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I'm looking for my first full time job in this field, because I love to write. However, this is my first time doing something like this, I'm 18. Any tips and help you all can give me would be appreciated.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,585 posts, read 81,243,006 times
Reputation: 57825
I would not count on your writing experience to get you a technical writer job. That is one area that almost always requires experience. You will need to show the ability to plan and execute equally well independently or within a team, facilitation and presentation skills, have strong interpersonal skills and most importantly organizational skills. Since you would be taking technical and business information and rewriting it in a way that can be easily understood and utilized by non-technical people, you need technical experience. Typically this comes from being a "super user" of a database management software system, where you work with the application developers as a liaison with the other users. Doing screen captures, drawings, sketches, diagrams, and charts to illustrate material means some graphic arts experience.
Based on your resume, content writing, which is more website based may be more appropriate, but only if "running a website" means that you have some HTML experience.
1. Buy your own domain name. GoDaddy.com Host your website there. Take the cheap route. Search for a GoDaddy Promo Code before you buy. Your website is: about you + portfolio
2. Join LinkedIn
3. Get 100 business cards made. Cheaply. As plain as possible. http://www.vistaprint.com/contact-ca...ds&xnav=TopNav Your email address would be joe@joethewiter.com and not joe@gmail.com
4. Talk with your parents' friends about opportunities.
5. Look at Fiverr: Graphics, marketing, fun, and more online services for $5. The pay is very low, but you can gain some experience.
6. Think about specializing in a field.
7. Buy any 3 books by Jay Conrad Levinson about Guerilla Marketing and read them. Alibris has cheap used ones.
I would not count on your writing experience to get you a technical writer job. That is one area that almost always requires experience. You will need to show the ability to plan and execute equally well independently or within a team, facilitation and presentation skills, have strong interpersonal skills and most importantly organizational skills. Since you would be taking technical and business information and rewriting it in a way that can be easily understood and utilized by non-technical people, you need technical experience. Typically this comes from being a "super user" of a database management software system, where you work with the application developers as a liaison with the other users. Doing screen captures, drawings, sketches, diagrams, and charts to illustrate material means some graphic arts experience.
Based on your resume, content writing, which is more website based may be more appropriate, but only if "running a website" means that you have some HTML experience.
I have HTML experience so I think I'll go with this. Do you think it's possible to find one working online? I can't move around because of school.
Quote:
Originally Posted by davebarnes
1. Buy your own domain name. GoDaddy.com Host your website there. Take the cheap route. Search for a GoDaddy Promo Code before you buy. Your website is: about you + portfolio
2. Join LinkedIn
3. Get 100 business cards made. Cheaply. As plain as possible. http://www.vistaprint.com/contact-ca...ds&xnav=TopNav Your email address would be joe@joethewiter.com and not joe@gmail.com
4. Talk with your parents' friends about opportunities.
5. Look at Fiverr: Graphics, marketing, fun, and more online services for $5. The pay is very low, but you can gain some experience.
6. Think about specializing in a field.
7. Buy any 3 books by Jay Conrad Levinson about Guerilla Marketing and read them. Alibris has cheap used ones.
You can go to one of the tech sites that are conduits for one off contractors. https://www.elance.com/
I don't know the demands of it but once you've accomplished something, perhaps it can work.
However as a non-technical major in college, the going notion has always been, it's easier to learn how to get your tech ideas across with some editing help, then to get the tech in your brain good enough to write about it. The other posts confirm this. You need to become somewhat techie to be able to write about it. I mean unless you want to earn money translating/creating manuals or something for TVs/DVDs whatever, then maybe learning Mandarin would be more useful as you could help out a huge number of amazon product manuals, from bookshelves, desks, all the stuff right off the ship.
Wow, you're just completing high school and you've already had a lot of job experiences. Pretty impressive if you ask me. It's possible for you to find a job in oDesk or Elance; however, you've mentioned that you're looking for a full time job so maybe you could go to https://www.staff.com/
They're offering only full time online jobs, you might be hired by a huge company there. Just try it out. Good luck!
Location: Olde English District, SC (look it up on Wikipedia)
243 posts, read 367,010 times
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I work from home as a content writer, editor and ghostwriter. I recommend going to work-at-home sites that have job postings and discussion forums to help you sort through the scams and the good companies. Don't know if I can post links here, but there is a lot of information on wahm.com, workplacelikehome.com (you have to join this one to access it) and realwaystoearnmoneyonline.com. There are worthwhile content writing and other types of writing jobs out there, but you have to weed through the ones that pay ridiculously low rates or steal writers' material. I've found these sites to be especially helpful in that respect.
Your resume should be impeccable regarding punctuation and style. Have someone good proof it for you. I suggest putting "Education" last, since my mind came to a screeching halt at you still being in high school. I say hit 'em with your best shot before telling them your educational status.
I don't think OP would get a job as a tech writer in a company or anything that formal. (I worked for two years as a tech writer in software companies after getting a rigorous certificate in it, and having worked in news copyediting for many years). I do agree with the online bidding jobs, like guru.com and elance, where it isn't about resumes but about work done. Maybe OP should give him/herself more credit for the software and hardware work and maybe find something there as an in. It's easy to find writers- it's harder to find techies who can write. Best wishes.
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Some advice
It's possible for you to find a job in oDesk or Elance; however, you've mentioned that you're looking for a full time job so maybe you could go to 
Good luck!
