Thursday, January 28, 2010

Adding 'Author' to Resume'

Okay, so I'm redoing my ancient resume'.  The kids are grown. The economy sucks and we still need to retire sometime before the next century.

Can I just say Hooray for Google maps! They made finding addresses a snap. I remember 'where' I worked, but not the address. I'm address impaired, what can I say?

I listed my past employers and realized,  'I'm a published author.'
Well, duh you may say. The truth of the matter is I don't think about it in the context of work and marketable skills. Or I didn't until refreshing the resume'.

Authors and aspiring authors are proficient in Word. Some of us use other programs, but most of us know Word inside and out. Excel? Why yes, many of us use Excel to chart Goals, Motivation and Conflict. Familial interactions with our characters and so forth.

Written language skills? If an author has been actively seeking to improve their craft, this is a no brainer.
Communication skills? We tear it up. Thank you very much.

Disciplined? Okay, so not all of us have this in abundance, but having 'Author' on your resume' sure makes it look as if we are disciplined.

Dedicated/Determined? We finished a novel length manuscript. Shopped it. Sold it. YIP!
I will admit, those who have never tried to be published can't, in any way, appreciate what kind of dedication this takes, but we do.

Dependable? Can you say deadlines up the wazoo? I thought you could.

Team-player? Not something generally thought about with a writer, but think about it. We all learn to listen and interact with editors, beta readers and see 'our' story as it fits into the publishers vision. Could there be anything more team than that?

Creative? Goes without saying.

Able to think outside of the box? Oh yeah.

Able to work independently without much supervision. Duh! smile

I got a bit of thrill and surge of pride as I added, 'Author' to my resume'.  It is a sense of accomplishment each of us should experience in this lifetime.

So the next time someone suggests you are wasting time on the writing gig, smile and tell them you are building job skills.

Now we'll have to wait and see if it impresses prospective employers as much as it does me.

What other skills translate to the office, job, resume'?

11 comments:

  1. Nice, Sherilyn! Although I'm kind of stuck on 'we use Excel to track goals/familial interactions/etc.' We do? Do I have to?!!!

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  2. You forgot research skills, Sherilyn. Or does that go without saying? I hope you impress the pants (not literally) off prospective employers and find your dream job. I just updated my resume, too, but did not add author to it. Not because I'm not proud to be an author. I am. It just doesn't fit with my day job.

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  3. Skills? Hmmm...Organizing, planning, and if you're here then basic website building, maintenance, and marketing.

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  4. I think "a disciplined self-starter," even if I myself at times...am not!

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  5. Definitely marketing and promotion skills! And how cool to be able to add published author to a resume! And good luck on the job hunting!

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  6. Disciplined self-starter. I like it Lisa.

    The research is work Olivia? But it's so much fun.

    It's good to see all of you here.

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  7. Of course people who hire recognize published from printed in writer world. This is a general rule among professionals. Olivia has the right idea on this one. Say you can type. Don't say because I'm an author. According to the publishing world, you aren't. They rule, man.

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  8. Sherilyn, good post. These days being an author does call for a wide variety of skill -- not only writing, but other hot areas such as promotion and social media. As in any other case, skills can be transferred, regardless of who published your book. I would say that some employers won't get it and others will. For example, I'm one of the few people in my company who offers edits to work coming off of the desk of our lead technical writer and gets them readily accepted. All those hours of editing really hones those skills.

    James Rafferty
    blog.humancomm.com

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  9. For the last two things I've applied for, the "author" thing was actually relevant. Weird, huh? I'll let you know if I get either of them...

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