Freelancing: The Bare Bone Basics
If you ever wondered how to start freelancing, this post is for you.
In today’s edition of Pen & Plot: Diary of a Fiction Editor, you’ll learn…
🛣 How I found freelancing
✨5 tips to get your freelancing career started
🛣 My Freelancing Journey
My freelancing life began during the pandemic.
The tennis club I worked at had been shut down. I was unemployed, naturally. I spent six months at home wondering what the hell I wanted to do with my life.
Tennis had turned toxic—abusive bosses, delusional parents, etc. And I couldn’t envision myself spending 8+ hours on the court well into my sixties. But, as restrictions lessened, I reached out to my lessons to see if they wanted to get back on the court.
It seems everyone was waiting for an excuse to get out of the house.
I had about ten lessons a week, which considering a global pandemic and no longer working out of a club, was a lot to me. And the pay wasn’t bad either since I didn’t have to hand over a majority of it to a club.
It was the first taste of freedom of being truly my own boss:
I made my own schedule
I no longer had a boss micro-managing me
I chose who I worked with
I was never going back to working for someone else, but the thought of being on a tennis court in my sixties still plagued me. As luck would have it, I found two amazing women on TikTok who were already successfully freelancing — Amy Suto and Alex Fasulo.
Their videos randomly popped up on my FYP and it took me about 6 months to take any action.
I made my Fiverr account in April 2021 and didn’t get my first client until July 2021. A 500-word tennis blog for $10. My first editing client came a month later—a 70k Harry Potter fanfiction for $50.
As of September 2023, my blogs range from $150 to $350 and I’ve dedicated my freelance business mostly to developmental editing which is $.025/per word.
Some say I’m undercharging. I say I’m still just getting started and learning everything I can about freelancing and being a solopreneur.
✨My Top 5 Tips for Getting Started in Freelancing
Note: I’m a writer and editor, but most of these tips can easily translate to any freelancing skill or niche.
1. Decide What You Want to Do
Pick a skill and then pick a niche.
You don’t have to niche down right off the bat, but the more you specialize the more you’ll ‘win’ jobs. People want freelancers who intimately know their niche.
But how do you pick a niche? Follow what excites you.
My writing niches are tennis, pickleball, mental health/psychology, and dog copywriting (and content writing). My editing niche is developmental editing for genre fiction.
When it comes to freelancing, the choice is yours. Make sure you love it, make sure it excites you, and make sure it’s something you want to keep learning about.
If you don’t have a clue as to what to do, check out the many free courses all over the internet on Udemy, Coursera, Skillshare, or even Masterclass.
If you are a writer or editor, also look for courses at the Editorial Freelance Association or even your local community college.
2. Sign Up for a Freelancing Platform
The general rule of thumb is to start on (at least) two freelancing platforms.
The first two I made profiles on were Fiverr and Upwork. I’ve had more success on Fiverr than I have on Upwork. But to be fair, I don’t put a lot of effort into Upwork.
Now, it’s important to note that Fiverr takes 20% and Upwork takes 10% of your gig fees. It’s how they make their money. It sucks, but I try to think about it as me paying my rent to have my gigs and services on their sites.
A non-exhaustive list of freelancing platforms to try:
Fiverr
Upwork
Contra
Legiit
Revolancer
Another honorable mention is LinkedIn because it’s not technically a freelancing platform. Within the last year or two, they’ve allowed people to list services. And I know a few freelancers who have found plenty of great clients on LinkedIn.
While there is a long list of pros and cons for each freelancing site, they’re one of the best ways to dip your toe into freelancing. Fiverr helps you meet deadlines with a deadline countdown. Upwork gives you a list of jobs to send proposals. Contra gives you a place to host and create an aesthetic af portfolio.
While the platforms are a great place to get started and maintain your freelancing business, they’re not the end-all-be-all of your business. Once you get a little bit of experience and momentum, you may feel empowered to send cold pitches to dream clients or post about your business on social media.
3. Set Your Prices
Freelancers get to set their rates. We can give ourselves raises whenever we see fit, typically when demand for our services goes up.
One of my favorite freelancers, Amy Suto, now makes $750/hour. Honestly, she’s definitely a far-away mentor of mine and has been so crucial to my own development as a freelancer. If you haven’t heard of her, check out her website, substack, and her book. She’s one of the best.
When first getting started, especially on a freelancing platform it’s typical to set fees lower. The lower the price, the lower the risk you are to buyers. Once you get a few orders and some 5⭐ ratings, raise your prices.
I started my blogs at $10 on Fiverr back in 2021. And with every satisfied customer, I raised my prices bit by bit. On Upwork, you can set yourself an hourly rate—make sure you set an hourly rate that covers your cost of living regardless if you have a 9-5 job or not.
Upwork has a handy calculator to help you get started. Whatever it gives you, add 20% to cover platform fees, and 30% to cover taxes.
Start low, but don’t stay low.
4. Build Your Freelancing Portfolio
Let me say up top: Your portfolio doesn’t have to be terribly fancy—especially if you’re a writer or editor.
For example: My writing portfolios are all stored on Google Drive and for editing, I offer clients a sample edit on the first 10 pages of their manuscript.
Your portfolio is meant to give potential clients a taste of what you can do for them.
Cool, Kourt. But I don’t have any client work to show off.
I hear you. I didn’t have any when I first started either.
Create a blog post in the niche you’re looking to work in. Create a logo for that company you could only dream of working for. Include a piece of creative writing—I landed a ghostwriting gig by sending it a chapter of Harry Potter fanfiction that I wrote during the pandemic.
Your portfolio only needs to contain work that shows potential clients who you are and what you can do.
5. Show Up on Social Media
I was terrified to talk about my services on social media, especially on my personal accounts. I didn’t want people I knew in real life to say anything or judge me. So, I created a second Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter (X? I don’t know him).
And if you’re afraid of friends, family, and coworkers finding your new social media accounts, block them. You heard me, block them. An incredible amount of freedom comes from blocking people we see in real life, especially when we’re on new journeys and endeavors.
Follow other freelancers (Add me on Insta and TikTok - I love connecting with new and veteran freelancers!) and make connections. Freelancing can be a lonely space, so it’s imperative to find others in your same niche or niche-adjacent.
Once you’ve followed some freelancers, find those you admire and do market research. What are other freelancers posting? Can you replicate it without outright copying? How can you provide education or inspiration to excite clients to get in touch with you?
And lastly, be you. People hire people, especially those they connect with.
💡 Action of the Week
If you’ve been thinking about freelancing, take the leap. Sign up for one freelancing platform this week, set up your profile, and create three gigs.
Keep the pen moving,
Kourtney