Motivation

How Can I Gain Confidence as a Freelance Writer?

Let me just come right out and say that gaining confidence is an ongoing process I’m sure many other freelance writers are constantly going through.

It’s a work in progress just like everything else in life.  Having confidence is also an important if you want to be a successful freelance writer because it affects your writing.

How Can I Gain Confidence as a Freelance Writer?

Gaining confidence is an ongoing process.

A reader can immediately pick up if your writing with confidence or not, so when you have confidence, it gives you the credibility to gain the trust of your readers and subsequently gain a following.

At times it can seem so hard to be confident when you feel as if you don’t know what you’re doing or that every other blogger you follow seems as if they have it all together.

Insecurity can creep in all areas of your business – when you think you have an excellent article, but it doesn’t get a high number of page views or shares on social media.

Even though you may feel alone, I promise you you’re not.  For one thing, everybody experiences self doubts, especially in the beginning of a new profession.  Every single blogger and freelance writer was new once too and they also had to learn to build their confidence.

So, if you’re new to freelance writing, be patient because it will happen to you too.

To get you started on gaining confidence as a writer, here are five ways to kick doubt to the curb.

1. Connect With Other Writers and Bloggers

Regina, of ByRegina wrote a great article about finding your BBF (blogging best friend) that everyone should read.

You might not find a best friend straight away but making contacts and friends in the blogosphere is so important.  Chances are your friends and family don’t really understand or care about social media marketing, SEO, page views etc.  Having someone to discuss these blog terms with is essential for your mental health, as well as helping build your confidence.

Knowing you’re not the only person struggling with a problem and knowing that others have gone through to overcome the same barriers is immensely helpful.

Contacts in the freelancing world can also act as mentors and help you with problems from website issues to crafting a catchy headline for a post.

So, don’t be scared to reach out to another freelance writer. Go ahead – contact anyone from the expert panel on this site and anyone of those ladies will be willing to help you out.

Don’t be scared to reach out to another freelance writer.

2. Write What You are Passionate About

Luckily in this day and age there is pretty much a place online for every interest out there.

This is great news for freelancer writers because it means no matter where your passions lie, you’ve got a place to share them with others who are just as crazy about them as you are.

If you love cats great! Why not approach this website or this one .  If you’re interested in theater, wine, travel or fitness there are numerous publications for each of these that you can approach and possibly snag a client from.

Finding your niche and (mostly) sticking to it allows you to develop your writing.  Forced writing tends to read like forced writing and that can stunt your growth as a freelance writer.

Finding your niche and (mostly) sticking to it allows you to develop your writing.

Also, you’re much more likely to get articles published and attract clients through writing that you enjoyed writing because it’s going to be:

  • Better quality
  • More in-depth
  • Written with more understanding

3. Keep Writing and Blogging

Try to write everyday even if it’s just for a few minutes. The more you write the better your writing will become, and the faster you will be able to produce quality pieces of work.

A post that might take you three days to write, edit, and proofread will take less time in a few months. You’ll begin to find your voice more clearly and find what methods work best for you to maximize your productivity.

In addition to writing, make sure you are publishing some work regularly.  Aim to have at least one blog post and one or more guest post or client work published each week.

4. Don’t Take Rejection Personally

This is easier said than done, but it’s easy to get discouraged and hurt when everything you send out is rejected or you don’t hear back

Rejection stings and hurts. But, instead of wallowing and wondering why this prospect didn’t value your writing, start to take steps to bounce back.

First thing to remember is that it’s not personal. There’s nothing wrong with you, and the editors aren’t trying to devalue your worth as a writer.

Rejection stings and hurts.

Instead of feeling sad or beating yourself up about being rejected, try to take an objective approach and look at why your work or guest post isn’t being accepted.

  • Are you applying to the correct magazine/websites/businesses for the content you’re pitching?
  • Are you contacting the right people at the organization?
  • Does your work adhere to the sites requirements (formatting, word count, tone of writing)
  • Is your introduction letter strong with a clear author bio and links to your website/portfolio/social media sites?
  • Is your work free of any grammatical or spelling errors?

If you’re answering yes to all of these it might be worth taking a second look and giving them to someone else to look at, they might spot something that you’re missing.

5. Be Patient

The vast majority of freelance writers aren’t immediate success stories.  They work really hard for a long time to achieve their successes.  It’s their perseverance and resilience that ultimately pays off, so don’t give up – keep at it because it will get easier.

Now, over to you. What do you find shakes your confidence as a freelance writer?

Pippa Vague is a twenty something from New Zealand. She's writes about life as a freelance writer and has another blog for her love of travel. When not in front of a computer she can be found curled up reading a book or in the kitchen whipping up a feast.

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2 Comments

Great advice, Pippa! I love tip #5. It takes a lot of time to build confidence, and even when we show our confidence, it doesn’t mean we don’t still have doubts. I recently wrote a similar post on Lori Widmer’s Words on the Page blog that readers might want to check out: http://www.wordsonpageblog.com/2015/05/writers-worth-showing-confidence-to.htmlReply to Alicia
Pippa, Great suggestions. I find if I write everyday and not take things personally, I can brush off any feelings of insecurity. It’s hard though, when your writing gets rejected or if you get bad comments.Reply to Elna