If you could participate in an Olympic event, which one would you choose and why?
Another use of an English degree (HT JoVE)
JoVe likes to send me articles every now and then. They are always wonderful! Today she slipped the following one into my in-box related to another use of an English degree. This one shows how one academic found a career teaching writing in a big law firm. I got a special kick out of it because my dad is a lawyer and I’ve long argued (ha!) that my bent toward academic writing was fostered and nurtured through his rigorous approach to any debatable topic at the dinner table. I grew up, essentially, learning how to create an argument from my earliest memories. Not only that, lawyers do a tremendous amount of writing. The care with which trial lawyers must prepare opening and closing statements is every bit as conscientious as any academic preparing a thesis or scholarly journal article (if not moreso since justice and money are always on the line!). Think how many lawyers-turned-best-selling novelists there are, too. 🙂 I remember my dad writing a novel into his dictaphone when I was in high school. (He never did get it published though.)
With all that personal background out of the way, check out this article: From Global Lit(erature) to Global Lit(igation).
A big litigation firm like ours is filled with nothing but writers. One lawyer here, in fact, tells people that he is a writer when they ask his occupation (insert joke about lawyers’ public perception here). My main duties are twofold. I travel to our offices around the world twice a year and conduct seminars on all aspects of the writing process, from punctuation to Aristotelian argumentation. I also work with associates and partners individually on their writing (what the corporate world calls “coaching” and academe calls “tutoring”), either in person or over the phone. They contact me at any point during the writing process. I sometimes answer questions on the spot, but it’s much more common for lawyers to send me a draft, which we meet to discuss.
My job is endlessly rewarding. I work in a five-member office of professional development. Three of us have Ph.D.’s, all in different fields. I teach an enthusiastic population: Professionals, especially those who write for a living, are eager participants in the learning process. Some of the intellectual-property and antitrust cases are fascinating; unfortunately, I am not permitted to tell you about them.
Email: What to do with an English Major
Dear Julie,
I own and have enjoyed your two writing books with my homeschooled children.
I recently read about your background on your website and would like to ask you a couple of questions.
My 11th grade daughter is thinking of majoring in English with teacher licensure. She would like to teach English, write books, and is also looking into what else she could do with an English major.
I read that your husband majored in English and was wondering what kind of advice he could give to someone in this major. What suggestions would he or you have for her to be successful with her college classes and beyond?
Any comments, suggestions, and advice for my daughter would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you.
Blessings,
Sabrina
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Hi Sabrina’s daughter!
Wonderful that your daughter loves writing and English so much. My husband was hooked on literature which is what led him to his major. There are some unique opportunities that go with being an English major, but, in the interests of full disclosure, I should add that many of them don’t pay well. 🙂
English majors often go into teaching, editing (for a publishing company) or some kind of communications role (sales, marketing, technical writing, copy editing) of big companies. Writing (as in, writing to make money) is the least likely to earn a person a living, though plenty of English majors (or creative writing majors) attempt to get published. My mom, who works as a full-time author of over 65 books, says that the vast majority of writers earn only part of their income through their writing. They almost always combine their writing with teaching.
So teaching is clearly a popular choice and a good one. Jon went into the Peace Corps after his major in English and earned his credential while teaching English as a foreign language in a Moroccan high school. He returned to the states where he earned his MA in American Literature and has been able to work as an “adjunct professor” at multiple universities in both California and Ohio, as well as a high school English teacher. Teaching’s been a great outlet for him as he worked in other full-time jobs.
Jon just mentioned that the English degree is perfect if your intent is to teach junior high or high school English. It dovetails beautifully with that ambition. The teaching path offers a good living with excellent benefits and is conducive to family life, too.
Jon also worked as an editor at a text book company, which is yet another way to earn a living off of a degree in English.
I, unconventionally, majored in history. My writing has been both avocation and vocation. I found that my interest in writing had less to do with literature and more to do with issues: with non-fiction content. I earned my MA in theology which also called on my writing skills. It isn’t necessary to major in English to become a writer (just want to point that out). And some teen writers would do better to major in journalism where more writing jobs are available than can be had through “writing novels” for instance. So if current events are your thing, bypass the English major and go for journalism.
The best way to successfully pursue the English major is to be a passionate reader. Reading literature is what fuels that degree. You must be willing to analyze it, take it apart and look at it through a variety of lenses. If you don’t like taking literature apart or submitting it to scrutiny, best not to major in English. Academic writing involves critical inquiry so that means you have to be interested in that kind of work.
I love your question and hope you’ll ask follow up questions if you have them.
Julie
Last chance for Movie Madness and KWI
I know, I know. This blog has turned into an unrelenting ad for summer classes. Sorry! It’s just that a) I’m writing a book and so my brain is mush and has very few remaining punch lines or saucy sentences to serve up, and b) the classes aren’t full yet and I know many of you are like me: your brains turn to mush (did I already say that?) in summer and you forget to send your payments for the VISA bill let alone follow through on a three-part registration process for an online writing class.
So consider this your nagging Mama reminder: don’t forget to sign up! Movie Madness and Kidswrite Intermediate begin on Monday.
Copyright etc. (Response to Katie)
Katie, in the comments earlier this week, asked:
Congratulations on beginning a new book!
I wanted to ask a question about writing also. One of my kids loves the flower fairies (Cicely Mary Barker illustrations) and is writing stories about them. She mentioned that she would like to get them published when she is finished. My question is how to go about finding out if the illustrations, or the idea of the fairies itself, is copyrighted or in the public domain. I don’t know that dd’s work will actually be published, but I thought it was a good idea to find out if there are any restrictions. Where do you look for information like that?
Thanks!
Copyright is one of the trickiest laws to track down and comprehend. I’ve been immersed in discovering the rules for what constitutes “fair use” versus “copyrighted” material for years (especially since I do draw on the texts of published works for my materials!).
My dad, conveniently, is a lawyer and I finally asked him some point blank questions to help me out. For your purposes, let me assure you that anything your daughter does in the privacy of her own use (family, friends) is not in danger of violating copyright law. If she goes for publication, the illustrations will have nothing to do with her writing. She can’t recommend or include illustrations in her submissions because publishers keep illustrators and writers separate from each other, like keeping pit bulls and two year olds apart. The publisher will pick an illustrator, not your daughter.
The main issue would be whether or not she is using the exact characters from the original series or if she is creating new ones from scratch inspired by the books she read. If it’s the latter, she’s fine. If it’s the former, then she would have to have permission to use the original characters in her new stories. That would be something your publisher would need to work out with the other publisher (obtaining permission). That step alone would likely put the ka-bash on publishing your daughter’s work (since she is a virtual unknown). So I’d help her to think of original characters.
Good question! Good luck!
