Why I'm Leaving The Freelance Life

Something new officially starts for me today.

That new thing is a new job, and that job is with someone else’s company. I accepted an offer from this fantastic group two weeks ago to become their Senior Copywriter, and I couldn’t be happier.

Whoa, I know. Let me explain.

Ever since we became permanent on the West Coast, the tug to join a collaborative team has grown stronger. Now, for the first time in three years, our decision to remain in California meant I’d once again have a choice between full-time work with a creative company or continuing to pursue the freelance course I’d charted out for myself several years ago. The occupational pendulum has swung in the company direction, so here I am, up again at 5:45, writing in the dark before I take on the commute, just like the old days.

In the past couple of weeks, I’ve been busy getting my occupational and personal house in order:

Wrapping up freelance assignments, sharing the news with supportive colleagues and clients, scrubbing my house down, arranging care for our pups who are still too big, young and feisty to stay home alone, figuring out what a gal on the upside of 30 wears to work these days (my last ‘first official day’ doing company work was in my mid-20s) and generally preparing my mind and body for the new routine.

Oh, and we bought a home, so there’s the escrow process. We close this week. After ten years of writing about and coordinating the photography of other people’s houses, I finally get to devote attention to mine. Dream, fulfilled.

I can’t express to you how excited I am about all of these new changes.

But one thing won’t change: Though I’m taking down my shingle, I’m continuing this blog. As of January, its title will become “A Writer’s Life.” I’m still a full-time writer, just a different kind. And I expect to be busier than ever. So, I still want to talk with you every week about stuff writers talk about. Now more than ever, as my daily pace ramps up, I’m that much more committed to staying healthy while working well. So I’ll keep reporting on the things, people and processes that help me do that. And there will be something new, too: A section devoted to thinking and talking about the current media climate, issues that face media quality and survival and the — dare I say — disruptive forces that are changing the way we communicate.

I hope you’ll continue to read, write and chat with me on this blog. Thanks for your support over the last three years. See you next week!

K, I just got choked up. I think I’ve been watching way too much Newsroom.