Hey! I’m Elise, the one who runs Freelance Writers Hub.

It’s hard to believe that I’ve been a freelance writer for almost a decade now.

After I graduated from university in 2009 with a business degree, I realized I was one of those “unemployable” types who really wanted to run her own business.

So I went back to school for a year to get a post-graduate diploma in small business management and entrepreneurship.

In 2011, I started my freelance writing business.

Starting a Freelance Writing Business Can Be Very Intimidating

I struggled. A lot.

I had very little confidence in what I was doing, so I was riddled with anxiety about pitching and terrified of establishing and owning my rates with potential clients.

There’s also a big sense of disllulsionment that takes place when you embark on your freelance writing journey as you begin to realize that writing is really only a small part of what you’ll be doing — especially in the beginning — to run your business.

And then of course there’s the issue with getting paid enough to make a decent income from your writing.

There isn’t a going rate for freelance writing, and with so many freelancers on platforms like Elance and Upwork offering to do work for ridiculously low rates, some client prospects won’t think twice about saying no to your rates.

My Story

It all started with a blog.

It was in 2009, after graduating university and hating the accounting job I was working at, when I discovered the wonderful world of self-hosted WordPress blogs.

I was very inconsistent with my blog at first, changing its theme and focus whenever I decided I didn’t like it anymore.

Eventually, sometime in 2010 when I was back in school, I fell into a routine of blogging about online business and marketing.

I networked with many other bloggers and had a good little audience going.

When I decided to dabble in freelance writing after graduating in 2011, my blog basically served as a portfolio of work.

Over the years I’ve written for content mills, About.com, business and marketing agencies, home decor blogs, technology news sites, health blogs, health product companies, small businesses, online feature article magazines, and even nonprofit organizations.

I’ve spent time making less than $5 an hour and I’ve also made $12,000 in one month writing just part-time.

I’ve been ghosted by a client who I made the mistake of not securing with a contract, forgotten to charge extra for hour-long interviews on the phone with doctors to write my articles, and even taken projects that were way over my head because I was desperate.

Needless to say, I’ve learned a lot of the years, and now I feel ready to teach it.

How I Grew My Income

For the first few years of freelance writing, I was only making a part-time income.

I felt stuck and didn’t know how to earn more.

In 2014 and 2015, I started to look at what wasn’t working for me and what needed to change, and by the end of 2015, I had earned $42,000 — an income level I could actually use to support myself.

In 2016, I increased my previous year’s earnings by $14,000 to earn $56,000.

But in 2017, things really took off.

I almost doubled my income and went from earning $56,000 in 2016 to earning $107,000 in 2017.

The fact that I earned six figures as a freelance writer might seem crazy, but for me, it really wasn’t.

I worked at it and I knew I deserved it.

Here are some simple screenshots from my accounting software that show my earnings for those years:

So, how did I do it?

Well, to sum it up, here are some of the main things I focused on to get where I wanted to be:

• I revamped my website and optimized it so the right clients would eventually start coming to me (instead of me having to waste so much time constantly trying to find them).
• I started charging higher rates and owning those rates.
• I stopped looking at job boards and started researching and pitching to the clients I wanted to work for.
• I developed a system to help screen and filter out any unfit client prospects early to help save time and energy.
• I started learning how to communicate the value I’d be providing to my clients rather than just focusing on the writing I’d be doing for them.
• I did lots of personal development to help work on my confidence as a writer.

If any of the above sounds super intimidating to you, and you’re just starting out, don’t worry just yet.

Your learning and growth will happen in your own time, but luckily, you have me to help you avoid some of the most common mistakes and take your business to new levels more quickly and efficiently than I did.

It Doesn’t Have to Be Hard

Freelance writing is really only hard when you unknowingly fall victim to the common traps that you’re convinced are just part of the journey.

Anything seriously technical, you can simplify or outsource.

Any client that wants to pay you pennies, you can politely refuse.

Any month that’s slow to bring in income, you can make up for the next month.

Any writing project that’s returned to you for edits, you can use to improve your writing for future projects.

Any thought of self-doubt, you can change by working on your confidence.

I Want to Help You How to Build a Profitable Freelance Writing Business

I don’t claim to be perfect and I’ll always be a lifelong learner in writing and in business.

However, I know I have enough knowledge and experience to help you pursue your dream of starting a side gig or full-time career in freelance writing.

I know that awful feeling of being stuck in some soul-sucking job just because you have to pay the bills and wishing to be able to get up every day and get paid to do something you actually love — write!

If you’re ready to embrace the learning process and embark on the fun and rewarding journey of building your own freelance writing journey, then I invite you to scroll down this page, hit the big tan button, and sign up for my 10-day freelance writing course so you can start landing those awesome, high-paying gigs.

When you’re done, I’ll see you on the other side!