Jobs: Lyudmila Sarychev, editor and publisher of "Things Modulbanka"
Workplaces / / December 27, 2019
Lyudmila Sarychev
Editor, co-author of "Write to shrink" and publisher of "Things Modulbanka".
"In a few years you see your old text and understand what he is poor": a class editors, "Write, cut" and Maxim Ilyahove
- Many know you as a co-author of the cult book "Write to decline," which you wrote with Maxim Ilyahovym. How did you meet and start working together?
- Before we met, I was more than a year followed the maxim: read his advice and commented on the blog. At the time I worked in the "Citibank", made an internal newsletter and looking for a job as a copywriter. True, to no avail: I refused the publishing house "Myth" and not only is it.
Once I saw that Maxim is looking for assistant "Megaplan". I sent him a letter, and the next day went to the hairdresser and updated almost every minute in the hope of getting an answer. As a result, he was positive, but I have none of it did not tell, because I could not believe it.
I still do not understand how this could happen: no one wanted to take me to work, and Maxim Ilyahov, for whom I watched half of the year, made it after just one letter. Since then, and began this union.
- In the book, there are moments that you are controversial?
- Book - a common product, on it we do not dispute, but there are moments in the editing, which we do not concur.
- Which for example?
Maxim promotes the theory that the success of any publication due to mortal sin, on which it is based. For example, people read "Tinkoff magazine," because they want to be rich (avarice), and Layfhaker because they want be better others (pride). Sounds cool and fun, but I do not support this idea. I think it is all too easy: people are more complex, controversial and interesting.
- At what point did you realize that you want to work with the text?
- I went to cultural studies, but in the last years of working as a journalist: on television and in the Ryazan newspaper "Meshchersk side." The "Citibank" I began to be newsletter and at about the same time started a blog "kompotik" because I like to write. I do not remember the time when editing and working with text would be not interested in me, so that the organic craze resulted in a profession.
- What are you reading to pump skill editor?
- The same book that all the "How to write well" William Zinsera, "Applied journalism" Sergey Kolesnichenko and book Sasha Karepin of business correspondence. I tried to learn everything that met on the boards of editors and copywriters. And not only on the editing of the text, but also, for example, of public speeches.
- Many people read "Write to decline" and began to imagine himself editors. Is there enough of a book, to become a pro?
- Of course not. But it is quite natural that after learning something new person thinks he is ready for anything. I took it as a journalist: I saw praise from readers and has decided that there is no one cooler than me. This condition takes place when you read my old text and understand what he is miserable in a few years.
I do not see anything wrong with that people, after reading "Write, reduces"I began to consider themselves cool editors - as it should be. If they have not got that then become, and this time - a normal stage of development in the profession.
- In your opinion, a good editor - this is what?
- It may take a serious decision about the further destiny of the material, if it does not fit the format of the publication. A good editor will find a way out and still release a cool text instead of poking the material in the usual framework. In addition, a person who is able to make decisions without someone else advice. It will try to do something, evaluates results and makes conclusions.
When someone from my team comes to the question, sometimes I do not answer, and say: "Take the decision itself as an editor." It pumps much professionalism and further facilitates my job. For the first time a decision will not, in the second, but the third will be cool.
More great when editors know different tools: Able to impose pages in HTML and memos in Adobe InDesign. This is not necessary if the publisher has a proofreader, designer and coder, but when the editor is one, it is very promotes business.
- You said that a good editor knows how to make difficult decisions on their own. What is the most difficult decision you took?
- I do not remember, to be honest. Two months ago I changed the position of chief editor at the publisher "Things Modulbanka" and all the complexity of the past turned out to be complete nonsense. Previously, my task was to check the quality of the content, the creation of editorial policy and the organization of processes in the editorial. Now the work was replaced by a managerial: to cooperate with each other marketer, analyst, designer, developers, editors, all distribute tasks, keep track of all results, properly allocate the budget and achieve business performance. To put a subscription form on the website, it is necessary that the designer drew her, the developer implemented, the analyst added event in the "metric" and began to track.
It is necessary to organize the whole edifice, and to do everything to make it work properly. Much has yet to alter and re-invent. This work is much more exhausting than the chief editor of the duties.
