Without selling courses or doing the blogging grind.
In September 2017, I wrote a post about how I made $6500 that month as a full-time freelance writer.
In that post, I shared my breakdown of how I made that money and what kinds of work and clients I had to get there.
Two years later, in October 2019, I had my first $10,000 month!
While I have made a livable and decent salary since I started freelancing in October 2016, this was my first $10k month. I have seen many articles from people about ramping up and making $10k and more right away; that is not the case for me, and I want to show a view of the more realistic way freelancers can ramp up and raise prices and client quality over time to earn more money. …
My first experience with an Instant Pot.
I got an Instant Pot Duo for Christmas.
I was more excited than I thought it was possible to be about a kitchen appliance when I was 10.
I’ve been wanting an Instant Pot for a couple of years, but I already owned and regularly used a slow cooker, so it just didn't make sense to spend money on a new thing to take up space in my kitchen. I already have a storage issue!
But in summer 2020, my crockpot broke. It stopped working and was WAY out of warranty range.
So I thought, “This is it! …
The world will not be magically fixed on January 1, 2021
While it is SO good to have a light at the end of the tunnel with the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, it is crucial we all realize that everything won’t change just because 2020 ends.
We all know 2020 has been a dumpster fire shitshow of a year. Despite any and all good news that came through this year, there has also been devastation.
Shootings, explosions, a divisive and exhausting election, and — of course, the global pandemic.
As we look forward to getting vaccinated and resuming normal life, it’s important that we know just how much our government has failed us this year. …
Making it special in a new way.
It’s been a hard year for everyone. And since 2020 has seemed to last at least 5 years, everyone has had to deal with having their birthday in quarantine during a pandemic.
It’s like having a summer birthday when you’re little: everyone else is out of town and no one can come to your party. So, you celebrate at home with your family.
Today is my husband’s 35th birthday. I love him a lot and wanted to make it special.
Which is why, at the end of 2019, I and several of our friends started thinking about planning a big 35th birthday trip. …
A review and thoughts
I’ve written once before on the genius of the Taylor Swift Marketing Machine in the lead up to releasing a new album — singles, social media clues and easter eggs, music videos, merch, and more.
Fans were shocked and elated when Swift released her eighth studio album, folklore, suddenly and without fanfare on July 24th, 2020.
It was a completely different style and vibe from any of her previous albums — which really does not come as a surprise.
Swift has evolved her music style with almost every album she’s released in her long and storied music career.
She has spoken before about how each album is a new era or specific feel. She enjoys playing with musical styles and growing as an artist. …
There has been a rise of a genre called “creative nonfiction” in the last decade. Or at least a rise of calling it that.
Creative nonfiction, also called literary nonfiction and narrative nonfiction, is when writers use prose and storytelling to create a narrative — but the story is true.
Like John McPhee, a pioneer of creative nonfiction, wrote in his piece “Omission” in The New Yorker, “Creative nonfiction is not making something up but making the most of what you have.”
Like other nonfiction, these stories are real, true things that happened. …
Being thankful in an unforgiving year. 2020: On my last nerve.
The word “thankful” is defined as “pleased and relieved” or “expressing gratitude and relief.”
I, for one, am pleased and relieved this dumpster fire of a year (and administration) is almost over.
But despite the difficulties and tragedies of 2020 (RIP RBG), there have been so many beautiful moments, too.
While there has been so very much to be sad, upset, angry about, and horrified by, this year has also shown overwhelming kindness, sacrifice, and love.
John Krasinski created the short-lived Some Good News show with this in mind — to highlight all the good stuff and help people take their minds off all the crap this year has wrought. …
And considerations for blogging.
Have you been thinking about starting a blog for forever? Or maybe you have shared your thoughts, lessons, stories, and information in other ways and are ready to move to a more permanent platform with everything in one place.
There are many reasons to start a blog. Blogging can give you exposure to build your business/brand, make you money, inspire people, and more.
Initial Blog Considerations
When you’re thinking about starting your blog, it is crucial to consider a few specific points.
- The niche/main topics you plan to cover : This will help you decide where to host your blog and help you streamline a design to fit that industry. …
It is becoming increasingly clear just how many people can work from home and remain as productive — if not more so — than in an office.
It’s funny, there have been articles and studies for years saying that open office plans led to lower productivity, yet open offices continued to be all the rage, especially with startups. And working from home had been touted as a way to save businesses money and increase overall productivity.
For a long time, many businesses were resistant to having employees work from home even part-time. …
Even though I love physical books
My first foray into ebooks is actually a pretty boring story.
Eight years ago, I had a $50 gift card to Best Buy and there wasn’t anything I particularly needed, but I was about to get on a flight for a two-week trip in Israel and I read a lot, so I bought a first-generation Kindle and figured I’d use it for traveling instead of carrying books.
I very much preferred physical books, but because I read about one book every day or two at the time, it made more sense to have a bunch of books available to me than to carry 8–10 books in my luggage. …
