I’m going to give you a window into my profession. Stop dancing around in excitement and pay attention. I have extremely important things to say. Well, interesting things at least. Okay, just things. Really, thing (singular). The #1 question I get from people who learn I’m a writer is this: “People actually pay you to write things?”
The more I think about it, the more I’m sure you can actually skip this post if you like. Though it is a short one. You can rock out the reading in, like, one minute flat. I mean, it’s about one single, solitary thing. Why you would bypass a 60-second read, especially when I’ve promised to address only one thing (singular), is beyond me. I’m not trying to sound confrontational, but you’re starting to come across as kind of rude.
I digress. (Note to self: They’re here to learn about the one thing, not to get a stern talking-to. Focus!)
“People actually pay you to write things?” That’s the #1 question that I get about my profession. It’s usually followed by the statement, “I don’t understand why would somebody pay you to write something they could write themselves.”
Now, I’m not talking fiction writing here. I’m talking marketing writing and business writing and technical writing here. I’m talking website copy and contract proposals and e-books and white papers. A fairly large subset of the population is nothing short of amazed that I am paid to write, something we’ve all been doing since the age of five and ostensibly mastered by age, oh, I don’t know, fourteen? Fifteen?
Just the other day, I explained to someone at an American Business Women’s Association event that I work as a marketing strategist and copywriter. She was nothing short of mystified.
“I’m 48, so I guess I have 43 years of writing experience under my belt,” she said. She said it with a smirk, probably to win over several other someones within earshot. “As a 43-year writing expert, maybe I should see if someone will hire me to write something,” she said as a follow-up.
Approximately four years of silence ensued. “You’re awful quiet, Carolyn,” she said. “Why aren’t you saying anything?”
That’s all I’ve got for today. I told you it was a quick read, right? And for some reason unbeknownst to anyone, you were going to skip today’s post.
