Laura Bracher

Wow, just writing this blog post has made it all feel so much more real. 

Becoming freelance has been something I’ve been talking about for years but honestly, I never had the guts to actually do it… until now.

First of all, hi! If you’re reading this post you probably already know a little bit about me. You may have had a little look around my website, we may have worked together in the past (or are currently working together), or it might be my mum being nosy. 

I’m planning on putting regular updates on my blog about various different things: my projects, my experiences of being a freelancer, and anything else I find interesting, but to start with, I thought it might be interesting to do a little Q&A with myself (can you tell I’ve perhaps spent a bit too long in my own company during lockdown) so that new clients can get to know me better. So without further ado…

Why did you want to become freelance?

I’ve been thinking about it for a while now, and after working in full-time positions for the last seven years I decided that I had enough experience to take the leap and go freelance. I also like the variety of being able to work on lots of different projects across different industries. The idea of not having to clock in and clock out of an office every day is pretty great!

Isn’t it hard to be disciplined when you work for yourself?

When it comes to food? Yes! Thankfully I’ve now created a proper office upstairs so that’s a little further away from the kitchen snack cupboard than when I was working in my dining room. In terms of being disciplined with my working hours – not really. I’ve always been very strict with myself when it comes to sitting down at my desk at 8.30am, taking a lunchtime walk and then finishing around 7pm. I find when you’re working in an office there are constant distractions such as office phones ringing, and other employees coming in to ask for things then and there. When you’re working for yourself at home, you don’t have that problem.

Don’t you get lonely?

Not really. I do consider myself to be a very sociable person, but I do plenty of that when I’m not working. Plus, I’m usually talking to clients on the phone and via video meetings, and that still feels pretty sociable. I also like to have the radio playing (Magic Soul or BBC Radio 2 if you’re interested), and my little dog Nessie sits in my office with me.

What sort of things do you like to write about?

All sorts. When I first started working (as a reporter), I wrote about advertising. This included things like features on advertising trends, pitch wins, case studies etc. Since then I’ve written about lots of different subjects from e-commerce, to local news, web copy for kitchen retailers, kebab knives… As long as I’m provided with a brief, I shouldn’t have a problem! I’m sure over time I might find more of a specialised niche, but for now, I’m happy with a bit of variety.

Do you have a particular tone of voice?

I find it very easy to adapt the tone of voice to suit the individual projects I’m working on, but I would say my personal tone of voice is quite fun and conversational (I hope you agree!).

We should end on a fun one: What is something that you just recently realised that you are embarrassed you didn’t realise earlier?

I wouldn’t say this is embarrassing, but my mind is still blown by the realisation that OXO cubes are designed to be squashed into a little sachet which you then tear open. Did anyone else know that? Anyway, here’s where you can see it for yourself.

I hope you enjoyed learning a little more about me. If you did and think I would be good for your next project, let’s chat.