Simon Says... Here's How My ADHD Brain Really Works
Cue Bo Burnham's "can I interest you in everything all of the time?”
Welcome to Simon Says, a weekly newsletter from Rachel Simon all about freelance life—from the inside scoop on just-published stories to advice on how to pitch to what it’s *really* like to leave a cozy full-time gig for the chaotic, unpredictable world of invoicing (jk, freelancing, but IYKYK).
Recently, I’ve been making way more custom crossword puzzles than usual through my side business, Your Crossword, on Etsy. Generally, I only get 1-2 orders a week max, but lately, for whatever reason they’ve been coming in fast and furiously. I’m happy about it! I truly love making puzzles, and the extra income is certainly nice. But the more puzzles I make, the more I think about how even if the business grew crazy successful, I’d never, ever want to do it full-time.
Because: By going freelance and being (primarily) self-employed, I get to try my hand at a ton of different projects at once. Writing stories makes up the bulk of my work (probably 80%, I’d say), but I also get to teach writing classes, hold consulting sessions, work on my books, and, yes, create puzzles. I never get bored, because I always have something new and different to focus on every day.
For some people, this probably sounds like a nightmare. The chaos! The instability! The severe multi-tasking and numerous to-do lists needed to keep track of everything! And I get that, I really do. But as someone with an extremely ADHD and impatient brain, I’ve found that I work best when I can hop from thing to thing and juggle a million balls in the air. I’m bad at paying attention to just one thing—I’ll space out, get antsy, lose focus. But if spread my attention out in a bunch of different directions? That’s when I thrive. (Cue Bo Burnham’s “Can I interest you in everything all of the time?”)
It’s not for everyone, but it is for me.
Some Stories I Wrote Last Week
For Shondaland, I rounded up some fun behind-the-scenes trivia about E.T. in honor of the movie’s 40th (!) anniversary this month.
Over at Food & Wine, I reviewed a vegetable chopper that’s gone viral on TikTok—and spoiler alert, it’s amazing.
For Real Simple, I made a big list of attractive, durable welcome mats to pretty up your front porch.
For Byrdie, I found lots of gorgeous black dresses in all different styles, price ranges, lengths, and more.
And for Daily Paws, I wrote about some super cute and effective dog collars, if your pup needs a new look.
The Inside Scoop
Each week, I’ll pick one story I’ve written (new or old, if needed) and explain how it got from pitch/assignment to publication. This week, it’s the Food & Wine story on the veggie chopper.
If you know me, you know I hate to cook. Like, really hate it. I just find it boring and hard and unsatisfying, and cutting up vegetables is the worst, because it takes so much time and effort that I could be spending doing… literally anything else. So when I came across a veggie chopper in a bunch of TikTok videos that people were swearing saved them tons of time and was super easy to use, I knew it was worth me checking out.
Before buying it, though, I pitched a story idea to my editor at Food & Wine, telling her that I’d try out the chopper on a bunch of different veggies and review it for the site. She was game, so I ordered it off Amazon (I got the cost reimbursed—one of the perks of doing product reviews!). When it arrived, I tried it out and was super pleased to discover that it worked perfectly, making dinner prep way easier and more enjoyable. I wrote about my experience and sent along some photos of the chopper in use to include, and voila!
Other Work/Life Stuff Of Note
Speaking of puzzles (earlier), I created a Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill-themed crossword for Indy Week’s Best of the Triangle issue, out now. Pick up a print copy or do the online version here!
Also, PR/marketing plans for my book are fully underway! I’m so freakin’ excited. Pre-order your copy here.
Coming Up…
Reminder that I’m hosting a one-hour open house on Zoom all about Essay & Opinion Writing on Tuesday, June 28, teaching a six-week Creative Nonfiction class via Zoom starting in July, and also teaching a four-week personal essay course in Raleigh starting in July as well.
Alright, friends—thanks for reading, and have a great week!
-Rachel