How do you find the good in the bad when you’ve lost your job? Whether that job was your dream job or a paycheck, it paid the bills. Now that you’re unemployed, however, you’re thinking about how much you’ve always wanted to write. You never had the time, though. Well, the time is here, you need the income, and you can put this loss to work for you.

After having lost my job, I struggled to build my freelance writing to equal the income I made. Then I turned my frustration into cash by writing about my loss. Fifteen years later, I still write about that period of unemployment because the topic pays. There are sites interested in hearing about job loss, advice for those seeking work, and experiences in my chosen career field.

One such place is Unemploymentville which provides detailed guidelines. They desire personal stories about the hardships of unemployment as well as unique job search methods. The pay is anywhere from $25-$75 for 350 words, but be prepared to wait a while for a response.

Elite Personal Finance is always on the lookout for stories about how to save money, and if you’re unemployed, you already learned tricks about the lifestyle. Anything to do with money piques their interest, including loans. If you’ve used one of those payday loans or car title loans, an article about your personal experience will work perfectly here, especially if you include what not to do and why you shouldn’t use one of those options. They pay $300 per 1,000-3,000 word post.

One of the best ways to work out your frustration about your job loss is to write a personal essay about it, and Vox considers them. You can also write about your money struggles without a job or how you’re surviving. Anything personal to you will work, and, unfortunately, unemployment is a big topic right now. They do accept essays from first-time writers, and even say they will work with you to turn a story idea into a decent essay. They don’t mention a specific payment amount, but their website states they do pay and will discuss specifics if a piece is accepted.

If you are just getting started writing, you may want to consider writing for a few blogs that don’t pay just to get your feet off the ground and to build your portfolio. Not many, though, because you don’t want to be lulled into the satisfaction of acceptance and neglect the income you need. You can find blogs for any topic just by Googling THE TOPIC + WRITE FOR US. In this way, you can use your former career as a building block for your writing.

Places like The Job Network and Quest News Group provide detailed guidelines on how to get your work accepted, and they can help you get your foot in the door. Even if you’ve just lost your job, you still have the knowledge you can share with others trying to break into your field.

Losing your job isn’t fun, but it can be a jumping-off point to your writing career. Funnel your frustration and anxiety into essays and articles that can help other people, and your wallet as well.

BIO—Rachel Carrington is a published author of fiction and nonfiction, having written for The Writer, FundsforWriters, Writers Weekly, Rooted in Rights, Startrek.com, and the New York Times to name a few. She is also a site expert for Redshirtsalwaysdie.com and a passionate blogger at ajourneyoffives.com.