GeekGirlCon Blog

How to Be a Nerd for a Living from GeekGirlCon ’14

Written by GeekGirlCon Copy Writer Sarah “SG-1” Grant

If I could do anything for a living, what would it be? Probably a writer, most likely a fiction writer. Let’s face it: I would have to be a science fiction writer, which has been my ultimate dream for many, many years now. My friends have called me a nerd and a geek all my life, and seeing that future for myself really works.

But what will I do before I get there? I do have to pay my rent, and eat occasionally. I’ve logged a lot of time searching for jobs in the past couple of years, so the career-related panels at GeekGirlCon ‘14 were right up my alley.

“How to Be a Nerd for a Living” was one of the panels I attended, because I was looking for some advice. Every job I’ve ever had has been one I eventually hated, because none of them had anything to do with my nerdy passions. The panelists I listened to here, however, do nerdy stuff for a living. For REAL. They get paid for it. In fact, Wendy Buske, the moderator, founded Nerd for a Living.

Wendy Buske

What is Nerd for a Living?

“As the name implies, the mission of Nerd for a Living (N4AL) is to assist people of the nerdish persuasion* to discover fulfilling, profitable and sustainable career paths in the worlds they love. Whether you’re a comic artist trying to get your work recognized, or an accountant who dreams of using your expertise in the gaming industry, N4AL provides tools and information to help you pursue and achieve those goals.”

Definition of “nerdish” and above excerpt from NFAL

 Wendy’s panelists included:

Jaimie Cordero (@TheGlitterJedi), CEO and Glitter Jedi of Espionage Cosmetics

Susan Eisenberg (@SusanEisenberg1), a voice-over artist known for her animation, commercial, and promotional work. Her most well-known and celebrated role was as the voice of Wonder Woman on Justice League, Justice League Unlimited, and the direct-to-DVD animated movies Superman/Batman: Apocalypse and Justice League: Doom.

Heidi Gaertner (@BigFishGames), Technology Director at Big Fish Games, where she oversees all programming functions for the games being developed by Big Fish’s in-house studios.

Jina Heaverly (@BigFishGames), Vice President and General Manager of PC, Mac, and Cloud for Big Fish Games

Rebecca Hicks (@RHicks), illustrator and creator of the Little Vampires books and webcomic; also the creator of The Nerdy Godmother collection of nerd-related arts and crafts.

Rebecca Hicks, Jaimie Cordero, Jina Heaverly, Susan Eisenberg

These awesome nerdy women had a plethora of advice for those of us in the panel room hanging on their every word. The first advice mentioned really resonated with me and how I’ve lived my life thus far: work at anything you can do, whether you want to or not. That is what I’ve been doing in my life. With my English degree, I have held jobs in administrative academia, retail pharmacy, programming, and retail support administration.

“Art is a hobby, not a career.” We’ve all heard this, I’m sure; these women all nodded knowingly, as did the people seated around me. You can’t really make a living as an artist or a creator of art or games or literature…right?

A couple of panelists agreed that teaching jobs are good for some people who use their spare time to be creative. Unfortunately, while the kids are awesome, there was a general consensus that the job itself was NOT AT ALL awesome.

Retail sucks. Enough said. (I concur wholeheartedly.)

Rebecca Hicks said that training for so many positions happens on the job, rather than before a specific job. (I can attest to that: I got a temp job at a litigation electronic discovery program, and was then hired on permanently as a programmer–and I hadn’t written a computer program since I took BASIC in high school. As with many other jobs, the job I was hired for was not at all what I ended up doing.)

Heidi Gaertner

Heidi and Jina, both of Big Fish Games, said that getting into programming can either be easy or hard, depending on if you have training, and depending on who you know. They advised that you find a market you want to get into (games, IT, media, etc.) and figure out how to get your foot in the door.

Susan Eisenberg talked a little bit about getting her start in voice acting, and advised anyone thinking of trying it to take acting classes first. It’s very helpful to have training before you start to try finding jobs. Susan also mentioned that there is voice-over work in every major city in the United States–cartoons, commercials, and radio work isn’t central to just New York or Los Angeles.

All of the panelists agreed on these main points for getting the nerdy career you want:

1. Keep an open mind.
2. Look for a mentor in that area of the field or company.
3. Ask questions, even if you feel nervous or shy.
4. If you feel weak in a particular area, take a class, and ask more questions.

Above all, be persistent, and stay positive. Tell people you’re looking for something in your chosen industry, and don’t give up. Visit the Nerd for a Living site and follow them on various social media to get more information, excellent advice, and inspiration for yourself!

Stay tuned over the next few months for announcements for GeekGirlCon ‘15; I’m sure there will be more awesome panels aimed at helping every person at the con the job they want to have! In the meantime, go buy your passes! They will sell out again, and we want to see your faces there with us for our fifth anniversary.

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