Getty getty According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 131,000 individuals in the US who call themselves writers . This was a surprise to me, because I personally know more than that many frustrated novelists! My disbelief was vindicated when other categories of people who write are added. For example, the 118,000 editors who plan and manage content, the 52,000 journalists now employed or freelance, the 58,000 technical writers, and the 274,000 PR specialists who primarily earn their daily bread through a pen and keyboard. Writer.com estimates between 650,000 and one million souls world-wide who write as their principal source of income, but I think that we might easily double that when additional writing-centric roles like technical trainer (writing how-to manuals), proofreader, and translator are added to the list. The data also point out that the profession is bifurcated. Traditional roles are shrinking, for example, with writer losses at 2% and journalism shrinking by 11%. On the other hand, new media and digital demands for people-who-can-write continue to grow: PR specialist growth is estimated at 7%, and technical writers are growing by a similar percentage. A recent research report “Web Content Management: Global Markets” introduces its findings this way: “The web content management market is expected to witness high growth during the forecast period. The market is mainly driven by the rising demand for outsourced content writing and the growing trend of web-based marketing.” Moreover, the report reminds us that word based communication is a growing part of a rapidly expanding communications ecosystem that is feeding the demand for content. Organizations are speaking to customers as never before, and customers are expecting and demanding ever more information on which to make purchases and investments. To feed that increasing demand for the electronic word, we’ve seen the development of a global network of freelance writers, editors and designers, as well as full stack marketing teams. Writing agencies, networks and marketplaces face a mixed future: a boon, but also a dilemma. On the one hand, it democratizes opportunity, making it more possible for a freelancer’s work to be seen by a larger audience. And, platforms like Patreon offer freelance writers the opportunity to build a subscription business of “patrons” that may provide them with a good income. But, along with the good is the challenge: more writers without equivalent demand growth means that pay is in danger of becoming a race to the bottom. In that scenario the top 10% of writers make 90% of the income. What to do? These are the issues that led me to ask relevant CEOs and thought leaders the question for this survey: “What are the key opportunities and challenges facing writing / communications freelancers over the next few years? What advice would you give writing/communications professionals who are considering a move into full-time freelancing?” Here’s what our CEOs and thought leaders had to say: Matt Mottola, Founder VentureL . “30% of our network are writers, and we’ve noticed that their key challenge […]
