Do you have a way with words? You could turn your prowess with pronouns, verbs and adjectives into a lucrative side hustle when you learn how to make money by writing. Many large and small websites hire freelance writers to produce their content, offering you a platform to share your insights and an opportunity to make some extra dough. Even those who have never written anything besides personal social media posts or journal entries can find a place to sell their writing. This list provides a step-by-step guide to how to earn money by writing and will answer all your questions, whether you’re a beginning or veteran scribe.
Strategies For Earning Money By Writing
You can make money by writing in many different ways, including blogging, ghost writing, penning reviews and working for small businesses. You have a greater chance of being published by pursuing several options simultaneously instead of prioritizing one. It’s like baiting multiple fishhooks. The more you cast, the better your odds of pulling something in.
You will make the most money by working for bigger sites and businesses, and you can do nearly all of it remotely. Ghostwriting pays better than blogging because businesses want more polished, focused writing. Blogging, however, may take less time and allow you the chance to complete more assignments. Journalism gives you greater opportunities for creativity in your work, and social media writing appeals to those who like pithy, funny writing. Copywriting and technical writing can be drier, but they also provide higher payment and steadier work than other writing. Here is a breakdown of the main ways to make money while writing.
Blogging
Blogging means publishing content online written especially for that publication. Individuals, businesses, journalists, influencers, homemakers and many more publish blogs, which are often but not always written in first person. Anyone can write their own blog and publish it through a self-publishing platform, such as Medium, Blogger or WordPress.
The time and effort required for blogging depends on what you write about. For instance, if you run in your spare time and decide to start a running blog, you may be able to write several short blogs about running a race in under an hour. But if you want to explore the ethical implications of artificial intelligence using reliable sources, it could take hours to finish one post. The better the writing and sourcing, the better a post will perform, so making the extra effort to be informed and publishing grammatically correct copy is always worth it.
You don’t need experience to become a blogger. Anyone can do it, though it may take a while for you to settle into a style and voice that becomes popular. You need readers to make money on a blog. People make money on blogs in several ways:
- Advertising: You can sign on with a blogging ad network or sell your own ads to local businesses to make money.
- Sponsorship: You can write about a sponsor’s products in return for money, though you must disclose that you received compensation for your post.
- Syndication: You can sign on with syndication networks to distribute your blog on larger networks that will pay for your work.
How much can you make from blogging? The answer varies according to how often you publish, what type of payment method you use, and the popularity of your work. Some top bloggers make six figures per year. Sponsorships with big companies like Walmart that pay people to hawk their goods can be lucrative, paying thousands of dollars. But most bloggers make a few hundred dollars per month, enough to pay off a car or credit card bill but not enough to live on.
Ghost Writing
Ghost writing is the most lucrative type of writing. Ghost writers channel the voice of a third party, writing as though they were that person or business and presenting their ideas in first person. Businesses and thought leaders use ghost writers to take their thoughts and ideas and present them in a prettier package.
Ghost writing can take many forms. You might produce communications for a company CEO or create a book about an important event for a historical society. Every job is a little different. Ghost writing usually requires several years of writing experience, though if you are a subject matter expert on something—for example, if you are a nurse asked to write articles for a nursing degree program—then you may be able to get a job without writing experience. Time spent on an assignment will vary, but it takes longer than blogging. Ghost writing demands high-level clarity, grammar and readability.
You can make money by earning an hourly or per-project rate from the client. Most ghost writing gigs pay well, from $50 per hour and more. Some ghost writers pull in six figures per year, though those have extensive experience. To get started, search LinkedIn for the words “freelance writer” or “writer.” Or think about companies you would like to work with and send an email to the hiring manager introducing yourself and spelling out your expertise. You can also sign on with agencies that hire out ghost writers to businesses. Again, send your resume and a letter of introduction (LOI) to the agency hiring manager or search job ads online.
Copywriting
Copywriting is similar to ghostwriting, but sometimes you will receive a byline and the writing is not always presented in first person. Copywriting includes copy on businesses’ websites, material for pamphlets, mission statements, advertising, newsletters and more. People with copywriting skills are persuasive and clear writers good at conveying information and encouraging sales.
You can start with simple copywriting jobs and work your way up to higher-paying ones. Experience is required for bigger companies, but small businesses around your town might hire an inexperienced writer. You can begin by approaching them and offering to, for instance, rewrite their website or start a monthly newsletter. As you gain knowledge and confidence, you can reach out online to larger places. Follow freelance job boards to find new opportunities, interact with companies on LinkedIn to get your name out there, and send LOIs to hiring managers wherever you want to work.
You can get a little creative to find jobs, too. Find newsletters for companies you love or share expertise with. Send them an LOI outlining your subject matter background and what you could contribute. Copywriting work requires precision and often background research, and it takes longer than many other types of writing. You can make a good living as, like with ghost writing, clients tend to pay on the higher end of the payscale for copywriters, often $40 per hour and more. The best copywriters can make more than $150,000 per year.
Technical Writing
Technical writing refers to communicating information about niche topics, such as medicine, engineering, manufacturing or construction. It can also encompass things like the directions to put something together or operate an electronic device. The aim is to create digestible, informative content while eliminating jargon.
Technical writing requires a great deal of writing experience, but it can be lucrative. Few people have the skills to boil down information and serve it back up in the right format. It can take hours to finish even a short writing assignment because you need to get every word right and leave out extraneous ones. But most jobs are paid per hour ($60 and up for experienced writers), so the time and effort pay off.
A lot of technical writing jobs are full time. But you can find part-time opportunities using job sites such as LinkedIn, Indeed, Monster and more. Taking courses in technical writing could be a worthy investment, as that background will open up new opportunities and give you valuable experience.
Social Media Writing
Social media writing is a relatively new way to make money. Many businesses hire people to write captions on Instagram, video descriptions on YouTube, thought leadership posts on LinkedIn and much more. This is an excellent entry point for writers with little formal experience.
Social media writing pays more modestly than other types of business writing, anywhere from $15-$35 per hour. However, it takes less effort. You can often bang out lots of posts in an hour, and very little knowledge or experience is needed, beyond knowing the character limits for different social platforms. You can find jobs by looking at writing job sites or reaching out directly to businesses with LOIs. Try small businesses in your hometown first to get some examples for your resume before targeting more prominent places.
Magazine And Newspaper Writing
Magazine and newspaper writing is one of the more specialized forms of writing to make money. But if you have some training and are more interested in writing as a means of changing the world and informing people, it is a worthy pursuit. You can start by publishing pieces in hometown newspapers or niche magazines.
You won’t break the bank with journalism writing. Even some bigger papers and publications pay less than $1,000 per story, and you would need to string together a lot of assignments to make a living. But to make extra spending money and perhaps affect change, you can’t beat journalism. You will need to learn the publication’s style guide and adhere to it for pieces you submit. Editors make assignments, which you can get by pitching (sending a cold email) to the editor explaining your story idea and why you are the right person to write it.
Time and effort vary depending on the scope of the story. Many can be quite involved. Editors often prefer to work with people who have experience, so build up your resume with pitches to smaller publications first.
Bottom Line
Writing can be a fun way to make extra money, or you can even turn it into a high-paying career with the right experience. Whether you pen blogs, website copy or social media posts, you can find an outlet that’s “write” for you.
