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Steve’s Next Book – An Update To Fan To Pro – And a Thank You

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Remember how this blog inspired a book on geeky jobs, called “Fan To Pro”?  Well thanks to you readers, and my staff, and my friends, there’s an update.

Introducing Fan To Pro’s second edition: “Fan To Pro: Leveling Up Your Career Through Your Hobbies.”

This is a huge update of the original book (which, yes, is going out of print). Huge chunks were rewritten or expanded. A lot of new information gained over the four (!) years since I wrote it were included. Resources were updated. Chapters were newly organized and categories, and helpful checklists were added. Bigger, more focused, and going into more depth than it’s predecessor, it’s my way to help you in your geek careers.

The best part of it, in my opinion, is how the book is organized. Each chapter sums up what you’re going to learn, follows that rough pattern, then gives you a list of takeaways and resources/next steps. Each chapter is almost standalone, and I think it’ll let people take away the right lessons and apply them. I’m very curious how these lessons can be applied in other writing – and some of it has found its way into my current blogging.

So go on, take a look, spread the word, pester me for a review copy, and enjoy. I hope it helps you and yours in the years to come.

Oh, and as a special celebration, look for something coming soon . . .

– Steven Savage

Meet My Next Book: (Not Quite) The Same As The Old Book

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FTPV2WebAnd my next book is out.

Introducing Fan To Pro’s second edition: “Fan To Pro: Leveling Up Your Career Through Your Hobbies.”

This is a huge update of the original book (which, yes, is going out of print). Huge chunks were rewritten or expanded. A lot of new information gained over the four (!) years since I wrote it were included. Resources were updated. Chapters were newly organized and categories, and helpful checklists were added. Bigger, more focused, and going into more depth than it’s predecessor, it’s my way to help you in your geek careers.

Frankly, I think it’s one of the best things I’ve written. I really had to think it over, restructure my advice, apply knowledge, and question myself. I’m glad it’s done so people can use it to advance their careers – especially in this not-so-hot economy.

(Come to think of it, it was not-so-hot when I wrote the first book. Which is one reason some of my current writing focuses on Geek Citizenship since we got bigger problems).

The best part of it, in my opinion, is how the book is organized. Each chapter sums up what you’re going to learn, follows that rough pattern, then gives you a list of takeaways and resources/next steps. Each chapter is almost standalone, and I think it’ll let people take away the right lessons and apply them. I’m very curious how these lessons can be applied in other writing – and some of it has found its way into my current blogging.

So go on, take a look, spread the word, pester me for a review copy, and enjoy. I hope it helps you and yours in the years to come.

– Steven Savage

Steven Savage is a Geek 2.0 writer, speaker, blogger, and job coach.  He blogs on careers at http://www.musehack.com/, publishes books on career and culture at http://www.informotron.com/, and does a site of creative tools at http://www.seventhsanctum.com/. He can be reached at https://www.stevensavage.com/.

Geek As Citizen: Science Awareness

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Scientist Scope Technology Science

Neil deGrasse Tyson gives me hope. And not just that a relatively nerdy guy can become an intellectual sex symbol (according CERTAIN people in my twitter feed). It’s that we can make paying attention and knowing science cool again. Because we need to, and the remade Cosmos is a great start.

It seems as of late science isn’t cool.

  • Of course there’s climate change, where apparently 97% of scientists agreeing about it leaves room for controversy, especially if fat donations and speaking gigs can be wedged into that room.
  • There’s the disgusting anti-vaccination crusade that means we get measles back to kill our kids. There’s a nice story of leaving the anti-vaxx movement here or you can just stew in anger over the body count site whose URL mocks Jenny Mc Carthy.
  • Abstinence only education doesn’t work, though people still seem to think talking about it will convince people it does. Having been a teenager and remembering it, and looking at the numbers, I’m pretty sure it doesn’t.

We probably need to clone Neil deGrasse Tyson (Ok, you folks on Twitter, calm down, you know who you are). But baring the possibility of using dark technology to create an Army of Tysons* it’s up to us to enhance science awareness.

It’d kind of be par for the course.

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