Calling all freelance writers - URGENT PLEA

[Robert Morschel]

Hi,

I have a friend here in the UK who is in some financial difficulty but has to stay at home with children.  I mentioned freelance writing, knowing that some of you make money from this.

I wonder if you'd be willing to offer some tips and suggestions and good places to begin, either here or by email to mulledvine[AT]gmail[DOT]com?

Many thanks.

Robert

[Gita]

Technical writing, copy-editing, or proof-reading for mistakes are more in demand than freelance writing, since every man and his dog have blogs for free, nowadays.

Your friend should send out 30 or more letters of introduction with a resume (curriculum vitae) to companies and individuals, listing his services and rates for work. Generally, here in the U.S., rates average around $40 an hour for technical writing and $25-$30 an hour for copy editing.  He should not attempt this  if he is a poor speller, punctuater or grammarian. You kind of have to be a stickler for perfection if you offer yourself as an editor.

One area  in which I have found a good bit of  work is editing PhD theses for graduate students. I have also proofread book manuscripts and charged $25 an hour.  If the author wants a page rate, that usually amounts to about $1.20 per page. So for example, a 400-page novel would come to about $500, which is fair pay for both the author and the proofreader.

 

 

[Robert Morschel]

Thanks so much, Gita!  Very helpful.  

Robert

[Damon Gitelman]

Here in the U.S.A., a LinkedIn profile can be helpful in promoting one's skills as a writer and editor. FREE, easy and quick to assemble, and helps connect the user to many other LinkedIn groups and users.

And, through LinkedIn, there are MANY groups - most open and free to join - for professional writers and editors. LinkedIn is not like Facebook - much more serious, businesslike. In addition to a personal page (usually for job hunters), your friend can have a business page, too.

Hope this helps. 

www.linkedin.com

DG

[Susan Shuman]

Hello,

I've had some excellent luck with www.elance.com 

textbroker.com is another good one.

All the best,

Susan

[Robert Morschel]

Thanks, Susan.