FIVE SURE-FIRE WAYS TO MAKE MONEY WRITING

Below are 5 more ways to make money writing. All 25 projects that I’ve used to earn writing income for the past twenty-plus years appear in my book, Portable Writing, with instructions for how to produce them and how to market your skills.

News releases and press kits
Press releases pay huge dividends to business owners, so write one for your own writing business and use the published copy of it to generate new business. You’ll probably get some clients from people who saw your first published news release in your hometown newspaper. Always, always send news releases to your local or regional business newspaper, and to the business editor of the local paper.

Sometimes a client will approach you with a request for a press kit. This is simply a folder, usually personalized, that holds information on the business, including published articles, some of which you will have written.

Ghostwriting articles and books
Many business and professional people want to share specialized knowledge about their industry and they need a writer to produce an article for them. As a writer you’ll interview the expert and write the article, although you might be asked to do some research. In some cases you might be asked to write the query letter to a magazine or trade journal proposing your client’s article.

These same people will sometimes want a book published on their topic, so you could land a much bigger project. I’m just now reading, Where Have All the Leaders Gone? by Lee Iacocca, which shows a co-writer on the cover. It could be the name of his ghostwriter, or it may be someone who collaborated with Lee.

My husband grew up next door to the Iacocca’s and played with Lee’s younger siblings. I can guarantee that if it was me who had that kind of connection, I would have long ago made sure I had written him to let him know that I would love to be his ghostwriter. Make sure you use your connections, no matter how tenuous.

Trivia Newsletters
I’m sure you’ve noticed those little papers filled with trivia and jokes that cafes and family-style restaurants have on the tables or stacked by the checkout stand. Writers can produce these by simply typing up a sample issue that includes information on local history and tourist attractions along with some jokes and trivia. Leave plenty of room for ads, which you will sell to local businesses to pay for printing. Find out how many local eateries are willing to carry them, then get enough copies printed to distribute them to the restaurants that want them. Usually home-style cafes are more receptive to these little newsletters than finer restaurants.

Brochures
Almost every business needs a brochure to help market its products or services. Sometimes corporations need help writing a brochure, which can be multi-paged, but most businesses want a simple tri-fold. Learn to write strong, short blurbs that highlight products and services, but focus on stressing the benefits of doing business with your client.

This can be a flyer that’s folded in half or thirds with an eye-catching cover, or a well-designed multi-page brochure with great artwork on the front, but the main point of it is to get your client’s message across to people who might become your client’s customers.

Speech writing for local politicians and businesspeople
To write speeches, you’ll need to know the speaker’s style of speech. Does he speak slowly or fast? Does she pause often for effect? Is there a tendency to stumble over complex words? Get an idea of what the speaker wants to say and ask how many minutes the speech should fill.

When you finish writing, ask your client to give the speech out loud so that you can find any trouble spots and check the time, then adjust if necessary.

My speech writing and the fact that I taught classes on color usage in marketing and advertising got me an offer as campaign manager for a local politician. I turned it down because, 1) I didn’t have time and, 2) I would have felt awful if he didn’t win—like it was my fault. By the way, he didn’t win and I could sleep easily knowing it definitely wasn't my fault.


Business writing is a great way to increase your income as well as to improve your writing skills. Learning how to write succinctly while getting paid isn’t a bad way to practice and improve your skills.

All of the above projects can make money while you’re traveling if you network and promote your skills in the towns that you visit, and you can still work with clients back home. For worldwide exposure, set up a Website or Blog, or get a friend to do it for you. If the Internet isn’t possible for you, then create a professional-looking brochure that you can hand out or mail to prospective clients. Tell them what you can do, how you can do it, and how your help can increase the viability and visibility of their business. That's what they want!


Kay Kennedy is author of Portable Writing: the Secret to Living Your Dreams with 25 Projects to Fund Your Freedom. In it you’ll find step-by-step instructions for producing the above projects and all twenty others. Visit Kay’s Web site: www.kennedyk.com