I still consider this my new website, but I’m shutting it down to focus on other things. It has served its purpose—in as much as it had a purpose.
I started Jason Ward Writer in 2019 to showcase some of my writing and promote things I had written on Medium.
Then, in 2020, the pandemic hit, and I was made redundant from my job as a Senior Content Writer for a university. They fired 100 people in an epic day of angst – or in my case epic joy. They gave me a cheque for seven month’s pay.
This website then became a writing showcase. Especially with the portfolio page and my book page. They helped me, but I no longer need the help. (Although the more places that link to my books the better, probably, but it is a hit I’m willing to take.)
I’m mostly shutting the site down as I am no longer looking for clients. I also want to focus more on my Word of Ward website, my Substack – Intriguing Times – and writing novels. I have also dramatically cut down on Medium as the algorithm shifted and earnings plummeted. The stuff I used to write there will now appear on my Substack and will then be added back on Medium in a rewritten form a month or two later.
Too cut a long story short, I felt like I was spread a bit thin.
Think about shutting some things down to focus on the good stuff. Especially if you are stressed.
I’ve been writing for over 30 years and half of that was for print magazines and newspapers. Around the mid-noughties, the print and not-print world seemed to combine. For me at least, obviously experiences vary. Many of the publications I worked for had both a print and an online version, with the former slowly disappearing.
Even though I generally had two or three regular clients, my workload worked out to be pretty smooth. I averaged around three articles a week and knew all my deadlines as they were mostly weekly or monthly. Now, I have a permanent feeling of mild guilt when I am not publishing or writing. Even worse is when that feeling is coupled with surprise at how little I seem to be putting out on each platform.
So, a word of advice.
If you’re feeling a bit stressed, assess how many places you are publishing and if they are all doing equally well. It is likely that a couple are doing better. Focus on them. You might be feeling that the more places you publish, the better, but that just isn’t true. If you write in four places but only two do ok, dropping the two bad ones might more than double the traction of the good ones.
The same goes for social media – although that can be made easier depending on you politics. I’m off Twitter, for example, and prefer Blue Sky (I am here) as I don’t want to read about politics or religion. I like literature and art.
Anyway, focus on what works.
I may or may not post again but if not – adieu!
I have never understood why people feel the need to announce their departure on social media, but some plucky few have said they have been helped or just enjoyed the stuff I’ve written here. So here are my links if you fancy checking them out.
The Word of Ward is here: https://thewordofward.co.uk
You can check out my books here: https://thewordofward.co.uk/my-writing/
My Substack – Intriguing Times – is here: https://intriguingtimes.substack.com
Medium is here : https://jrward42.medium.com
Bluesky is here: https://bsky.app/profile/thewordofward.bsky.social
Threads is here: https://www.threads.net/@jasonrward_?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
See you somewhere on the internet!
