Bring In New Projects Without Lifting a Finger

Things have been awesomer than usual lately, and that’s a relief.

Because 2009 was a rough one.

This time last year, it seemed that — no matter how desperately I looked — it was impossible to find paying work.

But then, at the end of 2009, shortly after I had started a new part-time job at YourTango, Ian Kerner contacted me about co-writing an ebook with him for his new Good In Bed web project. Several months later, I was contacted by someone at AOL’s Patch about copy editing. The other month, an editor at The Frisky asked me if I’d be interested in writing a regular sex column for them. And then, the other week, someone at Psych Central e-mailed me, asking if I would be interested in writing for their site, as one of their editors had seen my LoveMom piece on depression, and had been impressed.

I’m not trying to gloat (though sometimes I like to point at my husband and say neener-neener). I’m just sayin’… it’s totally possible to bring in new projects without lifting a finger. How?

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The Road To Freelance Success Is Paved with Good Karma

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Work has been pretty damn good lately (aside from the occasional seasonal slump). And — conceited as it may sound — I credit myself for a lot of that. After all, I’m the one who got me here. When I was unhappy at my 9-to-5, and daydreaming about freelancedom, I figured out the steps I’d need to take in order to make it work, and then took them. I self-educated myself with a shit-ton of how-to books. I took writing and pitching classes through MediaBistro and at the New School. I attended a ton of MediaBistro networking events, and formed a writing group. I secured a freelance gig before jumping ship and, during the transitional period, was working two jobs at once. And when I’d left my 9-to-5 behind, I took on another unpaid, post-college internship in order to gain more experience, contacts, and clips.

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