only 50$/post.
    After this post, I am planning to do as you said. I will try to show my expertise and then charge more.

    What am I planning to do now, is to shut down my blog, apply jon morrow strategy and yours, and then release V2 of the site.

    What I can get from you?
    I can get from you a lot. As I said, I am planning to try the same strategy you tried, so you can help me a lot.
    + I will learn from you how to increase my $/hr. I think that you are the one that can help me to do so.

    That’s why I think that you can help me a lot with your chat.

    Thanks a lot Sophie, I hope your Launch will be good, and I hope you all the best.

    Regards,
    Ahmed Safwan

    • Good fortune on your re-invention!
      Meanwhile, customize your “Under (re)construction” page if at all possible, so folks who come looking for you don’t think they’ve lost the trail or that you’ve abandoned it.

  28. I’m so excited to see your launch! I’ve been following your articles around the web and getting lots of good information from all of them, so I’m excited to visit you here in your new home going forward.

  29. Hi, Sophie!
    The day finally came! What a wonderful post, and I’m excited to see more you have to offer us.
    You asked, so I’m telling. Where I’m at in regards to freelance blogging is… difficult. Craft-wise, I know more about writing, blogging, and how it integrates into SEO and traffic more than I’d say 70% of hobby bloggers out there. Business-wise, I only have one paying blog position at $50 per blog, and beyond that I am still trying to figure out how to leverage my knowledge and minimal experience to get more gigs.
    So if I met with you, that’s what I’d want to know: how to get more clients. Everyone always says “figure out how to leverage what you’ve got,” but they never tell you the HOW. Just HOW exactly do you go about getting more gigs & referrals? Do you ask clients to spread the word about you? Do you search for dead blogs online & email the companies? This is what I want to know!
    Good luck with your site, & know that I’ll be a dedicated reader even if I don’t get a mentoring session. 🙂
    Bree

    • Hey Bree, thanks. I hear you about the “how”; it’s often so simple (once you’ve already done it) that people who know the moves forget to slow down and explain one thing at a time for the newbies. 🙂

      Your entry is in – good luck!

      • I second Bree’s “but How Do *I* Do That??” plea!
        More step-by-steps, with definitions, for us rank-beginners, please! 🙂

  30. Hey Sophie; You rock! I know I’ll be a regular on your blog. Never thought about blogging as a freelancer but after reading your post, you give me hope and a roadmap. I’d be interested about your tips on how to research online more efficiently. It can be a bottomless time pit.

    • Thanks, Laure! Freelance blogging is a good fit for a lot of entrepreneurs, I think. You can build a strong professional reputation that way, and it keeps your cash flow from draining away when you’re between projects in your primary business.

      As for online research without wasting time, it’s all about making ruthless snap judgements. If a source isn’t clearly and immediately useful, I skip it and move on – I’ll only revisit it later if I have time to spare.

  32. Hello Sophie!
    It was amazing to read your piece. I never thought in that direction, but the way you forwarded the matter made it convincing. I am working hard on writing and looking forward to get some knowledge on the new avenue of earning. My cell numbers are [edited for privacy]. I am keenly interested to talk to you on the matter. Thanks.

  33. Thanks for the post Sophie. I think the fundamental problem for new bloggers is both knowing what information you already have and what it’s value is for an audience. Most of us actually do know more than we think, so it’s a question of honing one’s confidence and learning the craft of writing it n an accessible and useful format. All easier said than done. As a novelist I’m still very much a beginning blogger, but would love to earn part-time as a guest blogger. Thanks again – very encouraging.

    • Thanks A.K., you’re spot on – understanding your value as a blogger is the only real way to increase that value, and a lot of people simply aren’t sure. Your entry is in – good luck!

  34. So my husband bought a farm.

    And while I had given the whole endeavor my blessing, every time he came home with a new tractor part I got grumpier.

    We were spending all of our time and money on his dream, and I was stuck out in the middle of nowhere.

    So, to stave off the grumps and replenish the ancient-tractor fund, I decided to get to work doing my own thing. I signed up for J-School at Freelance Writers Den and before I had a chance to do the homework, I found work on their job board writing test questions. It’s fun, but I’m not ready to give up on blogging.

    Even though I ended up writing test questions instead of doing the assignments, J-School taught me a lot. Now I just need to get set up and going, but I’m not an expert in any of the usual blog topics–I can’t decide what I should write about!

    • Sounds to me like you might be an expert in the not-entirely-happy-homesteader department, Kari. Homesteading, farming and self-sufficiency form a surprisingly popular blogging niche. But what did you do *before* the farm?

      Your entry is in – good luck!

  35. Hey Sophie,

    I’m going to start with the hard part first, the honest, real, shake in my boots kind of part. This, is the first time I’ve been on your site since subscribing to your email a couple of months ago. I know, shame on me, I’ve got the emails, and read the headings, yet this is my first stomp around one of your posts.

    Forgive me, I’ve only been blogging for a year and a half and I’m right in the eye of the storm. You know the one; that dizzy, swirling, mesmerising storm that surrounds early blogging days, the tweets, the facebook, the ‘I must post everyday’ swirl that takes me away from my baby girl and forces me to miss out on milestones in her life. But I’m addicted to my blog and I’m addicted to writing.

    I adore my blog, I love my audience and yet I am desperate for readers. I am desperate to get more comments, I am desperate for more time to spend eith my baby girl, i miss hermso much. Honestly, I am desperate to earn a living blogging and I am stuck in this storm and feel like I’ve been thrown against a wall of pause; no getting better, no getting worse.

    Being a unique wedding blog in the UK is becoming a competitive game and while I get divine comments about the blog, its size and its reputation from readers who love the blog, I am at a stand still and I need help. I don’t want to give up on them!

    My reputation and audience grew in just 6 months. It was a whirl wind that started as a hobby; something to do when my baby girl went to school, yet grew like Jacks giant beans. And I’m tired of people assuming I earn a ton of money from it. Because I don’t. I do it because I’m good at it and I love it, yet if things don’t change, I may be forced to give it up.

    But Sophie, I’m here, and I promise I’m listening because I need help. I want my family back, I want the storm to subside; I want my words to filter into others lives and blogging is my chance to do just that but I just don’t know where to go from here.

    I have heart and I have mind, ready and waiting for your advice. Thank you for starting to unfoil my turmoil with this post. I have read it, I am happy to be here, and I have already taken the first step.

    Zarn xxx

    • Zarn, I feel for you.

      First: take a day off from blogging. I forbid any type of blog-related activity for a full 24 hours! It won’t kill your blog, and you need to do this.

      Second: Spend time with your daughter. Eat cake. Visit the park. Whatever you want, but NO BLOGGING that day. Okay? You may feel excited and addicted, but your daughter needs to be more important to you than anything on the internet.

      Third: your entry is in – good luck!

  36. Very inspiring post and I am now going to be following your blog. I have started writing recently and only jotting down posts in Evernote at the moment. I haven’t got round to guest posting because I just don’t know if I am good enough yet.

    This post has given me a renewed drive to carry on and work hard.

    Thank you!

    • Thanks Glen, so happy to hear that! But, um, you can’t “get around to” guest posting. You either do it with the time you have, or you’ll never find the time at all.

      If you’ve been keeping a “get around to” list in your head, now’s the time to break it down and make a note of the ones you’re actually going to do today, this week, this month. Then do them!

      Go on, right now, think of a blog you’d like to guest post on. Think what your post would be about and the main points you’d cover. Now write that down and send it to the blog’s editor. The universe will *not* implode.

  37. Hi Sophie,
    I’ve had my own blogs for many years. I am a fiction writer but I have also become a freelancer sort of accidentally. I have a friend who was doing work with Martindale Hubbel (they work with attorneys) and she had quite a bit of overflow, so asked me to subcontract with her. I did and had steady work for 1.5 years. The pay wasn’t great $40 per page but as I got better and more efficient I was essentially doing a page per hour. Through her I also met a web designer who needed content and blogs and I still do work for her today, although she is paying me better for web pages ($75) I still am stuck in the $40 range for blog posts. I would love to get several steady blogging gigs at a much higher rate, like for example $100 per. That would enable me the time and income to pursue my fiction and other goals. I’ve written hundreds of paid blog posts and web pages and on my own personal blogs have written over 2,000 posts. I’ve also published an 80,000 word novel, so I have some experience.

    The trouble I run into is I am pretty burned out writing for attorneys (where most of my paid experience is from) and would love your help in figuring out a new niche or at least a couple of additional niches to write in. Also, I’m a bit of a chicken on marketing lines so finding clients is something I could use help with as well.

    Thanks so much for your great blog post and for the contest. Fun!

    Annie

    • Wow, Annie, congrats on falling into a paid freelance writing career! That pay rate is painfully low, though. 🙁

      Don’t worry, we’re going to fix that whether you win this contest or not. Your entry’s in – good luck!

  38. PS: I just scanned your site for twitter and facebook buttons so I could share but couldn’t find them. I’d love to ‘share’ you with the social media world.
    Annie

  39. Hi Sophie,
    You have come along at just the right time for me! Thank you for giving me hope! I have been trying to negotiate the blogosphere for a few months and have scored some pretty good jobs on an online contracting site but so far I’m not getting paid what I will need to if I am to make a living from online writing, with most jobs working out at about $20 – $25 per post.
    I’m a physiotherapist but as I have a young son with a serious health condition; working from home is ideal for me. I have 20 years of health related experience so could be considered ‘expert’ in some areas but would love to know how to make that work for me and get paid accordingly! I am trying to specialize in health related content and have also just paid for some web-hosting to start my own blog (so far it’s pretty empty).
    I would love to be considered for your mentoring sessions and really look forward to learning more from you.
    Thank you!

    • Hey Kim, as a physiotherapist you definitely qualify as “expert”! Have you thought about blogging for health profession institutions? It’s likely you’ll find higher-paying jobs by targeting specific organisations than by waiting for your dream job to show up on a contracting site.

