The road to hell is paved with adverbs

Name - Sandy Myo Myint Aung
Campus - Curtin Bentley
Placement - Map and Page  
Commenced - March 7, 2012

"The road to hell is paved with adverbs." A quote by Stephen King I chanced upon yesterday very well brought my attention to writing, my writing in particular.

Writing plays an integral part of my life, as well as, professional development of many young aspiring PR students like myself. I am a firm believer that the most viable element of public relations, specifically media relations, is about influencing opinion and changing behaviors that will eventually muster the bottom line - by most doing so with your writing. Writing has also become a fundamental part of my daily assignments during my internship at Map. Approaching to the end year of my academic pursuit at Curtin, I am embarrassed to admit that writing is by far the most difficult, yet exhilarating thing I have ever encountered in life, aside from bungee jumping, sky diving and mathematics (Ok, I lied about maths).

A not-so-confident writer

I always bring myself back to the first day of my job placement at Map. My supervisor, who is also my account manager happened to be the first witness of my shortcoming in becoming a nerve wreck when words don’t flow as they should. Easy writing is very hard writing, like Nathaniel Hawthorne had said before. Well said, it was almost like sitting down staring into the PC and popping up a vein, one at a time. That was when I said to myself, I should never have a doubt that I can write, writing is hard work but hey, it is also a rewarding form of creativity (when it comes out right). All and all, I’ve started to pick up the advice from many superiors that the greatest way to improve my writing was perhaps to write more. Like many goals and objectives that many of us, PR students have set towards our job placements and what we wish to achieve out of it, I have my mind set on becoming a better writer. I want to strive hard to have the opportunity one day to engage, influence and shape perceptions in the society. I want to become a writer who can create and master a style of her own. I plan to do more reading; quantity could turn into quality for all I know.

Putting passion in public relations

I believe the world most famous authors in the past century didn’t have an advanced education to jump start their careers – I believe it is the skills and knowledge, nurtured by practice and passion that moved the readers. Passion is a powerful element, without passion there is no religion, history, romance or art in the world. To me, passion is about happiness, doing what truly makes you happy – let it be work, sport or even a hobby. I often misconstrue what constitutes happiness and mistook it for self-fulfillment. Today while sitting on my desk at Map, I am coming to terms with myself that I find passion through writing, the kind that influences perceptions and creates positivity – I find passion through a worthy purpose.

I'm currently engaged in writing an interesting write-up of my supervisor's biography and another superior at Map. From research, as well as the comment's I've gotten so far, I'll share a few tips with you on writing a great biography:

1. Identify your purpose
2. Third person perspective
3. Short and concise
4. Start with your name
5. State your business
6. Add a touch of personality
7. Read and re-edit

Have also you seen the article on '9 books communicators should read'? Geoff Livingston shared in the article about seeing the value not only in studying the written word, but in creativity, metaphorical lessons and storytelling. Great novels recommended to communicators!
Goodluck and Cheers,

Sandy