If you’re a freelance writer looking for work, many times you’ll see job ads that ask for a cover letter, resume, and writing samples or clips.
You have no trouble writing a cover letter, and you have a resume on hand.
But when it comes to writing samples or clips, you’re stumped.
What does the editor really want to see?
Well, the answer to that is, the editor wants to see if you can do the type of work he needs.
For example, if he’s looking for someone to write press releases, don’t send him a copy of a short story you wrote about Great Aunt Edna, even if it did win 1st place in a writing competition.
That’s because a short story won’t let this editor know you can write press releases.
If an editor asks for “clips” he means he wants to see examples of your published work.
Sometimes, though, an editor wants to see unedited writing samples – so he gets a feel for how heavily your work will need to be edited.
If the ad asks for “unedited samples” then send samples that have not been edited by a professional and/or published.
Although there are no hard and fast rules for sending writing samples, here are a few tips:
1) For clips – send only examples of your published work.
At the top of the clip, write the name and date of the publication.
2) For writing samples – these can be either published or unpublished examples of your writing.
3) Whether you’re sending clips or writing samples ALWAYS send a sample of work that is closely related to, or an exact example, of the type of work you are seeking.
Once you’ve been freelancing for a while you’ll develop a “clips file” that contains samples of various types of writing.
You’ll usually be able to pull something appropriate from this file to submit with your cover letter and resume.
But, if you don’t have anything that is a good example of what a particular editor is looking for, then sit down and write something that IS representative of what this editor needs.
You’ll have better luck getting the assignment or freelance work because you’ll be giving the editor just what he wants to see.
Try it!
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