Hiya friends,
The insomniac tendencies are resurfacing. I’m writing this at 3 a.m. I’m also beginning to feel the rumblings of a new novel.
Perhaps the two things are related?
Enjoy the issue!
Natasha Khullar Relph
NEWS & VIEWS
Freelance revolution
It’s hard to keep a straight face when reading all the breathless reporting about freelancing being the answer to “The Great Resignation,” especially since a majority of readers of this newsletter have been freelancing since way before it was cool. (September 2022 will be my 20th freelancing anniversary.)
Still, it’s a trend, and it’s relevant to us. So first, the highlights:
- High-end gig work in consulting, marketing, writing and project management has gained more traction during the pandemic. It’s projected that in five years, by 2027, 86.5 million people will be freelancing in the United States. That’s half of the total US workforce.
- 48% of Gen Z workers are already freelance because they see life as a freelancer as being more stable than being in a traditional full-time role.
- An MBO study found that 82% of freelancers are happier working independently.
None of this will come as a surprise to you, especially if you’re already a freelancer. But this trend does tell us a few things:
1. More demand for content: People who quit jobs don’t just become freelancers, they become entrepreneurs. And the one thing almost every business needs to stand out is content, from social media to blog posts to SEO-friendly articles. In 2021, 45% of the 709 freelancers polled across the US and UK said they saw an increased demand for their services.
2. Availability of contract work: Finding regular and reliable contracts that you could count on each month used to be the holy grail of freelancing. Today, it’s the norm. Outside of journalism, most content is now offered on a contract, and is an expectation from both sides.
3. Rates are higher: With increased demand have come higher rates. Reliable freelancers who provide quality work on time are in high demand, and reporting six-figure incomes and above. Freelance UK’s 2022 Freelancer Rates report notes that the average day rate for freelancers is £368, up 5% from 2020. The average top 10% band across all disciplines is £710 a day.
4. Change in perception: For the first time ever, that you’ve hopped around from client to client, worked in a variety of industries, and experimented with different styles of writing, is an asset and not a liability, both as a freelancer and as someone looking for a full-time job (especially remote).
5. Mainstream interest: More people than ever are becoming freelancers, which means more mainstream publications are publishing articles and essays for this market. Take those “how to find freelance clients” stories that were only of interest to niche publications, and get bigger bylines and bigger pay checks for them.
SEE ALSO:
Want to sell more books? Write better endings: “If your book ends well, leaving the reader satisfied, then they’ll want to repeat the experience with your next book,” author Kristine Kathryn Rusch writes. How do you end well? Rusch explains.
For brand content writers: It’s not for everyone, but if you have even a passing interest in SEO, consider adding it to your repertoire. It could lead to more money, more assignments, and happier clients.
WRITERS WANTED
Our How to Pitch page now has 110 pitching guidelines, including National Geographic, The Economist, Financial Times, Wired , and more.
THE WORDLING PICK
Packed with practical, actionable advice, The Freelance Writer’s Guide to Making Six Figures is a business coaching plan for $100k years.
When the creative work is done, this is the instruction manual you need to make money.
WORDLING INSIGHT
Failure is a choice.
Because failure only happens when you’ve given up. If you’re still striving towards a goal, you haven’t failed.
Failure is only possible if you’ve given up on a goal. If you haven’t yet given up, you haven’t yet failed, only had setbacks.
Giving up is a choice. Keeping on going is a choice.
Failure is a choice. And you can choose differently any time.
GLOBAL REPORT
GERMANY: “In Germany more than 80 percent of all newspaper brands have implemented a paid content model. Around 70 percent of these use a freemium model.” Holger Kansky, the Head of Digital & Marketing at the German Association of Digital Publishers and Newspaper Publishers (BDZV) in Berlin, talks about the growth and ambitions of German news media.
INDIA: By 2027, the global freelance platforms market is expected to reach $9192.9 million. These Indian startups are helping to eliminate the gap between skilled freelancers and brands.
MEXICO: In Mexico, social media isn’t the major driver of political misinformation it’s often believed to be, according to a new study in the International Journal of Press/Politics. Researchers Sebastián Valenzuela, Carlos Muñiz, and Marcelo Santos found “no significant correlation between using Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram or WhatsApp as news sources and belief in political misinformation.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It’s none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way.”
— Ernest Hemingway
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