A realistic day in my life as a freelance writer

I could watch “day in my life” videos on TikTok all day long.

For example, a day in my life as a small business owner, a day in the life of a guy with a 9-5, a day in my life as a private chef…you get it.

I personally love getting a peek inside other people’s lives, even if it’s seemingly mundane.

With that format in mind, I thought it’d be fun to take you through a day in my life as a freelance writer (newsletter style). 

I think a lot of people think that freelancing = flexibility and freedom. And it does, don’t get my wrong. But as I was writing this newsletter, it became painfully obvious how much time I spend at home in front of the computer. My schedule is probably similar to people who work a 9-5 except with a lot less meetings (can’t complain).

Without further ado, here’s what my days are like as a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas.

What a typical day looks like for me*

*I’m married, don’t have kids, and have one rambunctious dog. I feel this context is important to set expectations!

Morning

8am: The first thing I do each morning is get my coffee going. Then I feed my dog, Charlie (who you’ll meet below), do my morning skincare, and change out of my sleep clothes to put on an equally comfy WFH outfit.

I try not to jump right into work. Instead, I catch up on (light) news by reading morning emails from Morning Brew and CultureMap Austin, a local publication that writes about new restaurants or events happening in town.

9am-12pm: I’ve learned that I’m most productive during this window, so I try to work on my hardest tasks in the morning. For me, that means drafting 2,000-word articles or diving into customer case studies.

Writing is deep work that requires a lot of focus. I’m also a slow writer, so I need all the time I can get. Occasionally I’ll listen to lo-fi playlists or coffee shop sounds on YouTube (this teashop video is my go-to) but for the most part, this part of my day is silent and distraction-free.

Afternoon

12ish-2ish: My afternoon is where the flexibility of being a freelancer comes into play.

I use this time for some combination of lunch/movement/outdoor activity. Some days, I go to Pilates. Other days I may run an errand and go work from a coffee shop while I’m out.

But most days I use the early afternoon to go for a walk with Charlie or spend time in our backyard.

Charlie is a German Shorthaired Pointer/Australian Shepard mix which, if you don’t know much about dog breeds, means she’s very active and high energy. I usually take her for a walk in the afternoon and another one after wrapping up work for the day.

Me and her have a lot in common in that we both need to go outside and touch grass throughout the day or we’ll go stir-crazy.

2-5pm: It’s hard for me to get back into intense writing after my afternoon activities, so I use this time for lighter work or meetings.

My lighter work includes outlining articles, transcribing interviews for case studies, sourcing quotes to use in my articles, or SEO research. I’ll sometimes spend this time doing cold outreach on LinkedIn.

I have a couple of clients who I have weekly meetings with and they’re in the late afternoon, which I actually prefer so I can have my mornings to myself.

Around 5ish, I close up shop and say goodbye to my office for the day.

Bonus content: My office

Here’s a snap of my desk/office where the long hours spent questioning why I write for a living magic happens.

Fun fact: The most treasured item in my office is not a life changing book, the random pieces of art I’ve collected, or even the cute framed polaroids of me and my husband from our wedding (those are a close second).

It’s my iMac.

And before you judge me for being materialistic, I bought this old, chunky iMac from Goodwill in 2019 for $60. It was in a pile of old laptops and computers that were deemed unusable.

Fortunately for me, I married a guy who can fix anything (!) so I showed it to him to see if it could be brought back to life and his eyes lit up so I knew that meant it could. He had to buy a couple of parts, and after a little tinkering and cleaning up, it was as good as new.

Not only does this computer serve as a reminder of one of my best thrift finds to date (literally, I kept the price sticker on lol), but it also reminds me how far I’ve come. 

2019 — when I bought this — was also my first year of being a full-time freelancer. Whenever I’m feeling stressed or overwhelmed or defeated, I think back to how I invested in myself back then and it’s just the boost of motivation I need.

Evening

After dinner, between 8-10pm, I get a second wind and usually spend a couple of hours writing or working on my business (updating my website, writing this newsletter, etc.). I do this from the couch while catching up on shows, so that doesn’t count as working, right? 🫣

I’m also not proud to say that I work most weekends. It really depends on my workload that month, but I feel like I’m always playing catchup. The weekends are the only time I can truly just sit down and work without anyone checking in.

This is something I’m trying to be better about! (I say this every year).

Final thoughts

Your day might look completely different from mine, and that’s what I love about freelancing. You can create a schedule that works for your lifestyle.

I know some freelancers work the standard 9-5 schedule, while others thrive at night. There are also the freelancers who work remote while traveling (my motion sickness-prone self is in awe of anyone who can work from a train/plane/ferry), or the ones who work around their children’s schedules.

All that to say, there’s no one way of working when you’re a freelancer. Over the years, I’ve learned to lean into my natural schedule, be grateful for the flexibility, and try not to force myself to work a certain way at a certain time.

What about you? I’d love to hear what a typical day looks like in your world.

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✍️ On a Personal Note

Here’s what I’m up to lately in life, work, and everything in between.

• Doing: I’ve been exploring a new service which has involved a lot of calls with small business owners (more to come soon). It’s been really refreshing and allowed me to flex a new creative muscle.

• Planning: Now that we’re nearing the end of Q1, I’m working on reviewing how the quarter went and planning for the next one.

• Reading: Recently subscribed to the Dirt newsletter and it’s a fun and culturally relevant addition to my inbox.

I’ll be back in your inboxes on April 1st (not a joke) 💌 In the meantime, let me know what you’re working on and how I can help!

Rough Draft is a bi-weekly newsletter where I share tips and musings on creating a freelance career from scratch. Subscribe here. You can also find me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Threads, or my website. 👋