- Why did you change jobs?
- Our edition two years, and half of them were not the person who is responsible for distribution. We released two material a week, a post articles social networksAnd traffic accumulated by itself.
Then came the director of marketing, but it became clear in six months, we did not work: the person does not understand by the boundaries and do not know how we treat the reader. Month, I thought, who should be responsible for the distribution, and realized that only I know myself, what we live as position ourselves and that we consider really important.
In addition, almost the entire team hired me, so employees are loyal to me. When the director came and said that we should start with the subscription banner, everyone said: "PF-f-f, we do not like that!" And when I come with the same idea, all such: "Oh, come on, what you need from us?" I can break the rules, and all perceive it adequately.
In his new post is very interesting - a new milestone in the development.
I've never dealt with before distribution so that become attached to the issues to all friends and even unknownWho understands this. Therein lies the difference between the publisher and editor in chief. The latter can work by itself, coming up with the author's methods and move his way, and the publisher will not be able to become a professional, if you do not communicate with people. I think without the interaction with colleagues in this field it is impossible to develop.
- With whom do you usually advise and who study?
- I'm a little something in terms of editing, but to develop as an entrepreneur. For example, co-owner of "Modulbanka" Yakov Novikov reduce a very cool my brain. I also peep various solutions in other publications. Suppose I see that Layfhaker publishes the most popular articles of the week, and ask Rodion Scriabin, why you are doing and how it works. Come with questions to Sasha Paradise, recently met with Misha Kafanovym, I asked about social networking. And respond to requests and share their experience, it's very nice. A few things of those that I was advised, we have implemented and the results obtained.
- How do you know that you write well? This feeling will ever come?
- I still do not understand. There is a feeling that at the moment I did the work to the maximum, but I do not flatter myself the illusion that it is executed perfectly. Surely someone will come and everything will improve. Or I myself will look after a year and find how to improve the result.
The Washington Post and Esquire published reports are very steep, and I want to be able to write as well, but I understand that will not pull this level in the next couple of years. Such materials are related to communication with people: it is necessary to interview 20 people, to raise another strong report. I do not know when I'm capable of something like that, but I read and I understand that my work - a kindergarten compared to what people are doing, which receive Pulitzer Prize.
I think the main thing - to continue to learn: to practice writing, reading good books.
And you need to read the book, not only for editing, but also artistic. More help watch good movies and take them apart to pieces: to think about the motives of heroes, explore conflicts in the plot and seek profound ideas. The decisions that you find in other areas lie on the editorial work. It is very enriching future results.
"Stop talk, how good you are an editor": Work on weekends and earnings on texts
- Is it possible to earn in Russia on the text? What is the maximum you are receiving a single material?
- It seems to me, on the one text is difficult to make, but you can get good money for a product and service. I will never do for a text and do not undertake such work. I always give service: I propose the best solution, find it under the resources, planning and timing of kick to get the result. When a task acquires the service, for it can take, and fifty and two hundred thousand, because it removes a huge headache from the client.
But if you need a simple example of a specific task, three years ago I made the page for a single product. There just was not any service, and there he was not needed. I wrote the text to be typeset static page HTML and took over the job of 25 000 rubles. This page has been rough to pass on the designer and coder, but it was decent, it was possible to take and publish, and it took two weeks to work. Now I for such tasks do not undertake.
- If you could only give one piece of advice that accurately help to work on the text, as if it sounded?
- My advice - do not compare yourself to others: listen to yourself and just go their own way. Do not think that if someone has something to get right the first time, then you should be so. No, sometimes you need more attempts, and sometimes may not happen. It's not terrible, it is necessary to survive and move on, everyone has his own way.
If someone manages to ten projects, this does not mean that all that must keep pace. Someone will work on one, and it is a joy. And this is important.
All people are different. Someone who likes to work in the office, someone from the house; someone who works 12 hours a day, and someone is productive only four hours a day; someone normally refers to criticismAnd someone is going through. So do not try to be like someone else, you have to rely solely on himself and enjoy his success, even if in the eyes of the rest of these successes modest.
- You work simultaneously on several projects. How to manage all the time?
