Freelance Writing Rates – Have at It!
July 8, 2008 by Deb
Filed under Freelance Writing
by Deborah Ng
I know you like to discuss rates because that’s what we writers like to do. We like to get the best rates for our work. We also like to help others understand that $10 is perhaps a little on the low side and they can do better.
Now in some parts of the world, and even this country, $10 for 30 minutes or even an hour’s worth of work is a decent rate. Not all agree. I do like to offer something for all writers, however. If the job boards were filled with $50 and $100 jobs, that’s what you’d see here. Jodee and I tossed around the idea of raising the minimum to $20 gigs but the pickings would be very scarce and I’d lose more than half my traffic for those seeking $10 to $20 jobs. It’s not up to me to decide what someone else should be paid.
With that said, I don’t mind taking part in discussions offering guidance and helping new writers to find their worth.
Here’s my problem. The negativity in some of the client posts – these are the posts featuring a single job- is scaring away other community members from commenting and it’s scaring away people who want to post gigs here. Sure, they can post the job somewhere else but then we’re not getting first shot, plus by everyone going to another job board I lose traffic and revenue. This makes it harder for me to pay the people who work here and implement some changes.
I do hope to one day have a forum where you can all discuss these issues in depth, but at the moment I can’t afford to make anymore changes. So all I ask is that when you see a job standing alone in its own post, please refrain from the negativity out of respect to the client and out of respect to Jodee and the people who visit this blog every day. I do think it’s important to discuss and educate, however. So respectful discussions of rates are welcome and encouraged in all daily job leads posts and any articles. I think that’s fair, don’t you?
In addition, I give you this gift. A rates discussion free for all. Anything goes as long as there’s no name calling, vulgarity, or personal attacks – which doesn’t usually happen here anyway. Discuss rates, complain about rates, ask questions about rates and offer solutions to the low rates issue.
I hope this is a good compromise.
Please support FWJ
@Phil: I wonder how many of us actually consider insurance costs when we consider our pay. I know that I don’t because my spouse has benefits. Though it’s terribly expensive, he has a chronic medical condition, and we can’t get coverage independently (through me). So, I don’t have that to factor in, and I’d imagine many here don’t either.
One thing I do account for, though, is the cost of childcare. My children go part-time so that I can focus more, so I have to consider that cost as well when I’m deciding where to apply.
I think in general there’s a difference in cost of living. Many of us (and I’ve done it, too) are quick to say “outside the US.” It’s not just outside the US. The average income for a family of 4 where I live is $30,000 a year, and those people live frugally, but fairly comfortably. They definitely have the basics covered. That averages around $15 an hour, so if one partner is making $10 an hour writing, that actually gives them a chance to make more than the average for something that someone in Atlanta or Denver or New York wouldn’t consider.
I take courses online, and one woman repeatedly says (though I do suspect she’s lying) that their entry-level call center reps make $35/hour. To me that’s overrated for something that is unskilled labor. (I worked in a call center in college, so I know it doesn’t require much training.) For her, that’s average, and those people aren’t making a good living. So again it’s all about perspective.
Brandi,
The reason I mention benefits is that I provide 80% of the family’s income (used to be more), so I have to cover those.
People keep asking how to get better paying jobs. I’ve been freelancing as both a writer and editor for 20 years, and for what it is worth, this is what I have learned and what has worked for me.
First, understand that print and Web are different animals. A lot of the low-paying Web ads want short (300-400 word) articles that require no research and no interviewing or expert quotes. People who write these say that they can dash them off the top of their head in fractions of an hour and thus the low rate may work out to an acceptable hourly rate to the writer. However, in my experience, this type of quick, causal article rarely works as a clip to take you to a higher paying job.
People who are paying $40 per hour or .50 per word want evidence that you can research and interview as well as write. They also want excellent writing mechanics and a good sense of the language which are often secondary in SEO articles. Editors and clients trained in traditional journalism (and many are), especially those from the time when print journalism was ascendant, often are wary of Web clips that don’t show any of the hallmarks of traditional journalism (e.g., quoted sources, background research, balanced reportage). Think of it this way. Just because you have raised cats for years doesn’t mean that you can train tigers. Yes, you have some basic understanding of feline behavior, but you haven’t demonstrated any tiger expertise, so why should you be hired to train tigers?
