Where and How to Market Yourself: HELP PLEASE!

[DMurphy02]

Hiya, fellow writers!
I've been mostly a lurker since I joined. As an online college student who is also trying to make a quiet living as a freelance writer, and maybe even an author... Life is busy! School is fun (yes, I am one of those folks), and I enjoy writing about what I have knowledge in, both personally and professionally. I'm still working on my mental health book, for instance. Going fairly well so far, all things considered...!

That being said, I need to ask a common question. I tried looking for similar things in the forums, but didn't have anything pop up... So:
Where do you market yourself and your talents, and HOW do you even do that?!

I may love writing about nature, animals, mental health, disabilities, etc... But I am one heck of a shy gal, so actually putting myself out there in any real way is difficult. I've gotten over my fear of it with the dreaded content mills like Fiverr, ProBlogger, etc... But I know actually marketing my services will also help me gain potential clients and work while I write and continue my schooling. I'm VERY new to freelancing, especially as a writer, and have next to no professional experience or examples... I do have a personal blog on Medium, but nothing professional or actively published.
What I am trying to say is basically: I would love help, advice, or tips! I'm not sure how to go about this part of freelancing. I don't know where to start, what to say, or how to write good pitches, even. Anything is helpful, and I thank anyone who pipes up!

 

[CMBright]

I am a little confused by your question. So I will answer each of the three things I think you are most likely asking.

I think you are asking where you submit your writing for publication. Submission Grinder has non-fiction, short stories and poetry. Enter the search parameters such as non-fiction or x cents per word and get a list of places that take your work based on your search parameters.

If you are wanting to self publish, we have an entire area of the forum dedicated to self publishing discussions.

If you are looking for hands on rather than writing, I'd find a place you are interested in and ask if they have volunteer opportunities. I know our local wildlife rescue is always willing to accept volunteers.

 

[Unimportant]

My understanding -- which is definitely imperfect! -- is that freelance writers generally pitch a specific story (that they're qualified to write) to a specific editor at a specific magazine/newspaper/thingie. Frex, HuffPost will take pitches for personal stories.

There are also markets you can submit completed articles to. The Submission Grinder is a searchable database of markets and might be a good place to start.

But it's probably best not to spend money (on research, travel, interviewing people, etc) in anticipation of a sale; better wait till a story is contracted if it's one that's going to involve an investment on the author's part.

 

[Rufio]

It sounds like you're talking about journalistic/feature articles in online magazines, rather than fiction/poetry or writing content for businesses trying to sell. Is that right?

Disclaimer: This is all (I think good) advice that I've read in other places. I haven't done any of it.

If you have no professional experience or samples, you can just write some yourself and host them in a portfolio. Pick a publication that you want to write for, and write an article 'for them' as if they assigned one to you. Just be honest in your portfolio and say that it's a "spec" piece (speculative) — don't say it was commissioned, and don't say the name of the publication you were imagining.

When you have a few of those, you've got something to point people to — something on a topic that's relevant to them, and in a tone and style they'll appreciate. If it's hosted on a nice portfolio site with a bit of graphical flair and some confidence in your bio, you'll gain credibility.

If you're a shy person (aren't we all), social media is your friend. But it'll be slow, and takes consistency. You can search for people who work in the publications you like, and follow or connect with them. If you respond to their posts with something supportive or valuable or insightful (never salesy) and maybe get a comment back, you'll eventually be someone 'known' on their radar. Then when you pitch them, it won't be a cold pitch — it'll be from a name they kind of recognise who's shown some knowledge and a good attitude.

If you're pitching (especially if it's somewhere that hasn't done a call for submissions), really try to put yourself in their shoes and imagine what they want to read in a pitch. "I love your animal magazine" is OK — but "Your article on lion poaching last month was fascinating" is way better. Be specific and personalise it so you stand out from the people who spam the same introduction to everyone.

You can also post your own stuff on social media. Try to focus on what your 'ideal editor' would like to see. So you can talk bout nature/animals, but also talk about publishing and writing: what's happening in the industry, the magazines and articles and writers you like, etc. You never know when someone will 'like' your post, and it'll appear in the feed of an editor who's connected to them, etc.

Finally (and this might get the fastest results), drop some messages to people you already know — family, friends, students, colleagues, social networks. If they've got a website or blog you can write for, that's great. More fuel for your portfolio. But you can also let them know you're in the freelance writing game, and ask if they know anyone who might need a writer.

 

[DMurphy02]

Hey all, thanks for the replies! I'll try to reply to all of you, so bear with me.

@CMBright - I am not even remotely close to wanting to self-publish. I'm not even sure if I want to self-publish or use a publisher and deal with fees. I meant publishing articles, either short or long-form, based on my topic niches. As I mentioned in my original post, I really love to write, and I am knowledgeable on a few different niches. I just... Don't know how to "market" myself and get clients or writing jobs. I am limited to remote work or freelance work due to being disabled and unable to drive myself anywhere. Even if it just turns into a side gig, I'll be happy. I just don't know how to broadcast my services and get clients, or "get noticed," as you could say.

