Freelance Journalism

In todays journalism world there is starting to be more freelanced writers. What exactly is a freelance journalist/writer? Wisegeek gives a good definition: A freelancer is a non-fiction writer who contracts their services to different media sectors.

A lot of freelance journalists write about specific topics like business, entertainment, and many other fields. Some write about numerous topics. That is one of the best parts about being a freelance writer. You are allowed to pick what you want to write about and what interests you. Another good part of freelancing is there is always an audience for whatever you choose to write about whether its about marine biology or guitar amplifiers.

In an article by Matthew Stibbe, he writes about the skills you need as a freelance journalist. One of the biggest things a freelance writer can do is read and write. Another is having curiosity. Being curious can help you discover new topics to write about. One of the most important skill a they must have is being able to market themselves. Freelancing is a business it's self. These journalists must be able to sell their product to a media or marketing firm.

There are a number of downsides to freelancing. One of the biggest is money. When doing freelance work it is sometimes very hard to find a steady job that will bring steady cash flow. Along with that there are a lot of times freelancers will go without getting paid for their work.

Another downside to freelancing is isolation. Because there journalist are writing by yourself they have no team or no one to assist them.

Freelancing is important to the journalism field because we are starting to see more and more of it. Freelance journalists may very well change the way journalism is done in the future.