katakatica

This is SO important. (well, honestly, this entire post is excellent.) But just in general, this bit stands out to me. When I started Fiverr years ago, I don't think I was much worse of a writer (sure, I've improved and actually started paying for word (ha, big developement) but... what truly changed is the way I provide my services (aka, write for people.) Knowing how to ask the right questions is incredibly hard when you get one-worded answers (or, the opposite, and 5 pages per question, though I'd say that's better.) In the end I think freelancing made my social skills skyrocket because I learned how to navigate different people and their needs in a while. Another way I've come up with new things to offer/new gigs was browsing BR AND listening to potential customers. A lot of people hit you up even if they are unsure if you can do something. Maybe it's something you're totally capable of doing, you've just never thought of selling it (literally 2 of my best gigs were like this.) Knowing how to set up a gig that people might want, I guess, is a good skill as well! In the end, Fiverr isn't easy but if you're dedicated and talented I honestly think it's pretty dang helpful. PS.: I AM the type to send loads of updates. I do try to scope people out first, but better to show them progress than have to re-do, say, 30 pages of writing because they didn't realise they asked for 2nd POV but wanted 1st 😛

I somehow managed not to get too many orders during vacation (decided against vacation mode!) and quite honestly was freaking out for a bit because it felt like something was going wrong! Things are back to normal now that I'm back to work! Hope you keep getting lots of (well, a manageable orders) AND good luck with rollerblading. (I can't do stuff like that, terrible at balancing!) Oof! Hope you get better quickly! We both had it reasonably mild (compared to my sister, for example) but it was still awful somehow. I think maybe on Friday, I literally just said 'f it, I'm not going to work' (and that's when we basically spent the entire day playing the Quarry. Granted, I did feel much better after taking some time off 😄 Hope your trip to Madrid will go well 😄 I managed to travel around during COVID weirdly enough but stopped-ish recently (well, with small, short trips.) Might need to run back to Hungary for a few days in August but not sure yet, it's a bit chaotic right now. I've been thinking of getting one to help with sketches for some more game-y things for a while now! Online painting classes sound fun though I'd say? Could be relaxing (or..frustrating, as you've said!) Hope you get to treat yourself to something great for your birthday month! My parents were both born in August as well which is partially why I'm considering going down there but it's a bit tricky right now. One of my best-selling gigs is for NFTs so I personally can't judge 😛 Looks like you have a lot going on this mont for sure, though! We're watching Vikings right now but I need to take constant breaks lol Too...too much.

I do think that before Fiverr got THIS big, little things like that probably did matter. But now with all the competition, it's just... not the same, I guess? (which, to be fair is probably for the best. Of course everyone wishes they could make money just by being online but that's now how life works. I have some relatives who are a bit older and CONSTANTLY believe scammy pages that offer 'positions' like that, so I totally get it, to be fair. Just... not a great look for the site in a way. What I'm noticing is that the 1% gets... way too loud, I guess? Especially nowadays with social media being everywhere and all. It's much easier to spread nonsense. (and they often get paid for it.) Sure, in a way people on here who 'make it' are also part of, say, a 5% or something, but at least we aren't lying about how we got here and all. I feel like people don't always know how much work goes into it before. With all the 'expert sellers' (who aren't really experts' selling, say, 30k words done in a week or something I also often get the 'why so slow?/expensive?' I like to just say it's worth the wait/money 😛

It's either that or another weird bug (like when promoted gigs were off for everyone). It feels a bit abrupt if it's housekeeping to be honest - is it a new way to report people? How does Trust and Safety determine whether a service is actually bad (in more obscure cases where it's not, say, a logo made off a template or a copy pasted book or something along those lines.) My first idea was definitely 'that's odd' but it could be a lot of things I guess?

I could have sworn I've replied to this! I've seen you around a bit actually! I'm so glad you've learned some stuff from my (often rambly) posts! And also in general, just thanks 😄

I think it was probably flagged mistakenly to be honest, the system might have thought that you were spamming (since Hi/Hey/H i, and likely 'Are you there' are often spammy greetings. OR my other suspicion would be that because the buyer didn't message you before ordering it registered as you spamming them? I don't think you'll get into trouble, but being polite is definitely important in this case!

