After being in real estate for 10 years, this most recent economic downturn was too much for me, and I closed shop.  I just can’t afford to go months on end without selling a house.  I needed a new job.

SInce there are all kinds of regulations re: what you can and can’t do with a real estate license, I decided to just go in a different direction and do some article writing.  I’m a good writer and pretty creative.  I put an add on one of those freelance writer sites, and soon I had a couple inquiries, and the work began.

Oh my gosh! This is such hard work!  There is so much involved in writing articles!  Yes, you can make money and yes, your work will be in high demand, but be prepared to put in many hours of researching and revising and interacting with the client.  This is by far the hardest job I’ve ever had.

I’m a freelance writer.  I write for a variety of companies, trying to get information out there about their industry while establishing them as subject matter experts.  It’s good pay, and I work from home, working the hours I want.  I even set up a little website to market my services.

But let me tell you, it’s hard work. You need to know the topic you are writing about.  My clients can come at me with topics ranging from chemical reactions in hair products to the aerodynamics of foreign vehicles.  To do them justice, I have to research this stuff before I can write about it.  If I don’t get the details right, it impacts them and then I’m out of a job.

So my suggestion to aspiring writers is this:  it’s not just a matter of being a good writer.  You need to be good at research and taking direction from others.  If not, you may want to choose a different vocation.