Judging by how things are looking currently, the 2020s will be the era of freelance writing jobs and remote employment. Why? 

Because the trend of people striving to develop their careers as freelancers is growing by the day. In addition to formal education, skills are now what separates candidates on the job market. Sometimes, skills are all that’s relevant and many freelance writing jobs require no formal education at all.

Writing is one of those freelance professions where all one has is talent and industriousness. That’s why so many people are opting to apply their talent for words and make a career out of being a writer. Still, no matter how talented you are, every beginning is difficult. And it certainly helps to know where to begin your search for writing projects. 

This list will help you find good starting points for your career as a writer. Let’s dive in.

1 UpWork

UpWork is filled with freelance writing jobs of all sorts. Employers are trying to find talented individuals to write blogs, labels, transcriptions, scenarios, vlog scripts, but also fictional content, novels, poetry, or song lyrics… The list goes on. Whatever your preferences are, you will find appropriate freelance writing jobs that suit your ambitions. 

The best thing about Upwork is that it’s the perfect platform to shape your professional portfolio in the direction that you want. If you are eager to become a creator of long-form content, you can choose novel ghostwriting projects and long articles. That way, you’ll acquire experience and references for that direction. If you want to become a direct response copywriter that writes short ads or descriptions, you can choose those projects on your remote job board. Therefore, you’ll specialize yourself in that area of work.

That brings us to the other perk of UpWork – specialization. This freelance platform enables you to make a specialized profile that emphasizes your particular talents. It also presents your experience and references in selected areas of work to employers. All in all, UpWork is one of the best ways to create an appealing portfolio, acquire experience, and shape yourself into a formed professional.

2 Contena

Contena is one of the best options for freelance writer jobs. It has a specific “writing job finder” that filters the best writing projects from all around the globe. Furthermore, the email notification system constantly alerts you to new projects that meet your selected criteria. 

What separates it from UpWork are several other features – courses that help shape your writing skills, one-on-one coaching aimed to develop your full writing potential, and publishing services that enable you to upload your appealing portfolio. However, you also have to pay for their services on a monthly or yearly basis. 

While the paid membership may seem like a deal-breaker to some, there are certain financial advantages of paying for your job finder upfront. While job boards like UpWork take a percentage from your earnings, the fees that you pay on Contena settle all your debts to the job board client. If you start earning bigger figures, which is more than possible, a pre-paid membership can prove to be a much better deal than losing 10 or 20 percent of your total income.

3 Freelance Writing Jobs

This is another writer-oriented job board that is constantly updated with new job ads. It’s updated every week and its orientation will save you the trouble of trying to navigate your search through piles of low-quality ads, which is a common occurrence among other job board clients.

However, landing a job through Freelance Writing Jobs can be quite a challenge. Since it’s just a board with job advertisements and not a web client, it doesn’t have a singular application system for all members. Therefore, your application experience will greatly vary from one employer to the next.

Still, there are ads for all working models, both part-time and fully employed workers. Plus, you’ll be able to catch some entry-level projects if you’re just starting out as a writer.

4 Contently

Contently is different from the previous options. Firstly, it’s intended for more experienced writers. Your portfolio will have to be rich in order to be considered on this job board. Secondly, this client works differently compared to UpWork or Contena. The main difference is that you are not the one searching for freelance writing jobs via ads. Instead, employers are using Contently to search for viable applicants. If you create a profile on Contently, your portfolio will enter a pool of candidates. After that, you just wait to be contacted by the employer, if you meet their criteria.

The best thing about Contently is that it’s used by high-profile employers that pay amazing fees. Also, having a client like Coca-Cola in your portfolio will make you truly appealing to all future employers.

The downside of Contently is that getting that call from a high-profile employer can take time. Maybe forever if your portfolio isn’t top tier.

4 ProBlogger 

ProBlogger is a board specialized in blogging projects. It’s a great option if you want to take a rest from short copy, descriptions, and ads that take up a big chunk of the modern writer’s duties. 

By using ProBlogger, which is completely free, you’ll always have access to a fresh pool of freelance job opportunities for blog writing. You don’t need to sign up to search for a job and send an application. However, you can join their Candidate dashboard that’s also free, add your resume, and get alerted when new jobs are available.

Conclusion

All in all, options are abundant. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to navigate through different clients and boards and find freelance writing jobs that suit your preferences and availability. Whichever form of writing you are interested in, these boards cover it all. 

If you are starting out, try options that don’t require your portfolio to be rich with previous experiences like Contently. Build up your portfolio before venturing into serious writing projects. When it comes to membership, both free and paid options have their advantages. Decide on what fits you the most and launch (or expand) your writing career.