One of my favorite outdoor offices in Belize
1. The training you need to be a freelance writer is minimal.
You don’t need a four year degree in journalism to get paid to write online. You can start out with very little experience and still get paid but as your skills increase so does your pay.
2. A freelance writer doesn’t need a quiet environment.
Many work from home jobs require that you have a quiet home environment. Writing can be done with a babbling four year old who is sitting in front of you watching cartoons. Although it’s not ideal, take it from a freelance writer mom of six, it can be done.
3. Scheduling your life around your writing time is doable.
Has your daughter got a school play? Do you have to go out of town for a few days? Not a problem if you’re a freelance writer. Freelance writing works around your schedule. Yes, you DO have to show up and write at the appointed times but it’s not hard to balance with a little discipline.
4. Home office set-up for a freelance writer is a piece of cake.
You only need a computer, internet connection, dedicated email address and a Paypal account.
5. Companies that will contract with a freelance writer continue to grow.
Over the last few years many companies have turned to websites like Odesk.com and Guru.com to get the content they need for their own growing web businesses. The freelance writing business is booming. There’s room for many more writers.
6. A highly specialized freelance writer can get work.
Content is king on the net. If you have a writing specialty like technical writing or financial writing there are plenty of websites to pitch your services to.
7. PayPal makes getting paid quick and easy.
As a freelance writer, you can invoice clients and receive payment from companies and individuals without delay. PayPal also links to your bank account so the money is available to you like any other deposit would be.
8. The internet makes networking a breeze for a freelance writer.
Networking will get you more work. Experienced freelance writers often have overflow work and can subcontract work to you. This is very helpful when you are a beginner and it puts money in your pocket while you’re learning the ropes. The more people you know in the freelance writing realm, the more work you will get. Networking also gets you your own customers. The more blogs and forums you comment on in your specialty area the more work will come your way. If they don’t know about you, they can’t hire you.
9. A freelance writer also has the ability start passive income streams with her writing.
Many websites allow you to post your writing and then share a portion of the ad revenue on the site with you. This money while you sleep is a nice addition to the pay you get writing for clients. Diversifying your income as a freelance writer is a always a good idea.
A freelance writer is one of the easiest work from home businesses you can start. In the beginning, it can be work that you do in your spare time but it can easily develop into a full time job. Remember, with the right basic skills you will get work. There’s plenty of it out there. When you’re first starting out don’t compare yourself to other writers that are more practiced and have been doing it longer. You’ll get there with persistence.
Thailand 
I have started doing a little bit of ghost writing online, but I have a question. Do you have any idea how to find people who want specific content topics that I know well? Textbroker.com and other sites like that are very hit and miss when it comes to finding the topics I know. I was able to write a couple of small business articles – and I loved that! I have spent seven years as an office manager for a mid-size company, so it is fairly easy to write related articles. However, I cannot figure out how to find a writer’s market specifically geared toward small businesses.
It sounds like you’re ready to put up your own website and start marketing yourself as a business writer.
I was in your boat for while. I purposely chose articles that were my speciality (travel) but there were never enough jobs. I started a WordPress website that had clips of my travel writing on it and used that to market to online companies who needed travel content.
You can start a free WordPress site or host your own. Choose a wide variety of articles that showcase your writing. Just remember, once the site is live, you have to market it. You have to query businesses and point them to your site. If they like what they read and they need business content, they’ll hire you.
Success!
Connie Brentford recently posted..Make Money Online – 97 Real Companies That Pay You To Work In Your Pajamas