      Your entry’s in – good luck!

  40. I have been blogging since 2008 but I have lost a lot of my steam to blog in the last feel years. I felt like I wasn’t’ doing anything right and I wasn’t too sure where to take my blog next. I still love blogging and I really want to learn how to be a successful blogger.

  41. Seems like I didn’t open your email fast enough! You have a lot of comment already.
    I’ll give it a shot anyway.
    I haven’t started my own blog yet, however, it’s in the pipeline. I have written blogs on other sites, which have gotten a good response.
    I’m 65ys old and have wanted to write all my life. I was a newspaper correspondent for a while but it didn’t pay well enough. I published some poetry when I was young. After a long and ultimately, failed, marriage and four kids I am now free to be me. I am writing a book, which should be out this coming year. As we all know books are good publicity but not necessarily money makers. I’d love to be able to freelance blog for a living (and I need the money). I’ve been following you since I first saw you online and I think you could teach me all I need to know. I’d sure be your best recommendation as I believe in returning the favor. We can all help each other and the best deal is one that both parties profit from.
    In any case, thanks for being around. I will learn from you however it comes!

  42. Hi Sophie,

    After connecting with you on LinkedIn I came to check out your site and found it is a minefield of great reads. iIhave been blogging for almost two years but although I have good stats on the site and a lot of engagement from readers I have yet to turn that in to an income so finging you has been a blessing.
    Take care
    Jo

  43. Great job right out of the gate, Sophie.

    You’ve certainly opened my eyes about rates and possibilities. At this time, I’m going in a slightly different direction with my writing, so please leave me out of your generous offer.
    I do think that you and I have some business to talk about, but now’s not the time. I really do want some cake, though. 🙂

    Best of luck to you in this New Year, Sophie!

    • Hey Jim, thanks for taking the time to send me your good wishes! Shame there wasn’t any cake, but until they can 3D-print one I suppose we’ll have to wait. 🙂

  44. Hi Sophie – Awesome way to kick off the blog! I’m excited to see more. Subscribed 🙂

    1. I’ve been freelance blogging for almost 2 years now, but only recently realized that’s where my interests and talents lie most strongly. Now I’m set on the path towards making my living as an entrepreneurial blogger. In addition to my own blog, I freelance regularly for 2 major clients, and sporadically for a handful of others (with MANY from your e-guide to add to the list soon!)

    2. In a mentoring session with you, I’d love to discuss some time-management/productivity tricks — how do you best stay FOCUSED when freelancing draws you in so many directions?! I’d also like to learn how you break into a desired niche/industry, rather than relying on “being able to write authoritatively on any topic” to get enough steady work to make a living.

    Thanks for the great info, and for the opportunity at this cool free gift! Best of luck with the future of this blog — I’ll look forward to the next post!

  45. I have been freelance blogging pro-bono for years. The publishing sites have granted media access and light notoriety, but no financial compensation. I have put in the work, now I would like to get paid. Help!

    • You’re not alone, Sarah. I hear from a lot of bloggers who are paid in “exposure” instead of real money! If you want to make freelance blogging your career, use your published posts on those sites as work samples to win some paid gigs. Your entry’s in – good luck.

  46. Greetings Sophie….

    I am at the starting line in a strange land, much like Frank Hopkins on Hidalgo. I don’t know if I can compete in the big race, but I have faith in my words the same as Hopkins holds in his horse. I am ready to find out where they will take me.
    I have had some close to me, urging me to be a writer, but I was never in a place to feel the passion for it. I was busy with raising a son, work, art and rescuing dogs …. just life. The day came when “writing” politely stuck its foot in the door and whispered, “Hey, over here, you are overlooking something important.” So I began to write, and write some more. It was always there, a patient, attentive seed waiting for the right time to establish firm roots.
    I have a current blog, two others in the making, one mainstream, one to showcase my art. I’m also busy with several books, mostly fiction, one non-fiction.
    What I would love to hear from you is how to get someone to take a chance on my writing, and secure well paying blog posts. Where do I fit in without a solid writers resume ? I have knowledge in many different fields and have many interests, but no real credentials.
    I may not be the best writer out there, but I am inspired, creative and willing to work to be one of the best….. after all, I have a race to run.

    Thank you for this opportunity,

    Tracey Williamson

    • Hi Tracey, do you publish posts on your blog that you can use in your freelance portfolio? That will get you one step further, and guest posting can help you strengthen your portfolio with posts on respected blogs, too.
      Your entry is in – good luck!

  47. Hi Sophie

    Thanks for your article. I’m very glad to have come across you in this quest for finding my passion.

    I’m a PhD student (in organisational behaviour) and also work as an organisational psychologist. I’m right at the beginning of this blogging journey. Why blogging? My main reason is that I want to be more creative and “do my own thing” and blogging seems a good avenue to do this. I love writing and reading and my key strengths are curiosity, love of learning and an appreciation of beauty – all characteristics which I think sit well with a blogging/writing/researching career.

    I’m also passionate about figure skating, positive psychology, food and health, and creativity. I see blogging as a way to bring together my passions. I am still to determine exactly how this will happen, but I have faith in a process of reflection, creation and having a go! I have gathered a small group of similarly neophyte blogging women and we meet monthly to support each other through this exciting process. If I was lucky enough to win, I would share anything I learned from you with them (in fact, I will share your blog with them).

    Thank you for your offer and good luck choosing your winners!
    Aylin

    • Your psychology experience should make you a valuable freelance blogger to a whole pile of lucrative markets, Aylin! Have you got a blog URL for me to check out, or are you not yet set up?
      Your entry’s in – good luck!

  48. By signing up to your newsletter somewhere I got the most useful information that I’ve ever received so far about where I could make money freelancing. You definitely have me hooked and gained my trust almost immediately. Thank you! I would be honored to learn more from you, either by winning or reading more from you here.
    Sarah xo @girlfriendshoes

  49. You had me at cake. Although I’m a successful print journalist (sorry) I would like to start earning some income from blogging. The posts I do on my own blog are the most fun part of my day (I hope none of my editors read this) and it would be nice to branch out from print a bit more. Despite knowing how magazines and newspapers work very well, this field is new to me so would love some one-on-one advice. Fingers crossed.

    • Print journalism experience is highly valued by a lot of potential freelance blogging clients, Helen – that puts you ahead of the crowd right away. All you need is the online moves to match! Your entry is in – good luck.

  50. Excellent post, Sophie. Although I may be outside of the time limit for the great offer mentioned at the end of your post, I’m going to comment anyway. I hope that you have continued success. If writing/blogging/motivating is your passion, then is sincerely tip my hat to you.
    I must admit I’m not that big on doing things I’m impassioned about for money, but hey somebody’s has got to do it, I might as well join the team.

    AG

    • Thanks, Aaron. I think if you love something and people will pay you to do it, that’s a much nicer life than doing something you *don’t* care about to get cash.

  51. Hear, hear on your blog launch, Sophie! Was really looking forward to that.

    I’ve been thoroughly following your work as you’re on my list of those no-nonsense successful writers/bloggers that I learn from.

    Great piece of advice in the above post, great tips to keep in mind and implement. It took me a while to understand how much I’m worth, and now I’m no longer afraid to ask $100 for a short post.

    Unfortunately, my writing is stalled for the moment as I’ve broken my right wrist two weeks before Xmas. Just got my cast removed and am gradually working on re-gaining my wrist mobility. I’m getting there but it’ll take a while. So, I’ve been taking advantage of this time to do a lot of reading, thinking of and planning my strategy change in 2013. Guest posting is high on my list this year.

    Wishing you every success with your blog!

    • Anca, I’m so sorry to hear that! I hope you’re recovering well. Have you considered using speech-to-text software so that you can carry on writing?

      It sounds like you don’t need my help right now, but if you have any questions later on, just drop me an email!

  52. What an exciting opportunity! I started off writing for HubPages (which I still do) and working for a copy writing site for little pay. I also took a course on Internet Marketing and started several websites. None of them have brought me any substantial amount of money. After reading so much about blogging from people like you, I decided to start a blog and am working on it day and night.
    My main problem is I just don’t know how to move forward from here. I’m trying different traffic methods and am getting a little more traffic, but nothing huge. I’m kind of lost at this point.
    I really want to make a decent living from this because it would solve so many of my problems. I really need to work from home and I also love writing and the whole Internet business idea. What I would treasure learning from you is how to turn my blog into a success…what I’m not doing right and where to go from here. Thanks for the opportunity to apply for this great opportunity. I’ve already learned a ton of useful information from you!

    • Hi Sheila, I’ve never tried HubPages but I hear they can be lucrative if they’re uniquely appealing. How did you get on with them?
      Your entry is in – good luck!

  53. I’m just starting a blog as I’m about to publish my first novel – I’ve been writing a blog for a big part of my life- comments on the passing cultural scene, plays, films, books. Only I called it a journal, or a day book . It’s about what’s going on in my head about my life. Now I’d like to polish up these notes and talk to other people. I’m an actress by profession so I have a certain expertise . I am determined to reset my life to writing and earning money from it , winning both creativity and control.m
    .

  54. Hi Sophie!
    Great blog here! Wonderful information, and very positive “tone”.
    I’m probably a day late and a dollar short again, but I’ll throw in my “2 things” anyway.

    1) Right now, I maintain a few of my own blogs, where I use Adsense for revenue (nano-pennies per click). I attempt to drive traffic to my sites via social networking sites, though that is only as good as the number of ‘connections’ I have, which is not all that high.
    2) If granted ‘face-time’ with you, I’d like to learn more about how I can broaden my online imprint and how to earn some of the numbers you talk about.

    Thanks!

    • Hi Charlie, monetizing with ads is rarely worth your time unless you’ve already secured a large audience. To earn real money without working overtime on your own blog, you need to find some freelance blogging clients! Your entry’s in – good luck.

