Freelance Writing is Not Really 'Writing'

It struck me like a thunderbolt five minutes ago. This pinoy freelance writer - is not really a writer per se, in truth I am a mere word factory. I realized this upon recalling a recent conversation with my sister.

She told me,

"Better that I hate my day job and love my writing, than to start hating the act of writing."

At the time, I wasn't really thinking about what she meant. I was trying to convince her to help me out in my new endeavor which was beginning to weigh down on me because of the sheer volume of the workload.

The truth pierced my thick skull like a bullet shot between my eyes.

Freelance writing is not really writing. I mean it is writing, but writing of a different kind. It's more like being a hired gun. It is sophistry of the most blatant sort where we manipulate words to appeal to a machine called Google rather than to evoke the human experience.

That was lesson number one. And it was painful.*

The implications are manifold and this situation has brought me back to myself.

What the heck am I doing? 

It's true that I am earning more now than I was earning before (I was earning $0.00), it's true that this 'thing' called freelance writing has been paying off the debts, the bills, the globe tattoo prepaid broadband credit and puto seko with extra joss.

But then I woke up and found that it was also draining my soul.

Dennio, a young freelance writer who has been writing for three years now, might relate to what I am trying to say.

It's mental torture of the arduous kind.

My sister woke me up with her words, and Anthony gave me an uppercut with his. (aray! panga ko...)

I'd have to give credit to both of them for doing it. I know it's unintentional but I still would like to extend my gratitude.

It was when Anthony said, 

"Mahaba na ang mga sinusulat mo, writer ka na nga."

 
(You're starting to write longer, that means you're already a writer)

He might not realize this, but he is right in an upside down I don't know if that was sarcastic kind of way. (Peace bro!)

Seriously, what the heck am I doing?

Well, basically, we're taking advantage of Google's search algorithms by writing numerous articles with a set of keywords that have been designed to associate themselves to a certain product being promoted by our employers. Yeah Baby!

It's called Article Marketing. It's fairly new and only a certain percentage of the pinoy internet scene has taken full advantage of it. Well, we're growing in numbers. Try searching for the terms "Paypal", "Filipino or (Pinoy) and "Writer". You'll have an idea of how many of us know and utilize this.

I have to stop now. I need to smoke to help me remember what the other side of this coin looks like,

I would assume that it looks like Jose Rizal. If it weren't a coin it would be a bill with the face of Benjamin Franklin.

P.S.

I don't even know what postscript means. But later on, I am going to write about Article Marketing if none of you guys write about it first. Well, I'll still write about it even if you guys did.

I usually end with "Cheers!" at the end of my posts but this time I'll end with

Show Me the Money... (with a sad face)