Keep Track of Freelance Writing Clips, Links
As a freelance writer, one of the best ways to garner business is to show interested clients your past work. Not only will this give them a chance to become familiar with your style, but they will also get the feeling that you are a professional since another company or publication was willing to work with you. As you build your clips folder, you are going to be in a much better position as your freelance writing career moves forward.
If you are lucky enough to have your work published in a magazine or newspaper, it is important to get at least one copy for your records. This will allow you to keep your portfolio up to date. Believe it or not, most publications are more than happy to send you at least one free copy showing your work. In some cases you may have to ask, but this should never be a problem. If for some reason it is, there is nothing wrong with paying for a copy.Â
In many cases, your work may not be published in-print, but instead online. If this is where the majority of your work appears, you should still keep track of your accomplishments. The best way to do this is to keep a “links folder†on your computer. This will allow you to organize and save the links to all your articles that have been published online. When sending a cover letter, resume or query via email, you will be able to include these links for the recipient to check out.
As your freelance writing career grows, the size of your clips and link folders are going to get out of control. You may think that this will never happen, but a year from now you will have more samples than you know what to do with. This is why it is very important that you stay organized from day one. The clips and links that you collect will go a long way in helping to secure future work.
While keeping track of these clips and links can be time consuming, you should keep in mind that it is also enjoyable. After all, there is nothing better than seeing your name next to a piece that you put a lot of time into!Â
