Freelance Writing Fees
One of the most difficult aspects of operating a freelance writing business is fielding the cold phone caller who immediately asks, "What do you charge for [fill in the blank]?" Just the other day, the phone rang. I go (to use the vernacular), "Hello!" with a smile to make my voice bright, alert, cheery, welcoming and friendly.
The caller responds, "Hi, I'm Seth. What would you charge to proofread brochures and copywriting?" First off, those are two quite different tasks.
Inside my mind, I go, "Huh?" Some writers have a fixed rate for all writing (the latest fad is about $70, but the web page that began that trend has disappeared, and I suspect the guy who put it up might be sorry. Or laughing up his sleeve. Who knows?) I'm probably shooting myself in the foot for not having fixed rates. I find each job is unique and requires different amounts of time, energy and knowledge. Proofreading is practically automatic and mindless for me. Writing copy, even for my own purposes, is like pulling teeth. Sometimes hen's teeth.
However, my frequent response of "it all depends on the specific job. What do you have in mind?" tends to discourage progress. The longer I talk with clients, the more distant they seem to become unless I offer to do something for free, like edit a few pages. When the job is writing, though, offering a freebie is more difficult. Maybe the best approach would be to quote a figure in the middle of my hourly rates and say that the cost is "around XX dollars an hour, depending."
I'm listening carefully to Peter Bowerman, author of the popular The Well-Fed Writer: Financial Self-Sufficiency As a Freelance Writer in Six Months or Less
discussing this topic with Deborah Ng on Freelance writing jobs and Copywriting Success Summit talk radio show | FWJRadio Welcomes Peter Bowrman at 
Blog Talk Radio.
The caller responds, "Hi, I'm Seth. What would you charge to proofread brochures and copywriting?" First off, those are two quite different tasks.
Inside my mind, I go, "Huh?" Some writers have a fixed rate for all writing (the latest fad is about $70, but the web page that began that trend has disappeared, and I suspect the guy who put it up might be sorry. Or laughing up his sleeve. Who knows?) I'm probably shooting myself in the foot for not having fixed rates. I find each job is unique and requires different amounts of time, energy and knowledge. Proofreading is practically automatic and mindless for me. Writing copy, even for my own purposes, is like pulling teeth. Sometimes hen's teeth.
However, my frequent response of "it all depends on the specific job. What do you have in mind?" tends to discourage progress. The longer I talk with clients, the more distant they seem to become unless I offer to do something for free, like edit a few pages. When the job is writing, though, offering a freebie is more difficult. Maybe the best approach would be to quote a figure in the middle of my hourly rates and say that the cost is "around XX dollars an hour, depending."
I'm listening carefully to Peter Bowerman, author of the popular The Well-Fed Writer: Financial Self-Sufficiency As a Freelance Writer in Six Months or Less
discussing this topic with Deborah Ng on Freelance writing jobs and Copywriting Success Summit talk radio show | FWJRadio Welcomes Peter Bowrman at Blog Talk Radio.
posted by Georganna Hancock M.S. | 7:58 AM
2 Comments:
My personal preference is to answer the question asked, then open the conversation to offer more value. If I were asked "how much to proof read..." I would say something just like you mentioned, but expand on it: "Most good writers will proof read as a standard part of the service. High level writers and editors who, in addition to proof reading, also improve the writing, would charge an hourly rate in the range of $xxx. But it is better for writers as well as cleints like you to have a quote for the whole project rather than worry about hourly rates. Would you like to tell me more about your project so I can give you an idea of how I can help you?"
Yes, I do to. That's what I meant when I wrote:
'... my frequent response of "it all depends on the specific job. What do you have in mind?" tends to discourage progress. The longer I talk with clients, the more distant they seem to become unless I offer to do something for free, like edit a few pages.'
But I also don't want to sound like I'm baffling with bullshit.
I have found, as have many others, that giving a quote for a "whole" project winds up taking many more hours than estimated because in the client's mind, it is never finished. Much better to charge by the word or the hour, depending on the level and complexity of the writing.
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