Scripted Talent Network | Freelancer Handbook

 

Welcome to Scripted! 

If you’re reading this, it means you’ve been selected to join our Talent Network of freelance writers and editors to create content on the Scripted platform. We partner with customers ranging from small and independent businesses to enterprise-level organizations to create engaging content. 

Why freelance with Scripted? You are a subject matter expert (SME) and we connect you with clients looking for your expertise. We take care of the complicated parts of freelancing so you can focus on your work. This gives you more time to create content and more energy to keep up with your industry, ensuring that your unique insights and creativity surpass the capabilities of AI-generated content. 

 

Scripted Freelancer Best Practices 

We’re sure you’ve got a lot of questions. Thankfully, we’ve got a lot of answers! Your first stop should be the Scripted Writer FAQ, which you can browse here. 

This FAQ is your main resource for everything from deadlines to payments. If Scripted launches a new feature for writers, you’ll be informed and the FAQ will be updated. 

Remember that working with Scripted means that you are part of our Talent Network — a community of writers and editors with a wide range of skill sets and expertise. Your work directly impacts others in this community. Every Scripted freelancer must work together to ensure a smooth process from start to finish. When you create good content, customers see the value you can bring to their business and will order more content and refer their network to Scripted. This ripple effect brings in more opportunities for you and the whole Talent Network. 

 

Professional Conduct 

Being selected as a Scripted freelancer means we trust you to interact directly with our customers without oversight. Treat Scripted clients the way you would treat your direct clients. We work hard to protect our writers and solve as many issues in their favor as possible; in return, we ask that you always conduct yourself in a professional and positive manner. 

While you will be communicating directly with most customers, please keep in mind that enterprise-level clients are managed accounts. Please do not contact these clients; instead, contact the relevant Scripted team member (email address listed in the content brief) or accountmanagement@scripted.com with any queries. 

 When in doubt, contact us! 

 

Talent Network Conduct Policy & Account Termination 

Scripted works on a three-strikes system. Depending on the incident, you will receive a warning via email from a Scripted team member outlining the issue and response. Upon three such infractions, you will be terminated from the platform immediately and indefinitely. 

Strikes are outlined as follows: 

1. One-week suspension 
2. Two-week suspension 
3. Revocation from Scripted 

Strikes reset every business quarter. Incidents that would trigger a strike include missed deadlines without an extension request, content quality issues, and unprofessional conduct. Depending on the severity of the incident, you may also receive a tier demotion. This is up to Scripted’s discretion. 

Additionally, if the infraction is severe enough, you may not receive any warnings at all and simply receive a termination. (But if you’re worried about this, it’s likely it doesn’t concern you!) 

Customer Interactions 

If you feel that a customer is behaving inappropriately, we strongly advise that you do not engage them further and contact support immediately. Support will look into the issue as soon as possible and take action. 

Please note that you are not at risk of losing the job or affecting your standing on the platform in the event of such an issue, so do not be concerned about Support’s response time. 

The customer wants me to complete a job off-platform. What should I do? 

In these cases, the customer typically isn’t malicious in their intent. But we recommend letting the customer know that writers are not permitted to work outside of Scripted and contacting us. This is not just to our benefit as a business, but also as protection for both our writers and customers. 

For example, we cannot guarantee payment, limit the number of revisions a customer may request, or offer partial payment in the event of rejection if you are working off-platform. In the customer’s interest, we cannot guarantee the work will be completed on specific deadlines. 

 If you are found to be planning to complete work off-platform with a customer, you risk account termination. In the event that Scripted approves any off-platform work on a case-by-case basis (i.e. a long-standing client needs revisions completed in Google docs), you will still be held to the expectations and policies agreed upon by being a part of our Talent Network. 

Should I discuss payments with the customer? 

The only time you should reference payments to the customer is in the event of a word count increase and in that case, you should simply notify them that increasing the word count will increase the cost of the job. For any other cases, please contact support or check the Payments FAQ. 

Can I contact a customer off-platform via email/phone? 

At no time should you contact a customer anywhere other than Scripted itself. In many cases, our customers are agencies and their clients are paying that agency to manage their content creation. They are not involved in the writing process at all and your communication will only cause confusion or frustration. 

Contacting customers outside of the platform will likely result in your suspension. 

The only exception would be if a customer has directly asked you to contact them elsewhere provided to you via messaging. 

This customer just asked for a complete rewrite of my piece! 

Technically, a customer is entitled to a full rewrite as a revision. However, we know there are times when this can be frustrating and not always fair. If it’s overly burdensome, please contact support and we’ll work out a resolution or deadline extension for you if possible. Please do not try to negotiate this or argue with the customer. 

