I’m moving to Providence.

Ladies and Gentleman, this bird is flying the coop.

Six months after graduating from Skidmore, six months spent living at home in New Hampshire, and I’m headed to the big (well, moderately sized) city of Providence, Rhode Island with friend and fellow blogger, Parker Tichko.

Why?  Because it’s time.  Because I’m ready.  Because it’s been a great six months and all, but I’ve got to get going.  Because the independent life is calling my name.  And I couldn’t be happier about it.

What have I been doing these last six months?

All kinds of fun stuff!

• I’ve been freelance writing through eLance.com
• I ghostwrote a full-length book on setting goals for an eLance client
• I read 10+ books on personal/spiritual development topics
• I meditated a ton- anywhere from 60-120 minutes most days
• I completed a spiritual diary experiment
• I just about doubled the average monthly traffic to this blog
• I trained for and ran a marathon
• I embarked on a “power lifting” regime that’s increased my bench press to 200 lbs. (a 50 lb. increase!)

What am I up to now?

I sir, am becoming a commercial copywriter.

Last month, I read a book called The Well-Fed Writer, a highly informative (and delightfully written) book about entering the world of commercial writing on a freelance basis.  Essentially, this means writing for businesses of all shapes and sizes, particularly by helping them with their “marketing collateral”: brochures, newsletters, case studies, white papers, and beyond.  This mostly refers to business-to-business (B2B) correspondence, rather than business-to-client (B2C, the stuff we see as consumers).  So no, I’m not embarking on a career as a spam artist!

Over the next month before the move, I’ll be focusing primarily on getting my one-man writing business off the ground.  First, I’ll need a website (working on that).  Then, I’ll focus on getting the word out and tapping my network for leads.  At the moment, I’m open to (almost) anything I can get, provided that I am comfortable working with the client.  But in time, I look forward to becoming more selective and commanding the high (for writing) rates that commercial writers enjoy.  If this sounds intriguing to you, i.e. if you’re a writer with an entrepreneurial spirit, I can’t recommend WFW enough.  Although maybe you should wait for my six-month progress report before you dive in yourself ;)

Ok, but why Providence?

To the contrary, why not Providence?

Providence, the so-called “Creative Capital,” appears by all accounts to be a fantastic place for young, artsy people to live (that’s me). It boasts 8 colleges and universities, including an ivy-leaguer (Brown).  It has a thriving music and arts scene.  And to boot, it manages to be highly affordable, two hours away from home (the perfect distance if you ask me), and stationed nicely between Boston and New York.  I’ll take it.  As a stepping stone out of my parent’s house and into the wider world, I’ll take it.

Right now, I can’t say how long I’ll stay in Providence.  It could be six months; it could be six years.  It depends largely on factors I can’t predict.  But I do know that along the way, I’ll be building a flexible, mobile career that will sharpen my writing and entrepreneurial skills.  I know that I will be immersed in the highest per capita rate of coffee shops in the country (can you say, “writer’s heaven”?).  And I know that I can’t think of a better place to cut the apron strings and truly give this freelance life a go.

Am I optimistic?  Of course.  This is my biggest transition since graduating from college.  But I know I’m ready for the challenge.

I can’t wait to see how it unfolds.

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