Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Job outlook for assistant writers in the United States
Are assistant writer jobs in demand?
Assistant writer job and salary trends over time
Assistant writer jobs over time
Assistant writer job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 68 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 70 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 72 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 72 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 71 | 0.00% |
Average assistant writer salary over time
Assistant writer salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $58,543 | $28.15 | +2.5% |
| 2025 | $57,132 | $27.47 | +1.4% |
| 2024 | $56,347 | $27.09 | +1.3% |
| 2023 | $55,626 | $26.74 | +1.5% |
| 2022 | $54,779 | $26.34 | --0.6% |
Assistant writer jobs by state
Most common states for assistant writers
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 136 | 20% |
| 2 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 261 | 4% |
| 3 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 246 | 4% |
| 4 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 21 | 4% |
| 5 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 264 | 3% |
| 6 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 132 | 3% |
| 7 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 82 | 3% |
| 8 | Delaware | 961,939 | 25 | 3% |
| 9 | Vermont | 623,657 | 19 | 3% |
| 10 | Alaska | 739,795 | 19 | 3% |
| 11 | California | 39,536,653 | 761 | 2% |
| 12 | Illinois | 12,802,023 | 224 | 2% |
| 13 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 167 | 2% |
| 14 | North Carolina | 10,273,419 | 158 | 2% |
| 15 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 148 | 2% |
| 16 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 112 | 2% |
| 17 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 106 | 2% |
| 18 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 21 | 2% |
| 19 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 20 | 2% |
| 20 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 16 | 2% |
Assistant Writer job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of assistant writer experts
University of Cincinnati Clermont College
SUNY College at Oswego
Utah State University
Fairfield University
Northwestern State University of Louisiana
University of San Francisco
The University of the Arts
Ohio Wesleyan University
University of Oregon
Texas State University
What general advice would you give to an Assistant Writer?
Laura Wilson: Writing and editing will always be important and prevalent. Clear communication is increasingly important. Encourage writers to work WITH AI by learning how to use the software and edit the output. Encourage exploration of certificates to make them more marketable.
What will help Assistant Writers increase their earning potential?
Soma Frazier: Leverage social media and your network to find a mentor. Mine had authored a bestselling book and was thriving as a freelance brand and content strategist for clients including Hershey and E&J; Gallo Winery. I truly respected her experience, so I treated for coffee and let her know I wanted to be her when I grew up! She laughed, offered advice, and eventually hired me to write for her food blog—which came with snazzy perks like wine and chocolate. I ended up taking on her overflow. Though I wound up in higher education rather than content strategy, those years taught me to adopt a specific style and tone, and to cut a 500-word piece to 150 words without sacrificing anything essential. I still apply what I learned from my mentor to my own career and writing—and it helped shape my debut novel, which sold to a Big 5 publisher.
What general advice would you give to an Assistant Writer?
Shane Graham: Remember the skills you honed as an English major: pay close attention to detail, ground your thinking in evidence, find reliable sources of information, and put things in their larger context. All of these skills will serve you well in whatever job you pursue.
Rachel Robinson-Zetzer PhD
Assistant Professor of the Practice and Assistant Director of Core WritingFairfield University
Rhetoric And Composition/Writing Studies
What general advice would you give to an Assistant Writer?
Rachel Robinson-Zetzer PhD: People are scared of the blank page. Too often, they think that what they write needs to be perfect in its first iteration; however, that’s a myth and a romantic notion of the lone, solitary writer. In fact, much writing happens in collaboration with others, and people are either drawn to that environment, or they aren’t. Once people realize that writing is malleable, meaning it can be changed and revised again and again, that desire to seek perfection lessens, and Writers are more willing to kill their darlings.
What general advice would you give to an Assistant Writer?
Dr. Allison Rittmayer: The rise of AI is something graduates looking for jobs in writing need to take seriously. I think we will see more collaborative use of AI in writing jobs in the next several years as employers seek to make the most out of the technology while recognizing its limitations and ethical quagmires.
