How I Landed My First Major Freelance Writing Client

Build a portfolio, know your niche, and shop local.

Photo: Austin Distel/Unsplash

Last fall, I quit a full-time job to have more control over my writing career. For months, I subsisted on a part-time job and a few intermittent projects I had gotten from previous contacts. It was all meaningful work that kept my head above water, but I craved something more stable.

Then, I landed my first major freelance client in May, one that promised steady and fairly-paid work in an industry I love. In this article, I’ll tell you what I did to get there.

But before I begin, I must give the disclaimer that your mileage may vary (YMMV). We are in the midst of a pandemic, and I recognize that I’m quite lucky to have gotten my job when I did.

But I also believe there are ways to maximize your luck. Each writer has a different career journey, and I hope my story can help make someone else’s journey easier.

First, I built my portfolio

I originally built my portfolio on Wix and bought an original domain to look more professional. There, I posted links to web-accessible writing samples, mostly album reviews from my university days writing for campus radio, as well as random short stories and creative non-fiction I had published in literary journals. (None of this is super impressive stuff, but hey, everyone starts somewhere!)

Then, I discovered Medium, and my portfolio quickly moved here. I strongly encourage new writers to build their portfolios on Medium, for several reasons:

1. You can get instant feedback on your writing. By posting to an existing community (Medium and Medium publications), you’ll get eyes on your work right away. You’ll also receive quantitative stats and qualitative responses from readers interested in your topic.
2. You can include engagement numbers in your resume when you bid for projects. Employers love seeing quantified accomplishment statements like “X article earned Y engagements in Z amount of time.”
3. Your Medium profile is a one-stop link to your portfolio. If you don’t have a website, you can direct interested clients to your Medium profile, or link them to specific pieces of writing that show off your skills.
4. You can get a crash course in writing and figure out what you’re good at writing about. Join a Medium Facebook group and interact with other writers. Learn from them, and learn about yourself!

Through trial and error, you’ll begin to figure out what you’re good at writing about (your niche).

Even if you don’t like Medium (it’s not for everyone, I get it!), the bottom line is you must have a portfolio. A portfolio proves to clients that you know how to write. It’s also a place to show off your knowledge in an area.

Next, I identified my niche

Here, I admittedly have a head start because I’ve worked as an in-house copywriter before and already have experience (and a portfolio) of work for various businesses and industries.

But if you don’t have prior writing experience, your niche is not necessarily something you have written about before.

Here’s the bottom line: businesses have websites, and websites are made of text. This text needs to be well-written, well-organized, and search engine optimized to attract customers.

Instead, think about your past professional experience as well as what you do outside of work. Do you enjoy gardening? Fishing? Investing in Bitcoin? Did you work at a fashion retail once, have an eye for style, and know a dozen different words to describe the hem of a sweater?

I have seen freelance writing jobs for almost everything, so don’t dismiss your obscure hobby for canning homemade jelly yet. There was an explosion in cannabis-related freelance writing jobs in Canada after we legalized recreational weed in 2018. So, yes, you can even make an honest living off writing about weed.

Here’s the bottom line: businesses have websites, and websites are made of text. This text needs to be well-written, well-organized, and search engine optimized to attract customers.

I identified early on that one of my niches will be music. I am a classically trained pianist, and I even taught piano and music theory for a few years. So when I found an online posting for a freelance writing gig for a virtual music-teaching company, I applied immediately.

Then, I shopped local

I found my musical freelance gig on my local Indeed job board.

I wish more freelancers would do this. Freelance writers — especially beginner ones I see on forums — seem to focus on trendy, freelancer-specific platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, and Problogger. And while some people find success with these platforms, there have also been worrying complaints about them.

From what I have seen, these platforms appear to be oversaturated with competition. I applied for a gig on Problogger once and spent hours tailoring my resume and completing the client’s extensive application process. In the end, I got crickets, and I was not surprised. I was bidding for a job at the top of the search results on a world-famous website where writers congregate.

Because they’re so popular, the competition on these platforms can be fierce, especially when you factor in writers from countries where working for $5/hour can net you a very good living.

Local job boards, on the other hand, will limit your competition.

Proximity also has other benefits. Like the one I applied to on Problogger, many remote writing jobs are based in the United States, making taxes for non-Americans like me a small nightmare. (I had enough trouble navigating through Medium tax documents!)

More importantly, remember that freelancing is inherently risky. As a freelancer, you’re your own legal, accounting, and H.R. department. Shopping and working locally will at least let you work with employment laws and corporate cultures you’re already familiar with.

Finally, I applied to the job by highlighting my niche knowledge

Make sure you back up your niche knowledge with writing samples. It doesn’t have to be directly related — I have never written a piece called “How to Read Music” — but your writing samples should show your knowledge and interest in that industry.

For my music education gig, I highlighted a piece I had written for Better Humans, “How to Use a Musician’s Work ethic for Writing Success.” I also mentioned a memoir piece about my childhood piano lessons that had been anthologized in print and my old album and concert reviews for campus radio.

If you don’t have pieces about your niche yet, I encourage you to start writing them today! Then, publish them on Medium and get some feedback. Then, write more.

The takeaway

The truth is, landing a freelancing gig — or any job, for that matter — requires a chain of events to line up perfectly. Like romantic partners, you and your client have to find each other in a sea of freelancers, job postings, business interests, and random economic variables.

It all sounds very intimidating, but people — even relative beginners like me — do it every day. And there are ways to maximize your chances.

In a way, it’s kind of like dating. Single people can maximize their chances of finding a soulmate in this crazy world by A, working on becoming their best self and B, hanging out in places other singles congregate.

So, assemble a slick portfolio and make visiting local job boards a regular habit. Meanwhile, keep writing, keep improving, and if you haven’t already, do a little self-exploration to find your niche. Soon, you’ll find a job posting that might fit.

Apply to that job, and keep applying. You’ll get there!