And then, one day, it happened.
It was a small thing, a tiny penny, a morsel to the hungry, ravaged person in me, but it was soul food, indeed. If you are wondering what this is all about, let me start from the beginning like all good stories.
If you have already read my bio in the Writers’ Page, you know that I have a post-graduate degree in Electronics for whatever it is worth. I also worked in the corporate world of sleek car electronics for six whole years; and like life and all other things, I had both, a love and a hate for the place, for the job and my time spent at work.
It was a livelihood, paid some bills and kept the bank balance healthy. With all the managing of the baby (I was a new mom back then), home, work and my own self, life still went on.
And, one day I quit.
To make a long story short, there was no primary care giver for my son, and I did not want to leave him at day care, and so, I quit. (See my post, “Mommy Guilt: Working Mommy”.)
I knew that my heart was in writing though my writing was, and still is, a bit rusty. But, I aspire to be a famous writer one day and plan to earn a decent income and livelihood being a writer. So, I dove in and am still at it! I rediscovered my passion for writing. I rediscovered the joy, contentment and benevolence I felt towards life by writing. I started my blog.
(My personal blog has been stagnant for a while because of a lack of time from domestic life and hectic summer holidays, but there have been some good pieces there.)
So, writing is for me. But, it does not pay immediately; and well, even if it does, it is not lucrative for an amateur like me with no contacts in the literary field.
But I still wrote. I wrote often on my blog. I posted some articles, and some I did not post because they were too personal. I was shy, I was scared, oh, and for numerous reasons. I wrote anyway. But, I did not know how to make it pay.
And then one day it happened.
My college friend, who is a regular follower of my blog, suggested that I link with his cousin and see if she can help me, as she is a free-lance content writer. And, I did. We were in touch for a couple of months and nothing happened for a while.
And then, one day, her friend (we’ll call him P), who is the proprietor of a culinary website, asked me if I can write cookery blogs for him.
What?! Cooking?
I am not an expert in the kitchen. Oh heck, I am not even a novice. I am just a blind lady meandering in the kitchen and pantry and keep praying that, Voila!, everyone has had enough to eat.
And so, I was requested to write about my joys in the kitchen. I took a deep breath and said “ok”. And, there I was, writing articles at Awesome Cuisine. After all, I love writing, so I knew I could make this work.
And well, it started happening. The money trickled in.
I get paid less than one tenth of my last drawn salary at work. But it is money, nevertheless. And, I somehow get the feeling that it is a great step forward. Yes, it is meager. (Hey, P, if you are reading this, I want to send you a huge Thank You! And, oh yes, you are welcome to pay me more, but then that is not the point. 😉 It was a great break, though small, and I’m glad I did it.
And, I also want to mention that it was my first post at World Moms Blog that helped convince P to give me the writing job at Awesome Cuisine!
And well, I hope to get more opportunities as a free-lancer to make additional money writing. I know it will grow.
Like they say, life goes on; but, I also think, life grows. It helps you grow stronger, more confident and makes you more mature as you grow.
I was the twentieth person to join World Moms Blog, and now there are at least thirty-nine writers, and World Moms Blog founder, Jen, says she has more requests in her Inbox. I mean, I just think back to the day and imagine when she registered at WordPress – the first lady, so to speak.
Though World Moms Blog is a volunteer effort, it has helped me take a huge step forward.
And, although Awesome Cuisine does not pay me lots, it still has upped my strength and confidence in no way I can explain. I am grateful for these opportunities, and I plan to keep writing!
Are there any “It Happened” moments in your life? Small, Big, Significant, Not-so-significant; but nevertheless, those “It Happened” moments shaping you as a stronger individual?
This is an original post to World Moms Blog by The Alchemist, our Indian mother writing from Chennai, India. She also rambles at The Alchemist’s Blog and dishes out Indian culinary expertise at AwesomeCuisine.
Photo credit to quisar. This photo has a creative commons attribution license.
Purnima Ramakrishnan
Purnima Ramakrishnan is an UNCA award winning journalist and the recipient of the fellowship in Journalism by International Reporting Project, John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. Her International reports from Brazil are found here . She is also the recipient of the BlogHer '13 International Activist Scholarship Award . She is a Senior Editor at World Moms Blog who writes passionately about social and other causes in India. Her parental journey is documented both here at World Moms Blog and also at her personal Blog, The Alchemist's Blog. She can be reached through this page . She also contributes to Huffington Post . Purnima was once a tech-savvy gal who lived in the corporate world of sleek vehicles and their electronics. She has a Master's degree in Electronics Engineering, but after working for 6 years as a Design Engineer, she decided to quit it all to become a Stay-At-Home-Mom to be with her son! This smart mom was born and raised in India, and she has moved to live in coastal India with her husband, who is a physician, and her son who is in primary grade school. She is a practitioner and trainer of Heartfulness Meditation.
