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  • Becoming a Writer: Small Steps to a Big Career

    Becoming a Writer: Small Steps to a Big Career

    Humans have been writing words down for over five thousand years. Some seek a form of expression free of the anxieties and shyness of verbal communication, or are drawn to how far the written word can spread and its longevity. The question remains: How do you make it a career?

    An important thing to keep in mind is that writing can entail many different careers in many different industries. Authors, screenwriters, journalists, and playwrights all exist in different work spheres doing very different things.

    Ultimately, it all comes down to one principle: If you want to write, write. Make it a habit. Give yourself a goal to accomplish daily. It could be a journal entry, or perhaps 500 more words to the novel you are working on. If you have no idea whatsoever what to write, spend five minutes typing out a stream of consciousness. This is one of those rare cases where quantity is more important than quality. The vast majority of any writer’s work never sees the light of day.

    In school, and everywhere else, you can divide everything you do into two groups: writing opportunities and writing inspirations. All writing projects are opportunities to find your voice. If the task is a dry one, such as a history essay, ask your instructor if you could write it as a piece of historical fiction.

    Writing is fueled by experience. The challenges of math class and the situations in word problems could inspire a short story. Civics class is research for your political thriller. Everything you do either leads you towards a writing career, or inspires your writing career.

    Outside of school, seek out opportunities to get your work published. You need credits to your name, no matter how small, so hunt online for sites and contests to submit your work. Author Karen Krossing offers a great resource of such sites: karenkrossing.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/Where-Young-Authors-Can-Submit.pdf. Getting your work on sites and magazines builds a portfolio for people to get to know you and your writing style.

    As you get older, it will be important to network and meet people in the industry. Make friends with people who are also keen on a writing career or a career in the creative arts. They are not your competition – you can help edit each other’s works, and help each other seek out opportunities in the future. In university and beyond, meeting people in the industry is the best way to find paid writing work.

    A writing career will not happen overnight. You will likely start with small freelance opportunities and grow from there. By writing daily and being open to inspiration from anywhere, you will build a portfolio and the skills for writing. By submitting your work and meeting new people, you will have a better chance of discovering opportunities to write and actually get paid for it. If you are devoted to the craft, you will be ready for when those opportunities arise.

  • What is a Technical Writer?

    What is a Technical Writer?

    When you read the instruction manual for your favorite software or gadget, do you ever ask yourself, “Who writes this stuff?” In case you’re curious, that person is a technical writer.

    A technical writer is a professional writer who simplifies complex technical and business documentation for a product or service to maximize reader comprehension. Technical writers produce relevant, accurate and complete information that helps the target audience find what they need, understand what they find and use that understanding to accomplish a goal. The goal can be complying with a policy, learning a software application or following work safety practices. Technical writers can have various job titles, including content developer, information developer, technical communicator or technical documentation specialist.

    Job opportunities exist for technical writers across many industries like banking, healthcare, transportation, oil and gas, government, military, manufacturing, information technology, insurance, architecture and engineering. Companies employ technical writers to produce technical documentation like software user manuals and engineering specifications or business documentation like company policies and reports. Technical writers can also be called upon to produce website content, warning labels, how-to videos, online help, FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions), test plans and more.

    If you’re still in high school, the best subjects to take to prepare for a technical writing career are English, journalism and computer-related courses. Try to learn some Microsoft Office programs, especially Word and PowerPoint.

    Although technical writing is not a regulated field, it will serve you well to take post-secondary training. Several schools offer a one-year certificate or a two-year diploma program in technical writing. Depending on the school, you may need a Bachelor’s degree before entering. These programs prepare you for a career in technical writing through a combination of course work and on-site placement. You’ll learn about research, audience analysis, technical writing, editing, information design, indexing, documentation project management and more. In addition, you’ll be introduced to the tools of the trade like Visio (a flowchart tool), FrameMaker (a publishing tool) and RoboHelp (an online help tool).

    To succeed as a technical writer, you’ll need strong research and communication skills to gather complex information from various sources then translate it into plain language. You must be a people person because you’ll work with not only writers and editors, but also with Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) like engineers, testers and computer programmers. You may also work with people in high positions like your manager, director, or even the Chief Executive Officer (CEO). If you’re the only writer in the company, you’ll have to work independently and solve documentation problems on your own since you won’t have the support of another writer.

    Technical writing can be very demanding, but it pays well. The average annual salary ranges from $37,000 to $82,000; and the average hourly rate ranges from $16.00 to $51.00. You can make more money if you have a technical background in engineering, computer science or network security.

    If you can grasp complex concepts quickly and have a flair for writing, technical writing may be the career for you.

  • Do Poets Make Money?

    Do Poets Make Money?

    Oscar Wilde wrote, “The best work in literature is always done by those who do not depend on it for their daily bread and the highest form of literature, poetry, brings no wealth to the singer.”

    For those of you who aren’t familiar with Mr. Wilde, he was an Irish writer. He wrote plays (The Importance of Being Earnest is one of his most famous), poetry and one novel (The Picture of Dorian Gray). He was born in 1854 and died in 1900. Although he enjoyed much success during his lifetime, he died alone and destitute (poor) in France at the age of 46.

    Oscar Wilde is just one example of the many “tortured artists,” whose works failed to financially sustain them during their lifetime, but live on as celebrated classic pieces of literature to this day. William Blake, Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost were all great poets who were mostly unrecognized for their talents during their lifetime.

