Today, I want to bring you an equally straightforward how-to article about keeping both your writing assignments and writing business income steady. Now, keeping either of those things steady proves a challenge for most freelance writers. In her book ‘Six Figure Freelancer’ Kelly James-Enger talks about mentally dividing your freelance writing assignments into three categories: work that you’ve contracted and have to write, queries for which whether or not you have the assignment is outstanding, and work which you’ve completed but are awaiting payment. Whether you’re primarily a magazine freelancer, like James-Enger, or a web writer that works for content networks, or you work for clients, you can apply this methodology.

Networking just isn’t essential for improving your writing–it can get you actual writing gigs. Like in the “real” world, most online writing jobs aren’t advertised, and sometimes networking is the only way to get it. Establishing relationships with other writers can help you find writing gigs advertised “behind-the-scenes”, eliminating the work of finding a job on your own. Use these websites to kick-start your networking potential.

Learn when to use lose and loose in a sentence.

Don’t underestimate your worth. Online freelance writers have a plethora of skills–marketing, social media, web design skills–that many traditional freelance writers don’t have. Pimp out these skills to improve your monthly money-making revenue. Remember, your skills are worth money, and people are willing to pay for it (even the skills you don’t think are marketable). Here are 36 additional ways you can make more money writing online.

Creating an online writing portfolio is an excellent way to raise you e-cred: nearly all writers have a writing website that highlights their qualifications, skills and what they can offer potential clients. But getting traffic to your website–and finding potential clients to supplement your income–isn’t as simple as keyword optimizing your portfolio. To get more traffic, it’s all about letting everyone know your online writing portfolio actually exists. Use these effective key concepts to naturally increase human traffic–and potential clients–to your website.

So you’ve finally signed up with Elance, set up your profile, and have the required credits to bid on a writing project. There’s no doubt you’re a qualified writer: your skills and credentials clearly demonstrate you have the knowledge required to complete any project accurately–and on time. There’s only one tiny problem…you don’t have any feedback. For most writers, they depend on positive feedback to win projects. But if you know how to really sell yourself, you won’t need any feedback to win good paying projects.

Lisa Mason, author of How to Earn a Living Writing for the Internet, shares her strategies for speeding up the writing process. Although she says it may be difficult to learn at first, she assures writers that it will speed up the writing (and editing) process, reduce errors and allow a writer’s creative energy to flow, resulting in more valuable content.

The key to getting page views–and maintaining a high ranking on Google–is by keyword-optimizing your content. But this can also damper the readability and human likability of your article. Instead of optimizing for SEO bots, focus your attention on “reader-focused keyword density”, which seamlessly uses keyword optimization that doesn’t detract from the “meat” of the article. Jessie Haynes, owner of JHaynesWriter.com and WritePlanner.com, shares her tips for creating reader-focused keyword density that meets both human and SEO standards.

You’re, and its possessive brother your, want you to know something. They’re tired of people (that’s probably you) misusing them in sentences. Sure, it’s no biggie for those who don’t write for a living–after all, who’s going to throw a fit over incorrect usage in an IM or email? But if you’re a freelance writer, misusing them is like a non-verbal way of saying “Hey future clients! I don’t have a good grasp of grammar!”. Learn the difference between you’re and your the easy way.

Do you specialize your writing? Do you have a niche that you stick with more than others and that most of your writing centers around? If so, then it’s time you learn to market this for its full potential. You could be missing out on more earnings and higher rates because you don’t know how to benefit from writing specialization.