Freelancing Archives | Philippa Writes

04Jan 2022 by Philippa Willitts

Bloody hell, I’ve been at this for ten years

About Proofreading, About Writing, Freelancing

Ten years ago, I embarked on a self-employment experiment. And I did it all "wrong". First, I didn't tell everyone to support my business as you're supposed to; instead, I was so convinced that I would fail that I told a handful of my closest people. Second, I didn't do that smart thing where you work a full-time job while trying to gradually build your freelance clients on the side; instead, I just launched full-time from scratch. I had some savings that could support me if my business failed and I did expect to have to live of them but, to my surprise more than anyone else's, I got clients, people hired me, and I made a success of it. [bctt tweet="Ten years ago, I did it all 'wrong'. Yet…

18Jan 2021 by Philippa Willitts

A new year update for 2021

Freelancing, news

Nobody needs another blog post about how weird 2020 was. Nor about how weird the start of 2021 has been already. But, in short, totally weird. Now, onto the rest of it all. What I'm up to I continue to work hard. Most of my work is writing, proofreading and editing. Last year, I proofread four full-length books and many, many job applications. This may be symptomatic of how many people lost their jobs in the midst of the international crisis. Interestingly, I didn't proofread as many essays and theses last year as I usually do; perhaps due to the same. [caption id="attachment_2574" align="alignright" width="334"] Fireworks[/caption] In terms of writing, most of what I do currently is ghost writing blog posts for business clients. Usually SMEs, these businesses know that…

09Dec 2020 by Philippa Willitts

A bit of background: an interview with… me

About Writing, Freelancing

Last week, I was approached by Rebecca Wren, an aspiring writer. She was writing a university assignment about the career she wants to enter - writing - and wanted to ask me some questions to help to guide her in both her uni work and her path to her future career. I answered her questions and it turned out to be quite an extensive piece of work! So Rebecca agreed that I could reproduce my answers here. I'm all about repurposing content, especially when it's 1500 words long. What inspired you to become a freelancer in different fields of writing? I had a blog, which I started in the days when you still had to explain what a blog was! I then joined a feminist group blog, where my writing…

12Nov 2018 by Philippa Willitts

Special offer for Equal Pay Day: freelance writing, proofreading and social media management

About Writing, Freelancing, Uncategorized

This sale has now expired. However, don't despair. There is another special offer for you here. This weekend marks the date when Equal Pay Day takes place: it is used to signify the last day of the year that a woman would receive pay, when taking the gender pay-gap into account. Enjoy this (NSFW) video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ba5F7NoHgVQ It is important to remember, when noting this day, that today is the day after which averaged-out women work for free. In fact, Black women and disabled women and other minority groups get even less equity in their workplaces and white women do considerably better than BAME women. Because of this, I want to encourage the world of work to do better. And I believe that one path towards "better" is having women at…

22Dec 2014 by Philippa Willitts

Escape from Content Mills: Tell Me What YOU Need to Know!

About Writing, Freelancing

So many freelance writers feel trapped in the under-paying, soul-destroying 'race to the bottom' freelancing sites and content mills. I have escaped from that depressing hole, and I want to help other writers to do the same! But to do so really effectively, I need to know what the barriers are that you face so that I can guide you to smash them and thrive with your own, private clients! [tweetherder]What are the obstacles that trip you up when you try to escape from the content mill trap?[/tweetherder] Do me a favour and fill out this survey. You can also use it to sign up to the email list that I have set up for this purpose, specifically. And, if you have friends or colleagues in a similar situation, please…

19Dec 2014 by Philippa Willitts

Run, Don’t Walk, Away From Content Mills: Secret Sneak Peak!

About Writing, Freelance Self-Promotion, Freelancing

[caption id="attachment_1825" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Photo credit: Howtostartablogonline.net[/caption] One of the questions I get asked the most by fellow freelancers is how they can escape from writing for mass freelancing sites with low pay and a 'race to the bottom' mentality. The fact is that even if all your current work is underpaid and undervalued, even if you are doing some kind of ad-based revenue share that earns you 22 cents for an article you spent three hours writing, even if you are currently producing work that you know is under par because you need to write four articles an hour to break even, and even if you have never had a private client of your own, it is possible to escape from the content mill, but it takes some focused work to get your foot in…

21Nov 2014 by Philippa Willitts

Book Recommendation: The Freelance Writer’s Guide to Making $1,000 More This Month

About Writing, Freelancing

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="338" class="zemanta-img"] Bookshelf (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption] You may remember Mridu Khullar Relph who I interviewed on the podcast recently. Well, she's written a book. And it's really good. Full disclosure: Mridu and I are friends and she gave me a free copy of the book. However, if I thought it was terrible I would simply have never mentioned it again. Instead, having read it and been inspired, I actually can't recommend it highly enough. Firstly, her credentials. Mridu has years of experience in journalism and counts the New York Times and TIME amongst her credits; this shows in her writing. The Freelance Writer's Guide to Making $1,000 More This Month is packed full of tips to get more work and improve your income and these tips are not vague, they are…

16Sep 2014 by Philippa Willitts

Podcast Episode 79: Turn a drawback into a strength and boost your freelance career – an interview with Mridu Khullar Relph

Freelancing, Podcast

Many freelancers are in a situation that could work against them in the commercial or media market. Combining freelancing with caring responsibilities, living in a part of the world that has a poor reputation for the quality of its writers, or having health problems or being disabled (as I am), for example. In this episode of the podcast, I interview Mridu Khullar Relph, a freelance writer who has written for the likes of the New York Times, Time magazine, Ms magazine and more, and we discuss how you can turn something that is arguably a disadvantage into something that is undeniably a strength! Apologies for the inconsistent sound quality in parts of this interview. However, it's well worth tolerating it for the great content! Show notes Mridu's website (UK / US) The…

06Sep 2014 by Philippa Willitts

I was interviewed on the @CherishedIdeas podcast: freelancing, pricing and marketing yourself

Freelance Self-Promotion, Freelancing, Podcast

[caption id="attachment_1703" align="aligncenter" width="492"] "Often, I find, my most creative thinking has to come in my work that involves the most boring topics" - Philippa Willitts[/caption] [tweetherder]Listen to @PhilippaWrites talk to @CherishedIdeas about freelancing: [/tweetherder] A couple of months ago, I was really excited to get an interview request from the then-new Cherished Ideas podcast. It is a podcast for freelancers of all stripes and I chatted to Simon Knapp all about freelancing, how to make it work, how to stay up to date, and plenty more. [tweetherder]"Often, I find, my most creative thinking has to come in my work that involves the most boring topics"[/tweetherder] Have a listen below, enjoy, and let me know what you think! [tweetherder]"Guest blogging doesn't have to be for free. I guest blog and…

18Aug 2014 by Philippa Willitts

Freelancing while offline: can we work without the web?

Freelancing

I currently have no broadband access at home. Just take a moment to absorb that: No. Broadband. Access. I know, it's a practically mediaeval state of affairs but, until Thursday, it's how it is. In a bid to be mature and not completely freak out, I spent the days before the outage gathering together apps, software, websites and tips on managing without WiFi while still trying to run a business. And stay sane(ish). So, in this post I will go through some of the best ideas and tools available for coping without a regular broadband connection. Preparation I was in the fortunate position of having a few days' notice of my impending broadband outage. This meant that I had the chance to do a degree of preparation for as many eventualities…

Category: Freelancing