What was your first job as a journalist?
Junior Reporter on the Surrey Mirror
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes. They make correcting things quite difficult - and they're rubbish for Twitter.
How is social media changing news?
It is making it more instant but has completely blurred the line between fact and opinion.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Tintin.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Finding out things people should know or want to know, putting it in the context they need to know and publishing it accessibly.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
By email.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
I don't have the characters to answer this here.
What's your favorite social network?
Instagram.
Who do you wish followed you?
Depends what I'm writing about.
Why did you become a journalist?
2010
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
Very briefly, writing sports opinion pieces.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
I once wrote a story about a goat being kidnapped and taken on a pub crawl. That was a highlight.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Read as much as possible and never stop asking questions. Also, embrace new technology.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Any time, but evening is preferable.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
A timely one; our newspaper front page had fallen through and someone came in and pitched a story about the council failing school kids
What's your favorite drink?
Black coffee or good whisky.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
On a plane.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The Monocle, The Rake, GQ.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That most of my time is spent smoking cigars, drinking whisky and eating chocolate in glamorous locations.
