Why Every Freelance Writer Needs A Website

What do you mean, you don't have a website yet? Websites these days aren't just for businesses and people who want to share their obsession with Buffy the Vampire Slayer with the world. These days, websites are one of the most important tools for writers...

Why get a writer's website?

First of all, ask yourself why you write in the first place. If you can honestly put your hand on your heart and say that you write only for yourself, and you don't care if no one ever reads your work, then I'll concede the point: you probably don't really need a website.

If you're like the vast majority of aspiring writers, though, and you'd secretly (or even not-so-secretly) love to see your name in print, or to actually make a living from your writing, then I'll say it again: you need a website.

But why?

Well, if you're serious about carving out a career for yourself in writing, the first thing you need to know is that a successful writing career isn't just about writing. If you're really serious about selling your writing, you need to get serious about marketing it.

Here's an interesting fact for you: the most successful freelance writers aren't necessarily the best writers. In fact, some of them aren't even all that great at writing in the first place. They're good at marketing. Selling themselves - and their writing. And what's one of the easiest ways to start marketing your writing? By getting a website.

Promoting your writing with your own writer's website

Let's face it - selling ourselves isn't always something that comes naturally. As writer's (and often just as people) we're used to self-effacement. Some of the best writer's I know are the most modest. They know how to write: they just don't know how to sell themselves.

If you fall into this category, a website can be a fabulous work-around for the problem of how to sell yourself effectively. In simple terms, once you have your own writer's website, you don't have to worry about selling yourself - your website will do it for you.

A writer's website allows you to:

* Post samples of your writing so that prospective clients can see for themselves how well equipped you are to write for them.

* Give potential publishers, employers and fellow writers a means of contacting you to offer you work and ask for quotes. * Position yourself as an expert in the field of writing, thus making it more likely that people will actually want to make use of your service.

* Display testimonials from your satisfied clients.

* Take advantage of the fact that the web is where employers are looking for their writers.

It's the last of these points which is possibly the most significant. Let's look at why:

The number one reason why writers need websites

When an employer is searching for a freelance writer, editor or proofreader, where do you think they look? Well, they may look in their local yellow pages or business directory, or they may go by word of mouth, but for most people, the very first place they'll look is online. Trust me, when you run an online agency for freelance writers, you find out very quickly just how many employers there are who use the internet to find a writer!

If you don't have a presence on the internet (i.e. a website), how will these employers ever find you? Yes, you can rely on using an agency like my own, but with a little bit of hard work, and a well-designed website, you could be bringing in clients yourself.

Still think you don't need a writer's website?

Hot Igloo Productions Ltd., offers bespoke websites for writers starting at only £50 / $100 for a simple site.

Amber McNaught runs http://www.writingworld.org - an online agency helping freelance writers find work.