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Aspiring screenplay writers are encouraged to network, network and network some more. Build contacts. Seek out mentors. Enter contests and attend conferences. By doing this, the screenwriter "seeds" the market for the time when a script is ready for broad exposure.
This networking mantra is equally valid when pursuing freelance media writing work in the corporate and educational media world. I've often said: "This is not a bridge burning business." (As Linda Seeger points out in her latest book, Web Thinking, networking is applicable to almost any human endeavor.)
So, here are suggestions for networking within the corporate and educational media writing market.
If you're serious about finding work while building and honing your own skills, two organizations are a must for membership:
· Media Communications Association - International (MCA-I)
· American Society for Training & Development (ASTD)
MCA-I represents the transformation of an older group, the International Television Association, which focused on corporate video, into a broader role encompassing the various new digital media as well as video production.
ITVA was formed in the mid-seventies as an organization dedicated to networking among those responsible for creating and producing corporate videos. Today, the mission is much the same, though broader in scope. MCA-I is currently comprised of professionals who work in video, film, distance learning, web design and creation, and all forms of interactive visual communications, along with all associated crafts.
ASTD focuses specifically on corporate and organizational training with a heavy emphasis on employee performance and productivity. Training methods and media employed by member organizations range from traditional instructor led training to interactive, self-paced tools such as Web-based training (WBT) and computer-based training (CBT). (Computer-based training is usually delivered on a medium such as CD-ROM or DVD; Web-based training, obviously, uses the Internet as the distribution medium.)
Both organizations have local chapters in major cities or clustered around large universities with significant course offerings in these fields. If there is a local chapter within your geographic area, attending monthly meetings is an ideal way to begin networking, building contacts while discovering who is doing what. Programs at such meetings are often built around "case studies" presented by the company responsible. So you'll often not only get to network, you'll pick up new insights and ideas.
To find out more about each organization, membership fees and local chapter locations, contact the national headquarters:
ASTD
1640 King Street (Box 1443)
Alexandria, Virginia 22313-2043
(703) 683-8100
astd.org
Media Communications Association - International
9202 North Meridian Street (Suite 200)
Indianapolis, Indiana 46260-1810
(317) 816-6269
mca-i.org
Finally, two additional organizations may also prove useful in your networking and professional development efforts: The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and the American Advertising Federation. Both have networks of local chapters or advertising clubs, as well as activities that are national in scope.
So, slap on those nametags and start "pressing the flesh."
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