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Whether your goal is to become a successful freelance writer or launch a lucrative career as a full-time writer for a single outlet or publication, chances are good that you’ll need a solid writing portfolio to make that happen.

While hard copy / print portfolios absolutely have their place (such as when you’re meeting face-to-face in a prospective employer’s or client’s office), Web-based portfolios are more important than ever. Even if you have an excellent print portfolio, it’s a good idea to get a portfolio on the Web as well.

Why are Web-Based Portfolios Important?

Today, more publications are allowing e-queries than ever before. For example, a magazine may allow prospective writers to email article pitches rather than using snail mail. This can be a quick and efficient way of querying publications, and can be easier in some cases on both the writer and the editor.

However, when you query any kind of publication, chances are that they’d like to see your published clips if you have any. That limits the e-query potential of anyone without a portfolio available on the Web.

By having portfolio pieces available digitally (whether that includes links to Web-published features or scans from print publications - where you have permission to include them in your type of portfolio), the editor can review your samples or clips quickly, forward them along to other decision-makers with ease, or print copies of specific clips they want to set aside in a file for you.

Types of Web-Based Portfolios

One concern some writers have with the idea of having an online writing portfolio is the fact that they can’t legally publish some of their work under their own name online. For example, if you did a ghostwritten work-for-hire piece for a client that was subsequently published in a trade magazine under the client’s name, publishing it online or claiming authorship in any way might be a violation of your contract.

While things can get tricky with ghostwritten work (you either should get permission in writing before using it, or include a clause in your contract stipulating you can claim authorship only in your portfolio - and how you’ll use it there), there are several ways to have an online portfolio that can protect everyone’s interests. Here are some examples:

• All Content Online - For this kind of Web-based writing portfolio, you would re-publish your portoflio pieces publicly to your own website. If you do this, first ensure that you have the right to republish that content (such as having only sold first rights versus the full copyright).
• Links to Published Clips - If you tend to publish mostly in online publications with bylined work, this is an incredibly simple type of portfolio to manage. You just create a list of links to your clients’ sites where your work is published. If you have a lot of clips, or take on multiple types of writing (or multiple niches), you may want to break the links down by categories (such as business articles, press releases, sales letters, etc.).
• Compiled PDF - If most of your clips were in print, you can include them in an online portfolio by scanning the articles, brochures, etc. These can then be condensed into a single .pdf file, and made available for download from your professional site. Keep in mind, however, that this can still lead to problems if you’re allowed to use the piece in a portfolio but not re-publish it, as many people can view .pdf files directly in their Web browser.
• Condensed PDF Files - To solve the problem of being viewable directly online (as in being re-published), you can archive or condense your .pdf file (such as zipping it using a program such as WinZip). This lets you have a downloadable Web portfolio without having issues of publication.

Even if you choose not to have a writing portfolio directly available online, your website should mention that you have a digital portfolio available on request. If you’re more comfortable with this, you would then simply include those links, documents, or archived .pdf compilations as an email attachment with your e-query. Just keep in mind that not all publishers accept email attachments, and doing so may have your query ignored. No matter what your own portfolio preferences are, always try to follow the pitching instructions given by the prospective employer or client.

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