Let's Try Something New, Shall We?



It's been awhile since I've posted about my job. That's mostly because I haven't had a consistent paycheck since December, when my last gig ended. Fortunately, my husband was able to find a salaried job just weeks before mine ended, so I've been able to relish this time-off without having to put applications in at Walgreens or Kroger.

During this break—the first I've had since the summer I graduated college, seven years ago—I've been able to spend it packing up our home and then unpacking it again, baking up weekly loaves of homemade bread, reading, and, mostly, relaxing

But now, I am finally feeling recharged to get back to work, to dip my toes back into the pool of paychecks and productivity. The catch? Given my husband's changing work schedule, we've decided that a traditional job probably will not work for us. So instead, I'm going to give a go to freelance writing and editing.

For over three years, I worked as in-house editor and writer at a fun design magazine. Then, for about two years, I transitioned into a role as a publicist, writing press releases for new books and pitching story ideas to magazines.

So you would think I would have already made the leap to freelancing, given all that. But there's another aspect that is something of uncharted waters for me. Aside from a couple of job interviews, I've never had to "pitch" myself and definitely not on a monthly or weekly basis. I've never had to look for clients. I've never had to figure out what I ought to charge for individual pieces of work. So I've been hesitant to try out the whole freelancing thing, despite my writing portfolio and experience.

People always say that if you want a job, you have to first go out and apply for it; God doesn't just have someone knock on your door and say, "Here's a job!"

But you know what? That's exactly how this all came about for me: One day, I opened an email that said, "Here's a writing job we'd like you to do!" And that's when the light bulb went off and I realized that this was where I was being led, at least for this season, to put my talents to work.

I started a to-do list of how to start this journey, things to do and folks to contact. I don't expect to make a full-time gig of it, but I would like to be able to cultivate enough work to supplement my husband's income and keep my working at my trade while still tending to things around our little homestead.

I'm eager to see where this leads; it just feels right.

(And if you know of anyone who is looking to hire someone to do some freelance writing or editing for them, please get in touch!)

Related Posts
God, Brussel Sprouts, & Getting the Job
A Testimony To God's Perfect Timing
Staying Productive Without a Job
{ photo }

5 comments:

  1. Awesome, Carmen! I'm contemplating going back into the freelance world as well. Scary stuff! I don't like pitching myself either. Last time I was freelancing, it was just for one company. Let me know how it's going!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Total blessing! I'm just a tad jealous, because I'm getting very much over this stay at home wife thing and can't wait to move + get a job. How do you go about freelancing at that stuff? Gah! Anyway, I'm very excited for you :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. @ B. - Yeah, we were in the same boat as far as freelancing! I hope it works out for you, we'll have to swap freelancing stories / ideas sometime!

    @ Rachel - Thanks :) Fortunately, my initial assignments were for the magazine I used to work for, so that made things easier! Now I'm searching out new outlets to pitch, so that's where it gets a little tougher because you don't have any name recognition really! I hope your job search efforts pay off soon. I know how boring life at the homestead can get after awhile!

    ReplyDelete
  4. That's so awesome, Carmen! I love when God puts things in your path like that. Freelance work is interesting, but I love it. I'm sure writing is different than photography, but if you ever need to chat with someone about the gig to gig way of life, I'm available. ha :) Seriously, though- I've heard the same thing about pursuing work, but guess what? I feel like God's always been the One opening the doors and windows for me to go through. It's never been about me banging on all of them on my own. True there have been times I've had to take jumps and believe I could do something to get a gig, but I definitely know it's been Him bringing me opportunities and allowing me to seal the deal so to speak. He'll bring work your way in this new season and it'll be an amazing way to see Him work in your life. :) So excited for you! Keep me posted on how it's going.

    Out of curiosity... would you be interested in editing a novel? I have a friend who might potentially be interested. Not sure how much you'd charge, but I could pass your name along. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I know that there is no way I could go completely jobless for any length of time, because I can't stay still. I'm always having to do something with my hands.

    Good luck with the freelance work! It sounds so fun & exciting.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

Next Post Previous Post
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...