business profiles Archives - Make A Living Writing

The Best Way for Storytellers to Earn Well as Freelance Writers

great storyteller

You have a real knack for telling a tale.

Maybe you’re working on that novel. Or you’re the type that can sit around a campfire and spin a fascinating yarn right out of your head, to entertain your kids.

You may be wondering if there’s a way to make this skill pay — reliably, and well. And not just if you happen to hit the bestselling-novelist jackpot one day.

As it happens, there is. Freelance writers can make nice money telling stories — if you pick the right types of projects and the right types of clients.

The Trick to Writing Business Profiles So They Aren’t Sleazy PR

Posted by: Carol Tice — 20 Comments ↓

One well-paid niche many freelance writers aspire to get into is writing business profiles. But often, when writers try this niche, they discover a problem.

The piece reads more like a press release for the company. This business owner is awesome! Their product is amazing!

One writer recently asked me:

“I’m interviewing a local businesswoman tomorrow that I pitched to my editor. This piece will appear in the business section of the newspaper. The editor asked that I not make the story too advertorial. My question is, what should I ask to help balance the story?”–Janet

Great question. Because too many writers turn in pieces that end up getting killed because they aren’t balanced, hard-hitting business profiles — they’re more like “puff” pieces or thinly disguised PR work.

The editor might start to wonder if you’re secretly on that business’s payroll and just posing as a journalist. That’s why badly done business profiles die.

How can you please business editors with your profile? Here are my tips: