Back to the salt mines…sorta.

Most of you who read this blog with any regularity know that I’ve been working as a full-time freelance writer since leaving my corporate job in September 2014. Prior to that, any writing I did for novels, short stories, magazine articles or the web was done outside of that job, usually in the evenings or on weekends/holidays.

Though I’ve enjoyed the freedom afforded by the “freelancer lifestyle,” I’ve also come to realize that I do miss the structure of a “regular job” in an office, interacting and collaborating with other humans. For a while, now, I’ve been conducting quiet job searches, looking for something interesting enough that it could entice me to shave and wear pants on a daily basis.

Well, I found it. Beginning Monday, November 27th, I’m returning to an office environment, but not the realm of information technology/software development. Instead, I’ll be working as ………. wait for it ………. a writer!

This came about due to an opportunity crossing my path, which I found to be unlike pretty much everything else I’d seen on places like LinkedIn, Indeed, and other job sites. Instead, this one was quite simply too interesting to ignore. After applying and interviewing for the position, I knew that my initial gut reaction was right, and this presented a challenge I couldn’t pass up. Apparently, the folks on the other side of the table viewed things in similar fashion, as they offered me the job. 🙂

I’m genuinely excited by this (slight) change in direction, which will allow me to bring to bear what I consider to be a rather diverse set of skills and experience. In addition to the obvious one (um, writing?), editing, a bit of tech, and my military background will all be utilized, and my interests in military history and current affairs and even veterans issues may well come into play. I’ll also be getting some hands-on experience with graphic design and layout using products like Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, which I confess are skills I’ve wanted to learn for a while, now.

In keeping with the self-imposed rule I had in place during my previous stint at a “regular job,” you’re not likely to see me posting or commenting about it or any related matters in this space or the other areas of my social media platform. Indeed, I’ve always refrained from even listing my current employer as part of my profiles, because I prefer to keep that part of my “world” separate from this.

You know……whatever the hell “this” is.

Here’s the rub: Because what I’ll be writing will be for publication, it’s possible – even likely – that a segment of my current readership will see my byline at some point. So, it’s not as though I’m looking to keep things “secret” or anything. Just know that if and when the subject comes up, any inquiries or comments about that work likely will be directed to the proper channels. For example, the people for whom I’m writing have their own social media presence. It remains to be seen if I’ll be contributing in any way to that, but for the moment I’m going with “No.” We shall see.

The main impact here will be that I likely won’t be posting as much during the weekdays. My new employers are aware of my fiction/genre writing and my social media activities, but that won’t give me license to frequent this space during the workday. Based on what I’ve been told to expect so far as my regular duties, my days will be more “sane” than what I used to deal with a few years ago. Though I expect the occasional bout of overtime as needed to keep schedules on track, I should still be left with plenty of brain cells, energy, and desire to continue slinging words in a fiction-like fashion.

And speaking of that? Worry not, as I’m definitely not giving that up. In addition to three projects for which I’ve delivered my manuscripts and I’m currently awaiting next steps, I’m under contract to write a novel for which my outline’s not yet been given the green light, and there are two other projects for which I’m currently awaiting contracts before I start digging in on them.

Now, if you’ll excuse me…..I need to go make sure I have pants to wear for Monday.