First Jobs and the Writing Life

About a week ago, Sioux posted about her first job and the writing lessons that she learned working at Dairy Queen. Then she challenged us to related the lessons learned at our own first jobs to our writing today.

When I was still too young to work a paying job, I volunteered as an assistant leader at a Girl Scout summer camp. My first paying job was also a summer job, as a nanny.

As a nanny, I worked for a young mother who had five children under the age of 7. To say she was overwhelmed was an understatement, but I didn’t work as a nanny. She played with the kids or took the babies in for checkups while I did dishes, changed beds, ran the vacuum and even cleaned out the frig. I was the maid. My first lesson?

Not all jobs are as advertised. Whether the deception is accidental (she really thought I would take care of the kids) or intentional (she hated housework as much as I do), sometimes you’ll take a writing job only to find that it isn’t the job the publisher described. I once wrote leveled reading material for an educational publisher. My editor was so green he had no experience in publishing or education. I had to teach him what his boss meant when she said “controlled vocabulary” and do the writing too. Fortunately I had learned another applicable lesson as not-really-a-nanny…

Even if you dislike the job, an end date can make it tolerable. Washing dishes that had been sitting on the kitchen counter since the last time I was at work was not my idea of a desirable job, but I needed the cash for college. Between when I took the job and when university started, I had 7 weeks. That end date helped me endure.

The project deadline for that educational publisher worked in much the same way. They did ask me to sign another contract, but I begged off citing other commitments. I only wish that my research before taking the job had turned up red flags so I could apply a lesson I learned working Girl Scout camp, and that would be…

Know the risks before you engage. One afternoon, we were making s-mores when one of the girls said, “Oh, no. It’s falling.” I saw movement out of the corner of my eye and stuck out my hand. Have you ever caught a marshmallow fresh out of the fire? You cannot drop it. It sticks. No matter how hard you flail. Let’s just say that I’m a lot more cautious now. I look for warning signs before I submit to an editor, apply for a writing job or pitch an agent. After all, I don’t want to get burned.

I may never again be a nanny or a scout leader, illustrate cultural resource management reports or collect oral histories, but it is amazing how many of my job related lessons apply to my writing life.

--SueBE

To find out more about Sue Bradford Edwards writing, visit her blog, One Writer's Journey.

Sue is also the instructor for Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults.

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3 comments lessons on writing, life lessons, the writing life, writing jobs

You Don’t Have to Be the Best Writer to Get the Best Job

It doesn’t matter if you write the most intriguing query letter and it doesn’t matter if you write the perfect article if you’re making any one of the mistakes I’m about to share with you.

The hard truth is, the best writers don’t necessarily get the best writing jobs.

The best writers don’t necessarily get any jobs. Talent alone will not get you hired.

Depending on how you feel about your own writing skills, reading that might have made you feel better or worse. But whether you believe writing skills are the product of inherent talent or years of practice, there are simple steps you can take to ensure you score regular gigs. These steps really don’t have anything to do with talent, but they do indicate whether you are a professional.

As a managing editor of a major website, I look for professionals. Typos, misspellings, factual errors, and sloppy writing are all hallmarks of unprofessionalism. You don’t want that label.

You want to be the opposite of that. You want to stand out from the crowd because you do care and you do comb through every detail of your work. Remember, an editor is typically overworked and overwhelmed. He or she is likely primarily looking for a reason to delete emails, and secondarily looking for quality materials.

So, here are six things you should look for in your article, manuscript, pitch, or query before you hit the send button. These might seem obvious, but you’d be surprised how often I see them in my inbox. And let’s be real, we all know we’ve committed at least a couple of these.

1. Spelling – Misspellings are an instant reason for an editor to hit “delete.” Keep an eye out especially for things that spellcheckers won’t recognize, such as “their” instead of “there.”

2. Adjectives and adverbs – These should not be the heart of your writing. Superfluous use of them is the sign of an immature writer (in years or in experience). Delete as many as you can.

3. Grammar – I don’t expect all writers to be grammar nerds, but I do expect them to have a general understanding of their craft. Look for non-sequiturs and noun-verb agreement in particular.

