I have finally written something for money. While it was the best twenty minutes or so of my day, it wasn’t all that exciting.
I would like to say it is my ability to turn a phrase that got me added to the list of people who post on my company’s blog, but that would be a lie. It was my organizational skills and my ability to meet a deadline. Those in charge trusted me to spell well and use good grammar (thank you, University of California, for my degree in English). That my post turned out to be funny and informative seemed to surprise them, but did cement my spot on the roster.
Perhaps it is my back pain (that would be another post for another time) that is giving me my jaundiced view. I have a gift for invisibility. I came to work here after two years spent writing, for God’s sake. How could I not have a basic clue? What is it about me that makes me someone to be simultaneously overlooked and depended on?
I hope it is the back thing, because otherwise I’m turning into someone deeply crabby. Sigh.
I would like to say it is my ability to turn a phrase that got me added to the list of people who post on my company’s blog, but that would be a lie. It was my organizational skills and my ability to meet a deadline. Those in charge trusted me to spell well and use good grammar (thank you, University of California, for my degree in English). That my post turned out to be funny and informative seemed to surprise them, but did cement my spot on the roster.
Perhaps it is my back pain (that would be another post for another time) that is giving me my jaundiced view. I have a gift for invisibility. I came to work here after two years spent writing, for God’s sake. How could I not have a basic clue? What is it about me that makes me someone to be simultaneously overlooked and depended on?
I hope it is the back thing, because otherwise I’m turning into someone deeply crabby. Sigh.
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jan_can_too- jan_can_too
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The kid of course liked the books I got for her birthday based on your reviews, so thanks again for those!
And I'm super glad your girl liked the books. Like I said, I'm jealous that she's got a mom who thinks of books as a good present.
It might be you, but I personally tend to find you one of the most interesting people in any room, far from invisible. It is true (and much appreciated) that nothing about you shouts "LOOK AT ME!"--instead, there is a great deal about you that quietly compels attention.
So I think it's writing that's both overlooked and depended on. Good writing is one of those things people take for granted, the way they assume a bus driver can drive, except that most people notice when the bus driver turns out not to be able to drive, whereas most people don't notice when they're reading something by a person who can't write. So managers looking for someone to fill such an assignment think, "Who'll finish it on deadline without my having to nag them?" and only other good writers think, "Who can write?"