We ended up playing The Quarry (which came out like, weeks back maybe) and I feel that was traumatizing enough for me, even though the gameplay itself isn't 'hard'. The Forest looks... interesting though, to be honest!

I genuinely would consider using polite language in your forum titles. Open and answer sounds like an order when you're asking people for a favour. (It took me a few days by the way but that was a while ago.)

And here we are (a bit late, I apologise, I was out with COVID for a whole week, eek!) for our monthly check-in! So... what are you looking forward to in August? Is there anything you're NOT looking forward to? How's July been? (you can answer these questions both in relation to work and just whatever you're willing to share with us!) July was... great for me in many ways, though it was my lowest month work-wise (mostly because I took most of it off, and THEN got sick because of course that's how it works. So... if we think about how I really only worked properly for a week, I think I did well! (Actually, I did get TRS this month so... that must mean something!) That being said, my anxiety has been kind of rough. Had a few attacks while abroad, nothing bad but still a bit annoying, things seem to have calmed down a bit, though. It's really quite hot here (compared to the regular temperature I guess) so that's been annoying as well. But August... August is gonna be interesting. I'm going to try working from an office (outside of home) as much as I can, so I'm looking forward to that quite a bit. I'm also trying to plan an 'adventure' weekend in a few weeks, though I've yet to really think of what we'll do! Something fun that's also happened lately is that I've started expanding my cooking repertoire. I've made ramen a few times and it's been a huge hit, but I'm also just using the wok in different ways as well AND just in general hunting down recipes for more fun stuff. As the weather will gradually get colder I'm planning to get an airfryer and 'fake-fry' some stuff in it! I've also started (sort of) planning our trip for next summer, which is... terrifying as it's to a place I've never been (Japan!) Of course, things might still change because of COVID and all but especially this week while I was sick I started looking up places and stuff! I'm not sure if there's anything I'm explicitly not looking forward to this month, to be honest. I already have quite a lot of work due this month but I think it'll be fun - and hopefully I'll also get to play some of the games I've worked on! That's honestly roughly it for me though - but I'd genuinely love to know what you all will be up to! (though if you're going on vacation, I'll be a tad jealous!)

I had a new one yesterday - they kindly asked me to share their gigs/profiles with my friends as they are a new seller... Honestly, I don't trust ANYONE but me when it comes to my writing. And I still mess up sometimes (I'm human, too). Hiring an 'assistant' would likely gave me more anxiety instead of solving any of it... I'm very sorry you had to go through a lot but if that's how it is, freelancing might not be ideal for you. Maybe you could apply to actualy companies hiring creatives/etc? Unfortunately I genuinely don't think any 'big' seller on here would trust someone - anyone, honestly. (I know SOME people outsource but it seems to be more non-creative stuff like data entry and so on.)

I saw this awesome tiramisu ice-cream in the store (we are stuck at home with COVID so we shopped online T.T) but didn't buy it because we already have a freezer full of stuff. Now I regret my decisions! As for spammers... at least the first guy was polite ha. Second person... I guess they'll be back when they are fluent? Interestingly enough, I haven't gotten any spam in a while, not since I became TRS actually. Not that I'm complaining, it's great but a bit odd! I've also had some 'hellos' turn into orders by the way - I think some people just hit enter too quickly 😄

See, I totally understand, especially with all the people who lie about their work on here. I can also understand it as a quick test to make sure they understand your pitch. I think partially where I'm coming from is that (for me, personally), suck a quick sketch - or say, in my 'world' it'd be like a paragraph of writing - won't REALLY show someone's talent unless they actually overdeliver? Art takes time and I'm not sure it can be judged based on something so rough (unless it really is just to test whether they get you or not. Freelancing, to me, is quite different from that. I mean, the market is very different, and we already have portfolios to show what we do, right? If everyone is actually being sincere, I just don't see the point in having to do extra custom work. BUT, I would actually be very curious to hear some other people's opinion on this, maybe I really am being a bit biased! I think the risk of this is that you only sell to people who will give you five stars (or at least, you think so), which COULD kind of be viewed as scheming, though I guess that's more people who do entire orders that way, not just sketches. To some extent, I see the point, too, just yeah.

