The Cost of being a Freelance Writer
Last week I received a couple of emails about the cost of being a freelance writer. These people wanted to know how much money it costs to start a career in this industry, as well as what I spend from month to month. While this is different for everybody, you should know one thing: freelance writing is a relatively inexpensive career. This is not a career that will suck your bank account dry from one month to the next. Of course, you have to be smart about how you spend and save.
Starting a freelance writing career can be semi-expensive, but it doesn’t have to break the bank. The biggest expenses you will face are for a computer, printer, and internet connection. Do you have all three of these things already? If so, you are way ahead of the game and pretty much ready to start your career without spending more than a few bucks on some office supplies, etc. Those who don’t have the above three items should shop for them on a budget. In my experience you can buy a quality computer and printer for roughly $500. This may not buy you the best of the best, but it is more than enough to get your career started.
I don’t spend much money on a monthly basis to further my career. My biggest expenses are for offices supplies, such as printer paper, as well as my internet connection. To go along with these, I also spend a bit on domain names, hosting, design work, and other things for some of my own projects.
All in all, it is not expensive to start a career as a freelance writer. If you are interested in becoming a freelance writer you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to get started. Most people already have what they need.
May 8th, 2009 at 9:30 am
True — most people already have a computer and an Internet connection.
What can cost money? Learning materials such as books and courses.
And you have to factor in the value of your time spent on marketing and learning the craft.
May 8th, 2009 at 2:16 pm
Most of my business expenses are books, like John said. I have a huge collection of books on writing, and it’s a good investment. But the cool thing about that is you don’t NEED the books. If you’re having a light month, you can get away with not spending any extra money. That’s the good part (of many) of freelance writing.