Comments on: Question: A Degree in Library and Information Science?

By: library writer

library writer — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:03:04 +0000

I’m a graduate student in Library Science. I’m also a writer. You’ll find that while the MLIS opens professional doors, it also demands a lot of commitment. This is a hard time to pursue just about any career, and there are no guarantees. Make sure you are passionate about the issues Dennis outlined. To these, I would add censorship (especially for public or school librarians). The bottom line: you’ve got to love both writing and librarianship a whole hell of a lot in order to do both.

I suppose I’ve had some luck, though. If you can land a GA position, you will be funded and work fewer hours than other students. Since I only work around 20 hours per week, my extra time is for reading, writing, revising, (and revising, and revising) and submitting work. It’s a constant balancing act, but one that I enjoy.

Many, many librarians choose to work part-time in order to pursue other interests, and the profession is pretty generous with vacation time, so it isn’t surprising that writers and artists pursue careers in the field.

By: librophiletransplant

librophiletransplant — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:27:18 +0000

Why didn’t I see this earlier? I’m the girl in a LIS program! (Dennis, if this person is interested, I’d be more than happy to talk to them via email about the program).
Library and information science is here to stay. I just read that by 2017, 68% of current librarians will be retired. The field is growing, as is the definition of “librarian.” Yes, the money isn’t there for public libraries, but they have been receiving a shit-load of press since the economic crash: public library use is at an all-time high.
Also, you’ll notice that most library science programs have incorporated information science. Information science is a great field and there are all sorts of settings to work in. The fact that this person has a philosophy background is fantastic. I was a philosophy major and it has helped with the MLIS coursework greatly.
As far as finding time to write, there is no time to write. But there are many, many, many LIS journals out there, so maybe LIS could be the very thing to write about.

By: Craig

Craig — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:39:41 +0000

If the goal is to have a job that allows time to write fiction. Going back to school seems to me to be a dodge. C’mon now, you’re not going to have a whole heckuva lotta time to write fiction while you’re pursuing an advanced degree. So actually, you’re finding another way to put off your stated goal.

If the goal is to freelance in publishing or do ghostwriting, then going back to school also seems to me to be a dodge. You don’t need an MLS degree to do either of those things. You do need some entrepreneurship.

Any job or other life task will interfere with writing if we allow it to. If we really, truly want to write, we clear the way and write. We don’t clutter the way even further.

By: bets

bets — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 03:31:28 +0000

I don’t know you. I don’t know what you want out of life. But if you really want to write, then you must write. It’s my feeling that you actually WILL write if that’s what you’re determined to do, come hell or high water, classes full of trust-funders or mounds of books to download for rude library patrons.

Any real career worth its salt (librarian, teacher, programmer, I could go on) takes a hell of a lot of time and energy. I think it’s important to be honest about what you want to spend much of your time doing and love it. That, I think, in an of itself, will leave you with the energy and drive to write.

I have a lot of respect for librarians, especially school librarians.