How I became a UX writer

Making your unique journey your strength.

(This article was originally published in Bootcamp Magazine on Medium)

Over the last few months, I’ve spent time each week mentoring and speaking with folks who are either new to being UX writers, or trying to break into the field. In these calls, I’m often asked to share the story of how I got here without a ‘traditional background.’

First, there is no ‘traditional background’ into UX writing.

While UX writing/content design is less than 10 years old, it has been around in some way or another for well over 30 years. Yet, it is still an anomaly for UX writing to appear in university coursework, or UX bootcamps that are not specifically for UX writing.

So, maybe it’s time we flip the narrative of the ‘non-traditional’ background and admit that maybe the non-traditional way into UX writing is, in fact, the traditional way.

How I got into UX

If it wasn’t already clear, I too came from this non-traditional, traditional background. I studied Anthropology, Biology, and Pre-med in university and with one year left of undergrad, I realized that medical school just wasn’t my vibe.

So I moved back to my hometown of Des Moines, Iowa and got the first job I could — working at a social work agency.

But falling into a job is not the same as finding your true passion. Within 5 years I was burnt out and hopelessly unhappy. I needed to find what I really wanted to do, but I couldn’t do that in the comfort of my own home(town).

That’s how I ended up moving to NYC with only $2000 in the bank.

NYC

It is a well established truth that moving to NYC with nothing but two grand and a half-baked dream, will have you broke in about a month.

Of course, that’s exactly what happened.

I literally had no idea what I wanted to do. By now it had been 3 months since my move, and my living standards had decreased significantly from my comparatively opulent (yet dastardly) Manhattan accommodations, to a very sketchy Brooklyn setup with a few roommates.

Then one day my bank account lit up with a nice chunk of money.

That sweet, sweet tax return had hit — looks like I was gonna pay the bills after all!

The Epiphany

The responsible thing is not always the right thing.

And by that, I mean I took that money and booked a flight to Europe for the first time in my life (go big or go home right?).

I told the universe that I would not be coming back to NYC until I found my purpose. A purpose I happened to find during a group hike with the folks in my Barcelona hostel. We were all introducing ourselves, and one guy very cheerily said, “I’m a UX designer.”

A UX designer…what the hell is that?

Looking at this guy, he looked comfortable, happy, and most importantly, spoke about his work with a lot of joy and excitement. Perhaps even…passion?

Maybe I didn’t know what UX was, but I sure as hell was going to find it.

Finding UX

Problem was, I was completely out of money. Bootcamps or other formal education was completely out of the question, as I could hardly afford the student loan situation I was already in (#cancelstudentloans).

But I figured, I’ve been a pretty good student my whole life. And I love solving problems. And clearly university didn’t teach me anything that I could put to use outside of bar trivia.

Also, the internet exists now, so why not just curate my own coursework?

So I did. For about a year, UX was my life and I didn’t think about anything else. During slow shifts at the restaurant I worked in, I would be reading ebooks on my phone, book-marking Medium articles, or posting questions on LinkedIn. During breaks, I was watching YouTube videos, and on my 8 mile bike ride to work (I couldn’t afford the monthly MetroCard) I would listen to UX podcasts.

“Maybe the non-traditional way into UX writing is, in fact, the traditional way.”

I even managed to convince my roommate to let me borrow her work computer so I could learn how to use Sketch.

I loved UX so much, in fact I started writing about it. Which led me to become a writer. And somehow people noticed my writing and paid me for it.

So I thought, why don’t I just merge these two things? These (could it be) twin passions?

And one day, I got a call from a tech startup:

”Hey. We know you’re interested in doing UX, but we love your writing. Would you consider working for us as a writer?”

“As long as I can hone my UX writing skills.”

“When can you start?”

The soft transition

We’re all good at certain things. For me, it’s learning quickly, working hard, and meeting deadlines.

Within 6 months of my new job I was promoted from a content specialist to a content lead, and had a little more say in the projects I participated in.

Meanwhile, I kept my eye on UX, learned to collaborate with designers, engineers, and PMs. Soon, I was applying the principles I was learning in a real life setting. And, like a mini-internship, I was building out a portfolio of actual user-facing content that reached thousands of people. I loved it. I knew this was it.

So I decided to reach out to the head of design and ask if there was possible funding for me to come on as a full time UX writer, rather than moonlighting as a UX writer while working in marketing.

He emailed back, “I just don’t think UX writing is a full time job.”

So I left.

Luck favors the prepared

I say “I left” but the reality is, I moped around for a few days then got my exit strategy in place. I interviewed at a few places, brushed up my portfolio and presenting skills, and made notes of what to improve each time I interviewed.

And 4 years after learning what UX was, I was officially a full time UX writer at Square.

So the journey begins.

If you’ve made it this far, thank you. I hope that you’re able to be a little inspired by my convoluted path.

My advice to you is to always notice the little, seemingly unconnected opportunities, strategize for the future, make great friends, and don’t listen to vibe-less, uninformed a**holes who tell you that UX writing is not a full-time job.