by iakul

Created on: August 04, 2009   Last Updated: August 05, 2009

For anyone who has spent at least a few months working as a freelance writer, he or she is likely to find that online freelance writing jobs are not hard to find at all. Just join the dozens of sites out there like oDesk or Get A Freelancer, and you can easily get work where you get paid something like $0.50 for 500 words.

Rather, it's the well paying jobs that are elusive, the ones that pay $10, $25 or $50 per article. Experienced freelance writers all say that these jobs are out there, that it's possible to get work with these kind of rates. But somehow, new writers never seem to be able to find them. So, here's a few tips for new writers out there looking for these kinds of online freelance writing jobs.

Firstly, join writers' communities and forums. But join the right ones. If the crowd who frequent a forum are posting job requests that offer $0.50 for a 500 word article, and people are actually clamouring to get those jobs, you are never going to get that high-paying gig where you get paid $50 for a 500 word article no matter how often you check on the forum. Join forums like Accentuate Writers Forum , where they actually post high quality writing leads. True, they don't post writing leads as frequently as those $0.50 for 500 word forums, but you can be pretty sure that leads that they post will be quality leads.

Next, be proactive. A freelance writer shouldn't just be looking for freelance writing jobs. He or she should actually be asking potential clients for work. I have contacted copywriting companies and SEO companies directly before, who have not actually posted anywhere or advertised anywhere that they have work for a freelance writer. They don't always give a positive reply. Sometimes, they don't even reply. But sometimes, I get a reply that goes something along the lines of " Well, we're not exactly looking at the moment, but are always open to impeccable writers to join us on board. Should you be interested in applying for a writing position with us, we'd like you to send in..." Getting a well-paid writing job from this company hasn't happened yet, but it's certainly something that's likely to happen in the near future.

Last but not least, watch out for scams. Beware of publishers who ask for "article samples", then give you a title and specifications for you to write for those "article samples", even though you have actually included excerpts and links to articles similar to what they requested in your resume. Beware job requests where for some flimsy reason, the publisher actually requires you to provide information like your credit card details. If something in a job request doesn't make sense, question it. If you are still not comfortable with the reply, you can always turn down the job.

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