Glad you were able to walk away, Gabriella. Sounds like it was a pretty lousy fit.

I'll make this short–I'm rushing to get something done.

My February was right where I want it to be–and I turned down a new client.

I swear, do people think writers can't do math? I mean, I told the potential client I charged $75 per hour or $1 per word (wish I could get my hourly rate up; never been successful at that).

She said, sure, we're within that range because I think it'll take you only an hour to write this copy, and we'll pay $60 per entry. (See where this is going?)

Then she sent details. The articles were 500-600 words! I politely told her, sorry, I've been doing this a long time, and I've never been able to write a quality piece that long–including research–in one hour.

Bottom line: I'd like to add more clients. But it's been a while since I got one that cleared the pay bar.

That is indeed half the battle, Jenn. 🙂

I'm sorry you missed your goal this month, but it sounds like you have a good idea of how to move forward to fix that. And that's half the battle, right? 🙂

Like you, I had a slower January and February than previous years. But March, well, this lion's got some toothy deadlines that I'll just get by on (possibly losing some skin in the process). It looks like it might even make up for the Jan/Feb shortfalls y-o-y. So, that's cool.

Hard-drive crashes scare the hell out of me. Glad you were prepared. I'm glad Microsoft decided to make OneDrive the default save. It saved my (vegetarian) bacon a few times already.

Paula, once again you impress with your results! Hey, tell those new prospects that you've talked to Oprah — that ought to bring them around! Smart idea to leverage the Harpo story.

Queries/LOIs: Sent three queries. Two were near-misses, the third has potential. Sent 9 LOIs and/or follow ups as soon as the big Harpo article hit print – it never hurts to update those potential clients when you have something great to share. A couple editors said they'd be in touch as soon as they have something to assign. Another has already assigned me to do about half of a massive annual listing.

Existing clients: Turned in three articles and one column. A past resume client asked me to do a cover letter, but has yet to pay so I have yet to work on it. Turned down a pair of low-paying assignments.

New clients: A different former resume client referred someone my way. He agreed to the price and said he'd pay and send the info, but has yet to do either.

Earnings: $750 shy of the mark. That's a big miss for me.

Bottom Line: More marketing needs to be done to leverage that Harpo clip.

February was darn busy, with one major referral that should add up to a ton of business: a high-energy real estate lawyer who's already had me create direct mail postcards, ads, re-write articles, edit her newsletters, and write a speech. Best of all, I aimed seriously high with my rate, and she didn't flinch. Basically, I calculated that she makes $300 an hour, so why not go for it.

The last day of the month was a bit of a bummer, with a complete hard-drive failure. Mercifully, everything was backed up on my Mac's Time Machine–not the first time that program has saved my butt. Lost a few days and brain cells, but that was all.

Sounds like you have some possibilities. Cool!

Marketing: I contacted 2 former clients, 7 potential and created 3 proposals upon request. Lots of emails back and forth, but no gigs – yet. The good news is I am getting more queries from potential clients who found me through social media or referrals.

Existing Clients: They keep me going with regular projects including ongoing business ghostblogging and technical resource documents.

Earnings: Down slightly from the previous month, but if not for one slow-payer, I would have met target.

Bottom line: Encouraged by the new noise. Had some really interesting calls/discussions that I truly believe will evolve into solid work.

Hope springs eternal. 🙂