Working from Home for Authors--Successfully and Legitimately

Legitimate Ways to Make Money as a Stay-at-Home Parent

By Gwen Payne 

 

We writers are lucky. The ability to stay home and care for your kids is an invaluable gift. Beyond the savings involved in skipping years of outsourced childcare, you get to be around for all of those important early childhood moments. Of course, becoming a stay-at-home parent also means losing work income. If you’re worried about making ends meet, or you’d just like to put some extra money away for the future, a work-from-home job will give you the best of both worlds. 

 

Making money from home is easier than you may think! Are you wondering where to start? Tales2Inspire presents these tips to help you begin.

 

Start a Home-Based Business

 

Have you always dreamed of running your own business from home? Don’t let anything stop you! Countless people have launched successful home-based businesses while juggling the demands of parenting — and you can, too. All it takes is a little self-discipline and your ever-present writing skills.

 

Before you start,  make sure your idea--what your writing will do--solves a real problem or entertains in way that will encourage people to want more of what you do. A great way to generate business ideas is to think about the problems you encounter in your everyday life and come up with effective solutions for them. For example, if you’re a writer and you know business owners who would love to start a blog, offer to write some articles for them. Before you know it, you could start a business as a professional content writer.

 

Once you have a business idea, you will have to pick a business structure and register with your state. Forming an LLC could be a great idea if you’re looking to minimize your taxes and protect yourself from potential lawsuits should things go awry. Research how to start an LLC so you can get your business up and running as soon as possible.

 

Become a Freelancer

 

If you’re looking for a way to make some money on the side while building your business, freelancing is an excellent idea. You can freelance in a wide variety of industries. Some great freelance jobs to consider include writing, transcribing, online tutoring, marketing, and social media management. 

 

The best part? You don’t need any training or qualifications to get started. Create a few portfolio pieces to share with potential clients and learn how to write amazing proposals. Freelancing platforms are a good place to find your first clients, but you may also want to set up a basic website where you can showcase your professional portfolio.

 

Work as a Virtual Assistant

 

Do you need something a little more stable than a freelance job? While many freelance contracts involve one-off projects, virtual assistants often work for the same clients on a long-term basis. Some even work as remote employees. If you’re looking for employee benefits, virtual assisting may be perfect for you.

 

Virtual assistants perform a variety of tasks on the job. As Desire to Done explains, virtual assistants offer all kinds of services, ranging from blog maintenance and social media content creation to bookkeeping and email management. Try to find a virtual assistant job in an industry that interests you, whether it’s fitness, real estate, photography, web design, or business.  

 

Start a Home Daycare

 

Not so tech-savvy? There are plenty of money-making opportunities for parents who prefer to work offline, as well. Running a home daycare is one of them. You’re already home with your own kids all day, so why not add a few more? 

 

Operating out of your own home means very low startup costs, but you might have to invest in toys, cleaning products, mats, food, insurance, and first aid supplies before launching. Hunting down funding to cover these minor costs shouldn’t be too difficult. Consider asking your friends and family to invest in your business or checking with your bank about a small business loan.

 

Be sure to consider your legal obligations, as well. For example, most states require that daycare staff have CPA certification. You’ll also have to check your state regulations regarding health and safety inspections, facility requirements, child-staff ratios, and zoning regulations.

 

How to Find Work-Life Balance

 

When you’re juggling remote work and childcare responsibilities, life can get out of control very quickly. Make sure you’re prepared to find a work-life balance before you start working from home. First, manage your expectations. You might not be able to get as much done in a day as you expect — and that’s okay! Count on everything taking longer than planned so you can avoid overbooking yourself and causing burnout. 

 

Try to maintain a routine, but be okay with some uncertainty. A few hours of focused, kid-free work every day can be invaluable to busy parents. Consider getting up before your kids and plugging away at your most important projects during this sacred time. Save the more mundane tasks — answering emails or creating invoices — for those hours when you have to keep an eye on the kids. 

 

Practical By Default also recommends setting a timer to block off work periods during which your kids know not to interrupt you. Once your kids learn what the timer means, you should be able to focus for 15 to 30 minutes at a time without distractions. Most importantly, remember to give your kids plenty of attention when your work block is up.

Thanks to the internet, there are countless ways for stay-at-home parents to make money. And you don’t have to stick with just one method. Consider juggling a few different gigs to maximize your money-making potential. For example, you could run a home daycare business and work as a freelance writer on the side — whatever sounds good to you!

More on Today's Guest Blogger

Gwen Payne runs InvisibleMoms.com.

MORE ABOUT THE SHARING WITH WRITERS BLOGGER 

 Carolyn Howard-Johnson is the multi award-wining author of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. She is also a marketing consultant, editor, and author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series
of books for writers including the multi award-winning The Frugal Book Promoter (http://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromoIII), now offered by Modern History Press in its third edition. Carolyn's latest is in the #HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers is How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically. She has two booklets in the #HowToDoItFrugally Series, both in their second editions from Modern History Press. Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers (http://bit.ly/LastMinuteEditsII) and The Great First Impression Book Proposal (http://bit.ly/BookProposalsII) are career boosters in mini doses and both make ideal thank you gifts for authors. The Frugal Editor (http://bit.ly/FrugalEditor), now in its second edition, is the winningest book in the series. Carolyn also has three frugal books for retailers including one she encourages authors to read because it helps them convince retailers to host their workshops, presentations, and signings. It is A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques (http://bit.ly/RetailersGuide). 

 In addition to this blog, Carolyn helps writers extend the exposure of their favorite reviews at TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com. She also blogs at all things editing--grammar, formatting and more--at The Frugal, Smart, and Tuned-In Editor (http://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com). Learn more and follow for news on her new releases direct from Amazon: http://bit.ly/CarolynsAmznProfile.