New to Freelancing? Here’s how to Earn your First $1000 per Article

Disclaimer:

This article is not on your conventional online freelance writing. 

Truth be told, online writing despite the hype heaped on it is not THAAAT rosy. Why? It teaches you how to write crappy, quickly researched articles that pay so poorly that you will have to slave for many years before you break even. For many newbies, two common misconceptions exist:

• That on the Internet, you can find writing gigs no matter how low your writing talent is.
• Another misnomer is that the United States and Europe clients are so rich that they will pay anything for a crappy article.

Sorry to burst your bubble—but that is very far from the truth!

The question then is– how can newbie freelancers earn their first $1000? Here are places where you can begin:

Writing Contests
Throughout the year, there are so many forums with open writing contests offering handsome rewards. Quickly do your research and get one that is free to join with a reward of $1000 +. The one great thing about winning these contests is that you not only receive the bucks, but you also meet the judging editors who could connect you to more writing gigs.

Volunteer and Network
Rather than write on content mills that pay $2 for a 500 words article, build your writing portfolio by volunteering to write for corporate blogs and magazines. This way, you not only create a network but you also get bylines that will come in handy when applying for writing gigs.

Start Your Own Blog and Create a Selling Portfolio

Despite offering an easy money-making platform, content mills have made writers really lazy—they do not market their talent. Today, there are so many people who would have become talented scribes but are not. Why? They are burning out in content mills as they try to pay bills. But lo, they are getting dimes!

Defy content mills and start your own blog. Market it by guest blogging, social proofing on authority sites and voila, you will have clients hunting you down.

Affiliate Marketing

Another promising market for good writers is affiliate marketing. Here, you start a niche site selling Amazon, Walmart or Payoneer products. For every product sold through your links, you get paid a certain commission. Affiliate marketing is a nice source of passive income since your site continues selling products even when you are asleep.

Write EBooks, Scripts and Novels

A question—if all talented writers run to content mills, who will be the next Sidney Sheldon, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, John Grisham, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Haruki Muramaki, Tyler Perry… you get the drift?

Invest your creative energies writing meaningful eBooks, novels, TV scripts, films or radio dramas that will have an impact on the world. Most freelancers who have been used to short articles might find this daunting. How about challenging yourself on longer articles. After writing, market the work proactively. Once the world realises that you are a creative gem, they will pay you every dime you demand.

The bottom-line of making your first $1000 is marketing yourself till clients feel that you are indispensable. Writing on content mills will only leave you exhausted and hungrier.