@Unimportant - I have been researching and basically making a "list" of possible online publications I can pitch and send articles to... But other than that, I have no idea what else I can do. I'm not much of a "story writer" as I am a fun, educational writer. I could probably be good at copywriting, but nearly all of the jobs I have looked at want a certain years worth of experience, a full portfolio, and even degrees, none of which I have.

@Rufio - Exactly! As I mentioned to Unimportant, I am more of a feature article writer. I wouldn't say I'm a journalist or anything- I am far too afraid to actually go out and interview people and film things... Unless it's nature-related, and B-footage. I am apparently more than happy to do that! (Story for another time~) I am drafting some articles I intend to post on my Medium blog, but otherwise, as I tried to state originally, I just... Don't know how to "market" my writing services and reach potential clients outside a content mill.

 

[Haley7]

A little late to this post but this may be helpful: When I freelanced more, I found Study Hall incredibly useful. It's a member group that compiles lists of publications actively accepting pitches (and details on what topics/who and how to pitch). It's been a while since I was a member, but I did pay a small fee to receive those lists each week, and it was completely worth it IMO. Otherwise, I was trolling Twitter trying to find pitch calls on my own or cold pitching. Sending pitches and having a portfolio website was all I did to put myself out there and I was able to get published. If you do have a few published articles under your belt, you could just link those in your email pitch rather than linking a website.

ETA: Since you mention you have no professional examples, I would suggest seeing if your college (you mentioned online school, so mileage may vary with this) has a publication you can write for. Otherwise, you can also look into small, local magazines or newspapers to help build confidence and a portfolio.

 

[Stytch]

Hiya, fellow writers!
I've been mostly a lurker since I joined. As an online college student who is also trying to make a quiet living as a freelance writer, and maybe even an author... Life is busy! School is fun (yes, I am one of those folks), and I enjoy writing about what I have knowledge in, both personally and professionally. I'm still working on my mental health book, for instance. Going fairly well so far, all things considered...!

That being said, I need to ask a common question. I tried looking for similar things in the forums, but didn't have anything pop up... So:
Where do you market yourself and your talents, and HOW do you even do that?!

I may love writing about nature, animals, mental health, disabilities, etc... But I am one heck of a shy gal, so actually putting myself out there in any real way is difficult. I've gotten over my fear of it with the dreaded content mills like Fiverr, ProBlogger, etc... But I know actually marketing my services will also help me gain potential clients and work while I write and continue my schooling. I'm VERY new to freelancing, especially as a writer, and have next to no professional experience or examples... I do have a personal blog on Medium, but nothing professional or actively published.
What I am trying to say is basically: I would love help, advice, or tips! I'm not sure how to go about this part of freelancing. I don't know where to start, what to say, or how to write good pitches, even. Anything is helpful, and I thank anyone who pipes up!

It sounds to me like what you need is a portfolio, for one thing. Pick your favorite free web hosting service and go to town. Make a site that (because this is for WRITING, right?) does not have to have a ton of super cool visual appeal. It has to have a few clear ways for people to see examples of your work, and it has to have a URL that you can share when you bid for a job, so you can say, "please see examples of my work here."

If you don't have samples of your work, well, that's the first step. That's a different conversation, but one way to do it is to seek out your campus publications, like the student paper/magazine/journal and offer to work for them. They may even pay you. (Probably not, but there are often workstudy positions in these, as well). Now you can ALSO say you've been published with a byline and everything.

Ok, so, I went back and realized you said you're an ONLINE student. My advice still stands, if your school is totally online they may still have some publications you can help with. If they're long-distance to you, reach out and see what they can suggest. Schools love students who want to "get involved," I promise. Ask and you will find.

If the school is, for whatever reason, not an avenue for generating clips, then I'd look around your town, wherever you are. Someone, somewhere, is running some sort of hyper local publication and they will be interested in someone who wants to work for free to build their portfolio. (Again, they MAY even pay you, but I wouldn't expect much. And if they're like, "we don't have any openings," THEN play the "I'll work for free" card. Don't START there.)

You can also just... write... on whatever you want. And stick it up on that portfolio site. I'd suggest that whatever you post be relevant to the types of freelance writing you are angling for. If you are trying to write articles, don't post a short story, etc.

For full disclosure, I believe starting out in freelancing is super hard. The way folks who used to hire writers are using AI instead these days makes it even harder. It's not something I'd recommend. Only do it if you really love it. I've done some freelance writing, but those jobs always came because of connections I'd made at regular full-time jobs I already had. (So maybe I'm not the best person to advise about how to kickstart a freelance career?) I stand by the portfolio advice, though. And if you decide this is something you want to make a real career of, start generating those clips now. Even entry level jobs will want to see samples of your work. Don't do what I did, and only generate enough clips to apply for the jobs that asked for the minimal level of clips. Get as many as you can, so you can pick the ones that are the best or even the most relevant to the position. For instance, if I see a job that is in academics, I can pull some clips that are from my time doing that sort of work. If I see a job that is in the a different industry, I'm going to try to pull clips that in some way relate to that. A story about a construction project would work for a job with a builder or the DOT, right?

When I left college I had 5 clips. Not 5 GOOD clips, just 5 total. If a job asked for, say, 8 samples, I couldn't apply. Feel free to learn from my bad example.