What was your first job as a journalist?
Sports writer for my college newspaper! I really thought I wanted to write about sports. I have no idea why. I was very wrong.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Lord yes. And I miss them! What a satisfying clackety racket they made!
How is social media changing news?
We're getting news faster; but unfortunately it's coming so fast, inaccuracy is rampant.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Mikael Blomkvist from Stieg Larssen's Millennium trilogy--the original, mind you, not the ghostwritten continuations.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
For me, it means I have a duty to inform correctly, to sell dreams responsibly and ethically, and to research thoroughly.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
The importance of capitalizing each word in a hashtag has never been more critical than in SusanAlbumParty...
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
With enthusiasm! And with respect to my boundaries on topics I won't write supportively about, like ocean cruising.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
A laptop, my phone, my Canon when needed. And an old fashioned notebook and pen just in case.
What's your favorite social network?
Oh, I'm too old to admit it's TikTok, but it's TikTok. I love FoodTok--currently TiffinTok is my absolute obsession!
Who do you wish followed you?
A publisher who's interested in a Scandi romantic suspense trilogy set in Sweden and Denmark! Because I have one for you.
Why did you become a journalist?
I believe it's a travel writer's responsibility as global citizens to entice people to explore the world and learn about new cultures.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
I was a staff writer my junior year and editor my senior year. I won an award for my comedic column, "Whatever Happened to Ismene?"
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
My work for The Collector gives me great joy. I think they're such a fantastic publication and it was such a privilege to write for them.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Never stop writing. But write diversely, and read even more diversely than you write. The broadest minds will change the world.
When's the best time to pitch you?
I'm in the Netherlands, and love afternoon and evening pitches!
What's the best pitch you ever got?
I have enjoyed everything I have written, but I loved picking up an article on Forest City in Malaysia. What a rabbit hole that was!
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
I keep getting pitched for voice acting jobs on another network. I have never positioned myself as a voice actor.
What's your favorite drink?
I mostly drink ice water, but in the US I used to love Strawberry Vanilla Olipop and GT's Gingerade Kombucha, I miss them!
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Riding my bicycle, reading, knitting, going somewhere on a train or airplane!
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
I am a big music lover, so I enjoy Rolling Stone a lot; they really have branched out in the last decade, which I appreciate.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That travel writers only cover the Instagrammable sights and cities. I want to entice readers to look at the world more broadly!
