Yet another career possibility
I’ve been thinking that perhaps I should try looking for work in book indexing. Not just because I take pleasure in a well-indexed book and greatly enjoyed the threads on indexing last fall at Crooked Timber and languagehat; it also seems like the kind of work I would find congenial. Via the American Society of Indexers, I found an interesting site for people considering indexing, complete with a list of characteristics common to indexers, and I recognized quite a lot of myself in the list. For example, the list suggests that successful indexers:
Have good pattern recognition skills
Read carefully and quickly
Are good "listeners" who can hear what the author intends to say . . .
Are general information addicts
Enjoy working crossword puzzles (optional)
Enjoy thinking of one word synonyms (not optional) . . .
Have good spelling and grammar
Are self-motivated and work well alone
Are computer-literate, email-literate . . .
Have good language synthesis and/or writing skills . . .
Do detailed needlework (optional)
Alphabetize things (records, CDs, books, spices) . . .
Like to organize things by category (contents of drawers, refrigerators, cupboards, closets, bookcases, spices, life)
All of the above are true of me, though my spice cabinet and bureau drawers tend toward a state of entropy most of the time. Still: crossword puzzles, needlework, alphabetized books and CDs, good spelling, pattern recognition skills (which are what I spent my graduate school years honing), information addiction: yes to all. The only thing is, most indexers are freelancers and I’d rather have steady employment than go freelance right now. But maybe I’ll change my mind eventually.
(Or maybe it’s just that the ASI’s page on "Indexers in Fiction" makes me want to write a novel with an indexer as the main character.)
thanks for pointing me in the direction
of those earlier indexing threads.
it’s always there in the back of my mind
as something it might someday be worth a try.
but here’s what i actually wrote in
http://members.aol.com/vlorbik/blog.html
:
Household Opera lists some characteristics of indexers today — but, like her, I’m put off by the “freelance” nature of the work: you not only have to do it, which by itself might very well be great fun . . . you have to (a) find the work and (b) make sure you get paid. One of the very few things I know about jobhunting: these two things are torture.
That’s really cool. I admire a good index, too (especially the ones that manage to inject some humor into the process). After attempting to make an index for my dissertation, I admire the patience and skills needed. It’s hard!
The U.S. joblessness report for February 2004 stunned
observers and investors alike – instead of creating
the forecasted 125,000 new jobs, the entire U.S.
economy only managed to produce 21,000 additional
jobs. That left the ‘official’ unemployment rate
steady at 5.6 per cent – I say ‘official’, because
those people who’ve simply given up looking for
jobs are dropped from the ‘official’ count, and in
many areas no jobs exist once a big plant closes
and moves overseas [ergo, there are soon ‘no j
jobseekers’ there!].
What with downsizing, jobs being sent off-shore,
a ho-hum economic recovery, plant closings and
layoffs, I thought some good folks here might
benefit from the results of my own diligent search,
and applied research, on this topic:
‘What Color Is Your Parachute’ Site, this
book has got to be the ‘Bible’ for all
serious job hunters!:
http://www.jobhuntersbible.com/
‘Quintessential Job Hunt’ Site. ‘Search jobs!
Post a Resume!’ Well, they’re enthusiastic, anyway…!http://www.quintcareers.com/jobhunt.html
These guys are good! An executive I know had just
about given up when they took him on, got him
a job interview with a large company president
and a solid job offer – all in two days!
http://www.johnwhitleystrategicconsulting.com
Monster of a job site! Great resource:
http://english.monster.ca/geo/siteselection.asp
Its Canadian ‘twin’…
http://www.workopolis.com/index.html
The Riley Guide: Employment Opportunities and
Job Resources on the Internet
http://www.rileyguide.com/
Job-Hunt.org ‘Online Job Search Guide…your
objective source of the Web’s Best Job Search
Resources http://www.job-hunt.org/
RiteSite Executive Careers Service – looks
pretty helpful, if you’re searching via the Net…
http://www.ritesite.com
And if YOUR job hasn’t gone to India or China
yet, don’t be surprised to find out that it’s been
secretly packing its bags – 14 million more U.S.
technical, professional and managerial jobs are
now estimated to be at risk of ‘off-shore downsizing’!