Disclaimer: I’ve been playing Katy Perry’s ♫ Supernatural ♫ and mentally doing Destroza all day.

This morning, I woke up at 4.30, did Zumba for an hour, got my 8 year old ready for school, walked her to the gate, and got to town by 7.53. Then, I walked into Tuskys and spent 15 minutes zoobing in the baby food section. I had a  bright green hoodie, jeans, short purple dreads, and a rucksack on my back. I look 22 years old, but I’m actually closer to 30.

Later in the day, I was recommended for a writing gig. As always, I showed the prospective client my portfolio, which includes my blog, Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In pages. I didn’t get the job. The client wanted ‘a mature mother figure’. Raising two kids on your own doesn’t really count when you routinely wear jeans, luminous clothing, rant on Twitter, and dye your hair purple.

Some weeks back, I had the same situation, but it came from a different angle. I was watching a group of people. One was a guy. He was all giggly and flirty and everybody loved him. The other was a girl. She shot from the hip and gave straight answers. She wasn’t very popular. Both were asked for feedback on a new product. Naturally, the askers preferred the flowery, sugar coated *cough*cough*fake* response. Human beings are like that. They see what they want to see, and go with what makes them smile. This is all very nice … if you’re a mistress of PR. Not so much when white lies make your nose grow long.

When a client asks me what kind of writing I do, I ask, ‘What kind do you want?’ I’ve done everything from business contracts to film scripts to scripted tweets, and I do them all equally well. The only writing I can’t do is code, and if I hang around here long enough, I might get passable at that. I read somewhere that writers should be read, not seen, and the beauty of digital work is that people don’t see you. Plus, when you’re a social media ninja, it helps to have bright clothes and brighter hair. But if I had shown the ‘mother-hunting’ client a sample of – say – the work I did for Mothers’ Union, I might have won the gig.

No, I haven’t written for Mothers’ Union. But I could if I wanted to.

Thing is, I have this … condition. I want people to accept me as me. So when I’m giving a sample of my work, they need to see the serious stuff I write for lawyers and the quirky stuff I write for radio. They need to see the whole package and realize there’s a bit that fits them perfectly. Yeah, I should probably get over that condition. I read somewhere else that blogs shouldn’t be personal journals when they represent your business. That’s what tumblr anonymous blogs strange twitter handles alternate personalities all the above pseudonyms are for. Sometimes, you should either tell people what they want to hear or shut the fuck up.

Also, yes.

♫ Supernatural ♫ Katy Perry ♫

 

125 thoughts on “Apperances really are everything. How sad.”

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