Hiring guide
How to Hire a Writer
Hire a writer for articles, reports, books or brand content: match the writing type, test with a real brief and edit round, and spot red flags.
The short answer
Hiring a Writer comes down to verifying clear structure and argument, research and source checking and adapting voice to audience before you commit interview time. The process below runs 5 stages, screens on evidence rather than résumé claims, and scores every candidate against the same criteria.
- Watch for: Samples are polished but heavily edited by others, and they cannot show earlier drafts
- Watch for: Unsourced claims or statistics in their samples
- Score on: Clarity of structure and the main point in the test piece
- Score on: Accuracy of facts, quotes and sources
Paste your Writer job description; Cohesyve finds, contacts and tests candidates on the real work and ranks them. Ten candidates free, no card.
Applying for a role like this? Practise the assessment free →When you hire a writer, the first decision is the type of writing: journalism and long-form articles, thought leadership and reports, brand and website content, technical documentation, or books and ghostwriting each need different skills. A writer who is excellent at one can be ordinary at another. Define the format, audience and voice first, then judge candidates on a brief that matches it.
Why this role matters
Writing is how your organisation explains itself to customers, investors, staff and the press. Clear, accurate writing builds trust and saves readers time, while vague or error-prone copy damages credibility and creates legal or reputational risk. With AI drafting widely available, the value of a writer sits in research, judgement, interviewing, structure and a recognisable voice.
Where to find candidates
- Professional bodies with member directories, such as the Authors Guild, the Society of Authors (UK) and the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA)
- Editorial Freelancers Association for writers who also edit and work across formats
- Bylines in publications your audience reads, where writers can be contacted directly
- Journalism and media job boards such as Mediabistro and Journalism.co.uk
- Freelance marketplaces such as Upwork for short, defined pieces, followed by a paid test
- Recommendations from editors you work with, who know who files clean, on-time copy
Skills to look for
Red flags
- Samples are polished but heavily edited by others, and they cannot show earlier drafts
- Unsourced claims or statistics in their samples
- Ignores the brief's audience or word count in the writing test
- Copy that reads like generic AI output with no specific detail or point of view
- Treats edits as personal criticism or rewrites sections no one asked them to change
- Missed deadlines mentioned by references
The interview process
- 1
Sample review
Ask for three samples in your format and, where possible, one unedited draft. Ask who the audience was, what the brief said, and how much the editor changed. Shortlist on clarity, structure and accuracy.
- 2
Brief conversation
Talk through a real piece you need. Strong writers ask about audience, purpose, sources and constraints before they talk about style. Note the quality of their questions.
- 3
Paid writing test
Give a real brief with a short interview transcript or source pack, a target length and your style guide. Ask for a draft with sources listed. A job simulation of the real assignment is one option for comparing writers on the same material. Judge structure, accuracy, voice and adherence to the brief.
- 4
Edit round
Send the draft back with specific edits and one larger structural note. Judge how precisely they revise, whether they introduce new errors, and how they handle a note they disagree with.
- 5
References
Speak to an editor who has worked with them. Ask about accuracy, deadlines, how much editing their copy needed and how they responded to it.
Cohesyve
Start the Writer interviews from a ranked shortlist
Cohesyve takes your Writer job description, finds and contacts candidates and tests each one on an AI job simulation of the job, so the stages above start with people who have already done the work. Ten candidates free, no card.
How to evaluate
- Clarity of structure and the main point in the test piece
- Accuracy of facts, quotes and sources
- Fit of voice and register with your audience
- Quality of the revision after the edit round
- Questions asked about the brief before writing
- Reliability on deadlines, checked through references
Onboarding
- 1Share the style guide, glossary of product and company terms, and three pieces that represent the target voice
- 2Give access to subject-matter experts and set expectations on their response times
- 3Agree your fact-checking standard and how sources should be recorded alongside drafts
- 4State your policy on AI tools clearly, including what must be disclosed and verified
- 5Edit the first two pieces closely with tracked changes so the writer learns the house preferences quickly
Common questions
Should I hire a generalist writer or a specialist?
Hire a specialist when the subject needs expertise readers will check, such as finance, law, health or technical products. A strong generalist suits varied brand and editorial work, provided they have access to experts to interview.
How do I test a writer fairly?
Use a short, paid test based on a real brief, give every candidate the same source material and style guide, and include one edit round. Judge against criteria you set before reading any drafts.
How should writers use AI tools?
Set a written policy. Many teams allow AI for research support or outlining but require the writer to verify every fact and own the final text. Ask candidates how they use these tools and how they check the output.
What is the difference between a writer, a copywriter and a content writer?
Copywriters write persuasive marketing copy such as ads and landing pages. Content writers produce articles and guides for marketing and search. Writer is the broader term and also covers journalism, reports, books and ghostwriting.
Cohesyve · Skill assessments for hiring
Hiring a Writer? Start with a ranked shortlist
Cohesyve takes your Writer job description, finds candidates, reaches out to them and runs an AI job simulation of the real work, then ranks them for you.
1,500+
assessments completed
50%
faster time-to-hire
5 min
from JD to assessment
No credit card · 10 free candidates · Plans sized to your hiring volume
From the blog