How to Write Faster: 10 Secrets to Increase Your Income Without Raising Your Rates
As much as I hate to admit it, earning a good income as a freelance content marketing writer comes down to math. And I really hate math.
But the fact is that you only have so many hours to work. And you can only charge you clients so much. So there is only so much you can control those two variables. But you do have control of how long each article takes you, which is third variable in calculating your hourly rate. The good news is that you can learn to write each article faster, which increases the number of articles you can write each week, which in turn increases your income.
I have found that most writers who earn a good income, especially those that do not work full-time hours, say that they are fast writers. And on the flip side writers who tell me that they are struggling to reach their income goals will confess to being on the slow side.
I am in no way talking about turning in crap or low quality writing. Instead I am talking about using your time productively as well as making strategic business decisions. I think that writing speed is one of the most important (and easiest) things that writers can do to increase their income. All of the other ways to increase your income – find new clients and earn higher rates – are outside of your control. But how long something takes you to write is totally within your control.
Here are 10 ways to write faster:
1. Write a %^%%& first draft. I read this in Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird many years ago and am honestly not sure I would be a successful freelancer without this tactic. Next time you sit down to write an article, don’t think about making it good, don’t think about getting everything perfect – just get the words out on the paper as quickly as possible. Then go back into the draft (preferably the next day, but a few hours of distance will do in a pinch) – edit, rework and polish it. For me, this saves me hours and honestly I think the quality is better because I simply write the first draft and don’t overthink it.
2. Walk away. If I am struggling on a piece, then I stop working on it. There is nothing that wastes more time than staring at a screen. I will go work on another project. Or if it has to get done soon, then I will actually go play on social media or take a walk for a few minutes to clear my head. Often I find that relaxing and taking a break will actually help me write faster when I come back.
3. Write in your head. I often write entire articles in my head while driving or running or waiting in the carpool. I can really increase my hourly rate when I do this, because when I come back to my computer, all I basically have to do is transcribe that is in my head onto a piece of paper. Of course, I go back and edit it heavily. The trick is that I have to get to my computer quickly after I write it in my head to “get it out,” and I can’t work on anything else until I get this particular article out of my head. But as I have gotten older I have learned to succumb to the oddities of my brain instead of fighting them, which has been a huge key in writing faster.
4. Find your best time of the day to write first drafts. I am a morning person, so that is the time where I do the work that I need to think – editing, research, etc. But oddly enough, sometimes my best first drafts come in the evening when I am tired. I will just write quickly and most productively because I am “looser.” Yes, and this may sound odd, I have also found that a glass of red wine can sometimes help my productivity assuming I have time to edit in the morning before sending it the editor. Figure out when your body rhythm is best for writing and go with it, no matter how odd it seems.
5. Write to the quality the project and client needs. There is a big space between writing a crappy article and writing something that is Pulitzer worthy. I never turn in something that I am not proud of. But if you are writing a $300 blog post on using social media, then every word does not need to be a masterpiece. The readers don’t need this level of writing and your client doesn’t expect it. Tailor your results to the level of quality that is needed for each project and then give your client a little more than they expect. But save the endless revisions and perfection for those stories where you fall in love with the topic or the sources and pour your heart and soul into it. I’ve done many of those stories where I ended up earning less than I would have serving fries at the drive through because it meant something to me personally when it was all over. But never in 8 years of being a freelancer has one of those stories involved social media or another straightforward topic.
6. Outsource. Think about what tasks that you do that you could pay someone less than you make per hour to handle. I am a terrible proofreader and it takes me forever to proof my own work and even then I miss stupid typos, so I outsource proofing to Jan, my fabulous Virtual Assistant. I do the same with my initial research – she will find me a list of articles, surveys and sources based on the topic for me to use as a starting point. This saves me hours. And since I pay my VA $25 hour and I try to earn $100 to $150 an hour, the math (yes, there it is again) works out in favor of outsourcing whenever possible. (And I pay her well on special projects to keep her around.)
7. Write about topics you are familiar with. I can whip out an article on most any data analytics topic in no time. But if you ask me to write about lifestyle topics, it will take me hours and hours. I am not as knowledgeable in this area so I spend more time researching, and I am simply not as comfortable writing on home and garden type stuff. With tech, I know where to look online for good information, I have some go-to sources, I know the knowledge level of my audience and I know the terminology. So, while this is the opposite for most people, I make a lot more per hour writing about tech stuff than I do lifestyle. The point is that when you write in an industry and on topics that you are an expert in, then it takes you less time to complete the project.