  55. Hi, Sophie
    I think you write like an expert. There is a lot of wisdom in your words about how to be a successful blogger and how much money can a writer make in the blogosphere. There isn’t any doubt that in reality being a successful writer takes a steep learning curve, persistent, optimism and effort.
    At the moment, in my personal case I have an affiliate website to promote weight loss products, nutrition supplements and fitness. I’ve been trying to succeed to attract visitors, quality traffic to my website, but till now my efforts have not produced positive results. I’ve been writing blog post to attract visitors and promoting them through social media but with no significant outcomes.
    If I have the magnificent opportunity to have a chat with you I would like to learn how can I become a successful blogger who really knows how to get a lot of people reading my blogs, how to attract the reader’s attention, how to hook people with my posts and engage them until the very end of my writing. I want to leave my readers asking more, wanting to know more and on the expectation of following blogs. I would like to have a huge amount of readers and guide them to grab what’s in it for me in every blog written for me as a blogger.
    Many thanks
    Jesus

    • Hi Jesus, thanks! Have you tried writing blog posts as if they’re an email to a friend who’s asked for your advice, rather than writing “to attract visitors”? Sometimes, trying too hard to get everyone’s attention means that you end up with no attention at all.
      Your entry is in – good luck!

  57. Wow!
    Where am I? Well, the truth of the matter is that I had no idea you could make that kind of money writing blog posts. I write a lot, some articles, some essays, and fiction, but I have no idea how to make that kind of money per hour. I made almost $40K writing last year, but I worked a lot more hours than that.
    What do I want? I’d like to learn how to better build my own blog and then how to make $100 an hour writing blog posts.

  58. Hi,
    I’ve been freelance writing since 2010. I loved it when Merchant’s Circle was around. I work for Interact Media and Textbroker. I get good reviews and repeat business but if people are making $50 to $100 off my $4-$5 articles, no wonder they love me! Part of my problem is knowing what field to be claim authority. I am a wife, mother, ex teacher, writer, transcriber, social media doodler for my husband’s business, etc. I am a jack-of-all trades, master of none. My husband is self employed as a photographer and I’m scraping everything together that I can. Any help you can give me would be amazing! Thank you.

    • Hi DeAnne, you don’t necessarily need to pick a niche right now – often, your niches will find you once you start freelance blogging. Your entry is in – good luck!

  59. Hi Sophie,

    My path has woven along a crocked road, as artist, business owner, catalyst, marketing and small business consultant for numerous commercial and non-profit ventures. Carving a living while following my passions through changes in the economy over the past 60+ yrs, has been a welcome challenge to a creative, serial entrepreneur such as I. Making a living was never easy, but confident in my skills, secure that my talents would always find a market, I survived and thrived.

    Then a few years ago, life as I new it, as I viewed the security of love and family, was torn from under me. Packing what I could carry and stowing a few possessions, that would spark memories of friends and experience past, I took to the road. Vowing, to rediscover meaning to life and take stock in who I was and what would become of me. To chronicle my “Grand Adventure”, my experiences in finding my way back to being whole and productive, I took the pen name Harper and began to write in earnest. My journey, while difficult, lead me across vast landscapes and endless roads, till 18 months ago, I found myself in the mountains of Colorado. Some force yet unknown, had drawn me here to stay for a while. Many months later, my soul mate and I found each other and in the mountains I remain. (should you wish to learn more visit my blog http://www.re-romance.com )

    Here where clouds, mountains, forests and and sky dance together and intermingle, life is good. Magic has reentered my life and I am stronger now that that which sought to devour me. Except on all aspects financially. All funds and security that I had worked hard for, had been lost to me, and confidences in finding at job, at my age, in the location I know call home, was slowly eroding like the parched ground awaiting a firestorm. I am, like the landscape around me experiencing a financial drought. As a craftsman, an artist, a man of vision, a teller of tales, the value of communicating ones message has, in the past allowed me income. The only way forward is to once again be my own rainmaker.

    I find, as a wordsmith; the keyboard, the web and the world of social media, allow me an outlet and a marketplace for my skills. Time is indeed a valuable commodity, and something that I have much of. So I have used my time, to educate myself, reach out, hone new skills and learn methodologies second nature to those a fraction of my age. My own blog and interests have lead to a few paid blogs for others. That has opened a floodgate of potential, as a pathway toward financial security. And so, I find myself surfing the Internet to gain knowledge and truth of the industry, it potential and its realities for one such as I. During that search, I discovered you.

    And from you, master of wisdom that can help me secure a place on this path. I hope to be one of your chosen disciples.

    Thanks for the opportunity,
    Harper

  60. Hi!
    Wow, it would be such a dream come true to be paid for writing! To be a writer is my dream. I’ve been blogging, nothing really exciting, just basically my silly life, LOL, for a while now but would love the chance to learn how to hone my skills and get paid for it! Either way, winner or not, you’ve inspired me to keep working towards the dream!

    blessings,

  61. Hey Sophie

    I was on Danny’s webinar last night. It was great to hear your story. He also mentioned you were the driving force behind the webinar? If I got that right then thank you so much. I got so much out of it.

    I quit my job in Feb last year to work on a blog I’ve finally admitted I’m not all that passionate about. It was a great year in terms of learning and personal growth (I finally took the leap and joined Toastmasters and I’m loving it!), but it sucked from a work and finances point of view.

    Long-term my goal is to become a professional public speaker, but my goal for this year (and beyond…at least a ways) is to earn a sustainable income online through freelance writing.

    I’ve bought my new domain name and will be setting up my landing page (per Danny’s recommendation and your example) over the next couple of days.

    I also plan on redirecting my old blog to my new domain so that I don’t lose my tiny, but dedicated, following.

    I love writing, particularly quirky, tongue in cheek, humorous copy. For ages now I’ve been listening to everyone talk about how important it is to identify a niche and I’ve finally decided that’s it.

    I just know there are people out there who are after my style. People who aren’t gray and hate sleep-inducing content as much as I do.

    If I could spend an hour with you I’d pick your brain about the process you followed to get your blog up and running, how you go about finding freelance work, what your niche is.

    I’m normally pretty quick to unsubscribe as soon as I have the goods, but I’ve yet to bump you from my inbox which means you must be doing something right.

    I want to know more about that something! 😉

    • Hey Angela, glad you enjoyed the webinar. I wouldn’t say I was the driving force behind it – those are Danny’s ideas put together by his own hard work, I was just along for the ride! I’ve now signed up for extended training with him to keep my career moving forward.

      I enjoyed your blog, and I’m sure you’ll make a fantastic public speaker. I’m always filled with stage fright and tend not to put myself forward for public appearances!

      Your entry is in – good luck.

      • Thanks Sophie…holding thumbs. I’m something of an evangelist I know, but if you’re at all interested in ridding yourself of stage fright I highly recommend Toastmasters! 😉

  63. Great post! No one batts an eye when a rock star makes waaay over $100/hr. for their creativity. Let’s all strive to be rock star writers and make the wage we deserve for our creativity. Thanks!

  64. Right now, I’m at the crossroad with my site, Vallano Media. I’ve been blogging for about two years now and I’m still at a slow growth stage with my site. I’m also a freelance writer for the Huntsville Item, a daily newspaper here in Huntsville, TX.

    I want to gain the marketing and sales approach of gaining freelancing projects and blogging assignments at a point of where those are my primary base income.

    • Your news reporting and blogging experience should give you a good portfolio – what marketing tactics have you tried so far? Your entry’s in – good luck!

  65. Hello Sophie,
    You asked for complete honesty, here it is. I have a passion for helping others. I’m trying to support that passion with my writing and blogging skills. Finding legitimate work is a daunting process and can be very frustrating.
    I’m a survivor, cancer, domestic violence, and a few other life-altering experiences. I am an expert in the field of getting back up when life knocks you down and the traits that all survivors have that keeps a smile in their hearts. Helping others who have been through what I have is where I found my passion and I believe I can take my love of writing to support my passion.
    Although I still have a smile in my heart everyday it would be so much bigger if I had less on my worry plate in this area. How do weed out the good from the bad in online work? Where do you begin?

  66. Hello Sophie,
    What an exciting opportunity! I am currently writing for AskMissA.com and freelancing through Demand Studios. I am also looking to transfer my blog to WordPress. Writing is my dream and I continue to blindly move forward hoping it will one day pay off!
    I would love advice from you on how to make my writing career more lucrative, as well as having a degree of control.
    Thanks for your inspiration. I hope to be one of your chosen!
    Ashley

  67. Hello Sophie,

    First of all. thanks to you and to all the freelance bloggers who are spreading the word and forming a community of freelance blog writers. Its always great to have a helping hand and being part of a group where you feel home.

    I am a 23 year old budding blogger who writes about those precious moments he experiences in his life. I never took blogging seriously (atleast as a job) till I stumbled upon on the blogs about freelance writing. I am at a critical crossroad in my career looking for a change and freelance blogging seems to be my natural choice.

    After some search on internet I have stumbled upon your post and it is exciting for the prospectus of having a personal call with you and take your advice on how to start and establish myself. It would be a tripping point in my just started (or permit me to say, about to start) freelance writing career.

    Having said that, for all those who get selected, I request you to blog your experience…might be one of your earliest freelance blogging article… 🙂

    and If I am one of the luckiest…expect to hear from me….:)

  68. I’m really itching to get into the freelance blogging world but I’m not really sure where to start. I have built up a couple of blogs that have done very well and I enjoy writing for them but I want to expand my reach and my bank account and write for others too. I’m just not sure where to start. Help!

    • Hi Jeremy, you’re not alone! I hear from a ton of keen bloggers who just need to learn the business side of freelancing for clients, and I’ll definitely be covering that in great detail on this blog. Your entry’s in – good luck!

