(She/her)
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Reporter at Rant Magazine; a local youth magazine.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes, someone in my local area was giving it away on Freecycle. I used it twice pretending to myself that I was a modern day Woodward or Bernstein.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Rory Gilmore or Sabrina Spellman. They both knew they wanted to be journalists by their teens, worked on high school papers and both had a cheesy storyline involving a confidential source and a play on the Watergate Scandal.
What I admire most about them though is the fact that they stood their ground when other people told them they weren't meant to be journalists because they didn't have a spark; they weren't tough enough.
Sabrina was told that she wasn't good enough to work at a hip music 'zine (I think that's what 'the kids' call it) because she hadn't had enough life experience. Rory took an internship at Huntzberger Papers, owned by her boyfriend's father. Mr Huntzberger sat her down and told her that she just didn't have 'it'.
These were two women who could smell a story a mile away and could spin dry content like the repaving of a driveway into a class struggle epic. They protected their sources, kept to wordcounts and deadines, and stood by their stories, even if it revealed a truth that others did not like.
They were made to feel like they were bad at their jobs because they weren't edgy enough. Journalism to me is about truth and intergrity; it's about sharing positive developments like vaccines and same-sex marriage, as well as holding up a mirror to the world and trying to change it. They fought back and they won.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
I might have covered that in my essay on my favourite fictional journalists but in summary, I have wanted to be a journalist since I was 13 because I believe that journalism has the power to change the world for the better.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
#davidhameron is probably the funniest but the subject matter involves our Prime Minister in both bestiality and necrophilia, so that's terrible.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Email's always good and the best way to contact me. I turn my phone to silent during the working day because otherwise my Facebook feed distracts me. I'll admit that I don't check LinkedIn regularly either.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Microsoft Word for writing and saving my pieces.
Grammarly for spelling and grammar check.
Wordpress for hosting my blog.
Google News Alerts to get the latest news immediately sent to my phone.
WikiCommons for finding copyright-free pictures.
Pixlr for photo editing.
Nuzzel.com for combining the most-shared news on my social networks. It keeps all the news in one place and I don't get distracted by pictures of my friend's new baby.
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook for personal use because everyone I know has it.
Who do you wish followed you?
Probably Mark Zuckerberg. Although, Barack Obama's verified Twitter does follow me. I know you think I'm kidding but go check, I'll wait.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
I worked at a local youth magazine. I began as a reporter, did a brief stint as an agony aunt, presented the accompanying radio show and served as assistant editor.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Learn Shorthand. Write whenever you can. Stick in there.
If there isn't a school paper, try to set one up; tell your teacher that it will count towards their creative arts requirement.
Prepare your portfolio early; an online one is easier.
Get PDFs (or if you're 'oldskool', print a physical copy) of online work; websites get overhauled and old content can get lost.
When's the best time to pitch you?
GMT: 09.00-17.00
EST: 04.00-12.00
PST: 01.00-09.00
What's your favorite drink?
Coffee; black, no sugar.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
You mean there's other places to be? Probably somewhere reading. My new year's resolution (shamelessly stolen from Zuckerberg) was to read two books a month in 2016.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
I enjoy the Huffington Post for lifestyle and specialist articles especially their LGBT section. For general news, I prefer the BBC and the Guardian.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.