So far as I can tell, the only way around this is to either take some lower paying Web jobs that will allow you to demonstrate more traditional journalistic skills or do some writing for your local paper or other print publication that will do the same.
Another point. When I started out, I wrote anything and everything from restaurant reviews to business stories to parenting advice. I quickly found that to make a reasonable income, I had to specialize. This cut down on the research time and allowed me to develop a pool of experts to interview that I could rely on for a couple of good quotes. I started out specializing in toys and the toy industry and then moved on to other areas once I had established myself with a particular client/editor.
If you are going to specialize, it helps to have some educational background or professional experience in the area of specialization, but you don’t have to (I simply fell into writing toy reviews and toy-related articles without any background in the industry). The best paying jobs, however, almost always require a certain level of expertise. You have to speak the language of the industry or area that you are writing about whether it is fashion, medicine, or bicycle racing. If you can get a foot in the door at a trade magazine, this will help establish your credibility in the field. If there is a professional organization for writers in your area of specialization, find it and join it, even if it costs money. There are organizations for all kinds of science writers, writers who cover religion, sports writers, etc. Many of these have job boards accessible only to members where the best-paying jobs are found. Dues are deductible as a professional expense on your taxes in the U.S.
Be open to writing for corporate clients because that is where the money is. Sometimes the topics are dull, dull, dull. You can make a lot of money writing about packaging machinery, but it doesn’t make good party conversation. Sometimes times you won’t get a byline (e.g., writing for some corporate newsletters). Sometimes only a handful of people will read what you write. Corporate writing will not make you a media rock star, but it will pay the bills. Hint: You can market your writing directly to small companies, but it is much more difficult to market yourself to an Intel or a Proctor & Gamble. After you have some small company corporate writing experience, try marketing yourself to the public relations/media communication companies that work with many of the big companies. Often these media communications companies are the ones putting out newsletters for medium-sized and some large companies.
Make things easy for the client/editor. MEET DEADLINES. I have picked up any number of assignments from parenting publications that were assigned to a new writer who didn’t meet the deadline, so the story was passed to me because the editor knew my word was good and the story would be done on time and to specification. Likewise FOLLOW DIRECTIONS. If you find you are straying from the topic, it can’t be covered in the word length assigned, or there isn’t enough story there to justify the length the editor wants, COMMUNICATE. This is one time when it is good to pick up the phone and talk to the editor instead of using e-mail, because it gives you both a chance to bat around ideas and compromises and feel comfortable that you both understand the situation and how it will be resolved.
There are other things you can do to make things easy for the editor/client. Some are as simple as following good manuscript rules (spacing, fonts, format). It may be something like writing a catchy title for the article, inserting subheads, suggesting a source for a photograph, or offering to do a sidebar if it would enhance the story.
If you are submitting photos, do it in the form requested and write cut lines for the photos. (Cut lines are a full sentence that runs under the photo and helps explain it. They are longer than a caption.) Always obsessively proofread your finished product and check for grammar and punctuation errors. This should be obvious, but you would be amazed at what some writers submit, assuming the editor’s job is to fix it up. If two writers are of equal ability, the editor will always choose the one who makes his or her life easier.
Network. If you have a story accepted, pitch another when you send the completed assignment. Let the editor know your areas of expertise/interest if they are different from the area you have written about. If an editor mentions that he or she is changing jobs, ask them to refer you to their replacement and to keep you in mind at their new job. After you have developed a good relationship with an editor and successfully worked with them for a while (4 or 5 assignments), it is okay to ask them to pass your name and contact information to other editors they might know who could use a freelancer with your talents/experience/interests.
It takes time to build up professional contacts in any field, including freelancing. As in any other field, the more you are paid, the more expertise the job requires and often the level of detail work is higher (e.g., confirming information with independent sources). For every well-paying assignment you get where you know exactly where to find the information you need and that just flows quickly out of your brain and onto the screen, you will get another that looks easy and ends up being hard, complicated, and time consuming. You cannot cherry pick the quick and easy jobs, but some of the hard ones will help you move forward.
