The plunge

[vaneramos]

As of today I have committed to freelance writing full-time. With respect to organ building, I've been off work since before Christmas with no prospect of steady employment within a reasonable time frame. I'm not yet writing web content efficiently enough to make a living. On the other hand it is stable: a constant supply of quick assignments I can take whenever I choose. I write more every day and it feels like lubricating the gears.

Panic-stricken yesterday, I had an emergency friend meeting with Lori at the Red Brick Café. She said it sounded like I had made up my mind and suggested applying to About.com. I've looked at it in the past, but as organ builder's assistant I dismissed any writing commitments requiring more than a few hours. It was a good excuse for avoidance.

Now I'm committed for the forseeable future. So this morning I looked and found an available About.com topic I would love to address. I've written a sample article to be revised and submitted tomorrow morning.

This involves a psychological leap from "unemployed" to "freelance writer". I wasn't ready a year or even three months ago. Now I am. It's a matter of seeing my time, intellect and creativity as valuable commodities.

It's exactly one week before my 48th birthday and I'm taking a fresh stab at what I've always wanted to do. Wish me luck.

Comments

[niyabinghi.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! This is inspiring, and I wish you all the best. :)

[poetbear.livejournal.com]

somehow i got off track on your
birthday. so HAPPY C0NGATULATIO S
AND MANY MORE!~paul

[bitterlawngnome.livejournal.com]

go you :)

and happy birthday in advance!

[apel.livejournal.com]

Excellent! Wishing you all the best!

[inishglora.livejournal.com]

I do wish you the very best. :)

[stephe.livejournal.com]

Good luck to ya'.

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Paul!

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Thanks, Bill. I can hardly begin to explain what a difference it makes having Danny around. I believed I needed to be independent and worked hard at being okay on my own, but I guess it was more difficult than I realized. This reminds me of how my mom and I were constant companions. We baked, played games and talked, a lot of the same things Danny and I like to do together. Now is the first time since leaving home I've had this quality of companionship. I'm going: "So this is how it feels to not be lonely." We both need solitude, just as Mom and I did, so nobody gets cramped. This gives me great hope I'm finally in the right space to develop my creative practise. It's a little unsettling to discover I need somebody so much, but I guess that's life. I can view it as a weakness or simply a characteristic.

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[bitterlawngnome.livejournal.com]

I don't think it's a weakness at all, it's actually a skill. We're mostly wired to be social animals but look how many people can't find a way to live constructively with someone else.

[artricia.livejournal.com]

Good luck! I'm glad you're doing this...I'm often tempted myself, but I am decidedly not ready. This is a vicarious thrill for me.

Good for you.

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Thank you, it is exciting!