I’m a freelance health writer. I’ve been writing online health content for nearly a decade.
2. What drew you to becoming a freelance writer?
I’ve always enjoyed writing. Whether it was creative writing, scribbling to pen pals, taking notes in class, working on school papers, writing my thesis, writing research reports, or anything else. I just love writing. I never thought making money writing was possible.
Beyond writing, other things that drew me to freelance writing were an opportunity to learn new things every day, my love for the research process, and of course, freedom, daily flexibility, and an opportunity to organize my work around my life, not the other way around.
3. How did it feel when you first got published?
The first time I got published was way before I started freelance writing. It was unpaid, and it was amazing. My first paid gig was unexpected. I didn’t seek the opportunity out, someone offered it to me. It was amazing.
4. What are some of the challenges you ran into when you started freelancing? How did you overcome them?
Not getting paid enough and not getting consistent clients and work. Cold emailing was a game-changer for me.
5. What are some of the things you use to help you with freelance writing?
I assume you are asking about helping my own writing business. Honestly, I’m super basic. I write and submit my work in Google docs. I use Grammarly. I don’t use any other tools, apps, software, or anything. I use my paper Passion Planners and notepads to plan things. I track my projects, income, and spending in Google sheets.
6. Are there any books you can recommend to anyone interested in becoming a freelance writer?
7. Please describe your typical workday as a freelance writer.
It really depends. I generally don’t get up until about 9 am. I may get to my desk by 10 am or 11 am. I may work for a few hours and then go for a run or walk. I may work again once I’m back, then go for a walk later in the afternoon or early evening. Some days I work in the evenings instead of the morning or afternoon. Some weeks I work every day but only for a few hours. Other weeks, I may only work 3 or 4 days. It really depends on what else I have going on. I work part-time hours by choice (but work a full-time income!). I really don’t have a set schedule and I prefer it that way.
8. What was the hardest market for you to break into and how did you succeed?
I’m a health writer, and I only write in the health niche. I work with functional medicine, integrative medicine, and naturopathic medicine doctors and health/nutrition brands.
But based on my experience helping other freelance writers, I don’t think that there is any niche that’s harder to break into than into another one. As long as you have a quality and relevant portfolio, you are golden.
Now, certain niches will pay better than others. SaaS, B2B, tech, and finance generally pay the best, health, real estate, cannabis, lifestyle, and some other niches are pretty good too. In certain niches, like spirituality and music, it’s very difficult or impossible to get clients that pay more than pennies or pay at all.
9. What's one thing about freelance writing that surprised you after you were at it for some time?
The community. At the beginning, I was worried that other freelance writers would be my competition. It’s not the case. Everyone has a place. There are a lot of freelance writers, but there are also a lot of clients. And the freelance writing community is incredibly amazing.
10. What advice do you have for a writer thinking of becoming a freelance writer?
Choose a writing specialty and, ideally, a niche. Nail down your ideal clients. Create a high-quality portfolio that’s relevant to your ideal clients. Posting on Medium and mock-ups count as long as they are quality. Start cold emailing your ideal clients. Be patient and consistent. Stop comparing yourself to other writers.
ABOUT KAT:
Kat Gál is a freelance health writer and freelance writing mentor. If you are a freelance writer looking for freelance writing tips, check out her newsletter, website, Linkedin, and upcoming course. If you are looking for a freelance health writer, check out her writing website here.