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All the very best for your Dreams to come true!
hey P, thanks 🙂
Hey Congratulations on making it! I have fond hopes of quitting my job someday and trying my hand at writing too…but for the moment I think I am too scared to think of what might happen if I quit my job. Probably some day I will be reckless 🙂
FC,
Do it only when you really feel like. Your heart will signal. I wanted to do it since 2 years, but then I really did not do it until recently (~6 months ago). Ya, your reckless moment will arrive 😉
Good for you for doing what’s in your heart. Sometimes amazing opportunities come to us in the strangest ways and the smaller jobs are often what lead to the ‘biggies’ and are also what gives us the confidence and belief that we can do them.
Best of luck with your writing
Thanks Fiona. Yea, strangest ways, I agree. Thats why I like the book, “The Alchemist” and go by that pen name. Amazing things happen in the most natural and easy ways 🙂
Congratulations! I hope to one day have such a moment. 🙂
Thank you 🙂
Good luck to you too ..!!
Alchemist,
It makes me so happy to hear that your article on World Moms Blog aided in getting you a paid writing job! Keep up the good work. I hope for the same for all of our great writers, too!
I hope this snowballs into something big for you. Way to go!
As for an “It Happened” moment…I think back to being pregnant with my daughters. They didn’t come as quickly and as easily as we hoped, and when they did, the world changed for me. 🙂 Also, in starting World Moms Blog. I’m so proud of how far the blog has come, and hope to do so much more with it as it grows. I hope to have more “It Happened” moments! (Just maybe not in the form of pregnancy this time!)
Jen 🙂
Jen, I always wonder how you must have felt the first day when you opened a WP account. And how you feel now having almost 40 writers writing for WMB. Perhaps, some day you should writer about yopur experiences and feelings of this long journey.
Thanks for the opportunity. WMB indeed got me my first paid writing job 🙂
Congratulations, and all the best! I had a similar “It Happened” moment a couple of months back, when a DJ who had read my blog approached me to write a paid article for his website. I was so excited at the idea that my writing might actually be worth money! And like you, it is what I reallly want to do!
hey, good luck! I am sure it will pay great for you too, though the start could be small.
Isnt that initial feeling awesome?!!!
Congratulations! What an inspiration you are!!!
Thank you 🙂
I love that line: And, one day I quit. What a fabulous sense of leaping over the edge into the unknown. How fabulous that you felt you could make that change and how awesome that you are able to earn even a little money following your dream. Yay for you!!
I felt dread, fear and loathing for the whole world 🙁 on my last day at work…
Then one day WMB happened, and then Awesome Cuisine happened, all in its own time. But yes, fabulous… I think of WMB as my little secret sisterhood 😉 lol…
It’s a dream comes true! Congratulation!
Thanks Polish mama 🙂
Congratulations! To get paid to do what you love? Best thing ever. Well done!
My ‘It Happened’ moment? Having my son. It’s cliche but it’s true. Becoming a mother, a parent, it’s amazing.
Thanks Alison. Yes, definitely that cliched moment of having your baby is the most fantastic feeling in the world. I totally agree 🙂
So great that you have this opportunity! And I love the way you describe it.
I’ve had some similar “it happened” moments – walking away from jobs I needed to leave in order to get on the right path. Now working on a similar thing – making writing more a part of my life. Inspiring to see that you’ve done it 🙂
Fantastic! I am so happy for you!!!
Thanks Maggie 🙂
That is so wonderful for you! Congrats – and good luck with all of your writing!!!
As for my AHA moment, it was when i found out that I was pregnant with my first child. It was such an amazing morning for me, and certainly changed my life forever! 🙂
Thank you Isabellle.
I readily agree! Having a little one certainly changes life for the better 🙂
Hooray! I love that you are following your passions in life and raising a beautiful family to boot. Well done!
Thanks Tara 🙂
Following passions is quite tedious too; but atleast it’s not stressful…
It was Fantastic and i am very happy for you and also I love the way you write the above article.