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As you start out your career as a writer, it's a bit of a catch-22: employers want to see your published work as you're applying for your first writing job, but you don't have any...because you're applying for your first job. Don't worry, there's a way to make this work for you!
Bylines are an important component of building your writing portfolio. Articles you've written, als
o called clips, is your key to getting hired. A published article with your name in the article byline is the best clip that type of clip that you can get. Not all online publications include the author's name in the byline, and employers will accept this as your work as well, within reason.
When you get a writing clip, be sure to save the published link somewhere you'll be able to reference later. You can create a Google or Excel sheet tracking your links, publish dates and publications.
But online publications don't always live on forever, often times they're taken down, or maybe a category on the website is renamed and the link doesn't properly redirect. That's why it's important to also save the web page as a PDF and download to your computer so that you secure that clip. Create a folder named "clips" and continue building this out, even as you move deeper into your career, clips will always matter!
Let's go back to how you're going to acquire these clips in the first place. What I did was work for free and w
rite for free, to get those much-needed writing clips with my name on them. I found online publications that aligned with my interests: surfing and snowboarding. I knew that it would be easy for me to write about subjects that I was passionate about, and had a lot of background information on. I also found that my writing style was at its best when I was writing about something that I cared about.
I found online publications that welcomed contributors, and even set me up with a contributor profile through their Wordpress site, giving me even more credibility to show to potential employers.
I also started my own online publication, partnering with a photographer who was starting out her career. Then an entrepreneur looking to build his portfolio of websites helped us build a custom design for our website. I committed to regularly writing articles and publishing content through the website, and was able to claim the title of co-founder and editor-in-chief.
I wasn't taking home a paycheck, we were only making minimal revenue through Google ad display, but that was beside the point. I had created credibility for myself, and stacked up a nice folder of clips to send to employers. It worked, and soon I landed my first writing job.
Get started now, get those bylines, get your work out there, even if you're doing it for free. It's an investment in your writing career and the best way to land your first writing job.