The amount of money you can make as a freelance journalist varies from a few pounds to £40,000, with more possible if you work hard at it! Some journalists work at it full-time, putting in as much effort as they would for any other full time job. Others only work a few hours for some extra money. So, the bottom line is – you get out what you put in to freelance journalism.
This is a difficult question to answer as they vary from paper to paper and from piece to piece. However, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) has a rough guide to what you can expect to earn for your work:
So, the best way to give a realistic picture of what journalists are being paid is to ask them, and that’s what the NUJ has done. Below is a selection of fees journalists have reported being paid per thousand words by national and local newspapers and magazines from 2011:
National Newspapers: |
|
Daily Mail 400-word article |
£750 |
News of the World TV page lead |
£750 |
Weekly Telegraph |
£220 |
|
|
Local Newspapers: |
|
Northcliffe Media Christmas TV Guide 1800 words |
£277 |
|
|
Magazines: |
|
3Fox International ("regeneration" mag) |
£275 |
Audi Magazine (Northstar) 300 words |
£500 |
Cornwall Today |
£100 |
Country Life 400 word book review |
£250 |
Dredging + Port Construction £10 for photo plus |
£250 |
Frieze Arts feature |
£250 |
Men's Health |
£400 |
Men's Health all rights (with 50/50 on syndication) |
£400 |
National Geographic |
£210 |
New Internationalist |
£230 |
New Statesman |
£187 |
Nursing Standard |
£220 |
Oasis (Saudi) |
£400 |
Photography Monthly 3000-word interview |
£100 |
Renewable Energy Focus |
£250 |
Rock Sound feature |
£700 |
Rock Sound |
£70 |
Sound On Sound features copyright retained, mag shares syndication |
£150 |
Spectator 700-word book review |
£286 |
Sun + Wind Energy per page (7000 characters = 1100 words) |
£150 |
The Economist |
£417 |
The Stage |
£120 |
Times Higher Education reporting and features |
£200 |
TNT magazine |
£185 |
easyJet in flight magazine original feature |
£275 |
Imagine Publishing magazine piece |
£200 |
|
As you can see, the amount paid per thousand words varies widely with Audi magazine paying £500 for only 300 words and Photography Monthly paying only £100 for a 3000 word interview. However, you should be able to find out how much your chosen publication pays before you submit work.
There are also other considerations to take into account when trying to assess how much it’s possible to earn, such as:
It may seem like there are many factors affecting what you can earn as a freelance writer. But careful, thorough market research and planning will ensure you target the right publications to maximise your income. To learn more about freelance journalism request a prospectus for the Writers Bureau Freelance Journalism Course.
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