Writers: What do you say?

Hi all, glad to have found this forum.
I've been a pro writer for one of the major term paper conglomerates (I guess that is what you can call them) for over 10 years.

At the beginning of my "career" I was very proud to tell people what I did for a living. It was by far the best conversation starter at parties!

I love the job and have no interest in doing anything else for a living, but it is becoming harder and harder to admit the truth now that I'm nearing 40 years old. Frankly I feel a little embarrassed for myself!

When people ask me what I do, I want to crawl into a hole.

The conversation usually goes, "What do you do for a living?"
My automatic response: "I'm a writer."
Them: "Oh, what kind of writer?"
Me: (Oh **** why did they have to ask) Uh, I'm a freelancer.
Them: Oh like what kind of stuff do you write?
Me: Oh you know...whatever the client needs.
(yawn)

I've used the ghostwriter tag. That usually works well but they always ask follow-up questions. "Oh like what kind of stuff?"
Alternatively I tell them I write "custom content for websites" or "technical writing" or something else really boring.
I dislike the designation "writing tutor." However, sometimes I say "I write academic papers" which always begs the question "for who?" (they never say for whom) and then I tell them I help students or anyone who cannot write well to improve their writing.

Sometimes I get cranky and say, "I write for whoever wants to pay me" and then they shut up.

Surely there are other veterans out there on this forum? I'm very curious what you tell people what you do for a living. Are you proud? Do you say, "I write essays and term papers! I'm like a permanent student. Yes! Yes, I do!"

for over 10 years!! Have you never got tired of writing essays and getting people into careers they are clearly not suitable for :)

No, and yes.

I do not get tired in general, but as with all work it has its ups and downs.

As for helping people get into careers they are clearly not suitable for, well there will always be people unsuited for their careers--with or without our business. A lot of my customers are good ppl whose careers have nothing to do with writing essays, so I don't lose a lot of sleep over it. Although I will admit some customers make me feel dirty inside. But that's not why I started this thread...

Have no remorse, silly writer. Your presidents hire freelancers to do homework for them writing their speech and they pay $100,000 each. Then cheat from telepromts. You are still in very good profession.

washingtontimes.com/news/2011/may/3/outsider-hired-for-obama-speeches/

Hahaha! Pheelyks, Where are you my boy?

MeoKunt:
1) I'm not your boy
2) Your comment adds nothing to this thread whatsoever
3) You do the same work I do. You do it more poorly and get paid less for it, but it's the same.
4) I tell people exactly what I do--academic and some business research and writing, creating custom made materials to be used as templates and research materials for pretty much any purpose on pretty much any topic

Bitumen:
If you are so tired of this job, why haven't you found something else to do in ten years? You certainly should have made enough to start your own small business, go back to school yourself and get a different job, etc. If you're that ashamed of what you do, move on. You're 40 years old and need someone else to tell you this?

Pheelyks
um...seems like you didn't really read what I wrote
ppl usually appreciate it if you actually listen to what they have to say ;)

Um...yeah, I did. Despite not having any interest in doing anything else, you seem to be tired of this employment because of the horrific stress of explaining what you do. Get over it, or get a new job. It seems pretty simple to me.

Pheelyks, are you ok? You seem a bit antagonistic.

Anyway, given that you were too short of time to actually read the o.p., Pheelyks, I'll quote for you:

"I love the job and have no interest in doing anything else for a living"

What about "I love the job and have no interest in doing anything else for a living" didn't you understand?

I appreciate your "I write custom materials..." stock answer. But see, I have started to say that too and I think it sounds lame. I would like a little rebranding, that's all. Just wanted some fun creative responses, no downers.

What part of my response to these quotes (before you felt the need to repost them) did you not understand? You claim to love the job, but then start an entire thread complaining about how hard it is to explain what you do. Sorry if you feel my "stock" answer of the simple truth is "lame;" this is just one more indicator that you're not really as happy with your job as you claim to be and might want to think about some other area of employment.

You're a lot of fun at parties, aren't you Pheelyks?

I don't understand your meanness, and your needless antagonism. I just wanted to connect with other people who do this interesting gig. It's not every day that gets to happen. I did not mean to sound like I was complaining. I assure you (and anyone else reading) that was not my intent. I just thought I'd found some kindred spirits here, but I was wrong. Pheelyks, it sounds like you might the one who is not happy, but I would never presume as much as you have presumed about me.

