Creative Writing for Product Management

The importance of storytelling - and how creative writing can help in your day job

As some of you may know, I write fantasy novels for a hobby. On the surface this may sound like it has nothing to do with software product management. We’re dealing with completely other worlds, right? But it turns out that in writing and publishing stories about occult mysteries in ancient Rome, I learnt a lot about product management. And I think there are lessons for you as well.

How did fantasy stories help my corporate career?

A bit about my author journey, for background. I started writing fanatsy back in 2015. It was one of those post-retirement-bucket-list things, until it wasn’t. One night my wife complained she has nothing left to read, I started writing a story that has been nagging me after she went to sleep, and four months later I had a completed first draft.

I looked at the publishing industry (and if you think waterfall software development sucks, you have no idea how bad it can get!), and decided that I could do that stuff. Somewhat of a short and sharp learning curve later (read: mistakes were made) , I had a novel published and the second on the way.

I didn’t notice it at the time, but on reflection that had a profound impact on my professional career as well. I wanted to touch on how writing novels influenced and enhanced my corporate product management skills.

• Ice breaker
  “So you write books?” has come up in job interviews and around the workplace since I first put it up on my resume and LinkedIn profile. I hardly mention it, but people notice and bring it up, usually where small-talk or introductions are useful. Makes it easy to stand out from the crowd or find discussions with kindred spirits around lunch breaks.

• The power of editing
  There’s more to editing than spell-checking. Having learnt the hard way to self-edit at different levels — from message to language — made me much more sensitive to nuances in communications. From language and punctuation to designing a logical progression, the same tools apply to business writing whether short emails or long documents. Sharpening and clarifying a business email is just as important as anywhere else. (All credit to the professional editors who patiently pointed my shortcomings; external editors are important, but working with them over time teaches you to self-edit).

• The mind of the user
  I routinely go into the heads of multiple characters to understand their motivation, plan their arcs (changes in emotional states and growth in behaviour), and generally put myself in their shoes. In a story, I do it to create tension — but the same skills also apply in understanding and diffusing it in life. Do I even need to explain how critical this is for empathising and understanding users, customers, stakeholder, and others?

• Messaging
  In writing a scene you concentrate on conveying a feeling behind the descriptions of events. In writing a business communiqué you concentrate on a deeper message beyond conveying mere facts. There’s a lot of similarity, both in Product Design and Marketing where you have to enter the users’ heads to understand their goals (motivations) and speak in their language, and structuring the content to maximise impact of the key message.

• Understanding own creative process
  I’m about 75% pantser — I kinda know where I’m heading, but not always the fine print of how to get there. (For those not used to writing terms, that refers to “writing by the seat of your pants”; the alternative is “plotting” — planning the full novel ahead of writing). Understanding my process in writing novels has helped my create business presentations and whitepapers; from getting the initial content through polishing and restructuring to delivering a deeply meaningful message.

• Literary devices
  When my daughter brings me her English homework to analyse which literary devices the author employed, I tell her 🤷. But having a working knowledge and experience-based intuition in using the right device for the context (plus a desire, rather than fear, for getting creative) greatly enhances my capability to reach for the right analogy (or simile, or metaphor, or whatever the Eng Lit prof calls it). This is invaluable in crafting ways to convey meaning without repetition, whether in a presentation or coaching session. Every prouct manager and leader knows that sending a message isn’t a “one and done” proposition, but you have to keep trying in different ways until it comes across. Having the tools to do so creatively increases your repertoire and chances of success.

• Thick skin
  I’ve read the 1-star and 2-star reviews on my book, and I survived. Nothing you can say in a workplace-appropriate manner (and many NSFW expressions too) will get to me. Many workplaces try to foster a culture of “leave your ego at the door” (with differing levels of success), but nothing helps in that respect as publishing your art and learning to work with and learn from criticism.

• Marketing and sales
  Having written books and put them out there, even if you have a traditional publisher at your back, requires you to constantly marketing your books and yourself, to sell-without-selling, to optimise for changing market conditions. I got to study and experiment in this field from a position of deep emotional involvement, which drove my desire to learn (no throwing it at someone else). I can see how it impacted how I work with marketing and sales in a corporate environment, from undertanding the lingo to understanding concerns.

Writing novels and short stories, and then working with editors, publishing, and persevering with the hobby, has had an absolute positive effect on my life. Even though historical-fantasy is a far cry from software product development, my professional career has many creative elements. As both are large parts of my life, it’s not surprising that writing has affected many other aspects, career included.

If you’re into urban fantasy detective stories with an historical bent, check out my other blog (including free short stories and novels). Otherwise, next time I’ll provide an example of how using analogies and metaphors can change the way you and others think, and how it can impact your effectiveness as a product manager.