How I Almost Got Scammed: A Freelance Writing Lesson

In Friday’s post, I promised to tell you about a couple of writing opportunities that came my way that had me kind of pissed off. Here goes . . .

I must have applied to this one particular company a while ago (I apply for a lot of stuff and don’t exactly remember), because they sent me the following email:

Thank you for your interest in freelance writing for (said site). We are in the process of selecting candidates for freelance writing projects. Because of the amount of response we’ve had to our ad, we are asking prospective freelancers to take a short writing test (emphasis added) via e-mail. This will help us get a better sense of your voice, style and deadline management. You’ll have an allotted time period (24 hours) to take the test and return it.

If you’re interested in freelancing with (said site), please select one of the following time slots. We will e-mail you the test at that time, and you’ll need to send it back to me within 24 hours:

Thursday Feb. 28 at noon and 3p.m.

Friday Feb. 29 at noon and 3p.m.
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I started not to respond because I usually don’t test. But, I thought to myself, don’t cut off your nose to spite your face. This could be steady work, and a “short writing test” isn’t so bad. So, I chose the Thursday at 3pm slot and waited for the test to be sent to me. I received it right at 4pm – and it wasn’t short. The following is what they wanted:

Read the rest here.
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Today’s Freelance Writing Jobs
(Note: I list positions that offer immediate work – and future work. Keeping your pipeline full requires taking a long-range approach and thinking out of the box (eg, sending in your credentials to FT postings). That’s why I provide explanations as to why I list certain positions. My goal is to get freelancers to start thinking of marketing as an on-going business task, not a one-shot, “apply to this gig b/c it’s open” thing.)

FREELANCE COPYWRITER

FREELANCE - ONLINE WRITER

Proposal Writer (I’ll often apply to jobs like this b/c freelance information is usually kept on file for future use if the need is not immediate and/or if no suitable FT candidate is found).

Marketing Writer (see explanation above)

Writer / Analyst

COPY WRITER

Staff Writer (these types of jobs present excellent opportunities for freelancers to establish a long-term relationship with an organization b/c they are in constant need of proposals, marketing materials, etc.)

Graphics Designer- Freelance (As I’ve stated before, I’ll apply to industry related positions b/c if they hire freelance talent in one area, this means they probably hire it across the board (eg, freelance writers, editors, copy editors, etc.)).

Hope everyone had a productive Monday. I took a mental health day. I’ve been feeling unmotivated and listless lately. So in an effort to recharge and refocus, I did practically nothing (caught a great movie on Lifetime and worked out a little).

Here’s looking forward to a productive Tuesday,
Yuwanda Black, Publisher
http://inkwelleditorial.com/
http://inkwelleditorial.blogspot.com/
http://seo-article-writer.com/
http://seo-articles-for-sale.com/
How to Start a Successful Freelance Writing Career Newsletter
P.S: Want to learn how to make at least $250/day writing simple 500-word articles? Read how here.
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