Maybe you are right, Pheelyks, maybe I should find a new line of employment so I can tell people something different. Well that is a really good idea. Will you be my life coach? You are so good at making people feel happy, welcome, and warm, I think you might be good at it.

I've been doing this for years. However, I have what many would consider a prestigious day job that involves (among other things) carrying out and presenting quantitative research for public and private entities. It pays considerably well by local standards, plus I get to travel (mostly locally) and rub elbows with high-ranking corporate and government officials (even with the president once), but the money from this sideline is just too good to leave. Still, I get what you mean by wanting to "crawl into a hole" when you're asked what you do. I'd feel that way too if all I did with my life for the past 10 years was write other people's homework for them.

IMO, there's nothing new in this thread. It's just another writer's mildly creative attempt to draw potential clients in. *yawn*

I didn't antagonize, I answered your question and offered some additional advice. If you can't handle criticism, this is not the forum for you.


It is around here.


Then you really need to work on making your writing reflect your intentions, because your original post is full of complaints both explicit and implicit.


The only thing I have "presumed" is that you derive a great deal of dissatisfaction from having to explain to people what you do. This "presumption" is a direct inference from your original post.


Your sarcasm is weaker than the rest of your writing--I'd steer clear in the future.

I like you, bitumen... but you are in the worst place possible. get out while you can! I had high hopes for this board when I first got here, too. it is a dark pit. not one of the unimaginable a-holes who are regulars here has learned to have any social skills with newcomers-- and they have long since turned on each other, like catfish in a scum-bucket.

if you're uncomfortable explaining yourself, I think you should get a second job, maybe part-time, and say you do that, and then, if pressed, say that you "invest here and there." remember, it's OK to keep it vague! most job talk is small talk anyway, and people aren't really paying the closest attention... but they love it when you turn around and ask them questions about what they do.


hey pheelyks-- how does your own medicine taste?

what did I say about projecting your inadequacies before? here's your proof on a silver platter, you sad sack of ****! bon appetite.

It's pretty bland, considering it was meaningless and I directly responded to what he said. Apparently you didn't bother reading the whole thread before posting (surprise, surprise), which is especially hypocritical and ironic this time around. Thanks for adding completely nothing yet again, though...

so bitumen if a pilot crashed a plane killing 400 people and u knew u did his essays, would u not have feeling of guilt and dont u think u could be charged with manslaughter?

pilot is to make flights, not do essays.

They have to pass written tests

My experience has been very different from yours: almost without exception, people are impressed that I'm able to do this, even more so when they find out the volume I write, and the short (often overlapping) deadlines and range of topics I routinely accommodate. I don't really believe in the concept of pride in general, but it's definitely not something I'm even remotely ashamed of or ambivalent about; I'm glad I can actually make a decent fulltime living doing this.


Only if the FAA Accident Report cited a sociology paper written when the pilot was a freshman in college as a cause of the accident. Writing an essay isn't like substituting for him in his flight simulator tests.

I believe the pilot would have been ordering his literature papers online and not his aerodynamics (or whatever it is pilots study) papers...which I would not be able to write anyway.

Well thanks for the other responses, but to EWWriter, how could I use this thread to get clients? I can see using the forum to get clients by sending emails to all the potential clients but how would starting this thread help? By introducing myself, a potential client might approach me? If that happens, great, but wasn't my intent.

Well, Pheelyks ur a piece of work. I send you love and compassion because the world needs more of it. I could take the bait and continue on the defensive, but then I'd just be contributing to the negativity. So I'll just say this, my initial complaint (I'll concede it can be construed as such) is a branding issue. It's basically like when Kentucky Fried Chicken became KFC. They didn't want to change the product, just the image or branding. I believe Phyeelyks was suggesting for me to change the product, not the brand, which was out of the question and not my original intent!

Here that I found a community of people I thought might understand me, and maybe share a few laughs about our gig and how ppl react to it. I am VERY curious about other writers, how many have other jobs, how many do it full time, how long you have been doing it. Has anyone been doing it as long as me? I thought a fun conversation would start. But there is no fun with Pheelyks the cop in the room. It is unfortunate Pheelyks controls a lot of the discourse on these forums.

