How to Become a Freelance Writer With No Experience in 2025

Wondering how to become a freelance writer with no experience?

It seems like everyone’s starting a freelancing side gig these days. Honestly, freelance writing is a hot career, though admittedly that might just be in the circles I travel in. I regularly come across individuals interested in pursuing a freelance career but they have no idea where or how to start.

Freelance writing is a hot career, though admittedly that might just be in the circles I travel in. I regularly come across individuals interested in pursuing a freelance career but they have no idea where or how to start.

I tend to give people the same few pieces of advice, but with one-off questions that are ill-timed when I’m not on-the-ball enough to answer them. I almost always forget a few great pieces of advice that I’ve picked up along the way.

So to solve my problem of forgetfulness and help all the new and aspiring writers out there, I thought I would create a simple, no-frills, no-experience guide on how to start a freelance writing career from scratch.

Before we begin, a few quick notes:

1. You don’t need fancy credentials to become a freelance writer. I’ve got my fair share of degrees and experience, but honestly? I could’ve reached the same place without them. What really matters is your willingness to learn, your hunger for success, and recognizing that freelance writing is a business, not just a side gig. If you’ve got those traits, you’re already on the right track.
2. Your journey is yours, not theirs. It’s easy to get caught up in other people’s success stories and start feeling bad about where you are in your journey. But let me remind you—those folks aren’t you. You don’t know their starting point, and you definitely don’t know what it took to get where they are. Take inspiration from others, but don’t let their timeline mess with your own. Your journey is valid, no matter the pace.
3. There’s plenty of work for you out there. Seriously, there’s room for everyone. I get it, I’ve been there too—wondering if there’s enough work to go around. But let me tell you: there is. A scarcity mindset will only hold you back. So, say it with me: There is enough work for me!
4. Not everything I say will work for you. The advice I’m sharing is what worked for me, but that doesn’t mean it’s a one-size-fits-all solution. If something doesn’t click for you, don’t sweat it. Feel free to tweak things or even toss them out. Your path might look different, and that’s totally fine.
5. Freelance writing isn’t always easy. Sure, the idea of working from a beachside house is appealing (trust me, I know), but let’s be real: freelance writing is a lot of hard work. A lot of people out there make it seem like you can slap together a resume, apply to a few jobs, and suddenly be making bank. Spoiler alert: that’s not how it works. The reality is, a lot of people try and give up. But don’t let that scare you—this is totally doable if you’re ready to hustle. It won’t be easy, but it’ll be worth it.

Should you really start freelance writing?

Let’s cut to the chase—do you have what it takes to be a freelance writer?

Honestly, probably.

Most people who think they want to be freelance writers have the potential to succeed. But having potential and actually using it are two very different things. Not everyone can make that jump, and that’s okay.

Freelance writing might be the right fit for you if:

• You enjoy writing (Because, spoiler alert: you will actually have to write).
• You have decent writing skills (You can always improve them, but a solid foundation helps).
• You’re good—or willing to get good—at time management.
• You want to be your own boss.
• You can communicate effectively (clients, deadlines, expectations—it all requires clear communication).
• You’re prepared to put in the work to get your business off the ground.

But most importantly, you need to actually want to do it.

Not just the idea of freelancing—like the remote work life, or firing clients who get on your nerves (trust me, those perks are great). I mean, do you want to be a freelance writer, through the grind and all?

If you’re not really sold on this whole writing thing, success will be a tough pill to swallow. But if you’re in it for the long haul, get ready to crush it.

How to start freelance writing with no experience: 6 steps

Let’s say the above list fits you perfectly, and you’re ready to dive in and put in the work. But how exactly do you get started?

Here’s the step-by-step breakdown for starting your freelance writing career from scratch:

1. Set your goals

Let’s kick things off with the most important step: setting goals.

Getting anything done is tough enough, but trying to do it without knowing where you’re headed? That’s a recipe for chaos.

Goals give you a sense of direction and keep you on track. Without them, you’ll just be spinning your wheels, unsure of what to do next.

Picking the right goals

Start with small, manageable goals—things you can actually accomplish. I’m talking about goals that push you forward but don’t set you up for failure.

Aiming to make a million dollars in your first year might be a bit… ambitious. Sure, anything’s possible, but that kind of goal can quickly deflate your motivation when you realize it’s not happening.

Instead, go for SMART goals:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-bound

SMART goals keep you grounded. They’re realistic but still challenging enough to keep you motivated and moving forward.

