How do you earn $1k-2k/month?

[tenderone]

Okay, so this is, perhaps, quite obvious...work! Being a mommy, I tend to work around the LOs, so I am having a difficult time even earning a measly $400/month. I cannot see how content mills will assist with attaining my goal of $1k-$2k/month, and I am sure they will not.
If upfront income was not an issue, I would concentrate on my blog (see siggie ), begin a new site highlighting my experience, and work on writing articles for magazines and an e-book.

I had a couple of PCs lined up and one is not a permanent situation, unfortunately, and the other, I am no longer receiving a response from.

So, I really do not know what I am asking, but I either need some encouragement or some leads. LOL!

[inkkognito]

It used to be very possible to earn that much from DS. I was doing so regularly until they went downhill, along with most of the other content mills, when Panda hit. Now, the closest I come is with About.com. I recommend checking out their currently available topics and putting in an application. Just be warned that it can take a long time for them to get back to you. I've been working with them since June and really like it.

Otherwise, follow up on every lead and see if you can pick up a steady client. I found one here a few months back that, while not as lucrative as DS, is a big egg for me now. I'm also writing at MediaPiston, which was posted here recently, although you're not going to make a lot there unless you're a fast writer and have expertise in enough topics that come there. You never know what's coming, since there's a wide range of clients.

[Kiernansmom]

I'm lucky enough to have a long-term private client that gives me as much work as I need most of the time, plus several smaller clients. My daily goal is $120, and $60 each weekend day. I have a 15 month old. I pretty much just work during his naps (3 hours per day) and then after he goes to bed at 8:30 or 9 pm. I also work for maybe 1-2 hours while he is awake, but only easy work since I am always having to stop him from destroying the house, lol. So I work maybe a total of 5-6 hours per day. If you make $20-30 per hour, you can make over $2k per month this way. I really don't have much of a life or extra free time, but I can pay the bills without paying for daycare. I figure it will be a bit easier when LO is in school for 6 hours a day, but until then, this is my schedule.

[FairlyOddFrances]

Originally Posted by tenderone

So, I really do not know what I am asking, but I either need some encouragement or some leads. LOL!

I understand your frustration. It seems like it's always feast or famine. I'm lucky that I've been doing this long enough that I have enough connections to get me through the tough times (like a client of mine who pays half of what I usually charge, but has steady work).

I've found success lately in making calls to HR departments of local businesses to inquire as to whether they use freelancers for writing work, and/or sending out promotional packets to the same types of places. Over the past year I've picked up about 10 projects that way, one of whom became a decent paying consultant position for a few months and another who I still do occasional work for.

Good luck with everything! I feel your pain, I have three kids myself, two under the age of three still running around, lol. It ain't easy!

[tiroberts]

Originally Posted by tenderone

Okay, so this is, perhaps, quite obvious...work! Being a mommy, I tend to work around the LOs, so I am having a difficult time even earning a measly $400/month. I cannot see how content mills will assist with attaining my goal of $1k-$2k/month, and I am sure they will not.
If upfront income was not an issue, I would concentrate on my blog (see siggie ), begin a new site highlighting my experience, and work on writing articles for magazines and an e-book.

I had a couple of PCs lined up and one is not a permanent situation, unfortunately, and the other, I am no longer receiving a response from.

So, I really do not know what I am asking, but I either need some encouragement or some leads. LOL!

You obviously understand the importance of having a blog and seem to enjoy writing content. When I first started my blog it was hard rollin trudging through all the techy stuff and getting it to where I can get paying clients to it. It's still not where I want it however I found a wonderful tool that assists me in getting more leads and allows me to leverage their blogging platform to build more traffic to my current blog.

It also teaches how to generate more leads for your business and allow you to get paid to actually learn the system. It's been a true life saver for me. The ROI is quick and the investment is minimal. I'm positive it'll help you get to that $1/$2k mth goal you have and free up your time to spend with the LO :-)

Click the red link in my signature below for more info.

Hope this helps!

Ti

[funmom91]

Private clients is the way to achieve the goal if you have the time to put up with all the hassles that come along with them, such as late payments, constantly reminding them of payments, unexpected vacations ect..

[jmw1]

Having private clients is the best way. The second best way is to line up direct orders from Textbroker. After that, go to content mills with lots of clients (TB) rather than a single client (DS/MC/WiseGeek/About). I don't feel the big giant content mills have a future with Panda.

[yurika975]

This is a good post. It's right on time too. I can sometimes get a bit overwhelmed. I'll just have to slow down and plan a bit more.

[jwinter]

I tend to get this question from friends who are wanting to write from home. The problem is that most of them don't want to actually work. I work roughly 20 hours a week and make around $2k per month. It's not easy though. You do have to work at it and not just by logging in and writing. You have to constantly update your eggs, make sure that you have the clients/content sites/side gigs lined up for the next week. You have to keep up with all aspects of running your freelance business to make the money.

[momoftwingirls]

I just got my 1099 for DS...I certainly do miss my residual income from them. I was mad when they bought all my articles. Are there anymore sites like DS or eHow? I started writing with eHow, the DS bought them out..