[edit]: Freelance Writer you misread, people are often impressed when I tell them, I've had great fun starting conversations at parties, etc! I said that at the beginning, I mainly wanted to know what other writers tell ppl. I guess I'm not as ashamed as I seemed in the original post, I am just curious how other writers present themselves, and sometimes I do want a new "image" or different way to present myself.

I still do tell people the truth a lot. Sometimes I even say "I help people cheat for a living" and we have some good laughs. It depends on who I'm talking to. I have a great lifestyle so ppl are usually a bit envious and that's why they ask too many questions. In truth, I wish I could have a screenplay made into a movie, that is what I would really want to say, "I write movies." But that's why I write term papers--it's almost impossible to get screenplays optioned. If I do anything on the side it's that. Anyway, I think one thing I might start doing is prefacing it by saying, "I've got my own business," and then when they say "Oh yeah? Doing what?" then I can say something like, "I provide people with writing, editing, stuff like that." Anyway, I'll be brainstorming and visualizing all this over the summer.

Oh hey here's ANOTHER question, many of you might not want to answer but here goes: how many of you writers pay taxes on the income?

I don't think anyone is going to admit to not paying taxes, even with the thin shell of anonymity this forum provides... just a guess. also, most of these companies probably file 1099s.


horseit!


aren't you embarrassed about overusing this line yet? I read your crap about answering bitumen's question directly, and didn't believe a word of it. just because I don't believe something, doesn't mean I haven't read it. because the proof is right there: bitumen is happy with what they do, and stated so. you answered their question incorrectly, and like an unhelpful dick, as usual. you should be ashamed of yourself.

I'll stop using it when it becomes apparent that it's no longer true.


Failing to acknowledge it as part of an ongoing conversation does give the impression that it wasn't read, though--I'm not going to spend my time attempting to intuit what you've decided to read and what you've ignored as usual.


....but hates talking about it. As I suggested above, I think bitumen isn't as happy with what they do as he says. Saying things like


reinforces this.


explain


Yeah, I'll definitely be taking lessons in shame from someone who trolls a forum devoted to an industry in which they claim to have no part, and completely ignores rationality and reality whenever it's convenient.

pheelyks, your proctologist called... they found your head!

Hahaha... who does this remind me of? ^____________________________^

Buford, the 1970s called...they want their jokes back!

I am brand-new to this forum, but have signed up so far with only one other essay writing company. Haven't been paid the $6.89 USD I earned after MONTHS.

QUESTION FOR ALL: Has this thought ever occurred to anyone?

THE WHOLE SETUP BEHIND **ALL** ESSAY WRITING SITES IS INHERENTLY UNETHICAL. Bottom line: you are helping people cheat their way through academic programs. Period. Bottom line.

At first, I was duped by the big pay promised by such sites. Then, I began seeing consistently negative reviews all over cyberspace about every such site there is (that I know of). Finally, it dawned on me that signing up to write for ANY essay mill and expecting things to go smoothly is much like signing a contract with a pathological liar and being surprised and shocked when everything stated in the documents is false!

I'm new to this online writing scene (5 mos.). I have gotten consistently high reviews from clients and editors at upfront pay sites I work with, however. After much careful consideration and due deliberation, I've decided the money promised by essay writing sites -- even if they really DID pay it, just aint worth it, folks.

Not only are you becoming a party to highly unethical conduct that could literally cost someone their life one day, but is your professional image and reputation worth being thrown away on some bul$***t like that. There are some things that money just can't buy.

It's all plagiarism to me.

You're an idiot. there are legitimate companies that hire legitimate writers and provide customers with a legitimate service. The fact that you don't write well enough to be hired by these legitimate companies does not mean the entire industry is bad, just that you don't belong in it.


How is that, exactly?


Like writing skills, apparently.

The title of the thread is "Writers: What do you say?" The original post concludes with the direct question to other writers. I think some of the responses indicate a misreading of my post. I introduced myself, and was (and still am) curious about others. I am disappointed to find no connection with other writers in this same fringe group.

I also assumed other writers led lives as interesting as mine. I think this is a business that gives the writer unparalleled freedom. I would not trade my freedom for all the money or fame in the world. At least right now. If someone told me tomorrow that I could write a screenplay but I would have to be keyed into Hollywood, answer to others, continually do rewrites, and never travel again, I would say no. Maybe when I'm 60 but not now.

