Although I am a full-time writer, part of my “other life” is a NYS EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) and I VOLUNTEER in my community with our local ambulance corps. There was an interesting discussion which came up today on one of the EMS forums which I found applicable to the field of writing as well; even if you are “volunteering” and giving away your work, you are still bound to the responsibilities of professionalism.
Everything I write that has my name on it represents the work I do just as each patient I treat in the ambulance is a real live person with real medical problems. Everything I do requires my complete training and proficiency. Why would we volunteer our hard work hours and literally give away the product of our skill? Maybe it is to help a community or an organization… maybe it’s a way to network and meet some of the “right” people for our careers. Whatever our reasons are, it is a way to hone our skills and get actual work experience. Add to that, in the recession of recent times when it is hard to get a paying job, we still get to build our resumes.
You want to write – but you don’t have the experience or the connections (yet) to find someone willing to take a chance on you, at least not for money. Yes it means keeping your income producing job, but you can still “work” at writing. Do you have kids in school? Or are you in school now? Spend some time writing for the school newspaper or PTA newsletter. Your local house of worship would most probably welcome someone to help with their weekly calendar or monthly bulletin. If you look around you will find several volunteer writing jobs and many will give you impressive entries on your resume.
I have seen it more than once where someone who has volunteered their time to a non-profit will later get hired based on the merits of their work. I had an opportunity open to me because of articles I wrote for my local ambulance corps, I got the opportunity to write a monthly column on NYS EMS Issues. So doesn’t it make sense to always do your best work, paid or not, as if you were auditioning for the role you eventually want to play?
L Ron Hubbard said “Develop the frame of mind that whatever you do, you are doing it as a professional and move up to professional standards in it.” Your skill and dedication shouldn’t change because you are getting paid or not. Getting a byline in some circles is considered payment. Seeing your work in print and knowing that people are reading YOUR words is reward.
So go out there and get your experience and hone your craft. Be a writer.
Writing exercise for this week:
Blindfold yourself for 15 minutes or longer (do this at home for safety) – sit in your living room or den and let the TV run, maybe eat a sandwich, or try dressing yourself. Once you take that blindfold off, take pen and paper and write down all of the things you did and heard. Remember, DON’T describe something as if you saw it – you should describe where you sat and what you did remembering that you were devoid of site.
Try the exercise a second time with earmuffs. Try it a third time with THICK mittens on and try to close a door, dial a phone or drink a beverage. Learn how to describe a room without seeing it, tell someone what actors on TV were saying without hearing it (NO fair using captions), and decide if things were hard or soft, hot or cold, wet or dry without feeling it.