    • Hey Alex, you can learn a lot from free resources like this blog and other websites – start reading and make notes of the most useful tips you find. You’ll need to build up a portfolio of your best blogging work to show to potential clients, and then get marketing! 🙂
      Your entry’s in – good luck.

  71. By the way, I am only making $10-$20 an hour writing thus far, so I have a long way to go to attain the kind of deniro you’re referencing! You betcha I’m getting that list of yours, too ;0)

  72. Your posts always scare and inspire me at the same time. I agree with you on learning the craft and, as a freelance writer with less than a year of experience out there on my own, I have been fully immersed in learning the craft. I’ll be honest with you, with my background of more than a decade in marketing and PR, I thought it would be easier to get clients and make a killing but there is SO MUCH TO LEARN and SO MUCH TO THINK ABOUT.

    I come from a school of business writing that pre-dates blogs and SEO but I do offer these services and have been absorbing everything I can to learn as much as I can. I have two issues that I could use your help with:

    1). I am, by nature, a very informal, comedic writer and this comes out naturally when I write for myself. I use to operate a comedy blog that is now defunct as I focus my efforts on building my business and working on my novel (coming sometime before the end of my life, I hope). However, I am trying so hard to impress blogging clients and curb the inappropriate humor that I may be coming off too stiff.

    2). Getting clients is also a challenge when you are “unproven.” I have used your awesome lists of blogging clients who pay and many other resources but I am spending way more time going after clients than writing for them. I guess this is part of starting out?

    Thanks again for always sharing so much helpful information and inspiration! I look forward to learning so much more from you.

    • That’s my mission, Kimberly: to “scare and inspire” you into becoming a successful freelance blogger! I know what you mean about there being so much to learn and do, but you don’t need to absorb every word on every blog to succeed – just filter out the advice that really matters and discard the rest.
      Your entry’s in – good luck!

  73. I’ve written about business, health, anything under the sun. I find happiness reading success stories because I believe, someday, I will write my own. But to be honest, I’m still struggling to be like Carol, Oni and you. So sad! 🙁

    • Thanks for taking the time to comment, Jeulyanna! I’d love to hear more about your blogging experience and what you’re doing to get ahead. Your entry’s in – good luck.

  75. I once made $250 for a 200-word article. You can make what you deserve if you believe in yourself and promote your skills well.

  76. Hello Sophie,

    1) Right now, I’d have to say I’m in a slow transitional period with writing, overall. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications, about nine months of experience in contributing unpaid, volunteer articles to news and commentary blog sites, and overall real writing experience that goes back about three years. I recently got my foot in the door as a freelance contract writer for a local newspaper, but the rates are comparable to those you first named in your post. I’ve looked for ANY career with established companies and organizations that is even remotely related to my degree, with few worthwhile leads. They all want years of paid writing or blogging experience that I don’t yet have. It seems that in the current economic landscape that freelance is the way to go, but I still feel aimless in my pursuit of clients that will provide me with a comfortable living and the courage to walk away from my unrelated dead-end day job. I’m basically in the rut stage as a writer/blogger: I need more time than my job allows, but enough income to justify walking away from that job.

    2) From my session with you, I would like to learn how I can gain the confidence, even over time, to launch myself out there in a big way. I want to learn about reliable, verifiable, and secure methods and clients that can help me earn a comfortable living for myself and my family, as a blogger (especially on the topics of current events, politics, and culture).

    Thank you for your time, your post, and this opportunity.

    • Hi Shawn, with your communication qualification I’m sure we can find you some good freelance blogging clients! You can build a strong portfolio based on what you’ve done so far. The rest is just a matter of marketing to the right people.
      Your entry’s in – good luck!

  77. Thanks for the post, Sophie!
    I am too new to opt for the sessions; all I have are ideas that I want to eventually share with others. However, I still wanted to tell you how much I appreciated your straightforward post. This kind of information seems hard to find; people don’t like to talk about how much they make. Your article has given me confidence to pursue this interest with greater seriousness.
    Thanks again and have a great year!

    • Thanks Robyn, I’m glad you found it helpful. I’ve often found that people are happy to tell you how much money they make, but not exactly *how* they make it. Best wishes for your success as a freelance blogger!

  78. “Any relevant specialist knowledge or experience you have is valuable to the people doing the hiring. Price your work according to the value you bring to each project, and never be afraid to ask for what you’re worth.” ~

    A mirror-worthy quote, no matter *what* you’re doing for money – blogging, sewing, accounting, legal research…
    Bookmarked, subscribed, and “Pleased-ta-meetchya, Sophie” – via Carol Tice. 🙂

    • Yep, like J-Ryze said ^^up there somewhere^^, people make money from all kinds of awesome once they’ve established their value to the outside world.
      Welcome aboard, Karen!

  79. This is a great post. I have heard of bloggers making $100 a post an more yet I have been working as a freelance blogger for two years now and I am no where near that rate. What I would like to learn is where do you find the clients that are willing to pay this type of money. As a mom of three small children I could definitely benefit from working 20 hours a week instead of 50+.

  80. Okay folks, the contest to win a freelance blogger mentoring session is now CLOSED and I’ll be choosing the winners soon.

    If you want to talk to me about anything in this post, you can still leave a comment but you won’t be entered into the contest. Check this out if you want to get a mentoring session of your own!

  81. The winners of a free mentoring session are:
    Glori Surban (who also wins Tom Ewer’s ebook, Successful Freelance Writing Online)
    Lisa Baker
    Kimberly Jones

    Congratulations, winners! I’ll be emailing you soon to get your freelance blogger mentoring sessions booked.

    For everyone who didn’t win, I’ve organised this. You should check it out.

    Feel free to leave a comment, even though the contest’s closed. I’m still reading them!

  82. Hi Sophie,
    I’m so excited to have found this site and cannot wait to hear and read all your amazing tips. I co-author a blog with my sister, which we started only just a year ago. I’m loving to write and trying to get better at photography, all the while working in a job I don’t like and studying a degree I don’t know what I’m going to do with when I finish. I think about our blog morning, noon and night. Sometimes I can’t get to sleep because I have so many great ideas. Thank you so much for sharing your wisdom. I’m totally now like your biggest fan! 🙂

  83. Hi Sophie,

    I’ve enjoyed reading all the posts, and so far, can relate to many of them. I am not a blogger but want to learn how to clearly express the issues I am most passionate about. You can say that I haven’t started blogging because I’ve been fighting the idea itself. “Why blog?” I know very little about blogging but am anxious to learn. If I am to enroll in your course my goals would be to learn how to manage a blog and attract clients.

    • Hi Anne, thanks for taking the time to comment. Your question “Why blog?” is a good one, and if you’re feeling uncertain of the answer then you need to look inside yourself for it. What’s your ultimate reason for wanting to blog? Whatever it is, your reason is the basis for your business, so it’s hard to make progress before you find that answer.

  84. Dear sophia,

    It looks very fake to get this rate per hour in freelace writing. The fact of the mater is companies find outsourcing a way to cut the cost at the same time get quality work. I have been writing since last two years in odesk.com. However, i never find more than 4 dollar for 500+ words article. How is that possible than someone would give me 100 dollars (even 50 dollars) per hour for writing an article?

    • Hi Ahsan, the simple answer is that bloggers who earn $100+ per hour don’t find all their clients via that type of website. Most people advertising on oDesk, Craigslist etc. are looking for *cheap* bloggers instead of good bloggers.

      • I’m still finding, Sophie, that most of your listings for $50+ jobs are in the category of “specialist” blogs in which you really have to have knowledge and background.

        • Or *research* and *interview*. 😉 You don’t have to have expert knowledge of anything but blogging, if you use expert sources for your data and quotes.

          • That’s kind of what I was saying. If you know nothing about a topic, research can take days, and interviews take a while to set up. I prefer to start writing about those things that I already know something about or have experience in so I’m not spending lots of time researching the basics of something you’re getting paid to know about.

  85. Congrats on the launch of your blog Sophie. I’m looking forward to reading some great posts. I always tell writers that they can make more. And I’m looking forward to checking out your list of paying guest blog spots – to see if it is the same as mine. I had a list put together with the thought of publishing it or using it as a giveaway on my own blog, too! You beat me to it! 🙂

    • Thanks Danielle – and if you find a high-paying blog that isn’t on my list, let me know! I’m putting the 2013 edition together over the next couple of months.

      • So refreshing to read your comments, Sophie. I’m relatively new to the concept of getting paid to blog, so your insights and honesty are refreshing. I was not having much success, so I stopped writing to read everything I could on writing and blogging. In the process, I discovered Carol Tice, Jon Morrow, Linda Formicelli, and you, among others. All have helped me tremendously, but now it is time to get back to some serious writing. And…I want to get paid for it. So I will be following you closely to learn all that I can to achieve my blogging and writing goals. Thank you so much for being here, and for sharing your expertise so generously.

  86. Hey Sophie!

    I honestly say that this is what I want to achieve for myself as well. I’ve recently started my own blog about my own road to make money online (a couple of days to be exact) and I have to say that most of the information out there really is mindblowing.

    This post on the other hand, was well written, easy on the eyes and a lot of content to go along with it. I’m using you and Tom Ewer as my rolemodels and truely believe i’m able to accomplish what you two have as long as i keep on being persistent and dedicated to my goal, being a good freelance writer.

    Now the only thing I need is that first freelance gig!

    I’ll keep my eye on you 😉

    Yannick

  87. This is really great Sophie! I am just thinking about blogging and have no idea where to start! I just know I love to write and I feel that I need to do this!

    Where do I start?

    Thanks…wish I had seen this earlier to be in for the cake!!!

    • Hi Jane, if you’re totally new to blogging then I’d start by reading a bit about the differences between blogging and other forms of writing. After that, get yourself a free WordPress.com blog and practise!