Hm... This is a hard one. Why should I (as a writer/artist/etc.) do even something quick for free? I do offer sample packages on some of my gigs that cost very little (I'm a writer) but I don't ever, EVER write even a line for free. (which, yes, has lost me some orders, but...) The main thing is - even if you don't like the first sketch (which, is very fair), the person still worked on it, right? It's worth at least, say, 5 bucks. I understand that such thing can add up quickly if you run into loads of 'bad eggs' but in my experience no one likes to do extra work for nothing. If there's no guarantee that the order will be made, why would they put more than a small amount of effort into something free? (unfortunately, your heart might be in the right place, but 10 others' won't. And they will mercilessly scam new OR old sellers who don't think twice about providing free work...) That being said, asking for a sketch (paid) is a good idea - great, even. You never know if the artist is what you're looking for and sometimes styles just don't match up and that's perfectly fine. Now, a few times I've encountered with artists who offered free sketches but I always tried to place an order (or ask for a custom offer) right away. I just don't think anyone should work for free, even if it's just five minutes of work. Imagine, if I had 10 people a day who wants a 5 minute sample... That's nearly an hour gone! In the end, I realize that if the sellers themselves are fine with it, it's okay - but I don't quite agree I guess. Might be because I've been scammed a few too many times, though! (and, if you think about it from a different perspective... aren't free samples of any kind a way of making sure you don't get a bad review if the buyer doesn't like your work?)

I was like - I think I've seen it somewhere (MAYBE just online, but I was in Disney Paris recently, so!) I honestly wish I had the talent and patience to get into cosplay now that I have the time for hobbies! I might swing by the con here (it doesn't sound like a big one, to be honest), I've been wanting to get some shiny knick-knacks and I feel like cons always have them! H&M had this adorable ring with a snake on it so now I'm on the hunt for maybe a necklace and stuff to match ha.

I'm guilty of calling gamepass 'free' myself, though I've tricked myself with it a few times (so I KNOW it's very NOT free.) I saw some friends play Celeste and really wanted to try it - had it installed but haven't gotten far in it... of course it was off the pass already! (that being said, what I pay for gamepass to me is still close to 'free' in the sense that I am able to play quite a few games and 'research' a lot. It's genuinely good - not just in an 'aw, cute way' (which is what I expected. That being said, I thought I'd be done with it by now and I'm maybe halfway so!

I think the best I've seen so far was 300k words for like... $500 in total. BUT it's a great deal as x amount is paid each 'milestone'! I mean.... it's totally easy to write that much, right?

Anyone with Canva Pro is now a certified designer, I think. Maybe I should switch niches since I'm subbed to it as well! The best way to problem-solve is to be honest with yourself, I think. I can look at your gig and say 'it looks okay' but clearly, it's not working, right? Sit down, think for a second and ask yourself the question 'would I buy this?' WHY? If you needed a LOGO, would you trust someone with the same gig? If not, why?

You do realise that almost every successful seller on here has given advice in many, MANY posts only to be ignored because it's not the same old 'rank your gig get rich' thing, right? I know you don't need 'saving' but I work up on the wrong side of the bed today so I'll jump in. Hope it's okay.

I love it! Though it does feel a lot darker than I thought initially but in a somewhat pleasant way. I know there's another similar-ish CO-OP game that's coming out, something with a baby deer and fox or something? (maybe wolf cub) but I haven't heard any news of it in a bit. I remember as a tween/teen I loved playing Amnesia (the one that loads of youtubers played) and tried not to get spooked. Now I'd get way more scared, so I can relate to not wanting to play pure horror all that much anymore! Just searched it up a bit on wiki it looks really good (though I'd fail a lot ha!)