For your first goals, focus on these key areas:

• Building a strong portfolio
• Landing clients and securing work
• Marketing your services
• Making valuable connections

As for financial goals, stick with what’s necessary—like the amount of money you need to pay your bills. Dreaming about a cabin in the woods is fun, but setting those types of lofty financial goals early on can be more demotivating than anything. Keep it practical, and you’ll build confidence as you go.

Let’s start off with a bang.

Getting anything done is hard enough, but try to do it with no idea where you’re going? Impossible!

Setting goals helps us head in the right direction. Otherwise, we’re flailing about without a clue of what we’re supposed to be doing.

Goals are designed to point you in the right direction, and keep you on track while you’re on your way. Without goals, you’re going to be mighty lost!

Beginner freelance goal examples

Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered!

Here are a few beginner-friendly goals you can modify to fit your journey:

30-DAY GOALS

• Land your first client
• Complete your first assignment (preferably on time!)
• Create and launch your website/portfolio
• Write and finish three sample pieces for your portfolio

90-DAY GOALS

• Get your first freelance paycheck (it usually takes 14 to 30 days to get paid, so don’t expect it on day 1)
• Hone in on your niche (the more specific, the better!)
• Sign X number of clients (set a realistic goal)
• Build a base monthly income of $X (whether that’s $500, $750, or $1,000, easing into full-time freelancing is totally fine!)

180-DAY GOALS

• Secure a reliable monthly income (especially if going full-time is your goal)
• Land your dream client or work with companies X, Y, or Z
• Get a piece published on X website or in Y magazine
• Sign a retainer client (a nice steady gig!)

Your first days, weeks, and months will vary depending on your goals.

When I started out, I was all about leaving my corporate job ASAP. I set myself a higher bar and didn’t give myself a ton of time to reach it.

Spoiler alert: I managed to do it!

So, whether you’re transitioning from a full-time job, aiming for the nomadic lifestyle, or juggling a family, remember: you don’t need years to get started. But what you do need is to make the most of the time you have and work smart.

2. Define your writing practice

With your goals set, it’s time to decide what kind of writer you want to be. By this I mean what do you want to write, and what do you want to write it about.

To be fair: these two things (goals and practice planning) can be done interchangably.

Personally, I find setting goals first then designing the rest of the plan work best for me. Planning the goals help get me excited about the rest of the work. But you do what works best for you.

What do you want to write about?

The first thing you need to tackle is what do you want.

One big reason many turn to freelance is because of the versatility and freedom of choice. I LOVE being able to pick what I work on, and that starts with figuring out what you want.

I’m going to contradict a TON of advice out there. But while everyone else recommends picking a single freelance writing niche, I disagree.

First of all, it’s hard to figure out where your passions lie, as it refers to work, when you haven’t tried a few things. I’m not saying go all-out here, but it’s OK to pick a few select things.

In the long run, niching down can help you secure higher rates. But being too niched at the beginning can make it a lot harder to break into freelance writing. This is especially the case if the niche you want is more competitive.

So, write a list of topics that you think you’d be interested in writing about. 

What can you write about right now?

I don’t care who you are, you have an area of expertise in something.

It might be that you know the Sims 4 inside and out, or you swaddle a mean baby because you’ve rasied 16 of your own (#BlessYou). Regardless of who you are and what you’re into, there is something that you are “qualified” and/or experienced enough in to write.

I want to drop a massive caveat here and say that being “qualified” or “experienced” DOES NOT mean you are the be-all, end-all expert. You don’t have to be a certified swim coach to teach someone how to doggy-paddle just like you don’t need to be a fashion influencer to share your love of jumpsuits.

The ONLY requirement is that you are more knowedlgeable about the person reading the article. They’re there to read, you’re there to share… no one said anything about having to be an actual expert... whatever that even means.

Not sure where to find the right are of experience? Take a look at your previous work:

• Have you spent time working in retail? Chances are you’re a pro at customer service!
• A college student or recent grad? Student life is probably something you can talk about!
• Horror movie fan? What about movie reviews?

If you really think about it, you’ll probably come up with WAY too many topics. So, start making that list!

3. Build your portfolio

If you do nothing else on this list (though I recommend doing everything), you NEED to build a portfolio.

Starting a freelance writing business is a bit of catch-22. You can’t get job without published samples, but getting published samples is hella hard without any jobs. So, you need to rig the game a bit.

