Learning to ask for remuneration for your writing

A beginner writer’s guide

Photo by rawpixel on Unsplash

It is a momentous day for me. And I’m writing it down to remember so. Today, for the first time in my life, I asked for remuneration for my article to an editor.

Yes, you read that correct.

For close to a year, I have been contributing to various media outlets, but never did I have the confidence to discuss payments with editors, as the idea of having a byline seemed good enough to me.

Of course, I had a full-time job and asking for money for writing seemed unnecessary.

But over the course of my writing, I discovered some of the following aspects of an independent writing career:

1. It is okay to ask about the remuneration policy of the media organisation: A few times that I have had the opportunity to contribute to media organisations, I have mostly procrastinated in asking for the payments. As a new writer, I did not want to come off as rude. However, today, I realised that it isn’t actually so. If anything, you come out as a professional and conscious writer.
2. Do not delay the process of asking: Do not wait until you’ve submitted the piece to ask about remuneration. A lot of times, pays are based on per word, or the kind of article it is (investigative or reporting…