Freedom is my number one priority and I've got it. I also never said I "hated talking about it." In fact, I learned from this thread that give better and more interesting answers to the question than I gave myself credit for. I often do tell the truth and it's been a great conversation starter. All of my close friends love talking to me about the job and when I feel comfortable with a stranger right off the bat then I talk about it too.

I probably live a different lifestyle than most of you. This is why people I meet are usually more probing than just allowing me to get away with "I write custom content." They also want to know who the clients are, how I found out about the job, etc. When I meet strangers who I don't vibe with, or who I sense might not "get it," I just give them the old boring stock answers. So that's why I was curious what other writers say. And the answers were even more boring than mine which I didn't think was possible. Whew.

I've always been curious about other writers, and what they think of the job. It is amazing none of you seem that interested in developing this conversation with me. How long you have been at it? Do you like it? (How interesting that so many of you jumped to the conclusion that I need a career change without sharing any info about yourself---which was what I wanted in the first place, and not career advice). Have any of you been at this as long as me? I met a woman a few years back--she ended up being a distant relative!--who did this for 20 years!! It was so cool to meet her. I think there must be more interesting writers out there, just not on this forum.

I guess not a lot of you care about a good conversation on these topics, or you're just boring negative people in general. Basically I wanted some laughs and to connect with ppl. How sad this thread degenerated. This was meant to be a lighthearted conversation and I certainly did not want to have people I've never met before analyze me and steer the conversation in a negative direction.

Maybe it's because we have more interesting lives than you think.


Really? You expected people to read comments like:





and not read anything into it?

A) Your mom taught to swear instead of using logical argument
B) Because you don't know what logical argument means.
C) You're a little boy to me - because you scuffle like a child
D) You spend all your time swearing on this forum - so we all know you don't have time to make any money.
E) Your president still needs writer.

Time-wasting child :-D

Your "different lifestyle" has you begging strangers to engage you in social conversation online. You should just stick to talking to all those fascinating probing people who are so interested in your life because nobody here seems that interested in talking to you socially.


Yes, I like my job.

No, I am never ambivalent about it.

Yes, I pay all my taxes.

No, I don't have a problem explaining what I do when asked.

People usually respond positively.

If people have a moral problem with it, I don't mind explaining to them why I don't but that doesn't mean I have any interest in typing it all out to engage you just because you're bored, desperate to connect with strangers online, or unable to figure out whether you like or dislike your job or how to respond to conversations about it in person.


Take a hint.

@bitumen
if you pick any thread at random, you'll see the same pattern of degeneration. it confounds me, too. I'm on a couple of other boards where the people are nice to each other, helpful, and, for the most part, act like adults. my guess is that the "ruling cadre" of this board is made up of a few very childish, blatantly unhelpful, negative people, who are spoiling it for everyone else.

Actually, I learned both, from various sources.


This isn't a separate point or a complete sentence.


No, I will not have sex with you


That's fu**-n bulls-i*


Please point out a major world leader that doesn't have a speech writer, and tell me what this has to do with anything.


Let's be fair: most things confound you, Buford.

show and prove, pheelyks.

Why do you keep posting in this forum accidentally? Your forum is experienceproject.com/groups/Am-A-Moron/42455 - here.

Editor (groan) ... why are you still here? Live up to your earlier threats to abandon us and this forum. Pleeeeaaaaasssse!

WB: cyber-stalk anyone lately? pretending to be some sort of moral crusader in one of the most scumbag-infested industries on the planet... you're the worst offender. not only are you a horrible liar and notorious joke, but you're also a bad influence on WRT and pheelyks. when do you think they will start pretending to be women?

WRT: thanks for not editing your natural reaction: cowering, wheedling, and begging. you've given WB's boots a good spit shine. now, run along back under your rock, and don't come out again.

Editor75, why can't you prove that even ONE of my THOUSANDS of substantive statements and claims in this forum is incorrect? Poor slob . . . .

You're a sad, pathetic, tiny man who's painfully obsessed with people's gender. Seriously-why do so many of your posts have to involve gender in one way or another? What is it with you? FYI, nobody else cares what's lingering in posters' pants because it's utterly irrelevant. Are you a sexually confused hermaphrodite?

it's funny that you don't say, "it's not true," WB. you just say, "you can't prove it."