However, the mere fact that there are so many opportunities leaves some writers stymied. They have no idea where to start, and what the various levels of freelance writing involve: how to climb the freelance hierarchy, in other words. At the top levels, writers are making $4 a word.

So how do you reach those heights? It's simple. Get paid for what you write TODAY.

Each time you're paid, you'll gain confidence, that yes, you can do this. That initial payment may be tiny. From memory, my first payment for something I wrote and had published in a national magazine was a snippet, a paragraph, for which I received the princely sum of $2 over 40 years ago.

That got me started: you can started much more quickly than I did.

Here are some tips which will help.

Practice At those Online Sites Which Allow You to Write for "Exposure"

Type "writing" into any search engine, and you'll find dozens of sites which encourage you to write for exposure. Now, as far as building a career as a freelance writer is concerned, these sites are training wheels. They're useful to get used to writing on demand, for pay, and to increase your writing speed.

You won't make much (if any) money on these sites, but they are valuable - they give you confidence, as my snippet did all those years ago.

Get a couple of articles published, and you're ready to move to the next level.

Freelance Writing Is All About Writing Fast - the More You Write, the More You Earn

The next level is the out-sourcing sites. There are many of these, and since writers are by nature timid, you won't get paid much on these sites either. Not to worry. You're gaining some cash, and a lot of experience.

The amount of money you make on these sites (and everywhere else for that matter) depends entirely on how fast you can produce. Over time, you'll develop your own techniques of writing fast and writing more, and these will stand you in good stead your entire writing career.

Which Magazines Do You Read Cover to Cover?

For your next step up the ladder, I encourage you to write for magazines. Why? because you'll gain experience working with editors, who will tell you what's wrong with your words.

This is invaluable advice. It's FREE training. You get paid to write, and you get people who'll help you improve too.

So which magazines will you write for? Those you read cover to cover. If you have that much interest in a topic, you're an ideal writer for that magazine.

The magazine hierarchy looks like this: local and regional magazines, national and trade magazines, and mass market consumer magazines.

Write your way up the hierarchy: each published article is a writing credit (also known as money in the bank.)

Take Advantage of the Tools the Web Gives You to Get Your Name in Front of Editors and Other Buyers of Your Writing

Here's a valuable tip: everything is moving to the Web. Get your own site and blog. Your site cuts down on the time you spend looking for writing jobs, so creating your site is something you should do as soon as you start getting some income from your writing.

So there you have several tips which will help you to start your freelance career. Remember, as a freelance writer, you can make a six figure income, and if you learn how to write fast, this will happen quickly. Writing is fun, and it's very profitable too.