Why You Should Quit Freelance Writing to Start a Profitable Blog
If you’re a freelance writer who’s frustrated with waiting for an editor’s response and struggling to make a decent income, opting to quit freelance writing to start your own blog could be an excellent opportunity for you to say hello to financial stability and the freedom to work on your own terms. With your great writing skills, you can work from anywhere and finally bid farewell to a tight budget.
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Why quit freelance writing when it seems like a dream come true for people with good writing skills and a willingness to be self-employed? Not to mention that freelance writing seems to be a perfect option for those who are (or want to become) digital nomads.
You know, all you need is to be an agile writer, have a laptop with internet access, and be willing to deal with hours and hours of solitude in the company of a keyboard.
However, if you (just like me) have had years of experience working as a freelance writer and are not happy with the downsides of this job (which are not just a few), this may be the right time for you to acknowledge a much-needed change in your professional life.
If you want to start a blog that makes money but have no previous experience blogging and no coding skills, check out this step-by-step guide to quickly get started today!
Why you should quit freelance writing and start your own profitable blog to reach actual independence & financial freedom
A lot has changed in freelance writing over the last decade. Freelance writing has never been particularly easy, but it’s getting harder and harder.
More sites are paying less per word. More and more you are required to spend your time networking on social media for job opportunities (also known as befriending editors on Twitter to get published, but that’s nothing new). Not to mention that the competition for the best-paying publications ($0,30+ per word) is EXTREMELY high.
Furthermore, personal beliefs and politics are increasingly getting in the way and deciding whether or not you will be hired – regardless of your competence for the freelance writing job. It might happen even when the subject you are going to write about is supposed to have nothing to do with personal beliefs or politics.
All these freelance writing demands get you exhausted easily. But worrying about the bills coming in at the end of the month makes you lose sleep and mental steadiness even more easily. It’s no wonder that quitting freelance writing crosses writers’ minds.
If you become a blogger, however, you don’t need to make room in your schedule to befriend the right people. Or even beg to be chosen to write an article. Because blogging allows you to be your own editor and boss.
Plus, every article you write as a blogger is meant to become evergreen material. In other words, articles written years ago are still sources of income every month. Hello, passive income!
Additionally, as much as being a full-time blogger brings you responsibilities that you would not have as a freelance writer, you always have the opportunity to improve the performance of your blog and articles to increase your revenue.
On the other hand, when you write an article for a site that isn’t yours, well, that’s all. You give the material to the editor. You get paid once. And it no longer belongs to you to reinvent and improve that content to keep profiting from it.
7 In-depth reasons why you should quit freelance writing to become a full-time blogger
If you’re still not convinced that maybe you should quit freelance writing to start a profitable blog, then check out these 7 in-depth reasons to redirect the route of your professional life.
1. You should quit freelance writing because your hard work writing articles is NOT an investment in your future
Of course, an article posted on an honored website is great for your freelance writer portfolio. But this great article you wrote, as already mentioned above, could be an evergreen source of revenue if it had been posted on your own website.
Let’s say you write twenty 1,500-word articles monthly to earn $50 per article. That makes you $1000 a month. Actually, that’s quite a common amount that average and bottom freelance writers are paid per 1200-1500 words (note that I said common – not nice, or fair).
I did this a lot when I was just starting out, and I consider it f*cking insulting.
Those same twenty articles can generate you $1500 EVERY MONTH (yes, not $1000 one single time) even if you monetize your site only with ads and affiliate programs. Depending on your niche, or if you have your own products, this amount may increase drastically.
It’s called passive income. Sadly, passive income is something you don’t have as a freelance writer, and that’s why you shouldn’t be afraid of quitting freelance writing.
2. Quit freelance writing if you don’t enjoy dealing with market uncertainties
Freelance writers have to deal with market uncertainties, again and again, every month.
To mention a more recent example, many sites started to pay even less for words and decreased the number of monthly writers in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
After all, that’s the freelancer’s life: running around looking for new job opportunities every month.
This is not just unstable – it’s also terrifying. Especially if the freelancer has not yet been able to pile up emergency savings — which I was never able to do when I was still a freelancer.