4. Repetition - Repetitive use of the same word is another sign of either a young writer or someone who hasn’t reread and refined her draft. If you see the same word popping up, it’s time to bust out your thesaurus.

5. Clichés – By definition, clichés bring nothing new to your work. Delete them all.

6. Incorrect clichés – It is not a “mute point” and there’s no such thing as “intensive purposes.”

Aside from all that technical stuff, there’s another level editors look for in potential writers. They look for people they actually want to work with. People they might even enjoy working with. This is something you should seek out, as well, because if someone enjoys working with you, he or she may hire you again.

When selecting writers, I look at three qualities (I didn’t come up with these, they came from reading many business books):

1. Does the person turn her work in on time?
2. Is she pleasant to work with?
3. Is she skilled at writing?

“Yes” answers to any two out of those three will result in a positive and productive situation for both the writer and me. So, first, get your article, manuscript, pitch, or query in tip-top shape by rereading and checking it against the list above. And then be punctual, pleasant, and good at what you do.

If you can handle that on top of having an excellent query letter and article, then you’ll be shoulder to shoulder with a small percentage of capable people any editor would be eager to hire.

***

Becca Borawski Jenkins is the Managing Editor of a major health and fitness website—a job she earned based on the success of her personal blogging. As the editor of BreakingMuscle.com she oversees a team of writers and editors, publishing 24 high-quality articles per week to an audience of almost 5 million readers each month.

Though she was born with the instinct to write, as a teenager she decided that a career in film and television would be more “practical” (don’t ask her the logic behind that). But even while studying filmmaking, she excelled as a writer, having a play produced in undergrad and a script turned into a short film in graduate school. While earning her MFA in Cinema-Television Production at USC, she focused mainly on scriptwriting and editing—both core elements of good story telling and fantastic ways to study story structure.

You can find out more about Becca by visiting her website: writing.huntgatherbrew.com

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Join Becca's upcoming online class, 

How to Write Meaningful Content for the Internet. 

Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment.

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1 comment Becca Jenkins, best writer, freelance writing, manuscripts, online class, pitching editors, query letters, WOW class, writing jobs, writing skills

How to Evaluate a Publisher or Agent

I’m always on the lookout for a good writing opportunity.  Recently, I saw that a publisher needed someone to write a young adult book that combines both of my degrees, anthropology and history.  I googled the publisher before sending in my application and, after checking out their web site, decided not to apply.  This publisher failed one of the 5 criteria I use when checking out possible opportunities.

A Web Presence.  The worst offenders have no web presence.  In this, the electronic age, that is an unforgivable error especially if payment is in terms of a royalty.  How are readers going to find out about the books if the publisher doesn’t even have a web site?  If I can’t find a site, my search is over and I go work on something else.

Professionalism.  I also walk away if the publisher or agent doesn’t look professional.  If you write for children like I do, many sites have fun, playful elements, but they should still be professional.  You want the sense that this person is running a business, not a hobby.  Look at the site and their products.  If anything screams amateur, I walk away.

Transparency.  When I’m looking at agents, I want to know who they represent and what they’ve sold.  For publishers, I need a feel for their books and their authors.  Believe it or not, I’ve checked out publishers who have slick web sites but make it almost impossible to get a feel for what they do. I walk away.

Philosophy.  Look for publishers whose philosophy is similar to your own.  You don’t need an exact match, because that can be impossible to find.  After all, I’m Christian who writes science, including evolution, and also writes about other cultures.  This means I avoid liberal publishers who trash religion and conservative publishers who trash science or other cultures. The publisher of the anthropology/history book had some anti-books on their list, so I walked away.

Gut Feeling.  My last criteria is almost impossible to explain.  If, in researching a publisher or agent, I get a bad feeling, I close the tab. Sometimes something just feels, to quote my New Jersey friends, hinky.  I never take on these jobs and I’ve never regretted it.  In fact, I’ve been relieved a time or two when I hear that they aren’t returning client calls, have pulled down their web site and are in bankruptcy. 

