How I built a travel-friendly freelance career
What I’ve learnt from three years of working on the road
Hey! I’m Emma from Where’s Ems? 👋🏼 I’ve been travelling full-time since 2023 while building my freelance writing business. Subscribe to receive my regularly updated travel guides, covering things like trip planning, house sitting, working remotely, meeting people and more.
If this series isn’t for you, that’s totally fine. You can update your preferences and pick what you want to hear about here.
“But how do you pay for travel and food?”
It’s the question I get asked most when I tell people I house sit around the world in exchange for free accommodation. And it’s a fair one. House sitting gives me a roof over my head, but it isn’t my job.
If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know I work remotely as a freelance travel writer, virtual assistant and copywriter. In other words, I make money from creative work that can be done from anywhere with decent WiFi. If you’re a paid subscriber, you already know exactly how much that is each month.
What I haven’t shared is how I started freelancing, how I find work and what I’d do differently if I started again. So that’s what this guide is going to explain.
I love working and never want to retire, but I also want space to travel, be creative and actually enjoy my life. I want to earn enough to live well, to eat out, buy books and not stress about my bills… without working myself into the ground.
So this isn’t a “How to Make £10k a Month” or “Growth Hacks to Get Fully Booked” guide. It’s about building something steady enough that you don’t panic when work is quiet. Flexible enough to fit around travel. Sustainable enough that you don’t burn out and end up back in the exact position you were trying to escape.
Before we get into it, I’m curious — how many freelancers are in the room with us?
What else is in this guide?
My journey to freelancing
Exactly where I find freelance work
What pays well and what doesn’t
A look at my crazy superyacht salary
A list of resources I recommend
Tips to build your own travel-friendly freelancing career
…and lots more.
To access this post and the whole archive of paid content, consider subscribing for just £4.50 a month.