25 Writing Resources For Online and Freelance Writers and Bloggers

There is so much information on the internet that it's difficult to decide where to look, particularly for online and freelance writers trying to find credible sources to submit their work. In response to a Hubber's request, I've attempted to do the digging for you. In this hub is a list of 25 websites, some more comprehensive than others, that are credible and helpful to online writers and freelance writers. Assuming that I've linked them all correctly, they should each open in a new window.

1. Freelance Writing Jobs

This site is great for finding actual job postings for writers, editors, and bloggers. The site owners succeed in finding a good balance between telecommuting and site-specific jobs. They continually update and post new jobs frequently.

In addition to the listings, this site offers other good resources of information, such as social networking tips, advice for query letters, and payment information. This is probably the number one place for freelancers to go, though, so the jobs they list often get snapped up quickly.

2. Craigslist

You have to be careful with Craigslist because anyone can post jobs or help wanted ads. Once you sift through and find the listings that look legitimate, it's a great place to find freelance writing and editing jobs, as well as blogging jobs. You can only search Craigslist by region, but many listings advertise that telecommuting is fine. Look through the big cities to find the most job postings, like Manhattan, SF Bay Area, Chicago, Boston, etc., and look under "writing gigs" and also in the Jobs category under "writing/editing."

3. Blogger's Blogs of Note

This is a great resource for (Google's choice of) the best blogs on Blogger. Google chooses blogs, usually one each day, and places it on Blogs of Note. For aspiring bloggers, this is a good place to see examples of exemplary blogs with high-quality content and generally a large following. Google keeps archives of all their Blogs of Note from the time they started in January 2001.

The other "noteworthy" element of BoN is that Google often chooses blogs with a writing or publishing theme. There are quite a few Blogs of Note run by book publishers.

4. Writer's Digest

The Writer's Digest website has EVERYTHING, without even having to subscribe to the magazine. There are articles on every genre and topic of writing, contests, writing tips, prompts, markets, blogs, forums, and a store should you want to buy their products or magazine. To give you a sense of the comprehensiveness of this site, their tabs are Get Published, Write Better, Get Creative, Tips & Prompts, Conference Scene, Community, Blogs, and Shop.

5. Worldwide Freelance Writer

The best feature about this website is the free email newsletter that you can sign up for. The newsletter has a feature article, writing news, writing markets, and classifieds. The website is basically an extensive version of the newsletter with many articles and more markets. Another distinguishing feature of this site is a freelance writer directory, which is helpful for both writers and people looking for writers. There's also some fun writer quotes and jokes.

6. Writer's Market

There's 2 helpful elements of Writer's Market, the printed book and the monthly or yearly subscription. The book is a huge anthology of markets, or places to submit freelance work. For more info on the book, see my hub: Writer's Market 2015: A Freelance Writer's Best Resource for Places to Submit Writing. The subscription is an extension of the book, with more listings that are more frequently updated. The website itself, if you don't subscribe, isn't very informative.

7. HubPages (duh)

Of course, HubPages is a great resource for online writers because you get traffic, feedback, and hopefully a little bit of money for your writing. You also get lots of writing practice because how prolific you are is reflected in your HubScore.

8. Jobs for Bloggers

This is pretty much what it sounds like, a board with blogging jobs. What I appreciate about this site is that it crosses out the job listing once it gets word that the job has been filled. There are also other links and resources for bloggers at the bottom of the page. And it's updated at LEAST twice a week if not more.

9. How to Write a Query Letter

This is a concise explanation of what should go into a good query letter along with a sample letter. It's in blog form, so there's places for people to leave comments and ask questions.

10. FreelanceWriting.Com

This is an extremely comprehensive site focused on, obviously, freelance writing. There are tons of helpful articles as well as writer's guidelines for different publications, newsletters, and news about contests, markets, jobs, events, e-books, and more.

11. Book Publishing News

This is a Blogger blog about, well, book publishing news. It has information about the publishing industry as well as writing suggestions and current news about books and authors. There are also links to other writing resources, writing software, and freelance opportunities.

12. Freelance Writing Organization International

This is a database of resources for freelance writers. You have to sign up, but registering is free. It's based in Canada, but you input your location to get nation-specific information. Some of the resources included are writing resource links, funds for writers, education, daily news, submission calls, a research library, Inkwell Newswatch (IN) Ezine, publishers' guides, a writer's store, a writing employment search, book announcements, writers' portfolio listings, writing contests, forums and events, collaborative writing, live writing news feeds, and classic literature downloads.

