Most writers can’t quit their day jobs, and that’s okay—as author Sylvia Plath stated, “Let me live, love, and say it well in good sentences.” Writing may not be a source of great income, but it does add zest to our lives! Good news, writer: At Web Design Relief, our marketing experts know a few ways writing can also add a little zest to your wallet without taking up too much of your time. Here’s how to earn passive income with your writing.
How To Earn Passive Income With Your Writing
Write a best seller. Okay, this is a lot harder than it sounds, but we didn’t want to leave out the obvious answer. If you’re lucky enough to write a book that becomes popular with readers, you can just sit back and watch while sales grow and royalties come rolling in. But while you’re waiting for literary lightning to strike, you might want to try a few of these other ideas.
Monetize your blog. Running a blog takes time and effort, but content that remains well-liked and encourages clicks can be worth its weight in gold for months or years—even when you’re off doing something else. You can monetize your blog through affiliate marketing and advertisements. Look for companies that will pay for click-through affiliate links/referrals, or for you to promote their products.
To attract affiliate opportunities, you should have an established schedule for your posts. Companies won’t pay to advertise on blogs that have an inconsistent (or nonexistent) post schedule. You should also have an established readership. The more traffic there is to your blog, the more money you can earn!
Host a podcast. Your podcast can earn passive income in much the same way your blog can. Start by posting episodes on a regular schedule. We recommend putting out new content no less than once per month, but a weekly schedule is likely to bring in a larger audience faster. Once you have enough listeners, finding sponsors or affiliates will become easier. Record ads in your episodes, and you’ll earn money every time someone tunes in!
Allow other writers to post on your blog. If you have a steady readership, other writers may be willing to pay you to host their writing. The other writer reaches a new audience, you keep your blog fresh and interesting for your readers, and you get the added bonus of a payday! Standard rates are between $25 and $100. Of course, be sure the content of a guest blog post suits your audience.
Start a newsletter. Email newsletters are forty times more successful at reaching your audience than social media, and they also offer a great opportunity to earn passive income! You can sell ads in your newsletter and allow sponsors and affiliates to include links.
Offer virtual writing lessons. Tap in to your writing and publishing expertise to create a virtual class! Once you’ve written your class text, you can offer it as an e-book or record the lessons and sell them on your author website. Advertise your class on your blog, podcast, social media, and in your newsletter. And here’s a bonus tip: You can create virtual lessons on any topic in which you have some expertise—you don’t have to limit yourself to writing advice!
Focus on creating quality content and use the opportunities listed above to monetize your writing. It may take some extra work to get started earning passive income, but once you’ve got the ball rolling, the results will be worth it.
Question: Do you earn passive income as a writer? Which method do you use?
These ideas are creative and doable. Thank you! I’m going to try a couple of them. (like offering new virtual classes, in which I have a track record).
Writer’s Relief: keep all the ideas you come up with that we writers need coming!
I “cross train.” Since I’m also a painter and photographer, I usually do my own cover art for my books, which often produces more art than I actually use in my books. On the flip side, reflecting on how I create my art and finding details to improve the accuracy of my artwork provides subject matter for more books.