Is there Still a Place for the Renaissance Woman?

I read an excerpt from a forthcoming article in The Writer about the benefits of being a generalist in the field of freelance writing. The article, which was written by a recent college grad, extolled the benefits of being able to write about anything, especially when breaking in to the business. You can, indeed, accumulate clips fairly quickly if you are willing to work for a local newspaper and write about everything from city council meetings, to girl scout cookie sales to high school sports.

It's funny. I wrote an essay on my college applications about the specialist versus generalist argument, (this was back in the dark ages, mind you, before the degree of specialization that we have today), coming out in favor of the generalist as well. My premise was that a too narrow focus limits you to the links between specialties that ultimately tie us all together. Call me naive; call me idealistic; call me hopelessly outdated. Regardless, the essay worked well enough to get me into a few high tier colleges from which I choose Princeton.

What's ironic is that in this era of globalization, when we are all more connected than ever before, my lack of specialization is actually one of the detriments to getting this book published. If I had accumulated a slew of clippings in the field of veterinary medicine, animal science or even human-animal connections, I probably would have more credibility to my name. And if those clippings had led to a column or website or blog about pets or horses or even racing, I would have opened a door that remains closed.

By being willing and able to write about almost anything, it seems I have precluded the possibility of becoming an expert in the one field that would have opened the door to incredible opportunities.

So to aspiring writers I would amend the advice about becoming a generalist. It's a great place to start but it shouldn't be where you finish, or you may never get past the first turn.