I’m suddenly finding myself in the same place that many have during this pandemic: with a rapidly changing job situation. Shipment and order slow-downs have led management to do something they hadn’t in the entire nearly eight years I’ve been there, downshift most departments to four days a week until further notice. Only one area is still working at 5 days, because they tend to have a lot of demand.

So as this new landscape unfurls, I am more than ever considering what other kinds of things I can do. The most likely answer, of course, is some kind of freelance writing But how to get paid for it?

I have been reviewing books for Reedsy Discovery for almost a year now, though admittedly my new selections from their catalog have dropped off of late. This is because I am putting more time into my GoodReads profile, in the hopes that I can get a site like NetGalley to allow me to review titles before they are published, the way a burgeoning reviewer really makes his mark. To that end, I have and will continue to review every book I read for the rest of 2021.

While I enjoy reviews, I know they’re not likely to be the true moneymaker I’ll need to generate enough income to at least supplement that which I get from the job. So I’ve tried to sign up for a big freelance site and app called Fiverr. I find it somewhat difficult to navigate though, and wonder if they just have layered-on accessibility without making sure that the underlying structure really works for blind folks. So I’m about to start googling around to see what if any other ideas might exist. Too bad my music site gig from a couple years ago no longer works, as that was as easy as pumping out 1000-word narratives and getting the 50 bucks on the other end.

I guess not all has been iffy on the job front though, as I am participating in what we call Employee Resource Groups (ERG’s). My group is LC (I)mpact (cute name, right?) Anyway, our job is to help LCI connect with its internal and external communities more effectively. For me, this means I’m getting to flex my writing muscle a bit as I generated the campaign that I presented throughout the plant to drum up interest and try to get people to tell their stories of volunteerism through written and audio interviews. I would like this aspect to continue, as I need the experience in both of those areas.

Have you made any significant job changes during this pandemic? What kind of side hustle do you have going, and is it proving to be lucrative. I saw somewhere that a record of new startups were created last year, as people are moving into other areas either because they are forced to or just having been locked in made them see things in a different light.