Hello

[PJRiddel]

I signed up here just over a week ago and having spent some time familiarising myself with the guidelines and reading through this forum (very helpful, all my questions answered and lots of good advice, thanks) I thought I’d better introduce myself. My name’s Phil, I’m based in Scotland and my main interests are science, natural history, travel and hillwalking but I’m prepared to have a go on other subjects. I am, however, very new to this. It took a lot of checking and deliberation before I could summon up the courage to hit the submit button on my first article, but my caution paid off, and it was accepted.

Due to work and family commitments, I don’t have much time available at the moment, but that is likely to change soon as I will probably be made redundant from my job in about six weeks. I consider myself fortunate compared with many in this situation in that, having been with my company for a good long while, I will get enough of a redundancy payment to keep us going for about a year, so I am looking forward to freedom and having much more time to write. In the meantime if I can sell just one or two articles it would be a big boost to morale and help convince my wife that this could be a viable source of income once I have the time to be more productive.

Anyway, I’ve rambled on long enough (I think this post is longer than my first article!). Nice to meet you all,

Phil

[Celeste Stewart]

HI and welcome. In a way, you're in a terrific position. You can experiment now and get a feel for the site before you lose your job. Then, when you have more time on your hands, you'll have already made it over the learning curve hump and be ready to focus on writing articles that sell.

[cjgarrett]

Seems like it's happening to a lot of people. Still, there's money to be made with a quick turn of phrase, so who are we to say no? Welcome to CC ^_^

[PJRiddel]

Hello again.

Thanks for your encouragement. I think I'm doing the right thing: with jobs scarce, working for yourself seems the best way forward and if you can get paid for writing about things that interest you, that's ideal.

I'd better get busy now...

[PennieJ]

Hey Phil... whereabouts in Scotland are you? I'm in the Highlands myself

Only a recent convert to CC but been a web based freelancer for two years now - are you working in any other places? Have you considered any other web writing outlets? The key to making a living wage from this gig really seems to be to diversify and diversify again.

I currently work for about six different companies/sites/clients and am just beginning to come close to equalling my old f/t employed writer wage...

Nice to "meet" you....

[PJRiddel]

Hi Pennie, nice to meet you!

I'm near Glasgow, just at the foot of the Campsie hills. I visit the highlands often, for hillwalking. It must be great to live there.

I found CC through a website which lists various ways of making money online (one of the more helpful ones, not the "buy my DVD and make $100,000 in your first month" type!) and thought I'd give it a try. There are a few other ideas I'm trying out, which may not work, but I have time to experiment and I like the idea of having multiple income streams.

It's very encouraging to know that you have made a success of this and thanks very much for the advice; signing up with some more sites would be a good idea. At the moment it's just CC - are there any others you would recommend?

Essentially out of a sense of duty, I have to go and watch our national team get hammered by the world champions now, though no doubt my time would be better spent writing articles!

Thanks again,

Phil

[jak]

Hi PJ

Your team made good account of themselves last night, even though they couldn't quite knock the champs off their podium.

I'm your polar opposite, on the south coast of England. Our team were just boring last night, unable to beat the newest boys on the block.

Best of luck at CC.

[PJRiddel]

Hi Jak, nice to meet you.

Yes, it could have been a lot worse, and it's unusual to see Scotland scoring!

I think England will get through ok, despite the slip-up.

Cheers,

Phil

[misterg]

Phil:

You and I are (or will soon be) in very similar situations, albeit for different reasons...

I lost my rt leg 3 years ago, due to a blood clotting disorder. In addition, I have severe congestive heart failure. I haven't worked in 3 years.

Things are not totally bleak, though. I am now receiving disability income, and while it is nowhere near what I made at my last job (technical support), it covers the bills.

I said all that to say, that I now have a great deal of time on my hands, and like you, I have taken to making money online. I currently have 3 websites, plus I just got started with article writing.

One of the earlier responders got it spot on in my opinion - DIVERSIFY. Register with a few different writing sites. If anything, you will gain valuable experience that will benefit you long term.

Good luck with everything!

Later,

Mr. G

[PJRiddel]

Good luck to you too Mr G. I haven't experienced anything remotely comparable to what you've been through these last three years, but I wish you great success at CC and in all your other enterprises.

Thanks for the advice and encouragement. I think divesifying is definitely a good idea: apart from anything else, in uncertain times it leads to a more resilient income.

All the best,

Phil