SYLVIANE NUCCIO

How to Find the Perfect Writer for Your Writing Project

find good writer for project
April 12, 2016 Business, Writing And Blogging

find good writer for project

You want to hire the perfect writer for your project, but you’re not sure how to go about it.

Maybe it’s the first time you’re in the market for a freelance writer, or maybe you want to avoid the mistakes you’ve made in the past.

If this is you, this article if for you.

A couple of months ago I wrote about 5 wrong criteria to find the right writer for your business which was an article about qualities that shouldn’t scare you when hiring a freelance writer for your business.

Today, I wanted to talk about specific items you should consider in order to find the perfect writer for your project.

I can only imagine that as a business owner, a blogger, or even an advertiser you want to find the best writer possible at a price that is comfortable to you, yet acceptable for the writer you hire as well.

As far as the writer is concerned, he or she wants the same thing.

Writers want to find a client that will appreciate their work while not wanting to pay minimum wages for it. While they still may be some writers willing to write for peanuts out there, they may not necessarily be the best deal for you as a business owner who needs creativity, productivity, style and quality at the same time.

In this post, I’m going to give you a few tips that are going to help you find the freelance writer for your writing job. I can tell you that once you find a good writer, you don’t want to look for anyone else since it usually saves you time and money looking for them.

 

Offer Long-Term Commitment

If you offer a long term commitment to your potential writer, chances are that you are going to attract more good writers and less low-quality applications.

Someone who is not serious or not very good at what they do will less likely want to work for you more than once. On the other hand, a good writer is looking to building a relationship with their client and wants to stick with them as long as possible.

Good writers know that as time goes on, they’ll know exactly what their client is looking for, and will be able to deliver better and faster projects.

Most good writers work only with long-term commitment clients. So something to keep in mind as a business owner looking for a writer.
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Be as Specific as Possible in your Request

The more specific you are about your project, the less likely you will give room for gray areas that will be up to the writer to guess.

Good writers love specific requests, as for mediocre writers tend to like when it’s vague enough so they can slack wherever possible.

  • How many words do you want?
  • When do you want it for?
  • For what audience is it for?
  • What style do you want?
  • At what point you want to pay?
  • Do you want to sign a contract?
  • At what point do you want the copyrights signed over to you?
  • Do you want to be all that formal?
  • Are you more of the a relaxed kind that just want the job done, but doesn’t need a contract?

There is really no right or wrong answer here, it really depends on how you want things done. I have worked with people who had no clue about any of these, but if you are searching for a writer through ads, I suggest that you know the answer to each of these questions.

The more specific you are in your description, the easier it will be for the writer to know if this assignment is for them or not.

A good writer will never take something that they don’t feel they can do a great job with. So something to keep in mind.
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Notice how Promptly you get a Reply

Notice how promptly your request is answered to, whether the writer is interested in taking the job or not, once you’ve contacted them personally.

If you haven’t heard back from them within 24 hours, it means that either they are too busy, not interested enough or simply rude.

I always reply to any request whether I’m interested in the job or not.

As a writer, it’s not because you’re not interested in one specific project that you want to look rude and unprofessional. So you should always send a reply regardless.

 

Leave the Outline to the Writer

I can assure you that a good writer doesn’t need an outline to your article, blog post or eBook. As a matter of fact, the better the writer the less likely they’ll want to be bothered with your outline, which is going to be more of a hindrance to them.

I know many writers, including me, who work much better without outline from the client. We do just fine creating our own outlines because that’s what we do.

So, when you hire a good writer, you don’t have to worry about giving them more than the topic you want them to write about and the style you want it to be written in. As long as you are specific about what you want, the outline of the written piece is part of the creative work of the writer.

 

Don’t Rely on Job Postings

I’m going to play the devil’s advocate here and not to advise you to browse job posting sites, like almost everyone else would suggest, because I believe in searching for writers rather trying to get one through a job board.

When you’re searching for a writer and find their blog, you’ve got all the proofs you need to see if they can do the job, and you can contact them directly.

No need to post an ad, wait for an avalanche of irrelevant replies, ask for samples and then try to make the best decision possible. You can avoid all of that by browsing writer’s blogs directly, and contact them directly.

