FINDING YOUR PATH TO PURPOSE
By Shannon Muir
Currently
exclusive to this site
***
I began, as a teenager,
wanting to write for television animation.
By the age of thirty, though not yet having made a script sale,
animation has become very much a part of my writing life. For the last year and a half, I've published
monthly columns on paying Internet sites geared to career advice for
non-artists currently in or want to become part of the animation field. Though it wasn't my initial goal to be doing
this, it grew out of my passion and desires and the personal rewards have been
rich. I think these benefits can be
true for anyone, whether rooted in their career or hobby interests.
As previously
stated, journalism was not part of my initial goal. During my attempts to educate myself in a small town far from any
major core of the business, finding information proved to be a struggle. Finding books or mentors in the journalism
field proved far easier. Through what
could only be described as either divine intervention or extreme luck, I
contacted a couple of animation writers who served as my mentors, and moved to
Los Angeles where I would find jobs helping to produce animated programs.
It soon became
painfully apparent that very little information existed for people who wanted
to be involved in the business but not as artists; my trouble getting information
did not come from being in a smaller area, as I'd long assumed, but from a lack
of availability. Even the explosion of
the Internet hadn't made much of a dent in that area yet, except possibly with
voice actors.
Convinced there
had to be others in the same position I once was, I decided to see if I could
find an outlet for sharing my experiences, along with the viewpoints of others
through interviews. My search brought
me to a website which paid little but open to a wide variety of topics they were
willing to publish. While making sure I
didn't write for free was important so I could begin establishing professional
credentials, mainly I wanted a publishing outlet with a brand versus just
launching my own site. For almost a
year, I wrote articles and published interviews for that site. What brought the association to an end is
complicated, but the primary drive came from the fact I needed to spend more
time on an animated series I was working on and decided to take a hiatus. Within several weeks, the order on our
series was cut and I would soon be without any work and already had severed
ties with the publishing site.
The very same
day I heard about my job, my Internet searching for job openings brought me to
another site -- one geared specifically to animation, which sought
columnists. This would allow me to
better reach my target audience, and also paid a little better. So I wrote up a proposal that was submitted
and accepted. No skip in publishing time occurred, only a change in
website. The feedback I've received
from the community's active bulletin boards reaffirms this is the place for my
work, and helps me figure out what people need or want to know, or sometimes
areas even I can learn more about. In
the end, things turned out for the best for the people I set out to inform as
well as my writing credits.
The animation
field continues to stay tight and tough, like many other industries. Yet, I have not been dissuaded from my
motivated purpose, though it may be months or years before I work directly in
the industry again. There are no times
like the lean ones to test your devotion, it seems to me. Along the way, I am determined to keep in
contact with the industry and to bring my readers what the possibilities are so
they can be ready to face the challenges now or prepare for the future, if this
is truly where their passion leads. In
doing so, my passion and inspiration stay ignited because I know I remain a
conduit of information in an area where only recently more people are stepping
out to share their expertise and viewpoints.
Whether it's
writing in and about animation like me, or whatever you're passionate about, I
honestly believe that if you can use your skills to make a difference in
someone's life you should do it. Find a
niche no one's covering, or a venue no one's taken advantage of when others are
publishing on the subject, and go for it.
The search may take a while. Some pay is important, if your goal is to
be professional, but sharing knowledge can be part of finding your personal
path to purpose.
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