Deadlines and Extensions 

Deadlines as a writer vary depending on the timeline on which the job was ordered. Most often, you will be working on our standard timeline — 48 hours for your first submission and 24 hours to submit any revisions. Gold and platinum writers have access to rush and priority jobs. Learn more about deadlines here. 

Should you find yourself unable to complete your work in the time provided, you have the option to request a deadline extension. You’ll find a button within the job itself — fill out some brief info and someone on the Scripted team will review your request. 

Deadline extensions should be seen as a last resort. To prevent needing to request extensions, pay close attention to your current job numbers and manage your time accordingly. 

If you would like to claim a specific job but know it may take you more time to complete, feel free to contact us to ask about an extension up front. The sooner we can review your request, the better. Last-minute extensions will only be considered in extenuating circumstances, such as technical issues or personal emergencies. 

Communication is key! However, there is no obligation to share personal details when requesting extensions. 

Deadline extensions will not affect your account standing; missed deadlines may cause tier demotion or termination, in severe cases. You can read more about deadline extensions here. 

 

Job Limits 

Active job limits, the amount of jobs writers can take on by tier, will account for jobs both in writing and editing. Jobs in "Admin Review" or "Customer Review" won't affect your limit. 

These limits are in place to ensure all jobs are completed effectively and efficiently, eliminating job pile-ups and missed deadlines as much as possible. 

If you have (1) job in progress and (1) job in the editing stage, the editing job will be counted as (0.5) of a job. For example, if your active job limit is (5), and you have (5) jobs in writing, you would need to send (2) jobs to editing before you can take on an additional job. Similar logic applies to Scripted editors as well, with jobs weighted differently. 

Read more about job limits here. 

Scripted Tiers and Freelancer Payment 

Payments are processed at the end of the job cycle when the customer accepts the job. The payments will be scheduled in accordance with your writer tier. 

Writer tiers — bronze, silver, gold, and platinum — are based on the number of jobs you’ve successfully completed, consistency in meeting deadlines, and any certifications you’ve acquired. Learn more about writer tiers here. 

 

Crafting Excellence 

What We Envision from Our Writers 

Scripted's mission is to collaborate with marketers and subject matter experts, creating content suitable for businesses of any scale. As a writer, you are integral to this process. This section of the freelancer handbook will help you understand the expectations and procedures you will need to follow to successfully complete your work. 

Please use this resource to answer any questions you may have before reaching out to the Scripted team. Guidelines are subject to change as needed for the industry and you will be made aware of such changes as they are rolled out. 

Writer Expectations 

As a Scripted writer, you are expected to produce original content that is — to the best of your ability — adheres to the job’s description, free of errors, factually correct, easily digestible, and engaging to readers. 

You are expected to proofread your work before submitting. Your work will also be seen by one of our freelance editors or processed through our AI assistant Scout to correct any mistakes. Please read the editors’ section of this handbook as well for more details. 

Unless otherwise noted, default to AP Style. Please refer to this Quick Guide to AP Style as needed. 

Please keep the following in mind: 

• Only claim jobs you can confidently complete at high quality 
• Pay attention to the order type and unique expectations each requires ● Read content briefs and style guides thoroughly 
• Adhere to all guidelines and submit a polished piece 
• Fact-check and properly source any claims as needed 
• Implement any revision requests (from editors or admins) to their full extent 

Plagiarism and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policies 

Scripted utilizes plagiarism and AI-generated detection software to ensure content is completely original and doesn’t match anything else on the web. 

It goes without saying that plagiarism is not tolerated on the platform and will result in your termination. However, in some cases, the customer may want you to work from an existing piece they own or use product descriptions that will trigger plagiarism detection. 

Don’t worry! A Scripted admin goes through each instance and will push the piece through to the customer in the event of a false red flag. If the piece is found to be too similar, though not quite plagiarism, it will be returned to you with notes from a Scripted admin. 

Similarly, AI-generated content is not tolerated. You are permitted to use AI tools for brainstorming or ideation, but the content you submit must be human-written. The key here is to produce engaging content — that’s why customers hire you instead of using AI themselves! 

Writer Services Agreement 

The Writer Services Agreement is what you agreed to when you became a Scripted writer. This details relinquishing ownership of any pieces the customer accepts, as well as payment details. It’s not a fun read unless you’re particularly versed in legalese, but it’s good to have on hand. You can view it here. 

Shaping Quality 

What We Value in Editors 

Scripted's mission is to collaborate with marketers and subject matter experts, creating content suitable for businesses of any scale. As an editor, you are integral to this process. This section of the freelancer handbook will help you understand the expectations and procedures you will need to follow to successfully complete your work. 