Anyone who has found me through my blog  rarely had to ask me for a simple. I think that if you read a couple of my posts and the feedback I’m getting on a regular basis, you’d have a pretty good idea of my writing style and knowledge about writing.

 

Have a Conversation with your Potential Writer

Interestingly enough, very few people would even try to meet their writer in person, and in my opinion, that’s a huge mistake.

When I say in person, I mean that if you have Skype of a Google+ account it’s possible to speak to anyone in the world, so you can get to know the writer you’re interested in hiring face to face.

By speaking to them you can have a better feel about them, and it could be an extra help to make your decision if they are a good fit for the job or not.

Now, don’t judge them for their foreign accent if they have one, though, because remember that accents don’t show in writing. As I mentioned in this previous post, for many good freelance writers, English is only their second language, yet they are absolutely fabulous writers.

 

Look at the feedback the writer gets

You may or may not know that, but not all good writers are always easy to read. As a matter of fact, I know of a few who make me feel that I’m stupid because their writing style is hard to follow. And yes, I’m talking about professional writers.

Ever read something that goes above your head?

Well, that should never be the case because any writer should be able to write about any subject in such way that anyone above the age 10 should understand. And it doesn’t mean that the writing sounds childish, it means that your writing is clear and concise.

The best way to know what the public thinks about the writing style of your potential writer is to read their comments. How do their readers feel about the writer’s style? That’s a good tell-tale sign.

Want to know what my readers think about my writing?

Here are few samples, but you can find more by browsing them on my blog.

“The way you explain your ideas is unbeatable! This article is rich in content and magic too.”

“It always a pleasure to read your posts. I love your style…”

“This is my first visit to your blog. I’m very happy Google redirected me this page. You are talented, no doubt.”

Finding the right freelance writer for your business is easier than you think, all you need to do is think slightly outside of the box. That could make the difference between only finding an average writer, and finding the perfect writer for you specific project.

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23 thoughts on “How to Find the Perfect Writer for Your Writing Project”

  1. Hi Sylviane,
    What a joy to be here again!
    In this post you brought out some of the vital tips on how to find out or select an eligible writer for your business needs.
    The step by step guidelines are really worth following to find out a suitable one.
    Thanks for sharing these valuable tips.
    May you have a great rest of the week.
    Keep sharing
    ~ Philip
    Philip Verghese Ariel invites you to read..Tell Me Now What Should I Do?My Profile

    1. Hi Philip,

      I’m glad you appreciated the content here. Sorry I could never write that guest post of yours, but right now it’s been even hard to post on my own blog. But will so one of these days, promise.

      ~Sylviane

      1. Hi Sylviane,
        Thank you so much for the quick feedback.
        Oh My! I totally forgot that, I am sure you have a sharp memory!
        I appreciate that. 🙂
        No worries! Take your time.
        Have a great time of sharing and caring. 🙂

        Good day

        TC

        ~ Phil

  2. Hi Sylviane,

    Have missed some of you posts…going to have to do some catching up!
    Always enjoy your offerings…so clear and to the point and
    definitely pointing out what is important to know and do.

    ~Cararta

    1. Hi Cararta,

      Actually, I’ve posted very irregularly lately because I’ve been very busy writing for clients in fact.
      Thank you for coming by.

      ~Sylviane

  3. Hello Sylviane Nuccio,

    Great light by your side, on how to find eligible writer to promote our business well.
    A good step by step method is being provided by your side, to get a good writer.
    It is a hard task though to find a good writer who can compose our content well,
    some are there, but they rate to high for this work to be done.
    Every one wants that their work should be get done at a affordable price, in their starting
    period, for promoting their business.

    Thanks for this valuable share among us.
    Shantanu sinha

    1. Hi Shantanu,

      Writing is no easy task, so a writer should be paid well, that’s why hiring a writer is not for everyone. Think about it, a maid, might not charge as much as a writer, yet, not everyone can afford a maid, now can they? Something to think about. But when English is still very foreign to a business owner, hiring a writer might be a good idea.

      Thanks for coming.

      ~Sylviane

  4. Hi Sylviane

    The first one has clicked my attention; longer the contract means company can get the best without much effort.

    You are right there is a big number of writers in market who charge peanuts for creating a 1000 words post but one can assess the quality of such posts by just reading their intro.