Interestingly, on the other hand, many bloggers received more pageviews and profited more during the peak months of the pandemic. Especially those with blogs that teach something like cooking or playing a musical instrument, as more people were at home seeking refuge on the internet and searching for new activities to spend time on.
3. You spend hours doing research and writing, and then your editor informs you they no longer want that already pre-approved article
Your editor pre-approves a pitch after 1 month with no response in your inbox. Then you write the entire 2000-word article in 2 hours and send it to the editor — who will take around 6 weeks to respond.
Then, the editor’s response says you have to change a few things. Ok, you make the requested changes in 30 minutes and send it back immediately.
5 weeks later, comes the response: the editor says that their boss (the person who actually gives the final say) has REJECTED the article.
But that’s okay because you can “feel free to submit other articles and pitches whenever you want”. 🤡
Any writer who values their own time and work would want to quit freelance writing in such a scenario!
When I write an article for my blog, be it 1500 or 4000+ words long, I know it will be published. After all, I am my own editor.
Another thing I know is that it is, indeed, a paying job.
4. Being a skilled writer who spends many hours writing alone every day is a special skill that deserves better pay
Many professionals wouldn’t bear spending the whole day working alone, indoors, in front of a laptop even if you literally offered them thousands of dollars.
Alternatively, some don’t mind being alone indoors, but they lack, severely, the attention span needed to be a writer, and get distracted by absolutely anything: streaming services, video games, online forums, funny YouTube videos, their mom’s call, etc.
I do miss interacting with people on my workdays. However, I prize productivity. And working without the company of coworkers suits me better, so I can do what needs to be done more efficiently, without having to deal with distractions.
Knowing the power of productivity and what can be achieved by working hard every day, and knowing how many people complain that they can’t be more productive, I conclude that the freelance writer’s skills are beyond writing itself.
And these skills are worth much more than $50 per ~1200 words.
When my blog started to generate revenue, I finally understood that my skills were being wasted as a freelance writer. And that I should’ve quit freelancing writing way earlier.
5. Freelance writing makes you think you’re self-employed — but at the end of the day you’re still depending on someone else’s final word
Legally speaking, yes, the freelancer writer is self-employed. But the truth is, many people choose to be freelancers because they don’t want to have a boss telling them how to do things.
These people are free-spirited and don’t appreciate having someone overseeing and policing their work.
Having to constantly deal with the approval – or rejection – of your work is quite hard to swallow for some. Not to mention all the emails giving you instructions on how to do things.
But that’s how things are in freelancing. The freelancer provides detached services to other people and companies. That is, they don’t have a single boss, but multiple who are constantly changing.
Being a full-time blogger means being actually self-employed. Every step you take in your blogging business doesn’t need third-party approval.
Of course, it takes more from you, since you’re the boss. But you don’t have to deal with your articles — the ones you’ve put so much effort into researching and writing! — being rejected for whatever reason.
Or even worse (?): sometimes your great article doesn’t even reach the editor’s hand because your email got lost in the editor’s inbox… 😐
I mean, seriously?
Every time I remember what my days as a freelancer were like, I am grateful that I did quit freelance writing.
6. Quit freelance writing if you enjoy the right to have your own opinion
Writers are often people with strong opinions and excellent ability to state their arguments through writing.
Most writers decide to make their ability to communicate through words a profession because it’s satisfying to be able to live by their inherent nature.
But, the thing is, freelance writing doesn’t equal freedom of speech. Not at all.
Constructive criticism is one thing. Writers know it will come, eventually. And, as annoying as they can be (and they are), most writers will try to get the best out of them.
Another thing, however, is when editors’ feedback is just a policing of writers’ opinions, as such beliefs don’t fit in the requested material.
The first time this happens, the writer might think “okay, this article is not a personal essay, I have to be more professional and impersonal this time”.
Okay, right. Perfectly understandable.
But what just happened starts to repeat itself more and more. Soon the writer begins to notice that keeping quiet about their morals or experiences is a clear requirement in the very guidelines of the publications they want to write for.
And that’s when the writing starts losing its charm, and the writer starts thinking they should quit freelance writing. Maybe.
By now the writer has got the message: shut up about all of your opinions as no one wants to hear about them.
