FREELANCE WRITER CONTRACT
A freelance writer contract between a provider and a client, ready to customize, send, and e-sign.
PREPARED FOR
Acme Co
PREPARED BY
Northwind Studio
DATE
August 18, 2026
WRITER AGREEMENT
A services agreement between Northwind Studio (the "Writer") and Acme Co (the "Client") setting out the writing services, fees, and terms below.
PREPARED FOR
Acme Co
PREPARED BY
Northwind Studio
DATE
August 18, 2026
Northwind Studio
WRITER AGREEMENT
This Contract is between Acme Co (the "Client") and Northwind Studio (the "Writer"), dated as of August 18, 2026. As a condition of the Client hiring the Writer and other valuable considerations, the Parties agree as follows.
1.1 Project. The Client is hiring the Writer to write writing services. Original content writing, revisions, and delivery.
1.2 Schedule. The Writer will begin work on the start date confirmed on the acceptance page and will continue until the work is completed or this Contract is ended by either party under Section 6.
1.3 Payment. The Client will pay the Writer the fees set out in the table below. A non-refundable deposit of twenty-five percent (25%) is due upon signature. The balance is invoiced against milestones described in the payment schedule.
1.4 Expenses. The Client will reimburse the Writer for pre-approved, non-cancellable expenses. Expenses must be pre-approved by the Client in writing.
1.5 Invoices. The Writer will invoice the Client monthly. The Client agrees to pay the amount owed within fifteen (15) days of receiving the invoice. Payment after that date will incur a late fee of one and one-half percent (1.5%) per month on the outstanding amount.
1.6 Support. The Writer will provide reasonable support for any deliverable for thirty (30) days after the Client accepts it, unless otherwise agreed in writing.
| Item | Rate | Qty | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Writing package (per piece) | $1,500 | 3 | $4,500 |
| Additional revisions | $200 | 3 | $600 |
| Research and interviews | $400 | 1 | $400 |
| Total | $5,500 | ||
2.1 Client Owns All Work Product. As part of this job, the Writer is creating "work product" for the Client. Work product is the finished product, drafts, notes, materials, mockups, designs, inventions, code, and anything else that the Writer works on as part of this project. The Writer hereby gives the Client the work product once the Client pays for it in full, transferring all rights, title, and interest to the Client.
2.2 Writer's Use Of Work Product. Once the Writer gives the work product to the Client, the Writer does not have any rights to it, except those that the Client explicitly grants.
2.3 Writer's Background IP. During the project, the Writer may use intellectual property that they own or license from a third party (background IP). The Writer grants the Client a perpetual, worldwide license to use the background IP as part of the work product to develop, market, sell, and support the Client's products and services.
2.4 Writer's Right To Use Client IP. The Writer may need to use the Client's intellectual property to perform the work. The Client grants the Writer a limited license to use the Client's IP to the extent reasonably necessary to complete the services.
Northwind Studio
WRITER AGREEMENT
Until this Contract ends and for twelve (12) months after, the Writer will not: (a) encourage Client employees or service providers to stop working for the Client; (b) encourage Client customers or clients to stop doing business with the Client; or (c) hire anyone who worked for the Client over the 12-month period before the Contract ended. The one exception is if the Writer puts out a general advertisement and someone who happened to work for the Client responds, in which case the Writer may hire that candidate.
4.1 Overview. This section contains important promises between the parties.
4.2 Authority To Sign. Each party promises to the other party that it has the authority to enter into this Contract and to perform all of its obligations under this Contract.
4.3 Writer Has Right To Give Client Work Product. The Writer promises that it owns the work product, that the Writer is able to give the work product to the Client, and that no other party will claim that it owns the work product.
4.4 Writer Will Comply With Laws. The Writer promises that the manner in which it does this job, its work product, and any background IP it uses comply with applicable U.S. and foreign laws and regulations.
4.5 Work Product Does Not Infringe. The Writer promises that its work product does not and will not infringe on someone else's intellectual property rights, and that this Contract does not violate any contract that the Writer has entered into or will enter into with someone else.
4.6 Client Will Review Work. The Client promises to review the work product, to be reasonably available to the Writer if the Writer has questions, and to provide timely feedback and decisions.