  88. Well hello Sophie Lizard!!!
    I have been blog hopping this evening and I discovered your online home. I have just signed up for your free ebook which sounds amazing.

    I am currently looking at different ways to make money so that I can retire from the real world job.

    I have done writing in the past but I could never get past the content mill or $10 per article page. I realise that basically if you hang around the places where people are used to paying $2 – $10 per article, there is no way they are gonna pay more.

    Time to find the right sort of people who value the content at a higher level / rate etc.

    Anyway – my aim for the month of April is to get at least one freelancing gig that pays $50. Wish me luck on my journey.

    I look forward to reading more and learning more from a fellow female Brit. 🙂

    • Hi! Just took a look at your blog – you’re ready. Open your copy of the Ultimate List of Better-Paid Blogging Gigs, pick your favourites, and start pitching them ideas. You don’t need luck to get there, you just need action in the right direction. 🙂

  89. Hi Sophie,

    I just found you online today and was blown away by your “Ultimate List.” As a Professional Web Copywriter I have went after clients who owned Websites; yet needed better sales copy to improve their conversions.

    Therefore, I considered a “blog” as a tool one used to play a “supportive” role to their main Sales Website. I see the error in this perspective.

    The main reason I chose copy writing to start with was – that I loved to write. The few blogs that I did “follow” were in that field. With the economy in the state it is in “outsourcing” has hit Web Copy writers hard.

    I have discovered recently that I would rather take the 500-word $100.00 Content Writing job (for the quick turnover) as opposed to chasing down the $750.00 per Sales Page clients.

    This makes “freelance blogging” take on a completely new level of appeal to me. I would have to thank you for it…and so I do so now. The sheer number of comments you have received from your first post tells the tale of just how much success one may achieve in this venue.

    I bet you get to “pick and choose” from a screen-full of job offers every day.

    Very Best Regards,

    Stephen Monday

    • Hi, Stephen!

      Thanks for stopping by! When I first went freelance, I wasn’t sure where to start either. I knew I loved writing and that I was good at it, but I wasn’t sure what people would be willing to pay for.

      I, like you, started out copywriting.

      But, like you, discovered the joys of freelance blogging. 🙂

      So glad you found BAFB and Sophie’s Ultimate List!

    • Start with what you know. Try making a list of the jobs you’ve had, your hobbies, your beliefs, your favorite subjects in school, moments that changed your life, your favorite stores, your favorite magazines…

      Then try to find common themes–repeating ideas–in your list. Those are your areas of expertise. 🙂

      Good luck!

  92. I’m so sad that I read this now, I missed such a great chance to talk with an expert. However, I really appreciate what you write about how we should determine our post value and how to earn more money within less hours. Thanks for sharing Sophie.

  93. I remember when I first started a few years ago – boy did I have several rude awakenings! Wish I would have had a post like this back then to let me know what the possibilities were 🙂

    • Ha! I know, right? I used to think low pay was just the way things worked – now I know better, I wish I could go back and tell myself!

  94. hi sophie i want to become an article writer and a blog writer. But i’ve heard of copyscape so how do you write article on varying subjects without picking up stuff from the net. and if you pick up stuff from the net they wont pass copyscape. so how do they do it?

    • There’s a difference between copying & pasting text from somewhere on the internet into your article [that’s called plagiarism & won’t pass Copyscape] and *reading* text on the internet to give you ideas and information you then write up in your own words [that’s called research and the article will pass Copyscape].

      Copyscape simply compares your writing to other pages on the web. If it finds a match, then you’ve used the exact same words as someone else. All you have to do is write in your own words and you’ll be fine.

  96. I’m about halfway through “Eat, Pray, Love” by Elizabeth Gilbert. If you’re like everyone else I’ve talked too, they’ve seen the movie or read the book — been there, done that. If you’re like me, and never heard of it, it’s about a post-divorcee, 30-something, all-to-normal gal searching for the elusive “self.” Perfect reading, as I’m two doors over going through the same thing, with kids and no decent prospects for the well-paid, what-I-used-to-do-job. Truthfully, I’m sitting in a hotel room on a non-kiddo, mini vacation with my once-in-a while lover who is in town. While this makes some of my mommy friends disproportionately envious, I’m quick to point out that everyone has something to be envied (such as no visitation schedules and a regular paycheck), and everyone has something to offer. Thus, this is my blogging compass, write about what you know.

    I have writing experience, technical and grant writing, non-internet marketing expertise, and a fancy degree that says I can run a business. I am told by other moms I am “refreshingly real” and am fairly confident I can cultivate a pithy, light-hearted voice. What I think I need is knowledge of the technical aspects of how to find blog work and how to fulfill other expectations of a top-notch blogger (ie. website, Twitter, Pintrest, etc.).

    I’m quick to learn but realize there may be quite a bit to do to get set up. Any thought on what you may be able to provide would be welcome.

    Thanks — Cherie

    • Hi Cherie, no problem!

      Start by reading through the Ultimate List of Better-Paid Blogging Gigs and check out some of the contributor guidelines at blogs you might like to write for. Read about “how to blog” on sites like Copyblogger, Problogger and Boost Blog Traffic, and “how to freelance” here or at Make A Living Writing, The Renegade Writer, Freelance Switch and Leaving Work Behind.

      That’s all you really need to make a start. If you get stuck, join one of our live mentoring sessions online and we’ll get you moving again in no time. 🙂

  98. hi sophie.
    a very good evening, or whatever it is in you timezone, to you.
    at the outset, let me entertain this opportunity to be the millionth one to tell you two things, you’ve written an awesome post and that you are stunningly beautiful.
    if you’re reading it, first of all, let me introduce myself, i am shubham from india, a land of god and garbage, maybe you’ve heard of it. i am doing engineering and i am sure i have no interest left in it anymore, thanks to my typical university. so, to keep my stomach full, i am searching for a source that pays me well and also fulfills my creative and social interests. up untill now, and you ended my search. right now, this is exactly what i wanna do and i see it impossible without your advices and help. although this post on your blog was extremely important, yet i cannot make a head and tail of how to start.
    i have a blog sophie, if you have to time to check it out.
    http://www.turbothinker.blogspot.com
    but i do not see it can show me dollars.
    please tell me how can i start freelancing, blogging, please send me the links where i can read more.
    bye for now, waiting desperately for your reply 🙂

  99. Hey, there.

    I just found out about this little niche of freelancers and I feel like that little bee girl in the Blind Melon video. Still, I’m looking through the gate, a bit bewildered, but still hopeful and needing to process that I could actually do something with my gift of writing whilst being a stay at home, homeschooling mom.

    At any rate, I dig your hair. I like your writing style. And, if you ever feel up to mentoring someone else I’d certainly be a thankful candidate. I appreciate what I’ve learned so far from your site, though. So, no worries.

  100. Hi Sophie. I know alot of people have commented here and I am sure I wont be among the lucky winners but How do I start getting to write blog posts for people. I feel like I have a lot to talk about, I speak French, Arabic and English as I am in the US for my masters. Hlep if you can

    blessings

  101. Several great points were provided in this article. However, I feel that blogging should be done on a topic you love and one which you wouldn’t care if you didn’t make much money. If you are consistent in posting high quality topics which you are passionate about, the money will come. I’m personally making my own site about great reasons to go vegetarian! Feel free to check it out at http://LiveMeatFree.­com or my blog at http://Blog.LiveMeat­Free.com

  102. Hi Sophie,

    How are bloggers primarily making money? Is it possible to make a living solely writing guest posts on other people’s blogs? Do you also need a professional blog that you’re contributing to on a regular basis? Do you advise NOT leaving money on the table and doing a little bit of both? Which one generates more income in fewer hours?

    Any feedback, information, or advice would be greatly appreciated!

    • Hi Yvette, good question! I make most of my income from regular gigs, writing at least one post per week, for businesses with blogs. Once you have ongoing contracts like that, you don’t have to spend quite so much time marketing, so you can earn more in fewer hours. Paid guest posting is a good way to boost your income at the same time as building your professional reputation, but even if you devote a *lot* of time to the guest post pitching process it’s unlikely to earn you a full-time living. I recommend doing a bit of both!

  103. Hi Sophie,

    What is the income range of a guest blogger? Is it poverty level (i.e. $10K)? Is it slightly better (i.e. $15K – $20K)? Or can you at least make a “livable” salary (i.e. $25K – $30K)?

    If owning a professional blog is more profitable, how much can you potentially earn with your own site?

    Any feedback, insight, or information would be greatly appreciated!

    Sincerely,

    Yvette Burtley

    • It’s not really something you can run numbers for (at least, not with any accuracy). So much depends on your ability to get assigned paid guest posts, and on how many of them you do per year. With rates varying between a token few bucks and a professional $200+ per post, you *could* potentially make a livable salary but you’d have to be a researching-and-pitching machine to get there.

      Owning a blog is not very profitable at all for most people who try to monetise it, but it can bring in a more-than-livable salary if you get it right. Stuff like ad income won’t pay the bills all by itself unless you have epic levels of traffic. But if you sell your own products/services through your blog, and you’ve attracted an audience of people who want exactly that type of product or service, you can start to build a stream of income. Potential earnings: anything from zero to $100,000+.

      If you want to make money blogging, the two most viable routes are (1) become a freelance blogger for businesses that want regular blog posts at least once per week, or (2) create products to sell via your own blog. Both of those take time and effort, but the return on your investment is likely to be higher.

      Hope that helps!

  104. Dear Sophie
    I just found you through Owner Magazine after reading Chris Brogan’s newsletter about folks not knowing he publishes it! I did not! (Rap her on the knuckles please)

    I am starting out and so everything I read is like gold to me. Thanks for all this free stuff which I am going to work through diligently tonight. My delay has been that I have not been able to decide on a business name but now I am leaning strongly towards using my very own name. I know there are pros and cons but how much longer can I have this debate with myself?

