Just Keep Writing - Reporting II Article I

Just Keep Writing

Ben LaBerge

labe0091@d.umn.edu

            It can be difficult for student journalist or even a recently graduated writer to start out in their desired career. Things don’t look too bright as there seem to be no steady work available to writers with little to no experience under their belts. With this in mind, three working journalists gave their opinion on the matter and explained both their experiences which led them into their profession and gave advice to burgeoning journalists trying to break into the field. Hallie Rogers, an editor for the Duluth News website Perfect Duluth Day, John Lundy, a health correspondent for the Duluth News Tribune, and Ben Reeves, a senior editor at Game Informer Magazine were all happy to share their knowledge.

“My junior and senior years in college were in the School of Journalism at the University of Missouri-Columbia, with half of my classes in journalism and the other half in liberal arts.” Said John Lundy about his college experience. “I can't compare it to other routes, of course, but I think it was excellent preparation for newspaper journalism as it was practiced then. I wish I had made somewhat more meaningful choices among the half of my courses from liberal arts. "Advanced economics" probably would have been more useful but much less fun  than "Acting for non-majors." Early in my career, I wished I had stuck with the one photojournalism class that I dropped. In the long term, it probably hasn't made much difference.” Hallie Rogers also echoed that sentiment when talking about starting at Perfect Duluth Day, a website devoted to the more unusual side of Duluth News. “After making sure I had a writing class under my belt, I only had to read up about Duluth.” Rogers said, “I went on PDD and would spend hours just seeing what they had done in the past.” She went on to describe that it was necessary to learn as much as she could about both in order to tune her writing style to fit both that of the website and that of their reading audience. Both emphasized the need to get as much experience in their fields before putting themselves out there as writers trying to get careers.

But having experience isn’t the whole picture. Developing your skills both in writing and in personal commitment are important too. “I found my ability to drop whatever I was doing and work on the blog a great skill.” Said Rogers, “It's also important to have good knowledge of internet navigation when working for an online publication.” Rogers then said that knowing how to use social media and being able to create other web content to draw in readers are also valuable skills which companies find attractive in employees. “I recommend getting into the habit of writing every day.” Ben Reeves said, “Write what you want to be writing even if it's not going anywhere, which is hard.” Reeves states that persistent writing will keep you well-practiced and keeps you from losing your “writer’s voice”.

            With journalism jobs looking in short supply, the three did agree that the internet was a decent way to begin as a journalist in the modern digital era. “I certainly would suggest looking at online possibilities ahead of print journalism.” Said Lundy. “Someone who has a real appetite for print journalism ought to go for it. Jobs do still open up on occasion, but (they) should definitely have a fallback strategy.” “There are also a lot of sites that will take free articles, and you could always start your own blog on someone else's site. That would help you have something to point to when someone is looking at your work.” Said Reeves, who spoke on how many journalists get their start doing freelance and free blogging just to get their work out and seen. But Rogers warned not to rely on just one thing. “Don't pigeonhole yourself.” She said, “ Even though web based content is becoming more popular, you can't only focus on that.  Get experience online, in print, and anything else you can jump into.  Don't be afraid to be diverse.”

“Work is work,” Ben said as he finished his interview. “You have to motivate yourself to get things done in any job, this one is no different. Sometimes you don't feel like writing. What it comes down to is: can you overcome that and do it anyway?” That’s good advice for anyone new to the job market. Whether you are a student soon to graduate or a struggling youn journalist fresh on their feet, remember: just keep writing.