Breaking Out of Your Writing Rut

What I’m listening to: We’re Going To Be Friends by White Stripes

I don’t need to tell most of you that a successful freelance writing career means you have to be part chameleon. Today you’re writing nothing but blogs. Tomorrow, you’re inundated with magazine work. A month from now, you might be writing website content and ad copy. We have to adapt to survive.

[bctt tweet=”Freelance writers who can master the art of flexibility — they thrive.” username=”LoriWidmer”]

So when I get frustrated because “all the work has dried up” (which is a falsehood anyway) it’s usually because my career is about to morph again. After doing this freelance stuff since 2003, I’ve learned to quell the frustration.

Well, that’s not exactly true — I’ve learned to channel it.

Where does it go? Come on. You know me, right? It goes into marketing.

Right now, I’m doing okay with the number of projects I have. Not great, but okay. I’m still in recovery mode after my dad’s illness and passing. But I think about how he handled adversity. Even when he was hauling around an oxygen tank and hobbling on severely turned ankles (thanks to crippling arthritis), he kept moving. He was a man who never quit, even when he came home from work. As my cousin pointed out, he was happiest when he was working on something.

Thankfully, his daughter inherited that restlessness.

Today’s task — to send out a proposal to a prospect whose business is related to what I do, but has another twist. And coincidentally, the twist relates to an industry I used to work for.

That, my friend, is something you can do right now to break out of that rut you’re in. You know the rut — it’s a familiar one to all of us. It’s where we’ve gotten so used to that same kind of work that we feel adrift when it disappears.

And it will disappear, for clients are like sand in the wind. The clients you worked for five years ago — how many are you still working for? Maybe a few, but not all of them, I’d bet. That’s just the nature of freelance writing. Nothing is permanent except for the impermanence of it all.

So when you find yourself in that rut, whether because a client disappeared or you simply aren’t getting anywhere, here are some ways to climb out:

Step outside your comfort zone

Let’s face it; you’re in this position because you liked being a little lazy. The work was easy, you didn’t have to search for it, and the pay was enough to keep you content. But contentment converts rather quickly to boredom. Now you’re looking at the projects and wondering how you can do one more of the same thing. Or you’re seeing that comfy situation dissolving. Time to act.

Time to start marketing actively, in fact. Actually, it was time a long time ago (every day should be some form of a marketing day). But today is your new start. Give yourself 30 minutes to decide which direction to head into next, then give yourself another 30 minutes to research one or two potential prospects.  Then write that letter of introduction or reach out on social media. Lift not every rock in the stream, but the ones that intrigue you most. Not sense in losing a client whose work puts you to sleep only to replace them with the same.

Become a social media darling

Okay, that’s a bit of an overstatement, but do take advantage of social media. The client in front of me now connected with me on LinkedIn. I’ve had clients find me via Twitter. Make that profile of yours speak really well to what you do. In every case (except one, and I’ll get to that) the clients saw my profile and reached out. It spoke to what they needed. Is it perfect? Not by a long shot. But it was on point with the clients I wanted to reach. Be on point.

Be somewhat promotional

You know what I hate? That Twitter poster who can’t shut up about themselves. There are at least two right now I’d love to kick in the pants. Every. Post. Is. About. Them. TMI — keep your “look at me” requests to a minimum. A good guideline is two self-promotional and 18 shares or conversations.

Those two promotions? Make them count. That one exception I mentioned earlier responded when I sent out one tweet that went something like: Fabulous #insurance writer ready to rock your communications. I’m available this week. Immediate response. That was six years ago. I still work for them on occasion.

Review what you’ve done

If you’re like me, you’ve done quite a few different types of projects for quite a few different people in different industries or situations. And like me, you may have forgotten some of the things you’ve done. I’ve forgotten entire clients sometimes, but there they are in my project folders.

Go back over what you’ve done in the last few years. Go back as far as you like, in fact. List those projects you’ve not done in a while, and revisit those clients you’ve not worked with in ages. Time to reconnect. And maybe it’s time you start promoting that work you’ve done and forgotten about. Maybe today someone on Twitter will be looking for a writer who writes business plans or brochures or….

Writers, how do you break out of your rut?
When do you most feel like you’re in one?