A writing portfolio is an essential tool for everyone from job seekers to students pursuing degrees in creative writing at colleges and universities. A writing portfolio should be kept film and television writers, technical writers, newspaper staffers, magazine employees, and almost anyone else who works in a field that requires writing. There are a variety of approaches to building a writing portfolio that will result in a high-impact final product.
Short stories, poems, personal essays, research papers, writing clips showcasing published works such as articles in newspapers, and so on are all examples of writing that can be included in a portfolio. Writers should make a habit of keeping hard copies and digital copies of all of their work so that they have all of the necessary materials on hand and can keep track of their progress. It aids in the indexing of samples kept on hand writers so that they can quickly locate the samples they require.
The first step in putting together a writing portfolio is deciding what it will be used for so that the portfolio’s writing samples can be properly chosen and organized. Personal essays, newspaper clippings, and a sample of a research paper, for example, might be included in a magazine application, but poetry and short stories are not. Someone applying to a graduate level creative writing program, on the other hand, would want to show off poetry and fiction, as well as samples of longer works such as novels. Rather than creating a generic portfolio that may not be suitable for all jobs, it is a good idea to customize the portfolio for the job.
Many writers keep digital portfolios, sometimes on their websites for ease of access, thanks to the digital age. A writer can also create a customized portfolio for a specific purpose, such as a job application, and provide a link to the portfolio that the writer wants the potential employer to see. Some writers use their websites as a generic portfolio, with links to specific types of writing so that potential employers can look through a variety of samples. Digital portfolios can also be saved on a disc or emailed to potential employers as single files.
If hard copies of writing samples are required, the writer should carefully organize them and package them in a binder or document case, selecting the best samples and creating an index. The samples should be formatted in a consistent look and feel, and they should be printed in large print to make them easy to read. If some of the samples are clips, they can be scanned or photocopied for inclusion so the writer can keep the original, and they should be reproduced neatly so they look clean and are easy to read.
A portfolio’s purpose is to allow a writer to show off his or her best work to potential employers. Full-length pieces and excerpts can be included in portfolios, but they should be carefully chosen because few people will read everything in a writing portfolio, so each piece should have a significant impact. A writer may want to include a list of complete publishing credits at the end of a portfolio to give a prospective employer an idea of the writer’s experience and credentials.