If you consistently want higher paying work, you have to accept that professional freelancing is a job, not a hobby. There will be good days and bad days, just as there are in any job. Some days you won’t want to write, but you will do your very best anyway. It takes time and effort to develop skills, a commitment to learning the market and how to sell yourself, professionalism in meeting client needs, and a willingness to work when you don’t want to on topics that don’t always get you excited. And truthfully, just as every high school baseball player doesn’t make it to the majors or every mail room clerk isn’t going to become a CEO, every freelancer isn’t going to get assigned the $10,000 celebrity interview for Vanity Fair.
Some of the people who post here are chronically unhappy with the pay being offered and can’t seem to just ignore the job postings with rates too low for them. I suggest that these people take a good, honest look at what they want from freelancing and how much time and effort they want to put into it. People have different writing goals. Some people want off-the-top-of-the head writing work, some quick extra money, or byline they can show their friends. Others want a full time career and a living-wage income. Only you can decide what your goals are and if they are realistic at this time.
If a job posting doesn’t meet your goals or fit into your career strategy or looks boring, sketchy, spammy, too time-consuming, or in some other way is unacceptable to you, just pass it by. Although this board is a wonderful resource, there are other ways to find freelance jobs and people who want careers as freelancers will need to use all of them to move on up the freelance food chain, because, just like any job, unless you are the big boss’s child, you don’t get to start at the top.
@ Deb
You are so concerned about not posting anything you perceive as negative on the to the individual client posts, I have to ask: Are these clients paying you to list their job posts individually? I know you say you are not spotlighting them, but it really does look like you are – kind of similar to Web sites paying to be listed at the top of searches. It’s okay if they are paying you. I understand you are running a business, but I’d like a little more clarity/transparency about this.
Tish gives some very sound advice. I actually applied for a job writing for my local paper. Know what the starting rate was, how about a whopping $8.25 an hour.
I make more writing at home than I would working for the area newspaper and I’m not having to drive 30 miles each way to get to their offices. That’s a gallon of gas each way just to get to work (no public transportation around here, so don’t even try suggesting it), so by the end of it, one hour of every work day would go just to paying for gas for my car. Add in needing new clothes, added mileage on my car, parking fees in the city, and time away from my family, it’s just not worthwhile.
That’s why I’m perfectly happy taking jobs that average $10 to $20 an hour when you calculate the time it takes writing and researching. I have one that pays $60 an hour and two others that pay $10 an hour. I’m here with my kids, my teen neighbor’s infant some of the time, and they all know that if a problem arises, I’m right here for them without question.
I know insurance was also mentioned. That’s one area where I’m lucky. My husband’s employer is unionized, so we do have one of the best health insurance policies in the state and at $30 a week, we couldn’t do better. So that’s not something I need worry about.
Tish – good advice!
I guess I was commenting about the lower paying jobs because I wanted the beginner writers to realize that there was more to freelance writing than the ‘lower paying writing jobs’.
@Tish – No one pays me to post anything here. All money earned from this blog is advertising revenue only. However, when clients come away from here with a negative experience it doesn’t encourage them to post jobs with us again. Moreover, if a potential client seems someone getting ganged up on he may stay far away – even if his job pays lots of money. Maybe the members of this community will find that job on another board, maybe the won’t. It’s nice for us to be able to offer an exclusive.
The reason these jobs look like they’re spotlighted is because they’re not part of the usual “job troll”. Jodee trolls all the job boards each morning and posts lists of links to jobs fitting our criteria. The standalone posts are from people who send their jobs via email and we post them as we get them. We’re not going to say “this job is a low payer” because we feel that sheds the employer in a negative light.
Someone suggested we just add them to the links, but as they are emails, we can’t do this. Besides, we want to encourage people to give us the exclusive.
Deb – yes I do realize that they are not exclusive jobs … but that doesnt take away from the fact that they do “look” like exclusive jobs.
