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You’re fresh out of college with a degree
in English, Journalism, or Communications. You’re in love with
computers and you never met a piece of consumer electronics
equipment you didn’t like. You read science and technology
articles on the Internet. And, finally, you’ve heard technical
writers earn great money. Or, you’re a freelance writer who’s
decided it’s time to go to work full-time. You need a salary and
benefits.
How can you convince a prospective employer
that you are a candidate for an entry-level technical writing
job?
Gather your writing samples
Before you
do anything else, you need to collect as many samples of your
writing as possible. If you’ve been a student your whole life,
and you don’t have any professional writing samples, look to
what you did in school. You wrote papers; you wrote reports; you
wrote literary criticism. Maybe you wrote for the school paper
or for a special interest newsletter. Maybe you were recruited
to write articles for your church or a community organization.
Maybe you’ve had your own web page or blog. Those are all
potential writing samples.
If you’ve been freelancing, finding writing
samples may be a little easier. Pull tear sheets from print
publications and print your copy from the Internet.
Organize your writing samples
Set up a file box or a large binder with
sleeve inserts so that you can categorize your writing samples
by type and subject matter. Haul out any old writing samples out
and dust them off. Review them with a critical eye for typos, grammatical and spelling errors, and overall layout.
If they don’t look professional, take a few hours to reformat
them and make them
look better; if they don't read well, either do an edit or don't
include them. Then, sort them by type of article and subject
matter. Some articles will fit more than one category, so you
may want multiple copies filed in different sections.
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Looking for technical writing work
Once you have organized your clippings,
you’re ready to look for a technical writing job. Check ads in
local newspapers, online job boards and visit the career pages
of potential employers. Make sure to mention to friends and
relatives that you are seeking a technical writing position; you
can never underestimate the value of networking.
When you find a suitable position, prepare
a cover letter and tailor your resume to the position. Commence
waiting and hoping.
Preparing for a technical writing interview
When a company calls you for an interview,
you will be able to quickly pull your relevant writing samples
and organize them into a portfolio or ring binder. Make sure to
add explanatory text or notes as necessary. Plastic protector
sheets make your work look more professional.
Sometimes, companies don’t ask you to bring
samples, but if you are interviewing for a writing job, writing
samples are a must. Someone who claims to be a “writer,” but who
appears without samples will not be taken seriously.
If you’ve only written part of a document
that you present among your samples, say so. No one will fault
you for honesty. If you’ve never written in a corporate
environment, admit it, but point out all of the writing you’ve
done as a student, community member, or freelancer.
Hiring managers for entry level writing
positions are much more likely to consider someone just out of
school with excellent writing samples than a supposedly
experienced writer who could not provide good samples.
Experience counts only when it is accompanied by output that
demonstrates the skills claimed by the applicant.
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