What Assistant Writer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dean Rader: Well, writing, reading, and communication skills are always going to be vital. AI won't change that. In fact, the very things AI can't do yet is be human. And no major trains people better to interact with humans than English. Right now, video game manufacturers need writers, tech companies need editors, Websites need copywriters. But, every field can use an English major. Every field needs people with vision and ideas. The world needs people with clarity, who can articulate ideas, and who can make connections. That defines an English major.
What general advice would you give to an Assistant Writer?
Paul Cook: English is way more than just the study of literature. English majors learn how to read, write, and speak well—three essential and timeless skills that will serve you well in your professional lives, in a knowledge economy, and in the (post)digital era.
What Assistant Writer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Paul Cook: Finding the human in what we do is critical. This is what humans can do that machines (like Generative AI platforms) simply can’t. I predict that being able to pinpoint the human element—and then build on it through creation and innovation—in a sea of AI-generated content will remain a marketable skill for decades to come.
What will help Assistant Writers increase their earning potential?
Paul Cook: I will let you know when I figure that out. 😉
What Assistant Writer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Michael Pennell: Adaptability and flexibility. The type of writing, the genres of writing, the styles of writing, and the technologies around writing may/will change, so be adaptable. Learn how to learn, especially on the fly. Your college instructors can't teach you every type or genre of writing you may encounter in your career; so, develop skills in learning new genres of writing. Ask yourself, what worked in the past that will work as I learn this new type/style of writing. Adapting to different audiences and formats is key. The ability to research and in turn translate that research to your audience, even if it involves SEO and writing for the web with a less concrete audience or for search engines. In this sense, the skill of creating transferrable content is key. Also, storytelling is very important in many writing-based careers—how to tell a story. Another skill is differentiating what you can offer that AI can't or where does AI complement your work and writing? Avoiding or ignoring AI is not wise.
What will help Assistant Writers increase their earning potential?
Michael Pennell: Gain experience while in college, through internships, coursework, service, etc. Find your niche and differentiate yourself from others in the field. Consider how a specific minor or certificate may give you an edge. For example, a certificate or minor in professional and technical writing can enhance a candidate's appeal to employers, as well as maximize salary potential. Adding an internship and other 'real world' experience on top of that minor or certificate further maximizes one's earning potential. Develop a strong portfolio! Finally, networking may also maximize salary potential—do people know you and do they see you as an asset for their company or organization? Much of this advice applies equally to those pursuing freelance and contract work, as well.
What general advice would you give to an Assistant Writer?
Sarah Graves Ph.D.: Many wrongly assume that a degree in English is a dead end. But that's only because the career potential isn't as immediately obvious as something like, say, a degree in computer science or accounting. The truth is that English majors can do almost anything. Of course, they can become teachers or enter writing-related fields, such as journalism, editing, or publishing. But tons of CEOs are English majors, as are those in business-related fields, such as marketing, brand strategy, and social media management. Even most tech companies hire English majors. That's because computer science majors might be experts in coding, but English majors excel at humanizing the end product, like making chatbots sound more human. In fact, the areas where English majors excel are those most in-demand by employers: communication, creativity, critical thinking, and empathy.
What Assistant Writer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Sarah Graves Ph.D.: Seek out the resources of your college's career services to help figure out the right path for you. Additionally, employers value hands-on experiences. So, while still in college, seek out experiences like internships, study abroad, and independent research projects. Internships and alumni events are also invaluable for networking. Ask other English majors what they did with their degrees and explore all possible options.
What will help Assistant Writers increase their earning potential?
Sarah Graves Ph.D.: As technology continues to move at a rapid pace, the most important skills will be those that make us irreplaceable by robots. As mentioned, these include the very human traits of empathy, creativity, and critical thinking. As I frequently explain to my students, A.I. is becoming increasingly better at writing an essay. But A.I. can't think for us. We're the only ones that can apply our own critical analysis to ideas. And English majors are taught to think critically about a variety of topics. Additionally, as writers, we have the ability to respond to, reframe, and reshape the world around us, something a computer program can never do.
Cristina Calhoon
Senior Career Instructor, Undergraduate AdvisorUniversity of Oregon
Department of Classics
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Assistant Writers?
Cristina Calhoon: Even before the pandemic, Classics-and the Humanities in general-had been coping with existential threats arising from the grafting of business models onto higher education. Administrators' exaggerated emphasis on metrics, a widespread mentality privileging "practical" skills over a more comprehensive education, and the prohibitive cost of college had forced Classics to adapt to changes.
