Many of my recent posts have been based around setting freelance writing fees. With the new year on the way, this is a topic that a lot of aspiring writers are interested in. After all, the first of the year is among the best times to put new fees into effect. Of course, if you do not know what goes into setting your freelance writing fees, you will be a bit lost when it comes to doing so.
Here are three important factors that will affect your freelance writing fees.
1. How much experience you have is essential. If you are a beginner, you will have to start out at the bottom of the food chain. This is not to say that you should short change yourself, but at the same time you will not be able to command the same rates as an established veteran. Base your experience on how long you have been a freelance writer, as well as the samples that you have compiled.
2. What are your competitors charging? While it is impossible to get information on every competitor, you should do your best to collect some details. For instance, many freelance writers have websites that publicly offer pricing information. When you find this information, bookmark it or begin to make a list. Just remember, you must consider the experience of the writer in correlation to their fees.
3. How bad do you need new business? If you are struggling to find work, there is a good chance that you may want to temporarily lower your freelance writing fees. This will definitely help you to attract new clients, especially if you have experience. But remember, you do not have to keep your rates low forever. After you secure new business and are comfortable with where you are at, you can then slowly increase your fees.
By now, you are probably working on your freelance writing fees for 2008. When doing so, keep the three factors above in mind. They will help you to best position yourself for success in the new year.
Although most people see freelance writing as writing for magazines and websites, there is another area that you may want to consider: fiction. Personally, I do not write a lot of fiction, but I know many freelance writers who make a good living doing so. If you have a creative mind, you may want to consider this option. Even if you only compose fiction pieces from time to time, it can be a great way to break the monotony of fact based content.
I was recently offered a freelance fiction writing job by one of my regular clients. Although I do not have a lot of experience in this area, the project is intriguing to me for a couple of reasons. First off, it will give me the chance to break away from fact based writing and put my creative juices to good use. To go along with this, it is always nice to have both fiction and non-fiction samples. While I have hundreds of non-fiction samples to send out, I lack in the area of fiction. After I complete this project, it is safe to say that I will have plenty of samples for future clients who may be interested in fiction based content.
For me, writing freelance fiction is pretty new. For this reason I do not know a lot about how much I should charge, or how to get a project started. Although this can be intimidating, I am sure to figure it out one way or the next. The fact of the matter is that until I try, I will never know if fiction writing is something that is of interest to me. Who knows, this project could be the time of my life, and I could start concentrating more on fiction in 2008.Â
Personally, I always charge freelance writing clients on a per project basis; very rarely do I rely on hourly pricing. But with that being said, there are times when hourly pricing may be the best option. Here are a few examples when this may hold true.
1. In some cases it can be difficult to charge a per project price. The client may not have precise details, or the project may only be in the planning stages. If you run into this situation, you may want to tell the client that you are willing to work on an hourly basis until more details are ironed out.
2. Depending on the stage of your career, charging hourly rates for small jobs is probably the best option. For example, you would not want to charge the same for a 1,000 word sales letter as you would a 500 word sales letter minor edit. If you do, it is safe to say that your client will consider you crazy. In this case, you could simply tell them the estimated time for completion, and give them an hourly rate. This will help you to stay on track as far as time is concerned, while also giving the client the chance to save money.
3. If you are a freelance writer, there is a good chance that a client will get the impression that you can do it all. For instance, I have been asked to help with everything from social bookmarking to editing to brainstorming on a conference call. If you are going to do work outside of writing, you may want to consider an hourly rate. This is best since you do not really know what you are getting into.
Of course, charging an hourly rate comes with additional responsibility. In fact, there are two things that are important to communicate to your client.
1. First and foremost, tell your client what your hourly rate is. Believe it or not, they may be surprised when you say $50 or $60/hour. If they question this, explain to them that it is a great savings when compared to the per project price.
2. Although not always possible, you should give an estimate on how long the work will take to complete. When doing this, always err on the high side. It is much better to be able to charge a client less than to break it to them that you underestimated and they owe more than they thought.
Finally, to be fair you will want to keep track of the hours that you work. When you are charging by project, you only have to concern yourself with when the job will be done. But when it comes to charging an hourly rate, you need to keep close track of when you work. Not only is this fair to the client, but it will also ensure that you get paid for all of your time.
While I do not like to charge hourly freelance writing rates, there are times when this is the better option.Â
