Anyone Can Make Money Writing (How To Stop Being A Penniless Writer)

How I built a $30k writing business from scratch aged 51.

Writers should get paid for doing what they love, which is something few people are truly capable of: entertaining, educating and inspiring others through the written word. Become a paid subscriber to How to Write for a Living for just £9 a month to unlock every benefit in our comprehensive membership package.

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By

Derek Hughes

Is it possible for an ordinary writer to make money?

Sadly most writers make very little. It’s tragic to see writers, churning out words to receive a tiny reward. It’s so unnecessary. My experience proves anyone can make money writing.

I started writing aged 51 and for spent in 7 months made $80. I nearly quit. But kept going. And over the last 8 months, I’ve been paid to:

• ghostwrite

• coach writers

• write for a national magazine

But my real love is creating courses to boost the skills of writers. My writing business makes $2500/month. If this sounds too good to be true. I’ll show you it isn’t.

Let me expose the main mistakes penniless writers make. And how you can fix them to make your money dreams come true.

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Stop hoping to make money

Writing lots and hoping money lands in your bank account doesn’t work. Yet that’s what many writers do.

You need a clear strategy. Some writers grasp at snippets of advice:

• write daily

• post on notes

• build an audience

• start a newsletter

• give away free content

These actions might help you make money. But only if they fit your strategy. There are many ways to make money writing:

• coaching

• affiliates

• freelancing

• ghostwriting

• selling courses

• paid subscribers

• creating products

• newsletter sponsorships

But each requires a different approach. Don’t take advice from a ghostwriter if affiliate is your strategy. Let me tease out some differences so you can make an informed choice.

Selling digital products

You want to create products to sell.

Then you need a newsletter. It doesn’t need to be large. The strategy is:

• provide quality content in your newsletter so they trust you

• offer something free to get them onto your list

• go where your target customer hangs out

• pitch your product

Look for advice that helps with these 4 steps. Ignore everything else.

Ghostwriting

If you want to ghostwrite for a particular industry. A newsletter aimed at customers won’t help.

Approach people directly and offer your services. But you need credibility first. So engage with them on social media. Or offer an industry-specific newsletter. Work for free to get social proof. Include this in your offer.

Focus less on creating your own content and more on understanding your industry.

A foolish attempt to make money

I was approached by one of my readers. He offered to ghostwrite for me!

How stupid. He got his approach wrong. Don’t approach a writer and offer to ghostwrite. Approach non-writers with this offer. If you want to sell something to a writer. Create a product that will help them improve.

Get clear on what value you can offer and for who. And build your writing around that.

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Writing skills are not enough

Once you have a strategy in place. Identify the skills you need.

Writing skills aren’t enough. You may need to learn sales or basic graphic design. You need some tech skills if you want to create products. For ghostwriting networking is essential.

Here’s a secret often overlooked. When choosing your strategy. Match this to how you want to spend your time. Think about what will be involved. You need to enjoy the tasks. Some writers hate selling their services via calls. Others revel in this space. Some writers waste years doing things they hate. Then wonder why they aren’t successful.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t have the skills. Most are easy to learn. But make sure you want to.

Solve valuable problems

At the heart of making money is solving problems people are willing to pay for.

My reader who tried to sell me ghostwriting had no chance. Because he was solving a problem I didn’t have.

Consider your target market. What problems do they have? Spend time talking to them. And listening. This could be individual conversations. Or you could write content and see what people like. Or analyse their comments for clues.

I’m designing a course to help people write headlines. I asked my email list for their big headline questions. A lot asked about the use of AI and headline analyzers. So I’ve included a module to address this issue. My course is now more likely to sell. Because it solves a real problem.

But you don’t get to pick the problems. Your audience does.

Will they pay for it?

Solving problems isn’t enough.

You need to solve problems people will pay for. You offer to write a blog for your dentist to get more hits on her website. But they place a low value on their website. You’ll struggle to earn money. Or if you provide products to those without surplus money (eg. students or the unemployed).

So you need people with money. And problems they’d pay to solve.

Once you have that. You can boost your odds of making cash by increasing the value.

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The productivity paradox: How writing less leads to better writing

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You have to make the ask

I know many writers feel uncomfortable selling.

They don’t want to come across as manipulative or salesy. But if you want to earn money, at some point you need to make the ask. You have to invite someone to give you money in return for your writing. People won’t act unless you do.

But get the balance right. For my newsletters, I adopt a 5:1 ratio. I give free value 5 times. Then I’ll make an ask. I have a similar ratio on Substack. Ask includes encouraging email sign-ups, promoting an affiliate link or asking for a testimonial. Even though these don’t cost money they are still an ask. They are withdrawals on your relational capital.

I’ve found by having this ratio. I feel more comfortable asking. I know I’ve given away a ton of value. And have built up enough trust to earn the right to ask.

You can use your writing skills to make money. Pick one strategy. Pursue it hard. And learn from others how to execute it well.

Derek

I’ve gained 14,000 followers in 12 months. If you want my 5-step writing system. Join 3487 other writers and sign up for my free course here.

Sign up for Derek’s weekly writing tips here.

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