Mergers with other departments and language programs, the fostering of distance learning and digital competence, curricula driven by large-enrollment courses in classics in English translation allowed some Classics programs to survive. The pandemic has made us rely more on the distance learning approach, but we still maintain most of our offerings. Some of our graduates are double majors, a solution I recommend when advising students who-dazzled by Classical Mythology or Archeology or other Classics courses-decide to switch from their "practical" major to Classics. Others decide to minor in Classics (Latin, Greek or Classical Civilization), because they still see great personal value in pursuing these studies.
Studying Latin or ancient Greek opens one's mind in so many different ways, all beneficial even from a "practical" standpoint: vocabulary skills, memorization, analytical skills are necessary and transferable to any job. How does one learn to solve problems logically? By learning to organize Latin and Greek linguistic structures that work like jigsaw puzzles, unlike many modern Western languages. English is peppered with words of Latin and Greek origin, and our institutions (democracy, republic, libraries, the foundations of the western legal system, to quote just a few basic ones) are largely based on Greco-Roman ones. All this background knowledge gives our graduates a solid, comprehensive intellectual grounding and an enhanced view of our current predicament within a universal framework.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Assistant Writers to find work opportunities?
Cristina Calhoon: The skills that Classics graduates learn (good communication skills, careful, clear, and well organized oral and written presentation; research, comparison, and analysis of ancient sources; linguistic proficiency in more than one language) make them flexible and adaptable. Graduate school is the goal of many of our graduates, who complete law and medical degrees in prestigious programs throughout the nation.
Some also do very well in business school, where the breadth of their academic background, the adaptability of their skills, and their analytical and communication proficiency make them highly competitive with respect to graduates from strictly pre-professional programs.
In addition to occupations in all levels of education, academic research, and archeology, some Classics graduates have also established careers in management, public relations, fundraising, administration, as well as a library, archival, and museum work, while some have also created opportunities for themselves in computer occupations, arts, and media.
How do you envision technology impacting Assistant Writers in the next 5 years?
Cristina Calhoon: A great number of primary sources (Latin and Greek texts) as well as philological resources (lexica of Greek and Latin) and data on material resources (Classical Archeology, papyrus texts, and inscriptions) have been and continue to be collected in electronic databases readily accessible online.
The Thesaurus Linguae Graecae (TLG) and Thesaurus Linguae Latinae (TLL), as well as the database for Latin Dictionaries (DLD), exemplify some of the many online resources our students are already familiar with or quickly familiarize themselves with.
Distance learning will increasingly cover an essential part of our future offerings due to health and economic concerns, and our graduate students are encouraged to do some online teaching. Most Classics graduates are as much at home in the digital sphere as they are in the world of texts engraved in stone.
Dr. Randall Osborne Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology Honorary Professor of International StudiesTexas State University
Psychology
What Assistant Writer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Randall Osborne Ph.D.: Be aware that you will likely not find a job ad reading “wanted, Liberal Arts Major!” As such, you have to be flexible in thinking about what jobs are available – like running a research trial for a set of doctors, or getting involved in Personnel selection. Be ready to advocate for what you can do for an employer. Recognize your skill set! Liberal Arts majors are known to have the following skills that also match up with the skills most often cited by business leaders as the most sought after in their employees: Writing, Speaking, Foreign languages and cross-cultural knowledge, Numeracy, Research and information retrieval, Analytical thinking, Creative thinking, Effective with ambiguity, Learning and synthesizing new ideas. Know that you have these skills, have ready examples of courses you took, projects you did and experiences you had that honed these skills and gave you a chance to use them.
What will help Assistant Writers increase their earning potential?
Dr. Randall Osborne Ph.D.: Get as much applied experience while getting your degree as you can. Do internship and/or practicum. Any experience you have can “count” toward your salary. When you can also get course credit for that experience (like internships and practicums) then you are getting double value! Recognize that you will likely start out at a lower salary than the “technical skilled” folks, but research shows very clearly that Liberal Arts majors “catch up” quickly because the skills mentioned above result in pay raises and promotions much faster than the technical skills do.