Why I love freelance writing

[helenabester]

Why I love freelance writing

In my previous life, I was a lot of things. I started with stars in my eyes with a degree in business administration. But the world of work was full of office politics, long meetings, and traffic jams.

Then I tried to be an entrepreneur. It spoke more to my creativity, but oh, the administrative side was never-ending. It slurped time and took me away from my family.

Then, by chance (or perhaps it was destiny?) I read about Fiverr in a book one day. Fiverr is a website where freelancers can ‘advertise’ their skills in different ‘gigs’ and make money online.

Now, before I go any further, you must know that I love reading and writing.

Deep in the back of my cupboard is journals that I kept since I was nine. I’ve written poems and stories my whole life. So, I started to write on Fiverr.

Ironically, I started with a law article. Bland and boring, you’d think. But I loved it! I discovered that I could take legalese and write in layman’s terms so that even I can follow it. My reasoning, of course, if I can understand it in the end, everyone should. They did. The buyer loved it and gave me more articles to write. To this day, (almost two years later) it still gives me the thrill to find a law project in my inbox.

And so, my life as a freelancer started. Why do I love it? Let me count the ways:

• My time is so my own. I can now schedule my work in the mornings so that my afternoons can be free to be a taxi driver and social secretary to my three children, aged between nine and sixteen. Holidays? No problem! I warn my buyers that I’ll be taking some time off and line them up for when I get back. With excellent communication and customer service, everything is possible.

• The variety of work is excellent! This morning I might be writing on the sustainability of the fashion industry, whereas tomorrow I will be debating the pros and cons of using a legal document preparation service. In between, I even write poems for birthdays, children’s books, and mystery games.

• The work challenges me. I get to be creative and serious. Sometimes I struggle for hours on a mere 500 words. Then, at other times, my keyboard turns into piano keys and I play the music of words like a maestro.

• My bucket list gets shorter. I am doing things with my money that I’ve always dreamt of. The leather lazy boy recliner in my sitting room was an extravagant buy, but before I was a freelancer, it was way down the bucket list. I am saving to go to Italy. I’ll get there.

Writing is not for everyone. It is a skill and a talent. It gets better with exercise, just like everything else in life. I love it. It is my passion and I am so grateful that I found a way of getting to do it every day. I am living my dream!