Does Freelance Writing Make You More Intelligent?

February 16, 2011

Last week, I started my post by saying that I love both words and knowledge, before going on to talk about my adoration for certain words.

Since that post, I’ve been thinking about the knowledge part in more detail.

I’m fairly intelligent. I always performed well at school, like to consider myself to be relatively worldly wise and enjoy being able to hold a conversation with most people on at least some topic of mutual interest, whether that’s sport or politics.

Since I started writing for a living a few years ago, however, I’ve found that not only has my love for knowledge and learning increased substantially, but my actual knowledge has grown tremendously.

Something that I consider to be a positive by-product of the writing process, it dawned on my a while ago that due to the different clients I’ve worked with, I’ve gained somewhat of a vast knowledge of a number of different topics.

Putting my primary writing knowledge and experience to one side, a few years ago I couldn’t tell you the first thing about home swimming pools — today I could tell you how to build one yourself, as well as what you needed to do to maintain it regularly.

I also feel like I’ve been on a crash course on Forex. Before I was a writer, I tried to get into it, but it all seemed a little over my head. As soon as I started working with a client who wanted some specific Forex articles, boom, within a matter of weeks I could have held my own easily on any number of Forex conversations.

When I was first starting out as a writer, I used to take on whatever work I could get, irrelevant of the topics. It did take its time, as the research involved often meant I’d have to spend just as long trawling the internet for information as I did writing the piece, but it was fun.

I’ve tended to stick to what I know lately — small businesses and online development, primarily — but I do have one client who provides the opportunity to work on an array of different topics and it’s this variety that I love.

A lot of my work skills have come from my 9 to 5, but I’ve gained a lot from being a freelance writer — other than the continual development of my writing — most notably an increased adoration for knowledge, including a will and determination to constantly want to increase my understanding of a variety of different topics.

Some writers say it’s better to specialise in one or two areas, focusing your work around what you know, whilst others argue the flip-side, asking just why someone should stick to where their experience is — if they feel confident they can write on a topic after some research, why not go for it?

In all honesty, I’m not entirely sure which side of the fence I sit on. I just know that I love writing about small business and how to develop them, but my love for expanding my knowledge will always be there and only seems to be getting stronger.

As a writer, putting your writing skills to one side, what have you gained from writing? Do you feel you have an understanding of an array of different topics? Do you enjoy working with new clients who have varied topics to increase your knowledge or do you find it a chore, preferring to stick to what you know?