Why I Can Write About Anything

Some people say write what you know. I think a good writer can write about anything. One of the primary skills a writer needs to have in order to differentiate themselves from the average typing person is the ability to do research; dig into a topic, learn a ton about it, and then simplify and explain the topic so that other people can learn about without doing everything you just did. Good writing explains a topic by breaking complex ideas down into simple ones without taking up additional space.

This isn’t easy. One of my recent assignments involved writing two articles on holistic health. Now, I know something about this topic – strange as it may seem, it’s a huge trend in the pet product market right now and I’ve done a bit of research on it from the point of view.

It’s a topic that interests me mildly, but it’s definitely not a topic that I am passionate about. I do not practice the lifestyle, although I do try to apply some of the concepts and believe that most of the ideas involved (such as the idea that what you put into your body and the quality of the foods you eat are major factors in how well it functions).

When it comes right down to it, I am not scientifically inclined and do not enjoy reading research studies and the like. However, the truth of the matter is writers have bills to pay. I have bills to pay (though at the moment my full-time job covers pretty much all of those). So we do research and write about topics we aren’t necessarily passionate about. Instead, we take pride in the careful crafting of our words and the skill we employ in teaching our readers something new.

For me, the primary motivation in taking the assignment is that if they are pleased with my work it will be a regular gig – they are looking for 3 articles a week. At the rate they are paying for those articles, this assignment would allow me to make almost half of my targeted financial goals a month. And, unfortunately, I think this is one of the less pleasant truths about freelancing, especially at the early stage.

Perhaps someday I’ll be so successful that I can pick and choose which assignments to accept. But for the time being, I’ll do the bread and butter jobs, build my samples and continue working toward that goal.