Writers juggle drafts, revisions, and client emails. Everhour turns that work into reportable project time.
Enter your time in and out for each day. Overtime and gross pay are calculated automatically.
| Day | Time In | Break Start | Break End | Break | Time Out | Total |
|---|
The calculator gives you the number — Everhour takes it from there.
One click and you're timing. Start a timer, add an entry, edit the details. This is exactly how it feels in Everhour.
Set a budget, assign rates, and get alerted before you're over.
Measurement
Track your budget through time or costs
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Tracked hours flow straight into a polished invoice — no copy-paste, no manual math.
Use this page to organize writing time by client, assignment, deliverable, and task. That structure fits solo freelance work, recurring content retainers, and internal writing assignments because it shows where the time went, not just how many hours passed. A useful record separates research, outlining, drafting, editing, client communication, interviews, and revision rounds.
Writers often work from anywhere with a computer, and freelance writers commonly handle short-term or recurring assignments such as columns, articles, newsletters, and client deliverables. A week can include three clients, two deadline shifts, and evening edits. Tracking by project and deliverable keeps those hours tied to the work the client approved.
Writer billing does not always use one unit. Editorial work often uses per word, per hour, per page, or per project pricing. The Editorial Freelancers Association uses 250 words as one standard page, which helps compare hourly work against page-based or word-based pricing. Time records still matter when the invoice uses a flat fee because they show project effort and scope.
A useful entry names the client, deliverable, billing status, task type, and notes. For example: `Acme Co., newsletter draft, billable, 1.5 hours, first draft plus subject line options`. A revision entry should say which round it covers, such as `Round 2 client revisions`, because unpaid extra rounds and unclear feedback often create billing friction.
Writing time includes more than drafting. Writers present drafts, discuss requested changes, revise material, and coordinate with editors or clients. O*NET reports that 88% of surveyed writers and authors described contact with others as constant, and 100% reported using email every day. Those facts make communication a normal work category, not an afterthought.
Track meetings, interviews, email, feedback review, and revisions against the same client assignment when they support the deliverable. Keep general marketing, portfolio updates, business admin, and prospecting separate from billable client work. That split gives you cleaner invoices, better project estimates, and clearer tax support for self-employed business records.
A one-off weekly total is enough when you only need a quick view of time spent on one draft or one client request. It stops being enough when you manage recurring assignments, several clients, mixed billing units, or revision limits. At that point, the record needs task detail, billable status, notes, and a report you can reuse.
Everhour fits the managed workflow by turning tracked writing time into customizable reports with columns, grouping, filters, date ranges, and exports. A writer or editor can group time by client, project, task, member, comments, billable time, labor costs, profit, invoice status, and budget metrics, then use the report for client review or internal planning.
This content is for general information only, may not be fully up to date, and is provided without any warranty or liability.
High Performer
G2
Summer 2026
Best Ease Of Use
Capterra
Summer 2026
Rated in the top time trackers across G2, Capterra, and TrustRadius — with consistent praise for ease of use, integrations, and support.
Track research, outlining, drafting, editing, interviews, meetings, email, feedback review, and revision rounds as separate task types when they affect billing or project estimates. A single "writing" bucket hides the difference between creation time and coordination time. That detail matters most on recurring clients, retainers, and assignments with revision limits.
Flat-fee projects should still use time tracking because the record shows whether the fee matches the effort. A $600 article that takes 4 hours has a different effective rate than one that takes 12 hours. The invoice can stay flat-fee, while the internal record supports future pricing, scope control, and tax records.
Writers should track revision rounds by deliverable, date, and scope. A clear entry says whether the work was a first revision, a second revision, a factual update, a tone pass, or a full rewrite. That detail helps separate included edits from additional billable work when the contract or client agreement limits revision rounds.
Yes. For U.S. self-employed writers, the IRS allows any business recordkeeping system suited to the business as long as it clearly shows income and expenses and supports tax return entries. Time records do not replace invoices, receipts, or bank records, but they help connect client income to the work performed.
For employees covered by the FLSA minimum wage or overtime provisions, employer records must include hours worked each workday and total hours worked each workweek. Covered employers may use any complete and accurate timekeeping method. Unless exempt, covered employees must receive overtime pay for hours worked over 40 in a fixed 168-hour workweek.
Everhour Reporting turns logged writing time into customizable reports with more than 45 columns, grouping, filters, date ranges, and CSV, Excel/XLSX, or PDF exports. Writers can review billable time, clients, projects, tasks, comments, invoice status, labor costs, and profitability before sending invoices or adjusting future estimates.
Track drafts, revisions, and client coordination in Everhour, then use customizable reports to review billable work, export records, and improve writing project profitability.
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