Mary McNamara
AWAI Member Since: 2002
Age: 42
What’s your current occupation?
Copywriter
What’s your former occupation?
Non-Profit Program Director
What was the first project you landed?
A friend’s newsletter for her small business.
What are your current projects?
Fundraising packages for national clients.
What has been your proudest copywriting moment?
When a client is excited about a great response rate from a package I wrote … because that really means, in turn, that many more children will have a better Christmas.
What’s your favorite niche to write for?
What is your income goal for this year?
Full-time income on part-time hours.
What’s your writing routine?
I work Mon-Fri when the kids are in school, and use early mornings 5-7 a.m. as my crunch writing hours in the summer and for tight deadlines. The flexibility allows me to be involved in their activities and still have a fulfilling professional life.
Please give us an example of how your life has changed since becoming a copywriter.
My writing has definitely improved, and along with it my confidence to plan personal book projects aside from client work.
What success tip would you like to share with your fellow writers?
Be dedicated to the dream. I have a framed quote from Richard Bach on my desk – “A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.” There will be days when quitting sounds easier, but then you’ll never know what could’ve been.
I think you’ll also find that a common theme among many copywriting “Success Stories” is participation in AWAI’s annual Bootcamp and ATS’s coaching program. Finding a copywriting “buddy” is also very helpful … finding someone through AWAI’s Member Forum who you can exchange and review copy with, get client leads from … not to mention the many, many words of personal and professional encouragement!
When did you realize you were living the copywriter’s life?
Sitting in a park with a latte on a summer day when everyone else was stuck in the office … and I was legitimately working!
