If my career up to this point has taught me anything, it’s that you can and should use every bit of personal and professional experience you have toward your career path as a creative and professional writer.
In the past, I would’ve shrugged off these experiences as part of a winding road that I hoped would make sense to a future employer whenever I was on the job hunt. Now I look at them as breadcrumbs that led me to where I’m headed now in my creative career. How did it all start?
I’ve spent the last 15+ (I stopped counting) years as a professional communicator and public affairs specialist. The core skills in this profession range from being able to write compelling content, such as press releases, articles, and briefings for the media and executives.
Ten years ago, I received my Master of Fine Arts degree in Writing Popular Fiction, which is where I learned about writing genre fiction (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, romance, etc.) and wrote a thesis novel for the young adult audience. This experience taught me about deciding which feedback to act on from critique sessions, working with professional author mentors, and pitching to the publishing industry.
After graduation, I also worked with my alumni association on our annual writing workshop as the guest liaison, where I invited authors, literary agents, and editors to participate. I also personally guided them on the cozy Hogwarts-style campus and throughout their stay in our sleepy college town.
I was surprised by how approachable and willing many of these professionals were when it came down to giving back to the writing community. Some of them offered to read the workshop participants’ manuscripts, and many simply listened to their pitches and provided feedback. Some people got representation from their novels, but many of the participants simply appreciated the opportunity to pitch in a friendly setting as opposed to a big conference.
I’ve had rich cross-cultural experiences that expanded my knowledge of various cultures. I studied abroad in Russia, taught English in Japan, and worked with New Zealanders and Maori for a few years as a public affairs and events manager.
There is a depth of knowledge about the language and cultures that I wouldn’t have known by just Googling for information. I feel so fortunate to have had these opportunities to make some deep and enriching connections with the people that I worked with. Some of them are still lifelong friends.
In the last year, I’ve been preparing myself for a new career as a screenwriter in the film and television industry. I’ve taken screenwriting classes, written two screenplays for TV and film, and entered contests.
Looking at all of these experiences, you might think that they have zero connection to each other, but that’s not true. I’m the connection. I have to see how I can use my international, education, cultural, and communications background to serve me going forward.
Here are some tips and takeaways that I think might be helpful to you too:
- Never turn down an opportunity to expand your skills. Does the job as a telemarketer sound like a drag? Maybe it’s actually preparing you for pitching your book to the publishing industry.
- Don’t be so rigid in your professional aspirations that you only take jobs that are safe. This one is pretty self-explanatory, but if you’re a professional communicator and don’t dip your toes into the “dark side” of marketing, you might be missing out. While these two career paths might require similar skillsets, the approaches to reaching audiences are quite different. Marketing skills is yet another way to pitch your stories, products, or ideas.
- Take on volunteer or internship positions to break into your new industry. If someone doesn’t want to hire you because you don’t have years of experience or education in a certain area, take on roles that are lower barrier to entry, e.g. unpaid or part-time paid positions.
How has it been going for me so far? Pretty good. I’ve placed in a few of the screenplay contests that I’ve entered, but no monetary rewards thus far, just the joy of knowing that I did that!
I’ve published three short stories in anthologies in the last two years and got paid a small amount for one of the publishing contracts. I would’ve published more, but that’s just because I haven’t submitted stories in a while. Right now, I’m just focused on submitting screenplays over short stories, but I’ll get back to it! Imagine how much I can accomplish if I put all of my energy into it.
The moral of the story is that you truly should be mining your experiences for how you can apply what you’ve learned in your personal and professional life to your new career path. Make a simple tree of knowledge to show the experience and compare it to what is needed to enter the industry that you’re interested in.
My tree of knowledge might look like me using my communications skills to write blogs and articles about my writing projects and promoting it on social media and podcasts. It might mean that I don’t have to pay someone to do these things, which ultimately saves me money.
It might also look like me using my media pitching skills to pitch my novel and screenplays to agents and managers. The sky is truly the limit.
So, don’t see your past as a maze of bill-paying jobs, see them as the building blocks to your future. Best of luck to you!
Gina N. Anderson 