    I know the contest is closed but I really just wanted to give you a very big THANK YOU…and say that I want cake…and yes, I want to eat it too!
    Best Regards
    Irene Couzyn Haas

    • Hi Irene, welcome to Be a Freelance Blogger! Don’t let the business-naming issue slow you down — go with your own name and you’ll never have to spend another moment thinking about it. 😉

  105. I rarely leave a response, however I browsed a few comments on The Surprising Truth About How Much Money You Can
    Make as a Freelance Blogger!. I do have 2 questions for you if it’s allright.
    Could it be simply me or does it appear like some of the comments come across like they are coming from brain
    dead individuals? 😛 And, if you are posting on additional online sites, I’d like to keep up with anything fresh you have to post.
    Could you make a list of the complete urls of your social pages like your Facebook
    page, twitter feed, or linkedin profile?

    • lol what? Are you suggesting we have a zombie invasion on our hands in the comments section of BAFB?

      As for the contact information — you can find it on the Contact page. But I’m mainly saying that for the benefit of anyone else who reads this and would like to know. I have a feeling you’re probably a spambot of some kind (which is why I removed the link to your website from your post).

      Anyway, you gave me a chuckle. 🙂

      • Ha! Updating the spam filter now. [P.S. I also just deleted a comment left by “Herpes Cure Kaspersky Anti Virus”, which is possibly the funniest spammer name I’ve ever seen.]

  107. Hi I have just signed up with blogspot. I really want to start my own blog for fun and eventually make a living from it! I was just wondering how you started your own blog – do you think it is best to start a blog on a website or develop your own website?
    I have began one on blogspot but dont actually know if it is a good move or not.
    I am so new to all this. I am pretty confused lol.
    Thank you!

    • I started with WordPress.com until I’d learned the basics, then got my own site. Gotta admit I don’t know much about Blogspot but if you’re doing it for fun and practice, the platform isn’t so important — hope you have a great time building your first blog!

  109. When you say “”Price your work according to the value you bring to each project, and never be afraid to ask for what you’re worth.” I couldn’t agree more. Most of us are afraid we won’t get the job if we quote on the higher side. Although I am a newbie, I always present myself confidently while speaking to clients and as a result I get the fee I ask for, with very little negotiation. Thanks for this post, very entertaining and educational. Loved reading it. May your tribe increase! 🙂

  110. I really happy with this ideas and i want to make money with blog too but i really don’t know the ways how to do with it. Thanks for this post!

  111. I looking at the link you posted for the free book, is the book for people only targeting blog gigs? I’m trying to build up a clientele and not wanting to limit it to the blog world, in fact I prefer more direct marketing materials (campaigns, slogans, tag lines etc.) . You know using a few words to say a lot 🙂

    Anyway, I’m in no position to spend money without good reason and hesitate to buy it right now unless it’s up my alley. Do you think it’s worth it for me to get?

    I do have experience, but not in the freelance department. I’m struggling to find clients and I think it’s because I’m kind of overwhelmed right now…..help?:)

    Would love your feedback, and anyone else that may have some tips /advice for me.

    Thank you all in advance!

    • Hi Shireen, if you mean Tom Ewer’s book, that’s available as part of his Paid To Blog training and I think at the moment the price is $29. It covers freelance writing online as a whole, with a focus on freelance blogging.

      If you mean my book of blogs that pay, that’s free and you can get it here: http://beafreelanceblogger.com/betterpaidbloglist — this one is completely focused on freelance blogging and online magazine writing.

      For more info about writing marketing materials, check out copyblogger.com and harrisonamy.com. 🙂

  113. Hello Sophie: You have a great article – and I’m excited about starting a blog – and maybe receiving some help. I am a retired educator of 41 years. However, my passion is in the alternative health field. I was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease in 1997 – and given 18 months to live. I left traditional medicine and studied alternative medicine — and now, 17 years later, I am still alive and living a fairly normal life. My blog would deal with my extensive list of personal experience with a multitude of vitamins, essential oils, homeopathic solutions and alternative therapies. The idea would be to communicate what worked, and didn’t work – for me — to manage, not cure, this terrible disease. Many of the areas cover more common physical problems ie. fatigue, digestion, and constipation.
    I am excited to hear from you. dave

    • Hi Dave! Your background sounds fascinating — and definitely worth blogging about. 🙂

      Will you sell your writing services as a freelancer, or simply start your own blog on the topic? Either way, head over to the BAFB Community forum and tell us more about it. We’ll all offer whatever advice and support we can!

  114. Loved your post and would love to get in contact with you. As you are a freelance expert, I would like to ask you just a few questions! Are you interested in connecting?

  115. Hi Sophie,

    I have a confession to make. After almost 2 years of working as freelance writer, that’s an insane long time, I never considered to take my work seriously and give it the real value it deserves.

    Most recently I started giving the pay rates a real search, going through blogs run by Carrie Smith (really grateful for her advice), Carol Tice ( I have signed up for Audit the Blast-Off class), Tom Ewer & yours. I touched up John Morrow’s blog as well and I am seriously considering taking up a copywriting course but I haven’t yet signed up (simply because I can’t afford it right now). It was literally an eye opener as to how much people are earning from writing. It wasn’t even in my wildest imagination.

    I never asked for more until only recently (which is still not close to the lowest tier of the pyramid) when I read your book “The Ultimate List of Better-Paid Blogging Gigs”. I struggled with the idea of whether my work is actually worth the dollar asked ( Carrie’s advice had been encouraging).

    I had been considering to develop my own blog that showcases my writing skills and have publications under my name, but let me do another confession here, that it’s kinda getting overwhelming and I need a clear action plan. I seriously am after a step by step guide sort of advice that can give me the confidence and help me shoot like I have never before. I want to save my time since indulging in much research like this keeps me engaged for long enough and I don’t want my clients to suffer because of this.

    I am definitely touching base with the blogging gigs you mentioned in your book.

    Thanks for being a great help,
    Sabita

    • My advice is to forget about starting your own blog, at least for the moment. It takes up a lot of time and energy in exchange for only a small reward. Instead, have posts published on other blogs (like those in the Ultimate List) and then use an online portfolio to showcase them.

      Carol’s Blast-Off class will give you a pretty good understanding of the possibilities for your career. And for step-by-step guides to freelance blogging, check out this page.

      • Thanks for you word Sophie. I am looking at the sites to see what I can hit.

        Regards,
        Sabita

  116. Great post, Sophie. This is informative. $100 per post or per hour is easy to remember. I’ve given up a well-paying job, to start my own blog. Been at it for only about a month, getting it up, fixing bugs, creating contents, learning about photography and photo-editing. Gosh, I spent more than 16 hours daily, way longer than the time spent in my full-day job. There’s a long to-do list waiting for me to execute. But I’m enjoying every moment of it. Because I’m passionate about the topic. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this can bring in the bacon.

      • There may be some, but it’s still very, very difficult to get that rate for a short blog post. Most are still paying maybe $35 or so. There are many that actually pay $10 and many writers are accepting it. It’s hard to break in to the big leagues here.

        • I actually just published an article on how to pre-disqualify the real skinflints: http://writersweekly.com/this_weeks_article/008851_11072014.html. When you’re just starting out, more important than getting the highest-paying jobs is getting clips that will make a good impression on the “next level” of potential clients (and by the way, that includes businesses who use blogs/social media in their marketing plans, which can pay at surprisingly high rates compared to the average “e-article publishing only” business). If the site that offers you $20 is respected as a reliable source and includes good expert contributors, it can be a good starting point. At least as important: does it have high standards on what it accepts, as opposed to a site that will take virtually anything written in recognizable English?

          The main problem is not so much that freelance bloggers are willing to write for $10, but that there are so many just-barely-writers who consider that adequate heights to aspire to–and never bother learning to turn out anything that’s WORTH more than $10.

          (P. S. Review the BAFB July 5 post, http://beafreelanceblogger.com/content-mill-lessons/, on how starting at the “cheap end” does sometimes provide a viable launching point for a real full-time career.)

          • Nice overview of the lowball market, Katherine! Yep, when you’re getting your first few posts published, the portfolio objective is top priority. No point writing quick posts about discount vouchers or pest control on an ad revenue site if what you really want are longform blogging gigs with interior design companies. 😉

  118. Hello Sophie!

    I enjoyed reading your post. I am a fan of Tom Ewers blog (LWB) as well. It was his blog posts and emails that finally encouraged me to begin my own blog. When I read your posts I can’t help but feel your style of writing is very similar to his.

    I chose a topic that, although there is a substantial market, it is an under utilized topic. I have a few ideas on the direction I would like to take my blog, and I would love to write my own ebook. I am just not sure how successful it could be for my chosen area of expertise. I may be on my way to expanding my horizons to food and beverage in its entirety I.e culinary, management training, food safety, bar-tending etc.

  119. This is the fantastic post that I needed. I have been working as a freelancer for a while. I have had some success with clients who saw my own blog and hired me. Good, pretty well known clients, but I have a huge problem with charging enough. I started out on content mills, horrible. Now, I do not do that anymore, but still have a hard time charging for my value. I often feel guilty or get nervous that may work is not good enough, though I always have great reviews.
    Something that I have noticed about not charging enough is that it sucks the creativity out of me and makes me feel resentful, even though I know it’s my own fault. Being brutally honest, because I know I am not the only one who has shared this struggle.
    Thank you so much for all your posts and words of wisdom Sophie! We appreciate you!

    • This is a difficult issue, one that’s not so black and white as may be thought. One new client said to me, “I can get … on oDesk.” That’s one challenge these days especially, when there’s so much competition on these mills who’ll work for less just to get work. And more and more people are signing up for these mills because of the job situation.

      So it really does depend on your business. If you’re offering a service that’s considered “high level” with not a lot of competition. But other services, like writing and editing … it really depends on how good your marketing is. It’s important to consider your worth — but in economics, your worth is pretty much what your market is willing to pay.

