Career options as a writer
Overview
I never considered myself a writer and still don't really, despite all my contributions to Amazon and my own blogs including this one. However, I obviously have some ability in that capacity and if somebody has a viable idea then I'll consider it, but what might I do?
Newspaper articles
In the comments he made at the bottom of this page, Martyn suggests that this may be my best option if I want to go into writing. It doesn't help that I've fallen out with my local newspaper, the Leicester Mercury, over their coverage of my Amazon activities, but it's an interesting idea.
Professional reviews
I long ago realised that there is a world of difference between the reviews posted by amateurs on Amazon and the professional reviews that appear in newspapers and magazines. Martyn obviously agrees, because he suggests that if I want to pursue writing as a career, I should give up Amazon unless I write the kind of reviews that magazines and newspapers want. Actually, I think that my best reviews might be good enough for magazines and newspapers, but most wouldn't. Still, I'm definitely not giving up Amazon (unless Amazon themselves offer me a job that creates a conflict of interest, in which case I would make the sacrifice) because it's too much fun, while I would only change my reviewing style if I were to review professionally. My present style clearly suits a significant number of Amazon's customers, so why change a winning formula?
Book about Amazon related stuff
Another suggestion, this time from an Amazon USA reviewer, is that I should assemble a book about Amazon. (If I did, it would cover all their websites.) I could create one section based on the information provided in my former Amazon topics blog (unavailable online just now, though I have a copy of its contents offline), expanded and edited to make it suitable for book publication. Another section could be a compilation of 100 or 200 of my reviews, perhaps with some additional comments. Maybe other sections could be added too.
Such a book might be relatively easy to assemble (though still not that easy), since much of the source material is already written, but how many people would buy it? Since the people most interested would themselves be Amazon reviewers to some of whom I'd send review copies (and who therefore wouldn't be customers), it might be difficult to sell enough copies to justify publication. While it would be cheaper to publish in an e-book format such as Kindle, I think the whole point in publishing would be to provide it in a paper format, given that the information is available online anyway. I know that the Kindle does not require an internet connection, but it would be difficult to arouse my interest in publishing an e-book without also publishing a paper version.
Publisher O'Reilly released Amazon hacks a few years ago but a lot of Amazon's software has changed since then and the book needs revision. I told them this a few years ago and suggested that they look at my Amazon topics blog, which was online at the time. O'Reilly said they had no plans for a new edition but it may be that they'll do one eventually, especially as even more of the original book is obsolete than when I originally e-mailed them. Will they contact me then? I don't know but I guess that even if they pay me something as a contributor, it won't earn me a living. Of course, it may be that they didn't sell as many copies of the first edition as they had hoped, and therefore won't bother with a second edition, in which case it reinforces my doubts about the market for a book on the topic.
Book about my experiences of unemployment
People who have read my blogs The nineties job quest and The politics of unemployment say that the latter is far too depressing. I somehow doubt that they could form the basis of a book although they contain plenty of material. If I thought it would raise awareness of the issues, I might create such a book for campaigning purposes, which would cost me money, not earn me a living.
Conclusion
Perhaps I will get inspired by Martyn's ideas. Otherwise, I don't plan to go looking for an opportunity to become a career writer of any kind; it will require somebody (perhaps a publisher) to approach me, or to point me to an obvious opportunity, or for me to come across such an opportunity by accident.
1 comments:
Hmm. No A Levels, no driving licence and live in Leicester? No wonder you are having difficulties.
At y/our (I am 48), I suggest self-employment.
If you want to write then why not try submitting freelance features (750-1100 words) on something topical? Newspapers pay around £200-£250 per 1000 words whereas Amazon has paid you nothing for the content you have provided.
Find something topical, think up an angle and then try writing something that looks and feels exactly like the stuff you see in the papers. Practise! (My two suggestions are i) always try to entertain/interest the reader as nobody is obliged to read, ii) learn to edit (tighten)your copy. Oh, and give Amazon a rest. Or at least consider writing book reviews that a magazine might publish - and then submit them!
In 1999 I started writing reviews just for fun and to see my name in print. When I got calls to write stuff that I didn't want to write then I asked to be paid - I was too polite to say "go away". They said "Okay" and so I had to write. The cheques followed. It's the little things that count.
This led, by chance, to a full time job as a writer on decent money, although I had to move from the provinces to London and say goodbye to 15 years of a settled life. I'm so glad I did.
There's going to be a lot of white collar unemployment in the next year. Why not interview a range of such people in your city and see if you can interest a local /national paper? You need to tie it in with something - age discrimnation? A rare chance to stop and take stock??
There are a lot of papers and magazines and they all want copy.
If you get a piece published then suggest outlines for a couple of other pieces and try to persuade the editor to commission them from you.
Anyway, that's my suggestion to you.
Good luck!
Martyn