I’ve found it great in that, you can really write about your niche and have fun. Whether you want to be the witty person, or spiritual guru, you can take something and run with it.

I still don’t mind the ghostwriting and helping people achieve their goals either. I’ve been quite pleased with the freelance community in meeting very helpful people and it is natural to want to give back to others.

I remember the last straw – the one that broke the camel’s back and sent me to full time blogging. I had to write a series of kitchen renovation articles around key phrases such as “find cheap refrigerator” and “find cheap kitchen cabinet”. I told my editor certain phrases aren’t being googled because the web surfer wants and article – he wants to know where to find a cheap refrigerator.

Sure, I know a good writer can make these phrases work, but at that point I was so burned out by all of the keywords and the “I need 50 articles per month” crowd that I was happy to give it all up to blog full time.

I realize not everyone has the luxury of being choosy, but boy is it rewarding to reach that point!

This is extremely important because I don’t have the luxury of being choosy about assignments because I support a family on what I earn. I will say this, as I have gained more recognition for my work, I have been offered better assignments; and believe me, I never forget how lucky I am that I am at that point in my career as a freelance journalist.

I’m becoming more selective in the projects I take so that I only take on what appeals to me. When I don’t have that luxury, then I at least try to get it wrapped up quickly so I can get back to what I enjoy.

Overall, yes I am having fun. The writing is what brought me here because I love doing it but I admit that the perks are what is helping to keep me around.

Of course you’re right. The thing is, I’m getting a byline for these articles. And it’s kind of a big name, so I want my byline to be there. But “my” articles no longer resemble what I wrote. Also, it’s frustrating because she’ll “edit” one article, and then tell me to edit the others based on her changes. But her changes aren’t mistakes; they just reflect her own individual way of expressing things. Frustrating, but this project’s almost over, so I’ll just stick it out I guess.

Like James mentioned, I too am choosy about what I do and only apply to positions that I feel that I can do with confidence and well. That being said, I look forward to being able to do this fulltime however other financial factors dictate so I must still have a day job, with health benefits. For now, weekends, or some evenings are my writing times.

Mary Higgins Clark, as a widower, awoke at 5:00 every morning to write for 2 hours before she would wake her children up for school at 7:00. Then she would head off to her day job. So I figure if she could do it, so can I, for now.

I do occasionally take on work I’m not keen on doing. That’s part of my job – making any topic under the sun a good one to read. (Except Forex. Damned if I can do anything with Forex.) I may not like the topic 100%, but I enjoy the fact that it will teach me something, increase my portfolio, enhance my value, round me out or introduce me to something new.

If I had to write on mortgage insurance every day, I’d quit, plain and simple. The perks are nice, but if I don’t love what I’m DOING, then there’s no point in working.

@BooBoo – you know, I had a client that basically rewrote the articles I submitted and at first it bothered me – I thought the same thing you did. But then, I realized that I was getting a little too attached to what I was writing and it wasn’t even mine to worry over – we’re writing for them and it should be how they want it. But also, I thought it was funny that my client was paying me to write the article that they just rewrote themselves – you’d think they would have thought to just write it themselves, but I didn’t mention it because I like getting paid. Don’t know if this is the case for you, but re-evaluate. Maybe it wouldn’t bother you if you just looked at it another way.

As a WAHM I don’t think much in my “regular” life would cause me to learn every day like writing does.

It’s definitely a process. I did freelancing on the side for about a year before going full-time, and even then there were some rough months during the first year.

Keep doing what you’re doing. Apply for everything. When you can’t possibly keep up your full-time work and your freelancing at the same time, that’s when you know it’s time.

Just my opinion. Good luck!

Usually though, I love my projects, particularly when I get to learn something. When I hit a not so fun spell, I just try to pull through, but it can definitely take an emotional and physical toll. I just try to remember that the coming weeks and months will bring totally new projects, so it’s not like I’m in a job I totally hate and have to be there for the next 30 years.

Question for everyone: How long did it take for you to develop enough work to be able to truly enjoy freelance writing as a career?

After working professionally in various writing jobs for years, the idea of doing this as fulltime work is incredibly appealing to me on every possible level. I’ve been searching job sites for a couple of weeks now and have applied for a slew of different regular blogging/writing jobs. So far, I’ve gotten one, and I absolutely love it — but it’s not nearly enough income to make this feasible by itself long-term. I’d need to have about 15 of those gigs — which would definitely be doable — to equal a full salary. But I haven’t had any luck getting past just one yet.

I’d love to hear how anyone else’s process venturing into this field fulltime went. I’m wondering if I’m going about this the wrong way, looking for the wrong types of jobs (or in the wrong places), or if it’s just a slow process that I need to give time and maybe it will eventually get where I want it to be.

Thank you for any insights from your experiences!

Then again, I’m still in the beginning stages of becoming a full-fledged freelancer–which for me means living off my savings in cheap (ie, developing) countries while I hone my craft. I still have the luxury of only taking on work I really enjoy, since I don’t have a family to support and my rent is cheap. So I wonder if my passion will lose its heat under the weight of the “real” freelance lifestyle (whenever that arrives).

Overall though, I try to avoid projects that I don’t like. Sometimes they can’t be helped, but I’ll know better in the future. Each new project is a learning experience, so I try to look for the good in them. That’s how I make it through those not so great projects and on to the super fun projects!