  120. When I consider how much to charge, I also consider how many sources I will have to interview. My thinking is that this adds on to the time I need for the project. Does this make sense? Do you consider this when quoting a price?
    Also, if you are expected to research multiple sources online, that adds time. So, again do you factor this in when quoting a price?

  121. Hi Sophie,

    This is really informative & encouraging advice. I look forward to studying your teachings (putting them into action) and some day, meeting you.

    Blessed Be,

    Wen Akeem

  122. Hi Sophie! Great post as always–I’m glad I discovered you and your blog. I do appreciate that your posts are short and to the point –and usually funny!
    I am researching some blogs to pitch or post to (a few from the 2014 free list you offered) and never having blogged, it is a bit nerve wracking to think of how much I can realistically expect to be paid. I guess from reading this post I liked how you suggested giving a range and as a newcomer, I think I’d go with $75-$150 as well because that could include the research aspect that Larry (post above) mentioned. What a great point to be reminded about. How does it look to a potential client that I took the time to research my subject? I would hope it looks professional and worth a decent rate. If that client didn’t think so, I guess I would move on until I found the right fit.
    Any thoughts on your end?
    –Maureen

  123. I am curious about these gigs where you write, i.e. a new blog post for a business every month. Do you choose the topic or does the business owner? I am thinking that after a while it will be hard to come up with new topics.

  124. the post is 2 years old that been send by newsletter today:) is the situation still the same?nothing changed?:)

    • I think things *have* changed quite a bit over the past 2 years, and right now I’m planning an update to this post based on new research. (Sneak preview: ask for more money, because rates and article lengths have both increased!)

  125. Gah! Two years and six months too late! Ah well.

    Thanks for writin’ this (and the various other articles I’m reading in other tabs). I’m primarily a fiction (ebook) writer, but being flat broke and couch hopping doesn’t exactly give me the cash I need for book covers. Figured since I’ve been into gaming of all types (RPGs, trading card games, and video/pc games) for years, I’d try my hand at blogging a bit to get a bit of spending money since my Patreon is currently empty of backers. Your articles are giving me a pretty good idea of how to get started.

    Now, I’m off to the rest of the free articles!

  126. You’re wonderful for sharing such an abundance of helpful information and the encouragement many of us writers need. I am just beginning my writing career and sometimes I question why I would torture myself…but, in reality, there is nothing else I would rather do.

    Thanks again for creating such a lovely community for us to all learn from one another.
    Cheers–Xx
    Paige

  127. This made me feel better.

    I just had an enthusiastic client suddenly disappear off the radar after I quoted a rate of £50 per blog post.

    I’ve compared my rates to other copywriters/bloggers and considering my expertise on the topic and related experience, it seemed reasonable.

    I’m gutted I won’t be getting the job, but reading this helped a little. I’m not going to undervalue myself.

    Now to look for someone new!

  128. Hi
    Sophie
    i am really inspired from ur writings .i just want to develop my skill .i m new in this field and have no idea.
    Monalisa Gogoi

  129. You, ma’am, are wonderful. I’ve been bouncing around the internet for months, mostly stalking you, of course, and Carol Tice.

    In a nutshell, I work at a job that I’m about an inch away from despising and I’m in almost $70K in debt; most of which are school loans for a degree that I’m not even using.

    My writing is, quite literally, the only thing I have confidence in. I spend my days at my current job correcting corporate emails, client correspondence and creating training materials; please note that none of these things are in my “official” job title – I’m actually a purchasing agent.

    These are all of the things that brought me to you; I’m in desperate need of a change – a great one. However, I’m having some difficulty getting my feet off the ground; I have no idea where to start. I’ve read tons of articles on beginning a freelance career but I feel like some of the advice is just running me in circles.

    • OK, let’s simplify: To begin, stop reading articles about how to begin and choose one thing to do that will officially make it reality.

      My suggestion is to download the Ultimate List of Better-Paid Blogging Gigs [if you don’t have a copy yet, get one at http://beafreelanceblogger.com/betterpaidbloglist ] and look through it for a publication you feel you could maybe write a blog post for. Then push the “maybe” out of your mind, follow the publication’s submission guidelines, and send them your idea for a post!

      You can catch up on the details of how to set up a self-employed business later, as long as you don’t leave it *too* late. But the first step is to break out of your reading and get into attempting actual pitches for paid work. 🙂

  130. Oh too bad I missed this one! I love your way of encouragement Sophie and I always read your Emails, even if I’m not quite sure yet how freelancing without experience going to get me money or how to get a client and how to make it work… It’s just still so blurry to me and as much as I am excited for the idea of making blog posts and be a freelancer, I’m still just lost and have no idea how to begin.

  131. I don’t know what to do or where to go. I have an amazing skill as a writer, I take it very seriously, and have done it with no income for years just to be able to do something that I know I can to do. I have a bit of a problem expressing myself with others verbally and for this reason I developed my writing skills. By writing I could do what I usually had trouble doing with others directly, I could talk about things I found to be important, complicated or inspiring topics that go beyond the everyday small talk.

    I love writing about philosophy, political, religious, and scientific issues, I can keep up with current events and know how to research. Multiple times I have given up writing as a hobby because I start realizing how much time I’m spending on it, I’m absolutely okay with that but want to do something bigger, I need more readers, and want to make a career out of this.

    I realize your contest is over but if your curious about my writing style and abilities go here….

    http://www.americasdebate.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=22688

    This is a political topic but not one that’s too bias, this one demonstrates my researching skills. I did the opening post under the screen name Net2007. The topic was about conservatism being in trouble, the post opens with me suggesting I’m quitting political debates, at the time I felt liberals and conservatives fought too much and there was no way around it, my writings weren’t making a difference there so I quit doing it for a year. I’ve since shifted to the center on politics and my main goal with future writings will be to demonstrate how similar we all are, thats in an attempt to overcome the divisive nature of partisan politics.

    I’m flexible on a number of topics apart from politics, I’m highly researched with scientific issues, environmental issues, and music, but one of the best tools I have is that I’m observant and can pull of a convincing and less serious tone than in the topic above, I’m very philispophical and seem to be able to attract attention.

    This topic of mine was about music I grew up with and how special I thought it was. I also wanted to have others share music that was special to them, it’s very diffierent than the political topic I linked above….

    http://www.americasdebate.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=23034&pid=100032902&st=0&#entry100032902

    My weakness with writing is that I need to work on my grammar some, my spelling is okay but sometimes I need spell checkers to assist me.

    My email is mikenet2005mail1@yahoo.com

    Or perhaps you can point me in the right direction on here? I’m open to any tips or advise 🙂

  132. Sophie, what are you thought about freelancers working / partnering up with with digital marketing agencies? We recently started hiring freelance content writers, bloggers, and graphic designer and pretty much opened up freelance jobs on project based contracts for anyone working remotely.

    Would also love to hear your thoughts on how to spread the news to the freelancer community…thanks!

    • Works great if the clients and freelancers are all high quality – I think preventing disappointment (and fixing it fast when it happens) is the key to accumulating active users in this niche.

      So hit up a bunch of freelance-related friends online and ask them to tell people about you. Then give them some swipe copy that focuses on why and how users won’t be disappointed. 🙂

    • Side note on that: Several major content agencies are now subcontracting a sizable percentage of their B2B work. They don’t usually pay as high as jobs contracted directly with end users (5 or 6 cents per word is fairly typical income for the post writers), but since these agencies work for established businesses and prequalify their writers, that’s at least twice as much as was standard for “Huffington Post model” sites who mostly wanted tons of any-quality content for their own article databases.

  133. Hi Sophie
    Motivating post, thank you. It’s hard when you start from scratch, to know the ins and outs of blogging. Where to start, what to focus on more -marketing or writing, how to increase traffic, and most of all how to get clients to notice you. As your writing skills improve, you’ve got a steady flow of traffic coming in, and you’ve landed a couple guest posts (granted 0.00$ earned as of yet,) you can build your credibility and reputation. In my opinion I think that is the main element before trying to even get a paying gig, no? Anyways, thank you for your encouraging words. In the meantime, I will be on the lookout for more of your posts as this whole blogging thing is overwhelming.

    • Honestly, I would start looking for paying work even before you have credentials or a reputation. If nothing else, it’s good to get some practice in at the start!

      • Hi Sophie
        Ok Will do then. Your list of 52 paying gigs is great by the way. Is there any other list or link you can tell me about for fair paying gigs? The internet is full of ideas but mostly it’s for free guest posts. Thank you so much

  134. Hi Sophie,
    You are truly an inspiration. You take time out to reply to almost everyone and I truly admire your passion for what you do. My heartfelt salute, Ma’am.

