Upon finding out that I was pregnant in 2004, I made the decision that I was going to become a freelance writer so that I could be a work-at-home mom. Staying home to raise my daughter means so much to me, yet like most families we rely on two incomes. Although I wasn’t new to writing, I was new to freelancing so I spent months reading every book I could my hands on regarding the subject. Three months before my daughter was born, I quit my job and dove right into freelance writing.

I started sending out queries on a regular basis. I had one publication that over the months kept requesting to see my work and would ask me questions but never gave any acceptances. I continued to send them queries, answer the questions, provide more information, send more clips and be very friendly all along the way. I did this even though I didn’t think they were ever going to actually purchase anything from me.

Months went by and one day, out of the blue, I received a phone call from the editor. She offered me a contracted position to write two articles per month for their magazine. I learned an important lesson with this experience, which is that persistence pays. You never know what’s going on in the mind of the editor that you keep sending things to.

Jacqueline Bodnar is a freelance writer living in Las Vegas with her husband and daughter. She writes articles for websites and magazines covering issues such as health and parenting. You can learn more about her at https://www.jacquelinebodnar.com.