Update...

Got back from Eatonville yesterday but have been "on call" all day just in case I needed to go back out there. I stepped away at 2:30 to get my hair cut; had to delay the earlier date (Thursday) because of the Eatonville stay...

I got a $500 project last night that has to be finished by Wednesday. I think it's about a third of the way done: I'm waiting to hear back from the buyer with his reaction to what I've created so far to be sure I've mirrored the style he wants. I also need to find out what style he wants for his auto-responder emails...

I landed another quick $50 project today, too (writing an inspirational message of 10-20 words for a t-shirt seller's tag), in addition to another project I'm also working on: four scripts for 60-second ads for a mortgage broker. I've completed the $50 project but the buyer liked what I came up with so much that he wants me to do more of it, so I'll initiate a REPEAT PROJECT or add on to the existing one and keep going on that till he calls a halt...

Yesterday I submitted the first draft of the 60-second ads to the buyer but he hasn't responded yet. It's the weekend -- he's probably pretty rushed weekends, in the business he's in, so I probably won't hear back from him before Monday. That's okay.

On the $500 project, I was surprised to learn that the buyer received three reputable bids... and mine was the highest... but he and his partner decided to go with me anyway because he liked my feedback at Elance and he LOVED my new website (http://kristinemsmith.biz/).

That was my first official notification that my website actually landed me the job -- and it has only been up for three days. That's very gratifying. The Elance profile is truncated because of space parameters, so it has to be very "quick and dirty." With my own website, I have the space to really capture an idea and showcase it (as I did on the home page.) It makes a difference! That's good to know, because I set it up on a trial (30-day FREE) basis. It has already paid for itself for 3 1/2 years (at $9.00/month)! Guess I'll keep it when the trial period runs out, eh wot?