Monday 5 November 2007

Pipe Dream or Reality?


Nearly four years ago I returned from a year of living and working in South East Asia. Like many people who travel, I returned for what I thought was a "temporary" period.

Whilst I was really happy to be reunited with friends and family, within hours of being back in the UK I was brought down by depressing media news. Before long I sorely missed the lifestyle, nature, sense of community, and cultural diversity I'd grown accustomed to during the year before - not to mention my daily plunge into the ocean donned with scuba gear.

Whilst my impulses were trying to convince me to simply jump on a plane and get back to it all, my senses knew that really that wasn't practical. What I needed was a plan. I had no idea where in the World I wanted to "settle". All I knew was that it wasn't England! Yet, here I was, with no money, and no other option really, than to stay put while I forged a plan.

As I wanted to explore what the rest of the World had to offer I soon figured that I needed to earn a living through work that I could carry out wherever I was. My location wouldn't matter. My work would come with me. For a variety of reasons, which I won't bore you with here - writing became my chosen career path.

Now four years on, a lot has happened and a lot has changed. As with many people who return from traveling with a view to gathering money then leaving again - I got distracted.

After my initial success (beginners luck) of getting two articles published with national magazines, I got completely grabbed by an opportunity to create and publish my own community magazine. The community needed a magazine, and I needed a project that tied in with my writing aspirations - perfect. It was a win, win situation. The magazine became my "baby", and its growth and success, became my reason for getting out of bed in the morning.

Now, 3 years on, the magazine is ready to fly the nest, and I am ready to return to my mobile professional aspirations. The community has an established and reliable magazine. The magazine has a new nurturer with fresh ideas. I have a portfolio of writing and publishing experience to hopefully fuel me towards my mobile profession.

Numerous opportunities are opening to me in copywriting, proof reading, editing and magazine consultancy... and I have a couple of web based writing projects I can't wait to get stuck into...

So - my mobile profession. Is it a pipe dream or reality? Well at the moment it feels somewhere between the two. None of the opportunities are cast iron contracts as yet - so I feel as though I'm taking a leap of faith!

Stayed tuned, and find the answer with me...

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Wonderful and very thought provoking article. Thank you for letting is in on some of the personal experiences from your past.

It is exciting to imagine what the future may hold for you. Keep shooting for the stars and do not let life dampen your aspirations.