What was your first job as a journalist?
Working for the Driving Instructor's Association as Assistant Editor on their two publication - Driving, and Driving Instructor
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes, as a child. I'm old.
How is social media changing news?
It's muddying the water...
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Jack Parlabane, in Christopher Brookmyre novels.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
As a freelancer I have the flexibility to choose how I work, which helps fit around my family life. I'm very lucky, too, to love what I do.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
..can't think of one, but I'll ignore any news story/scandal that's got 'gate' tagged onto it. Lazy, lazy journalism.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Directly and honestly.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Mac iMac desktop with twin additional screens, a Macbook Air, MS Office... iPhone for social media images/dictaphone.
What's your favorite social network?
Instagram works visually, Twitter's rife with nastiness, but it has its uses, too. Facebook, I use more for family than work.
Who do you wish followed you?
I'm happy if anybody finds what I write interesting, fun, engaging, I don't care who it is, everyone matters.
Why did you become a journalist?
I had a knack for writing, and a passion for cars, and after a eureka moment at uni (studying Geography) I became a motoring journalist.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
No, I did a few things for the uni one, race reports for a friend who was also a student there.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
...the next one.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Find something you love and write about it. And marry well, because you might live a rich life, but you're unlikely to be rich doing this...
When's the best time to pitch you?
As a freelancer I'm never not contactable... If the pitch is good, I've always time to listen.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
I've been lucky enough to have invites to go all over the world to drive incredible cars and meet equally interesting and amazing people...
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
...I get plenty, most from people who have no concept of what I actually write, and who for.
What's your favorite drink?
Coffee, sparkling water, ginger beer, beer (lagers), rum and gin (not all at the same time - okay, sometimes at the same time).
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Driving, interviewing or out with my family and friends.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
I tend not to read car magazines, now, though I've always liked National Geographic, though the majority of my reading is novels.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That it's all messing about in supercars. I spend a lot of time driving the stuff everyone else does. They're more relevant, after all.
