Who is Kerrie Solsberg McLoughlin?

me on a rare fancy evening out
in a '60s-style dressI got at a thrift store

Like all of you, I am many different things.

Laid-Back Homeschooler. Helicopter Mom. Long-Term Wife. Catholic Convert. Magazine Writer. Lit & Comp Teacher. Picky Proofreader. Self-Published Author. Traveler. Adventurer. Pokemon Go! Player. Entrepreneur.

Born in Frankfurt, Germany on a Saturday in June of 1971 (almost in the back of a VW Bug racing down the Autobahn), I believe that family, friends, and faith are the most important things in life.

I live in a rural suburb of Kansas City and am a wife (to Aron since 1998), a grateful 52-year-old mother (five fab kids), a teacher (homeschooling K-12 + teaching at co-op), and a writer/proofreader (blogs, books, and parenting magazine articles).

my dad holding me at
the Army hospital

I've homeschooled three of my kids all the way through and am still teaching my sophomore and 7th/8th grader. I teach IEW Writing to middle schoolers at co-op, as well as high school Government plus Yearbook.

I am the author of The Tater Tot Casserole Cookbook and also The Mother of All Writing Market Books: 600 Homes for Your Family, Parenting, and Women's Articles, Essays, and More. I grew up loving writing and have written for over 180 regional parenting magazines since 2009. 

Check out my main blog at TheKerrieShow, then click over to The Published Parent, where I write about the life of a work-at-home writer mom. I also blog at Homeschooling Mommybot and attempt to cook and bake at Kerrie the Kitchen Queen.

Below is a Q&A you can use on your own site if you'd like to help promote my books and blogs, and I'm also available for interviews and podcasts! You can email me at TheKerrieShow@gmail.com.

How long have you had your business?

Since late in 2009, when I was pregnant with my 5th child (Samuel, who now keeps me hopping with his love of all sports).

What led you to pursue it?  

I've always loved writing, and once I hit a certain point in being a mother I realized I had much to say and much advice to give! Also, it's the perfect thing for an attachment parenting mama to do ... nursing while typing is no problem! Plus, I now homeschool, so I can be with my kids and write.

Are you full-time or part-time? 

Part-time until all my kids are grown, but lately I am able to find more time while they sleep late in the mornings before we start our homeschool day! Also, I write more in the summertime. 

How do you market your business?

The typical social media outlets: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram, various blogs.

What is your favorite part of the business?

Too many favorites! It's portable and I can do it on my own time and do as much or as little as I want or am able to do. I love being able to homeschool the kids while being with my traveling-for-work husband sometimes.

What one question do you get most from people about your business?

How much money can you make? So I put that monthly on my blog, The Published Parent.  I'm very honest. I started getting really serious in April of 2013, then made about $1,300 in May. Check it out. I also list my sources of income with links so you can do what I do if you so desire! Some months I make over $2,000, but that's usually in the summer when I'm not homeschooling.

What one myth or misconception do you want to dispel about the work you do?

That you can't make good money as a writer. If you have many balls in the air, and you are organized, you can do it!

What advice do you have for others who want to get into a similar opportunity?

Keep at it and don't get discouraged and don't worry about rejection ... keep moving forward. If you have multiple queries and writing opportunities and ebooks in the works and are writing every day, you will get better and you will sell work. And please don't languish in the content mills! You are worth more money than that!

What is the first step?

If you want to write for regional parenting magazines for clips and money then work your way up to nationals like Parents, Working Mother, and the like, get my book! Just get your stuff out there. There are so many different ways to freelance! For instance, my regional parenting work led to writing a marketing manual for an editor who had another business. It also led to Contently.com, where I wrote great-paying blog posts for companies for a short time and Scripted.com.

Write on, and Kerrie on 💗