A textbook writer plays a valuable role in the educational system, and pursuing a career in this field will provide you with many opportunities to use the language skills you learn in college. However, it is important to understand that it requires a combination of education, skills and experience to be competitive when you apply for this type of position. As you make your college and career plans, here is what you need to know about finding employment as someone who writes textbooks.
Types of Textbook Writers
Deciding that want to write textbooks is the first step toward starting your career. Yet, you should be aware that there are many different routes to becoming a textbook writer. For example, you may work for an educational company as a member of their writing team. Alternatively, you could write textbooks on a subject that you have in-depth knowledge in and submit them to publishing companies. Some corporations also hire in-house writers to draft textbooks for their training programs. Textbooks must also be written for every educational level from preschool all the way up to graduate level programs. This gives you an array of options for finding an area in which you can specialize as a writer.
Career Requirements and Outlook
Publishing companies expect textbook writers to have strong research and written communication skills. For this reason, they tend to seek people who have English or Journalism degrees. You may also become a textbook writer in a specific subject if you can write well and have a established yourself as an expert in the field. During the course of writing a textbook, you may conduct interviews, travel and delve into research libraries to obtain the information you need. While the salary for a textbook writer can vary from one company to another, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics places the average writer salary to be around $60,000 a year. Textbook writing is also an exciting field to get into right now due to the increase in people going back to school.
Opportunities for Advancement
As a writer, every textbook that gets published will help to bolster your career by adding to your credentials. You can also pursue graduate level degrees in subjects of interest to demonstrate a higher level of expertise in certain fields. This is especially important if you will be writing textbooks for university-level students in academic subjects that rely heavily on research such as science. As you gain experience, you can also look forward to moving up the career ladder as an editor, project manager or researcher in the textbook field. You can also enjoy job security throughout your career since textbooks must be updated to ensure that students learn the current information regarding a given topic.
Related Resource: Education Assessment Design Careers
Those who enjoy learning, researching and writing are ideal candidates for a position writing textbooks, and schools and educators rely upon having factual and relevant textbooks to use as a resource for their lessons. Today, you can establish a career writing textbooks by using several different methods. Yet, having a strong educational background is key to your success. As you prepare for your future career as a textbook writer, remember to take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way to refine your writing skills and gain in-depth knowledge regarding your preferred textbook topics.
