What a crazy week! I am spinning from how much has happened.
This will be a short and sweet post because I am swamped with stuff I need to get done.
Freelancing on fiverr.com
Yesterday, I completed my first ever Fiverr gig. It was a fun experience, and the buyer that I worked with amazing. Check out my services on fiverr.com, I offer Beta Reading, Blog/Article Writing, and Critiquing Creative Writing.
Internship
After a week-long break, I am back to work for my internship. I am excited to read new submissions and gain more experience. This internship has been incredibly fun so far, and I think this is because it is a professional and well-organized internship. So much better than my last internship!
Freelancing for Friends
Yesterday, I was called by one of my close friends and asked to help them edit and format their short stories. I am excited to be doing this extra freelance work on the side. I never thought people I know would be reaching out to me for my help on things I love to do!
More Freelancing…
Currently, I am reaching out to numerous online magazines and journals, pitching them stories. Hopefully, I will catch a Freelance assignment soon and make some more extra cash.
Free Online Classes
Right now I am taking free online courses through edx.org
I am enrolled in the following courses
- Writing for Social Media
- Intro to Music Theory
- Ancient Masterpieces of World Literature
- The Icelandic Sagas
And I have already enrolled in English Grammar & Style that starts on July 26th. I think this course will help me hone my editing and writing skills.
Patreon
I am updating my Patreon page. I haven’t worked on it since last Spring, and it has been severely neglected. It’s been on my mind lately, and I’ve been thinking about how I could utilize my Patreon page and provide more of an intimate “behind-the-scenes” access to my personal writing life to my blog and social media followers. Here is what I am putting together:
For PATRON-ONLY Access (Monthly Subscribers)
- Scanned copies of my handwritten poems (not published anywhere else online)
- Scanned copies of my daily writing notes (not published anywhere else online)
- Exclusive videos available to PATRONS-ONLY featuring me reading some of my poetry and writing
- Podcast-like updates about what is going on in my life related explicitly to pursuing my writing career, working on my novel, submitting poems to literary journals, and what I am currently reading
Starting today, I will be offering “Handwritten Thank You Card + Poem” to all Patrons; this unique offer is scheduled to end on 06/30/2020 at 12:00 p.m.
These handwritten Thank You Cards with be accompanied by one of my handwritten poems, unique and never published. Thank you, cards, and poetry will be mailed to Patrons directly via snail mail.
I will be updating posts and content on my Patreon page for the next week, and I will be posting new PATRON-ONLY content starting Friday.
New Toys!
My bf got me a Rocketbook for my birthday and decided to give it to me early. It is so cool. What it is is a reusable notebook that you use to write and scan pages directly to your email and/or Google Drive cloud. This is a fantastic tool, and I will be using it all the time. It will be my tool of choice for posting PATRON-ONLY handwritten poems, notes, and writing to my Patreon page.
New Kindle! For the first time since I was laid off back in March because of COVID-19, I have bought something I don’t need a new kindle! It is beautiful, waterproof, and I love it.
Job Search & Interviews
Lately, I have been burning out. In the last three days, I have applied to an average of eight jobs every day. It has been exhausting, and I feel like my brain is fried. I am trying to not stress out, but with June fast approaching, I am worried I won’t be able to find full-time work before the CARES ACT unemployment runs out (end of July). But I am staying positive, I have been able to save money, pay off debt, and pay my rent and bills.
This week I had an excellent interview for an Editor Position at a local business. Fingers crossed I make it to the next round of interviews. This position is part-time and would be perfect for my schedule. I also have a video interview through HireVue that I have to complete, it is for a Copywriter position, so I hope that that one goes well.
Overall
It has been a great week, and my days are packed. From 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. I am working in my office at home getting as much done as I can until dinner time.
Thank you for reading about my personal life during these strange days. What I think is bizarre right now is how it is beginning to feel normal staying home all of the time because of COVID-19. This new normal is unsettling to me and my bf, but I can’t help feeling that this will be the new normal for the rest of the year. Staying home, working from home, being…home.
Stay safe and stay healthy!
-Alina
Want to become one of my Patrons? Go to my page here and join a tier. All patrons regardless of Tier have access to all of my patron-only content right now! Tiers start at $3/month!
Subscribe! Get notified when new posts are published plus once a week I will send content just for you: poem, personal update, reading list, writing tips and more!
Why I’m Not Celebrating Independence Day This Year(Opens in a new browser tab)
My Stories on Medium: Poetry, Writing and Freelancing(Opens in a new browser tab)
Life During COVID-19 (6/6/2020): George Floyd Protests and My White Woman Privilege(Opens in a new browser tab)