I have to agree. I don't write loads of advice-heavy posts, mostly because my journey to (now TRS) has been a bit 'odd', but I also like sharing the fact that you CAN be 0 and build yourself up to someone, etc. However, when the people who SHOULD read them ignore them.... it gets icky. My only concern with Fiverr becoming P2P would be that the FEW newbies who genuinely can't afford to pay BUT are amazing at what they do wouldn't get a chance. Obviously, the platform would change a lot (in theory) and so would the forum, but I feel like that's a bit of a risk, though... I'm sure there'd be ways to figure that out. Honestly, I'm at the point where I'd rather pay myself than see what's going on on the 'rough side'.

It's crazy how much time and effort go into planning them, to be honest. Just for the oneshot we did, there was just... so much STUFF. (and so many puzzles ha.) I really liked playing a character that's hiding something though I think next time I'll make my character way more dramatic - I was honestly just understanding how the game itself worked. Honestly I'd also prefer more posts like this but... I also realise that successful sellers also have way more to think about than just being on here (which is great, tbh.)

I literally forgot the most important part (no, I have NOT played Elden Ring still... tho I'll definitely try the other two games!) I actually played my first D&D oneshot a few weeks back and it was as chaotic as awesome. I played an elf who was actually a vampire. I'll be joining my first campaign in a few months I think but I can't play her again as there's no vampires in the world we'll be playing. Kind of a bummer. I also got a bunch of solo/not solo journalling and tabletop games for free from some itch.io bundles and I kind of want to figure out a few to run/play as they sound awesome. I'm kind of curious about playing as an evil character though to be honest - I didn't even think that you can play a villain as a 'regular' player! (also thanks. I'm often a bit worried people might get annoyed but I feel like these posts are more fun than nothing tbh.)

With the weather a bit too hot to go out during the day (and with skin that is paler than the Cullens' from Twilight...) I've been spending more of my free time inside. (that being said, the Swedish heat is still not that bad, but...) So I felt like asking around again since it's been a while! I've just downloaded Stray (okay, I got it the moment it came out!)It's ADORABLE but also way trickier than I thought though I haven't gotten super far just yet! I've been playing Monster Sanctuary (it's free because game pass!) as well, I'm quite close to the end but... still losing quite often ha. After seeing by bf play Unsighted, I realized that I'll likely fall down that rabbithole as well - the graphics look awesome and just in general I love the story (well, what I know about it so far.) And... Just a few minutes ago, I realized that As Dusk Falls is out for the game pass as well - it looks pretty good though I haven't done much research on it! Now, for the last thing - I had the pleasure to try out Blood on the Clocktower (the board game) recently with some friends and... I love it! We don't have it unfortunately but I'm hoping that it'll be possible to get it sometime soon (it's like Werewolf/Secret Bad Guy (okay, not the real name but I don't think the system liked the real title...) but way bigger with up to 20 players/different roles for every player. I was the bad guy (the demon) in our second playthrough and it was ridiculous - fooled everyone by pretending to be sleepy. The only issue is that I won't be able to play the same way again haha.) Anyway, that is my game rant for now - have you played any of these? What are you hooked on recently?

https://pomofocus.io/ is one of my favourite ways to get stuff done when I really need to focus. Helps with taking breaks when I need to, too.

I do feel like we've been trying to get things going, though obviously on smaller levels than what actual staff could do. Loads of posts about fun stuff (or at least, stuff that I consider fun) get buried by spam within seconds - and so does actual advice many people spend actual time writing (and not just copy-pasting stuff like crazy.) Now, I do think there's hope because I know that there's quite a few people on here who genuinely enjoy talking to each other/helping newcomers who actually WANT help or just rant about pesky buyers. However, I don't think just the 'forum regulars' (or whatever you want to call the few people who still try to post actually decent posts) can save stuff. We can post fun debates, off-topic questions (like all the topics about games/movies/etc.) but after a while they all just kind of disappear because the same 5-6 questions bury them. I'm not sure what the solution would be because I do believe that technically, everyone DOES have a right to post on the forum (even if it's nonsense) but... I feel like there's ways to solve things. (post not really proofread, so please bear with it, still haven't found my glasses yet.)