Freelance Writer Invoicing

Freelance writing pays per word, per article, or per project. The real problem is scope. One editor wants two rounds of revision. Another wants unlimited. You think you're done. They think you're getting started. An invoice stops this immediately.

Per-word rates are simple but risky

$0.50 to $2.00 per word. 1,500 words = $750. Clean math. But if a perfectionist client wants four heavy rewrites, that $750 becomes $20/hour for your time. Per-word only works if you enforce revision limits.

Per-project rates are safer. You quote $1,200 for a 2,000-word article, one revision round included. If they want more, it's $75 per revision. This forces the conversation upfront instead of surprise work later.

Don't let these costs disappear

• Research time (if you're sourcing, not just writing)
• Interviews (price per interview or include in the fee)
• Revisions beyond the first round
• Rush fees (48-hour turnaround = 1.5x price)
• SEO work, link sourcing, fact-checking

One revision round. That's it.

Put it on every invoice: "Includes one revision round. Additional revisions: $75." I've seen plenty of writers go broke because they never enforced this. The client who says "just a few tweaks" will keep saying it for weeks.