Why Writing For Free Makes Sense For Freelance Writers

As a freelance writer, you want to get paid for your writing, so you don't want to write for free. But don't write off the value of doing some writing without pay. Here are three benefits that freelance writers can gain from writing for free. 

Hone Writing Skills

The more writers write, the better they get - and they faster they can produce articles that get published. New freelance writers may find it difficult to write one or two 400-word articles a day. Experienced freelance writers will be able to write five, six or more within a working day. Practice make perfect and you will soon learn how to use the same research to produce fresh content.

Example: I have researched a general article on surfing. Instead of using my research once, I use it several times to write articles with slightly different slants. Some articles are aimed at surfing enthusiasts, others at novices. I also use this material as part of other articles on sports and adrenalin junkies. Instead of writing one article, I have written four.

Writers can also change the slant of their articles depending on the audience they are writing for. The same article on surfing would be written differently for teenagers and silver surfers. Writing for article directories gives writers a chance to experiment with targeting their articles.

Let Editors Get To Know Writers

Editors and publisher are always on the hunt for good freelance writers. Submitting your article to an article bank could be one way for them to find you. You won't get paid directly, but getting in contact with the people who offer writing work will pay off in the end. 

For example, I wrote a book review of a children's book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. My article was picked up by a parenting site. The editor of the site then asked if I had any other suitable material. I have now made a contact that might provide paid work one day.

Raise A Writer's Profile

If writers want to get regular writing work, editors, publishers and potential employers have to be able to find them. If a writer's name keeps coming up on Google searches with links to articles s/he has written, that writer immediately has more credibility with editors and publishers. This makes it more likely that the writer will get published and get paid to write.

Where Can Writers Post Free Articles?

There are literally hundreds of article directories available. However, writers who want to raise their profile should stick to directories that rank highly in the search engines or have a high PageRank. I use EzineArticles.com as my primary article directory, as articles are indexed quickly by search engines. However, I also use GoArticles.com and ArticlesBase.com. I have used these articles as samples of my work and have been able to get paid writing commissions as a result. The publicity and the contacts are invaluable. And if writers are getting publicity, they are not really writing for free, are they?