A letter from a student

I only post this letter because this is a (more or less) hidden blog.

I got this email last night:

Dr. XXXXXXXXX,

Hi, how are you? This is XXXXX XXXXXX. I was in your COM 481 class in the Spring of 2005. I heard that you are no longer at XXXXXXXXX University. I hope you are doing well in whatever path you have chosen. I'm emailing you for your opinion and for your advice.

I have been working at a bank holding corporation for the past 15 months as a Marketing Assistant and I've decided that I want to change careers. I want to do copy writing and I'm stuck at how to proceed. I've never had any writing published, except a little at this past job, however, I have a great deal of graphic design experience. My dream job, is to write for a well known magazine in the Chicago land area, but I want to build up my portfolio with writing samples first.

I have a couple questions; is it better to look for a paid job compared to an internship to get my foot in the door for a copy writing position? Will I even be considered for a paid job with very little copy writing experience? What are your thoughts on Freelance writers? I am clueless how Freelancing work; do I get credit for my writing and where do I look?

I know what I want to do, I'm just having trouble figuring out how to achieve it. Any thoughts, advice, comments would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

XXXXX XXXXXX
XXXXXXXX@hotmail.com
XXX-XXX-XXXX

Because I am no longer a professor who has to worry about the student's self-esteem( plus I am a little bitchy), I answered honestly:

Dear XXXXXXXX,

It has been a long time since we last spoke. I too hope that all is well with you.

I stopped teaching last May and am now living in Minneapolis. I look forward to a real winter. It should arrive any day now.

First off, I recommend that you take a writing class to sort out your grammar and punctuation issues. The problems in your letter were not huge BUT they would not get you in the door for a writing job. If you are going to be a writer, knowing how to edit beautifully is the difference between a paycheck and unemployment. Also, a class will help you add more elegance and style to your writing. As a graphic designer, you already know the value of practicing your art. Learning how to write well works on the exact same principles.

Career changes are tricky. I cannot give you instructions on how to do it like I assigned homework. If you want someone to work with you in depth, I recommend that you find a career counselor. Are you still in Illinois? You can find a professional career counselor at the Illinois Career Development Association (it is connected to the reputable Illinois Counseling Association). Do not just pick the first one to come along. It is very important that you interview several to select someone with solid credentials and a working style that compliments your personality. Expect to pay about $100 to $120 an hour. Check to see if insurance will cover the costs. Is it worth it? It helped me greatly when I was your age. I was tested for my professional strengths. It was the best $600 I ever spent. For example, I knew that I was good at math but the testing showed me that I have a rare statistical gift. Who knows that undiscovered treasures are inside you? Career counselors are also great at strategizing the career transition.

In your case, you might want to work with a career counselor to see if you can afford to be a freelance writer. Did you know that most freelance writers have day jobs? When I ran an alternative newspaper, we paid our freelance writers $25 per article. The big winners made $100 a week. It was not a decent living. Personally, I believe the only reason in this world to be a professional writer is because you can't stop yourself. Editors easily spot the writing addicts because word nerds know their own. Editors are not going to buy writing from someone who requires massive rewrites and has an undeveloped writing style.

I am not trying to discourage you, though. I think that you need to do much more research into writing jobs. I also think that you are in a very early phase of your career transition. For example, did you know that writing copy for ads is a very different skill than writing magazine articles? A copywriter is someone who creates ads and other marketing collateral. A person who writes for magazines would call herself a journalist or a writer depending on the type of writing. You appeared to be confused about these differences.

I belong to a writers' group that meets once a week and reviews each other's writing. Is it a brutal process? Yes. Is it a helpful process? Absolutely. Check Craigslist or Meetup.com for groups in your area. Also, independent bookstores sometimes have lists of local writers groups (that is where I found mine). Maybe you want to find the bookstores, bars and/or coffee shops where the writers hang out. Hook into their network.

Your XXXXXXXX University degree was a push in the right direction for a career. It was not the end all of your writing education, and it was not intended to be. The only way to really learn to really write is to do it obsessively for years. Do it for fun, for work, for friends, for strangers, for joy, for pain, for your demons, for your angels, for your sanity, for your craziness and for the sun to rise tomorrow morning. Have you started that process? Have you filled 100s of notebooks and killed 1000s of pens yet? If not, then get cracking because that is what your competition is doing.

They are blogging and reading/critiquing other writer's blogs. They are doing exercises like painting word pictures of their top front porch step without using adjectives. They have dog-eared reference books, overdue library books, and 46 versions of a short story that they just can't finish piled on their sofa. They set their printers to print only half width so they can save paper by running the same sheet through the printer four times. They discuss the origins of words and obsess about the nuances of synonyms. They read their work aloud to anyone who will listen even if it is only the cat.

In conclusion, young Jedi, I suggest that you research your brains out. Search Amazon for books on writing (I recommend Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg, The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition by William Strunk Jr., E.B. White, and Roger Angell , AP Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law by the Associated Press, then read 100 more after those), find a writers' group that fits you (Look hard - there are many hidden ones and each has its own emphasis. Don't stop at the first one.), take classes until you can proofread like a New York Times editor (You might even want to look into classes about getting published or ones that emphasize magazine writing), find a career counselor (to get very clear on what you want and the cost of getting it), make a smart librarian your new best friend, and persevere.

There is no shortcut to an interesting job.

Good luck,

KD

P.S. Have you checked with the XXXXXXXX University Career Center? They have a new advisor for the Department of Communications. Also, it is free to alumni. If you are still in XXXXXXXXX, let me know and I will send you to some places to look for career counselors.