8. Write groups of blog posts in batches. Each time you switch projects, it takes time. You have to shift gears, shift audiences and shift tone. If you have a client that you do a number of short pieces for on a regular basis, try to write these pieces all at once. So if you do weekly blog posts for a client, once a quarter spend two days knocking out all 12 of these pieces. Not only will this save time on the initial drafts, you can do the review process with the client all together which will save considerable time as well.
9. Reduce revisions. No matter how fast you write, if your client has 7688 rounds of revisions you will end up making less than you would have working at the drive-thru down the street. I found that the time I spent on each story went down dramatically and my hourly rates increased when I began actively managing the revision cycle. One more that I have learned the hard way since I wrote the post I just linked – make sure that everyone who will be reviewing the project begins providing input during ROUND 1. I recently worked on a 3,000 word whitepaper where the client reviewed the outline as well. When I submitted the draft after incorporating the second round of edits (which were minimal), we fully expected the client to sign off. Instead when I opened up the document – I said “Who the Heck is Ralph?” The answer – someone who got added to the review process during round 3 and had lots and lots of opinions. Thus sending the project into FIVE rounds of revisions, but luckily I had stipulated three revision rounds so I pocketed an extra $500 for my troubles.
10. Aim for some longer pieces. I’ve focused mainly on how to turn out shorter pieces quickly, but when it comes down to it, it takes time to project manage each blog post no matter how quick you write it. So while this isn’t exactly a tip on how to write faster, I think it’s important to mention that you can also dramatically improve your hourly rate by adding in some longer pieces to your projects as well. Yes, the 500 word blog posts are easier to find, but by mixing in both, you can increase your overall earnings in the long run.
What are your tips for writing faster? What roadblocks do you find?
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Great advice, Jennifer! I’ve always been a quick writer, but I find that the longer I freelance, the harder it can be to sit down and actually WRITE. There just seem to be so many other tasks (emails, research, negotiating with clients, marketing, etc.) that take little chunks of my time and there is never a moment where I am completely free of those distractions—so I have to make an effort to put them aside for a while and focus on drafting. I think as an entrepreneur, it’s easy to let email (especially!) take over my life—I am trying to learn to remind myself that most emails are not urgent, and it’s not a big deal if I don’t check every hour and respond within minutes.
I liked what you wrote about figuring out the best time of day for writing first drafts. I tend to try to write in the middle of the day, and sometimes it works . . . but often enough, it is like pulling teeth and takes me twice as long to write something. So this idea of trying out different times of day is one I’m going to tackle! Thanks!
You make a very good point about emails and other stuff. I could spend my entire day responding to things that “happen.” I have started trying to group those “little things” into batches. I do a group when I first sit down to get my in the groove and another group around lunch – while it’s cooking and then after lunch. Then usually another batch after dinner.
Yeah, the time of day thing really helps me. I can’t edit at night or do anything thought provoking. I also find that if it’s a more featury or essay then I do better on the weekend because my brain is more relaxed and less in business mode. Let us know what ends up working with you and the time of day!
Wow, Jennifer, we really *must* meet one of these days, as we are definitely ‘cut from the same cloth’ in many respects. I, too, try to get something, anything down when I’m starting a new piece, as I find that the ‘blank white screen’ can kill ya if you stare at it too long, searching for inspiration.
There are also days when my muse has clearly ‘left the building,’ so I just walk away (assuming I have the wiggle room on a deadline) and do something else that needs to be done, but doesn’t require as many ‘creative juices.’
I also do a lot of writing in my head as I drive, shower, cook, etc. Many are the times that I’ve bolted past my husband in search of a piece of paper to capture the great lede that revealed itself while I was mincing garlic or making the bed. 😉 Getting away from the computer can often be the greatest gift you can give yourself.
And finally, YES, YES, YES — stay in your niche when you can–you’re much more efficient. Lifestyle and arts topics are my baileywick–I love to write on those types of topics and have become quite proficient in doing so. Give me a finance or tech topic, on the other hand, and glacial ice will move more quickly….
Keep the ideas comin’– you’re so good at what you do and so kind to share….
LOL, yes, we totally have to meet. You HAVE to come to NYC in May. Oh my gosh, I have done the same thing about rushing to the computer. And my family has had to wait for dinner for the same reason on more occasions that I am going to admit.
