Bartering My Way Out of Debt... Is it Possible?

My husband and I are drowning in debt. Like so many other people in our situation, we are basically living from paycheck to paycheck. We can't afford health insurance and make too much money to be covered or subsidized, by a government program.

Yes, our debts are our fault. We have no problem admitting to that. We have only been married for 11 months, so the vast majority of our debt is technically 'his' and 'hers'. Together we owe approximately $107,000. It is my hope to have it paid off, in five years or less.

We are currently renting our home. It is a nice house, in a not so nice neighborhood. When we moved in 16 months ago, we signed a one year rent-to own contract. We agreed to try for a mortgage, when the contract was up. Needless to say, we signed a second one year contract. Our low credit scores and high credit card utilization make it impossible for us to obtain a mortgage, right now.

I currently work at home, 35 hours per week, as an AAA Renewal Specialist. I also write, part-time. Due to a psychical disability (I walk on crutches) working at home is ideal for me. Obviously jobs like waitressing, cashiering and anything that requires long periods of standing are a no-go for me.

I love to write. I'll never be another J.K. Rowling or Dean Koontz, but I have been published in several print, regional-type, parenting magazines.

I've also written tons of content articles, over the past couple of years. My biggest problem with that type of article is I don't charge enough. My husband is forever telling me I need to raise my fees. But, I like to think I'm helping website owners who are trying to promote their site, on a small budget. Kind of a 'pay it forward' way of thinking, I guess.

At 2 a.m. this morning, while TRYING to fall asleep, I got the wild idea to try to barter away my debt. I know it's probably a very long shot, but I've seen stranger things happen.