Major minor

[Gemm: Rock & Roll Star; Born to Rock]

Ok... if I major in writing, what kind of thing should I minor in so I'll have a job to keep myself living before I get anywhere great in life?

As I asked Spriggan this he replied that I shouldn't be asking him. SE, Fell, and EUOL supposedly have suggestions. Since you all write, edit, AND have worked in publishing.

In addition to this I would like to write, but I also want to act. In a finality to my additions, I also have the craziest goal/dream of my life to do before I die. That is, I want to visit every country in the world. I have New York and PA down. Now its just the other 100+ countries to go.

[42]

If you like acting and writing, I would suggest being a theater or film major or minor. There is a lot of money in screen writing.

Now as for practical minors that will help wou get a job. Well, business and economics are always good. They help you find a niche for your writing and find ways to market yourself.

Along with business, computers and technology are good to give you marketable skills.

If you want to get a job when you graduate avoid "acadamia" majors and minors. These are academic programs designed to get you into other academic programs. Unfortunately, at major universities these programs are in greater abundance than vocational programs.

Few programs actually garruntee employment, and they tend to take longer than most majors. These are majors like engineering and education.

Now if you want to go into publishing there are some things you need to know. First not everyone in publishing writes or graduated with an English degree. I've been working in publishing for a few years and have never thought of being an English major. In fact, editors and writers don't run the publishing world. Business people run publishing. They have the money to decide what gets published and what doesn't (unless they are really stupid and then they put trust in the editors to do this *snicker*). There is also an army of technicians and visual artists involved with publishing.

One successful novelist I knew gave the best advice when he pointed out that being a writer involves a lot more than just writing manuscripts to become books. He sold his manuscripts to filmmakers, video game designers and toy companies. And he still found time to publish best-selling novels.

So there is money in being creative. The problem I see a lot of aspiring writers who decide to major in English is that their creativity gets sucked out of them. They get too involved in the academic world of English and other linguistic persuits that they forget that there is a world out there. Knowing how to write is good, but you also need to know something to write about. There are too many books and articles out there about writing or writers.

So I would definitely recommend a minor that is not related to english, especially if you don't want to just write for English professors the rest of your life. Avoid minors like editing or literature or linguistics. You should be getting enough of those things in your major. Social sciences like anthropology, psychology, or sociology are good to let you understand people. Physical sciences, like astronomy, biology, chemistry, and physics and  are good for science fiction writing and understanding inanimate things.

Incidentally, I've published a lot of work by English professors from around  the country and I have to say that most English professors are some of the worst writers I've seen. I think they are just so over-confident in their writing abilities that they think they don't have to edit their own stuff. Also most don't seem to have anything worthwhile to say.

Also, avoid the fine arts like a plague. They will suck your soul away and there is no getting it back. Trust me, I've tried to get mine back.

[Gemm: Rock & Roll Star; Born to Rock]

Oh Oh! So something like say, Mortuary Science? I'm already going to be taking one class called "Funeral Parlors: Past & Present."

But I think my first year will be more about experiencing stuff. Hopefully I can transfer my second year to this other school and get a better grounding.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

In many creative writing programs they do teach you how to write a MARKETABLE manuscript and how to market it. So don't let anyone tell you that a degree in CW is worthless.

If you want something that will do a lot for your marketability as an employee,  though, minor in a foreign language. If you can speak a foreign language fluently a LOT of doors will open for you even if you don't have any other practical education. Learn the literature of that language too, that opens many doors as well from a networking standpoint (not necessarily getting hired, but if you go to a cocktail party in connection with your business, and you can talk about the host's native literature, well, they like you, esp. in Latin American countries).

[Spriggan]

In a recent study done of what Employers want in a resume, speaking a foreign language was in the top 3.  Japanese was the # 1 language then German, Chinese (they didn't say which) and Spanish.

[Entsuropi]

Can i just pop up and recommend Economics?

It compares favourably with Business, in that a lot of the more common business stuff is covered, and it also allows you to understand how Gov't measures affect you, what economists are trying to do and so on. So it can actually apply to day-to-day life.

And it's rather easy.

[EUOL]

Let me begin by asking what kind of writer do you want to be?  Most professional authors would recommend avoiding the English/creative writing major unless you want to write literary fiction.  In fact, many literary fiction writers would also tell you to avoid the English major.  Here is the catch 22:

If you are very committed to being a writer, then you will write a lot in your free time.  In most cases, doing so will give you plenty of training in the physical act of writing, especially if you are constantly reading in the genre you want to produce.  The English program will give you a little bit of refinement, but not much.  Re-read 42's post--he said a lot of very good things.  The thing about most English programs is they will teach you very little about writing itself.  Most of your classes will be literature classes, and you will learn to critique and analyze texts.  A good critic does not make a good writer, and vice versa.  

So, what will an English program give you?  Well, if you are absolutely terrible at prose and mechanics, you will be forced to learn to better yourself.  You will learn some things about revising and about publishing--though these tend to either come very early in the program or very late.  The biggest problem is that if you spend all your time on English, you're left without anything to write about.  If you want to continue in academia, the English program is good.  If you want to go into professional editing, it is an all right major.  But if you want to be a writer, other areas will do you better.  

For instance, a history major will know a lot more than an English major when it comes to writing fantasy.  Someone in the sciences will have a better grasp on science fiction.  Mainstream fiction usually has a catch too--like lawyer novels or psychologist novels.  The things you need from an English program--such as some creative writing classes for workshopping--can be gained through a minor, or from simply taking classes without either major or minor.  English departments tend to be very non-exclusive.

Personally, I didn't know any of this when I started.  I chose English because I thought that's what writers did.  It hasn't done me any harm, but I'm not certain I feel that I've learned much that is of use to me.  In reality, the most it did for me was allow me to get a Masters, which will in turn allow me to get a PhD, which in turn will let me teach.

[42]

I should also point out that there are quite a few majors out there that will require you to write more than an English major. In fact, English majors don't really spend any more time writing than most other majors. They don't even necessarily produce any more writing. They just write about writing or literature, most of the time. Or the write about stuff in other fields that they only margenly understand.

Now as an example, a history major writes about history. In fact most history majors I know write A LOT. Course, mechanics and style might be a little more relaxed for a history major, depending on the person grading it.

Also, every major tends to have their own preferences on how to write, based on the instructors experiences with writing and the writing preferences of the field as a whole.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

Yeah, you do a lot of writing in most academic disciplines. THe problem is, other than creative writing, none of them prepare you to write creatively. If you're looking to be a novelist, you generally don't take most classes in the interest of learning the actual skill of writing. Instead, you learn background and material that you can apply in your writing.

[EUOL]

I really wish I'd majored in history instead of English--at least for undergrad.  Creative Writing masters is actually rather good--compared to the undergrad--for helping with my writing.

[42]

That brings up a good point, if you are, or ever, conisder grad school, your undergrad and grad majors don't need to be the same or even simular. If you want to be versatile, having differing grad and undergrad majors can be beneficial.

[EUOL]

Though you eventually have to teach what you get your PhD in.  Something else to keep in mind.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

and whether your undergrad major has to do with your grad one depends on the program. THere's no way you're going to get  into materials engineering PhD program if you've only ever taken history and English courses.