    Job postings can work for technical type of blogging but for hiring a creative writer one needs to think beyond stereotyped approach

    Many thanks for sharing these very useful tips

    Keep writing and keepsharing
    Mi Muba invites you to read..How to turn your flop product into a best seller?My Profile

    1. Hi Mi,
      Nice to see you here again.

      You are so right, job boards are better for technical writing type projects, but when it comes to creative writing, getting to know the writer more deep and personal is a much better approach.

      Thanks for your feedback and for coming.

      ~Sylviane

  5. Hi Sylviane Nuccio,
    This is a really informative post for any bloggers who looking to hire writers.
    It’s very hard to find a good article writer nowadays. Most of the people work only for money and produce some content with meaningless.
    I tried each and every time and still not get a perfect writer with my expectations.
    The tips you produced on this post are very useful to find a perfect writer. Keep posting this kind of valuable posts.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Thyrone Charles Mathew invites you to read..10 Best Black High Heels For Work With More ComfortableMy Profile

    1. Hi Thyrone,

      Well, this is because you probably go for cheap writers. In the freelance writing world is the same as the retail world I’d say. You have Walmart type quality, and you have Bloomingdale type quality. You can’t expect to pay Bloomingdale products the same price as you’d pay for Walmart products. It’s very different quality.

      That’s why they’ve got a very different clientele too. Now I understand that not everyone can afford Bloomingdale.

      Thanks for your input.

      ~Sylviane

        1. Hi again, Thryrone,

          While I can’t speak for everyone, I would say that a Bloomingdale type writer might accept to write a 1000 word article for no less than $75 to $100 and most probably more. It all depends on the person and on the job too. I myself would write such article between $75 a $120 if it’s not too time consuming for me to write on the given topic. To give you an example, right now I write for a magazine that pays me $400 for a post of 1400-1500 words. So knowing this; accepting to write $1000 for the prices I mentioned above, it’s pretty low as you can see.

          Hope this help, and if you are in the market for a more expensive writer shoot me an email.

          ~Sylviane

  6. Hey Sylviane,

    I really like the point you made about not relying on job posts. It makes a lot of sense and a smart way to find great writers.

    If you want to kill two birds with one stone, why go through ads where you can go directly to the writer. You have the proof there and also if they allow comments, they’ll have the social proof that comes with their blog which is the point you made about the feedback they get.

    One other thing to save time is to be specific of what you want from writers. Having a list like you have here gives your writer a great idea of what you expect so that they don’t have to second guest. As you said, good writers like specifics and the mediocre writes don’t look for specifics so that they can slack off.

    Thanks for sharing these tips Sylviane! Have a great rest of the week!
    Sherman Smith invites you to read..Diversify Your Shares With The Social Warfare WordPress PluginMy Profile

    1. Hi Sherman, and nice to see you.

      I’m glad you appreciated the points I made here, and I’m glad to see that they make sense to other people as well, not just me 🙂

      You have a wonderful weekend!

      ~Sylviane

  7. Having a good writer is really a difficult stuff. I personally find many fake writer who are not that good writer, they write only for the sake of money. Still I am searching for a good writer for my company, in the mean time I got introduced with your article. I find your steps helpful in finding good writers because I have done some of the steps unknowingly before also.
    Thanks for this awesome helpful article for my business. I would share this with my staffs too.

    1. Hi Rema,

      The reason why you find bad writers is probably because you are searching among cheap writers. And when it comes to writing services it’s like just about anything else in life, if you look for cheap, unfortunately, you are going to find cheap work.

      Thanks for coming by, and remember that I do write for businesses, by the way.

      ~Sylviane

  8. Just found your website. This is an interesting post to read through. Besides the writing itself, it’s also very important that the content is shared in the right way. Do you also have tips for that?

    1. Hi Linda,

      If I have tips to share my posts? Well, I try to publish my posts on as many social media as possible. I also use sharing platforms such JustRetweet, or ViralBuzz so my post is shared by many other people as well.

      Thanks for coming by.

      ~Sylviane

  9. Hi Sylviane,

    It is been a while now. This is an educative post for every bloggers desires to have unique contents in his/her blog.

    In the face of high quest for money, one may be tempted to think that there are no good content writers these days; but there are still great writers who put passion first before monetary gains.

    The highlights you made herein are very handy when one is looking out for a good content writer.

    Thanks!
    Emebu

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