The Montreal Copywriter, age 3.

When I say I’m not that sort of writer, they ask which publication I write for. And while I’ve worked as a journalist in the past, I’m not that sort of writer either.

So then I tell them I’m in the copywriting business. “Oh”, they say, “so you do legal work?” Nope, not that either. But they’re not that far off. They’re thinking of Copyright, a term used in the legal world for the rights granted to the author or creator of an original work. As a copywriter, I do write original work. So while I’m not in the legal profession, that terminology is related to what I do.

But I’m not in the copyright business. I’m in the copywrite business.

I am, quite simply, a writer of copy. A wordsmith. A language wrangler. A copywriter.

Who do I write copy for? Businesses, mostly. This surprises a lot of people, but it’s true. If you read text on a website, or get a newsletter, chances are it was written by a copywriter. Press kits, letters and emails. Blogs. Storefronts. Branding. Catchy advertising slogans. And that person of interest you heard speak last month? Someone may have helped polish his language.

So, next time you see a line in an ad, or on a sign, that you find fun, take a moment and think about the person hiding behind a keyboard who came up with it. Those little wordsmiths who are seldom seen, but whose voices are more frequently heard than you can imagine:  The copywriters.

I’ve been writing a large website from scratch in two weeks. Since I write for a living, sometimes I just don’t have the energy to blog when I get home.

I guess this is the time in my life I should be totally dedicated to my career anyway, pouring all my energy into it. I’m in my twenties, I don’t have any kids yet, and I’ve still got the energy to throw myself into anything heart and soul. I really do love my work, but more than that, I get emotionally attached to anything I’m doing. As a result, when I’m working on something at work I don’t really leave it at work.

On that note, today the labour ended and I gave birth to a beautiful baby website. Did I just say that? I can’t help it, it’s true. Clearly I need to go out and socialize with humans this weekend.

I just got home and I haven’t seen any life forms yet except the dogs – not that they’re not absurdly cute. The boy’s not home yet – girly music time!

I started listening to Ani Difranco for the first time in 10 years. Not sure what made me pick that old CD, but I can’t get enough of her tonight. I remember why I loved her music so much as a teenager, though I now get it on a whole different level.

It reminds me of my camp girlfriends. I can’t wait to plan our next rendez-vous, most likely this summer in Vermont. Time to stop blogging and make some calls to old friends. Maybe I’m still human after all… Thanks Ani.

Sometimes, it seems like you’ll never work again.

So, what do you do?

First off, it’s okay to come out and say:
“This completely and totally sucks.”
“How annoying.”
“How arbitrary. “

We can all relate to that very kind of frustration, and I certainly can as a freelancer, having been there MANY times over the years.

No matter how down you get, the key is keeping your attitude on track. If you loose that spark, you’ll never find a job. So, take a moment to be pissed off. But remember this:

While you may not be suited to a particular position, your worth and value is not up for question.

Sometimes it’s not about being the smartest or most qualified.

This is clearly one of those
“hard-to-tell-what-the-lesson-is-
that-I-am-being-forced-to-learn-right-now-
I-thought-I-had done-my-homework-in-this-spot-
but-ok-here-we-go-again-
I-guess-I’ll-look-back-one-day-and-be-happy”
moments.

Things will present themselves to you in their time. Just keep moving forward.