A Lazy Few Days

I'm on holiday at the moment and I have been since 9pm when my shift ended on Saturday. I set myself a couple tasks to do during this week off work and... well I've not really done either of them as yet. I have sort of made a start on one of them though, in a roundabout kind of way.

The first task was to sort through the several banana boxes full of assorted crap under my bed. I was to sort it into lots for auction, photograph them and store the photos on my computer. The lots would then be bundled back up in some way so that they would stay togther in their groupings. Basically I was going to use elastic bands and/or carrier bags to seperate everything up with. I went to start doing this today and what I've done instead so far, is to fill most of a black bag with assorted rubbish.

I've yet to take a single photo, or even really decide what I'm going to sell. I'm lacking a ruthlessness that is needed for a task like this I think. The hoarder aspect of my star sign (Capricorn) is showing through and I find myself reluctant to part with anything... even really useless stuff I find myself putting in the pile of "It might come in useful some day". I'm going to give that task another shot tomorrow and try being more assertive with myself.

The other task I set myself was to write letters to several publishing houses to ask for them to consider me working freelance for them as a proofreader. Of course I would expect them to set a test before any agreement of receiving actual work, if only to gauge my level of skill and ability to meet both a deadline and their standards. The course I took even included a sample letter of application to use a template.

Only a month or so ago I chanched upon Bookseller, a website for professionals in the field of publishing and I had a look at the forums. Where I encountered several threads of posts mocking applications from would-be freelance proofreaders, specifically those that had taken the same course I have qualified in. It seems that the Maple Academy course is not well regarded in the profession and the comments about the course I took, were written with barely veiled distaste bordering on outright snobbery.

So my confidence has taken a bit of a knock to say the least. I still intend to apply all the same, I just need to write a letter of application that will catch the attention of the editor whose desk it lands on, so that it will not immediately be dropped in his waste paper bin. I'm good with words, written that is, not so good with the speaking, so I will figure out a way to word such a letter, but that will take me a little while. I'll be sure to keep you posted on that front.