Spoiler alert: Nothing is easy about freelancing, and your pitches will get rejected, but the process gets easier as time goes on.
Freelancing full-time is like rejection therapy, and the trick to getting it right is to learn how to support your ideas down to every sentence, and to not take pitch rejections personally.
There are a million things I wish I knew before leaping into freelancing full-time. Like how to write the perfect pitch, or what a reasonable day rate is, or when to follow up. Along the way, I found the most important tip to be: learning how to build your self-esteem as a writer. If you’re new to it or are a bit unsure, here are a few tips to get you started:
Time is your best friend
“I was rejected from Genius a bunch of times before I finally broke through,” says Jaelani Turner-Williams, a late zillennial and established music and culture writer from Ohio. She is best known for her bylines in Teen Vogue and Rolling Stone.
“My first piece for [Genius] was probably five years ago now, so it took me a while to land something with them,” she adds.
One of the most crucial lessons you’ll learn in your writing career is that time is your best friend. Which feels counterproductive, as you’re often working towards tight deadlines. In reality, there is no rush in making your big-hit story or debuting in your favourite magazine. Working in this space, you’ll find it’s a lot to do with luck and patience.
Comparison is the thief of joy
The internet often warps our perspectives on success. Sam Vijay puts it best in his article ‘The Illusion of Success on Social Media: Unveiling the Hidden Realities.’ He writes, “Social media turns everyday life into a highlight reel. Creators pick the best moments and skip the rest.”
We consume so much media day-to-day, which, as a result, creates the illusion that the content we see is a direct reflection of reality, which is hardly ever the case. It’s easy to see success on-screen and not consider the steps it took for people to get there.
As cliché as it goes, comparison is the thief of joy. It’s important to remind yourself that we’re all on separate journeys. It might take one writer a year to freelance for a major publication, and another just a few months. That doesn’t directly reflect the success of either journalist.
This isn’t to say that the success we see on social media is false, more that there is a story behind it, that isn’t linear, that we don’t see. So, comparing your work to others is pointless.
Don’t take it personally
Negative feedback is never easy to take, and none at all is even worse, but there’s nothing about freelancing that’s easy, so it’s best to learn to adjust to that.
“I take [rejection] on the chin, as I understand regular editors’ time and budget pressures. Professional self-worth and validation shouldn’t be outsourced to responses of strangers,” comments freelance journalist Susan Gray, in Catherine Larner’s article ‘How To Cope With Rejection As A Freelance Journalist.’
There are a thousand reasons why an editor may reject your article. A common one is budget cuts. As a freelancer, you’re usually an afterthought for editors, since they will have a team of staff writers to refer to. Other reasons can include they’ve already published a similar piece, they don’t pay, or that it just wasn’t right for them.
“Keep going. Don’t [take it as] a block,” says Williams, on how to take pitch rejections.
“Don’t be intimidated by [rejections]. Keep reaching out to other places, too. Make sure to shape up your ideas and really study what [the magazine is] looking for.”
While you should always be proud of your work, it shouldn’t be something that, if rejected, directly impacts your self-confidence. The moment you stop equating your worth to the words you write is the moment you allow yourself to be free.
Take a chance
“If you’re going to do it, commit fully,” says Mark Sutherland, 52, an established music journalist and presenter. With over two decades of experience in the industry, some of Mark’s most acclaimed work includes his column for Variety, presenting The Money Trench podcast, and previous bylines for Billboard and NME.
“It’s difficult to freelance at the best of times (and these are not the best of times),” he continues. “To succeed, you need to be all-in in terms of both time and attitude, and bold in everything you write, pitch or communicate (and putting yourself out there is essential in 2026). Bet-hedging and fence-sitting is for staffers.”
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Trust your words
As writers, we are often our biggest critics, and while that level of self-reflection can be great, it can also be to our detriment. It’s important to have faith in the words you craft. To trust the ideas you pitch, because the minute you show an ounce of uncertainty is the moment you’ve lost the client.
“I think as writers, especially as freelancers, you have the idea that the editors are the be-all and end-all, but you’re the one creating the ideas,” says Williams. “While an editor has a very important job, it’s important to never undermine your work. There is power in our own ideas and what we’re pitching.”
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Laviea Thomas is a journalist at Inside Success who writes about film, music and politics.
Outside of that, she is an experienced freelance journalist with bylines in NME, The Quietus, Metal Hammer and more.
Over the years, Laviea has been an active panellist discussing fundamental conversations in the music industry, such as diversity and inclusion, and the importance of grassroots venues. She has been a panel guest for Kerrang! Focus Wales Festival, Future Yard and more.
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