Nigeria is home to a vibrant community of writers who are discovering innovative ways to make money doing what they love. While writing may seem like a difficult industry to break into, there are actually many opportunities for aspiring Nigerian writers to profit from their work. From freelancing services to self-publishing, the options to monetize your writing skills have expanded enormously in recent years.
If you're a writer in Nigeria looking to supplement your income, develop a sustainable writing career, or even make writing your main livelihood, this guide will outline six of the most promising money-making strategies to help you earn N10,000 or more each month:
1. Offer Freelance Writing Services
One of the easiest ways to immediately start earning money as a writer in Nigeria is through freelance writing services. Websites like Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer allow you to market your writing abilities to a global audience, bid on projects, and get paid for completed assignments.
The types of freelance writing jobs available range widely, including copywriting, blog posts, website content, product descriptions, ghostwriting books, editing services, and much more. The demand for talented English-speaking writers from Nigeria is high on these international freelance platforms.
To get started, create a compelling profile highlighting your background, skills, and portfolio samples. Be sure to set your rate competitively based on the going rate for Nigerian writers. With consistent effort and delivering excellent work product to clients, many writers earn over N10,000 per month through freelancing income alone.
2. Monetize a Blog or Website
Another way to generate a steady writing income is by building your own blog or website business. While it takes more upfront time to establish, monetizing a blog can become quite lucrative especially once your readership grows.
Popular ways to monetize a blog or website include:
- Display advertising - Sign up for ad networks like Google AdSense to show relevant text and display ads. Earnings are based on visitor traffic and clicks.
- Affiliate marketing - Earn commissions promoting other company's products or services to your audience.
- Selling your own digital products - Create online courses, ebooks, templates, or other info products your audience would benefit from.
- Brand sponsorships - Negotiate deals to get paid by brands to review products or create sponsored content.
- Consulting/coaching services - Provide value-added services to your readers like consulting calls or coaching programs.
By mixing and matching a few of these monetization strategies, many successful bloggers in Nigeria earn well over N10,000 per month from their websites. But it does take time and commitment to reach that level.
3. Self-Publish Ebooks on Amazon Kindle
Self-publishing digital products like ebooks and audiobooks has become easier than ever thanks to Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing platform. This service allows anyone to quickly publish an ebook on Amazon and keep up to 70% royalties on sales.
To hit the N10,000 per month mark, you'll need to identify a popular, profitable niche and create a high-quality ebook that solves readers' problems. Extensive marketing is required to generate interest and drive sales. But with the right topic and promotion strategy, many Nigerian authors are consistently earning five figures or more each month just from their Kindle ebook catalog.
4. Pitch Paid Articles to Online Publications
One income stream many aspiring writers overlook is pitching and writing paid articles for online blogs and magazines. Publications like The Hustle, The Penny Hoarder, International Living, and others pay good rates for well-researched, expertly crafted articles relevant to their audience.
Getting familiar with a publication's contributor guidelines and pitching relevant article ideas is key to getting assignments. With time and relationship building, you can secure repeat paid writing opportunities that easily help you reach that N10,000 per month goal.
5. Enter Paid Writing Contests
An underutilized way for writers to potentially earn lump sums of cash is by entering writing contests and competitions. Magazines, companies, non-profits, and even government agencies regularly hold contests awarding lucrative prizes for top writing submissions.
Some notable contests to consider entering include:
- The NLNG Nigeria Prize for Literature - Awards $100,000 to the winner.
- Graywolf Press Africa Prize - Awards $12,000 for an unpublished fiction manuscript.
- Writivism Short Story Prize - Awards $400 for the top short story.
- Fireside Fiction Short Story Contest - Awards $1,000 for the best sci-fi/fantasy short story submission.
- Lumen Magazine Poetry Prize - Awards $1,000 for the best poem.
While you likely won't win every contest, it only takes one or two big wins per year to surpass N10,000 in earnings. Awards also bring added exposure which can lead to other paid writing opportunities.
6. Teach Writing Courses on Udemy
Lastly, an interesting way for seasoned writers in Nigeria to profit from their expertise is to create online courses teaching writing skills, tips, and techniques on marketplaces like Udemy.
Many new writers are eager to learn and improve through taking affordable writing classes online. With topics like "How to Be a Freelance Writer", "Copywriting Master Course", "Publishing on Kindle", or "Crafting Short Stories", writers can teach exactly what they know best while earning passive income.
Udemy allows instructors to set their own prices for courses, and pays out a majority cut of the revenue generated. Popular writing instructors easily make over N10,000 monthly through this online teaching model.
Whether you are a seasoned pro or just starting out, the opportunities are growing for writers in Nigeria to make real money doing what they love. By diversifying your income strategy across several of these methods, you can steadily build up a writing career that earns well over N10,000 each month. Just focus on delivering top value to readers, students or clients, and soon the income will follow.
Lastly, an interesting way for seasoned writers in Nigeria to profit from their expertise is to create online courses teaching writing skills, tips, and techniques on marketplaces like Udemy.
Many new writers are eager to learn and improve through taking affordable writing classes online. With topics like "How to Be a Freelance Writer", "Copywriting Master Course", "Publishing on Kindle", or "Crafting Short Stories", writers can teach exactly what they know best while earning passive income.
Udemy allows instructors to set their own prices for courses and pays out a majority cut of the revenue generated. Popular writing instructors easily make over N10,000 monthly through this online teaching model.
Whether you are a seasoned pro or just starting out, the opportunities are growing for writers in Nigeria to make real money doing what they love. By diversifying your income strategy across several of these methods, you can steadily build up a writing career that earns well over N10,000 each month. Just focus on delivering top value to readers, students or clients, and soon the income will follow.
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