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Poets, Lyricists and Creative Writers

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Create original written works, such as scripts, essays, prose, poetry or song lyrics, for publication or performance.

Related: Editors News Analysts, Reporters, & Journalists Producers & Directors Proofreaders & Copy Markers Writers & Authors

Industries: Professional, Science, & Technical

Summary
Details

Write fiction or nonfiction prose, such as short stories, novels, biographies, articles, descriptive or critical analyses, and essays.
Write narrative, dramatic, lyric, or other types of poetry for publication.
Collaborate with other writers on specific projects.
Attend book launches and publicity events, or conduct public readings.
Teach writing classes.
Write words to fit musical compositions, including lyrics for operas, musical plays, and choral works.
Revise written material to meet personal standards and to satisfy needs of clients, publishers, directors, or producers.
Develop factors such as themes, plots, characterizations, psychological analyses, historical environments, action, and dialogue to create material.
Choose subject matter and suitable form to express personal feelings and experiences or ideas, or to narrate stories or events.
Plan project arrangements or outlines, and organize material accordingly.
Follow appropriate procedures to get copyrights for completed work.
Conduct research to obtain factual information and authentic detail, using sources such as newspaper accounts, diaries, and interviews.
Adapt text to accommodate musical requirements of composers and singers.
Prepare works in appropriate format for publication, and send them to publishers or producers.
Confer with clients, editors, publishers, or producers to discuss changes or revisions to written material.
Plan project arrangements or outlines, and organize material accordingly.
Write humorous material for publication, or for performances such as comedy routines, gags, and comedy shows.

Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

More than 1 year on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

86170/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

41.43/hr

Currently Employed

6,030

Yearly Projected Openings

740

Artistic: People interested in this work like activities that include creating, designing, and making your own rules. They do well at jobs that need:

Persistence
Initiative
Achievement/Effort
Attention to Detail
Independence
Innovation

Laser fax machine
Laser printers
Personal computers
Tablet computers

Cloud-based data access and sharing software
Desktop communications software
Desktop publishing software
Document management software
Graphics or photo imaging software
Office suite software
Presentation software
Spreadsheet software
Text to speech conversion software
Video creation and editing software
Web page creation and editing software
Word processing software

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Poets, Lyricists and Creative Writers

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