So You Want To Be A Freelance Writer

Sometimes it’s lonely, particularly if you are a naturally sociable person and are used to bouncing ideas off other people.

tuffing teddy bears to be sold in Harrods!

I have worked as a freelance writer and journalist for the past 15 years and in that time I have written for most of the UK national women’s magazines and many national newspapers. I have had

11 books published, have ghost-written three other books, been a columnist for two national magazines, taught writing classes and have been a local newspaper editor. I have written for publications in the UK, Ireland and America and all this in the name of being a freelance writer.

These are the writers’ bibles and list, among other things, every magazine and newspaper published in the UK, and many overseas, including editorial contacts, what they publish, what they are looking for and what rates they pay. A quick look through will reveal that there is a publication for almost every hobby, interest or occupation, from Accountancy Age to Zoo Magazine and everything in between.

I always advise people starting out in freelance writing to buy a current copy of The Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook or The Writers’ Handbook. T

Specialise in something you can share; whether it’s IT skills, being able to cook a family meal in under 10 minutes, or household cleaning tips; there will always be something that you know or a skill that you have that other people would like to know about, and more importantly a publication that will be willing to print it.

and write about it as if you are an expert. Because that is what readers want – information from someone who knows more than they do on a certain subject.

Writing What You Know

Always ask first.

Stewart Jones

Did you know that a cow gives nearly 200,000 glasses of milk in her lifetime? Or that a woodpecker can peck twenty times a second? To coincide with World Animal Day on xxx, I wondered whether you might be interested in a 500-word filler of little-known trivia about animals?

I would be happy to email my copy over to you if you are interested. Thank you for your time.

Regards