"Change your thoughts and you change your world."

I already posted this on my related blog, RachelKarl, but I wanted to post it here since this site is dedicated to my budding writing career.

Check out my latest article for the DestroyDebt.com site: "Change your thoughts and you change your world."

Got Paid for My Article

Just wanted to update that I billed Debbie via PayPal for the article I wrote for AmericanConsumerNews.com, and she paid me. I know people out there are doubters, so I thought I should make sure you knew it was legit.

Paid Assignment through Debbie

So, Debbie's offer was legit! She gave me an assignment, I did it and turned it in. She posted it to the web (check it out) Pay Off Your Debts In 2009 on the AmericanConsumerNews.com site, and I got my byline up there!

Debbie Dragon Mentoring Continued

So, I finished the first two e-lessons. They were very informative, yet simple. I did both homework assignments.

The first homework assignment is to set up your "office". I set mine up in a corner of my bedroom because I was using the dining room table for the last year, and it's not a good idea - trust me. With three kids and a husband, you are just asking to be interrupted. I've been doing freelance work all this time but not efficiently.

It felt so good to get my office set up. I feel really organized and ready to get to work. I know it seems like such a simple thing, but I never thought about it seriously before Debbie talks about it in the first lesson. All five of us were able to go to Disneyland on the money I made from freelancing last year. Plus, I paid off some credit cards. Not bad, but I know I can do better now that I'm organized.

The second homework assignment is to get familiar with sites like Craigslist and Getafreelancer.com. They are good places for the beginner to look for work. That was fun, and I bid on three different jobs too. It felt good just to put myself out there. Hey, the worst that can happen is I will land a paid assignment.

Then, I took Debbie up on her offer for a paid assignment with a byline through her. She emailed me back (personally) and gave me the assignment. I know it was really her because I had a question for her and she responded, albeit briefly, but she answered my questions.

I finished the article tonight and emailed it to her. I'll blog again as soon as I hear back from her. I'm sure everyone really wants to know when I get paid and published, right? So do I, so I'll be sure to keep you posted.

Trying a new tack

I found out about a woman named Debbie Dragon who makes a good living as a freelance writer. She shows a copy of her PayPal account for a two week period earlier this year where it looks like she makes about $2000 in that period.

She gives excellent information on her website, and she also offers to mentor writers for nearly nothing, so I decided to have her mentor me for a month and see how it goes. She guarantees that if you don't make the mentor fee within the first month she will refund your money. Not bad. Plus, she claims to have so much work that she now uses sub contractors to help her get assignments done. So her other offer is to give you one paid assignment with your byline as part of the mentoring program.

I'm going to give it a shot and will post regular updates here as I go through the program. I recommend checking it out even if you're not interested in having her mentor you because she gives very good advice on her site:

Waiting really is the hardest part.

I woke up at 4am and wasn't able to go back to sleep. All I could think about was article ideas. Then I began formulating exactly how to write them in my head. I also was going over my To-Do list for some things I need to do to get some initial writing going. Such as re-open my Suite 101 account, so I can write more articles for them.

I submitted an application to Suite 101 and am now waiting to hear back from them. I have written my first article for them already. It's called, "Maximize Your eBay Sales". I've checked Suite 101 three times in the last hour to see if I'm approved, but my application hasn't been checked yet.

This is so weird because a year ago, when I applied the first time, I was approved within seconds. It made me suspicious. Maybe they make you wait on purpose so you think it's more of the real deal.

About Me

This is my bio, which you will see posted on numerous websites:

"Rachel is a published author of numerous magazine and newsletter articles, and short stories. She is a freelance writer and communications consultant, breaking up her time between article writing and helping her clients with everything from newsletters, copywriting, ghostwriting for celebrities and business professionals, as well as press releases, and just about anything that helps make her clients more known to the world.

"After graduating from her Alma Mater, Rachel spent the next four years immersed in an intense scholastic theology program. Many of the ideals expressed in her fiction writing are founded on her studies of philosophy, religion and humanism.

"Rachel lives near the coastal range in the beautiful Willamette Valley of Oregon with her husband and their three children, and is currently working on her fourth fiction novel."

It's mostly true. I've written articles for magazines and newsletters. I've written press releases. I've done ghostwriting and many other things to help promote various people, from friends to paying clients. I am working on my fourth novel, but the other three have not been published yet. And, I don't make my living YET from doing these things. Sure I make a little money here and there on the side, but it wouldn't pay the bills.

In June I will be leaving the security of my day job, a job that I do in fact love but am not passionate about, behind for the life of a full-time freelancer and author. While I am very excited about this idea, it also scares the you-know-what out of me because my day job is more than just a 9-5 gig. I have been working as a teacher at a private school where faculty housing on campus is one of the benefits. So, basically my husband and three children and myself have been living rent-free for the past six years, and our commute is literally less than a few hundred feet. Nevertheless, we will shortly enter the "real world".

So, the purpose of this blog is to document my trials and tribulations and successes on my journey from teacher to full-time, successful freelancer. Let's not forget the successful part. And, I must do this by June whilst working full time, being a mother to my three younglings and a wife to my husband whom is already doing quite a bit in the moral support department (as well as taking the kids off my hands for an hour or two in the evenings occasionally). My goal is to update this blog at least once a week.

And so the journey begins...