Writer invoice template
A writer’s invoice for pieces, words, retainers and rights
Writers bill in more units than almost anyone: per word, per piece, per hour, per month, and sometimes per right granted. An editor who commissioned one piece and an accounts department that pays forty a month both need to read the same invoice without a phone call.
This template names the piece, states the unit, and keeps rights and kill fees where a publisher expects them.
No signup · Free PDF download.
What to include
- The working title or slug of each piece, and the publication or client project it belongs to.
- The unit and the rate: “1,800 words at 0.40” or “Feature, flat fee”.
- The date it was filed or accepted, so the invoice can be matched to the commission.
- Rights granted, if they differ from the client’s standard terms: first serial, exclusive for 90 days, and so on.
- Kill fees and rush fees as their own lines.
- The commissioning editor’s name, so the invoice reaches the right approver.
Billing models
Per word. Quantity is the word count, unit price the rate: 1,800 × 0.40. Bill the agreed length, not the exact count, if the brief specified one.
Per piece. “Feature: The last night bus, filed 3 Sep” at the flat fee.
Retainer. “Content retainer, September 2026, 4 posts included”, with extra pieces on their own lines.
Editing and hourly. “Line edit, 60,000-word manuscript, 22 hours at 55” with hours in quantity.
Rights. If a client wants rights beyond the standard, price them as a line: “Additional rights: audio adaptation, 2 years”. A rights line is a record you can point to later.
Kill fees, rush fees and expenses
A kill fee is a line: “Kill fee, 50% of commissioned fee, Second harvest”. A rush fee is a line: “Rush surcharge, 48-hour turnaround”. Interview travel is a line at cost with the date. Keeping these separate lets the editor approve the fee and the finance team see why the total differs from the rate card.
Using the generator
The Compact template fits many short pieces on a page. Add a line per piece with the slug, the unit and the rate. Turn on tax if you charge it. Put the editor’s name after the publication in the client field (“Harbour Magazine, attn. S. Patel”) so it prints on the document. In notes, state rights and your terms. Add payment instructions as “Label: value” lines. Download the PDF. With a free account, saved clients and the “Bill again” button make the monthly invoice to the same publication a two-minute job, and numbering is sequential at issue time.
A worked example
- From
- Leah Moreno, writer and editor
- To
- Harbour Magazine, attn. S. Patel, features editor
- Number
- INV-0076
- Issued
- 10 Sep 2026
- Due
- 10 Oct 2026 (Net 30)
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feature: The last night bus, 1,800 words at 0.40 | 1800 | $0.40 | $720.00 |
| Rush surcharge, 48-hour turnaround | 1 | $150.00 | $150.00 |
| Kill fee, 50%: Second harvest (commissioned 2 Aug) | 1 | $300.00 | $300.00 |
- Subtotal
- $1,170.00
- Total
- $1,170.00
Word count goes in quantity and the per-word rate in unit price, so the editor can check it against the brief.
Questions
Per word or per piece?
Whatever the commission stated. Use quantity for words with the rate as unit price, or one line at a flat fee. Either prints clearly.
Can I put a kill fee on an invoice?
Yes, as a line with the agreed percentage in the description. Invoira does not calculate percentages of other lines; type the amount.
Where do rights go?
In a line if you are charging for them; in the notes if you are only stating them. The notes print on the PDF and the share page.
Can I invoice several publications on one invoice?
Do not. One invoice per client keeps approval simple. “Bill again” in an account copies an invoice so the next one for the same client is quick.
Does the invoice show who commissioned the work?
Add the editor’s name to the client name or the notes; the guest generator has no separate contact field for the client. Inside an account, a saved client carries a contact name that prints under the client’s name.
Related
- Freelance invoice templateFreelance invoice template
- Photography invoice templateA photography invoice with the licence spelled out
- Designer invoice templateA designer’s invoice: deliverables, rounds and rights, priced clearly
- Open the generatorStart typing your invoice. No account, free PDF.
- Invoira homeThe three layouts, and what an account adds.
Your turn
Turn this example into your invoice.
The line items are already there. Change the client, work, rates and dates, then download the PDF.
Updated 2026-09-10. Invoira formats what you enter; it does not give tax or legal advice.