Member Spotlight: Susanne Tedrick

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world?
While we are moving to a world that is increasingly demanding more video content, I think writing is essential, now more than ever. Writing not only has the power to inform and facilitate communication, but it has to power to influence and deeply move others. To me, writing is a powerful gift to share with others.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block?
I’m slightly embarrassed to admit this, but listening to my favorite music (as loud as is permissible) and dancing truly has helped get my energy flowing and helped to get the thoughts and words flowing again.

What is your favorite time to write?
The very first thing in the morning. It’s when it’s the quietest and there are virtually no distractions of any kind. It’s when I can be most focused and engaged.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers?
It was a piece of advice offered in William Zinsser’s On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Non-fiction–write for yourself and not necessarily the “audience” you may be envisioning in your head.

When I first read this, I thought that this was a bit contradictory. But reading further it meant sense. Given the nature and enormity of the book that I was writing, there was no way that I was going to satisfy everyone’s expectations in reading my book. Rather than try to satisfy everyone and drive myself nuts–and in turn, write something inauthentic–I chose to write the book in my most authentic voice/self and trust that most people will understand my message.

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age?
Having the honor of being helpful to others. It fills me with immense pride and joy when someone reads my book and they’ve said that it has helped them in some small way in their career.

Susanne Tedrick’s Women of Color in Tech: A Blueprint for Inspiring and Mentoring the Next Generation of Technology Innovators is out now with Wiley.