The ONLY Career Accelerant I Trust Enough to Use on My Own Family
By Jen Adams

From left: Jen Adams with her Great Grandmother, Lucille Adams, and younger sister, Melynda Boyce

Well after midnight, two grown adults whispered in the kitchen …

My sister and I were talking through her options.

She wanted to make a leap — a big leap. And she wanted to do it fast.

You see, for the last several years, she’s dedicated herself to her family. That’s been essential work, especially during this last year when all four of her children needed her for remote schooling support. Unfortunately, that essential work didn’t pay, and she wanted to find something that would let her contribute to the family income.

I’ve suggested persuasive writing as an option for years. It’s been my only source of income for more than a decade, and she knows I’m very comfortable and happy. And yet — perhaps like many of you reading this — she’s been hesitant about committing to the writer’s life.

But there’s nothing like a global pandemic to make you reconsider your options and what you’re doing with your life. She was ready. It was time. We discussed it and decided: This year was going to be THE year.

And that’s why we’re both taking part in AWAI’s FastTrack to Copywriting Success Bootcamp event this fall.

My Family Reputation Is at Stake Here!

I’ll be honest — it’s a big deal for me to bring a member of my family over to “my world” of paid writing. The stakes are high. If I mess this up, I’ll never hear the end of it.

That’s why I’m not taking any chances.

I’ve learned — often the hard way — that not everything works as fast as you want.

For example, when I first kicked off my writing career in 2008, I thought I’d find fast success if did things on my own. So, I didn’t network with other writers, I didn’t build many industry connections, and I got work one project at a time by spending hours responding to postings on online freelancer sites for a minimal wage.

I was earning a living, but I was working a lot of long, stressful hours to do it. It took me three years to realize what I was doing wrong and implement a major course correction.

My sister doesn’t have three years for some trial-and-error adventure. Our goal is to give her meaningful success inside her first 12 months. So she can’t follow in my exact footsteps — in fact, I don’t recommend what I did early on to anyone serious about writing success.

Instead, we’re going to start with my “a-ha!” moment — the moment when I realized how I could level up my writing career.

We’re Starting with Bootcamp, Because Bootcamp Gets Results

When I registered for my first Bootcamp, I was extremely nervous about it. The event represented a big investment for me, and although I’d read every promo letter at least 10 times, I was anxious about spending the money.

Little did I know I’d have all that money back within just six weeks of the event …

My very first day of my very first Bootcamp, I connected with a senior writer, Steve Coombes, who helped me increase my rates by 10 times. He even helped me connect with new clients who were more than happy to pay those rates.

That alone changed my life … and it was just one of the things that happened that year.

Suddenly, I had a network of writer friends. I had dozens of potential clients to follow up with — serious publishers with serious budgets. I felt plugged in to the industry in ways I’d never experienced before, and I knew I was coming back for more.

This upcoming event will be my ninth consecutive Bootcamp. I come back again and again because every year there’s something new and something that helps me. There are the amazing speakers … and all the networking that happens when you put yourself in the place where the experts, marketers, and fellow aspiring writers are. From lifelong friends to priceless client connections, Bootcamp continuously delivers on its promises.

Not just its promises to writers, either. About five years ago, I “switched sides” and started attending the event as a marketer looking to hire. I knew — firsthand — that there was no other place in the industry where I was going to meet as many talented, experienced, and enthusiastic writers as the group I’d connect with via Bootcamp. I’ve hired dozens of content writers and copywriters thanks to Bootcamp, and I’ll be looking for more to hire this year, too.

Join Us on This Journey

My sister has heard all the stories I’ve just shared with you — heard them multiple times, in fact. As a result, her expectations for Bootcamp are sky-high.

I’m doing nothing to tone that down.

We are making this year THE year for her — and all the work we’ve done on her copy skills so far has been designed to have Bootcamp be a “payoff” moment for her.

I know she can do this — and I know YOU can do this, too.

If you’re working on your writer’s life, you can choose to do things on your own and find success at your own speed. It’s not easy but it can be done with trial-and-error and extra effort.

Or, you can apply some accelerant …

That’s the choice I’m making for my family — and there’s only ONE accelerant I trust to get the job done.

It’s Bootcamp for us, all the way. And I sincerely hope to see you taking part in it too.

Do you have any questions about launching your writing career? Share with us in the comments so we can help.