Perhaps a statement along the lines saying that you are just posting the ad … and not endorsing the job at the bottom of the job post will clear things up for the ‘newbie’ and other writers?
(well … written more eloquently than that perhaps though … LOL)
Just a suggestion …
I do like your blog by the way – otherwise, I would not take the time to comment.
But back to work I go …
I think I meant to say ’spotlighted’ jobs …
This is it – my lunch hour is over.
I’m not writing anything on any person’s job ad. If we didn’t approve of or endorse the ad it wouldn’t be on the blog.
Ok Deb! Thanks for the quick response …
Then honestly it does look like you are endorsing low pay rates …
Oh well! Off I go …
I’m going to re-post what Maria said, since it’s the best piece of advice I’ve heard yet.
“All of this discussion proves one thing, it all depends where you are financially, how much writing contributes to the family budget, and if they are enough reliable revenue streams to compensate for taking $10 gigs. That’s why this matter can never really be resolved, it all depends on the individual. So if it works for you, more power to you.”
Here’s what I’ve learned about rates lately: I used to think there was nothing more irritating than reading a job ad that asked for a 500 word article for ten dollars. I was wrong – it’s not nearly as annoying as reading an extended discussion where people keep complaining about the ten dollar job.
By the way, I don’t understand people who bring up ‘free speech’ with respect to the question of banning people, closing comments or deleting posts. This is not a public place – it’s Deb’s place, because she pays the rent and could shut it down at any time. If I went to her house and insulted her mom and her cooking, I’d be dis-invited. She has every right to do that, there or on her blog.
Deb doesn’t endorse low rates. Deb endorses freedom of choice and respect for other people’s choices.
And that, I support. 100%.
Deb,
Do you keep up with the people who make the negative comments? I think that’s one point that has been made here, though not directly. (I think it’s one of the subtler point’s of Scribette’s comments, for example.) Yesterday, Therese was the person who called the job a “joke.” I don’t remember seeing her here before. (She may be; I just don’t recall her name on the comments section before.) I think part of the point is that when the jobs are just posted and not noted “I received a request by email to post this ad” or something explaining, then it opens the doors for people who may just be stopping by but aren’t regulars to post negative comments beccause they confuse the individual listing with your approval or endorsement.
If the same person repeatedly makes negative comments, then banning that person may make sense (though really, how hard is it to continue to post anonymously?). It’s just that I think there’s some discrepancy between what’s clear for those of us who visit everyday and those who drop by and don’t know “the rules.” Perhaps there’s a way to make that clear – with a standard paragraph at the end of the ads reminding posters not to make negative comments about the job or some headline announcement.
@Phil: Yeah, I knew you provided most of your family’s income. I just think insurance is another place where the price we’re willing to work for matters. We pay ~$8K a year for insurance through my husband’s employer, so if I had to make an additional $8K a year, then I’d up my bottom line or work more hours to make up for it.
@Brandi – I do keep up with some people. In fact some of the people who make negative comments here aren’t newbies but like to use different ideintities. I do know more about some of these people than they think I do, but whatever. If they have to hide behind dual identities and phony IPs so be it. Regardless of whether or not people are just stopping by, they can still use good manners. I don’t know if anyone can ever really be banned. I’m not really into doing that, though it does seem as if certain people provoke us through email or comments.
Brandi – I totally agree …
“It’s just that I think there’s some discrepancy between what’s clear for those of us who visit everyday and those who drop by and don’t know “the rules.” Perhaps there’s a way to make that clear – with a standard paragraph at the end of the ads reminding posters not to make negative comments about the job or some headline announcement.”
Well I agree that there should be some statement about the job postings …
They do “appear” to be spotlighted job ads to the casual visitor.
However, Deb mentioned that she didnt want to write anything on the job ads.
Oh well! I personally think that it makes sense … but its not our site. LOL
Have a good day!
Good grief Scribette. Do you really need a paragraph on the bottom of a post to tell you to show good manners? Here’s a clue: you visit someone’s blog you practice common courtesy. The rest of the world seems to know it, why is it so difficult for you?
Go ahead Jodee. Delete my post but really. Scribette’s wearing my last nerve. Pick, pick, pick…
That sound you hear is of thunderous applause
Totally. I agree 100% Melissa.
