From Nursing to Freelancing—One Writer’s Rewarding Path

by Chaunie Brusie

How did I get started as a paid writer? Very slowly!

I remember being in college and stumbling upon freelance writing as a career when I was going through a hard time of questioning what I should do for the rest of my life.

I can still remember being amazed that freelance writing was a thing—I thought, You’re telling me that I could actually get paid to write about things that interest me?? It blew my mind then and honestly, it still does to this day.

After My Second Daughter was Born, I Started Pursuing Writing More Seriously

Although I had always had an interest in writing (yup, I’m one of “those” types with piles of my childhood writing and first “books”), I also had an interest in healthcare, so after graduating with my BSN, I worked several years as a floor nurse.

It wasn’t until after my second daughter was born that I decided to start pursuing writing more seriously. It was very difficult in those days, because I worked nights and had a toddler, a baby, and was soon pregnant with my third baby.

I focused primarily on two things:

1) the fact that I knew there were people out there making a full-time living from writing and if they could do it, why couldn’t I? and
2) doing just one small thing every single day that would advance my writing career—this made a huge difference on those days that the toddler wouldn’t nap, or the baby just wanted to be held, or I was too exhausted from working the night before to do anything else. Even if it was as simple as sending one LOI, or drafting one pitch, as long as I kept moving, I knew I could do it.

It Took Me a Full Year of Writing and Working Before I Made a Dime

It took me a full year of writing and working before I made a single dime, but let me tell you what—that first paycheck I got for writing was more exciting than anything I’ve ever accomplished.

I hung that $20 check up on my fridge and stared at it for weeks before I cashed it, because it was proof I was doing it.

And I just kept doing it! I slowly built up my client base and within three years, had replaced my nursing income, so I felt comfortable to take a step back from my hospital-based role.

Within four years, I was making six figures, which I maintained for several years before adding a 5th baby to the mix and dialing down my writing a bit. (Turns out, babies can slow you down somewhat, who knew?)

My Degree and Experience as a Nurse Has Been Invaluable to My Career as a Writer

My niche is definitely healthcare.

My first-ever clip was for “Scrubs Magazine,” and my first-ever paid writing piece was on Botox for a plastic surgeon.

My degree and experience as a nurse has been invaluable to my career as a writer, and I feel like it allows me to still pursue my interest in healthcare and my love for writing.

I also write a lot of parenting content, and for that, having five kids definitely serves as fodder. 😉

I don’t have a really formal marketing strategy, and I’m definitely not a pro on social media or even have a fancy website (now I feel old!).

But honestly, I just always try to make myself easy to work with—I deliver on time, follow-up at appropriate times, try to come up with new ideas, and I always make it known I’m available for last-minute assignments if need be.

I think it helps to be the “go-to” person in an editor’s mind.

What I Do When My Writing Business Slows Down

When business slows down, I do two things:

1. Remind myself that over the course of doing this for now almost a decade (whoa), anytime I have lost a client or work has been slow, something new has always, always popped up–it’s just the nature of the game with freelancing. Keeping that in perspective helps me not to panic.

2. And secondly, I reach out to any and every editor I can think of that I have worked with in the past to ask them if they are in need of a writer. I have gotten a lot of work that way, and editors need to move roles quite a bit, so “following” them from job to job can be helpful for both of you.

I wish I could say that I have cracked the elusive $1-2/word world, but I have not. I mostly do a mix of content marketing and journalism, so my pay is pretty standard—I just try to mix up the variety and take on enough work to meet my income goals.

Why I Created a Course on How to Get Started as a Writer

Writing is the name of my game, so I haven’t expanded to provide other services.

At one point in my career, I was getting a lot of questions about how to get started as a writer, especially with young kids at home, so I compiled an online course on my website that visitors can take anytime.

It walks you through everything I did to build my career. I know it can be overwhelming, and I wish I had time to answer everyone individually, but I don’t, so I hoped a formal place to point them to might help.

Apps and Programs that Help My Writing Business

I’m pretty simple with my business—I have a plain Excel spreadsheet that I use to track my income, invoices, when payment comes in, and my pitches, along with follow-up and editor response (or lack thereof!).

I use Dropbox to back-up all of my work and paperwork, as well as Google Drive so I can easily search things with a keyword.

And I pay for an app to record calls when I interview sources on the phone.

I also use saved links on Facebook and Instagram a lot for topics that interest me, job leads I come across, sources I see, etc. and go through those about once a month or so.

Advice for a Young Writer: Be Clear on Your Goals

First of all, I would tell a young writer that’s it’s entirely possible to make a living writing—well, as long as legislation doesn’t come after us, that is—but it is entirely, 100%, a self-run business.

You have to be entirely clear on your goals, your motivation, your reason for doing the work, and you have to be prepared to work a lot as you build your business up.

Writing is definitely not always the glamorous work-in-a-pretty-coffee-shop situation, but for those of us that are able to make a living from it, it’s still a dream come true.

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Chaunie Brusie is a Registered Nurse turned freelance writer who specializes in health and parenting content. Her work has appeared on countless sites and has been published with “The New York Times,” “The Washington Post,” “Redbook,” “Glamour,” “Real Simple,” “Babycenter,” “Mom.com,” “Babble,” “Verywell,” “Healthline,” “Pregnancy & Newborn,” “SELF,” and “Parents,” among others, as well as been featured on “Good Morning America.”

She has experience as a parenting and medical editor and is the author of a book for young mothers. She lives on a small farm in Michigan in the middle of an actual hayfield with her husband five children. Her kids mostly think she stays home in her pajamas all day and they are really, really impressed that she can “type without looking at the computer.”

For more information on Chaunie and her work, please see her website, or connect with her on Twitter.