These are the things that I look for when researching publishing opportunities.  Do you have anything to add to the list?

--SueBE

Find out more about SueBE and her writing at her blog, One Writer's Journey.

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3 comments Agents, legitimate writing jobs, publishers, writing jobs

Business Writing on Craigslist

Last week, I wrote about considering business writing as part of your freelance career--especially with the number of magazines and newspapers folding. I talked about external and internal opportunities and about contacting businesses and letting them know about your services.

But Craigslist (www.craigslist.org) is also full of business writing opportunities. The hope is that you find one, get your resume in quickly before the other one hundred writers, do a great job, and the business hires you again. I have applied for Craigslist jobs before--some have worked out; some have not. Once, I received a phone call from a business owner who was looking for writers who could write on a variety of subjects for his event planning business. While he quickly interviewed me and I translated his heavy New York accent, he told me he received over one hundred resumes for that job. So, the competition is tough, and you have to be quick on Craigslist. Let’s talk about some tips on using Craigslist, so you don’t get lost in the shuffle.

•    Many of the large cities that you first see listed on the Craigslist home page have the most job openings for writers—even telecommunicating jobs. Use the local angle, though, to make yourself more desirable to an employer. For example, if you live near Chicago, search for jobs there first and mention your location in your first response to the job ad.
 
•    Click on your state and find your city on the list. I live in Missouri; so when I click on my state, I am taken to a page that lists several medium- and large-sized cities. I look at the jobs in those cities first and again mention that I am a local writer or editor. If I am familiar with the business, I will also mention that in my first e-mail.
 
•    Don’t answer ads that are general and don’t give much information about the business. These are often ads for sites that want you to subscribe to them to view jobs or make a very small amount of money for a very large amount of work.
 
•    On Craigslist, if it sounds too good to be true, it is too good to be true. It won’t hurt you to answer ads like this if you are not sure if they are legit or not (and everyone has different goals for their careers), but don’t waste a lot of time on them. With Craigslist, I usually put a couple sentences about myself, attach my resume WITHOUT my address (just my phone number and website), and send it. If the company is legit, then they will get back to you.

With Craigslist, it is a good idea to set aside one or two hours once a week to look through ads and respond to them. Start with your state, and then move on to bigger cities such as New York and Los Angeles. Look for ads from businesses, so you can develop a relationship with them and get more work when they need a writer.

Post by Margo L. Dill;
Photo by semihundido www.flickr.com 
 

For tips on querying and writing articles (for magazines or businesses), consider taking Margo's online course, Freelance Writing: Querying and Writing Non-Fiction Articles starting on August 19. For more information, check out the syllabus on the WOW! classroom page.

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Leave a Comment business writing, Craigslist, Margo L. Dill, writing jobs

Navigating the black hole of writing job applications

I love writing. Really I do. Which is why I have chosen to write for a living.
As many freelance writers do, I don't put all my clients into one egg basket. Among my clients I count newspapers, electronic media, book packagers, TV producers and custom publishers. When I don't query well or when I feel I'm spending too much time researching, then it is my fault. The guilt can pile on. But I generally feel okay if I've done my best.
However, sometimes a job catches my eye and I apply for it. In ordinary times, I hopefully assume, all the applicants would be contacted. However, in these extraordinary times of MediaBistro and CraigsList postings, e-mail boxes at hiring companies are overflowing. So I am thrilled when I have applied for a writing job and have been told I've reached the first cut of writers. Contacted by the company, I know that the pool of applicants has grown a bit smaller. But that's when things get a little fuzzy.
Then, it seems, I fall into the black hole of job applicants. It's a lonely hole--not because one is actually alone, but because you don't know who your fellow travelers are. To make the journey even more awkward, you don't want to be a very squeaky wheel. In this world of social media, you become a social media pariah if you tweet your unveiled frustrations.
I know the saying is that squeaky wheels get the grease, but what if the person you squeak to uses a delete button on a whim.
"Ugh, a second e-mail from this job applicant, we'll take care of that!"
What if you remain stuck in the black hole even after a stellar interview where you "connected" and yet the potential employer never contacts you again?
"We'll let you know on Monday."
In fact, the employer refuses to respond to direct e-mails but continues to write pithy tweets while you scan for any mention of a job hiring. Do you un-follow them?
Herein lies my dilemma, I love writing for the versatility and the sheer energy I can expend on my assignments. But it is the business of freelancing that gives me a woozy feeling. One that makes me wish that I'd never applied for the job because then I wouldn't be watching my mailbox like a shunned lover. I enjoy the relationships I've built with my editors and, yes, some of them stem from blindly sending a letter of introduction. But sometimes, like today, I want to know who my fellow travelers are so I can commiserate with them and, maybe together, we can become a squeaky wheel that tells employers to give us some love...or at least some writing jobs.