    I started off as a freelance content writer just 45 days ago, after working for 12 years in the BPO sector as a language coach. I found an Ad in the local online marketplace which asked for writers who could provide well-researched, well-written articles for websites. On an impulse I went in for it and provided them a sample article created from the keywords and the topic they sent me. I was informed that I wouldn’t be paid for the ‘test’ article. I thought it was a scam, but loved writing so much that I felt the need to go through. To my utter surprise, they liked my work and sent a bunch of stuff along the same lines. In the last 40 days I have written around 90 short and long articles for websites of clients in US, UK, AUS and even CAN. Most of these articles are short, 400/500 words, with some of them only as long as 800/900 words. They topics and keywords sent to me are varied and cater to several types of businesses. I wrote blog posts, webpages, company introductions, and even some technical stuff which I think I am not so good at. I am based in India, and not very plush on finances, so I am forced to accept the rates offered, if only to build some experience in the line. I am being paid Rs 120 for a short article (400/500 words) and Rs 240 for articles twice as long. That would be approx $2 and $4 respectively. Yeah, I know that sucks, but I haven’t yet been able to break out into a better stream. I write around 7/8 articles on a good day as most assignments require extensive research. (I like my articles to be well done and have never received a re-write as yet) As of the last 6 days assignments have suddenly stopped coming, and my last payment has still not arrived. (No,its not a big amount, just around $20, please don’t laugh, but it means a lot to me at the stage where I am) Repeated emails to the agency has brought no response as yet and I think something is wrong there. No am not as worried about the pending payment as I am over the possibility that they might have shut down, which leaves me in the lurch. I have looked into a lot of websites mentioned by successful writers but haven’t got anywhere so far.
    It is in this state that I found a friend in you. I wait for your emails and go through them like I do the bible. It seems to provide courage and hope. But I need more than that.
    Inspired by your emails, in the past few days, I started up a blog, but am seriously lacking the knowledge to market it well. I really want to make it as a freelance writer, but unfortunately have not been able to create a foothold for myself in the field. I have 3 kids and though my wife works at a BPO, cash is never enough to raise my kids properly.
    I deeply value the advice you so passionately dispense, and believe me, if I was located anywhere near you, you would probably have to forcibly chase me away each day. I NEED to do this right. I NEED to. The only other alternative I have, is to go back to the industry I just left. At the age of 45, that is not an exciting option. Teach me Sophie, and I will gladly learn. No, I am not looking for freebies or trying to sound special. I just want to be good at what am doing. And I know you can seriously help me with it. I am not expecting you to reply to this silly outburst either, but knowing your passion, I am sure that you will read it. I know 45 days isn’t enough to establish yourself as a writer, but I know I have it in me, and I am not willing to rest until I see a way to get out there. Driven by your emails and of a few others, I have become a part of 14/16 websites that offer work. I have not bagged an assignment yet, but I know I will. I am also trying to learn about wordpress and html as I think it would be useful, but my skill mainly lies in research and writing. I am really confused about what to do next, other than log in to these websites everyday, hoping for a bite. I am open to your suggestions Sophie, and trust me, I will act upon them.
    I want to be earning a decent amount from writing, I know it is possible. I know I can. I just don’t know how. Too many options are driving me crazy.
    I wish you the very best Sophie. Salutes, to the fantastic job you are doing.
    I will wait for your next email, do forgive me if I can’t spend money at present to enroll myself for better courses or advice, It is simply because I have none. but every word from you will be listened to, digested and acted upon. On this, you have my word.

    Loving what you do,
    Regards,
    Jacob.

  135. Well, I’m doing this. I’ve given myself a year, well 324 more days, to be exact to create something that energizes me, pays the bills, honors my spirit, keeps me learning, and lets me travel….et cetera, et cetera… fun things that everyone wants. Bien sûr.

    I’ve been reading your site, emails, content. Listening to podcasts, just participated in a webinar with Carol Tice, researching, drawing, writing, diagraming, trying to get my brain around it. It’s a lot, but I’ve not felt this engaged and energized with “work” in so very long. Thank you.

    It feels good. Right now I’m trying to figure out how to package what I want to do… in the meantime and most assuredly helpfully getting a mission statement together, subjectivity statement, and content on what value I bring to the table, what I write and provide.

    It’s nice to be here. Cheers and thank you for letting us all know we are not alone.

  136. I just came across your blog and was hoping for some advice. I recently accepted a freelance position writing about hiking trails once a month. In addition to traveling a bit, the hikes themselves will take me about a half day to a day each (although this is very enjoyable for me so I’m not sure if these should be considered billable hours). I’ve never been paid for freelance blogging before and set my rate at 10 cents a word. Now, I’m worried I might have gone too low. I’ve yet to write my first post. Any suggestions on how I can renegotiate up while staying classy?

    • Well, in an ideal world, *all* your billable hours would be enjoyable. 😉

      It really comes down to how you frame those hikes: are they part of your job, or are they something you do as part of your lifestyle that you also happen to be able to get paid for writing about?

      If you’re only hiking so you can write about it, then you need to get paid for all of your time. But if you love to hike, 10 cents a word isn’t a bad place to start – provided you can write up your hikes at a reasonable speed once they’re over. (I suggest taking a phone or tablet so you can write during rest breaks, or record audio notes as you go – that’ll cut down the time it takes to write up later.)

      As for renegotiating your rate, record the hours you spend planning the hike, doing the hike and writing about the hike. Then wait until you’ve submitted your first article and been paid for it. After that, you’ll have a lot more info to help you negotiate a rate you’re happy with – and if, for example, your client turns out to be a slow payer or requests revisions without adequate feedback so that you have to to-and-fro with a ton of extra questions before you can finalise the draft, you can factor that into the rate you ask for on future posts. 🙂

  137. I’m a horrible blogger and up until 2 weeks ago, i blogged about random photos and wrote random posts that I hated. so i think i would classify myself as a schizophrenic blogger. I recently found a little direction and since then, i’ve been focusing on my voice. It’s much harder than it sounds. I want my writing to be a reflection of me an my personality but it’s a bit like acting i guess, it’s hard to come off as natural unless you practice practice practice. I’m shooting for authoritative and snarky.

  138. Jumping jelly beans! Really, $100/hour? My current online job, which I’m thinking I’ll be quitting any day now, requires me to do quite a bit of Internet research while transcribing the words of others. The difference between it and freelance blogging is that, at $100/hour, I would only have to work 3 hours to replace what my JOB pays for 20 hours of my life.

  139. Hi Sophie! Thanks for the tips and the information. It has been 4 years since you posted this blog and I’m just reading it today in 2017. I am a retired Baptist pastor and only recently decided to do some blogging and I lean toward more Spiritual or Religious blogging. Having posted some blogs on WordPress for free, it would be nice to make a little bit of money anyway. I have responded to a few gigs but yet to receive any assignments. I have received a promise from David C. Cook about some opportunities but they are waiting for a place to plug me in. Praying for that to happen and I am excited about that. I am also looking for perhaps some more generic options as well. That’s how I came upon your blogs. Still hoping for something soon.

  140. I couldn’t agree more!

    There are far too many freelance writer’s out there working for ridiculously low rates.

    My guess is it’s because they don’t realize they CAN make more. I saw a few ladies in a FB group quote $15 for a 1000-word blog post. I was like whaaaat? You can’t make a living on that!

    The point is finding clients who want value, not cheap crappy writing in bulk amounts. And there are so many freelancers out there making $5000 + a month no problem!

    I’ve only been freelancing a short time (8 months now), and I’m still working in a number of B2B and B2C industries, but I’m trying to narrow it down to just digital marketing.

    Not only is that a profitable niche, that’s where my passion lies.

    I enjoy your posts, and your newsletters, Sophie!

    Best,

    Alee

  141. Hi,Sophie
    My name is Michelle I’m 50 years old and looking for some extra income I can earn from home.
    My 3 kids are grown and on their own now so I have plenty of time to write and plenty to write about.
    I’ve always enjoyed reading ,writing and researching so I think this would be perfect. I have spent many long hours trying to find legitimate work, so much I probably could have already made hundreds of dollars blogging.I just need a push in the right direction. Hope you can show me the way. I do have a Twitter page that is doing pretty well but I haven’t been on as much as I should ,I have over 2000 followers so maybe that’s a start
    I need your honest opinion and expertise.Hope I hear from you soon . Thanks, Michelle.

  142. Thanks Sophie for the wise advice.
    I would like to know how i gonna get all the required details while in Kenya?
    Thqanks in advance.

  143. Hey Sophie, first of all, your hair is amazing and you’re very pretty that’s caught my attention, to be honest. But I love that you write amazingly and inspiring, you know how to describe and explain everything making it easy to understand. I love reading your articles because I believe that I gain more knowledge every single time. You’re really helpful and inspiring you have gained a dedicated follower because I feel like I can learn from you. Thank you for the post and keep up the awesome work. 😀

  144. Hey Sophie, I found you back at the beginning of March 2018, and boy I sure am happy that I did. I am soaking up as much information as I possibly can. I love your at-ease writing style, it makes me feel at home(comfortable), it makes me want to keep reading. Thanks so much for all of the information you share with us.

  145. Hai sophie, i’m from Malaysia, i don’t know if other your student from Malaysia, but first i very thankful to you for help me and others people to be a blogger, I love to write, i love to write about humanity, nature, human behavior, but i been told to write about marketing, financial if i want make a living with blogging, i try to write about financial it ended up i become more stressful. And i start procrastinate.

  146. I’m with Nur here. The writing the market wants to buy is not what I’m good at or love to do. I couldnt write a financial B2B or an engineering report to save myself. Its like getting a job washing dishes.

  147. Solid article Sophie! One of the things that kept me from blogging was the thought that I’m not good enough at writing, especially since english is not my native language. But the truth is many people like and share my content, and it makes me really happy that I can provide value to my blog readers.

  148. Hi! I have read your post, it is very insightful. But then I wonder how much should you pay as an employer for an editor for your website? If I follow the rates in this article, it turns quite expensive to hire content writers for a page…then how much a website should earn to be able to hire a team at first place? Is there any good answer to that?

    • I suspect the only true answer is, you have to invest in good writers to get the quality you need so that your website can attract more traffic & revenue. Does that make sense? If you can’t afford to hire a team to write lots, hire just one writer and editor, publish a small umber of posts, and then spend more of your time promoting the content you have — just a couple of pieces of well promoted, high quality content will beat a flood of unpromoted, low quality content.

  149. Insightful! Thank you for putting together the course on the Writer’s Den. I’m finding lots of good stuff.

  150. Hi Sophie,
    Thanks for the lovely post. Being a blogger myself I always get stuck on whether I should write a pillar post, staple post, or a response post. I know that Google loves pillar posts as they are long and descriptive. However, the time it takes to write those posts is awfully too long.

    On the other hand, response posts are kind of shorter and are good to rank quickly. I would love to hear your thoughts on what should be the correct direction for beginner bloggers on this dilemma.

Trackbacks