It won’t be long before the writer starts writing mechanically. Each day, the writer just feels more disconnected from writing. After all, each article is just a means to an end. Just give me the money and I’ll write completely detached from myself as if I were someone else.
This is a great way to destroy a writer’s love for their very essence.
The best way to be free to express yourself is to be the owner of your own space. That is, having your own website where no one can tell you to deny yourself in your writing.
But keep in mind that you have to be responsible when creating a blog to talk about the things you like and give your opinion if you want your blog to be profitable, as some niches do not generate much profit.
Write down on a piece of paper the things you would like to blog about then research the profit potential in these niches.
The best option is to combine the useful with the pleasant. So you reach your goal of being financially independent as a blogger, maintaining your right to share your opinions, and working on something you enjoy.
7. You might want to quit freelance writing as it’s easy to feel NO passion for your work when you’re a freelance writer
Being a freelance writer often requires versatility. Unless you can be a steady contributor to a publication in whose niche you are an expert.
The problem, in this case, is that unless you are in the minority of top writers and already have a showy portfolio (and possibly a degree in the field or a famous YouTube channel to show off) you are unlikely to be able to become a monthly or weekly contributor to some narrow niche publication.
What’s left for you, then, is to exercise your versatility by being able to write for several niches that have nothing to do with each other. Or with you by the way.
Most of these niches won’t ignite any passion within you. You’ll just write mechanically about things that are boring or you even despise, just to get those $50-$100 per article.
At the end of the day, you are just contributing to someone else’s project: the person who’s proud to own that popular and profitable website.
Let’s be honest, it’s kind of hard not to get a little bit bitter like that. Especially when you see that your article is just another block of text lost among so many other blocks of text written by other freelancers.
So, it’s perfectly understandable that you want to quit freelance writing to start your own thing.
Have you ever wondered how proud and more motivated you’d feel getting out of bed every morning to write if you owned one of those fancy websites?
And how much more motivating would it be if your articles were a steady source of passive income?
If these possibilities make you smile, you shouldn’t wait until tomorrow to start your blog!
Freelance Writing FAQ
Is freelance writing stressful?
Freelance writing can be stressful as, in addition to writing quality articles, you must always be looking for more job opportunities. This includes submitting pitches and networking with editors on social media.
Also, dealing with editors via email is a job in itself. The time between one negotiation email and the next is often weeks. And after countless changes that you have made at the request of your editor, your editor may reject your finished article without any plausible explanation.
Is it hard being a freelance writer?
Becoming a successful freelancer can be difficult. The freelance writing market is oversaturated, which makes competition stiff. In addition, the writers with the best portfolios – or the best contacts with the right people – quickly get the best-paying opportunities. That is, new writers are relegated to taking jobs that pay little, which automatically makes them have to write more articles per month to complete their income.
Can you make good money as a freelance writer?
Yes, many freelance writers make good money. Some even make 5k-10k a month. Unfortunately, these are the minority.
Industry data suggests that the average salary for a freelance writer is $10,000-$20,000 annually. While just over 19% make over $50,000. And only 5% make a six-figure salary.
Why you should quit freelance writing to start a blog — Final thoughts
A freelance writer already has at least half of what it takes to have a successful blog: writing skills and the ability to spend long hours working alone in front of a laptop.
Blogging, for sure, can provide the true financial freedom that the freelancer writer has been looking for all along.
Of course, not everything is rosy when you’re a full-time blogger.
I’m always emphasizing that blogging is hard work. It demands constant improvement and dedication. But at the end of the month, it definitely pays off.
If you plan to start a blog, just remember to continue with your normal freelance writing routine until your blog is earning a steady paycheck.
When I started my first blog, I was still working as a freelance writer and only had time to write for my blog in my spare time. My first 18 months of blogging were all hard work and ZERO profit.
However, by the end of the second year, I was able to quit freelance writing for good. And I’m never coming back!
That’s why I seriously encourage freelance writers to create a blog in their spare time, make it profitable, and quit freelance writing once and for all to free themselves from waiting weeks for an editor’s response.
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If you want to start a blog that makes money but have no previous experience blogging and no coding skills, check out this step-by-step guide to quickly get started today!
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Originally posted on November 17, 2021. Last updated on December 7, 2023.
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