- I dialed the many projects that I have no way skhalyavit. Work begins at 7:00 and ends at 13:00, and then I do household chores and spend time with the child. Another two or three hours can get at night or during the day, while Varya asleep. When I took up a project, you must perform it, so try to correctly distribute the work.
When I have time, I begin to suffer and dig into yourself, so just do not give yourself the opportunity.
It really helps that the "case" I have a great team in which everything has already been worked out. I can not control anything: the editors themselves write articles, make editorial plan, partitioned between a theme and find experts. I check only drafts before going to publication, and, as a rule, it is a very good text. As a publisher, I constantly with someone called up, and still watch the analytics and boards in Trello.
In "Modulbanke" easy for me to plan because everyone under me adapt. If I can not talk after 13:00, then I get a call at a convenient time, and the editors themselves kicking, so I checked the article. I have to do a minimum of control over the processes in the editorial and managerial work is fairly easy to find room in my schedule.
In addition, I have experience, so I know how long it would take one or another task. Usually, all the same, so I can plan for the week ahead and still have time. In addition, I have more time and sit on Facebook and Instagram. Actually I'm not too effective - can be more disciplined.
- You'll never work on weekends and do not you take over the urgent tasks that someone suddenly asked to perform. How to manage to adhere to these rules in such a volume of work?
- I worked in the "Modulbanke" and formed those rules when I started to write on the weekends. I realized that I was annoying, but the steel balls to say so directly, not enough. Then I went and I wrote the post in your blog. All read it and abruptly stopped writing to me on weekends. Easier, of course, discuss these issues personally, but in my case the method worked well.
On weekends I do my own project: doing the course, writing a book. However, now all what I was working, I was terribly interesting, so that sometimes can take and commerce, but with none of his colleagues at the same time do not communicate and did not agree.
- How does your workplace?
- I live in two cities: Moscow and Ryazan. Ryazan I am working in a flat sister, and in Moscow - on a personal place in coworking, which is 10 minutes from the house. There I is a large monitor that connects to the laptop to edit the article, as well as keyboard and mouse. More on the table is a bottle of water, and all sorts of stuff.
If we talk about online workspace, the more often I use Wunderlist. In it I hold advanced lists by day of week. Here am I invited to submit papers for review, and I mark them tick, once edited. Yet I have a few boards on the development, design and marketing in Trello seem very inconsistent, and the rest of the work - in Telegram. There are many chat rooms in different directions, where we discuss the current challenges for the projects.
"Good comments do not write, and there are always bad": on the working principles and new book
- Many authors bombs with the comments in the spirit of "the author of a moron," and you perceive them calmly. How do you deal with criticism?
- I'm used to that good comments do not write, and there are always bad. On Facebook there is a girl who came to my page and tried to pry the phrases from the category of "you Ilyahova never catch up."
Maybe a year ago I would have protested, but now built up a thick skin and do not pay attention.
However, kommentatorshu then I still blocked. She wrote three times and did not hurt me, but then write something really unpleasant for the fourth time. I can not remove comments because considering it a weakness - I will look at it and go mad. Simply block the person, and do not waste your nerves.
Reasonable in the comments, in principle, is not enough. If a person wants to help or point out a mistake, he will share the views and arguments in personal messages. understand the commentsIt seems to me, is unethical - I do not.
It is best to answer questions insulting comment. For example, a person says, that article - complete nonsense, and you update: "Why?" More often then people merge, because the only thing they wanted - throw and amuse your self-esteem. Most likely, the person does not understand the subject, so that it becomes clear: to respond to such comments is not necessary.
- What is the best comment you touched?
- I remember how Maxim Ilyahov left the "Megaplan" and I wrote a newsletter. After one of them, someone said: "Dismiss Luda Sarychev: steel distribution is too feminine." I was hurt and very pissed off. This is generally sexism. That it was four years ago and since then has certainly had other comments that upset me, but I do not remember them.
Now I am pretty hard to hurt. Under video a presentation at the conference MEH 50 comments, but I read and laugh at them. It seems to me, peace comes with experience: first you get mad, and then you stop paying attention.
- Your new book will be released soon. What will it be?
