Writing is such a rewarding hobby, not least when you start making money from it. Below, we’ll go through 11 of the best ways to get paid to write.
Whether you’re writing to make some extra pocket money or you’re working towards a long-term career goal, it can take a lot of work and effort. But, it’s worth it.
Writing is a particularly good way to make money while still studying. It can help you have a good career or alternative source of income.
To help you turn your wordy skills into well-deserved cash, here are ways to make money from writing.
Make money reviewing films, products, music and more
It’s very easy to get paid to write reviews when you know how.
When it comes to writing reviews, you might think of full-time jobs that require loads of previous experience, like professional TV and movie reviewing.
But, you can actually start making money from reviews quickly by signing up for a few rewards websites. On these sites, you could find yourself reviewing anything! Gadgets, music and stationery among others.
For example, on Slicethepie, you can earn cash from writing short reviews of fashion items and songs. All you need to do is sign up and you can get started immediately.
Write articles for money
Journalism is a brilliant career route for anyone with a love and talent for writing. We really recommend going for it if it’s what you want to do.
It’s important to recognise, though, that it is a competitive industry. It has a reputation for involving a fair amount of low-paid work and unpaid internships for young writers who are just starting out.
However, while it’s not always easy, it is possible to make money as a student journalist.
You don’t necessarily need to be studying journalism to start getting paid to write articles. But, you do need to be a strong writer with a great eye for stories and brilliant attention to detail.
The amount you’d earn per article will vary depending on the publication and length/style of the piece.
Sell your revision notes
If you’re great at making clear and concise lecture notes, you could actually make a bit of income from your revision.
There are couple of sites to use if you’d like to sell your notes to other students. On these sites, it’s usually free for you to list your notes. But, some companies might charge a fee for any sales made.
And, for anyone with particularly beautiful revision notes, you could also make money by creating a studygram account on Instagram. It has the added bonus of keeping you motivated with your revision, too.
Enter writing competitions to win cash prizes
It might seem pretty daunting to enter writing competitions. But, someone’s got to win. Why not you?
It will look great on your CV if you can say that you won a writing competition or award, or that you were highly commended. Plus, it’s also a rather lovely boost to your student bank balance if you receive a monetary prize.
Writing competitions and awards can come with cash prizes of hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds.
How to win writing competition
These tips will help to increase your chances of winning writing competitions and awards:
- Be creative – To impress competition judges, you’ll need to stand out from the first line of your entry. Try to start with something surprising. If you can, consider playing around with conventional writing techniques and present your ideas in an unusual, memorable way.
- Read previous winning entries – Try to find winning entries from previous years to see the styles and arguments that have previously been successful. It’s still important to write creatively. But, keep in mind the key features that judges might be looking for in an award-winning piece of writing.
- Check the competition T&Cs – This is so important. Before you even start writing an entry for a competition, make sure you’re eligible to apply. Some competitions might specify you need to be within an age range, from a particular area or have a certain level of writing experience (e.g. be a published writer).
- Proofread – Always check through your work several times before submitting it. It might help to read it aloud to highlight typos or inconsistencies in your argument. Also, ask family and friends to read through it too in case they spot something you’ve missed.
Make money writing translations
One great way to make money from your language skills is to write translations.
There will be plenty of businesses willing to pay you to translate text for them on a freelance basis.
Some languages will earn you more than others. Have a look on sites like Fiverr to see how much freelance translators tend to charge, depending on the languages they speak.
Earn money writing social media content
Writing social media content can be a great money earner. It’s ideal for anyone with a strong understanding of how to build online followings and create viral social posts.
Love writing and reading? You could try to make money on BookTok. When making TikTok videos about books, write captions that are eye-catching and engaging. If you get the attention of brands, this could lead to lucrative sponsorship opportunities.
Write a book
Writing a book is definitely not the quickest way to make money on this list. Nor is it the simplest. But it is possible (and perhaps not quite as difficult as you might think).
There are so many different things you could write a book about. You could write a fictional novel or collate a series of poems/short stories as a book. You could even write something non-fiction, like an advice guide for students, based on your own experiences.
You may want to go down the route of finding a writing agent and getting a publishing deal. But remember that this isn’t the only way to make money from a book.
eBooks are pretty easy to self-publish and can see you making a passive income from your writing. It’s a good way to publish a book and start earning cash from sales pretty quickly.
Unsure how to get started? We’ve got guides to writing and publishing an eBook and the best eBook publishing platforms, as well as tips on how to make money from your eBooks.
Make money as a ghostwriter
A lot of people have great writing skills, but don’t fancy the public attention that writing can bring. If that’s you, ghostwriting could be ideal.
As a ghostwriter, you’d be working with others to help them write texts (e.g. books or speeches), but you wouldn’t be publicly credited as the author.
It’s difficult to say what salary you would expect to receive as a ghostwriter. It depends heavily on the industry you work in and the clients you write for. But, for big, high-profile writing projects, it could be pretty lucrative.
As with technical writing, you’ll need writing experience to start ghostwriting full-time. It will help if you can develop a strong portfolio to boost your writing credentials.
