The final installment is here. Part three in a three part series on why Catalog writing is for me! Let's get right to it...
Resume writers perform a much needed service to those in the job market. They deal with those who need to present themselves in the very best light focusing on their talents and accomplishments. The work includes taking information the customer has provided, interviewing them further and combining it all into a document the customer can use as another asset in helping them get a high paying job. Resume writers can freelance or work for a resume writing service. In my opinion, the writing seems to be very monotonous.
Screenwriters write scripts for movies and TV. It is difficult to break into this industry because so much of it requires the writer to live and write in one of the major production cities like LA or New York. It is not impossible though. One in a hundred scripts are accepted for production and then even fewer actually make it to the screen. I am in the process of writing a screenplay and I hope to one day get a script produced. In conclusion, you need a lot of hard work (practice), a little bit of luck and it doesn't hurt to know someone in the business that has the pull to get your screenplay made.
Being a Songwriter usually means you are a musician too. There are a few people who write solely for artists and recording studios and they can make a living as long as they have several clients contacting them for songs. For most, though, writing songs is just a side income.
Speech writers write speeches for company leaders and politicians. They are knowledgeable about the topic at hand and the speaker's style. Many marketing bureaus and political parties keep a staff on the payroll for just this purpose. If you can prove yourself in the industry writing speeches can be very financially rewarding.
Staff writers are full time writers with job security. Sounds great but staff writers are told what to write. Deadlines are essential to keeping your job. If this doesn't bother you than go for it. It is extremely competitive but in most cases a staff job means more income than working as a freelancer. And don't forget that all your work becomes property of the company you're writing for.
If you want to get into a lucrative industry few can top that of a Technical writer. These writers are the one who write user manuals and textbooks among other items. Once hired if a good job is done they can expect more work updating old and writing new documentation for the same company. You'll need substantial knowledge about what you're writing as well as a methodical process and the ability to make the complex, simple. This is another area where you can work for a large company or freelance to smaller companies, with both making a tidy sum.
As a Catalog Writer I would fall into the group of writers called Copywriters. Copywriters write words that sell a product or service. Whether it be a television commercial, a billboard, a radio spot, a sales letter or a copy block in a catalog, copywriters make a killing once they have proven their words can move products off the shelf. Their is less competition in catalog writing (on staff or freelance) versus working at an ad agency. The assignments take days to complete instead of the weeks it could take you to write an 8 page sales letter selling anything from vitamins to newspaper subscriptions. Catalog copywriters charge on average $100 per copy block with the range going as low as $50 and as high as $250. The writing stays fresh because you spend a few days writing for one catalog and then you move on to another catalog with completely different products if that is what you want. You could also specialize by writing for a small niche. You would then become the go to writer for that industry. With the catalog industry expected to grow to over $200 billion in the next few years and with over 17,000 different catalogs (11,000 retail and 6,000 b2b) their is no shortage of work. So, to wrap it all up this is the reason why Catalog writing is for me!
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Thank you so much for posting this. Unless you are a writer, no one knows the long and sometimes painful process of deciding exactly what you'll write about.
ReplyDeleteI have been writing for 30 years--since I was 8. And even though I spent more time looking through the Sears catalog than reading newspapers and magazines while growing up, I never thought about writing catalog copy. I had no awareness that that was actually a career path. Instead I majored in journalism in college (even though I had no interest in news at the time) and have been also writing fiction since about 1994, but none of this seemed like a good steady career with a future.
So today for the first time I did a search on catalog writing and I found your blog. I will now do some more research. I know if I do it, I definitely want to work for online catalogs.