Best nursery hours for freelance copywriting?

[Razamataz]

I'm planning to start freelance copywriting when DD starts nursery in September. I need to choose between putting her in either mornings every day (9am - midday), or two and a half full days (term-time only for both options).

I have a DS who'll be one in September, and I'm going to be relying on help from grandparents for him. I'll also try and work during his nap times, although I'll see how it goes, and may enlist a childminder. I'll obviously be putting the hours in once DD and DS are in bed too.

So, do you think a few hours every day, or a sustained block of half the week, would work best for freelance copywriting? Thanks in advance.

I've just started a similar type of work, and I don't know what the definitive answer is. I have a son in nursery 3 days per week, tue/wed/thu (but also one at school, so they are 'short' days IYKWIM). Generally that works OK and I find I have enough time to get into the swing of work and feel like I've had a productive session.

Would your 2 and a half days have to be taken in a block, e.g. Monday - Wed lunchtime? You might find the gap between finishing one week and starting the next too long if that's the case.

I find that sometimes I spend my 'working' time hanging around waiting for feedback or info from clients before I can move on - if I then get that, say, at the end of Thurs I end up working evenings/weekend to make up time as I can't sit on stuff until I'm officially 'at work' again on a Tuesday. I also find that once I've sat and worked on something solidly for a few hours my brain freezes so I tend to prefer shorter more intense periods of activity.

I guess it depends on how you prefer to work and when you feel most productive, but I'd be inclined to say try the morning option as long as that will give you enough productive time between drop off & pick up (and making a cup of tea, and just putting a wash on etc. etc. before you sit down - or maybe you'll be more disciplined than me )

Oh, and the other thing to bear in mind is how you fit in visiting clients. Will mornings only give you enough time to travel there & back and fit in a meeting too?

That's really helpful, thanks. Yes, the two and a half days would have to be taken as a block, and I did suspect that the gap between nursery days might be too long. But, on the other hand, you have a point about mornings only being restrictive in terms of travelling time.

I suppose I'll have to have a really good think about my most effective method of working. Then there's the question of whether grandparent support could be extended to allow me to visit clients on shorter days.

So much to think about! Thanks for your help, and I may well have further questions....

I'm facing the same problem too: getting started as freelancer with older kids. My worry is getting the work as a copywriter in the first place. It's been 10 years since I worked and have lost all my copywriter contacts so am at a loss as where to start. Any advice?

Hi roofergirl, I've written a list of all my contacts (some from ten years ago) and I'm planning to call all of them to let them know I'm starting up on my own. I'm also planning to launch a website and blog, and set up profiles on social networking sites like Twitter and LinkedIn. I believe there are freelancer websites where you can advertise and bid for jobs, but I need to look into this some more.

As I'm on mat leave and haven't yet told my employers I'm leaving, I can't yet make any formal approaches, which is frustrating. But I'm finding that even just chatting to friends about my plans has uncovered new potential clients (friends of friends of friends...).

Obviously new to all this so would welcome advice from experienced freelancers...

Oh, forgot to say (sorry, this doesn't help roofergirl) I'm hoping to keep my current employer as a client. I know they already use freelance copywriters, and I'm hoping that they'll consider my knowledge and experience of the organisation and sector to be a reason to use my services.

Any comments on how to approach this would be very welcome.

I think you'll find dropping at 9am and collecting at 12 doesn't leave much time to 'get stuck in' to any work, once you've returned home, and left time to collect. OTOH, asking Grandparents to have a 1 yr old for a full day might be hard for them ?