13. Absolute Write

This site has another email newsletter that you can subscribe to. Resources on this website include classes, market listings, interviews, informational articles, columns, contest announcements, editorial services, a writer's directory, and a forum. There are sections for freelance writers and writers of novels, screenplays, non-fiction, and other specialties.

14. Brainy Quote

This is a great place to find quotes for when you need one or four in your writing. It's much more comprehensive than a lot of quote sites, and there is a huge variety of speakers from ancient to contemporary on a huge range of topics. The downside is that it can sometimes be difficult to navigate, but the payoff is well worth the effort.

15. Thesaurus.com

The sister site of Dictionary.Com, except, well, it's Thesaurus.Com. It's a simple but effective resource. It's served me quite well in my writing when I need a more interesting or precise word.

16. Ed2010

This is a unique site that markets itself as a "community of young magazine editors and magazine-editor wannabes who want to learn more about the industry so we can fulfill our dreams of landing top editing and writing positions." They have a message board, blogs, advice articles, events such as local happy hours, a mentoring system, and a job board for all different magazine positions. They also have local chapters on various college campuses.

17. Media Bistro

This site is an information warehouse about the different types of media. Just some of the features on the site are courses, job openings, a freelance marketplace, events for media professionals, blogs about media, and of course tons of informational content about different areas of the media. A sprinkling of what I saw in the content includes how to pitch an article, interviews with big names in media, what to charge in web production, and lots of info about blogging.

18. Once Written

Once Written is a website that markets itself as "the authoritative source for new and emerging writers." The site includes "free stuff" (including creative writing prompts and giveaways for writers), contests, book reviews, publishing tips, author interviews, tips on promoting yourself and your writing, random reads, and forums for writer discussions.

19. Daily Writing Prompts

This site is intended as a teacher resource for student writing prompts, but the daily writing prompts are just as inspiring to an adult writer as a student one. They mostly fall into the category of non-fiction. There are 365 prompts, one for every day of the year, and many of them consist of date-specific information, such as "National Clean Your Room Day" or the day in history that the Shield Nickel was invented.

20. The Urban Muse

The Urban Muse is a blog by a successful freelance writer. She writes about all aspects of freelance writing, from writer-editor relationships to how to write successful copy. She has a list right at the beginning of her most popular posts, and she keeps a links list of other blogs on writing. Lots of info on blogging, publishing, and the business of freelancing.

21. Research and Documentation Online

This is something I included here as a resource on how to document sources that you use information from. Plagiarism is a big deal and highly punishable, so it's good to know how to cite and how to give credit where credit is due. This site is mainly meant for research and academic writing, but it's helpful for all writers.

22. PoeWar: Writer's Resource Center

This is an awesome site that I stumbled onto myself. There are hundreds of high-quality articles about EVERY aspect of writing and publishing. There's info on freelancing, poetry writing, self-analysis for writers, book publishing, query letters, fiction writing, technical writing, the writing industry, and much more.

23. Folio Careers

The blurb on the home page says that Folio Careers is "the magazine industry's source of career opportunities." If you are looking to get into the world of magazine publishing, including writing, this is a comprehensive job searching site for the magazine media. There are also articles by topic, experienced bloggers, information about webinars, a searchable and browse-able directory of media companies, and podcasts. They also publish their own magazine called Folio.

24. Helium

Helium is an interesting website. They are similar to HubPages in that you can publish articles on a variety of topics and get paid nominally. You both write and rate others' writing. They also have, however, a freelance Marketplace where companies post topics and criteria for which they need articles and writers. Writers compete, and whoever the company chooses gets paid for that assignment. They also have writing contests with prize money, although the contests are based on ratings rather than judges' responses. A more comprehensive hub is forthcoming on the similarities and differences among HubPages, Helium, and Squidoo.

25. Writers Write

This site is another comprehensive source of articles about writing, books, and publishing. A couple of unique resources on this site: self-publishing information, book giveaways, and special sections on the many types and genres of writing, including medical writing, songwriting, greeting cards, and research. They also have a marketplace that informs you about places to buy writing tools, and search tools for things like baby names, medical terms, and sports data.

****Note: I've received one suggestion in the form of a comment for an additional resource: Triond. If you feel I've left out any important resources, feel free to make suggestions!