What was your first job as a journalist?
I was a medical columnist's ghost-writer.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes, I have, and I'm glad they're gone.
How is social media changing news?
It's speeding up the news cycle; journalists have to really jump to find and write breaking stories before they become stale.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Carl Kolchak
What does it mean to be a journalist?
A journalist is someone who has OCD about telling other people what's going on.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
I honestly can't stand the thing.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Email me something unique/new in biotech, infectious diseases or neurology research that hasn't been widely distributed yet.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
MS Office, BuzzSumo, Thesaurus.com, Google Docs
What's your favorite social network?
LinkedIn is the best social network for anyone in the writing game - I've made my most important editorial contacts there.
Who do you wish followed you?
Harlan Ellison.
Why did you become a journalist?
After being forced to leave med school in my second year - it was the next best thing.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
No, I did not.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
I did a great piece on the discrimination that LGBTQ still face when accessing healthcare for Healthline.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Choose a beat and then send at least five story pitches every day. Read about your beat whenever you're not writing or pitching.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Anytime
What's the best pitch you ever got?
I was tipped off about a revolutionary, new Parkinson's disease blood test.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
Every pitch regarding news that's way too old or way too general to make a unique story.
What's your favorite drink?
Scotch, neat.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Resting my aching fingers.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
I enjoy reading New Scientist.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That medical and biotech writing is a dry beat; I've come across news that has been life-changing for people.
