{"id":17,"date":"2010-08-03T13:21:51","date_gmt":"2010-08-03T17:21:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/?p=17"},"modified":"2012-11-01T18:58:39","modified_gmt":"2012-11-01T22:58:39","slug":"my-freelance-writing-success-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/success-stories\/my-freelance-writing-success-story\/","title":{"rendered":"My Freelance Writing Success Story"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Will C.<\/em><\/p>\n

Although it can truly be said that success is in the eye of the beholder; I cannot help but feel I have made great strides towards it.\u00a0 I have always dreamed of being a writer.\u00a0 The writing bug bit me at a very young age.\u00a0 As early as ten years old I was writing one page short stories in school and selling them to my classmates for a nickel.\u00a0 My imagination has always gotten the best of me.\u00a0 It still does to this very day.<\/p>\n

My desire to become a writer dramatically increased when I began to watch the hit television show in the 1970\u2019s; the Walton\u2019s.\u00a0 The family was growing up during the depression and a family bond was displayed that has always touched my heart.\u00a0 The eldest son in the family was John Boy Walton.\u00a0 He also dreamed of becoming a writer.\u00a0 The show inspired me to chase my dream, but it would take decades before I pursued it seriously.\u00a0 In high school creative writing classes my writing ability blossomed.\u00a0 The words flowed naturally from my pen.\u00a0 It felt good.<\/p>\n

In 1979 I joined the Army.\u00a0 I began keeping a journal and filled the pages with my most heartfelt feelings and emotions.\u00a0 Over three decades have passed and I still keep that journal.\u00a0 I spent 5 years serving my country.\u00a0 While in the service I often wrote poems for my fellow soldiers to send home to their girlfriends and wives.\u00a0 They would give me a few details and I would do the rest.<\/p>\n

When I left the service in 1984 I did not pursue writing; but instead became a restaurant manager.\u00a0 I would spend the next two decades managing restaurants and searching for avenues to write.\u00a0 I had allowed writing to take a back seat as I worked diligently to support my growing family.\u00a0 Not a day went by that I did not think about wanting to be a writer.\u00a0 I believed in the power of the written word.\u00a0 There was no doubt in my mind that I could make money as a writer.\u00a0 I knew words from the heart and soul could touch the human spirit and I wanted to form that bond with the reader.<\/p>\n

Although the desire was there; life is about the decisions that we make.\u00a0 During my journey of life I made decisions that kept my writing in the shadows of my mind.\u00a0 I finally came to realize that not everyone can write the great American novel immediately.\u00a0 I had long since grown weary of the stress often endured in the restaurant management field.\u00a0 In addition, I knew in my heart that there had to be a way to write and earn money as well.\u00a0 So I began to surf the Internet looking for opportunities to write.\u00a0 I knew the Internet was the new frontier.\u00a0 The vision of becoming a freelance writer on the Internet pushed me forward and little did I know that my dream was about to come true.<\/p>\n

My Birth As A Freelance Writer<\/strong><\/p>\n

In early 2008 I began to seriously surf the Internet seeking opportunities to become a freelance writer.\u00a0 Although writing had always provided me with personal satisfaction; I wanted to do it professionally and make money working right from the comfort of home.<\/p>\n

That was always one of my secret goals.\u00a0 A freelance writer could earn money and never leave the house.\u00a0 The possibility alone drove me to find options and in May 2008 things began to fall into place.\u00a0 At this time two very important things occurred.\u00a0 First, I saw an ad on the Internet about making money from writing.\u00a0 I followed up and before long I was enrolled in a course that would show me how to make money as a freelance writer online.<\/p>\n

Debbie was the course instructor and she had been a freelance writer online for over 5 years.\u00a0 She was very straight forward with me.\u00a0 From the onset I was told that writing success would not happen over night.\u00a0 There were steps to be followed, foundations to be built, and processes to complete.\u00a0 However, the dream of becoming a freelance writer at home was a heartfelt reality.\u00a0 Within the first two weeks of the course; Debbie began to show me some websites online that allowed you to bid on projects and start making money writing.<\/p>\n

These websites would not make me rich over night, but they would lay the ground work for future success.\u00a0 I was taught the importance of preparing eye appealing bids for projects.\u00a0 Somehow I caught onto the process very quickly.\u00a0 Within the first two weeks I won 15 projects totaling around $500.\u00a0 Debbie told me this was unusual but that I had learned fast.\u00a0 After the first month I withdrew from the course and I have never had to look back.\u00a0 I created my own webpage and this is what Debbie wrote on it:<\/p>\n

\u201cWill Curl is a fast learner!\u00a0 He joined my freelance writing program and within two weeks had obtained several freelance writing clients and fully grasped the concepts of online writing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI regularly subcontract overflow writing work to Will, and it’s always well written and on time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI highly recommend Will for your writing
\nneeds.\u201d<\/p>\n

