Develop your writing skills. As your ability to craft together words, sentences and paragraphs is the art of your trade, editors are unlikely to accept articles from potential writers who demonstrate poor spelling or grammar. Boost your confidence in this area through classes in writing, proofreading, editing, English or journalism. And most importantly, read as often and widely as possible -- especially in those areas where you are keen to become a freelance writer in.
Build up a freelance portfolio. A portfolio is a collection of articles that you yourself have written that will demonstrate your skills and experience. In order to build up a portfolio, submit articles to local community rags, newsletters, school or university magazines and small websites. If you have a professional or specialized knowledge in an area, such as technology or health, begin there. Start small and work your way forward by taking one step at a time. Once you have a small collection of articles put together, choose your best writing examples and print them as a hard-copy portfolio or publish them online as PDF files.
Set up a professional web site or blog. Websites and blogs will showcase your work and act as a the interactive front for your freelance writing business. You can set up blogs for free through services such as Blogger and Wordpress and if you update them regularly, you will encourage a constant flow of traffic to your website. If your blog becomes popular with visitors and subscribers, you get paid blogging and writing jobs for other websites.
Join freelance writing web services. Many online services now exist for people who wish to start earning money for their writing, giving writers access to a global online job market. Writers can either put their name forward as a bid for articles and jobs, while other services screen writers first before allowing them access to a pool of paid work they themselves can select. Set up accounts with services such as Freelance Writing Jobs and Elance and start looking for work.
Learn business skills. Freelance writers are self-employed and must learn a host of skills in order to make their home-based businesses work. Some of these skills include money management, accounting, tax and personal budgeting. Freelance earnings are irregular, and writers must learn how to survive with the stress of not having a regular paycheck. Take a class in spreadsheets like Excel and research your local tax laws.
Make social contact on a regular basis. Being a freelance writer can be exceptionally lonely lacking the banter of work mates, water cooler conversations and Friday night get-togethers. Reach out and make connections with other freelance writers who will support you and help you stay motivated in your career choice. Join professional writing or freelancing organizations, go to local events, attend writing workshops and subscribe to blogs by other writers. When possible take your work to a public place like a cafe, library or park where you will feel more connected to the hustle and bustle of daily life.