Hey, free work!

Just sitting here and the phone rings, I get offered a freelance writing gig that'll pay well, and be a piece of cake to take care of.

What the hey? I'm not even looking for it, and work shows up.

Hmm. This would seem to imply I should never look for work. Must ponder this.

J/K.

I think the economy IS turning though...

...the other guy in town who can spell was hit by a truck, or something. ;)

just curious.

Start memorizing the words to "Pennies from Heaven".

My sister used to work for this education technology company in Broomfield, and they thought a great way to make money in a tanking economy would be to launch a print magazine.

Well, I'm a former teacher and current writer, so my sister told the (clueless) woman they named editor that I'd be willing to freelance.

I used vacation days from my real job to complete my side job (I did run the freelance gig by my boss -- she was cool with it). It was December and I had to use them or lose them anyway. I probably spent 15 hours total on these two articles. Got paid almost twice as much for the freelance work than I did to perform my actual job during the entire month of December.

That company is, alas, and of course, out of business.

I got a call from an editor last Friday. "Read your piece on (identifying detail omitted) in the such-and-such magazine. Would you write a piece on (the same thing) from the angle of (a slightly different take on it) for us?"

That's the lovely thing about being a writer.

The un-lovely thing is that most magazines pay on publication or 30 days after acceptance, at best, and they do everything months in advance, so my unemployed self will get this check sometime the first week in April.

Now you have Bongo *and* Woodstock in your posts... I'm smitten.