Yep, the staying in your niche is SO important. And it’s important to realize that just because something seems easy that doesn’t mean it’s easy for your brain. That was my problem with the lifestyle stuff. I think I should be able to do it quickly, but oh my goodness. I did a firepit story last year that honestly took me FIFTEEN hours. Yes, it was a 500 word post on how to build a firepit.
Great tips, Jennifer! I’m still laughing at “Who the heck is Ralph?” That’s a good lesson about everyone having to begin providing input on round one.
I also like the tip about writing in your head. I do that with leads, but I’m going to try to take it further.
LOL, yeah, the Ralph thing is much funnier as a story than it was in real life. And I didn’t say heck :>)
You know I started doing the writing in my head with ledes and it progressed to the whole article. The downside of doing it is that it is almost physically impossible to write anything else once it is written in your head until you get that story out of your brain. And I can’t always control when my brain will write a story and it’s often not the NEXT story that I need to work on. But I’ve learned to roll with it and trust my creative process.
Fabulous, fabulous stuff Jennifer! As one of the “slow writers” I thank you so much!
Just curious, but are the articles that you’re writing in your head, topics that you already know well? Or are they a topic you’ve researched but just haven’t written a first draft of yet (so everything is just gel-ing in your head)?
When dealing with a topic I know nothing about, I usually research and then immediately write my first draft. It almost sounds as if you do your research early in the day, and write your first draft later. Am I right? Does this help?
And how, HOW do you do number 5?!! Do you just stop yourself from thinking too long about how to revise it after you’ve written your first draft?
Number 6: When you outsource your research, do you tell your VA to spend no more than an hour per article?
Number 7: Oh my gosh, Jennifer. I’m cracking up. Right now I’m working on a series of posts on stuff like DevOps, operational effectiveness, disruptive technology…and at first I was a basket case. Spent like 6 hours on a 400-word post because I had no idea what I was talking about. Give me a lifestyle topic any day of the week over this stuff, baby! Ha, ha!
And this is probably mean, but your “fire pit story” comment above actually made me feel a little better about how long I’ve been taking on my 400-word software posts! :o)
(BTW, I’m having a glass of red wine as I read this post. Ha, ha!)
I”m glad you found the firepit story amusing. It wasn’t funny at the time, lol :>) I wanted to scream. It got to the point that two of my good writing friends actually offered to finish it for me (I didn’t let them) because they were so tired of hearing me complain about this story.
Let’s see as far as writing in my head – it’s both. Sometimes they are topics I know well and if they are topics that I do not then I break up the researching and the writing. I will do the research one day ideally (or go through my VA’s research if I got her help) and then write the next day and then edit the following day to submit. I prefer not to research and write all in one sitting, but of course I have done it and will do it.
Yeah, my VA knows not to go over an hour, but if she can’t find what she needs in an hour then it isn’t there or we are approaching it wrong because she has gotten very good at doing this yes.
Number 5, I don’t know the answer. I’ve been doing this long enough that I just know this. It’s art not a science. I do figure out how long I need to complete a story in for it to work out to a 100 per hour and aim for that. Most of my clients are long term, so I know what I need to do for each client. I think that’s a skill that you just acquire after you do this for a while.
Does that help?
Yup, thanks!
Especially the part about thinking about how much you’re being paid, and then deciding ahead of time how long you are willing to work on a piece based on that rate of pay.
Jennifer, I totally agree with your tips. I’ve been told I’m a fast writer, and a lot of it has to do with, as you say, staying in my niche, writing in the morning and just getting that draft down (on the negative side, I’ve convinced myself that I can’t start writing a new story in the afternoon, but can only do administrative tasks, so sometimes I miss my window of opportunity to write!), and keeping a pen and paper near the shower and in the car so I can write down thoughts and sentences when I step out. Great stuff!
Yes! That’s exactly what I mean about finding your best time of the day to write. That’s a great idea about pen and paper.
I have done the same thing with my voice recorder on a phone. I am not a pen and paper kinda person. I can never find a pen, LOL. You just gave me a good idea – I can record my saying the story in my head on my iphone voice recorder if I am afraid I’m going to lose it. Then transcribe it or have it transcribed. I’m going to try this!
Jennifer, you are an amazing writer and even more amazing client. Thanks for the shout out for virtual assistants!
Happy dance!
I couldn’t do this without you!
[…] Another note from Jennifer: I could not agree with this post more. And I find that the higher earning content marketing writers are typically fast writers. Check out a post I wrote on this same topic for some more tips on writing faster. […]
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