By: Hunter Freeman
Every industry has been affected by the coronavirus, and professional writing is no exception.
English majors finishing up their Professional Writing concentration this year or looking to get work experience through an internship will likely be at a loss where to start in these uncertain times. Change is scary, but with these few things in mind, it can all work out in the end.
The opportunities will be different
Internships and writing positions will still be available, but there likely won’t be as many, especially for industries like radio, newspapers and magazines. Visual Capitalist shows that ad spend for each of these mediums is down 16.2%, 19.5% and 21.5% respectively. In a pre-corona world, many English majors looked to these industries as a source of early-career experience, but with less money from advertisers, there will be less money to hire new staff, especially those lacking experience.
“Print is not dead, but it is on life support.”
However, it’s not all bad news. Professional writers growing up in the information age have some of the key skills companies are looking for. That same Visual Capitalist fact sheet reports that ad spend for social media is up 9.8%, despite the pandemic.
According to a Gallup poll, nearly half of employees in the US are still working from home full-time or part of the time.
Many facets of industry have been pushed online because of the virus and will likely stay online because people have adapted. What does that mean for undergrads? Leverage those tech skills to paint yourself as a good candidate. An intern with a good understanding of social media and the ability to interface with technology is currently more valuable than the intern who only writes pretty good copy. Be the candidate that can combine both. There will also be a significant shift in opportunities, following the significant shift is ad dollars.
Freelance is Huge
Freelance opportunities, or the gig economy, is booming. Upwork, a platform that connects freelancers to clients, released a report on trends in freelancing. Adam Ozimek, Upwork’s Chief Economist, writes:
“Normally, around 10% of freelancers have started freelancing sometime in the last six months. However, at the time of the survey in June-July 2020, 34% had started since the onset of COVID-19 in early March.” In short, more people are entering the freelance market.
Professional writers are no different. We are all familiar with platforms like Uber, Shipt and DoorDash that use “independent contractors” as part of their services. As more companies divvy out rolls to online employees, professional writers graduating this year will likely supplement their income with freelance work in the near future.
Platforms like Medium and WordPress offer writers a way to monetize their writing. Be familiar with these platforms, build a portfolio, and the transition will be easier. The ability to market oneself will have new importance in a growing gig economy.
Boring Is Sexy
The starving artist should not be glamorized. The hard truth of professional writing is that it often isn’t very fun. As NYU Stern Professor Scott Galloway puts it, “Boring is Sexy.” His book The Algebra of Happiness offers plenty of good advice for up-and-comers, but he advises undergrads to be realistic. He writes, “If you want to work at Vogue, produce movies, or open a restaurant, you need to ensure that you receive a great deal of psychic income, as the returns on your efforts (distinct of well-publicized exceptions) will be, on a risk-adjusted basis, awful.”
For many professional writers, this should translate as lowering your expectations of writing as a day job. I work in administration reviewing and editing manuscripts and grant applications. Do I love it? No, it is rather boring. But, boring lets me write creatively in my free time.
Boring allows me to take freelance opportunities I want to take rather than need to take. Boring pays the bills.
This lesson is especially important for post-corona professional writers. The jobs of our dreams are either dying or occupied. If you are talented and lucky, your time will come, but you have to pay rent first. Take comfort in the boring job, and it will let you keep writing.
There is no going back, probably
You will keep seeing the expression the New Normal. This is ours. Professional writing in a post-corona society is enabled by technology, cooperation over distance, and for most of you, probably boring. Being able to display your technological skills and specialize in a particular sector will make you more marketable. Write the op-ed in your free time while you totally dominate being an insurance underwriter, a grant coordinator, or a social media strategist.
If you have made it this far, whether it is from the comfort of your house or sitting behind a desk in a dimly lit office, that means writing is your calling. And I wish you the best of luck.
