Freelance writing income tends to arrive in small, uneven pieces — an article here, a strategy call there, a batch of blog posts for a retainer client. Without a clear invoice, it's easy for a client to lose track of what they owe, and just as easy for you to lose track of what's still unpaid across several publications at once.
The template below is pre-filled with a typical mix — per-article billing, a paid strategy call, and a revision round — so you can see how to break mixed pricing models out into clean line items. Replace it with your own assignments and rates, then export a PDF you can attach to an email or upload to a client portal.
Your Business Name
No. INV-001
Issued —
Due —
Bill To
Client Name
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|
Should I invoice per article or in a monthly batch?
Either works — match it to the relationship. For a single one-off piece, invoice as soon as it's delivered or published. For an ongoing client sending you regular assignments, a monthly batch invoice with one line per piece is usually easier for both sides to track.
Should I charge by the word, the hour, or a flat project fee?
It depends on the work: per-word rates suit straightforward articles, hourly suits research-heavy or open-ended projects, and flat fees suit well-scoped deliverables like a landing page or a content strategy document. Whichever you pick, state the basis on the invoice line item so the math is transparent.
What's a kill fee and should I include it on an invoice?
A kill fee is a partial payment (commonly 25-50% of the agreed rate) for work you completed on an assignment a client ultimately doesn't publish or use. If your contract includes one, list it as its own line item — for example "Kill fee, unpublished article" — rather than folding it into another charge.