I LOVE that the editor is heading right to where you want to be – and has invited you along! Fantastic!

Even if I'm late, I always want to show that I value your openness and share my monthly assessment as you do.

So here goes.

Moneywise, April was mediocre. It would have been fine, but through a mixup, an editor thought I hadn't accepted a feature article assignment that I had. So he assigned it to someone else. He apologized and promised me more work–and I've been so swamped I was happy to have a less-stressful workload.

I didn't contact any potential clients, either.

But I got a new ongoing project with an existing client that makes me happy. It's adequate but not great pay, but in addition to the ongoing work, it gives me more marketing and web-writing experience. It also puts me in closer touch with a marketing/publishing consultant also on the project who if I impress, may call on me later. So overall I thought it was worth taking on.

In addition, another editor I work with is moving to a big magazine I've tried to break into but haven't cracked. Unsolicited, he told me to contact him once he got settled. I'm hopeful I can parlay that into a new market.

So in terms of dollars, meh. In terms of strengthening my career, I'm satisfied with April.

Yo, can you bottle that success? If so, I'll take a case of it.

Oh Paula, good luck with the IRS! That's awful. But it sounds like your month otherwise is pretty good.

You can just get the feeling, can't you AnnaLisa? I knew a few of mine were going. Not surprised and it wasn't a huge hit, but it's disappointing, like you said.

All that said, I'm glad May is coming. I'm confident things will work out.

At the first of the year, I said I'd play along with the monthly assessments, so here goes:

I sent three queries, two of which were filled with multiple ideas, just the way my editor likes it. I also sent one LOI to a knitting magazine editor I "met" through a social networking site for knitters. This morning I discovered a new website that's similar to another association site I write for, so I'm about to contact them, once I track down an editor's name.

For existing clients – one on-going client has farmed a bit of work my way, but I only turned in one article, three columns, and three blog posts this month. Not good enough. I checked in with five of my regular clients. Learned a special section I'd pitched ideas for has been "delayed," and given the timing involved, it's likely to be canceled.

No new clients in April.

No job ads answered that I can recall.

Earnings were on target, if not a little higher than the monthly goal. But one of those checks should have arrived in March, so I probably shouldn't count it.

Taxes were filed in March, but the IRS sent me a nice little letter last week saying my refund would be smaller than expected…why? They were only counting one of my quarterly payments. I printed copies of my other three canceled checks with a very polite note asking them to correct their records.