Lindsey Pollak and her marketing team at HarperCollins did several smart things to promote her new book, Getting from College to Career: 90 Things to Do Before You Join the Real World, which is due out next week (I got a sneak peek and it’s the kind of book I wish I’d had when I was a senior in college but probably would have been too stubbornly self-sufficient to read). First (book authors, take note), the publication date is right before graduation, when college seniors start to enter panic-mode. Second, Lindsey joined Facebook and added yours truly as a friend. She knows her audience, and she knows that they use Facebook. Genius! And third, they sent galleys to people like me so we could blog/talk about it. See, I told you she was smart! Here’s her take on the writing world.
Urban Muse: Could you tell us a little bit about your transition from business development to writing?
Lindsey: In college, I had an unpaid internship with a nonprofit women’s business development organization, and I loved it. That led me to get a master’s degree in women’s studies, where I wrote a thesis on women in business. After graduate school, I sought out any job that somehow related to women’s business issues. Working Woman magazine had just launched a website division, WorkingWoman.com, so I cold-called and got an interview. I interviewed with a few different departments and it turned out I “clicked” best with the VP of business development, and she offered me a job. My first title was “Manager of Business Development, Content” and my job involved securing articles written for businesswomen using the website. So, the job was somewhat related to writing.
When WorkingWoman.com went bust (as most dot-coms did!), I started asking for freelance work from some of my former clients—mostly women’s business organizations and women-owned businesses. I wrote marketing materials, newsletter articles, white papers—whatever they needed. I also worked part-time as Director of Special Projects for the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE), where I launched and managed the organization’s e-newsletter and other projects. In May 2005, I left the part-time job to be 100% self-employed. I love it.
UM: I saw on your website that you had a piece in Marie Claire last year. Any advice on querying women's magazines?
L: That was very exciting—definitely a dream come true to publish a piece in Marie Claire! The article came about through networking; I never wrote a query letter. I had a contact who was an editorial assistant at Marie Claire, and she recommended me to the associate editor who met with me, read some of my clippings and assigned the piece.
Most of my freelance article writing has come through networking. I attend a lot of events and ask for referrals from other writers I work with. I try to build relationships with editors so they will think of me when they need a writer on career issues.
My best pieces of advice to other freelancers about querying women’s magazines:
· Build relationships with editors (especially young editors at the beginning of their careers, who are still building their Rolodexes) through organizations such as Mediabistro.com, Ed2010, American Society of Journalists and Authors and New York Women in Communications. These organizations have frequent meetings and conferences.
· Read all the magazines you’d like to write for. It’s very important to know the sections that use freelancers (Mediabistro’s “How to Pitch” guides and their classes are great for this info), the names of editors, the word counts, the overall tone and style of each magazine and how they differ from each other. I subscribe to about 25 magazines!
· I also recommend a great book called Six-Figure Freelancing by Kelly James-Enger.
UM: What is the most important message you want readers to take away from Getting from College to Career?
L: The most important lesson is that action yields results. Take action on behalf of your career! I encourage readers to do at least one thing every day related to their job search and career planning. The more action you take—from conducting informational interviews, to attending networking events, to reading industry publications, to preparing for interviews, to revamping your resume, to reaching out to alumni, etc., etc., the more likely you are to land a great job. The worst thing you can do is to sit in your bedroom and hope for the best. Take action!
UM: You've carved out your niche in writing about careers for young women. How important is it for writers to specialize?
L: I think it’s very important for writers to have a niche. It’s fine to take on assignments related to other topics, but I think it’s crucial to develop an expertise and be the “go-to” person on a certain topic. It’s been very helpful to me to have such a clear niche as a writer. I do work in other areas, but I get many client referrals, repeat business and freelance article requests because of my specialty in women’s career issues. I’ve found that most clients and magazines feel more confident hiring you when you have a recognized area of expertise.
UM: And now the fun question... please describe your perfect cupcake.
L: For me, it’s all about the frosting. My perfect cupcake is a vanilla cake with a mountain fluffy, sugary, not-too-buttery vanilla frosting. Top it off with rainbow sprinkles and I’m in heaven.
Thanks, Lindsey. Check out College to Career and check back next week, when I interview marketing maven and two-time novelist Tracy McArdle.