I will never understand why some people feel they need to dictate to everyone else what acceptable rates are.
No … not good manners … that is why I made the second post. Please refer to that one.
Sorry that a difference of opinion is wearing so much on your nerves Melissa.
For crying out loud, all Deb is doing is asking for some respect for her blog.
My suggestion is to first only block those people who are commenting and causing all the trouble. If that doesn’t work, just block comments for the jobs that are listed alone (outside of the daily lists by Jodee).
As far as the “a peaceful community with only one opinion..” comment, are you kidding? This blog isn’t a political manifesto, it’s a free service for writers.
@Deb – It must be going around, as tomorrow’s post over at our blog is also about money and encouraging people to talk about it.
I think it’s pretty disrespectful for people to complain about your advertisers right here on the blog, and you have every right to ask them to cut it out, already!
I’ve got a little different perspective than some of the more established freelancers here, simply because I’ve NEVER worked in a print environment for pay. (I’ve helped friends out with editing a story as a second pass editor, but I’ve never actually made money writing for a print publication.)
What that means is that for the last 7-10 years, I’ve been writing online, and on electronic copies (software, games, etc.) for pay. And what can I say? For most online writing jobs you’ll find posted, the pay is going to be between $10-20 per 500 words. Period. With an entire world of English speaking writers to draw from, people can get away with paying much less than they would our print counterparts.
That doesn’t mean high-paying online clients don’t exist, because I’ve worked regularly with some who pay upwards of $50 per 500 word article. But to get those going, you need to have quite a library of previous work to show. For all of my higher-paying clients, I also met them offline at conventions, trade shows, and even at job fairs.
So if you want to write online, ignore the average freelance salary you see listed on sites. Most importantly, don’t get down when you’re starting out and only making 2 cents a word, because a week or month later, you’ll have enough work to show (hopefully) that you can start increasing your price and bidding on higher paying gigs.
Basically, don’t try to climb the stairs three steps at a time just because you want to reach the top faster.
I think $10 is ok for a ´quickie.´ If I can earn 10 dollars from maybe 30 minutes work, writing in my own voice, on a subject that interests me, I’m happy to do it. I have a part time job in a bar, and I get paid minimum wage, so 10 dollars for 30 mins doing something I love is much better. I also have quite a strict ´training schedule´ for my writing, and taking the cheap pay means that I can challenge myself to write in a new way, for a new market, on a new subject etc and still at least get compensation and a clip for the practice. I am also happy to write for $10 if the article gets me good exposure for any of my websites.
I think freelance rates are subjective, that’s why I’ll never tell someone what he should charge. It’s all up to the individual writer to decide what his time his worth. Individual gigs warrant different prices. For instance, I can do a ten minutes blog post for $10, that’s great money. Maybe another ten minutes to edit and tweak – but still $10 for 20 minutes work isn’t bad.
For something requiring research, interviews, etc. I would charge my hourly rate. This started out a lot lower than it is now. (Though I’m not really freelancing now so that doesn’t matter.)
The bottom line to me is to charge what you feel comfortable with. No one else knows your situation. We don’t know your finances, we don’t know what it will take to complete your project and we don’t know what makes you happy. We don’t know if you’re trying to make a living, just want some fun money or if this is a hobby.
When quoting a rate (or figuring out whether or not to accept a particular rate) first work out what the gig will entail. Figure in research, bank or paypal fees, gas if you’ll need to drive around to research or interview and the amount of time it will take to write and tweak until you have a finished product. Also, research the client. What do you feel his budget will allow? From there figure out what your time – and this project is worth. Not what other people tell you your time is worth – but what YOU feel your time is worth.
Be happy. That’s what it’s about.
I didn’t want to post this on the Writing Bloc’s job link since Deb & Jodee asked us not to comment negatively there. I signed up with them and, while I am impressed with their system and communication, I received a project today that was priced so low it made my head spin.
