Jobs for writers in Tempe area? (Phoenix: apartment, lease, high school)

[DiscoDan]

Getting my BA in English Writing in May and moving to the Tempe area a week after. Anybody know of some good jobs to apply for?

[phxgreenfire]

Jobs like that are going to be very hard to find here. You could look into media, copywriting, editing, communications, etc., but there are relatively few corporate headquarters, media companies, marketing agencies, publishers, or anything else that might have relevant positions available. You can find some, but not as many in places like New York, Chicago or DC.

If you're set on moving here, as a back-up plan you may want to ask as many professors as possible for letters of reference now and consider getting an MA in English to give yourself a bit more of an advantage. You could also try freelance work through Craigslist or elance.com to bring in extra cash.

[DiscoDan]

Ah yes, I figured the Phoenix area wouldn't be much better than anywhere else when it came to writing jobs but thought I'd ask. I do plan on getting a masters eventually or maybe becoming certified to teach high school.

I am set on moving to AZ though (from OK) the apartment is already leased... I suppose any odd job will work for a while, hopefully I'll be able to keep from becoming homeless!

[phxgreenfire]

Unfortunately, in this economy those are the first kinds of jobs to go, last to come back. The problem here though is that even when things rebound in full it won't be that much easier to find writing jobs in Phoenix, simply because the companies that would require someone with these skills don't have a large presence here.

I do freelance now, which you should look into (because it really does count for experience on your resume) but it's pretty difficult. It isn't the actual work that makes it difficult, but the amount of work you have to do to get by. It isn't the most reliable/stable income, so you may want to do that in addition to a less desirable job.

[Jukesgrrl]

I live in Arizona and have more than 30 years experience in corporate communications -- everything from PR to employee communications to marketing pieces to technical writing. While I used to derive a thriving income from freelance work, I've had a much harder time getting jobs in recent years and have had to cut my fees considerably. Most of my current jobs come from other states where I have worked and have contacts. I don't know any employers who would hire someone for corporate writing unless (1) you have a number of writing samples comparable to the kind of work they seek, (2) you know someone at the hiring company, (3) you have done an internship at the hiring company. You'll need to collect a book of published work, even if you have to do it for next-to-no pay. Your best bet is to become conversant with some specific business or field and specialize. Trade publications pay better than general interest ones. The more popular a subject, the more writers are qualified to do the work and the lower the pay will be.

[phoenixmike11]

I have met a couple of writers in phoenix and they do work here for companies based outside of Arizona. Creative class jobs like writing, research, arts, etc are very hard to find here even when economic times are good in Arizona due to the lack of highly educated people and corporate headquarters in this area. If you still want to move here, join your college alumni group (and sign up on Linkedin) and try to connect with other people who went to the same university you went to. They can provide job leads and connections for you (even if they are jobs directly related to your major). On occasion I see copywriter and other media jobs here at
Ad 2 Phoenix | Jobs

[ji603]

You could write (with a sharpie) the job numbers on the outside of the shrinkwrapped pallets of shingles, when you get your roofing job, perhaps...

[Caleb0]

Originally Posted by DiscoDan

hopefully I'll be able to keep from becoming homeless!

But being homeless at some point is an attribute of most great writers