5 Books that Helped Me Launch My Freelance Writing Career

How I got started writing full-time and the books I learned from

Being a full-time freelance writer is a dream for many people, but it can be hard to even know how to get started. If you’re interested in starting to build your career as a freelance writer, let me share a little of my path so far and the books that I’ve read along the way that have helped make my first year of freelance writing full-time a success.

My goal for freelance writing was to match my salary as a middle school teacher. Most months, I’ve been able to hit that goal. I’ve had to handle a rough pregnancy and a newborn for all except one of those months, so things have been a little rockier than I originally planned. Some months, I managed to make double my goal, but others were much lower than I wanted.

Still, I’m counting my first year of freelancing as a success. Especially since I was secretly convinced I’d have to go back to a normal job to be able to pay our bills.

Before making the leap to full-time writing, I read a lot of books related to the topic. Here are the ones that were actually helpful in helping me find success so far.

Freelancer’s Survival Guide by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

For a realistic, detailed guide of what you actually need to know before going freelance (in any profession), this is the book to read. Author Kristine Kathryn Rusch covers everything from negotiating contracts to navigating both failure and success.

The guide was published in 2010, so a few of the technology-related sections are dated. It’s still an incredibly useful read though.

You can even read the entire guide for free on Rusch’s website. Plus, there are a ton of other useful series on her site.

The Freelance Content Marketing Writer by Jennifer Gregory

For a clear strategy to make good money as a writer, this book is exactly what you need. Jennifer Gregory covers topics that are useful for both beginners and more experienced writers.

The book goes over things like finding a niche, reaching out to clients, and creating a website. It’s incredibly straightforward and clear. Reading this book is the closest thing to paying someone to hold your hand through the entire process for a fraction of the price of actually hiring a person to do that.

Gregory’s website is also filled with great advice for freelance writers.

Travel Writing 2.0 by Tim Leffel

If you’re looking to break into travel writing, this book is a great resource. The book doesn’t teach you how to write, but instead, it shows you the realistic options for making money writing about travel.

Travel writing is an appealing niche, but unlike other books on the subject, Leffel’s guide details the work and strategies behind being a successful writer in the field. There’s also input from other writers besides Leffel, so you really get a sense of just how many paths there are in the world of travel writing.

Leffel’s website has lots of valuable articles and interviews with travel professionals that are worth reading through.

The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron

If you’re interested in a creative field, you’ve probably heard of this international bestseller before. Julia Cameron presents a variety of ways for people to get in touch with their inner artists.

While the language in the book sometimes feels a bit mystic and new age-ish, the practices are extremely helpful for promoting creativity. Many people write morning pages each day because of this book (including me), but there’s so much more inside the book. I highly recommend this book even if you’re nowhere near launching your freelance journey.

Refuse to Choose by Barbara Sher

For people who are constantly interested in new passions, projects, and ideas, this book helps you navigate all the things bouncing around in your head. Sher speaks to readers who are unable to pick just one interest to focus on.

The book is for people who can’t decide on only one thing they want to do with their lives and offers practical ways to juggle multiple passions well. If you’ve ever felt like you were doing life wrong because you couldn’t decide on one project or passion and stick with it, this book is both reassuring and useful.

Hopefully at least one of the books that have helped me with my writing career will help you as well.

Let me know in the comments if there are any books you’d recommend!