Elizabeth King Humphrey is a certified Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coach and freelance writer. She also blogs at www.CoastalCarolinaMoms.com and www.TheWriteElizabeth.com, delving into creativity in everyday places. She will try not to check her e-mail and Twitter every minute today...well, maybe just every other minute. Just in case.

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3 comments Elizabeth King Humphrey, freelance writing, writing jobs

Salaries in the Magazine World

This is from an editor's website: http://www.ed2010.com

"Next Stop: Your Magazine Dream Job"

The title says it all! Check out these sad pay rates of our industry:

Salary Reports

Meredith
Position/Job title:
Editorial Assistant
Salary:
$33,600
Other:
2 weeks vacay, once you accrue it; 2 personal days

Conde Nast
Position/Job title:
Assistant Editor
Salary:
$38K
Other:
2 weeks vacay, 4 personal days, good benefits

Time Inc.
Position/Job title:
Associate Editor
Salary:
$46K
Other:
4 weeks vacation

Dennis
Position/Job title:
Production Editor
Salary:
$45K

Hachette/Elle
Position/Job title:
Fashion Assistant
Salary:
$20K + OT
Other:
with prior experience

Unspecified Regional mag
Position/Job title:
Designer
Salary:
$37,500

Niche Media
Position/Job title:
Editorial Intern
Salary:
$1.25/hr

King Media
Position/Job title:
Editor
Salary:
$27K

Trade magazine
Position/Job title:
Freelance Assistant Editor
Salary:
$15/hr
Other:
$31K when full-time with sb, 2 weeks vacation, and traveling to trade shows

Hollywood Life Magazine
Position/Job title:
Editorial Assistant
Salary:
$10/hr
Other:
Health and Dental

Rodale
Position/Job title:
Intern
Salary:
$10.60/hr
Other:
Becomes $15/hr with master's degree

Time Inc.
Position/Job title:
Editorial Intern
Salary:
$10/hr

Bauer
Position/Job title:
Assistant Editor
Salary:
$36K
Other:
401K, free health; dental and life insurance; 15 days vacation; annual reviews

Unspecified Trade mag
Position/Job title:
Associate Editor
Salary:
$29K
Other:
Plus $3K in bonuses

Manhattan Media newspapers
Position/Job title:
Features Editor
Salary:
$30K
Other:
Half of full health benefits. 12 days vacation.

San Francisco consumer mag
Position/Job title:
Editorial Assistant
Salary:
$32K
Other:
Summer Fridays, 2 weeks paid vacation, full benefits, bonuses on birthdays, "anniversary" of company, and New Years. Paid editorial travel 3-4 times per year.

Meredith
Position/Job title:
Associate Editor
Salary:
$45K
Other:
3 weeks vacation, sb

Time Inc.
Position/Job title:
Assistant Editor
Salary:
$36K
Other:
4 weeks vacay, good benefits

McGraw Hill
Position/Job title:
Project Assistant
Salary:
$30K
Other:
no benefits or paid vacation, but can take days off when you need it.

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Suddenly freelancing is sounding a lot better!! You could make more by writing one of our feature articles than you would working for a straight week in some of these jobs... yikes.

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Leave a Comment magazine salaries, pay rates, writing jobs