How One Decision Changes Your Writing Career Opportunities
By Sandy Franks

His dream job was being a cartoonist. So in 1947, Ed McLean moved from New Orleans to New York.

But finding his dream job wasn’t easy. In fact, Ed wound up taking whatever jobs he could find just to put food on the table, including one that gave him enough free time to work on his art.

One day while walking to one of his day jobs, a dog bit Ed on the ankle. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the same thing happened again two weeks later. Ed had had enough — and he decided he needed to change direction.

So he took a job as a writer for the Radio Advertising Bureau and Sky Publishing (a publisher of True Detective magazines). And in 1959, McLean wangled himself an interview at Newsweek.

He stretched the truth in an interview when he told the interviewer he had been a reporter in New Orleans.

That man, Red Dembner, then president of Red Dembner Enterprises Corporation, which published magazines such as Newsweek, was looking for a direct-mail copywriter.

Dembner found McLean interesting and gave him a few sample writing tasks to see if he could indeed take on copywriting projects.

Ed wrote four pieces over the weekend and took them in on Monday — and got the job. Under Dembner’s guidance and mentoring, Ed McLean became a master of long-form sales letters.

He wrote a total of more than 9,000 direct mailings, print ads, radio spots, and inserts. His copy sold more than one billion dollars’ worth of products and services. Ed’s sales letter for Newsweek magazine is a “Hall of Famer” and was mailed to over 150 million people during its 15-year reign.

Ed success as a copywriter was a matter of making the right decisions. The first was moving to New York. The second was no longer wanting to be a cartoonist. The third was meeting Red Dembner and being mentored by him.

Ed was making the right moves at the right time. Today, you have the chance to do the same thing by joining AWAI’s highest level of membership, Circle of Success (COS).

You not only get access to every single learning resource we offer, but mentoring help when you need it. The decision to join COS was one of the best things member Tim Geiger did. He says,

“COS is one of the best investments I’ve ever made in my career and professional development — right up there at the top of the list with attending law school! I don’t think anyone serious about a career as a copywriter can make a bad investment or go wrong with the investment in COS!! In addition to the guided learning and development, COS opens doors to industry connections and insiders who are invaluable to any aspiring or up-and-coming copywriter’s success.”

The resources you’ll find when you join COS are designed specifically to help you go from newbie to business superstar. Circle of Success member Sharlet Brennan says,

“I don't know where my business would be without AWAI. The Circle of Success Resource Library made all the difference. I went from offering one service my clients didn't need any more to offering many services they can't get enough of. And I'm loving it!!”

Now, I could easily go on and on sharing more stories with you of COS members. But the point I want to make is that their success didn’t come down to a matter of luck or coincidence.

It came from making the deliberate decision to join Circle of Success, which had a profound impact on their freelance writing careers and the opportunities they could take advantage of. COS opens doors for higher-paying writing projects and more work satisfaction.

And it could easily do the same for your career. That’s why I’m urging you to take a look for yourself to see what it’s all about, which you can do here.