Writing

Why I Wrote It: Quest for Employment

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(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

So let’s take a break from my attempts to blog regularly during the Dumb Apocalypse of the coronavirus, and get back to my Why I wrote It’s.

Let’s talk Quest for Employment, a book I’m actually kinda proud of and have done a second edition of.

The idea of this book came about from looking at job search advice. A lot of job search advice was 101-type stuff about resumes, etc. In fact, a lot of the advice felt cut and pasted over and over again, and there wasn’t a lot of “next step stuff.”

At the same time, not everyone was interested in manic personal branding and other advice that was basically “career all the time no life” type stuff.

Finally, I also had been through a lot of annoying job searches – layoffs, contracts ending, etc. I had gotten good at the job search purely from a need to survive, at times from my unwise choice to try and keep up a contracting and freelance life. I had a lot of lessons that weren’t 101, but also weren’t about dedicating your life to your career.

These were advanced job search lessons that were about leveraging the system to do better and I had used them.

For instance, I had learned that when you need a job or are close to the end of a contract, you needed a shameless blitz of resumes, and I had a system for it. This was like an investment, where you spammed the heck out of any relevant, and reaped benefits days, weeks, or months later.

Or another example was to empathize with recruiters. After all, you talked to them once, but they talked to a hundred of you. Empathy made you memorable, helped you understand the market, and was the right thing to do.

So I pretty much wrote up all my tips after a job search and made a book. Then I rewrote it. Strike while the iron is hot, but form it a bit better with greater knowledge.

Sometimes, I think it bears a third rewrite but I’m not sure what’s relevant these days, irrelevant, etc. Maybe I’ll review it with a co-author to bring new insights.

But it all came out of me wanting to do better, and having plenty of hard-earned lessons.

Steven Savage

Regular Writing And Regular Contact

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(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

We’ve all heard the advice “write every day” and “write x words a day.” It’s easy for people to toss this advice off, and it’s equally easy for people to feel guilty they don’t do it, or for those that to do be self-righteous. Writing is a challenging thing, a personal thing, and guilt and self-aggrandizement help neither. I think the better idea is “stay in touch with your writing each day.”

See, I do try to write every day. It helps me plan ahead, make schedules, and make measurable progress. It’s not always the same thing every day, but it usually is. As of late, dealing with the Pandemic and all, I began to notice something.

Some days I’d write the same work for hours upon hours, and other times much less. But there were times when I had to take a break from whatever project to do other things – and when I took those breaks, sometimes something was missing.

I also noticed when I focused on a given project – up to a point- that it got easier to work on every minute I spent. I was getting “into” the work, getting in touch with it, getting to know it. Spending time on a project meant an increasingly intimate, inspired understanding of it.

Finally, I noticed when I wasn’t writing, but got inspired and jotted something down, I got the same rush as having spent, say, two hours writing the same book. That same fire was there.

This led me to an important conclusion: you may not be able to write every day, or write the same project every day. However you should try to “get in touch” with your project each day.

What do I mean by “get in touch?” I mean know your work intimately, be connected to it, feel it. You know, those moments you just “get it” like you get a good friend.

So each day, even if you can’t write, take a few minutes to review your notes, jot down ideas, or read a chapter you’ll be editing. Do something that connects you to your current writing project or projects so you have that vital, intimate feel.

Again, I do think writing every day is useful. But it’s not for everyone, and some people prefer (or have to do) large blocks of writing time. Just take time each day to connect yo your writing projects so you keep that fiery, powerful relationship going.

And don’t let anyone make you feel guilty for what works for you.

Steven Savage

Schedules, Order, and The Zone

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(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

With the coronavirus lockdown, it was challenging to keep up with my writing, especially my novel “A School Of Many Futures.” My life had been disrupted, my girlfriend’s life had been disrupted, my co-workers were dealing with changes, and there was the omnipresent specter of death. Not the best time to feel creative.

But I wanted to write, despite not having much of the right mood. There was something there that wanted to, writing is part of me, and I didn’t want to give up.

So here’s what I did – and something I found that surprised me.

What I started doing was scheduling writing time and/or goals. Each day more or less I tried to write, my Worldbook having a goal of writing 2 questions a day, and for my novel usually an hour on it (or an hour replotting). I admit for a stretch of weeks I was at best meeting 80% of my goals, but it was better than zero, and I was still writing.

It was a slog for awhile. You can kind of guess the reasons for it as you’re probably experiencing them or have experienced them. Still, work got done, and it was pretty good work.

Then I noticed something. I was getting more ideas, especially for my novel. I began noticing techniques that fired my imagination. I was getting inspired despite the slog, following the schedule . . .

. . . except I wasn’t. I was inspired because of the schedule.

I realized in time that because of the coronavirus crisis I’d lost touch with my inspirations. If I had just written because I was “in the mood” I’d never have written. But following a schedule meant I was always in touch with my writing even if I didn’t want to be or care.

And in time, that awareness led to inspiration and ideas and being viscerally aware of my work. Instead of writing when in the mood, the schedule kept me writing and let me more easily find the writing mood where inspiration flowed.

If you’re having trouble being creative in something, try this. Don’t wait for the mood, just make plans and do your best. Keep at it, but don’t beat yourself up if it’s not perfect. See what happens when you spend time on it.

It worked for me in time, but first you have to put in the work.

Steven Savage