- Do you have some information, when it comes out? Share, and then I do not. But the book is, it's about the drama in the information text. We have already written how to make the text in a structured, clear and meaningful, and now I'll tell you how to make it surprising and interesting. And no matter what it will be for the text: a post on social networks or a great article.
I hope I can finish the book by year's end, but the exact dates yet.
- You are my mother and at the same time is quite a strict supervisor who knows exactly what he wants, and especially not stand on ceremony with the staff. How you combine these roles?
- I'm not the ceremony, but it has nothing to do with my personal attitude towards the man. I I swear in the comments on the article, and after five minutes to come to the editor in chat and communicate very well personally. I keep asking everyone: "You seem tired. Maybe a day off? How can I help you? Do you want this task postpone? "In general, I am terribly careful and to editors vent their maternal instincts.
Most of all I hate when I'm a hundred times I correct any error but it still appears in the drafts. It pisses me off. However, now I try to be more tactful and delicate. Better to spend time explaining than swearing.
In the role I am also quite strict mother. Daughter and a half years, and is the greatest happiness and love in the world, but if it is scattered toys, she would collect them herself. I try to take care, but at the same time be strict where necessary. This approach also works in the family and at work.
- On what had to give birth to a child?
- to many. When there is a child, you can not break away and go anywhere because orientirueshsya him. In spite of this, we began to travel regularly to Moscow when Varya was six months old, so do not say that we adjust for it all my life.
This year, I waive all presentations and corporate training, because now the time is short, and this activity comes at the expense of family and projects. Now I'm not going to give a lecture in Ekaterinburg, because I did not want to leave the family. At the same time, I can say with absolute certainty that this order itemaboutum.
The child is a hundred times cooler performances in all cities. Even if someone calls me in London and I have to give up, I'm not upset.
- Do not think that all this hampers career?
- And there is. It saves me is that my husband and I share the family responsibilities in half and we both have the same time to work. Children - a lot of work, which is often knocks out career and life in general. I'm just lucky that we have everything turned out differently.
- I heard that 15 minutes after the birth you have already responded to the workers chatik. You do have spare time?
- Watching what is considered free time. Time out of work I have a busy family. I also go to the gym, meeting with sisters visit parents sometimes go out with someone to talk to.
I believe free time when you just lie on the couch, and it's awesome. But with a child able to do so much less. Movies I'm not looking, but pick list, and it accumulates.
Layfhakerstvo from Lyudmila Sarychev
books
I will mention that affected me and that I'm still not mentioned anywhere (I think). I love books, which reveal some non-obvious cause-and-effect relationships.
- Dan Ariely, "Predictably Irrational" - about how people make decisions and why it is almost always impractical.
- Steven D. Levitt, Stephen Dabner "Freakonomics"- the book shows that the causes of the phenomena are much deeper and more interesting than they appear at first glance.
- Michael Lewis'Big game for a fall"- a book about the causes of the 2008 economic crisis. Boring, full of economic terms, but all of these exciting opening non-obvious reasons. And yet it interesting contradictory characters. I watched the film first, and then read the book. Both are very worthy.
In these three books I like that they have written the real scientists, and it shows the depth of the material.
Movies and Series
The last year and a half, I almost do not watch movies and TV shows: there is no time. And I like a lot of pictures, but when asking for something to be called, I always remember "godfather».
I watched it many times. First as a child, his dad loves. Then she, as an adult, with a different understanding of what is happening. I looked at Russian, English, and then again in Russian. I do not know the film with a strong drama, conflict, the evolution of the hero. And the finale - it's the quintessence of pain, guilt, fear, retaliation.
Blogs and Websites
I have a paid subscription to the Republic, to follow the order of the events. Every morning, they send you a list of articles, and I choose to have something to read. The news that scientists have found the cause of Alzheimer's disease, I would prefer any political news.
The Telegram read "Wet the skin test», «SHBMNK», «test"And all channels of the laws and business. But the most useful for me - is the channel TJBecause they write about everything: memes, politics, the news of the day. I recently read the news, and we quickly made on it situativochku. But the main thing - TJ can be read without having to go to the site, and be aware of what is happening.
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