focusing and being reborn.

i have no idea how many times i've unsuccessfully tried to be faithful to a blog. i'm hoping that this time, i'll get the focus i need from the daily pack of marlboros i've fallen back in with. stream-of-consciousness doesn't seem to work well, especially if you don't have DSL... tsk. ah, to be writing again! it's like being reborn, but without the hand-raising and the sporadic "amens."

is there a study out there that suggests that your focus (in writing, mainly) is directly proportional to the nicotine (and caffeine --- i've taken it in more ample amounts, these days) levels in your body? that the more you take, the more focused you become? i gotta have me a copy of that... two, or three maybe, and give the other copies to couple of friends i know having trouble focusing their attention on their relationships. man, the things people share when having coffee....

it's interesting how a lot of things can be tied in with the kind of work i do as a copywriter for an outsourcing company. you'll never know what kind of information you pick up just being in the office for eight hours of the day. just yesterday, i learned about viral marketing. curious.... i looked it up in Wikipedia and realized "word-of-mouth" IS viral marketing. makes you think about foot-and-mouth disease... about mad cow, avian flu and red tide. let's hope nothing happens to soy, or we're out of protein alternatives to sink our teeth in. or, we may have to outsource,

you see, i work in a web design outsourcing company. i don't know anything about web design, but i can write. or, at least i try to. outsourcing is big business here in cebu. what was once thought of as "subcontracting" is now reinvented as "outsourcing." i remember doing several articles where "subcontracting" was turn of phrase. later on, when i did try out a deskjob and still maintained a few moonlit writing on the side, everything i did was called outsourced content. funny... how is a freelance writer who contributes to magazines called then, i wonder.

i first got acquainted with outsourcing when i worked as a junior copyeditor (my third deskjob as a copywriter) at CannonCreek Asia, which maintained an online business newsletter ("... with corporate subscribers from Europe, Asia and the United States!" or something like that, i dunno now). i had also worked as a correspondent for the lifestyle section of a local newspaper, half to support my college tuition and keep me in ciggies and caffeine. occasionally, i did the odd thesis paper or two, just to keep in practice, and more often, because i collect trivia, odd facts and other sorts of useless info, which, you'll never know, may come in handy in the offing --- did you know that "offing" is synonymous to suicide? urbandictionary, you are my online drug. well, one of them. my thanks.

as always is the case, you'll never get rich writing in this country. not unless you write books on law, taxation, advanced grammar, and values education, and then require it at school ---- maybe some teachers were on to something about making their own syllabus-dictated-must-have textbooks...... try multiplying 150/book with 500 students and then multiply that by two semesters. wow.

writing or proofreading college thesis papers was one, albeit narrow, way of trading in information and currency. i remember editing this engineering paper where i charged a paltry 5-pesos per page (at 207 pages, i was content). or of another one that i did for a pack of cigarettes and two cups of coffee. i always knew that there was money in the education sector, but i didn't want to grow old writing thesis papers for students too lazy to do their own material. so, i tried the school paper and found my hook, line and synch-er.

in this line of business, it's always good to be a, er, man of your word. writing copy for private individuals and groups relies much on word of mouth. i've had my fair share of bad reviews and insults thrown my way, as well as tips in token of my great copy. but always, a hack writer always looks for the good word his clients may put in to his future clients. as is the case in relatively small island cities, everyone knows everyone. half the people didn't like doing business with me, while the other half kept my hope up by saying they'll pass the word on. because you need to keep in shape, you write. because you need to eat, you write. man, there were times when i'd go hungry....

and maybe this is my ticket to consistency --- sure, i've been inconsistent, especially with deadlines. just ask my old editors and clients. i never squealed on quality, but was a total nutcase when it came to beating deadlines (i never was a violent person). i've had to learn discipline and focus the hard way: by threats of a failing grade, expulsion, bad business rep, lethargy, and loss of income. but, perhaps, i will be reborn, my focus renewed, my drive restored, my writing consistent and regular, and my lungs belabored... *sigh* the price we pay for our craft.

took this off a desk bauble:
"I love to write."
"I love to write.."
"I love to write..."
"I love to write...."
"I love to write....."
"I need the money."
(ms. mimi lijauco, you're an inspiration and one of my greatest teachers in professional writing. i think this was printed on your mug, or stapler, or something...)