Please use this resource to answer any questions you may have before reaching out to the Scripted team. Guidelines are subject to change as needed for the industry and you will be made aware of such changes as they are rolled out. 

 

Remember that editing with us is a privilege. We expect you to uphold both customer and Scripted standards, ensuring high-quality content is always submitted. Should admins find that you are not upholding these editor expectations, your editor privileges may be revoked. 

Editor Expectations 

Scripted editors complete a range of edits before a job is submitted to the client. It is the editor’s responsibility to ensure the piece adheres to all guidelines set in the content brief, is engaging content, and is free of any grammatical and spelling errors. 

You are responsible for line editing and, when necessary, more substantive editing and fact-checking. Scripted writers are expected to proofread their pieces before submitting them; however, as all writers and editors know, it can be impossible to catch everything without a second person reviewing to help. Therefore, some copyediting and proofreading may be necessary as well. 

Unless otherwise noted, default to AP Style. Please refer to this Quick Guide to AP Style as needed. 

Line editing guidelines: 

Line editing addresses the flow, style, and readability of content. This gives you the liberty to make changes that don’t affect the meaning of the piece but improve the overall quality of the content. Keep the following in mind when completing your edits: 

• Lexical diversity and repetition 
• Awkward phrasing and poor clarity 
• Variety in sentence structure 
• General flow of the piece, including sentences and transitions between sections 7

• Length/word count of the piece as per client request 

Fact-checking and other guidelines: 

In addition to line editing, please ensure that the work submitted is polished and presentable to customers. All information provided by the writer must be accurate (and properly cited if sources are provided). Review all claims in a piece and verify them against the sources provided. Ensure the piece is entirely original and not too similar to the source. Review the following: 

• Content expectations set in the job’s content brief and style guide are met ● Format/structure/style expectations set in the customer’s style guide are met ● Keywords are included and SEO best practices are followed 
• Consistent and correct use of header types (H1, H2, H3, etc.) 
• If applicable, SEO package and/or stock image is included correctly 
• If applicable, sources are cited and hyperlinks are formatted correctly 

Requesting Revisions 

On each job, editors have the ability to leave comments for the writer. We advise highlighting relevant passages that require editing and leaving your notes as to what type of additional edits it requires for the writer below. 

Note: ALL comments in a job are visible to both the writer and editor, so please exercise professional judgment before leaving a comment. 

As a best practice, editors should review each job thoroughly in order to only send a piece back to the writer for revisions once. Multiple rounds of revisions before sending the job to the customer are rarely needed, but use your best judgment, and remember the goal is to submit a high-quality piece. 

If an editor encounters a job that requires additional editing beyond the first or second round of editing, please contact us. 

When sending comments to the writer, a balance between respect and constructive criticism is important. Show appreciation for the writer's work, but simultaneously let them know when more work is needed courteously and professionally. Be as specific as possible with your comments, and give writers suggestions and examples to follow to encourage them to complete the edits requested. 

When to send a job back to the writer for revisions: 

• Content brief and style guidelines were not followed 
• The writing is not engaging or will leave readers bored or with more questions ● The writing quality is fine, but the content is off-topic, missing key points/sections, the tone is wrong, etc. 
• Significant issues with grammar/style that would take the editor significant time to fix ● The piece lacks depth of knowledge, or there is a lot of unnecessary content (fluff/filler) ● The piece needs more information, but the editor is not a subject matter expert to make the edits required 
• The piece is below or significantly above the word count 

When NOT to send a job back to the writer for revisions: 

• Adjust word choice 
• Fix grammar and spelling errors 
• Rework complicated sentences for better clarity/readability 
• Correct formatting issues 
• Perform edits that would fall under the category of line editing or copyediting 

Editor Processes and Support 

When in doubt, never hesitate to email Scripted Support for a project. If you have any questions about a job, please contact support@scripted.com. 

Please contact support or a relevant Scripted team member to flag the following:

• Suspected use of AI for writing or plagiarism 
• Poor writer quality/subject matter expertise
• Incomplete content brief/conflicting style guide information

How much time do I have to complete an edit?
Editors have 24 hours to complete and submit edits or request revisions. 

Can I have more time to complete an edit? 
Please make every effort to complete your edits on time. If edits are substantive or if there is a rare circumstance that prevents you from completing an edit in the time provided and you require additional time, please request a deadline extension and the Scripted team will review on a case-by-case basis. 

Please note that jobs must be completed by the deadline, and consistent issues with missed deadlines will negatively affect your account standing. 

Handbook is subject to change as needed. If you have any further questions regarding editing or the editing process, contact support@scripted.com.