Work picked back up since January?

[tenderone]

Due to a lot of personal family issues, I have not been able to work much AT all since the downturn in the content mills this past January. I lost a PC at that time, and most of the work at MC quickly vanished, even though they kept me on. For the first time since writing for them, TBs writing assignments reduced significantly - let's not even mention the proofreading jobs there. And to throw it all in, I am still not sure what happened to DS!

A potential PC left me stringing along for five months, and since January, I have not heard from him.

So, like many, I sent out numerous resumes and sample pieces, but much to my disappointment, I received no responses whatsoever. I have felt like a failure not being able to use one of my strengths - writing - and now almost find that I "cannot" write like I used to. It takes me a lot longer to beautifully piece together a card, whereas before, my pen dictated my thoughts ever so effortlessly.

Since I am getting back to looking for work again, is it looking brighter out there for all of us?

[Kiernansmom]

I would think so. I have a ton of work, but I mostly use private clients. it just takes time and some aggressive marketing tactics, lol. I marketed quite a bit in the beginning of January when a client dropped their rates and WG stopped having articles to write. Jan and Feb were tough, but January's efforts paid off in the middle of February since I got several higher-paying jobs. Textbroker kept me afloat for about a month, but I was working so hard just to barely pay the bills.

Now I am working less and making more due to higher paying clients, and I'm so happy about it because now I have more time to spend with my son. I hope I never have to return to how it was before, which means I have to keep marketing, even when I barely have the time. But we all know how freelance writing is....When it rains, it pours! Good luck!

[c.right]

Textbroker has been packed with level four assignments since I started writing there again in February. They've also had ~200 level five articles consistently for like a month now.

Lower levels are bone dry, but you can apparently catch a lot of articles if you're around early in the morning.

[funmom91]

Things have been super busy for me on my end. I have been doing mostly link building work for clients and I also landed a Digital Outreach Consultant job through ODesk. All of my jobs now are long term and I am gaining work from my private clients for writing. I haven't had time to think about content mills but I am considering that to be a good thing. My new jobs allow me to work less hours and focus more on my blog and starting my new business.

[AZ Mommy]

I have been super busy with almost more writing work than I can handle. I am currently only working with private clients, and I am very happy with the pay I am earning. I understand where you are coming from; Jan. was a little rough for me after WG closed down, but it forced me to really market myself to find private clients. I wish you the best of luck!

[tenderone]

I would like to thank all of you for your positive responses!

If you do not mind, how do you market yourselves?

How do you "go after" PCs? I responded to CL ads -- many, mind you -- as well as "cold calling" different companies online. I do think of myself as a "decent" writer - although, my passion tends to cater to creative writing. I wrote product descriptions for NexTag, and I was completely disappointed to find out that the work was no longer being offered this past January. I had a blast writing those!

[annietn41]

My income has doubled since January but from private clients only. I do not do content mills at all.

[beanandpumpkin]

I've been really busy with private clients since about the end of January. I know there's usually a lull around the holidays, and I think I remember slow times in the summer, too, so I'm hoping to enjoy the busy workflow for at least another few months!

[Aneka]

Good question....