When Mridu Khullar Relph started freelancing from India some 15 years ago, she felt she was at a disadvantage. “People told me it would be very difficult to make a living as a freelance writer, and in India, pretty near impossible,” she recalls. “So at first, I hid the fact that I was based here.” But then she had an aha! moment. “I wanted to do cool stories so I made India my advantage and specialty. I understood the Western market and mindset and offered a unique perspective.” Soon her byline started popping up in major US and UK publications, including The New York Times, TIME magazine, The Independent, CNN, Forbes, ABC News, Christian Science Monitor, GlobalPost and more. She also garnered several awards, including being named Development Journalist of the Year in 2010 for her work on waste picker women in India. She is currently based in London, UK.
She started blogging about her experiences—“Empowering writers is a personal mission of mine”—which she eventually developed into a successful Web site, The International Freelancer. “It was frustrating to see other writers’ comments about being thrilled when they actually got paid $100-200 for a story! That, and their being afraid to ask for more because the editor might take the assignment away.” The website proved so successful, that along with other free resources such as “Secrets of Six-Figure Freelancers” and “21 Query Letters that Sold,” she and another journalist recently hired to help with the workload pulled together a compilation “70+ Markets that Pay $1 a Word (or a Minimum Flat Fee of $500),” the second just-updated edition which is available here and/or as a downloadable PDF. “And some of them even pay more,” she adds.
In addition to such obvious suspects as AARP, American Way and Consumer Reports—and that’s just the first part of the alphabet—there are less trod but equally promising outlets. These include, among others, Dwell (“Caters to designers, architects and the homeowner”), Pacific Standard (“Produces award-winning journalism on a variety of subjects”), The Development Set (“Stories and conversations about global health and social impact”), and the official magazine for Amtrak, the National. Each entry includes website, how and who to contact, and, if available, guidelines for submitting. Mridu is also the author of Shut Up and Write: The No-Nonsense, No B.S. Guide to Getting Words on the Page, which not only provides practical advice on freelancing but also motivational tips.
When snagging high-paying markets, she suggests the following:
- Become a specialist in data mining. By this I mean have access to information that editors in New York and London may not have. This provides you with a perspective that’s hard to find elsewhere.
- Spend time and money developing your niche. When I decided to write for Western markets, the first thing I did was order books on how to pitch to American publications. I also spent a year in the United States and was a visiting scholar at UC Berkeley, which provided great insight into how Western journalism operates.
- Negotiate and ask for more. I discovered this almost by accident, when I was swamped with work and named a higher price, thinking the editor or assigner would go elsewhere. Much to my surprise they accepted it! Now I make it a regular bargaining strategy, although you need to be willing to walk away from the project if they turn down the higher rate.
ASJA is another excellent resource, especially since the world has become such a digital place. In addition to other advantages, Freelance Writer Search, Virtual Client Connections and Jobs!Jobs!Jobs! on the forums, the support of like-minded professionals provide invaluable assistance regardless of where you are based and whatever market you pursue. Unless, of course, you’re not interested in acquiring more greenbacks.