The freelance industry is a money-minting industry. It opens gateways to money and success, and all of this is achievable through hard work, determination, and patience.
When you first venture into this industry, you will find it difficult to secure a distinct place for yourself and attract offers, but with time, you will be able to get hold of what is happening around you and perform better.
Today, the world is witness to many exceptional individuals who went through all the aforesaid ordeals and managed to reach the pinnacle. These individuals utilized their freelancing careers in best possible manner, steering them to the right direction and in the most productive manner.
If you are starting out as a freelancer or already are a well-established freelancer, you should read about the individuals we are going to talk about in this article.
We have, for the purpose of this article, shortlisted 10 greatest freelancers of all time. Learn from their experiences and do better as a freelancer and as a human.
So, without further ado, here are those 10 individuals we just talked about:
1. Susan Blackmore
Susan Black more is a well-established and renowned freelance writer, skeptic, broadcaster and lecturer on the paranormal and psychology. Her biggest work is her book called the Meme machine. She is a prolific writer and has contributed to as many as 40 books and about 60 scholarly articles.
Her skills are well-recognized in the journalism world, and this is evident from the fact that she is a regular contributor to The Guardian newspaper.
2. Mariane Pearl
Born in Clichy, France, Mariane Pearl is a popular French freelance journalist who was formerly a columnist and reporter for the Glamour magazine.
Her history has not been kind to her since her husband, Daniel Pearl, who was a Wall Street Journal reporter was kidnapped and later killed by Pakistani terrorists in the year 2002.
She braved through all the odds and reached the place where she stands now.
3. Ahmed Alaidy
Ahmed Alaidy is a reputed Egyptian novelist, who is also a poet and screenwriter. He was born in Dammam, Saudi Arabia on 24 December 1974 and studied marketing at the reputed Cairo University.
He has been involved in a number of quiz shows in the capacity of a scriptwriter and has also worked as a writer for humorous stories for youngsters.
He is one of the most acclaimed writers from Middle-east and has earned fame as an incredibly talented freelance writer.
4. Shirley Hughes
Shirley Hughes is a freelance writer and illustrator. She has to her credit more than 50 books that have sold more than 12 million copies. Apart from writing, she has illustrated hundreds of books.
Her works have attracted a lot of positive feedback and worldwide acclaim. She has won the Kate Greenaway medals twice, in 1977 and 2003. In the year 2007, her work Dogger was crowned as the public’s favorite. She is a patron of the internationally renowned Association of Illustrators.
5. Joe Hill
Joseph Hillstrom King, known popularly by his pen name Joe Hill, is a critically acclaimed American author and a comic book writer.
To his name are three novels—Horns, NOS4A2 and Heart-Shaped Box—as well as a collection of short stories called 20th Century Ghosts. If you do not know already, he is also the author of Locke &Keycomic book series.
There is one really interesting information about him you should know: he is the son of the famous authors Stephen King and Tabitha King. Now you get how much famous and talented this guy is!
6. Jonathan Cook
Jonathan Cook is an English freelance journalist who works from Nazareth, Israel. His area of work is usually confined to the Middle East, particularly the Israeli-Palestine conflict. His articles and news coverage are considered among the best, and thus, he enjoys considerable popularity in the journalism industry.
7. Danny Casolaro
Danny Casolaro was a highly accomplished American freelance writer who came to limelight in the year 1992 when he was discovered dead in a bathtub in a room at the Sheraton Hotel situated in Martinsburg, West Virginia.
The details of his death are graphic: his wrists were cut more than ten times and a suicide note was found.
The cause of his death is still under media speculation, but what remains unquestionable is his success as a freelance writer. His written works are well-read and considered among the finest to have come out from a freelancer—we strongly recommend you to go through some of his works.
8. Kevin Sites
We welcome on our list the Granddaddy of backpack journalists, Kevin Sites. Kevin Sites is an American freelance journalist who has worked a decade writing on wars and disasters for CNN, Yahoo! News, ABC, and NBC.
He is one of the most audacious journalists out there who has reported from the most dangerous places on this planet.
When you go through his work, you will understand the despair of those who are stuck in wars and disasters occurring in some of the most volatile regions on this earth.
9. Indrani Aikath Gyaltsen
Born in Bihar, India, Indrani Aikath Gyaltsen was a reputed freelance journalist who authored three well-known novels: Hold My hand, I’m Dying; Crane’s Morning; and the Daughters of the House. While she was involved in a major controversy pertaining to her second novel, she was nevertheless respected for her style of writing.
The great writer Khushwant Singh dedicated his book titled Women and Men in My Life to her.
10. Gareth Penn
Gareth Sewell Penn is a freelance crime author and an amateur detective famous for writing about the infamous Zodiac Killer case. He proposed a theory about the motives of the killer and publicly leveled accusations against a UC Berkeley profession.
While there are many great works of Gareth Penn, his theory on the Zodiac case published in the California Magazine titled Portrait of the Artists as a Mass Murderer is a must-read.