There are three main ways to publish work without having actual freelance wtiting clients. You can:

1. Start a blog
2. Write on a profit-sharing site (like Medium)
3. Volunteer to guest post on someone else’s blog

Start a blog

I highly recommend that everyone running a freelance writing business also runs their own blog.

While you can make good money freelance writing, you’ll want to seriously consider diversifying your income. I don’t know about you, but relying on a handful of companies to pay my full income is a little uncomfortable. A more passive stream of income, like a blog, can help bring a little more money in.

This is really a two birds, one stone scenario. You have an opportunity to publish your own blog posts for writing samples and do some experimenting, all while building a money-making asset.

Blogs are a ton of work, but they’re completely worth it. Beyond publishing pieces in niches you’re interested in working in, you can earn money via affiliate links and advertising.

Use a profit-sharing site

To make money writing sooner rather than later, a profit-sharing site like Medium is a great place to start. Their partner program allows you to make money on any post you publish, pending people read it. But you don’t have to wait for someone to approve your piece.

Sites like Medium provide you with the potential to get your work seen by larger audiences through their publications and curation programs. Plus it provides you with somewhere you can point prospective clients to.

Note that to send Medium posts to potential clients, you’ll want to make sure you give them access to the friend link to ensure there aren’t any paywall issues preventing them from reading your work.

It should be noted that not all potential clients will consider pieces that are published on own blog or medium as reference work. This means that you’ll want to double-check the application rules before you apply.

Guest posting

Guest posting isn’t my favorite way to build a portfolio. While I see the value in it, I’m a person that believes if you’re going to write for free (which is where most guest post opportunities falls), doing it for yourself has more long-term benefits.

Guest posting is when you write a blog post for someone else’s blog or publication.

There is one big benefit to guest posting (besides getting a byline) that might make it worth your while, especially if you’re starting your own blog: a backlink.

Sites with a higher domain authority (DA) than yours (which is probably around zero if you’re just starting out) can help give you link juice. Ultimately, this can help you build your own DA.

If you’re going to write a guest post, make sure that you do it for a reputable site that is relevant to the freelance writing niche you want to work in OR the blog you’re creating. Ideally, you want to hit both.

Portfolio writing tips

When it comes to creating portfolio work, publishing content on your own blog probably won’t be good enough proof for heavy hitters like he New York Times or Condé Nast (you’ll need more experience for these anyway). However, it should be plenty fine for smaller publications.

But before you hit that publish button, you’ll want to do a few things:

• Choose pieces with range that are relevant to niches you want to freelance write in
• Make sure the pieces also match the length of the content you’re looking to publish, there’s a big difference between a 500-word and a 2,000-word article
• Choose nice images to match with your content writing, but make sure you’re not violating copyright law
• Make sure to take into consideration search engine optimization, it’s incredibly important for online writing work
• Finally, make sure to double and triple check your work for spelling and grammar

Looking for a quick monthly blog checklist?

4. Figure out the business side of things

Most soon-to-be f reelance writers understand that to make money they need to find writing jobs, but much of the business side alludes them.

You should know that when you start freelance writing, what you’re really doing is starting a business.

Business rules and regulations vary by jurisdiction (and I’m not a lawyer or accountant!), but I do want to quickly brush over what you need to look at when you’re starting out. You will definitely learn as you grow.

At bare minimum, you need to:

1. Open a separate business bank account (this is a legal requirement in many jurisdictions and it shouldn’t cost you much, if anything)
2. Sign up for an accounting program (I recommend Honeybook or Bonsai)
3. Get a writing services contract
4. Create a separate business email (you don’t need a bunch of newsletters and promo materials in your main account)

There is WAY more you’re going to want to do in your first year as a freelancer. But this short list is the perfect place to start so you don’t overwhelm yourself.

5. Set your pricing

Rarely a day goes by that I don’t see a pricing question in one of the freelance writer groups I frequent. While answers vary, they essentially break down into two categories:

• It depends, or
• I charge X for X

The thing is, pricing is a complex subject. Freelancers of ALL experiences have issues with it. 

It’s inherently hard to put a price on your own work. You want to make good money, but you don’t want to feel like you’re ripping anyone off. Honestly, it’s a fine line to walk. And asking about it in writing groups only serves to overcomplicate things because (a) you realize you severely undercharge, and (b) you still don’t get a straight answer.

Here’s the thing. The I charge X for X answers are a little over exaggerated.

We tend to share the good numbers and ignore the cheaper contracts we have. But most contract writers have varying contracts. We might make $500 an article for one client, but we also probably have more clients where we make less money.

