Since last month’s “Where I’m At” post, I made my first successful freelance writing pitch. Very exciting! But I’ve now moved onto the more difficult step: writing the freelance article. I hope there comes a day where article writing comes easy to me, maybe after having completed several successful ones. Or maybe I will look back at this post years from now and laugh, because it never gets easier.

Every book, article, and blog post I’ve read about freelance writing has offered blatantly contrasting advice. One of the obvious reasons for this is because there are many forms of freelance writing; you can be a freelance journalist, a freelance ghostwriter, a freelance technical writer, etc. My first freelance gig is as a journalist, but I am open to all other forms of writing. I haven’t met a single genre of writing that I didn’t enjoy.

But that doesn’t mean that writing comes easy for me.

One of the greatest joys that I get from writing and painting is that of being challenged and still successful. During the process, I may feel stressed or even enraged out my goddamn mind, but I swell with pride if I am able to complete the piece. I imagine that it is similar for article writing as well…I know that sometimes I’ve gone weeks without posting on this blog because I’ll keep re-reading my draft and thinking that its garbage. Am I suffering from impostor syndrome, am I simply a reliable judge and editor of my own work, or am I delusional? Is this post garbage? I don’t know at this point, so I may as well just publish it.

Another reason why I’ve read so much contrasting advice is that every writer’s experience is different. Maybe they built a portfolio early in their careers, or maybe they were held back by something. Maybe their first editor was able to offer them additional opportunities, or maybe their editor was awful and/or their first gig a total bust.

I am fortunate that the editor for my freelance project is great. He is quick to respond and always willing to offer feedback. Because of him, I have organized a well-rounded set of questions that I’d like to ask my subjects. I’m now beginning to reach out to potential interviewees, which makes me a new level of nervous. Why am I so afraid of a potential subject turning me down – or worse, calling my idea shitty? Why am I asking so many rhetorical questions right now? Is it because I’m a bad writer? I don’t know at this point, so I may as well end this post here.

• Current drink: Heavy Seas AmeriCannon APA
• Current book:  Walking the Clouds: An Anthology of Indigenous Science Fiction – Grace L. Dillon
• Current music: vietra – dream