How to Find Ebook Writing and Editing Jobs: Advice from a Freelancer and Self-Published Author

Sept. 26, 2012 - PRLog -- With the advent of self-publishing, ebook writing has exploded in the last few years. And, there are more authors than ever trying to duplicate the success of “non-mainstream” published ebooks like the most recent phenomenon, 50 Shades of Grey. This presents a wealth of opportunities for those who want to jump into the “ebook writing service” waters. And the best thing about this type of online writing job is that you can do it from home.

If this type of freelance writing job/work appeals to you, following is some insight from a freelancer who has been on both sides of the ebook writing desk – as a self-published author, and as a freelancer (ghost writer) working on books for others.

What Ebook Writing Services Should You Offer?

There are basically four services you can offer that have to do with the editorial side. They are writing (ghostwriting); editing/copyediting; proofreading; and word processing. Note: Word processing is rarely needed as most ebook writers already have electronic versions of their work. You might encounter someone who is old-school and may want you to type their ebook. But again, this is extremely rare.

The other services – writing, editing/copyediting and proofreading – are, of course, closely related. But, each skill is a separate entity. However, your likely clients don’t recognize this – especially how proofreading differs from editing/copy editing. For this reason, I usually lump these two together when it comes to pricing.

4 Ways to Find Ebook Writing and Editing Jobs

One of the most effective ways to find ebook writing and editing jobs is to frequent the self-publishing forums of sites like Amazon. Some other ways are to:

i) Reach out to individual ebook writers: many of them have blogs/websites;

ii) Frequent forums of popular freelance writing sites: many freelance writers are self-publishers (or wanna be self publishers);

iii) Use social media: Find the influencers in self-publishing on popular sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and LinkedIn (four of the most popular social media sites around) and start building relationships with ebook writers there;

iv) Use your site: List ebook writing and editing as a service on your website/blog. This is a simple thing many who want this type of work don’t do.

How Much Should You Charge for Your Ebook Writing and Editing Services
Most of the time this should be an hourly rate because each ebook is different and how long it will take to complete depends on many factors, eg, the subject matter; the writing skill of the author; research time; editorial revisions/changes; etc.

Also, a lot will depend on how organized the author is. The longer they take to get back to you about editorial changes, for example; or the more changes they make every time you turn in your edited/proofed copy, the longer it takes.

My firm’s ebook writing services are priced using an hourly and a page rate. To explain, we charge an hourly rate for things like research and writing, then a page rate for editing, copy editing and proofreading. Where possible, we put a dollar cap on projects; clients love this because they know exactly what they’ll be paying.

One final piece of advice about pricing your ebook writing and editing services: It usually takes a lot longer than most think to pull together an ebook. So when you’re trying to come up with an estimate of how many hours it’s going to take to complete a project, err on the side of it taking longer because 90 percent of the time, it will.
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About the Author: Yuwanda Black has been successfully writing, self-publishing and selling ebooks online since 2004. She says, "One of the best ways to learn how to offer ebook writing services to others is to write at least one ebook yourself." Learn more about how to write an ebook in 3 days, market it, and start getting sales within a week – really -- at http://inkwelleditorial.com/ebook-publishing-package-get-....