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The situation I'm departing from has its own problems.
I'm a former professional scientist. You can see some of my
professional output by doing www.pubmed.gov and looking up
"Maltenfort"
For a number of reasons, I'd rather be a writer contributing to the
sciences -- tech writing, science journalism, grants -- than an
academic.
One of the reasons is that academic fields seem to run somewhere
between insular and incestuous. All any of them know in terms of job
contacts is other people in the same areas. An engineer in industry,
on the other hand, would be expected to encounter people in different
areas such as accounting or shipping.
Another problem is that as rarefied or restricted as tech writing may
seem to "normal' writing -- essays or journalism, for example --
writing for peer-reviewed articles is even worse. I find that grants
are easier to write because the audience isn't as narrowly focused:
the scientists reviewing the grant may or may not be in the same
specialty. On the other hand, a grant can be 25 pages of
single-spaced 10-point font.
So here I am, a writer confident at my own keyboard, but without
*immediately* relevant references or work samples. I stress
*immediately* because of the basic problem of getting a job:
convincing the hiring person in a limited time span that I'm a safe
bet to do the job.
I'm doing what I can to dredge up contacts and credentials: I
volunteer, I take writing classes to generate samples, I write
anything from letters-to-the-editor to travel pieces to get clips, I
join professional societies (Philadelphia Association of Science
Writers, American Medical Writers Assocation, Media Bistro, and
mailing lists) and I make myself friendly and visible.
And I'm REALLY hoping someone on this list will say "Mitch, you fool!
You should be doing it THIS way, THAT way is silly!" Because
otherwise I'm doing everything properly and getting the expected
results, and that's just darned depressing, pardon my Belgian.
Mitch
--
I can answer any question.
"I don't know" is an answer.
"I don't know yet" is a better answer.
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