Interview Your Writing Client
Writing clients, whether it’s for a ghost writing gig or a copywriting job or proofreading or any of the other myriad writing jobs, always want to interview you. The interview may take place over the phone, or it may be in person. But a good interview isn’t simply you answering their questions and filling in their blanks. You should also be interviewing them.
You want to know, for example:
- Why they are looking for a writer – that is, why aren’t they doing it themselves?
- What do they want to the writer to bring to the project – ghosting, editing, the writer’s joint vision? There are all sorts of possibilities.
- The actual plan for the writing – if it’s a book, are they looking for a publisher or do they want to self-publish; if it’s something else, exactly how will it be used?
- The timeline – when is it due?
- Who has approval? The more people who have approval, the more difficult the project.
- Who does the research or provides the information? The more research, etc. the writer has to do, the more time the writer will have invested.
- Their budget – this can be tricky, but you need to do your best to determine if they can afford you. Sometimes you can just state what you fee will be and then listen to their reaction; other times may call for more subtlety, but don’t let them skate this question.
These and other questions that will come to you are designed both to elicit specific information and to get a conversation about the project going. It’s this conversation that will tell you if you can work with these people – and don’t make the mistake of thinking you can work for anyone.
Be prepared to walk away if that’s what you think needs to be done. If problems surface in the interview, if they can’t be solved then and there they will only get worse.
If I’m not sure, I’ll often offer to write a bit on spec or for a fairly nominal fee. That way we both get a real sense of how the rest of the project will go.
Write well and often,
Subscribe to Abundant Writing News
Tags: business, freelance-writing, writingRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Business of Freelance Writing, Notes from a Writing Coach
0 opinions for Interview Your Writing Client
No one has left a comment yet. You know what this means, right? You could be first!
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: