Tweet For a few years now, my husband told me. My business coach did too. Everyone told me I was wasting my time on paid writing work that didn’t fill my soul. But it’s hard when you’re freelancing and getting paid. It’s hard to say, “No” when you don’t know when your next big check will come in. But these were the first two signs. Another one had come years before. Several years ago, I received a handful of Steven Pressfield’s book. I quickly devoured The War of Art, but it was only when I got into Turning Pro that my life changed dramatically.…
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Tweet {by: guest blogger} My freelance lifestyle wasn’t born out of a dream to forge my own path, pursue my innate sense of creativity at all costs or even break free from the corporate grind. Nope, my motivations weren’t as lofty as all that. The way it really went was something like this: My husband was given a career-boosting opportunity that involved nine months of schooling in the Washington, D.C. area, with no idea where we would be moving next. We talked it over and decided together that he should take the opportunity, and before we knew it, we…
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Tweet Having a full-time freelance writing career can wreak havoc on your soul, not to mention your wallet. Why? Well the latter is obvious. But for many people who are not in it, us creative artistic types tend to sway towards low self-esteem. It’s a given since most of us are born sensitive and tend to grow up in families who are less than enthusiastic about our dream of being an artist for a living. But if you want to have a long-term career in an artistic field, you need to get beyond the ups and downs of your creative…
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Tweet Here it is. I can write to my heart’s content meeting and surpassing deadlines if it is for someone else. In fact, it is one of my writerly strengths to submit a piece days before it’s due. But my own work? Sadly, still sitting untouched in Google Drive. I know that writers need a break. I understand that paid work feeds the hungry writer. But the idea that I’ve let this dream of mine slide eats away at this writer’s soul. It makes me feel like a failure and a fake. I see successes like hers and a pulsating…
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Tweet As the holiday approaches, you may be winding down your freelance writing business. Or you may be reaping the benefits of less saturation in the market. More writers taking a holiday means more work for you! If you’re looking for fresh ways to add more work to your portfolio, here are a few tried and true methods that have worked for me in the past and is sure to work for you: 1. Peruse your local pubs. I get about 5 free local publications sent to my address every few months. They’re like hidden job ads for writers sent…
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Tweet The process of writing can seem nebulous. On a conscious level, you are aware that putting butt to chair and pen to pad creates a flow of ideas. But where it comes from seems a lot less clear. Does a writer need to be in fits of rage or a constant cynic to engender passionate pieces of prose? I often wonder if it’s like me and running. It only feels good when it’s bad. In other words, catch me running begrudgingly when all is well in the world, but I’ll pass you if I’m down in the dumps. But…
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Tweet Q: “I was wondering if you could direct me to your posts that are specifically about how to get started. I am currently in the stage where I feel like this is a field where I could be successful, and my main question right now is where to look for job opportunities (the real ones, not the scams!). I’ve had success with my writing on a very small scale- had some things accepted for publication in a national religious magazine for children, an article accepted for publication in the local newspaper, won a short story contest, etc. I am a…
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Tweet Don’t judge me, but I’m a big fan of reality TV. Just like I love a good memoir and an autobiography, I get a high from watching real life people do crazy ass things. To me, it’s just inspires me to do something crazy myself. One of my favorite shows is, “Shark Tank.” It seems antithetical to my very nature to be a shark when it comes to making money. But maybe that’s why watching it thrills me so. It’s also observing the inventors, creators and designers who work up the courage to give their 5-minute shpeal on what…
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Tweet Ever notice on the days you hem and haw over an article, your head suffers and your writing suffers too? And the pieces you don’t sweat to pieces are your best ones? Weird how that works isn’t it? I find it amazing that the weather is less consistent than this extraordinary fact. I could spend hours, days, weeks pouring out my soul to molding ideas into words and words into a story. I put it aside. Unhappy with it, I rework again. And again. And again. And when it’s finished I’m shaking silly, drained, brainless. Then I offer it on…
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Tweet When I wrote this list of easy ways I increased my chance to freelance writing success, I neglected something BIG. In fact, it was the number one thing that helped launch my career. And the fastest. Just this past March, I wrote about how I was on the fence about this one. Looking back, I’m patting myself on the back and singing my “hallelujahs” because had I not done so, I might be singing a whole different tune today. How I Became the Lone Wolf When I started freelancing about four years ago, I was way behind the pack.…