Although I announced that I was writing a UX Careers Handbook in mid-December 2014, it wasn’t until mid-January that I actually started putting the virtual pen to paper and writing the book. I’m excited to say that two weeks ago—five months and 82,000 words later—I turned the final manuscript over to the publisher!

While the above statement is framed as what I did, in reality, this effort has been so collaborative that this book would not have been possible without so many others in the UX community, including Lebsontech staff; the 27 contributors to this book, including those who wrote personal stories, career pathways, and in two cases, chapters; the many colleagues who took the time to talk through many aspects of the book; and those colleagues who reviewed sections—or the entirety—of the text. The book needs—and will have—quite an acknowledgements section!

What else has been accomplished so far? Infrastructure in place!

  • Reviews: The book text has had a number of designated experts review specific pieces, plus two full editorial reviews focused on content accuracy and cohesion.
  • Website: The uxcareershandbook.com website is fully operational (although lots more content yet to come!)
  • Facebook: The UX Careers Handbook Facebook page is up with nearly 300 followers already.
  • Mailing list: A mailing list for the book is up and running via the website.
  • Sponsorship: New sponsorship opportunities are available to help others who want to reach UX jobseekers and support website maintenance and content expansion.

And this is also several months before publication – just wait until it’s published!

What was involved in this effort to this point?

Colleagues who have written books told me how much work was involved, and I didn’t quite believe it. But nearly 500 hours later—wow, it’s a lot! For the most part, those have been enjoyable hours, but they have had an impact on my ability to take on Lebsontech work. After starting the book draft in January, I didn’t start actively pursuing new Lebsontech work again until early May—which allowed me to get this draft done quickly, but had a sizable impact on Q1 and Q2 Lebsontech revenue. While I enjoyed writing the draft, I definitely appreciate having my time back to accept paid work and generate a comfortable revenue stream.

What’s left?

Most of the remaining work on the book will be led by my editors at CRC Press (thank you!) and includes copyediting, a cover design, and interior design. (And in case you are wondering why it is no longer Focal Press, two Taylor & Francis imprints just merged and will now operate under the CRC Press name).

Meanwhile, my main effort over the next few months will be to begin building out the chapter resources section of the website. Some of this information will be available as soon as I pull it together, while other pieces of information that tie most directly into the book chapters may not appear until the book is published.

So when will you see the book?

Of course, the most important question is when you are actually going to get to see the book! Expect it to come out in early 2016, about six months from now.

But meanwhile, please do stay informed by joining that mailing list and by following on Facebook.

And thanks again to all my wonderful colleagues for helping this book become what it was meant to be—a great career resource for all involved in the UX field, both present and future!

Image: Andrushko Galyna / Bigstock.com