    Emily Dickinson, who is arguably one of the best female poets of all-time, was a recluse who only published 7 poems while she was alive. After her death it was discovered she had written over a thousand pieces.

    In today’s society there are some successful writers who make a living as poets: Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, Robert Munsch and Margaret Atwood to name a few. But for the most part, the words Oscar Wilde wrote over a century ago remain true. Most people write poetry not for the money, but for the enjoyment it gives them. Some writers say they “need to write,” while others use it as a tool to express their true emotions. Poetry enriches the human experience by passing on knowledge and insight that may otherwise go unnoticed.

    There are a number of jobs available for people who enjoy reading and writing poetry:

    – Teaching is a great way to encourage others to develop a respect for poetry and to encourage others to write themselves. You could teach an English class at a high school, which would give you the opportunity to teach poetry as well as fiction and grammar. A job at a college or university would allow you to teach a more specified class in your chosen field. You could also make some extra money by offering your services as a poetry tutor.

    – If you simply love poetry because you love to write, a career in journalism may be an option. You could write stories for the local newspaper or look into freelance writing for specific types of magazines or online blogs that interest you.

    – You could work as an editor of a poetry magazine or for a publishing company that publishes books of poetry – or even write for a greeting card company.

    – You could work at a bookstore, open up your own independent book shop with a large poetry section or work as a librarian at your local library. One of the perks of working at a library or bookstore is that you can arrange for poetry readings and book signings by local authors. You could also organize writing seminars and book groups.

    Despite what career path you decide to take, keep writing even while knowing it may never make you rich. It will, however, enrich your life with the insight and perspective it provides. And who knows? Maybe someday you’ll prove Mr. Wilde wrong and become one of the lucky few who have long, successful careers selling thousands of poems or maybe you will become a Noble laureate in literature and win a gold medal, a diploma and a sum of money (which is currently around $1,100,000 U.S.).

  • Career Profile: Journalist

    Career Profile: Journalist

    Journalists can have a specialty.  In large organizations, the journalists may specialize in only one task. In small organizations, each journalist may have to do many different tasks. Here are some of the jobs journalists do:

    Reporters gather information and present it in a written or spoken form in news stories, feature articles or documentaries. Reporters may work on the staff of news organizations, but may also work freelance, writing stories for whoever pays them.

    General reporters cover all sorts of news stories, but some journalists specialize in certain areas such as reporting sport, politics or agriculture.

    Sub-editors take reporter written stories and put them into a form which suits the special needs of their particular newspaper, magazine, bulletin or web page. Sub-editors don’t usually gather information themselves. Their job is to concentrate on how the story can best be presented to their audience. They are often called subs. The person in charge of them is called the chief sub-editor, usually shortened to chief sub.

    Photojournalists use photographs to tell the new. They ether cover events with a reporter, taking photographs to illustrate the written story, or attend news events on their own, presenting both the pictures and a story or caption.

    The editor is usually the person who makes the final decision about what is included in the newspaper, magazine or news bulletins. He or she is responsible for all the content and all the journalists. Editors may have deputies and assistants to help them.

    The news editor is the person in charge of the news journalists. In small organizations, the news editor may make all the decisions about what stories to cover and who will do the work. In larger organizations, the news editor may have a deputy, often called the chief of staff, whose special job is to assign reporters to the stories selected.

    Feature writers work for newspapers and magazines, writing longer stories which usually give background to the news. In small organizations the reporters themselves will write feature articles. The person in charge of features is usually called the features editor. Larger radio or television stations may have specialist staff producing current affairs programs – the broadcasting equivalent of the feature article. The person in charge of producing a particular current affairs program is usually called the producer and the person in charge of all the programs in that series is called the executive producer or EP.

    There are many other jobs which can be done by journalists. It is a career with many opportunities.

  • A Career In Writing

    A Career In Writing

    Do you enjoy writing? Have you spent years recording your thoughts in a journal? Is that enough to have a career in writing? Many people have dreams of becoming a famous author who is read by the masses, but how achievable is that goal? It all depends on what kind of writer you want to be.

    Print journalism requires a degree, preferably one in media, or writing. However, it is important to note that print journalism is a somewhat archaic career. There are so many changes that have taken place in the field in the last decade involving technology and the internet that it is worth taking a hard look at what these changes mean to the up-and-coming writer.

    Magazine writing is still a viable option, though it is very difficult to break into. Entering contests is a good way to get your name out there and to add something credible to add to a resume. The key to being a successful magazine writer is to continually submit material. Find a topic that you are interested in and that has potential to interest others and go for it!

    Writing a novel is entirely different than any other form of writing. Can anyone do it? Does it require skill or innate talent? The answer is a little of both with a whole lot of perseverance. The only thing holding back someone from being a published novelist is time and patience. It takes a long time to learn the ropes of novel writing and depending on the path you wish to go down, a lot of hard work.

    The online writing market is exploding – it is the future of writing. While the new writer must maneuver through a minefield of scams, there are more and more opportunities for the savvy writer with legitimate skills.

    Becoming a social media expert can also benefit you as a writer. Many potential clients are looking for that writer who can navigate the layers of social platforms. Knowing how to use contacts, how to build a following on Twitter and how to find your way around the multitude of other social media sites is now considered a valuable asset to your resume.

    So if you enjoy writing, keep doing it! Build your resume as much as you can and keep your eyes (and ears) peeled for writing opportunities.