Why freelance writers should talk about money more openly
Plus: 41 new paid pitch calls, freelance & contract writing gigs ready for you to browse through!
✍️ 41 New Pitch Calls and Freelance Writing Jobs
We just shared 41 new paid pitch calls and freelance writing opportunities, plus 67 from Monday if you missed them. That's 108 to browse through this week already!
Today’s gigs span pitches, journalism jobs, copywriting, content, editing and some really unique technical & grant roles. Plenty to check out for thriving freelance writers.
I also shared the launch of Finnygook yesterday, a business tool built for writers. If you’re interested in using a tool to support your freelance life, you can get a great launch offer & read about all the features in the link below.
Why freelance writers should talk about money more openly
Most freelance writers have no idea what their peers actually earn.
That silence costs all of us, because it makes it harder to set rates, spot when you’re being underpaid, and build a career that actually lasts. The industry — be it in journalism, copy, editing or something else — has a weird taboo around money, and it mostly works in everyone else’s favour.
What we do know is that in 2026, the writers who stick around rarely rely on commissions alone. They combine bylines with courses, consulting, retained work, or licensing. They’re thinking in annual income, not per-piece fees, and they’re honest with themselves about what’s actually working.
They also track which work earns the most for the time it takes. That’s a much more useful number than your day rate. A £500 feature that takes three days is a worse deal than a £300 piece that takes three hours, but it’s easy to miss that if you’re not paying attention.
It’s also worth asking whether your income is spread across enough sources. One well-paying editor is great until they leave, the publication folds, or the brief changes. Writers who last tend to treat their income like a small business, not a lucky streak.
And if you’re freelancing, you are running your own business. Whether you like that idea or not.
Some questions worth sitting with: Do you know your effective hourly rate across different types of work? Are your best-paying clients also your most time-consuming? What would happen if you dropped the lowest-paying 20% of your workload entirely?
The more honest we are with each other about money, even in broad strokes, the better placed we all are to charge properly, plan ahead, and avoid burning out three years in.
And if you want to really help others, you can share the rates you’ve received. Sites like Who Pays Writers are a great place to check and share rates, as is the NUJ Rate for the Job for those in the UK.
If you want to explore this topic further, Isabel is running a live session on Monday 11th May with the FWN where she’s sharing the real numbers behind her own freelance career.
She’s written for the FT, The Atlantic, and others, and she’s a financial journalist, so she’s more comfortable talking money than most of us are. She’ll break down how she structures her income, which work pays best, and the framework she’s built over years of actually figuring it out.
Everyone who attends also gets £20 off her digital course on the business of freelance writing (usually £99) which covers the systems and workflows she uses day to day, as well as how to build a financial roadmap for your writing career.
This is a rare chance to see behind the curtain of a working freelance career, with actual figures attached.
What do you think?
Should we be talking about rates more openly, or does it feel too uncomfortable to go there? Share your thoughts below!
Yes, freelancers need to get used to talking about their rates, not just so they know what others are charging but so they get more comfortable talking about money. If you’re uncomfortable talking about it with your colleagues, you’ll struggle to talk about rates with clients.
Yes! I definitely think we need to be more open about our rates and what we get paid. It's hard, because there are so many variables, from level of experience to even cost of living. Some freelancers do the work as a side gig, while others are depending on it for a living. But I know when I start working with a new client and they ask my rates, I want to know that I'm getting paid what I'm worth without pricing me out of a job. And it's easier to do that if I know what other people are charging.