That’s not a straight across the board rule, especially if you’re running an established business. But it can take a long while to get to a point where you’re churning out top-dollar work. 

I’ll let you in on a little secret, I’ve written many-a $15 articles in my career. Am I eager to share that dollar amount? No. Do I still write $15 articles? Hell, nah.

But, the truth is, freelancing isn’t always that glamorous.

So, what should you charge?

I hesitate to give you solid numbers because I don’t want you to be confined to them. But since it can be legitimately hard to come up with a pricing strategy when you first start freelance writing, here are a few number figures that might help:

• $0.05 per word is an OK starting point, this gives you a $50 for a 1,000 word article. Is it hella glamorous? Nope. Is it going to turn out to be close to minimum wage? Probably, most definitely. But can you find jobs in this pay range as a beginner? Hell yeah.
• $0.10 per word can be a good 6-month or 12-month goal, which puts you at $100 for a 1,000-word article. Is this great? Still no. Can you do it faster? Definitely. Will you? Probably not… not because you’re not skilled enough and your work isn’t worth it, but because raising rates is one of the hardest parts of being a freelancer it’s wildly intimidating
• $0.15 per word is comfortable, that means you’re writing a 1,000 word article for $150. Presumably you’re getting fairly fast now, so let’s say you hammer that bad boy out in 3 hours… that’s $50 an hour. Not terrible.

All of that said, I predit $20 articles in your future. Because, at the end of the day, we all take them. So, it’s important for you to know that while it might suck, and there are 100% jerky writers out there that will hella judge you for taking those jobs because you’re “encouraging” people to take advantage of freelance writers, I’m here to tell you it’s OK.

The entire weight of the freelance writing community is not on your back, and that $20 article choice is not going to make or break the industry. You need to do what’s best for you. If that’s pumping out a ton of $15 – $20 articles for a few months to build up a killer portfolio, go for it. You first, everyone else second. 

Helpful pricing tips

You’re probably not going to make a killing right off the bat, and raising rates for current clients is challenging. I recommend raising your rate for each new client you add.

You don’t have to hike your rate every time. Honestly, doing so will probably result in a little too much cognative dissonance for comfort.

Instead, try increasing it by $0.01/word per client. These small jumps will make it easier for you to confidently share a higher rate without feeling like a fish out of the water.

I also recommend charging per project instead of per-word when you can.

Not every client is going to be open to this, many are more into the per-word scenario. But it’s better for both you and them as it gives everyone a predictable budget to work with.

It’s also important to note that the types of clients you work with will also determine your rate. While I might charge $0.50+ for corporate clients with complex subjects, I tend to charge considerably less for easy-for-me lifestyle topics. This pay discrepancy makes sense considering one article might take me 1-2 hours to write, while the other I might need to spend all day on.

6. Find freelance writing jobs

Yes, I left the best (and most frusturating) for last.

Make sure you figure out your pricing scheme before you start reaching out to freelance writing clients, otherwise you’ll probably agree to anything they suggest. And their suggestions will definately be made with them in mind. 

The best way to find writing jobs is always going to be via networking and recommendations. But everyone has to start somewhere, and for that there’s internet job boards.

There are countless freelance writing job boards out there to find clients. But here are a few to get you started:

• Blogging Pro
• Problogger
• All Freelance Writing
• Freelance Writing

You can eve come across legitimate writing jobs on social media (Twitter is a great source if you know where to look).

For the brave souls out there, you can always start reaching out to companies you’re interested in working for.

This usually results in better freelance writing work, and more projects you love. But you sacrifice comfort to get there, because not everyone’s comfortable reaching out. Honestly though, most of my best contracts come about this way.

But before you’re on your merry way sending out emails to prospects, make sure that you do it legally. Not every country allows you to start sending out unsolicited marketing emails all willy-nilly.

Freelance writer FAQs

Wrap up: How to become a freelance writer with no experience

Starting a freelance writing business can be overwhelming, but it’s not impossible. Plenty of successful freelance writers get started with no experience or education – there are writing gig opportunities just waiting for you to apply for them.

If you want to start writing, there’s no better time then today. Companies are looking for professionals to write their blog posts, run their email marketing, and draft their press releases. You don’t need writing experience, you need to be willing to learn!

There’s plenty to think about and do. But if you’re looking to start an online writing business, I’m here to tell you that it’s entirely possible. 

Ready to take your next steps. Here’s what I recommend checking out next:

• How to get started as a freelance blogger
• How to invoice as a freelancer