Grab Bag Update

here's the short update on all the recent goings on:

1. The worms are doing pretty well. We still don't have very many of them yet, since they take while to multiply, but they are eating (slowly) what we put in the container. We just bought 2 more bins and plan to buy a lot more worms to start them off this time, 500-1,000 worms per bin. We figured out that we generate as much as 12 pounds of plant waste a week. Plus we were looking at seed catalogs for our 12'x27' garden today--we're going to need lots of compost.
2. Plays on Tap went very well. The show on opening night was sold out, and the actors did a great job. My pieces, Lies, Lies, Lies, is really a good one to start the evening--we got a ton of laughs, which surprised the actors a little. (Michael Pfaff and Becca A. Lewis have great chemistry.) I heard Saturday was sold out, too. (So if you go, make sure you buy your tickets ahead of time.) (Seriously.)
3. I've finished (for now) two of my four freelance gigs, which feels pretty good. One of them required a fair bit of work these past two weekends, so I'm looking forward to hanging out and relaxing with the kids this week during their winter break. One of the jobs was on two different photography web sites--check 'em out: www.michaelgphotography.com and www.awesomeaspens.com. (I'm still tweaking them, but the images are great (and you can order them)).
4. I get the pin out of my finger in just over two weeks. I think I've adapted pretty well to typing without a pinkie on that hand so far.
5. I am still making some writing progress on the new novel, but I've fallen off the Writing Purge challenge these past few days. I've just been spending my writing time/energy on paid work. But I see a good opening coming up in my schedule in a few weeks, with only 1 or 2 freelance gigs at a time, and not ones that require every minute.

That's all the news fit to blog. (More on the books I've been reading soon.)

The Handyman Can

Today I spent all day on home repair/maintenance projects. Most of the time, I was assembling PVC pipes to reroute water from our downspouts into a newly cleared drain (I also put sealant on a brick wall). It was beautiful fall day, a perfect day to be outside working with my hands. As projects go, it was ideal--I had to do some mental puzzle solving, but I arrived at the right answer; I got to use my cool Ryobi 18v cordless reciprocating saw; putting together the pipes feels a little bit like playing with legos; if I messed up, I probably wouldn't get hurt or cost us or the condo association much money; it was a task that was new for me, and I like trying new things.

It was one of those days when I think to myself, maybe I should forget the whole freelance editing/article work and hire myself out as a handyman to make the money I need. I have decent skills for a variety of small home repair and maintenance projects. I like working with my hands. The pay probably isn't too bad. I wouldn't use up my writing energy on writing projects for other people. I might meet some interesting people to write about.

Of course the reality is that it's not quite the same as working on your own house, and just like writing, it requires time to build up a clientèle. It's physically taxing-- I'm totally beat, trying to keep my eyes opens as I write this. My experience is mostly at an amateur level. The list can go on, I'm sure.

Still, on a day like today, it seems very appealing.

I am my own (house) wife

As I attempt to transition from writing novels and scripts to also trying to make a little money, I feel very much like a typical housewife trying to enter the workforce. In some ways, of course, this is exactly the case, because I've been a stay-at-home dad for the past 13 years (while also doing a few other things). Now I'm trying to find a way to earn cash, though I still need to be available for my kids and to handle basic household duties.

In theory, of course, my wife and I could hire people to handle these chores and childcare, but there's a inherent circular conundrum to working a job in order to earn enough money to pay someone to watch your kids and cook your dinner and clean your house in order for you to work your job. And I face the classic housewife's problem that the tasks that I've been performing for the past 13 years, which involve a great deal of carting around children, multi-tasking doctor's appointments, play dates, grocery shopping, laundry, reading stories, bandaging skinned knees. Though I understand how the ability to do all these things would be useful to an employer, it's not clear the rest of the world sees it that way. They prefer employees with skills that are bit easier to document and who come with references written by people who have finished elementary school or are not married to me. Plus most of them don't want to hire someone only for a few hours a day.

What's interesting is that I've doubled-up the housewife syndrome, by having spent my previous years primarily writing plays and novels (and making theatre). In many ways, I've nurtured and sustained these works not entirely unlike I've done for my children. I've done my best to develop them into fully-formed works of art that are now somewhat on their own in the world, interacting with readers, audiences, actors and directors. They don't need me so much anymore. And much like raising my children, experience writing for theatre (and writing novels) is not inherently commercial. Folks who are looking to hire freelance writers for actual paying gigs look at my years spent writing fiction and drama with some puzzlement. "Yes, we suppose he can write, but he doesn't have relevant clips, or references from actual employers." (And I look back at them, suddenly worried that maybe they're right and I won't know how to handle whatever they throw at me.)

I'll find a way to squeeze my way into some sort of freelance work, or some sort of paying gig doing something. Somehow. But like the other former stay-at-home moms and dads, it's going to be a slippery, half-lit path, with lots of stumbles, stubbed toes, and more than a few lost trails. And it's going to take longer than I hoped or expected. (I have a feeling there are more than a few other writers in the blogosphere who can vouch for the same challenges of moving from writing fiction to writing to try to help support the family.)

( So far, I've been very fortunate to get lots of input and support from my friends. I've gotten some very useful tips, advice, and more.)


P.S. I have been putting a little time into guru.com, but no luck yet. I've made ten bids so far. It seems a system that inherently favors the employers. The secret bidding on the part of freelancers, seems like it will deeply suppress wages (we don't know where the basement is for work rates). Most of the projects described by employers looking for writers or editors are too sketchily described for me to put together an intelligent cost estimate. I'm guessing that most of the employers are looking for a deep bargain, or are barely qualified to hire anyone to do anything. We'll see.