The posted project was a press release. I figured it would be priced low – maybe $75 or $50 as opposed to several hundred. My eyes practically fell out when I saw the actual compensation – $16. To add insult to injury, the client wanted to be “blown away” and IF s/he’s blown away, then more press releases will be ordered.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I couldn’t learn enough about a company’s products/services, mission, vision, values, and angle quite fast enough to make $16 worth it for a press release. It would probably take hours to complete. The only way I can see this being worth it is if you just throw something together and the client doesn’t know enough about publicity to notice, but that’s not the kind of work I want to do.
As someone who stumbled across this site a few weeks ago (brilliant by the way! Kudos to the maintainers), when I saw the stand-alone job postings, I never thought that they were ’special’ – in the sense that they were being championed by anyone & thus standing separately from the other postings.
Am I being too passive in thinking that this is a wonderful place to come & see a gathering of writing gigs? If you don’t like what you see, move on. Find gigs you DO like. No one but you holds the reins of your life choices.
Leigh – yes that is exactly what surprised … no shocked me – under $20 for a press release is incomprehensible to me.
Just wanted to say also that low rates are fine when you are just starting out. (I paid my dues too – at $10 an hour I believe). That said, you deserve more money when you have more experience.
Employers need your services and they benefit financially from your talent. Don’t underestimate or undersell yourself is my point. There are places even online that do pay much more than $10-20 for 500 words.
You can and will demand more $ when you change your mindset. I realize that some of you need the $ now – as Phil said though, you should continually work on replacing low paying gigs with higher paying ones – makes sense! And in the end … who benefits? You do!
Allison – ok glad you didnt! Many people were thinking that they were spotlighted jobs on the blog from the comments that I read.
@ Allison: Your comment makes perfect sense to me, but not everyone agrees.
I came across an ad this morning from someone wanting a writer to “trade” their services for a service from the client. If there is a mutual benefit, then I don’t have a problem with this kind of arrangement but what works the best for me is to “trade” my work for the client’s cash.
Jodee – I am just trying to help writers realize that they can make more money if they do have the experience.
OK Guys,
Deb gave me the Red Button and instructions on when to use it. This is one of those times. You were told that no personal attacks were allowed and they are not. I’ve removed a few comments that were offensive and I will do so again if need be.
If anyone feels the need to vent and isn’t sure whether it should be for public consumption, take it to e-mail. I read all of them and your comments will be confidential. freelancewritinggigs@gmail.com
Please keep it civil. Thank you.
Looking through all of these posts, I’m wondering–how the heck can people settle for such low rates?!?! If you make $35k a year, you’re averaging something like $18/hr for actual work. That’s a pretty base pay for a college grad, but let’s go with that for the argument I’m about to make. Now, that $18/hr might be taxed by your state and the feds, but it might include things like health care–even a partial amount and the use of office equipment like you know, computers, lights, folders, pens, staplers, a desk…you get the picture.
Now, as a freelancer, if you were to say, ‘Well, $35k aint bad, so I’ll charge $18/hr too,’ you would be missing a HUGE segment of what you’re employer previously paid for you: medicare and social security. Plus, you’ll have to pay self-employment taxes, not to mention regular taxes and things like your desk and your phone and yadayada. So what does this mean? You’ll be “taking home” something like $9/hr. That’s about minimum wage in my state. And for a college grad? That’s insane! Let’s say you’re lucky and get 25 hours of billable work per week. You’ll be taking home something like $225 per week, working full time (with marketing time, etc.) Can you live off of that? I think not.
So, the best way to figure out what you’re worth is to multiply a standard hourly you’d earn at a “real” job by 2.5. So that $18/hr becomes $45. If you’re not fresh out of college and you’ve been doing this for a few years, then you can charge upwards of $60. And for pros, you can charge $75, $100 or more. Just think, agencies charge their clients $125-$200/hr.
So, what are you worth? Shouldnt you be able to eat and pay your rent and afford health care? Don’t you deserve to live when you’re working so darn hard?
I think so.
Time to make those clients show us writers more respect! Raise your rates! Take a stand! Show them you’re worth it.
OK, I guess it’s time to go write a Clairol commerical…
–Scribe
What’s the average freelance pay for writing radio commercial spots?