Well, we moved to the Los Angeles area – Marina del Rey, CA to be precise – so that Carlos could work on an assignment for his company. We’re here temporarily, so I was limited in my job search that way.

Even though I would have liked a full-time job as a teacher, I looked for freelance writing jobs instead. I applied for a lot of writing and editing positions online, using Monster and Careerbuilder. I also used my local Classifieds and Craigslist and applied to a variety of jobs. None seemed to turn out.

Finally, my dad suggested I apply to be a substitute, so I did a search for local schools, called one up, and sent the principal my résumé. The principal, who is just the best person to work with, loved my résumé and soon after I applied, I was called in for a two-week job looking after a Language Arts class! Being a poet with a Master’s in creative writing, it was perfect for me.

And now I can afford to pay all my bills next month!

What’s wonderful about being a substitute teacher is that it gives me some down time to work on my music and writing. And I will continue to look out for freelance writing opportunities.