This is not a copywriting course.
Inkspiller is a newsletter about copy, writing, and strategy from Sean Curry—but this issue is about what it isn't, and why.
Welcome to Inkspiller. Before we go any further, I want to be clear about one thing: this is not, and never will be, a copywriting course. There are enough of those. You don’t need another course slapped together by someone who completed a course themselves six months earlier. If all you do with what you gain from this newsletter is create another copywriting course, I’ll consider the entire endeavor a failure and close up shop.
Fair enough. What is this, then?
This is a newsletter about building a freelance copywriting career from a guy who’s been compensated for his writing since 2008, and who’s been successfully doing it freelance since he was fired from his last full time job in 2016. If you sign up for the paid tier, you’ll get an email once a week about one of the following*:
- writing itself, and doing it for clients
- building (and maintaining) a freelance career
- content strategy
There’ll usually be something fun or interesting added on, along with some links for further reading. Once a month, I’ll have a reader Q&A issue where I’ll answer reader questions specifically. Please submit your questions here.
Why are you doing it?
There is a lot of bad advice about freelance copywriting out there. If you’ve found your way here naturally (ie, if you don’t know me personally), then you’ve probably seen it. Starting a freelance copywriting career is hard enough as it is without having to sift through mountains of nonsense grifter BS to figure out which advice is actually worth listening to.
Pro tip: if the copywriting guru you’re considering paying to learn from ever mentions their fancy car, trips on a private jet, or bottle service, that’s a grifter. Avoid them at all costs.
Over my career—20 years as a digital marketer and writer, nearly 10 now doing it freelance—I’ve naturally learned what does and doesn’t work. I want to share the expertise I’ve gained with those who are considering starting this, because this really can be a rewarding, sustainable career. If you do this right, and are patient, you can end up with more control over your time and income than you would ever have in full time employment.
Who is this for?
What frustrates me the most about the majority of copywriting courses available today is how permanently they can turn aspiring writers away from this. If you’ve already paid over a grand to “gurus” and you still can’t figure out how to sign a client or keep them longer than one or two projects, you’re going to call the whole thing a wash and move onto something else.
That breaks my heart! I adore writing, and I value the independence my freelance status grants me over everything else in my professional life. I’m able to be at home and raise my kids, help run our household, and see friends. I’ve traveled more than I ever thought I would, funded a wedding and a house purchase, and paid off a lot of debt. I own my home, my income, and my time, and every time some huckster asshole tricks another newbie into forking over $500 in exchange for a Discord invite and 20 hours of watching someone talk into a webcam while screen-sharing a Google Doc, that path to independence gets closed off for someone else. That sucks.
Consider me piqued. What’s next?
If you’re intrigued, read this summer's issues for free. If that hooks you, but you’re not ready to commit, sign up for the free tier to get access to the monthly reader Q&A emails. And if you’re already sold, sign up for the paid tier ($10/month, $100/year) to get access to weekly newsletters from me, as well as my entire archive.
For now, that’s all I’m promising: $10/month for one email a week, a monthly reader Q&A, and access to my archive. I want to start small, provide more than I ask for in return, and let this naturally grow from there. If, at any point, you decide you want to get off the train, go ahead and unsubscribe! There’s no pressure. I’ll even do prorated refunds for annual subscriptions, if it comes to that. I want this to be easy.
I hope you enjoy Inkspiller. My feedback form is right here and open 24/7—hit that bad boy up any time you have something to say. I don’t ever expect to get anything 100% right on the first try, so feedback helps me make this better.
I’ll see you in your inbox!
*That’s at least the three content buckets I’m considering for now. I might offer more, I might offer less, I might change them. Who knows?? I’m new to this newsletter thing and will be figuring it out as I go along. Please let me know what you’d like to see more of and I’ll include it.