Northwind Studio
WRITER AGREEMENT
This Contract is ongoing until ended by the Client or the Writer. Either party may end this Contract for any reason by sending an email or letter to the other party, informing the recipient that the sender is ending the Contract and that the Contract will end in fourteen (14) days. The Client will pay the Writer for the work done up until the Contract ends and will reimburse the Writer for any agreed-upon, non-cancellable expenses. Sections 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, and 10 survive termination.
The Client is hiring the Writer as an independent contractor. The following statements accurately reflect their relationship:
While working for the Client, the Writer may come across, or be given, Client information that is confidential. This is information like customer lists, business strategies, research and development notes, statistics about a website, and other private information. The Writer promises to treat this information as if it were the Writer's own confidential information. The Writer may use this information to do its job under this Contract, but not for anything else. When this Contract ends, the Writer must return or destroy all confidential information and confirm that it has done so. The Writer will not share confidential information with a third party unless the Client gives the Writer written permission first. These obligations continue after termination.
Neither party is liable for breach-of-contract damages that the breaching party could not reasonably have foreseen when it entered this Contract. The Writer's total liability under this Contract is limited to the fees paid in the twelve (12) months preceding the event giving rise to the claim.
9.1 Overview. This section transfers certain risks between the parties if a third party sues or goes after the Client or the Writer or both.
9.2 Client Indemnity. The Writer agrees to indemnify the Client from and against all liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses related to a third-party claim arising out of: (i) the work the Writer has done under this Contract; (ii) a breach by the Writer of its obligations under this Contract; or (iii) a breach by the Writer of the promises it made in Section 4.
9.3 Writer Indemnity. The Client agrees to indemnify the Writer from and against liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses related to a third-party claim arising out of a breach by the Client of its obligations under this Contract.
10.1 Assignment. This Contract applies only to the Client and the Writer. The Writer cannot assign its rights or delegate its obligations under this Contract to a third party without first receiving the Client's written permission. The Client may assign its rights and delegate its obligations under this Contract without the Writer's permission.
10.2 Arbitration. As the exclusive means of initiating adversarial proceedings to resolve any dispute arising under this Contract, a party may demand that the dispute be resolved by arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association in accordance with its commercial arbitration rules.
10.3 Modification; Waiver. To change anything in this Contract, the Client and the Writer must agree to that change in writing and sign a document showing their agreement.
10.4 Notices. A valid notice must be in writing and delivered by personal delivery, email, or certified or registered mail, to the party's address specified on the acceptance page.
10.5 Governing Law. The laws of the state in which the Writer is based govern the rights and obligations of the parties under this Contract.
10.6 Entire Contract. This Contract represents the parties' final and complete understanding of this job and supersedes all other contracts between the parties.
Northwind Studio
WRITER AGREEMENT
THE PARTIES HERETO AGREE TO THE FOREGOING AS EVIDENCED BY THEIR SIGNATURES BELOW. This Agreement is valid for thirty (30) days from the date on the cover.
CLIENT
Acme Co
WRITER
Northwind Studio
The Writer Agreement is a document for putting a services engagement on paper before work begins. It carries a cover page, a formal preamble naming both parties, ten numbered legal sections with sub-clauses covering work and payment, IP ownership, representations, confidentiality, indemnity, termination, and general provisions, and an acceptance page with authorization checkbox and dual e-signatures.
It preserves Bonsai's doc-builder components — a fee table with computed total inside the Payment clause, a signature block on the acceptance page, and merge fields that pull Sender, Receiver, and Date automatically. Rename the Writer label to match your business, edit the scope and fees, and send.
Everything below comes pre-configured. Turn sections on or off, edit the copy, or add your own — Bonsai remembers your choices for next time.
Who owns the work product? Section 2 assigns work product to the Client on full payment. The Writer retains rights to any background IP and grants the Client a license to use it as part of the deliverables.
How is the Contract terminated? Section 5 allows either party to end the Contract on fourteen (14) days written notice. The Client pays for work through the termination date.
Who is responsible for taxes? Section 6 confirms the Writer is an independent contractor and responsible for its own taxes; the Client does not withhold or make payroll payments.