Trying to get started editing as a long-time writer

[calennakash]

Hello! I was recommended Fiverr by an engineer I know and I've created some gigs, but while I see "buyer requests" in my voice acting gig, I haven't seen any requests at all in writing and editing. I've edited 20 novels and written 100 articles and I write for the newspaper, I figured I'd be able to pick up some 5.00 work pretty easily, but I don't see any requests! Does that mean no one on the site is requesting editing work right now?

I submitted a ticket asking and they said everything looks fine, but that I'm an unleveled seller. I'm not sure what that means.

Can you help? Thank you kindly.

[aarontgladiator]

I wouldn't worry about it. No one's asking for work in buyer requests probably. You'll just have to hope that someone sees your gig and loves it because buyer requests hardly work, so I wouldn't depend on it.

[calennakash]

Oh geez, that explains it then.

Any way to get my gig seen? I don't have a lot of places to share it in social media since I'm not on social media anymore, really

How do people make a living on here when they start out?

I remember one time I didn't get something for a while, then someone messaged me and within 15 minutes was like hello? Okay I'll do someone else. Before I could get to the computer

[priyab468]

Hi! I'm an editor as well. I can't speak for all editors but from what I saw on the forum, whereas graphics and other technological areas get impressions by the thousands, literary gigs are usually by the lower hundreds. 

I did NOT make a living when I started, now I do, and that's with only 2-3 orders/month. When I got my first order, the person literally said he was taking a chance on me (what brought him to me was a unique gig I created, that not many editors were offering at that time).

Because of the pandemic, sellers are flooding the marketplace (and some think that just because they read many books, it automatically makes them an editor), and that's making it harder for those now starting who have the right educational background and experience to work as editors. 

When I was starting off, what I did was look at most of the editors on Fiverr and I made notes of what I liked and didn't like about their profiles, and what other than the ratings, made me want to take a chance on them. Then I applied it to my own, and the response was positive. Good luck!

 

 

[mandyzines]

It does seem like there are far more sellers than buyers on Fiverr for editing and proofreading services. I agree with @priyab468 in that I suspect the state of the world over the past two years has been a primary driver, aided by influencers urging people without any real world experience to start offering these services on freelancing sites.

I never saw any buyer requests in these categories until I received one or two orders. Now, it's rare for me to see them. I'm still "unleveled." It would be interesting to know how many, if any, sellers who joined later than March of 2020 have made it to level 1 having gigs solely in these categories.

[aarontgladiator]

10 hours ago, calennakash said:

How do people make a living on here when they start out?

Okay, so for starters, I would not recommend leaving your current job for Fiverr. EVER. Fiverr isn't a consistent form of salary and you might blow up once and get 10 orders in a month and then go 10 months without a order. Don't consider Fiverr as your living, but rather a way you can earn a bit extra on the side. If you do decide to focus completely on Fiverr, it should only be if you have so many orders that you're earning more than your main job and need more time to complete your orders.

[imagination7413]

Adding to what was said in the previous posts, 'don't keep all your eggs in one basket'. Many freelancers offer their services on multiple freelancing sites.

On 1/19/2022 at 12:27 PM, calennakash said:

How do people make a living on here when they start out?

From what I've read here on the forums, the number of sellers who earn a living wage right from the start (and keep earning that amount consistently) is a number so small it might as well be zero. 

I'm going to guess that your engineering acquaintance (friend?), the one who recommended you, is doing well? Might be worth it to ask them how long it took to get going, and about their high, low, and average monthly incomes. You're not likely to find anyone who will volunteer that information here on the forums, as it's rather confidential. I will point out that, if they're offering engineering as a gig service, that that's a completely different vertical/category, and isn't something that can-or-should be compared to writing category.

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Glanced at your profile/writing gig. Might help to mention the kinds of articles you prefer to write. There's enough competition, that most writers will differentiate by way of their specialties. Ex. Sports articles, computer game articles, pet articles, cars, business, etc. Most people looking for articles would probably try to find writers who already know something about the kind of article that they're looking for, or they try to narrow down the search results by being more specific. Think like a buyer. What would you type in the search bar, if you were looking for you?