If you ever have a question or comment about something I’ve posted or just something you want to know, feel free to use the formspring box to the right. Once I get a few questions, I will answer them in a blog post like I’m doing today.
If I can’t answer your question, don’t worry, I won’t just make something up like my mom used to do when I asked her stuff.
First question…
Question 1:
How did you get into speechwriting? Was it something you always knew you wanted to do?
I wouldn’t say I always wanted to be a speechwriter. When I went to college, I chose journalism as my major because I wanted to do broadcast news. I hated communications–the classes, the other students, everything!
I’d always been a political junkie, and I took a couple of political science courses. My advisor at Temple University was Dr. Robin Kolodny. She was amazing and extremely knowledgeable about political campaigns. After falling in love with my political science courses, I finally decided to make the switch official.
Dr. Kolodny assigned me to work on Ed Rendell’s first gubernatorial campaign, and I thought for sure I’d go in to campaign management. Once I left Temple, rather than taking a job with Governor’s office in Harrisburg, I decided to go work for a lobbying firm.
That’s when I discovered speechwriting and advocacy. So I teeter-totter between wanting to write speeches and staff people forever and wanting to own a lobbying firm myself rather than just being a cog in the wheel at firm. Right now I’m pursuing my lobbying certificate so I suppose I’ll be closer to deciding what I want to do next once I’ve completed it.
Question 2:
Have you come across a lot of people in lobbying that have a not-so-strong background in political science/law? How would a person with a very strong bkgd in science and marketing favor? Favorite GOPers beside Hagel? (Personally, I like him as well)
Lots of people think of lobbyists as people who are obsessive about politics, but a good number of lobbyists come into their jobs simply by believing strongly in a cause. Even 501(c)3 organizations do some lobbying (within guidelines of course). I think that lobbyists are perceived badly by people because Congress makes them a sort of scape goat. The reality is there’s at least one organization that fights for the interests of every American even though we may not realize it.
So yes, there are lobbyists whose primary strengths aren’t political science/law. However, you do need to know the law in whatever area you would work in and you’ll have to learn lobbying rules. Someone with a science background and an ability in marketing could play several roles at a firm. For example, someone’s got to help Congress write all that pesky legislation. You can be a subject matter expert, develop materials for publications on behalf of your organization or even handle media calls and communications strategy. You can work for a firm and not actually lobby yourself in a physical person-to-person sense.
Plus there are also PACs, trade associations etc. that can use people with all sorts of backgrounds. It’s important to remember that soft core skills are important–being able to handle pressure, work with deadlines, be strategic, exercise emotional intelligence etc. Those are key to being successful politically generally speaking.
My favorite GOPers? Well, there’s Michael Steele…just kidding. Chuck Hagel is obviously my favorite. But I’ve been known to enjoy the smooth stylings of Lindsay Graham. I also like Tom Ridge and Christie Todd Whitman. This may surprise some people, but columnist David Brooks is one of my favorite people, so is former Bush advisor Brent Snowcroft. And I have an extreme love hate relationship with Tucker Carlson who is a fabulous guy with some questionable beliefs. But I can’t stop reading The Daily Caller!
There are lots of people that came out of that original group of Republican think tank graduates (Brooks era) that I think are pretty great. Though both orgs are nonpartisan, some good conservative work comes out of the Brookings Institution and Council on Foreign Relations. Nameless folks, but nontheless brilliant.
Question 3:
I was recommended to attend a Gotham Writing Class in NYC & I’ve been wondering should I take a novel writing, fiction writing or creative writing course. Which would be better suited for me since I would like to write a book?
It depends on where you are in your writing abilities and confidence. If you’re sure you want to write a novel, then a novel writing class is a fine choice. It will teach you the specifics of character development and what types of things get published in what kinds of genres. If there is a business focus to the class they’ll teach you how to choose a literary agent and develop a book proposal specific to novels–or at least point you in the right direction to gaining that knowledge.
Having said that, for many people who write fiction (which I do not, so this is an observational answer not an experiential one), the first thing they think of is writing a novel. But there may be other ways in which you can express yourself for your own satisfaction and profit. Whether you write short stories, a series of fictional letters, or even poetry.
This is where a creative writing or fiction writing course would be handy as it would be flexible enough that you could make a decision about what might be appropriate for you. In terms of choosing between creative and fiction, once again, it’s all in what you want to do. A creative writing class, in my experience is typically more flexible. But if you’re open to other ways of being published beyond writing a novel, you really can’t go wrong with either one.
Yesterday, I wrote a post about the Writer’s Market book. There IS a market out there for short stories and things of that nature. THat’s another reference tool for deciding if the novel is really what you want and not just your first choice because it feels more familiar for a lot of people. There are many ways to tell the story/stories you have inside of you. Not discouraging you from writing a book–just encouraging you to consider your options fully.
Question 4: (I had to edit this question and and leave out part of it so that I wouldn’t give too much of my life away). Essentially, the question was what’s my favorite part of my job and how is it to work for an opposing party.
My favorite part of my job is interpreting things that are complicated and making them accessible to the audience in front of which the speaker will deliver the remarks. I also enjoy anything that requires political strategy, so those moments where I say yay or nay to a message based on political climate gives me a dorky sense of satisfaction.
Because I started out working for a lobbying firm in which I didn’t agree with much my boss was doing, working for the other party was a piece of cake. It also helps to enjoy the politics of situations rather than be passionate about specific issues. It allows me to keep my head in the game and my heart in the stands. I’m probably a bad person to answer this question because my emotional investment in most situations is super low. I’m pretty pragmatic and ideologically malleable. I’m also utilitarian when it comes to most things, I turn a blind eye to intention for the most part. In a weird sort of way it helps, even when the common good isn’t reached.
Question 5:
This question was a series of formspring entries about recent college grads and whether you should create different resumes, how far back in your work history you should go, and how to highlight event planning experience.
The best thing new grads can do is keep it simple but thorough. If you’re new employers don’t expect your resume to be more than a page, and doing things that make it longer (even unintentionally) only serve to make it appear that you’re padding.
A rule of thumb is to go back as far as is relevant. If you had a relevant job your senior year in high school, that may warrant inclusion–use your judgement. But anything before that isn’t really necessary especially if you’ve had a couple internships and a job (even if it’s retail).
I will say that government resumes require you to go back 5 years and include the addresses, supervisors, and salaries of every job you’ve had so, by default, your resume will be longer.
You WILL have to create different resumes depending on what you’re applying for. Since you’re a recent grad, you probably won’t need more than two…mostly for the purpose of being able to highlight/emphasize different things.
Once of the most important things new grads forget to do is highlight skills and abilities and educational achievements. When I started out, I listed my abilities FIRST e.g. attention to detail, able to work in a deadline oriented environment, can communicate successfully with people from varying backgrounds to reach a consensus. Those sorts of soft core skills are important.
Technical skills are also important. Many young people take for granted that everyone can work Microsoft Office or Adobe Creative Suite. Not true. Say specifically that you’re proficient in programs and whether you’ve been certified in anything.
Finally, when it comes to jobs within jobs such as if you work as an event planner for a campaign, don’t list out every event. What’s better is to list out your accomplishments whether individually or as part of your “duty” paragraphs. Example: planned large scale events for 2000+ people, personally commended by XX (insert important person) for ability to adapt quickly to changes, planned meetings from conception to completion.
Basically, give people an idea of what you did and how well you did it!
Whew!
When I read other people’s formsprings they get easy questions. Yall just tried to kill me.
Anyway, I will do another segment when I get some more questions.
Lobbying, Speechwriting
