Hi Reader,

Happy Friday!

In my head, I always assume summer is going to be the quietest time of year. Y'know, people are on holiday, it's the school break, the general feeling of wanting to enjoy the sunshine and not work, etc, etc.

But then summers are always my busiest time. Looking back at my calendars over the past few years, May, June, July have always been my highest earning months of the year, with things slowing down in the build up to Christmas and the start of the New Year).

So, yeah, I'm just riding that busy wave right now.

P.S. In my latest Instagram post, I shared my journey from 23-year-old arts graduate to 35-year-old business owner. Check it out here. And don't forget to give me a follow for regular tips and tricks!

Here's what I've been up to this week work-wise:

👉 I refreshed 3 pieces for Shopify

👉 I wrote 2 pieces for clients (Salsify)

👉 I ran edits on a piece for Salsify

👉 I drafted some LinkedIn and X posts for a client

⏱ Approx hours spent on client work this week: ~20

⏱ Approx hours spent on non-client work: ~2

💰 Total revenue this week: £2,675

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Check out my three practical courses that have helped 500+ people get more clients, earn more money, and create better content.

Friday Freelance Tip​​ ✨ ​

A reader wrote to me last week with something a lot of you have probably run into:

The data is more specific than "AI is taking jobs"

A study from Imperial College London, Harvard Business School, and the German Institute for Economic Research tracked nearly two million freelance job postings across 61 countries.

Within eight months of ChatGPT's launch, demand for freelance writing jobs fell roughly 30%, which is actually the steepest drop of any category they tracked. (A related Brookings analysis of the same kind of data found copyediting and proofreading work specifically saw about a 2% decline in new monthly contracts after ChatGPT's release). Eek.

But the same bit of research and several others point to something more textured: the market split rather than shrunk.

The work that disappeared first was commodity content, y'know one-off blog posts, generic product descriptions, the kind of writing that needs minimal context about a specific business.

Meanwhile, almost the opposite happened at the top, more premium end of the content scale. Upwork reported AI-related freelance work crossed $300 million by late 2025, and freelancers working on AI-adjacent projects earned 44% more per hour than those who weren't.

More tellingly: writers have reported a rebound in inbound inquiries in late 2025 and into 2026 (me included!), with clients specifically asking for subject-matter expertise and original content without AI involvement (I see this as a direct reaction to the flood of AI-generated slop that's now everywhere).

Finally, a University of Copenhagen study found that AI's ACTUAL productivity impact was underwhelming for most businesses... about 3% time savings on average. Lol.

Translation: a lot of clients who think they'll "just do it in-house with AI" are about to find out that typing a prompt and getting something publishable are worlds apart.

So what do you actually say to the client?

The phrase "we'll just use ChatGPT internally" isn't really an objection about AI. It's a question of values. The client is telling you they don't yet see what they're paying for beyond words on a page. So the answer isn't to defend AI or attack it. It's to name it.

A few ways to do that, depending on the conversation:

If they're testing whether you're worth it: "That's worth trying, and a lot of clients do start there. What I'd watch for is whether it actually saves you time once you factor in fact-checking, getting the voice right, and the editing it usually needs."

If they've already tried and it didn't work (v v common... lean into this): "Can I ask what happened when you tried it? Most teams I talk to found it got them a draft fast, but then someone still had to rewrite half of it to sound like the brand and catch things that were wrong."

If you want to reframe what you're selling: Stop pricing or pitching yourself as "a writer who creates content" and start pitching the parts of the job AI can't do: understanding their specific audience, making editorial judgment calls, maintaining a consistent voice across dozens of pieces, knowing what not to publish. Literally say this in proposals.

We're not doing the whole human vs. robot thing here... but we should be specific about where we're bringing value to the project (like, yes, we bring creativity and passion, but what does that translate to in the world of AI?).

Stop selling "pieces"

Look, the freelance writing gigs that are evaporating are one-off, transactional ones... a blog post here, a product description there. Those are the easiest things to hand to AI because they require the least context.

What's sticking (and in some cases growing) is recurring work: ongoing content programs, editorial calendars, quarterly content audits, newsletter management, brand voice consulting. Pieces that require interviews, detailed data, and critical thinking or that are part of a wider strategy. Stuff that only a human can do.

What's your experience with this?

If you have a question or a topic you'd like me to cover, hit reply and let me know!

As always, happy freelancing 🙂

Lizzie ✨

This week, we have a writer from London.

Where are you based? London but I work with all US clients.

How long have you been freelancing? 5 years.

What do you do? B2B and B2C writer in the healthcare space.

What's your revenue? 150,000 USD.

This person freelances full time and this was their highest earning year.

How much did you take as a salary?

100,000 pounds. This is confusing with two countries but I took off my expenses in USD, then invested what was left over 100,000 pounds in a SIPP to avoid the UK tax implications between 100,000-125,000 pounds

How much did you pay in taxes?

I unfortunately file in two countries, but only pay in the UK. I think I pay about 30-40% in taxes.

What are your business expenses?

500 pounds - I like to keep monthly expenses low and almost always choose annual payments for the tech I use. I also paid for business retreat for about $1,000 and bought a new monitor and standing desk.
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Do you contribute to a pension or invest?

I max out my Roth IRA in the US and put about 15,000 pounds (ish) in a SIPP. I also have an investment account that I automatically invest $500 into a month but could access earlier than official retirement accounts.

Any personal money-management or cash flow tip you'd like to share with others?

Have a weekly money practice. I fell off this last year (for the first time since starting my business lol) and it made admin and taxes SO much harder. Staying on top of it is def the stress-free, time-saving way to go.

We need more Freelance Money Diaries entries! I'm forever grateful to anyone who shares their finances with us (you can do it totally anonymously!).

Click the button below to do yours!

As always, happy freelancing :)

Lizzie ✨

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