Debbie D.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Debbie was not simply my instructor but my mentor as well.\u00a0 She had given me the boost I needed and I was on my way.\u00a0 From the very beginning I worked hard to find clients on the websites and those that I could work for independently.\u00a0 On the websites I realized that I could basically earn anywhere from $3 to $8 per article, depending upon the size.\u00a0 Offline, I gained clients that would pay me anywhere from $5 to $12 per article.\u00a0 Some projects were small and would only pay $10 and others were large and paid hundreds.<\/p>\n

My Freelance Writing Journey<\/strong><\/p>\n

The second thing that gave my freelance writing a boost was meeting a website owner from Australia named Lama.\u00a0 She was building a poetry website and she was looking for a Poet\/Editor to help her get the site off the ground.\u00a0 I joined up with her in the fall of 2008 and we have been working together ever since.<\/p>\n

This is what Lama had to say about me:<\/p>\n

\u201cWill, I don’t think I have enough words to thank you for the brilliant work you have delivered. Your writing abilities continue to amaze me. I consider myself very lucky to have met and dealt with an expert writer like you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have excelled\u00a0in all areas of writing including content writing, creative writing, web content, article writing, press releases, and even poetry. You have surpassed the many challenges I have given you while always providing excellent work early or on time as expected.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot only I will be sending you all my future writing work but I will recommend your services on all my sites and to all my online colleagues. I wish you all the very best with your writing business.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thank you<\/p>\n

Lama <\/strong><\/p>\n

The point I am trying to make is that your writing success depends on networking.\u00a0 I learned rather quickly that success was like planting a tree.\u00a0 I would have to branch out and always be on the lookout for independent opportunities.\u00a0 Through this very type of networking I picked up another important client that I have kept for over 2 years.\u00a0 Today, her account alone brings in $500 a month to my company.\u00a0 Her name is Nikki and she owns a card printing company and website.\u00a0 This is what she said about me:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were lucky to find such a great writing service in Will\u2019s company.\u00a0 They are always sensitive to the requirements of the job and finish before the deadline. We hope to be able to work with them for a long time to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nikki Stephens <\/strong>
\nSafe-Card ID<\/p>\n

In late 2008 I created a writing service.\u00a0 I began to take on more projects.\u00a0 I was on my way.<\/p>\n

My Freelance Writing Future<\/strong><\/p>\n

Today, almost 2 years later my writing business is still going strong.\u00a0 I still write from the original writing website where I first won my first project.\u00a0 I have completed over 250 jobs there and I hold an excellent rating.\u00a0 I have completed as many projects independently as well.\u00a0 During that first year of writing I had to build a reputation.\u00a0 There were good weeks and there were bad weeks.\u00a0 However, I was persistent and in the end it paid off.\u00a0 By the end of 2009 my writing business was doing $4000 worth of work per month.<\/p>\n

I had taken on 4 freelance writers to help me.\u00a0 In addition, I had formed long term writing relationships with numerous clients on and off the website.<\/p>\n

My dream of becoming a freelance writer and working from home had become a reality.\u00a0 My wife has been working for the same company for over a decade and of course this gave me room to move slowly and grow.\u00a0 However, it should be known that the majority of freelance writers I meet online are women.\u00a0 They are house wives that are dedicated to making money from home as well.\u00a0 All 4 of my freelance writers are women.<\/p>\n

It is very important that any would be freelance writer understand this.\u00a0 You do not have to be Mark Twain to be a freelance writer.\u00a0 If you can put good sentences together and know how to research; you can be a freelance writer online.\u00a0 The good thing about freelance writing from home is that you can make your own schedule.\u00a0 You can take care of the children, the home, and your partner in life, and still make time to write.\u00a0 How much you will make will depend on the hours you want to put in.<\/p>\n

I myself normally write at least 8 hours per day.\u00a0 However, everything revolves around the deadlines.\u00a0 Therefore, I have pulled some all nighters and have worked many 12 hour days in a row.\u00a0 It is all about organization.\u00a0 My freelance writing future looks good.\u00a0 I have built a foundation and I feel comfortable that it will support me through good times and bad.\u00a0 My writing business is consistent now and I bring in $2500 a month personally, give or take a few hundred.<\/p>\n

I am finally at a point in life where I am perfectly content with the work I do.\u00a0 I look forward to the challenges that lay in front of me each day.\u00a0 Some projects are repetitive, but every once in a while you get some that allow you to be creative.\u00a0 I am still the Editor and Senior Writer for the poetry website and I continue to write full time.\u00a0 I would advise anyone who wants to work from home, part time or full time, to pursue it with vigor.\u00a0 Don\u2019t be afraid to sign up for a legitimate writing course and keep in mind that Rome was not built in a day.\u00a0 I am a successful freelance writer and you can be too.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Will C. Although it can truly be said that success is in the eye of the beholder; I cannot help but feel I have made great strides towards it.\u00a0 I have always dreamed of being a writer.\u00a0 The writing bug bit me at a very young age.\u00a0 As early as ten years old I…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,10,12,19,20,22,21,39,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-8-29","category-day-1","category-day-2","category-day-3","category-day-4","category-day-5","category-day-6","category-day-7","category-success-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":729,"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17\/revisions\/729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.freedomwithwriting.com\/freedom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}